Christmas is over....is the giving?

Yesterday I got to teach at "Big People Church". This is a much different type of teaching for me. Usually I teach Jr. High and High School students using games, hands on activities, skits, and whatever else. This is how students generally learn. For whatever reason, adults like to sit quietly and listen to someone though. So, I decided to mix things up a bit. We used music, art, story, and then of course some quiet listening time. :)

Anyhow, I taught about giving. This was probably a pretty daring thing to teach on being it was only my second Big People sermon. God put it on my heart though-so I did it. That being said, I thought I'd post some notes on the sermon for those of you who'd like a review or who weren't able to make it.

The first part of the sermon won't work well in note form but I'll do my best to explain it to you. A former student of mine made two awesome canvas paintings during a song that was played. The first painting was of Mary and Joseph in the stable. The second painting was of Joseph outside of the stable crying out to God. Right after this we read a script called Joseph's Prayer by Max Lucado. It is a passionate plea to God for things to be different. In the end though, he thanks God for the stable and the inn-keeper and remembers that things could be much worse.

I've got to wonder if Joseph had a point though. Shouldn't God have come into the world in a more glamorous way? Well all know that He could have come in a different way, but I can also see a million reasons that He came the way He did. One of those is to show us what giving is all about.

You see, at Christmas time giving is on our minds. Unfortunately, because of how business has turned Christmas into a consumer holiday-spending is also on our minds. I'm not sure that this is what giving is supposed to look like though. Now, don't get me wrong-there is nothing wrong with spending money on other people. But it seems to me that we only do this around Christmas. I think the Bible paints a pretty great picture at what giving is supposed to look like.

Just take a look at the Christmas story in Luke 2. We get to see that Mary and Joseph were given a stable to have a baby in. Now, this isn't a great place to give birth by any means. But isn't it better than being on the streets? Tradition and oral history tells us that an inn-keeper didn't have any spots for Mary and Joseph, but rather than sending them away, he gave them this stable instead. What a great Christmas gift! (Not exactly the type of gift we're used to though, right?)
If you are a father, imagine watching your wife give birth in a barn. If you are a mother-imagine GIVING birth in a barn! Pleasant? Probably not. Better than the streets? Absolutely!

Now take a look at Mark 12. You've got this woman at the temple who puts two small coins into the offering while others are placing much more. Jesus points this out though and says to his disciples that this woman gave MORE than those around her because she gave what she had as opposed to giving out of her wealth!
Have you ever been in a situation when you wished that you could give but you just didn't feel like you had enough? Maybe it wasn't enough money, but maybe it wasn't enough time or patience or even talents. I think Mark 12 paints a picture of how wrong that is. Don't wait around until you have more. Be like this woman and give what you have NOW. She didn't wait to make more money before she put it in the offering, she just gave what she had when she had it.

I had a buddy in college who grew up in an extremely wealthy family. One semester he decided that God was calling him on a 6 month mission trip. This trip was going to be fairly expensive but those going were encouraged to ask for support from others to help pay their way. My buddy decided that he didn't want to call on strangers to pay his way because his parents could afford this many times over. One afternoon he called his father and told him what was going on. His fathers response shocked me-"Son, I give my 10% on the first Sunday of every year. I have nothing left to give to this sort of thing."
You see, his dad missed it. He missed God's call to give what you have. He thought 10% was "enough". He missed an opportunity to send someone to spread God's word to a city in need. He missed what giving really is.

If you give your 10% and call it a day and ignore how God is calling you to give outside of that-you are missing it! God doesn't call us to just give 10% of what we make. He calls us to give what we have!

Open up to Matthew 25. Feed the hungry. Give water to the thirsty. Take in the homeless. Visit those who are sick or in prison. These are all calls upon our lives to give. Are you giving like this? If you give your 10% and assume that it is going towards those things-you are missing it.

We have a family in our church-two sisters. They are wonderful and I consider them heros. A year or so ago they took the classes to become foster parents. They now have 4 wonderful girls-1 year, 2 years, 11 years, and 17 years. They have a small house. The girls share rooms, the living room is small and packed out with furniture so everyone has places to sit. One sister even recently moved into a different house so the girls would have more room. These two sisters get it. They get what giving is. They love these 4 girls with all their hearts. They are living the call to give what you have.

You see, we get to serve a God who gave everything He had for us. In return-all He asks of us is the same-to give what we have. God doesn't ask us to come up with more than what we have. He just asks us to be ready to give what we have.

In Luke 12, Jesus makes a bold statement. He tells his disciples to sell their possessions and give to the poor. Do you think you could do that? I know it would be extremely challenging for me.

Christmas is over. I'm pleading with you today that your giving will not be over. Each one of you has something to give. Will you give it?

Pause

I think I've finally caught up on sleep from this weekend's retreat! That means it's time to blog about it!

We had an awesome time-if you weren't able to come you missed out on some cool stuff. (This is where you feel sad for not coming). Although we had a blast with our free time, I'll save those stories for later. I want to use this post to rewind and take a second look (or first look for those of you who didn't make it) at our three Pause sessions.

Session One: What are your Worries?
Josh led a great first session. He challenged the group to think hard about what they worry about and why they worry about it. Do you worry about school, sports, dating, work, family? Can you really put your finger on why you worry about those things. On top of all of that, how much time do you think you spend worrying? In the long run, doesn't worrying about everything just make you feel busy and stressed out all the time?

Matthew 6:25-34 puts worrying into a great deal of perspective for us. Check it out. I think it really challenges us to re-think what worrying is. For example, if you don't have the trendiest clothes-do you worry about it? What about having a great meal every night? I think we need to re-think our needs and this will help us re-think our worries!

Session Two: Look for Truth
I got a chance to lead this session and loved doing it. It is one of my favorite topics. During this session I challenged the students to think of worry in a new way. I challenged them to realize that we simply cannot worry about things that have already happened! You only worry about things that might happen (or not happen).

Instead of thinking about the possible or potential, I challenged the students to think about the truth. Now I'm not talking about things that are true or real. I'm talking about truth. Check out John 14:6 to find out what truth is. It is Christ. Christ is truth.

I really believe that God calls us to seek truth, not seek worry. James 1:17 tells us that every good and perfect thing comes from God. Have you ever thought of how many things this contains? Think of all the good and perfect things in this world. Think of love, creation of new life, the billion shades of green during the spring! God has given us so many good, perfect things. God is showing us truth through this. Do you ever pause to recognize that.

Have times changed? At one point God came to Moses in a burning bush (that wasn't burning down-odd huh?). A lot of times we assume that God doesn't show us His presence and His truth like this anymore. I think He does. I just think that we don't pause to recognize it.

More often than not I think we pause to recognize things that either haven't happened yet (worry) or things that are real rather than true. For instance, families splitting up is real-but is it truth? Cancer destroying a loved one's life is real-but is it truth? I wonder if we pause to often to worry about stress about things, but we forget to pause to recognize God's truth throughout this world.

After Session Two we gave the students three chances to pause to recognize God's truth. We challenged them at each Pause to really look for God. We stressed that God was already there. You do not have to bring God somewhere. Click here to read more about that.

Our Pause locations were at Lake Springfield, White Oaks Mall, and a small park where we played kickball. At all of those places students really began to see that if you simple take the time to pause, to stop worrying and stressing, and to truly look for God you will find Him in loads of ways.

Here are some of the ways students said they saw God:

• The beautiful reflection of the sun on the lake
• The billions of leaves on the forest floor
• God's beautiful creation of animals in the forest
• An elderly couple holding hands as they walked through the mall
• A child's smile as he road on the carousel
• A newly engaged couple shopping for wedding bands
• A Kenyan man selling hand-made goods for a non-for-profit ministry
• A group of friends having fun at the park
• A friendly game of kickball
• Cheering on your friends even when they stink at the game
• Ayla kicking the game winning home-run
• New friendships forming at the park

Yea-all of those things are true. All of those things are free of stress and worry. All of those things reflect the truth of God-they reflect the good and perfect things God has created! I was so impressed with the students' ability to find God in those things.

Session Three: Love
This last session was the challenge session. How do we get ourselves to Pause? What do we do to Pause? Because here's the deal-we don't have a youth retreat every weekend that forces us to pause! We have real lives. We have school. We have work. The challenge during this session was this: Love God and love your neighbors.

You see, when we pause and recognize that God is truth and recognize that His truth exists all over the place we are loving Him-we are glorifying Him. It is the way that He has called us to live! Christ says in Matthew 22 that we are to love God and love our neighbors. This is how we are supposed to live. How do we do it? We pause. We recognize God is out there. We recognize that God is with us. We recognize that God has given us so many awesome truths. This is how we can love Him. This is how we can love our neighbors-show others the truth of God.

If you missed this weekend-you missed a great opportunity to Pause and see that God is truth. You haven't missed your chance though. God wants us to do this everyday. Take some time right now and pause. Take some time to recognize the truth that is right in front of you. Don't think you have the time? Trust me, you're wrong. At the retreat this weekend we paused for over three hours in one day. You have the time-just stop worrying about it.

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Get your Tassels Dirty

A few weeks ago at Youth Group we talked about putting your tassels on. Scroll down a bit and you can read the post about it. This week, we talked about the importance of getting those tassels dirty.

To get a true understanding of this we jumped back a couple thousand years to early Jewish schooling-Bet Sefer. Jewish students started school at about 6 years old. There first objective? Learn the Torah. Learn it so well in fact that you have the whole thing memorized. No biggy, right?

Wrong. The Torah is the first five books of the Bible-Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Students would generally have this memorized by age ten. If they were unable to do this, their Rabbi would tell them to leave to go and learn their family's trade. If they were able to memorize it, they were quizzed on how well they could understand and apply it. If they couldn't do that well, their Rabbi would tell them to go home and learn their family's trade. If they could do all of that though (which few could) their Rabbi would take them on to the next level of schooling-Bet Talmud.

What do you do at Bet Talmud? Nothing too crazy-you only memorize the rest of the Scriptures which, at this point, was through Malachi. Yea, that's the entire Old Testament, 39 books of the Bible! If you couldn't do it, you were told to go home and learn your family trade. If you could do it (and could understand and apply it) you became one of the Rabbi's disciples. Once you were a disciple your goal was to be like your Rabbi. (Remember that!)

This stage of education was called Bet Midrash. At this point, the only students who were able to be with the Rabbi were those who the Rabbi knew could do what he did. To those who could do what He did, the Rabbi would say "Come, follow me."

That is what the student would do. He would leave everything behind and follow his Rabbi wherever he went. So much so that by the end of each day, the students would literally be covered in dust that the Rabbi kicked up as he was walking. They were getting their tassels dirty.

Then comes Jesus. This is where it gets interesting. When Jesus went to call His disicples he went to a bunch of Jewish school failures. Check out Matthew 4:19. Look at what Jesus says to these Bet Sefer dropouts-"Come, follow me."

Now, I don't know about you-but whenever I've failed I would do just about anything to have a second chance. Don't miss this-these guys were getting a second chance! Keep reading Matthew 4. It says that they left their nets and followed Him. They didn't take in their catch for the day first, they didn't say goodbye to their parents, they didn't pack their belongings. They followed Him. They became Jesus' disciples. They strived to be like Him. They covered themselves in the dust that Jesus kicked up as He walked. They got their tassels dirty.

Awesome, right? Yea, it really is. But what does that mean for us? Flip forward to Matthew 28:16-20. Jesus tells His disciples (those who are trying to be like Him) to go and make disciples of all nations.

In otherwords, go and tell all the other failures, the other sinners, the other no-names that I am here to give everyone a second chance-just like I gave you. Go and tell the world that if they so choose, they can follow me. They can learn from me. They can be like me. They can cover themselves in the dust from my feet as they follow me everywhere I go. They can get their tassles dirty.

Did you catch the other awesome thing? Scroll back up and check it out. A Rabbi would only say "Come, follow me" to those who he knew could be like him. He wouldn't say that to anyone who he knew didn't have that potential. Jesus has told us to come and follow Him. He believes that you and I do have that potential to be like Him. He believes that you and I can be His disciples.

You see, disciples would do anything to follow their Rabbi. They'd go wherever He went. They never wanted to leave his side. They wanted to show their Rabbi that they could be like him. Christ has called you to do the same. Are you following Him everywhere He goes? Are you doing everything you can to be like Him? At the end of each day are you covered in the dust from His feet? Are your tassles dirty?

(Enjoy the historical stuff in here? Check out Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell).

Book List

This post is short and sweet. These are books you must read.

Forgotten God-Francis Chan
Wild Goose Chase-Mark Batterson
In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day-Mark Batterson
A Million Miles in a Thousand Years-Donald Miller
Velvet Elvis-Rob Bell
Sex God-Rob Bell
Jesus Wants to Save Christians-Rob Bell

I have many more that I want to recommend, but I haven't finished reading them yet. I'll get back to you and let you know after I've finished.

Who would you invite over for dinner?

After the high school left the Great Pumpkin Chase last night I got to hear an awesome story. Larry and Donna (the family whose house we were at) told me how they became Christians. You see, it wasn't until about 30 years ago or so that they believed in God. In fact, they actually made fun of "the people that went to church". It was just a waste of time to them.

Then Donna got sick. Not flu sick though. We're talking the type of sick that is supposed to kill you. Seriously, she "shouldn't" be alive today. While she was sick was when they cried out to God for the first time. They told me that even though they hadn't ever believed in God before, they knew that someone or something was with them during that crazy time. They knew that someone had saved Donna's life. (We're not talking a doctor though). They knew this wasn't by chance.

Last night, after the chase was over, we had the students find a couple people and share with them their answer to this question: If you could have anyone over to your house for dinner (dead or alive) who would it be and why? We got some pretty good responses. Most of the responses though were dead people.

You see, there is something about seeing someone that we physically cannot see that intrigues us. Maybe it is a loved one that has past away, a former president or someone else famous, a writer whose works you love to read-regardless there is something almost mysterious about thinking about sitting down with them in the flesh. Have you ever felt that way about Jesus, though?

I know I have. I would absolutely love to sit down with Jesus. I have about a million things that I'd love to ask Him, but I'd also like to just listen to His stories in person. As I sit here writing this, I can even imagine Him reading the Bible like it is a story to me and a group of others. On the flip side, there are so many times when I wish He were standing next to me to give me the answers, tell me to not do something, or even push me to make the right decision. Sometimes I feel like life would be so much easier if He were with me in the flesh.

Then I read this. I hope you'll click and read that too. It's a beautiful passage where Jesus is telling the disciples that it is better that He is not here in the flesh. It is better that we only feel His presence through the Holy Spirit rather than having Him next to us, having Him with us in the flesh at dinner.

You see, Larry and Donna felt the presence of God when she was sick. If you were to ask them today, they'd tell you that they didn't deserve for God to save them. They ignored him for so many years, only for Him to come knocking on their door asking to have dinner with them when they cried out to Him. God is good.

Even though Jesus is not with us in the flesh, He is with us. You can have Him over for dinner. You can sit with Him. All you have to do is invite Him. He'll come to you through the Holy Spirit.

Not sold that Jesus and the Holy Spirit are one?
John 14:6-I am the way, and the truth, and the life....
John 16:13-But when He, the spirit of truth comes....

Inviting Jesus over for dinner doesn't just have to be the answer to a stupid mixer game. You really can invite Him over. Will you?

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Put your tassels on.

We asked the students last this question: what do tassels have to do with Jesus. I'll say this-we got some creative answers. One group of girls even came pretty close to the "right" answer. So what do tassels have to do with Jesus?

Check out this series of connections in the Bible:

• Numbers 15: 37-41 God tells Moses to have the Israelites attach tassels to edge of their garments to remember to live by His commands.
• Malachi 4:2 A prophecy is made about the healing power of Jesus, specifically the healing in His wings.
• Luke 8:43-48 A woman touches the edge of Jesus' cloak and is healed.

Now if you are reading out of an English translation (which I'm sure everyone is) you probably won't see the connections. However, if you looked at the Hebrew and Greek you definitely would!

You see, the Hebrew word used for tassels was Kanaaf. This was also the Hebrew word used for wings. Check out Numbers and Malachi again. In Numbers, God tells Moses to put Kanaaf on the edge of his cloak; in Malachi it is prophesied that Jesus will have healing power in His Kanaaf. Then in Luke Jesus does have healing power in His Kanaaf. How do we know? Check out where the woman touched Jesus-the edge of His cloak. Where did God tell Moses the Kanaaf were to be placed? Oh, that's right-the edge of the cloak. Crazy connections indeed.

Check out the next thing though:

• Luke 8:48 Jesus tells the woman to go in peace.

This is crazy significant! That is, if we are defining peace the way it was intended to be defined. Every dictionary out there defines peace as the absense of conflict or a state of relaxation (this isn't verbatem, but whatever).

Rob Bell defines peace a bit differently though in his book Velvet Elvis. Now, this doesn't make it the right definition necessarily, but it does put Jesus' statement of "Go in peace." in a whole new light.

After reading his book this is how I'm going to sum up peace from now on:
Rather than the absense of something or a state or relaxation I'm going to define peace as the presense and goodness of God, living the way God made me to live, and the relentless pursuit of Christ. It puts "Go in peace." a whole new way for me.

Rather than Jesus saying to this woman, "Go and do not be in conflict with others." I feel like He was saying "Go, and live the way that God commands of you."

Remember what those tassels were to remind people of? They were meant to remind you to live the way that God commands. (Numbers 15) How's that? Knowing the presense of God, living the way He made you to be, and relentlessly pursuing Him.

Maybe Jesus was looking at that woman and telling her, "Put your tassels on."

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Truth

John 14:6-I am the way, the TRUTH, and the life...

This Sunday we took a look at what it means for Christ to be the truth. With that, you have to ask yourself what truth really is. I shared with the students that when I get a sense of awe, I see truth.
For instance, when I see a huge purple harvest moon, the love of a couple reciting their vows, a new life coming into the world-yea,
those things put me in a sense of awe. Those things show me truth. Those things show me Jesus.
These feelings really help me know that there is something bigger out there, something that holds this whole world together. I know that God is there when I'm in awe.
Kavod is Hebrew for the 'weight or significance of God'. Rob Bell puts it this way: God is heavy; so heavy, in fact, that we cannot take Him anywhere. Bell argues that God is already there. I agree. As Christians, we often feel that it is our job to take God to people who don't know Him yet. This Sunday I challenged the students to change their way of thinking on that. Rather than trying to take God (remember-He's heavy), we need to be showing people that God is already there. How do we do it? Show them truth! Help them to get that sense of awe that shows you without a shadow of a doubt that there is something bigger out there holding it all together!
As Christians we need to be looking for God everywhere. It's our job to recognize God where others cannot seem to see Him. Genesis 28:10-17 and Exodus 3 are great example of this. Check it out.
In order to do this, I told the students they have got to get uncomfortable and go places where it is hard to see God. Once they are there, they have to point out truth. They have to point out Jesus. If you check out the pictures along the side of this post you'll see some ways that the students can get involved in our community. They can literally go to these places and point out truth to people who are there. They can go and show people Jesus!
We've already had 10 students sign up to go to these missions to give people a taste of John 14:6. We're challenging all of them to do it though. Will you go to these places? Will you go to other places and help people to see truth, to see Jesus? I hope you will.

I cannot take God anywhere. He's already there. It's time to show people that.
Where do you see truth? Where do you see Jesus. Tell someone.
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Which came first-the chicken, or the yoke?

The chicken came first. Without the chicken, there is no yoke. Oh, and the chicken is a Rabbi. Are you following?

Here are a couple things to know:

• The Bible is difficult-read Joshua 6, Ephesians 5, and loads of other passages. After you've read them, actually think about them. Innocent people dying? God telling people to kill? The roles of a husband and a wife in a marriage? Yea, the Bible is difficult. Not to mention that many people take the Bible out of context to prove their point. Did I mention that it is rather easy to take the Bible out of context? Think about the cults, crazy extremist religious groups, and racially motivated criminals that have used the Bible to "prove" their point. Yup, the Bible is difficult.
• A Rabbi's job was to study the Torah, meditate over it's words, and pray to God that He would give him the guidance and meaning of what he was reading. He was then to take this to his people and teach them. Remember, there was no printing press when Jesus was around. Not a lot of people had printed copies of scripture. (Shame-I have probably 20 Bibles in my office right now. Want one? Let me know). What a Rabbi interpreted from God's word was called his yoke. If you felt what a Rabbi had to say was right on, you'd follow him. If not, you'd follow another guy. I guess you could follow no-one though. Think they were called agnostics back then?
  
• If you failed at following the yoke of your Rabbi, he would tell you that you had abolished the Torah. If you succeeded he would tell you that you had fulfilled the Torah. Now remember, it isn't the Rabbi's words you are following. It is God's words that you are following. They just happen to be coming to you through the Rabbi who has interpreted them in a certain way. (Is it the right way though?)
  
• Jesus was a Rabbi. He was one of those new guys with a new yoke. New yokes were taken with a bit of skepticism at that time. Much like new churches can be today. Jesus had some pretty persuasive words about his yoke though. Check out Matthew 11:30. I'd be tempted to listen if someone told me it was easy! Anyhow, to be a Rabbi that was taken seriously, two other Rabbi's had to lay their hands on you. Jesus had hands laid on him by John the Baptist and who was that other guy? Oh yea, it was God's voice booming from heaven. Sweet. (Matthew 3: 13-17). Jesus was "accredited" if you will.
  
• Here is where it gets really interesting. Remember how I said that Rabbi's would tell their followers the abolished the Torah and fulfilled the Torah thing? Well, Jesus wanted to make sure that people didn't think He was on earth just to mess things up. So, he used their cultural language at the time and said something pretty comforting. Check it out: Matthew 5:17. It gets better though. Rabbi's also would tell their followers (the ones that had a really good grasp on living the way God desired) that they were allowed to bind and loose. (Look those words up for their Biblical context). In other words, they were allowed to try to decipher what scripture meant; specifically, what it meant to them. When a Rabbi thought that one of his followers was ready for this, he would tell them that they had the keys to the kingdom. Now, check out what Rabbi Jesus says in Matthew 16:19 or 18:18. He is giving His followers the authority to interpret scripture. He was giving them the authority to figure out what scripture meant to them! I'm one of those followers. I get to read God's words and try to figure them out.
  
• Here is where it gets hard. Never did Jesus tell us that what we interpret is right. When we read God's word we have to be willing to know that we can be wrong with what we think about it. It's called humility. We also have to constantly be seeking truth. What does it mean for me to love my wife the way Christ loves the church? (Ephesians 5) What was God's purpose in destroying the city of Jericho? (Joshua 6) Was Esther forced to sleep with the king in order save God's followers? Because that seems backwards. (Esther) Remember, the Bible is difficult. If we are going to seek the truth from it though, we must be reading it. We must be meditating over it. We must be asking God for it's meaning to us right here and right now.
  

People have gotten the Bible wrong. I've gotten the Bible wrong. I wish it wasn't that way, but it is. But I take hope in the fact that Jesus has given us the keys to the kingdom of Heaven. I'm following Christ's Yoke. The Bible is difficult. But if I'm going to follow God, I have to read it. If I'm going to follow God, I have to try and figure it out. If I'm going to follow God, I have to be willing to admit that I'm wrong. If I'm going to follow God, I have to earnestly pray that He'll help me interpret it in the way it was meant.

Are you really following the yoke of Christ? Are you really desiring the God show you truth in His word? Can you really say that Jesus has given you the keys to the kingdom of Heaven?

If you like what's in here-check out Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell. It'll make you think even more than this did.

Why?

I'd argue that it is pretty easy to share with other people that you have faith in our awesome God. Now I'm not saying that you are good at vocalizing it (maybe you are), but I think you are good at sharing it.
Think about some of the ways we share our faith with others:

• Faith related T-shirts
• WWJD Bracelets
• The fish decals for the trunk of your car
• Your attendance at church, youth group, FCA's and other Bible Studies

If you are a Christian teen, it is likely that the people around you know that you are a Christian. 1 Peter poses an interesting challenge though. Did you catch it? Here it is again.
1 Peter 3:15
But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.

Why do you have hope in Christ? What is your reason? Better yet, do you have a reason?

I'm going to challenge you to answer that question. Write it down. Be prepared not just to share your faith, but to share why you have faith.

Did you know that 25% of American teens don't pay any attention to faith related things. A lot of people call this type of person an Agnostic, or, a person who claims that they cannot have true knowledge about the existence of God (but does not deny that God might exist).

Are you sharing with these people that you have faith in God or are you giving them a reason to have faith in God? Know your reason(s). Share your reason(s).
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Awesome Night

Last night was awesome.
It all started at 4pm when the Jr. Highers showed up for their youth group. Last year we had about 5 kids each week. Now, I'm not a huge numbers guy, but we had 11 kids on the first night this year! It was awesome to see how excited these students were to be at youth group and how excited they were to hear from God.
Last night I posed this question to the students: How do you know that God is real? We had a great discussion which was based on the idea that because God wants a relationship with us, He has taken some pretty big steps to show us He is real. (Even though we aren't able to physically see him). -Romans 1:20
At 6pm High School youth group rolled around. We're doing a study this semester based on Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell. The whole premise for these students is to rethink their faith. Now, I'm not asking them to rethink having faith-instead I'm challenging them to make their faith in God their own. Make it a legit relationship, rather than just words.
We talked last night about how real faith is like jumping on a trampoline. There are a lot of ways we tied this in, but my favorite was the idea of joy. Jumping on a trampoline always seems to bring great joy to whoever is jumping. Faith in God should have this same effect.
Not only that, when people see someone jumping on a trampoline there seems to be this unstoppable desire to get on and jump with them. Shouldn't we have that same reaction when we see someone living the way Christ desires us.
As the night went on, the students got into small groups and then came back together as a large group to worship. It was great. Ethan did a great job leading the rest of the students. What was really great though is what happened behind the scenes. While the group was singing, Alaina came up to me and told me she wanted to start jumping. (Neat how she tied it in with the message). She shared with me that she wasn't a Christian but really was ready to be. It was awesome to pray with her as she accepted Christ last night. Afterwords the rest of the students celebrated with her and they started praying with her (unprompted I might add). God was definitely glorified last night.

Yes, it was an awesome night.

Oh, and did I mention the Bears beat the Steelers?

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Can I have a definition, please?

Yesterday I put up a quote on Twitter from Francis Chan: "What would it look like to live exegetically?" This is a question that I had mulled over for a good part of my day. Honestly, it hurt my brain. I figured I should share this hurt with all 10 of my Twitter followers by passing the quote along to them. When I got home yesterday evening though, my wife Kendahl told me I shouldn't use such big words on Twitter. I responded by telling her that I used big words in hopes that people would go look them up and learn something new. Well, today's post is your chance to learn something. Today I am going to expand upon yesterday's Twitter post.

Exegesis:an attempt to discover the meaning of the text objectively, starting with the text and moving out from there.
Eisegesis: to import a subjective, preconceived meaning into the text.

There, you've learned something. You now know what two large and hard to pronounce words mean. OK, learned isn't the right word. You've read something. I'm one of those guys that thinks that in order to say you've "learned" something, you really need to be able to apply it somehow. Hopefully after this post, you'll be able to do that.

How do you apply those two big words? It's simple--kind of. I want to challenge you to live exegetically, not eisgetically. I want you to really think about whether you live your life based on what the Bible says (exegesis) or whether you live your life and then try to find tidbits in the Bible that match how you are already living (eisegesis).

Francis Chan takes this a bit further in his new book, The Forgotten God. He writes on the dangers of living eisegetically. You see, it's not that your lifestyle is bad, it's not that you are living unbiblically. Rather, it is that eventually, you are likely to take the Bible out of context in order to prove a point.

"The bottom line is that we can easily pursue just about any lifestyle we desire, then find Scriptures to show everyone it's alright to live that way." -Francis Chan

That's living eisegetically.

What would it look like if you lived your life exegetically? What would it look like if you started your every day with Scripture and lived based on what the text taught you? What would it look like if instead of using Scripture to prove your point, you let Scripture prove it's own point?

Think you can do it? It probably isn't as easy as you think. But who said life was easy?

Check these verses out:

• Matthew 22:37-39
• 1 John 3:16

Those two verses scream to me about living exegetically. Take the text from those passages and live them. You might even get some more insight by clicking here.

I hope you didn't just read something. I hope you learned something. Will you apply it?


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Getting things going again...

It's about stinking time. Youth group has officially kicked off. If you weren't here last night you missed an night of unorganized chaos. That isn't a bad thing though. Sometimes chaos is nice.

If you were hoping for my first blog post in a long time to be full of inspiring things, stop reading now. This is strictly informational today. It's all good information though, so if you want to read about some cool stuff coming up, please continue to enlighten yourself.

Cutting Edge-Grades 6-8

Each week we'll meet from 4-5:30pm. We'll be at the church unless we tell you otherwise.

Some cool events to look forward to:

• October 11-Jump for Joel
• October 25-Halloween costume bowling
• November 13/14/15-Fall Retreat
• November 22-Thanksgiving Dinner

Sunday Night Live-Grades 9-12

Each week we'll meet from 6-8pm. We'll be at the church unless we tell you otherwise.

Some cool events to look forward to:

• October 11-Jump for Joel
• November 1-The Great Pumpkin Chase
• November 13/14/15-Fall Retreat
• November 22-Thanksgiving Dinner

Keep checking back for more stuff.

• www.westernoaks.org/youth
• http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=6443542588
• http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=129196383072
• Or check us out on Twitter: wobcYouth
  

Inspiration

Last Sunday I led a sermon at Western Oaks about inspiration. You can listen to it here. (Listen carefully though as I talked way too fast!) The whole premise of the sermon, though, was that death brings life.

Think about it:

• Without food, you die. But to eat food, it first must die. Food's death brings you life.
• Many people have saved the physical lives of others, yet still lost theirs. Think of 9/11, any war, or another heroic act.
  
• Or in a completely different way, I once killed a cat (on accident) but its decaying and dead body gave the grass above it a huge burst of life.

Seriously, I think death always brings life. Always. Did you know though that death doesn't have to be physical. You've heard of it and I'm sure you've seen it. People dying to something. Maybe it is someone dying to their pride, schedule, or whatever. People are constantly dying to something. A lot of times these acts inspire others.
Here is something really interesting though. Inspiration means breathing life into something. So when you are inspired by something, you are given new life. On the flip side, the person who inspired you is dying.

Anyhow-listen to the sermon. It goes over all of this and I don't feel like typing it all. (And this will hopefully force you to listen to it).

I want to tell you about the death of a man though. This was a man whom I had never met, but had heard many stories about. This man was Samuel Cowan-the grandfather or one of the students in the youth group I lead.
I attended his funeral this morning. It was such a neat funeral. There were, of course, a lot of tears. It was interesting though because I had never seen so many smiles at a funeral before. Every single person smiled, laughed, and even had a good time. His death really touched a lot of people.
Even though I never met Sam, I know that he was one of those people who was constantly inspiring others. He was constantly dying to himself to give others life. Keep reading for a few examples that I learned this morning.

• Sam went to darn near every sporting event at Pleasant Plains-even when his grandchildren weren't playing in them.
• Sam loved to drive up and down the streets of Plains just to check in on everyone who lived there.
  
• Sam called his children on the phone almost every day. He had nine of them.
• Sam accepted Christ as a grown man while holding one of his daughters in his arms. His children still remember that day.

You see, Sam lived a life not for himself. Sam lived a life for others. Sam died everyday to give others life. Sam inspired.
Even though I didn't know Sam, I was sad for his death. I take joy in the fact, though, that even his physical death inspired others. It inspired others to try to live a life like him. You knew by the tears and the smiles at his funeral today.

Will you live a life of death? Will you live a life of inspiration? Or, will you live a life of living, a life lived only for you?

So you want to be a Youth Volunteer?

I heard you say that, right? That's what I thought. Here's the deal. The new "season", if you will, of youth ministry at Western Oaks is starting up here in the middle of September. Youth group always takes a bit of a break for the summer. We do less Sunday night hang outs, and more random weekly events. Once September hits though, we gear right back up. So it is really good timing that you are telling me that you're wanting to be a Youth Volunteer.
Oh, you want to know what being a Youth Volunteer is all about? That's simple. It's about being with students. It's about hanging out with them on Sunday nights. It is about investing time praying for them, chatting with them, and maybe even inviting one or two or twelve over for dinner once in a while (not required of course). :) It's about enjoying yourself. It's about having a good time. It's about building relationships. It's about forming bonds and connections. It's about ministering to students simply by living your life.
Don't just jump into this position though. It'll change your life. Only do this if you are ready for your life to be changed-changed in a great way. Only do this if you are willing to change the lives' of students, also in a great way.
Think you have what it takes to be a Youth Volunteer? Think you are ready to give up your Sunday evenings for the rest of the school year?

I think you are. So e-mail me and tell me you agree. youth@westernoaks.org

Garden of Eden

So I've been trying something new the past week or so. I've felt challenged to go back into the Old Testament and re-read many of the "typical Sunday School" stories. You know the ones that I mean. The stories that you hear over and over again during Sunday School as a little kid: David and Goliath, Jonah and the Whale, Jacob and Esau, Adam and Eve.
Now don't get me wrong. I think it is great that we've heard these stories so many times. It is important to read and re-read. This time though, I am really trying to grasp something from these stories that I've never grasped before. It is interesting that as I do this, God is revealing some really applicable stuff to me-new applications though. Thus, I figured I'd reveal it to all two of you who like to read my thoughts. So here we go.

First off, check out Genesis chapter 3.

After you've read that, think about what really stands out to you in the story. Was it the Serpent's craftiness? How about Adam's willingness to eat something he was told explicitly not to? Maybe it was simply the stupidity of Adam and Eve to listen to a stinking snake, which in turn got them kicked out of the Garden. I mean come on guys, it was PARADISE! How can you screw up that bad!?

I'm sure most of those things stuck out to you. They always have for me, at least. Last week when I re-read this story though a new point stuck out to me. One that I wished I would have payed attention to long ago.

Adam and Eve were tempted to eat the fruit not because of it's taste or beauty. They were tempted to eat the fruit because it would give them the knowledge of good and evil. Adam and Eve ate the fruit because they thought they were ready for a responsibility that God knew they were not ready for.
Think about that for a minute. Eating the fruit didn't just get them kicked out of the garden. Eating the fruit gave them a laundry list of responsibilities that, before they ate, they did not have! Look back at Genesis 3: 16-19. We're talking big time responsibility here. Eve would have some serious child birth issues now and Adam was going to have to take care of her through those times. Food was no longer just going to be all around them. Instead, thorns and thistles would be and they would have to tend the ground, plant their food, and be responsible for it while it grew. Oh, and did I mention that they were going to die now? This brings a whole new meaning for taking care of someone, because if you don't, they die. That's a pretty big responsibility!
Hey Adam and Eve, after you got kicked out of the Garden, did you still feel like you were ready to take on all these new responsibilities? Probably not. God knew that too. That's why he told you not to eat from that tree! Check out that picture! (Sure it's probably not accurate!) But look at what you walked away from because you wanted more responsibilities. What a joke!

It's easy for me to bash them though. I've never really taken on responsibilities that I wasn't ready for...?

Have you?

It's just better not to watch.

First Borat...Now Brüno

Another Vulgar Import
An article from David R. Smith at TheSource4YM.com

Homosexuality. Vulgarity. Profanity. Some more homosexuality. Mockery of Christianity. Coarse jokes. Even more homosexuality. Several drug references. Sex toys. And you guessed it: more homosexuality. Will kids pay to see this at theaters?

If Borat's success at the box office is any indicator, they will by the millions.

From the mind of Sacha Baron Cohen
The guy who brought us Borat in 2006 is back in theaters this week with another one of his alter egos, Brüno. Theses foul characters are the brainchild (or brain fart, depending on how you look at it) of Sacha Baron Cohen, a British comedian, who rose to fame in 2000 with his comedic Da Ali G Show. His shtick is based on "mockumentaries" where he interviews celebrities and politicians as an outlandish character of his choosing. By far, his two most famous personas were Borat and Brüno, hence the movie deals that have followed.

In spite of being fired for going too far on a Valentine's Day show in the early 90's, Cohen's career has been nothing short of sensational since his Ali G days. Using the popularity he garnered from the show as a launching pad, Cohen has gone on to star in Borat (2006), Talladega Nights (2006), and now Brüno (2009). He also provided the voice of Prince Julien in Madagascar (2005) and Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa (2008).

More recently, you may recall a mostly naked angel-guy falling into the lap of Eminem at the 2009 MTV Movie Awards. Yep, that was Cohen, dressed as Brüno, promoting his new film.

Brüno
In this movie, Cohen takes his "pseudo journalism" tactics to a whole new level. He comes to America as a homosexual fashionista in hopes of becoming "world famous." His ambition for fame drives him to attempt incredible feats he believes will bring him glory, going as far as adopting an African baby, instigating world peace, making a sex tap with former presidential hopeful Ron Paul, and eventually, even trying to go straight.

Throughout these miscellaneous (and failed) attempts at fame, viewers are assaulted with graphic scenes of sex - most of which are homosexual - and several other sorts of tasteless material. You can view the official trailer on YouTube; I'll spare you from the completely reviling red band trailer on the Brüno site.

Originally rated NC-17 by the Motion Picture Association of America, the film now carries an R Rating after several scenes were cut. In the movie's one act of decency, producers cut a scene featuring LaToya Jackson, given her brother's recent death.

You can read a thorough summary of the movie from Plugged-In Online here, but don't expect a movie review from The Source on this one; we're skipping it. However, early reviews of the movie are already in, claiming it's "more outrageous than Borat."

Great...that's just what our kids need.

Dealing with the woe of Brüno
There's a good chance that you will be asked about this movie if you're a parent or a youth worker. What will you say? What's your recommendation...and why? Here are just a couple of thoughts about how to deal with Brüno, and the reasons behind them.

1. Talk openly with teens about the movie. Most teens who want to see the movie realize they will need their parents' permission to see this flick, so the likelihood of them bringing it up is pretty good. When they do, simply ask them about the various elements found within the film, such as the "pervasive strong and crude sexual content, graphic nudity, and language" that gives the film its R rating. Gently ask teenagers if they can justify that sort of intake in light of the New Testament. They will likely say that they can watch the moral mayhem without being hindered, but we've already seen time and again that it's just not true.



2. Tell them you're going to skip it. Teens usually want to know what you'll do - and why! - even if they disagree. So, tell them that you've decided the content of the film doesn't match the values you have in place. Tell them exactly what your uneasiness is with the movie's content, and what sort of message you could potentially send to others by supporting it.



3. Strongly encourage your teens to do the same. Yeah, the film skirted the NC-17 rating, barely, but even though it is "only" rated R, there will be plenty of teens who view the movie this weekend (and the rest of summer). In my completely unscientific survey, I've asked a lot of students in the past few weeks (all "church kids" by the way) about whether or not they will see the film, and unfortunately, 38% of them have said yes. When asked why, their response was the typical, "Cause it looks funny." They need to hear from you what they should do, even if they disagree.

Cohen made millions off Borat, and he looks poised to make even more off Brüno. In your conversations with teenagers, try to help them understand that Hollywood has to constantly figure out new ways to get us to spend $9.50 at the theater...and as long as folks are willing to shell out cash for trash, the more encouraged they are to produce films that are trash.

There's something about fire...

At about 9pm tonight I jumped into the pool at Kendahl's parents' house. Afterwards I realized how poor of a decision I had made as it was only about 68 degrees outside. Rather than going inside though, I decided I would build a fire in their firepit instead. This was by far one of my best decisions of the week.

After I built the fire, Kendahl walked outside. She looked at me and asked what was wrong. It is funny how well she knows me. I generally only build fires if something is wrong or I have something important that I need to spend some serious time thinking about.

There is something about fire. I don't know if you get it or not, but I sure do. When I'm sitting in front of a fire, especially one outside, I can think so clearly. I love just contemplating as I look into the flames. I've had a lot on my mind today so having this fire was absolutely perfect.

After Kendahl went back inside I realized I had stopped thinking about all that was on my mind and had switched my thoughts to why I loved fire so much. I think I've figured it out.

I see God in fire. Oxymoron? I don't think so.

Exodus 2: God speaks to Moses in a burning bush.

Exodus 13:21-God led the Israelites through the night with a pillar of fire.

Ezekiel 22-God speaks of how fire purifies precious metals by getting rid of dross.

Numbers 31-God speaks of how fire cleans.

Acts 2: As the Holy Spirit came upon the people, tongues of fire rested upon them.

Those are just a few examples of fire in the Bible. Sure, there are plenty examples of how fire kills, how God uses fire to punish, and even the eternal flames of Hell. All things that aren't too pleasant to think about. But ask yourself this-didn't God create fire for those reasons as well.

I see God in fire. I see his creativity, his splendor, his majesty. I see his complexity and his calming nature.

I love fire because when I look into it, I can see God.

Guys Night....Yes.

Tonight was indeed a glorious night. It was guys night at youth group. Nothing against all you girls out there, but every once in a while we all need to split up. (Did I mention it was girls night too? Just at a different location). Anyhow, I just felt the need to give all of you out there who were unable to attend a breakdown of the festivities that occurred tonight.

1. We set two couches on fire. They burned quickly.
2. We played 2 intense games of handball. My team lost both. It was dumb.
3. We switched to Volleyball. My team lost 2/3. It was dumb.
4. We started a fire and grilled over it. Well kind of. By grilled I really mean we used a rake, a snow shovel, a garden hoe, and two machetes to "cook" items such as toaster strudels, cheese sticks, bacon, shrimp, and cinnabuns.

All in all it was a fantastic night. Getting to hang out with the guys can lead to awesome conversations and it always provides great stories to share afterward.

Girls-we have no clue what you did. Let us know by commenting on this blog. Don't give us too many details though-just the basic breakdown. :)

Check us out! (A post from FUGE)

Parents-I hope you are seeing this while your kids are still at FUGE. Right now I am sitting in a coffee shop with the rest of the adult leaders. We are getting ready to dig into a section of Exodus. You're kids have been learning about the faith that Moses had this week and we are studying it ourselves so we can have better conversations with them after their Bible studies.
Right now your kids are up in the mountain doing some team building rec activities. Some of them are climbing over a 15 foot wall, others are doing trust falls, and still others are log rolling as an entire team. They are having a great time.
Since none of you are here to see any of this though, I've decided to post some pictures so you can get some first hand sites of your students and leaders as they've had a blast throughout the week. So enjoy!

Here we go!
Sorry, moms...this is what your girls have done to their room =)

Heather made the big screen!


Seventies workout night...the idea of just dressing up seemed to out weigh the need to really look like the 70's. But I think we did an okay job? But really, What do I know, I wasn't there!
More 70's!
These are who you are trusting you kids with all week =)


Hanging out at night during free time! Up on top on Rattlesnake Peak. We (leaders) took a hike yesterday up to the top...it was beautiful. We will be taking your kids up on Friday morning. VERY early. You might want to pray for us.

Hope you enjoyed the pictures...I am sure that many more stories and pictures will come from your kids when they get home!!

5 Years Ago

It all started five years ago. I was dating this girl who volunteered with a Jr. High Youth group. She asked me if I'd like to come to the youth group with her to help out. Doing anything I could to impress her, I quickly agreed to come. I had a lot of fun that night-but I didn't have a job. There wasn't anything that I was told to do. I was just "there".
I remember leaving that night being slightly disappointed. I love doing things. I love having things assigned to me. I never have liked just being there. I told this girl as we drove away that I wished I would have had something to do. I also asked that if I came back again, if she could find a way to get me more involved. Her response to this shocked me. She flat out said no. She told me that the reason I was there wasn't to have something to do, it wasn't to be in charge, but that God wanted me there simply to be with the students.
This was a hard pill for me to swallow. I'm not sure if I agreed with her or not. Honestly, all I can remember is being so shocked that she told me no that I was a little upset. Now, 5 years later, I see just how important her words were.
In the past 5 years God has transformed me from that first time volunteer, to the full time youth leader in the same church. He has also transformed me from the guy who would do anything to impress that girl he was dating, to that girl's husband. A lot has changed in 5 years.
One thing hasn't changed though. God still has called me to this youth ministry for the same reason he called me 5 years ago. God wants me to be with the students. By "being with" these students, I am able to form true and deep relationships. I am able to minister to them. I am able to teach them. I am able to watch them grow spiritually. I am able to play a part in their lives. I am able to pray for them and with them. I am able to be with them.

If you've buzzed through the rest of this post-please slow down here!

I want you to know this. Being with students is the single hardest, yet most important job in a youth ministry. It is the job that all of the volunteers have accepted as their own. And it is the job that I struggled to understand when I first began to volunteer with the youth group.
So to all of my youth volunteers-Thank you. Thank you for being with the students. Thank you accepting God's call to minister to these youth. Your job, your "being with" these students, is the single most important part of this youth group.

Jesus chose them to be with Him. -Mark 3:14

Questioning Amelia Earhart

Last night we took the youth group to the drive in movie. I was pretty excited about it because we were going to see Night at the Smithsonian. Kendahl and I had just watched the first Night at the Museum a couple days earlier, so this was sure to be good. Indeed it was.
I remember a lot of funny quotes from the movie. One of my favorites: "My hair is actually currency in certain parts of Europe." -Colonel George Custer
What I remember more than funny quotes though was the lack of a quote. Well, the lack of speech really. Towards the end of the movie, Ben Stiller was standing outside of a plane next to Amelia Earhart. He had spent the majority of the movie by her side but they were too busy fighting to talk; let alone have a deep, meaningful conversation. I thought for sure that he would use this chance to ask the one question that everyone wants to know the answer to: Where did you crash!?
For those of you who don't know, Amelia Earhart crashed her plane during an attempted circumnavigational flight of the globe in 1937. She was never found. Now why in the world wouldn't Ben Stiller ask her!?
I'll tell you why. He was too amazed by her. He was amazed by her character, amazed by her beauty, and simply amazed by her face. Watch the movie and you will agree. Sure it sounds a bit ridiculous-I'm telling you that a grown man was awe struck by a wax statue that had come to life. But seriously, watch the movie.
Anyhow-think about this for a moment: have you ever been so awe struck by something that you simply could not say anything? Think again of a moment that you had prepared yourself for? You knew what questions you wanted to ask, you knew exactly what you wanted to say-but when you saw the person you were going to talk to, you were too awe struck to ask?
I heard a song the other day that talked about this exact topic. "Then I'll gaze upon the throne of the King, frozen in my steps. And all the questions that I swore I would ask, words just won't come yet." It is a story of standing at the feet of God. When this man gets there, he simply cannot speak as he is awe struck-yes, much like Ben Stiller is awe struck by Amelia Earhart, but on a different level.
Ever thought of something you've wanted to ask God? I'm sure you have. Here are some of the questions that I've had for God over the last 23 years: Where did the Dinosaurs go? How often did I frustrate you when I was on Earth? How do animals talk to each other? Do dogs go to heaven? Couldn't we have been all right without mosquitoes?
I have a pretty good feeling though, that when I get to heaven and am standing at the feet of God, that I will be too awe struck to ask any of these questions. Honestly, I don't think that the answer to these questions will even matter to me anymore. Much like the answer to "Where did you crash!?" did not matter to Ben Stiller. He just wanted to enjoy his moment with Amelia Earhart.
Take for instance when Jacob saw God: Genesis 28: 13, 16-17 "Then God was right before him, saying, "I am God, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac...Jacob woke up from his sleep. He said, "God is in this place—truly. And I didn't even know it!" He was terrified. He whispered in awe, "Incredible. Wonderful. Holy. This is God's House. This is the Gate of Heaven." He didn't question God, he described God.
Or look at Peter, James, and John when they were in the presence of God: Luke 9: 34-36 "As they found themselves buried in the cloud, they became deeply aware of God. Then there was a voice out of the cloud: "This is my Son, the Chosen! Listen to him." When the sound of the voice died away, they saw Jesus there alone. They were speechless." Peter, James, and John had nothing to say. There was no reason to speak, for seeing God made them speechless.
So take it in. Look for God. Don't worry so much about the questions you have for God. Don't worry about asking Amelia Earhart where she crashed. Just take in the moments where you can truly see God. Don't question, just stand there-speechless, and in awe. And if anything-take an example from Jacob-describe God.

Heaven without Christ

I've been reading a book called Crazy Love by Francis Chan for the past week or so. It is a great read designed to truly hurt your brain. It makes you think so hard that your brain physically hurts. Well, at least mine does. I love this type of book. It makes me reflect on my life, my walk with Christ, and the decisions that I've made and continue to make.

In chapter 6, he quotes a passage from God is the Gospel by John Piper. I want you to read what Piper had to say in his book. Then I'm going to challenge you to actually respond this this post. I want to see what you think about this. I want to see how this makes you feel. I want to see if this makes your brain physically hurt like it did mine.

"The critical question for our generation--and for every generation--is this: If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ were no there?" -John Piper

You better sign up.

Simple as that. You'd better sign up. We've got work to do in Springfield and we aren't doing it yet. Are you going to step up and help? www.westernoaks.org/youth-then click on SNL Summer Mission Trip. Do it.