November 20, 2009
Nourished …
Each individual person in a community must be nourished in love. If not, he or she will sooner or later find him or herself in opposition to the life of the community and its demands of love and of forgiveness. These people then become like dead weights. They tend to pull the community down; they criticize decisions; they drain away joy.
- Jean Vanier, Community and Growth, p. 166
November 18, 2009
YS Student Newsletter #418
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Live Different: Use God’s Power
“Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.” (1 Peter 4:10-11)
It’s easy for us to walk around with the wrong idea of what Christianity is all about. We can get sidetracked into thinking Christianity is intended to make us better versions of ourselves — as if Jesus came and lived and died and lived again just to make me a little nicer and better at helping people.
That idea is wrong in two huge ways.
First, Christianity isn’t about us, at all. It’s about God. It’s about Him being praised through Jesus Christ and getting all the “glory and power for ever and ever.”
Second, Christianity isn’t about making us better. We’re not close enough to being good that getting better would help all that much. Nope, God wants us to do His work with His power, with His words, in His strength. God wants to be God through us — not for us to be good enough on our own to accomplish His mission.
Think: What are some ways God has asked you to serve Him with His gifts and His power? Would you say you’re using His power to serve other people? What does that look like?
Pray: Ask God to help you to use the gifts He has given you to serve others with His words and His strength.
Do: Talk to your parents or youth leader or mentor about what your spiritual gifts might be and how you could use them best to serve God by serving others.
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A Daily Devotional from PlanetWisdom.com, copyright 2009 Youth Specialties/Zondervan. Used by permission.
-Favorites at Play Joy Electric Review
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/music/reviews/2009/favoritesatplay-mini.html
-Everything is Different Shane and Shane Review
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/music/reviews/2009/everythingisdifferent-mini.html
In Tibet it is considered good manners to stick out your tongue at someone.
Even if you are on the right track, you will get run over if you just sit there. – Will Rogers
Four steps to achievement: Plan purposefully. Prepare prayerfully. Proceed positively. Pursue persistently. – William A. Ward
Q: What do you get when you cross a cocker spaniel, a poodle and a ghost?
A: Cockapoodleboo!
November 13, 2009
If the world were 100 people…
61 Asians, 12 Europeans, 8 North Americans, 5 South Americans and the Carribean, 13 Aficans, 1 Oceania
50 men, 50 women
47 live in an urban area, 9 are disabled
33 Christian, 18 Muslim, 14 Hindu, 16 are non-religious, 6 Buddhist, 13 practice other religions
43 live without basic sanitation, 18 live without an improved water source
6 people own 59% of the wealth of the entire community, 13 are hungry or malnourished
14 cant read, 7 are educated at a secondary level, 12 have a computer, 3 have internet connection
1 adult aged 15-49 has AIDS/HIV
If you keep your food in a refrigerator, your close in a closet, a roof over your head and you have a bed to sleep in you are wealthier than 75% of the world
If you have a bank account you are one of the 30 wealthiest people in the world, 18 struggle to live on less than $1 USD a day or less, 53 struggle to live on $2 USD a day or less
Bible Verses about Jesus’ Mission
Matthew 19:21, Luke 6:20, Matthew 4:23, Luke 2:10, Matthew 9:12, Mark 10:52, John 4:47
November 13, 2009
by Christopher Lyon from Planet Wisdom
“For you, O God, tested us; you refined us like silver. You brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs. You let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance.” (Psalm 66:10-12)
How do you deal with the undeniable reality of painful moments in your past when you are praising God? What’s the best approach? Should you pretend like those moments never happened? Is it impolite to bring them up in the middle of praising God for His goodness to you?
Right in the middle of this great psalm of praise to God, David reaches back to a painful time in Israel’s history — and says that God did it to them on purpose. He makes a choice to believe that God was responsible both for bringing them into that terrible season and bringing them out of it again.
Would a good God really “test” His people and use hard times to “refine us like silver”? Yes, He does — and the fact that He does is evidence that He is good and loving and powerful. David saw that God cared about His people too much not to use terrible circumstances to draw them into the place they would find the most meaningful and satisfying life — in closer relationship with Him.
Can we praise the God who takes us into and out of life’s most difficult times?
Think: Have you noticed that God has used some of the harder times of your life to draw you closer to Him? Do you believe the best life is lived in leaning more closely on God?
Pray: Ask God to help you to praise Him for being your good God even during the most difficult times of your life.
Do: Read Job’s shocking statement about this idea in Job 13:15, then listen in Hebrews 12:7-11 says about hard times and our Father’s loving discipline.
November 8, 2009
November 8, 2009
Minimum age: 14
Wear close toed shoes
December 4th, 6-:15-10pm (meet and pick up at the church)
Max 12 students, 3 leaders
Sign up required!!!
Consent for 2009 2010 Student (you only need to fill out one consent form in the 2009/2010 school year)
October 28, 2009
How powerful is the period on the end of this sentence? “I forgive you.” Your answer to that question will have buckets-full to do with the quality of your relationships for the rest of your life. Someone did wrong to you and it lead to a fight. You both agree they were wrong. They say “sorry.” You say, “It’s okay; I forgive you.” And it’s done forever, right? Well, not always. It takes a lot of self-control to let it stay finished, especially when the next fight comes around.
Today’s passage says love grows out of our ability to “cover over” an offense by letting it stay finished, by practicing powerful forgiveness, by keeping the vault closed. Friendships can break when the period at the end of “I forgive you.” doesn’t do its job.
Think: Why do you think even good friends sometimes have trouble not bringing up past hurts and sins again and again? Have you ever lost a friend because one or the other of you couldn’t let something go?
Pray: Ask God to help you to promote love in your friendships by covering over offenses with forgiveness and mercy when it is wise to do so.
Do: Pay attention this week for anyone who brings up offenses in a way that damages relationships.
(Used with permission from Youth Specialties.)
