Growth takes patience

One of the things I have found to be so difficult within the Christian life is that progress doesn't come over night.  For those of us trying to follow the way of Jesus, we want to live our lives according to his principles, but doing that seems so much easier to talk about than actually accomplish.

I say all that to tell you. This morning in doing my devotions, I read a passage of scripture that I have read countless times, and you have probably read or heard it preached about multiple times yourself.  This morning though God revealed to me something about this passage that I had never read before.  It comes out of Luke 8.  Jesus tells this story about a sower who sows seeds on the ground, and he talks about that these seeds fall on all sorts of different kinds of soil, four to be exact.  Then after telling the story he goes on to explain the parable to his disciples, and it was what he said about the good soil that stood out to me.

Here is what he says, "As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience"  For some reason, I don't remember reading that phrase, "bear fruit with patience."  That phrase should gives such encouragement to all of us. It takes time for the seeds to grow, and to begin to produce fruit in the way we want it to.  The same is true in your life and mine.  In order for us to look the way that God wants us to look it takes time and patience.  So don't be discouraged if you are trying your hardest to follow Christ, and sometimes it just doesn't come easily.  Be patient.  The Christian life is a marathon not a sprint.

Life Change Happens in Small Groups

One of our beliefs in youth is that true life change happens most effectively in small groups.  That is why we think every one of the students should join a small groups.  Small groups are a great place for you to get to know your leaders, and become close friends with other students.  For those of you who have never been in a small group here is what it is.  You and a few other students will either go over to one of the leaders house or you will meet at the church.  It generally goes on for about an hour.  At the beginning you just kind have a time where you talk and hang out with each other.  Then you will be doing a Bible study with the youth leader.  It becomes an environment where you are able to ask about life's tough questions.

I really hope you join a small group, and even if you don't fully understand what it is, Give it a try. I think you will have a good time, and you will grow closer to God because of it.  Check out the video below for a little more insight into small group.

Students+Church=Great Idea

In ministry and in life there are numerous people who have influence in our lives, and this next concept that I'm going to write about is not something that I invented on my own.  In fact my primary influence for this idea comes from a great mentor and friend of mine, this guy.  This means I can't take credit for this idea, but I am passionate about implementing this.

Like I stated in my last post, so often students connect and become heavily involved in youth ministry, but when they graduate and move off to college they slowly begin to abandon the faith their pastors tried so hard to instill into them.  One of the reasons I believe this happens is because students become connected to a youth group, but they never become connected to the church itself.  What happens then is as they get older and youth group goes away, students don't know where to turn.  They become lost in their spiritual life, because everything they knew was wrapped up in youth group.

This is why over the next few weeks we are going to work very heavily in connecting students to the church and not just the youth group.  Students are going to have the chance to help out with children's church, refreshment team, greeters, etc.  It is our belief here that connecting students to church is creating a foundation in their life that will last them far after they are graduate from high school.

Connecting students to the church ultimately does a few things.  First, it helps connect them to something bigger than themselves, and to be used by God to influence and serve others.  It also helps them grow and mature into strong men and women both socially and spiritually.  Finally, students are developing strong spiritual habits that will last them a lifetime.   

Connecting Students to the Gospel

For years there has been a problem in student ministry that has been so daunting that at times it seems almost impossible to overcome, and youth pastors have been coming up with idea after idea to try and solve this problem.  Youth groups work on having the coolest games, the best speakers, and the best lights.  They will do anything they can to try and resolve this problem, and I am not naive enough to think that I have resolved this problem by any means.  All I am trying to do is share what we at the Christ Community Church Youth Group are striving to do.  So please don't read the rest of this post as arrogance or as if I am trying to say other churches are not doing this very thing.  I simply am sharing our personal goals in order to combat this overwhelming problem.

The problem that youth groups have been facing for far too long is that students get connected and plugged into youth group, and they even become actively involved in youth groups.  Then as soon as they graduate and move off to college, they begin to abandon their faith.  This scenario always makes me think of Jesus teaching in Matthew 7:24-27 about having a solid foundation, and that is why our first step here is connecting students to the life changing message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  When seniors graduate from our youth group, our greatest desire is that they understand the fullness of who Jesus is and how the Gospel gets lived out in everyday life.  My prayer is that every student in our youth group develops an ever growing/ meaningful relationship with Jesus Christ.

It is my belief that in the 2000 years since Christ death and resurrection, He has been the one changing peoples lives.  That is why our focus here is going to be constantly pointing students back to Jesus, and this does two things.  First, it takes the responsibility out of our hands to change students' lives.  It is up to God and the student hearing the message.  The other thing is that when God begins to move and change students' hearts, He gets all the glory.  God becomes the one who gets the praise, and it cannot be accredited to anything that we have done in youth ministry.

It is my prayer that no one takes away what is said in this blog as harsh.  I just want to share our core vision here the Christ Community Youth group.  We desire for students' lives to be transformed forever, and we believe that only happens through the life changing message of Jesus Christ.