50 Perm Challenge

I have issued a challenge to our student ministry.  Will you accept the challenge?

The challenge is to have 50 youth on ONE Wednesday night.  If you are able to complete this challenge then I will perform a task that I have never performed before.

If the challenge is completed I will get a.... PERM!!!  (Tiffany is cringing right now!)

I will keep my hair long with the perm until my birthday when I get a haircut.

That day is May 2nd.  So that means that you have until then to have 50 youth at one time for "The Point" Service.

The students must be in middle school or high school.  They must all come on the same day, and they must stay for the entire service.

Are you up for the challenge?  I sure am!

Live Freely

2 Timothy 1:7 - For the Spirit of God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of STRENGTH, LOVE, AND SELF-CONTROL.  ESV - (Emphasis added)

We have been going through the series "More than a Golden Ticket".  We have to understand by accepting Christ our journey isn't over.  Two weeks ago we talked about how God has made us a new creation and what looks like.  Last week we talked about how we are now freed.

We are freed from death, sin, uniformity, condemnation, and fear.

We know that being freed FROM sin, that it doesn't give us the freedom TO sin.  Why act like you are owned by something when you were set free?

I want us to continue to focus on being freed from fear.  Those that were at the gathering were given a card with verse 2 Timothy 1:7.  We have extra cards for those that need it.  I want you all to contine to repeat the verse.  Now this isn't like a magic spell that if you repeat over and over you'll begin to see glitter and stars. 
We all need to remind ourselves that God has made us without fear.  We add fear.  Satan adds fear.  God never gave us fear. 

If you don't believe me, spend a day with a 15 month old baby (I have one if you can't find one).  Babies are some of the most fearless people I have ever met.

Yesterday Christopher Setters said something pretty profound.  He said "I just need to remember to STAY STRONG."  I love that!  For you to STAY STRONG you have to have an understanding that you were strong in the first place.

But Satan and others make us feel weak.  We compare our lives to others and feel incapable of doing what they do.  But God sees more in us even if we don't see anything in us.

Use this as you continue to spread the gospel.  It may seem intimidating, but we need to share the gospel with others.  This wonderful gift we have shouldn't be kept on a shelf.

Be strong!  Have faith in God!  Know that He will never leave you!

New Creation

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV

Currently we are going through our new series "More Than a Golden Ticket". We know that our ultimate destination and desire is to one day be in the presence of our Father in Heaven. But many times I hear people say "but now what?". "By accepting Christ as my personal Lord and Savior and being justified through His sacrifice, does that mean I am done?"

Certainly not!

As I said this past Wednesday my hope is that 3 things will happen through this series...

1. You will begin to understand that you are not even close to being done with your Christian growth and journey.

2. You will fully comprehend the wonderful gift of grace that God has given to you through His Son.

3. You will see the NECESSITY of sharing the Gospel to everyone you meet.

We can think of thousands of reasons why we don't share the gospel but with others, but really there is only one thing stopping us... and that's us.

The first week we talked about how we are a new creation. We use the example of baptism to represent the death of our old selves and the birth of a new creation.

We are not just an improvement of our former selves. By uniting with Christ, we become something completely different than we once were. Sometimes we treat Christianity as a head start. Like there is a race and by being a Christian you get to start further down the road than everyone else. Its not that at all. The Bible tells us that the old is gone.

We still sin... we still mess up... but our God is a great God. He is greater than all of our problems, issues, and sin.

I want you all to think about this as you go through your week. God has given you a new life. Don't live like the old one! We were made a new creation by the Ultimate Creator.

So... how are you going to live like you are a new creation this week? You may need to let go of your old life. Pray for God to use you in your school, workplace, and home.

If you have a story where you were given the choice, and you chose to live as a new creation this week, share it with me at oakridge.youth@hotmail.com. Your story may be shared or used to help others throughout the week.

Don't EVER limit what God can do in your life.