Psalm 139

Lent is all about taking time to stop and examine our relationship with God. Having a relationship with God means that we ‘know’ God. And, for the record there is a difference in ‘knowing’ God and ‘knowing of’ God. Many of us, I would dare say, fall into that later category. We tend to think that having a good relationship with God is quite complicated. I don’t know why this notion exists. Yes, a relationship with God requires some work and intentional effort on our part … but doesn’t a relationship with anyone take effort? Or maybe it exists because we can’t just outright physically see or hear God when we ‘talk’ to God. Honestly, though, having a relationship with God is really quite simple. While God certainly is God and deserves that respect and reverence, I think it is okay to think of having a relationship with God as being just like having a relationship with your best friend, your parent, or your favorite teacher! And the even better news is that God desires a relationship with us. Scripture tells it. God designed us with a God shaped hole inside that can only be filled by this relationship! Nothing else can fill or satisfy that God shaped hole, by the way! It’s actually quite a cool thought … we were designed to have a relationship with God! God knows everything about us and loves us regardless! This is awesome news. Having a relationship with God requires that we make a commitment to God and we must trust God to see that commitment through. We must also show up and maintain regular contact with God (a.k.a. talk to God and thank God) … this simply means to pray and participate in worship. Also, we must be good listeners! Since we can’t outright hear God face to face, we must listen for God’s messages to us through other people and events, through reading Scripture, through nature, and through just about any other means God uses to reach us! Finally, having that relationship with God requires us to serve and love ALL others ALL the time! Psalm 139 is all about one person’s relationship with God – David’s! Pull out your Bible and read it or click here to read! In this Psalm, David comes to God being very open and honest and laying it all on the line! This beautiful poem shows us that God wants to have an intimate, serious relationship with us! Hopefully they are words that you can (or will be able to) identify with and make your own in your relationship with God! And the most excellent news is there is nothing we can do to screw this relationship up! There is no way, no how, no nothing that would ever make God stop loving us and desiring this relationship! Amen?!

Change the World: 3 Simple Rules!

Change the World: 3 Simple Rules! This past weekend at EYC was a change the world weekend and 30 hour famine kick-off! At Sr. EYC we talked about Christians who are currently changing the world like S. Truett Cathy (Chick-fil-A founder and foster parent), Dave Dravecky (baseball player who lost his arm/motivational speaker), and many more! Then we talked about an Anglican priest named John Wesley who also once changed the world! He was a priest in England in the 1700s and saw that people claimed to be Christians but it in no way changed the way they lived. Eventually John Wesley accidentally changed his world by beginning the "Methodist" traidtion in which he created a "method" for living a more Christian life. One piece of his "method" was that he offered 3 rules by which to live ones life! These rules completely apply to us today! 1. Do no harm. Yes, this does mean physically like with violence or stealing, or hurting others. But John Wesley probalbe also meant to think about the harm that our words, actiions, attitudes, and even Facebook/Twitter/Instagram posts can cause! 2. Do good! God looks for us to do 'more' than just our every day life! These acts of good can be easy - return the cart at the grocery store (or offer to do it for someone else), hold the door for people coming after you, recycle, pick up trash you see even if it isn't yours, listen to others, don't pass on gossip or walk away when others start to do it, pray for people you don't necessarily like, or just simply think before you act! 3. Stay in love with God. Perhaps most challenging for us in our busy lives as teenagers and adults is this 'rule'. However, it's relatively simple! To stay in love with God, just stay in touch with God! Notice God all around you (i.e. in a sunset or another person), give thanks to God (simply say thanks!), and pray ... lots! Also key in staying in love with God is getting to know God better! To do this, simply find the time to read and understand your Bible, go to a Bible study, or talk with your friends about Scripture! You can even paint, draw, or journal Scripture! This will help us to know why and how to love God better! Of course .... part of chaning the world is also DOING misisons! So we invite all of our 6th - 12th grade youth to be a hero to somebody else and do the 30 Hour Famine! Sign ups are happening now! There will be a famine central table in Tilson Hall weekly where youth and parents can sign up to help save the world from hunger! We will also continue sign ups at EYC over the next few weeks! Contact Matt or Jillianne with your speicific questions!

Psalm 103: Bloom and Grow

"Our days on earth are like grass, like wildflowers, we bloom and die. The wind blows and we are gone - as though we had never been here." --Psalm 103:15-16 I've been thinking a lot lately about blooming and growing and changing! Yesterday, I had to drive to South Carolina to vote (yes, we still have our house there and didn't change our residency to NC in time). As we drove down I-77, my husband and I were quite struck over and over at the beautiful, lush reds and yellows coming from the changing trees! It made me think of how quickly they change and then after one good rain or wind storm they are gone, leaving the somber empty twigs to sway in the col winter's wind. No doubt, though, they are quite lovely at their peak! We know based on the other Psalms we have explored so far this school year (in these emails) that David can be quite negative in the Psalms (though he always seems to be able to praise God through it). But, I'm not sure this is one of his crying out in misery kind of moments! There are so many awesomely positive topics mentioned in this Psalm (like forgiveness and redemption and healing and satisfaction) that it is almost like David is sharing what one commentary I read referred to as the "benefits package" of life with Christ. But I think we are simply a witness to an affectionate moment of David to God and that this Psalm is a reminder that God calls us to make every day count! After my driving experience yesterday with the trees, I was particularly drawn to verses 15 and 16 from Psalm 103. When I read them, I questioned David's inspiration! Was he looking at some blooming beauty or colorful scene as I saw yesterday when he wrote this Psalm? I don't know ... but I think David teaches us a great lesson in these words! Our life is much like a blooming plant or tree cycle: growing, reaching maturity, and then fading away. Think about it! We must learn and feed ourselves so as to have the most impact with our influence = the growing Our time on Earth is a blessing and can produce beauty = the bloom or peak color time Sharing what you've got today, not tomorrow so as to make your mark on the world and leave a legacy. Bottom line - we will all die one day = the fading away So, my advice from this Psalm is two-fold! First, make the most of each opportunity each day. The fact is we don't know if there will be a tomorrow or what that tomorrow will bring! For David, there was a lot of strife. For us, maybe or maybe not. Either way, the challenge is to bloom and grow each day; some days we will also have moments where we wither away! It's all a natural part of our growth cycle! Remember, the beauty that comes from a blooming flower or a fall tree couldn't come unless the withering process happened earlier! The same is true for us! Secondly, remember to stop and have those affectionate moments with God, just as David seems to do here! Those are the moments in which you will experience your peak and be your most beautiful!

Blessings, Gratefulness, and Pumpkins ... OH MY!

This week at Sr. high youth group, we're talking blessings and gratefulness! So here's a little piece to get us thinking ... Close your eyes and think of all your blessings. Was that hard? Yep, if you are like me, it is much easier to think of and ponder and get stressed out by the negative of our lives instead of doing the same with the positive. Here's a quick list of blessings for which we should be grateful; perhaps these were on your list above: life, relationships, gifts, talents and abilities, God's Word, clothing, shelter, transportation, work. The problem is, many of the items on this list can also bring us stress and anxiety (i.e. an argument with someone, not having the right clothes, things wrong with your house, things happening at your job, etc.). It is sometimes easier to focus on the negative than the positive. But, that's just the key to being grateful ... taking time to praise God and being thankful for everything, even our trials. As I've been researching and writing this week's EYC lesson, I've read a lot about blessings and gratefulness. But coming across this was a nice reminder of the call of God to us concerning gratefulness: The Father wants His children’s lives to be characterized by gratefulness. God's Word tells us that an appreciative attitude should be evident in our worship (Ps. 95:2-7; Col. 3:16), giving (2 Cor. 9:12), relationships (Phil. 1:1-3), and even the way we approach spiritual battles (1 Cor. 15:55-57). In other words, thankfulness to the Lord should permeate everything we do (Rom. 14:6). In the Scriptures, the Lord mandates our gratitude (1 Thess. 5:18). We’ll be looking more that these this week at Sr. EYC!! And, we’ll even be carving pumpkins around the theme of gratefulness. The bottom line - thankfulness should permeate everything we do! Realizing the extent of what we've been given, recognizing who we are because of our blessings and trials, and truly trusting that God is the source of our blessings are the keys to cultivating an attitude of gratitude. This is exactly what we want our students to do! So our challenge? Model true gratefulness for our youth! And, remember – “gratitude is formed once you realize what you have been given, who you are, and from whom all blessings flow.”

Psalm 4: Plans, Shmans ...

Last week when we caught up with David we learned he was fleeing for his life from his son, Absalom, who was trying to de-thrown David and start a coup (see 2 Kings 15 and 16). Yet in this time of distress, King David cried out to God and trusted that God would deliver him. Not much has changed in this Psalm. David is still in under great deal of stress and he continues to cry out to God (and even tries to offer his "enemies" some seriously good advice in this Psalm). We know from his story in 2 Kings that people were trying to ruin David's name and reputation! So, insert yourself into the Psalm here ... when have you been so desperate for God to intervene in your life? Have you ever felt like God wasn't listening to you, not hearing or answering your prayers in the way and time you want them answered? Were you being made fun of? Was someone gossiping about you? Did you feel like your parents were being unreasonable about something? Was some you knew sick and/or dying and not getting better? Who or what has tried to steal your joy? In this piece of Scripture, King David seems to be begging God to listen to him. Most of us can identify and know just how David is feeling – he is completely desperate for God to intervene and make it all better! But instead of complaining about his un-joyous situation, David then does something that is a good lesson for us to remember when we feel God isn't hearing us! He gets humble! First, David affirms that he knows God is in charge and that there is a plan! This example can be hard for us to swallow when we are sure God isn’t working fast enough or answering in ways we want! Nevertheless, it would do us good to always acknowledge and remember that God DOES have a plan and while it might not be how we would do it, the plan ultimately rocks! It can be as simple as saying in our prayers – God here is what I want or hope for but you are in charge and I’ll go with your plan! Or – God I just don’t get what you are doing in my life and I just need Your help to understand Your plan! Second, David makes a commitment that most of us don’t regularly consider. King David decides not to sin by letting his hurt and anger toward his enemies and a God who seems not to care get to him. It is really easy for us not to make that commitment. But then our hurt and anger take over. You see, the hurt and anger we store up inside will eventually consume us and take over our lives, completely separating us from God, if we don’t do something about it and if we don’t admit we aren’t in control! The bottom line? King David sets a great example for us all to remain joyful even when our situations aren’t full of joy! King David sends us a great reminder that God is in control and it’s not our about our timeline or way or doing things, but God’s! Amen?!

Psalm 3: Enemies, enemies, enemies!

EYC Weekly Devotion Psalm 3: 1-2God,! Look! Enemies past counting! Enemies sprouting like mushrooms, Mobs of them all around me, roaring their mockery: "Hah! No help for him from God!" 3-4 But you, God, shield me on all sides;You ground my feet, you lift my head high; With all my might I shout up to God, His answers thunder from the holy mountain.5-6 I stretch myself out. I sleep. Then I’m up again—rested, tall and steady, Fearless before the enemy mobs Coming at me from all sides. 7 Up, God! My God, help me! Slap their faces, First this cheek, then the other, Your fist hard in their teeth! 8 Real help comes from God. Your blessing clothes your people! Have you ever been stressed? Have you ever felt like negative thing after negative thing after negative thing was happening in your world? Heard the expression "when it rains it pours!"? Had a bad day or two or three? Have you ever wanted to just give up? Well at the time David wrote this Psalm, he was having a pretty bad day ( life, actually ...)! His own son, Absalom, was attempting a coup to de-thrown David as King of Israel! David was forced to flee for his life from his kingdom and home (see the full story in 2 Kings 15 and 16). We know from verses 1 and 2 of this Psalm that things were pretty bad for David. Things were so bad that he was probably feeling like he was about to die at the hands of his enemies! I don't know about you, but I've certainly had days where I thought I was going to "die" at the hands of my "enemies." You know, our "enemies" don't necessarily have to be people running after us trying to snatch our crown! Our "enemies" can be more metaphorical ... but still VERY real. For teens today, some of these "enemies" may include: *the failing of a test or struggling through a class. *judgement from our peers about our clothes, lives, and abilities (or perceived lack of abilities). *gossip, hatred, or jealousy and struggling to find where and how we fit in adults in our lives who just don't understand or have expectations that are too high and we feel are overly harsh, strict, and critical. *being challenged for time for ourselves and God because of schedules that are too full. *money (too much or lack thereof). *peer pressure to do things one may or may not want to do and explore. Regardless of what your "enemy" might be, the bottom line is we all have these fleeing moments of struggle, just like David. No one is exempt! At this point, I think David knew has two choices: he could give up and let his enemies win or he could persevere with God's help. And let's be honest, we all know what David was likely to choose ... SUCCESS!! After all, he clearly had the secret for being successful! How else could one slay a giant and wild animals, become king, and handle extreme adversity? David's secret to success was simply that he trusted God. David knew, without a shadow of a doubt that God is in charge and that God can "knock the teeth out" of our enemies! To close, I think it is pretty easy to insert ourselves into this Psalm of David! It teaches us two brilliant lessons! First, we are reminded that bad things do happen to good, strong people! Life is not always easy and there will be times of pain and suffering. Second, it's okay to have and feel negative emotions. But we also have to remember they are indicators of what is taking place in our inner world! This is much like the dashboard of our car indicating to us a problem in the engine. After seeing the light on, what would we do? Of course, we would tell our parents and take the car to a mechanic and fix the issue! So, in life, why not go to The Mechanic of our Hearts (a.k.a. God) with our negative emotions and struggles?! That is the example David sets for us in this Psalms. Further, being able to go to God is part of trusting God! After all, there is something very therapeutic about just talking about our "enemies," even if it is just crying our in prayer as David does in Psalm 3! So ... try it! Next time you feel overwhelmed, follow the example of David and cry out to God!

Welcome 6th graders!

Welcome to EYC 6th graders!