A Nod to My Brother

Props to Jon Libbon who is taking the Libbon family into the modeling world with his seller work for the Pitt Alumni Association. Now use some of the money you're bringing in to come visit your older brother and fam!

Resolve for Monday

Every Monday I'm going to post one of Jonathan Edwards resolutions. He penned these while still a very young man and used them to guide his life. What am I using to guide me, my family, my ministry???

36. Resolved, Never to speak evil of any, except I have some particular good call to it. Dec. 19, 1722. 

• God is in the business of taking the darkest situations and showing his glory to be far superior. I love that Edwards is willing to speak evil as long as there is a "articular good" to be had. 
• How do we guard are speech? Remember it's what comes out that counts. (Matthew 11)

Take The World...

 Lately I've been struck with the lyrics from an older hymn "Take The World But Give Me Jesus." The song was written by Fanny Crosby. Interesting point that Fanny's catalog of songs mark great joy in her savior despite the fact that she was completely blind since infancy. That fact makes the final verse very powerful...

 

Take the world, but give me Jesus,

All its joys are but a name;

But His love abideth ever,

Through eternal years the same.

Oh, the height and depth of mercy!

Oh, the length and breadth of love!

Oh, the fullness of redemption,

Pledge of endless life above!

Take the world, but give me Jesus,

Sweetest comfort of my soul;

With my Savior watching o’er me,

I can sing though billows roll.

Take the world, but give me Jesus,

Let me view His constant smile;

Then throughout my pilgrim journey

Light will cheer me all the while.

Take the world, but give me Jesus;

In His cross my trust shall be,

Till, with clearer, brighter vision,

Face to face my Lord I see.

Resolve for Monday

Every Monday I'm going to post one of Jonathan Edwards resolutions. He penned these while still a very young man and used them to guide his life. What am I using to guide me, my family, my ministry???

35. Resolved, Whenever I so much question whether I have done my duty, as that my quiet and calm is thereby disturbed, to set it down, and also how the question was resolved. Dec. 18, 1722

• One statement that infuriates me is the classic Christian response of "well I have a peace about it..." It will send me into the stratosphere of rants. Edward flips that when he doesn't have "quiet and calm" AFTER he did HIS DUTY. Then he pauses to examine how the question was resolved. Have you ever used the "I have a peace about it." line to avoid doing something hard? 
• I'm also reading a series of books that summarize Edwards thoughts on several subjects (you can find a link in the What I'm Reading section of this blog.) In the book on "The Good Life" the authors write this about Edwards view from his sermon "Charity Contrary to a Selfish Spirit" 

 "The happiest Christians are not those who manage to accomplish all of their personal goals. Rather, the happiest Christians are those who embrace what God wants for their lives. Thus the irony of faith reveals itself once again. Once does not become happy by liberating oneself from duty; one becomes happy by obeying and following the plans of the Lord, who in turn provides that happiness one naturally desires"

If you care to read Edwards exact sermon this is distilled from Edwards Works 8, 259

One Sentence

I've been coming across a lot of good articles lately. Here's a snip of one that's got my brain turning from Dave Kraft...

"Boothe Luce told Kennedy that Abraham Lincoln was defined by a single sentence. “He preserved the union and freed the slaves.” Franklin Roosevelt was defined by a single sentence. “He lifted us out of a great depression and helped us win a world war.”
 
Here is the rest of the article. 
What one sentence could be said about my life?

Kraft's book Leaders Who Last is excellent.

A Quiet Morning

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

My Life From 30,000 Feet

I realized earlier this week that I'd been posting a lot of fluff which is fine but just like too much sweets can make one sick. So here's a little update as to whats been going on in my life as of the past month or so.  Part of the underling reason for the fluff is that it is fall and we're launching a new semester in the youth ministry which has been great. Here's what we've been up to....

Basic, the middle school ministry at St. Andrews is off and running with a new middle school minister. Phillip Holladay is doing a great job in the new position. He's focusing on team and encouraging the students to own and grow their faith. With Phillip focusing on middle school it's freed me up to focus on our leadership teams and high school.

Impact is the high school ministry at St. Andrews. We got back to our weekly meetings after our summer small groups ended up. It's been great to hear all the ways Jesus moved over the summer. We're focusing right now on a new series we're calling H.A.B.I.T.S. it's something I picked up a little while ago but we're putting our own spin and flavor on it! So far it's been great and really challenging our group to grow. Also we're in the planning stages of a great fall retreat which will take place in November. We're going to call it Saturate.

Impact is rolling out several small groups including a High School Alpha course. Our small groups range from after school gatherings at church to before school breakfasts in a home close to one of the areas magnet schools. God's been good and provided us some great leaders who realize their dependency on Christ and ability to disciple students. One of those groups is an Alpha course. If you're not familiar with Alpha it's a short course on Christianity designed for new Christians and non believers. It's been fun seeing students challenged and new faces too.

One of our firm beliefs is that family is the primary place of discipleship for students. Basic and Impact should act like vitamins. If all you eat is vitamins you'll get sick so we really try to help parents with all we do. This weekend we've got  a group of fathers and sons heading down to Mayport Navy Base near Jacksonville to a surf spot called the Poles. It'll be a great weekend of camping and surfing as well as some quality father son time.  Here's some thoughts form last years trip.

I, unfortunately, won't be going on this years trip due to an injury I sustained about a month ago surfing. It's kind of hard to explain how but basically I tore my ACL in half. It's been a long road and will be as I'll be having surgery probably around Christmas or soon after to replace it. It's been a wonderful and humbling reminder that the ministry doesn't revolve around me.

All the above not to mention the greatest parts of being a husband and father as well as the excitement I have as our family's life group is going great.  I'm sure I'm forgetting something but on a whole that's my life from 30,000 feet.

Resolve for Monday

Every Monday I'm going to post one of Jonathan Edwards resolutions. He penned these while still a very young man and used them to guide his life. What am I using to guide me, my family, my ministry???

34. Resolved, In narrations, never to speak any thing but the pure and simple verity. 

• Do you speak to much when the truth (verity) can be simply stated? (See Proverbs 10:19)

Steve Wood on Lady Gaga

"I’ve watched her as one watches an accident at an intersection: fascinated with the sheer force of wreckage, powerless to affect any intervention, hopeful that someone will walk away unhurt."

~Steve Wood 

Rector of St. Andrews Church Mt. Pleasant SC

For the rest of his thoughts check out his blog at www.TreadingGrain.com 

High School Alpha : Explore

Next Monday Impact starts High School Alpha on Monday nights. It'll be a great time with great food and time to explore. Any high school student is welcome 6:30 on 9/13.

I Surveyed 1500 Youth and Found Out....

I've noticed a real concerning trend in Christian publishing lately, to be more specific in youth ministry publications.  It seems that everyone is taking surveys, polls, and samples then writing books about their results. I'm fine with getting down and dirty with the culture we minister within. In fact I'm even fine with plotting a course of action when needs arise. It's part of the missionary mandate of a youth minister to engage culture on an anthropological level however when that starts to change, water down, or destabilize the message of the gospel some big flags should show up.

I heard a youth minister say once that..."If I based my teaching off of what my kids wanted to hear half the time I'd be talking about the end times, half my time would be talking about sex, and the other half we'd be talking about sex in the end times."  I'd liken it to another analogy I heard recently about the fact that you don't walk into a waiting room of a doctors office to get diagnosed by the other ill patience around you. You go to talk to the doctor.

So let's keep orthodoxy central and live with an informed orthopraxy shall we?

On the Necessity of Words

There is wisdom in the dictum attributed to Saint Fancis of Assisi: "Preach the gospel at all times; when necessary, use words." The apostles of the early church, however, found words absolutely critical to their message.   

Youth Pastor: The Theology and Practice of Youth Ministry

by Houston Heflin 

 

Goals and Such...

This is my goal for next year or as soon as this stupid knee heals up...

Thanks http://human3rror.com/cool-dad/ for the pic and Gregontherun for the heads up.

Resolve for Monday

Every Monday I'm going to post one of Jonathan Edwards resolutions. He penned these while still a very young man and used them to guide his life. What am I using to guide me, my family, my ministry???


33. Resolved, To do always what I can towards making, maintaining, and preserving peace, when it can be done without an overbalancing detriment in other respects. Dec. 26, 1722. 

• "⁹"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God." (Mat 5:9) One of the things I admire about Edwards was his ability to prioritize clearly. As can be seen in his time in Northampton Edwards strove for peace yet was not afraid to rock the boat when it meant holding up God's glory.  How well do you prioritize kingdom aspects. 
• What kind of peace is he talking about. 
• How do we as the church make, maintain,  and preserve peace?  

My City

Thinking about doing a series of posts about the fravorite place of mine around the city I live in. Over all North Charleston has a bad rap yet there are some gems that I feel outshine the blemishes.

I see this guy every time I'm over by the outlet mall around rush hour without fail. He's kind of a staple. Maybe one day I'll stop because I'm sure he has a story to tell.

Dealing with Discouragment

The reasons are numerous, some valid others not but one thing I've found is that in ministry (and life) is that discouragement will come. The question isn't why the real question is when so like during hurricane season in my part of the kingdom you better be ready. Here's some things I've found that help me through those difficult moments.

• Call it for what it is. The old adage goes that if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck it's a good bet it's a duck. To recognize when discouragement washes over us like waves is critical to getting perspective on it. There have been numerous times I've felt it yet failed to call it out therefore I just sat and stewed. As I read through the book of Psalms I'm amazed at the gut level honesty the writers cry out to God. It gives me hope. 
• It's a season.  Discouragement is a season. It will pass. I'm encouraged by what the prophet Micha says in the book that holds his name..."...when I sit in darkness, the LORD will be a light to me." (Micha 7:8) It's a promise so know that it to will pass because God is faithful and just might have something to teach you in this season too.
• It's a body by design. One of the greatest treasures of following Christ is that it's not done by yourself. So who has your back? There's a short list of saints that I know I can call at any hour of the day or night and just ask for prayer and I know they will be on their face that very moment. The Father deisgned it that way. We rely on each other and bear with each other because Christ bore it all on our behalf. (Gal 6:2)
• Press in, and press on. For me it's a press in and press on approach. If i take an arrow from the enemy I can't let it take me out of the battle. So I look ahead with perspective and back up coming. I look for the next fight, look at the weakness in my armor where do i need a robust theology, what triggered it, and where are we going from here? The key for me is vision and courage. (note that dis-courage-ment is a removal of courage from a linguistic point of view)

HEBREWS 4:14-16

  ¹⁴Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. ¹⁵For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. ¹⁶ Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

*Something to remember is that discouragement is not depression, it's not disillusionment, and it's not despair. All of those are critical and it's my belief that the gospel is applied to all three in similar yet distinct ways. 

Photo used with permission.

Waves

Thanks to the hurricane 320 miles off the coast the surf is excellent. To give you some perspective the railing on the pier is 5'8'' .

I'll be riding the bench thanks to my knee.