Phillipians 4:8...
"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."
10 Tips for Dating cont'd...
9) Put real love first. Genuine love always respects the other person. It never says, "If you love me, you'll … " Real love says instead, "Since I care about you so much, I will respect you, treat you with kindness, and never ask you to do something you know or feel is wrong." This can be applied to any relationship (i.e. friends, family, bf/gf)
10) Declare a new beginning. If you think you've already given away too much, don't give up. The beauty of Christianity is that sins are forgiven and erased. You can start over today.
This wraps up our devotionals this week on purity. I hope you have taken some of these points to heart, and will ask God how He wants you to apply them to your own life. Like I mentioned the first day, we all struggle with different aspects of purity, and need to look "up" to the One who has all the answers we need to live a pure life in every way...you can do it...I believe in you guys:)
See you tomorrow night...come ready to be challenged!!
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Purity #3
Phillipians 4:8...
"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."
10 Tips for Dating cont'd...
7) Agree on your standards. Before you begin to go "further down the road" sexually with someone, talk about your standards. Don't dwell only on the negative—what you won't do. Hebrews 10:24 tells us to "encourage one another to outbursts of love and good deeds." Discuss ways your friendship can help each of you become a better person.
8 ) Don't always go it alone. Sure, you want to be alone with your guy-friend or lady-friend; that's only normal. Yet too much time alone can lead you to do things you'll regret later. Your relationship will be a lot healthier if you spend time with each other's families and friends.
Do you agree/disagree?
"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."
10 Tips for Dating cont'd...
7) Agree on your standards. Before you begin to go "further down the road" sexually with someone, talk about your standards. Don't dwell only on the negative—what you won't do. Hebrews 10:24 tells us to "encourage one another to outbursts of love and good deeds." Discuss ways your friendship can help each of you become a better person.
8 ) Don't always go it alone. Sure, you want to be alone with your guy-friend or lady-friend; that's only normal. Yet too much time alone can lead you to do things you'll regret later. Your relationship will be a lot healthier if you spend time with each other's families and friends.
Do you agree/disagree?
Purity #2
Phillipians 4:8...
"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."
10 Tips for Dating cont'd...
4) Remember whose property you're touching. You do not own the person you're dating, or anyone of the opposite sex, for that matter. That person belongs to God. Imagine there's a sign on everyone you date/befriend that reads: PROPERTY OF Jesus.
5) Make a promise to God, and daily renew your commitment. Decide where you're going to draw the line, and tell God that with his help, you are not going to cross that line until marriage. Don't commit to it unless you mean it, though. The Bible says it's a serious thing to make a vow to God. At the same time, realize that you can't stick to your promise without his help. That's why it's important to renew your commitment daily.
6) Acknowledge Jesus' presence on every date. Before a date/school/youth group, it's normal to spend a lot of time getting ready. After all, you want to look your best. But you also want to make sure you're spiritually prepared. So spend at least as much time in prayer as you do in front of a mirror. As it says in Proverbs 3 "Seek his will in all you do, and he will direct your paths."
*Note: I challenge you to take this last one seriously when it comes to Friday nights...PRAY that the Lord will do something in our hearts that night...EXPECT it and He will DO IT!!!
Do you agree/disagree?
"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."
10 Tips for Dating cont'd...
4) Remember whose property you're touching. You do not own the person you're dating, or anyone of the opposite sex, for that matter. That person belongs to God. Imagine there's a sign on everyone you date/befriend that reads: PROPERTY OF Jesus.
5) Make a promise to God, and daily renew your commitment. Decide where you're going to draw the line, and tell God that with his help, you are not going to cross that line until marriage. Don't commit to it unless you mean it, though. The Bible says it's a serious thing to make a vow to God. At the same time, realize that you can't stick to your promise without his help. That's why it's important to renew your commitment daily.
6) Acknowledge Jesus' presence on every date. Before a date/school/youth group, it's normal to spend a lot of time getting ready. After all, you want to look your best. But you also want to make sure you're spiritually prepared. So spend at least as much time in prayer as you do in front of a mirror. As it says in Proverbs 3 "Seek his will in all you do, and he will direct your paths."
*Note: I challenge you to take this last one seriously when it comes to Friday nights...PRAY that the Lord will do something in our hearts that night...EXPECT it and He will DO IT!!!
Do you agree/disagree?
Purity #1
Our devos for this week will be focused on the topic of purity. The scripture basis is Phillipians 4:8...
"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."
I have done some research and found something called "10 Tips for Dating" from Campus Life magazine (January/February 2001), published by Christianity Today International.
Now I know not all of you are dating right now, but let's be honest....WE ALL think about it or have thought about it at some point!! If you are not currently seeking a relationship with a person of the opposite sex, then see this as an "investment" opportunity...a time to put some thought, effort and energy in for a reward that may come later down the road.
We all struggle with the issue of purity, and what that means as followers of Christ. I hope some of these thoughts will get you thinking about where you find yourself when it comes to living a pure life...
1) Keep innocent expressions special. Rather than making the innocent expressions a mere prelude to the "heavier stuff," make the most of them. Let holding hands mean something. Make sure a kiss communicates true feeling and isn't just the first step to further physical involvement.
2) Pace your passion. Every marathon runner knows that you don't use up your energy at the beginning of the race; you need most of it at the end. Pacing your passion means that you realize you're trying to remain pure all the way to your wedding day. It's OK to express your love in little ways, but don't start messing with the package that is sex. To get real practical, avoid anything that is sure to ignite the fires of passion.
3) Don't feed your fantasies. It's normal to think about sex sometimes. In fact, with the way advertising and Hollywood exploit sex, it would be impossible not to think about it. So choose your entertainment carefully. Certain songs, books, television shows, movies and Web sites only turn up the pressure. Feeding your thought life with junk only makes it harder to remain pure in your actions.
Do you agree/disagree?
"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."
I have done some research and found something called "10 Tips for Dating" from Campus Life magazine (January/February 2001), published by Christianity Today International.
Now I know not all of you are dating right now, but let's be honest....WE ALL think about it or have thought about it at some point!! If you are not currently seeking a relationship with a person of the opposite sex, then see this as an "investment" opportunity...a time to put some thought, effort and energy in for a reward that may come later down the road.
We all struggle with the issue of purity, and what that means as followers of Christ. I hope some of these thoughts will get you thinking about where you find yourself when it comes to living a pure life...
1) Keep innocent expressions special. Rather than making the innocent expressions a mere prelude to the "heavier stuff," make the most of them. Let holding hands mean something. Make sure a kiss communicates true feeling and isn't just the first step to further physical involvement.
2) Pace your passion. Every marathon runner knows that you don't use up your energy at the beginning of the race; you need most of it at the end. Pacing your passion means that you realize you're trying to remain pure all the way to your wedding day. It's OK to express your love in little ways, but don't start messing with the package that is sex. To get real practical, avoid anything that is sure to ignite the fires of passion.
3) Don't feed your fantasies. It's normal to think about sex sometimes. In fact, with the way advertising and Hollywood exploit sex, it would be impossible not to think about it. So choose your entertainment carefully. Certain songs, books, television shows, movies and Web sites only turn up the pressure. Feeding your thought life with junk only makes it harder to remain pure in your actions.
Do you agree/disagree?
Friday, September 18, 2009
1 Timothy 4:12
"Do not let anyone treat you as if you are unimportant because you are young. Instead, be an example to the believers with your words, your actions, your love, your faith and your pure life."
This past week we have gone through how youth should be an example in their words, actions, love and faith. Is it hard sometimes? You better believe it! Are we sometimes going to fail? Stumble? Fall? You better believe it!! After all, we are human. But the important thing is that everyday of our lives we need to make a conscious effort to be an example with everything we do. We can't just be an example on Friday at youth and on Sunday at church and then the rest of the week live our life by going with the crowd... doing what our friends are doing... submitting into peer pressure... just because it's the easy thing to do and we won't get mocked. We need to live these EVERY DAY!
Finally, I want to touch a little on the final way to be an example... in living a pure life. The devotionals next week will based on purity.. so I don't want to go into a lot of detail but I do want to give you a starting point and something to think about.
Let's face it, we are living in a society where we are surrounded with SEX. There I said the forbidden word... the word we are not supposed to say, let alone talk about. Movies, television shows, people at school, people at work it seems like everyone is talking about it, doing it. Our society has made it seem like no big deal. "Whatever... everyone is doing it - so why not?" The world keeps making excuses for how far we go... "everything is okay".
There are emotional consequences (depression, guilt, etc) for what you do... even if you don't go all the way... Have you done something that your not proud of? Is it eating you up inside? Are you worried about being found out? Would your parents, leaders, friends be disappointed? If the answer to any one of these questions is yes - then you've gone too far.
Without shoving the bible down your throat, let me say this - sex (and anything associated with it) is for marriage. Period. Don't go pushing the line... seeing how far you can go without going all the way. Seriously, the further you push the line, the further you are willing to go and the further you will go.
I read something funny the other day in a book called "Chat Room Chatter" by Justin Lookado where he put it into perspective like this... Say you are with your grandmother (or someone who is extremely important - could be a parent, pastor, leader, etc). Now... let's say you are going out on a date and you have a video camera with you. After the date, you take the video camera home and sit down with your grandmother (or other important person). You start playing the DVD... Here's how the conversation goes...
"Look Granny, there I am picking her up at the house. I opened the door for her."
"Look Granny, we are at the restaurant, I paid."
"Look Granny, there we are at the movies. It was fun."
"Look Granny, there we are driving home."
"Look Granny, there we are kissing."
"Look Granny, there we are in the backseat."
... I'm sure you know how the rest of the "story" goes. Lookado says, at whatever point you get weird about telling your grandmother (or other important person in your life) what happened, there's your line. And if you don't get weird about telling your granny anything, you need help.......seriously.....you need help.....no kidding.....you need help.
How do you keep yourself pure? Trust me... I've done tons of reading on the topic because it was something I dealt with as a teenager as well. Here are some thoughts that I came across:
1. Draw Your Line! If you need help drawing the line, do it right now. You don't need to be in a relationship to be drawing the line. In fact, it is better (and easier) to draw the line now then having to draw it when your hormones are going wild. I saw an exercise that I want each of you to do. Here is a list of a bunch of stuff that couples may want to do when they are in a relationship - they are listed in a progression from least sexual to most...
The double take
The look
Talking
Flirting
Touching an arm while your talking/flirting
A hug
Holding hands
Touching each other's faces
Arms around each other
Massaging each other
Lip kissing
French kissing
Touching while kissing
And so on....
The list stops here because there's plenty of room above to start drawing your line. Where will you draw the line? How far is too far? Let me be clear - just because you haven't had intercourse doesn't mean you haven't crossed the line. Sex isn't just intercourse. Sex includes everything leading up to it.
2. Another thought in keeping pure is to talk to someone about your commitment. Maybe a pastor, a leader, a parent or even a really good friend ("accountability partner"). Someone of the same gender. Someone who will hold you accountable to your line! Someone who won't judge you but also won't say it's no big deal when you've crossed the line. The job of the accountability partner is to ask "Did you cross the line?" So whenever you go out on a date or spend time with the opposite sex, your "Accountability partner" is going to ask you if you crossed the line. The only requirement is that you have to tell the truth. No accountability will ever work if you're not being honest with yourself and your "accountability partner".
3. Here are some things and places to avoid if you want to try and keep yourself pure and keep yourself from crossing your line: spending time with the opposite sex in your room (or their room) with the door closed; napping together, lying down together, hanging out at home alone, parking to "enjoy the view" or to "just talk", body massages, drinking, dating non-be livers (the won't have the same need for self control); spending time with friends who are willing to push the line or don't care about being pure.
Write down your plan and keep it in your wallet/purse to reinforce it in your mind whenever you see it.
LADIES - YOU are just as EQUALLY RESPONSIBLE for keeping the guys pure as they are at keeping you pure! What do you think God is going to say to you when you stand before Him and you try and explain to Him why you didn't stay pure? What do you think God is going to say when you try to blame it on the fact that your boyfriend couldn't keep his hands off you? And you felt pressured? God is going to say and what did you do? Look at yourself! Take responsibility for your actions! STOP flirting, touching, insinuating... Be careful what you wear, what you say, what you do... guys are guys... they are built differently... they think differently. They are NOT women! THEY ARE GUYS!!
GUYS - I read the following which is a HUGE reality check for you.... The Bible says, when a woman gets married, their husband is to present them to God "... as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless." (Ephesians 5:27). Guys, you DON'T want to be the one that God sees when she gives herself and she has a stain, wrinkle, blemish or some type of scar on her that is as a result of YOU. And you DON'T want God to hold you responsible... but trust me... He will! And I wouldn't want to be there to see that show!!
Is it hard staying pure in today's society? OF COURSE IT IS!! That's why you need to surround yourself with people that hold the same values. People that will help you hold to your line. Being and staying pure is super important because you, as a messenger, may get in the way of the message. In Philippians 2:3-4 it says “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” What you do, how you act, affects EVERYTHING! Even worse, it affects those around you! One day you are at church hands raised, praising God, the next day you are living an impure lifestyle - guess what? The message disappears. How many times have I heard, "It's so hard for me to believe because I look at people and I know what they've done during the week and here they are on a Sunday with their hands raised acting all 'holy'. They're all hypocrites!" Guys, Ladies YOUR ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN YOUR WORDS!! Live your life with discipline EVERY DAY! God wants to use YOU and He can do such wonderful, amazing things with you when are an example in EVERYTHING you do!
"Do not let anyone treat you as if you are unimportant because you are young. Instead, be an example to the believers with your words, your actions, your love, your faith and your pure life."
This past week we have gone through how youth should be an example in their words, actions, love and faith. Is it hard sometimes? You better believe it! Are we sometimes going to fail? Stumble? Fall? You better believe it!! After all, we are human. But the important thing is that everyday of our lives we need to make a conscious effort to be an example with everything we do. We can't just be an example on Friday at youth and on Sunday at church and then the rest of the week live our life by going with the crowd... doing what our friends are doing... submitting into peer pressure... just because it's the easy thing to do and we won't get mocked. We need to live these EVERY DAY!
Finally, I want to touch a little on the final way to be an example... in living a pure life. The devotionals next week will based on purity.. so I don't want to go into a lot of detail but I do want to give you a starting point and something to think about.
Let's face it, we are living in a society where we are surrounded with SEX. There I said the forbidden word... the word we are not supposed to say, let alone talk about. Movies, television shows, people at school, people at work it seems like everyone is talking about it, doing it. Our society has made it seem like no big deal. "Whatever... everyone is doing it - so why not?" The world keeps making excuses for how far we go... "everything is okay".
There are emotional consequences (depression, guilt, etc) for what you do... even if you don't go all the way... Have you done something that your not proud of? Is it eating you up inside? Are you worried about being found out? Would your parents, leaders, friends be disappointed? If the answer to any one of these questions is yes - then you've gone too far.
Without shoving the bible down your throat, let me say this - sex (and anything associated with it) is for marriage. Period. Don't go pushing the line... seeing how far you can go without going all the way. Seriously, the further you push the line, the further you are willing to go and the further you will go.
I read something funny the other day in a book called "Chat Room Chatter" by Justin Lookado where he put it into perspective like this... Say you are with your grandmother (or someone who is extremely important - could be a parent, pastor, leader, etc). Now... let's say you are going out on a date and you have a video camera with you. After the date, you take the video camera home and sit down with your grandmother (or other important person). You start playing the DVD... Here's how the conversation goes...
"Look Granny, there I am picking her up at the house. I opened the door for her."
"Look Granny, we are at the restaurant, I paid."
"Look Granny, there we are at the movies. It was fun."
"Look Granny, there we are driving home."
"Look Granny, there we are kissing."
"Look Granny, there we are in the backseat."
... I'm sure you know how the rest of the "story" goes. Lookado says, at whatever point you get weird about telling your grandmother (or other important person in your life) what happened, there's your line. And if you don't get weird about telling your granny anything, you need help.......seriously.....you need help.....no kidding.....you need help.
How do you keep yourself pure? Trust me... I've done tons of reading on the topic because it was something I dealt with as a teenager as well. Here are some thoughts that I came across:
1. Draw Your Line! If you need help drawing the line, do it right now. You don't need to be in a relationship to be drawing the line. In fact, it is better (and easier) to draw the line now then having to draw it when your hormones are going wild. I saw an exercise that I want each of you to do. Here is a list of a bunch of stuff that couples may want to do when they are in a relationship - they are listed in a progression from least sexual to most...
The double take
The look
Talking
Flirting
Touching an arm while your talking/flirting
A hug
Holding hands
Touching each other's faces
Arms around each other
Massaging each other
Lip kissing
French kissing
Touching while kissing
And so on....
The list stops here because there's plenty of room above to start drawing your line. Where will you draw the line? How far is too far? Let me be clear - just because you haven't had intercourse doesn't mean you haven't crossed the line. Sex isn't just intercourse. Sex includes everything leading up to it.
2. Another thought in keeping pure is to talk to someone about your commitment. Maybe a pastor, a leader, a parent or even a really good friend ("accountability partner"). Someone of the same gender. Someone who will hold you accountable to your line! Someone who won't judge you but also won't say it's no big deal when you've crossed the line. The job of the accountability partner is to ask "Did you cross the line?" So whenever you go out on a date or spend time with the opposite sex, your "Accountability partner" is going to ask you if you crossed the line. The only requirement is that you have to tell the truth. No accountability will ever work if you're not being honest with yourself and your "accountability partner".
3. Here are some things and places to avoid if you want to try and keep yourself pure and keep yourself from crossing your line: spending time with the opposite sex in your room (or their room) with the door closed; napping together, lying down together, hanging out at home alone, parking to "enjoy the view" or to "just talk", body massages, drinking, dating non-be livers (the won't have the same need for self control); spending time with friends who are willing to push the line or don't care about being pure.
Write down your plan and keep it in your wallet/purse to reinforce it in your mind whenever you see it.
LADIES - YOU are just as EQUALLY RESPONSIBLE for keeping the guys pure as they are at keeping you pure! What do you think God is going to say to you when you stand before Him and you try and explain to Him why you didn't stay pure? What do you think God is going to say when you try to blame it on the fact that your boyfriend couldn't keep his hands off you? And you felt pressured? God is going to say and what did you do? Look at yourself! Take responsibility for your actions! STOP flirting, touching, insinuating... Be careful what you wear, what you say, what you do... guys are guys... they are built differently... they think differently. They are NOT women! THEY ARE GUYS!!
GUYS - I read the following which is a HUGE reality check for you.... The Bible says, when a woman gets married, their husband is to present them to God "... as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless." (Ephesians 5:27). Guys, you DON'T want to be the one that God sees when she gives herself and she has a stain, wrinkle, blemish or some type of scar on her that is as a result of YOU. And you DON'T want God to hold you responsible... but trust me... He will! And I wouldn't want to be there to see that show!!
Is it hard staying pure in today's society? OF COURSE IT IS!! That's why you need to surround yourself with people that hold the same values. People that will help you hold to your line. Being and staying pure is super important because you, as a messenger, may get in the way of the message. In Philippians 2:3-4 it says “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” What you do, how you act, affects EVERYTHING! Even worse, it affects those around you! One day you are at church hands raised, praising God, the next day you are living an impure lifestyle - guess what? The message disappears. How many times have I heard, "It's so hard for me to believe because I look at people and I know what they've done during the week and here they are on a Sunday with their hands raised acting all 'holy'. They're all hypocrites!" Guys, Ladies YOUR ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN YOUR WORDS!! Live your life with discipline EVERY DAY! God wants to use YOU and He can do such wonderful, amazing things with you when are an example in EVERYTHING you do!
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Will You Surrender?
1 Timothy 4:12
"Do not let anyone treat you as if you are unimportant because you are young. Instead, be an example to the believers with your words, your actions, your love, your faith and your pure life."
The next part of being an example is with your faith. At first I thought, well... this is pretty simple... I have faith in Christ so I just have to show that I believe in Jesus. The more I looked at this passage and did some further reading, the more I realized that it's more than just believing in Christ... every other way to be an example in this passage has some type of outward action that you have to portray. What about faith?
Well, I started out by looking at the definition of "faith". One part of the definition that caught my eye was this:
"confidence or trust in a person or thing." I then looked at the word "faithfulness" and the definition was this: "strict or thorough in the performance of of duty; true to one's words, promises, vows; steady in allegiance or affection, loyal, constant, reliable, trusted..."
WOW! That is a completely loaded word! We could go so many places with the word "faith" or "faithfulness". I want to focus on just one... True to one's words, promises, vows.
Are you true to your words? When you make a promise do you keep it? When you make a vow (i.e. personal commitment), do you do it?
Walker Moore tells the following story in his book:
A youth group asked their youth pastor to put on a car wash to raise some money for homeless people. The youth pastor worked hard and put together this car wash. He had 30 young people signed up to help. Bright and early on the Saturday morning, the youth pastor was ready. He rose at daybreak, left his family sleeping, and stood in the church parking lot at 7:00 a.m. with buckets, hoses, sponges and soap - but no students. Finally at 7:30 a.m. he called on of the leadership team members to find out where he was. "You were supposed to be here," the youth pastor said. "You made a commitment."
The student responded somewhat sleepily, "Oh, I had something else - our soccer team practices on Saturday morning, too. I knew I couldn't do both, so I chose soccer."
The point is made that these students made many commitments for the same Saturday morning, knowing that they would have to choose between what they really wanted to do. Obviously, no one chose the car wash. Today's society has completely changed the meaning of the word commitment.
How many commitments do we make at the same time... only to have to choose between the various commitments? We commit to being at our youth group every Friday night... but then another youth group is doing something more fun and we commit to going with our friends to the other youth group? We commit to being at every hockey/soccer/basketball/
I have read and heard that in today's society commitment doesn't mean much anymore. Instead of using the word commitment, people are now using the word surrender.
Surrender means "to yield or resign in favor of another". Are you willing to "surrender"... give up your own wants in favor of something else? Are you willing to surrender jumping from youth group to youth group and surrender to only one youth group... give all your strength, energy, time, passion, heart to only one? Are you willing to surrender 1/2 hour of "fun time" in order to clean your room, make your bed, or help out at home before going out? Can you be trusted to do this?
Moore summed it up as follows: Faithfulness means that if I give you a job, I can count on you to complete it. You are a trustworthy person. If you give me your word, I know you will do as you said you would.
Thoughts?Wednesday, September 16, 2009
1 Timothy 4:12
"Do not let anyone treat you as if you are unimportant because you are young. Instead, be an example to the believers with your words, your actions, your love, your faith and your pure life."
We've discussed the first 2 ways youth are to be examples to adults - in their words and actions. 1 Timothy also says that youth should be setting examples with their love. There are many different ways to love. When you think of love do you think of the way you love your parents? your friends? maybe your boy/girlfriend?"Do not let anyone treat you as if you are unimportant because you are young. Instead, be an example to the believers with your words, your actions, your love, your faith and your pure life."
The type of love that I am thinking about when I read this passage is the same type of love that God showed us ... yes we all know the verse... John 3:16... I know I don't have to recite it because that's one verse I'm pretty sure we are ALL familiar with. We are talking about the love that Jesus demonstrated on the cross. The kind of love that is selfless, not a childish love that only considers and thinks about me.
Let's think about that for a minute.... a selfless love... a sacrificial love that puts others in front of yourself. Walker Moore makes a point in his book that young people today want their families to scrimp and save so they can have an iPod phone or join their friends on the senior-high trip. They want their parents/guardians or others to make sacrifices on their behalf. What happens when your parents/guardians or others say "No" to you? When they tell you you have to wait for that iPod or cell phone? Or you can't go on that trip? Do you try and understand why they are saying "No"? Or do you storm off because they wouldn't make the sacrifice for you? How many times do you say "That's okay. I understand or will try to understand why you said no." How many times are we, as young people, willing to make sacrifices on someone else's behalf? How many times do we surrender our own wants in order to help someone else?
This is the type of love we are talking about. ...the type of love that understands that the way to be an example in our love is to show the type of love where we recognize that sometimes the needs of others outweigh our own.
What are your words and actions saying about you?
1 Timothy 4:12
"Do not let anyone treat you as if you are unimportant because you are young. Instead, be an example to the believers with your words, your actions, your love, your faith and your pure life."
Yesterday we started looking at what 1 Timothy says is the first example that young people should set (their words and the way they speak). We discussed how Walker Moore says that it seems at times that adults don't give teenagers respect nor take what they have to say seriously and as a result teenagers have developed something called "teenspeak" in order to communicate with each other (and something which some adults don't understand). This is sometimes used by teenagers to empower themselves and to give themselves some type of control. "Do not let anyone treat you as if you are unimportant because you are young. Instead, be an example to the believers with your words, your actions, your love, your faith and your pure life."
Today we will take a look at how Jesus, when he was a teenager, empowered Himself and gained the respect of those around him with his words and his actions (which is the second way young people should be an example).
Luke 2:41-47
41Every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover. 42When he was twelve years old, they went up to the Feast, according to the custom. 43After the Feast was over, while his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it. 44Thinking he was in their company, they traveled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends. 45When they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem to look for him. 46After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. 47Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. 48When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, "Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you."
49"Why were you searching for me?" he asked. "Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's house?" 50But they did not understand what he was saying to them.
51Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But his mother treasured all these things in her heart. 52And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
Now let's look at Jesus actions after he was found sitting in the temple having a conversation with the teachers...
#2 - Actions
What did Jesus do? He knew he was supposed to be in God's house, doing God's will. But knowing that he was 12 years old, He went back with His parents, and was obedient to them. While He was living with His parents, He grew in wisdom and stature and in favour with God and men. How did He do this? By his actions... He listened to the advise of His parents. Can you imagine Jesus getting into arguing matches with His parents? Yelling? Screaming? Jesus submitted Himself to the people that God had placed in His life.
Walker Moore in his book says that many businesses don't want youth groups coming anywhere near. In fact, hotel employees often call church groups "teenagers from hell" because they run up and down the hallways, slamming doors and screaming. Restaurants hate it when these same youth groups visit, because the "kids" never seem to display adult conduct there either. Can you imagine Jesus running around the dining area yelling at the top of his lungs? Or using His straw to blow spit balls at His best friend? Jesus knew that He was growing up and that God had a plan for His life. Knowing this, he submitted to the Godly people that God had placed in His life and was obedient and acted in such a way that adults respected Him... even at a young age. This is Jesus we are talking about... Jesus being God could have done whatever He wanted... He didn't have to listen to wordly people.. yet He did.
Feeling Empowered?
Now that we are parents, we have started getting into reading some of the "Parenting" books. After all, we have no clue how to raise a little baby - we've never done it before. Our stress level increases as we think about our little girl becoming a teenager because we don't know what society will be like when she gets there. What issues will she face? What decisions will she make? How will we react as parents?
Right now we are reading a book called "Right of Passage Parenting" by Walker Moore. Part of his book deals with the fact that teenagers now a days are living in a society that has created a bunch of confusion for them in regards to what their role is & where they fit in. Moore says that as a result, teenagers are taking longer to find their independence and confidence.As a result of this slower establishment of independence & confidence, adults sometimes don't take teenagers as seriously as maybe they should, they may not give teenagers responsibility because they don't think that they can handle it and adults may even treat teenagers like children. In further discussing this, Moore addresses the following passage of scripture:
1 Timothy 4:12
"Do not let anyone treat you as if you are unimportant because you are young. Instead, be an example to the believers with your words, your actions, your love, your faith and your pure life."
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How are you to be an example? This weeks devos will focus on the 5 points referenced in this passage as discussed by Walker Moore in his book above. We will be discussing each one separately every day this week.
#1 - Words
The first way you should be an example is through your words. When little children talk, they talk as... well... little children. We find it cute that babies coo, gurgle, and eventually say dada or mama and utter their first words. What would happen if one of your friends tried talking to you by gurgling or cooing? Or what if they started talking like a 3 year old? You would probably laugh at them and tell them to grow up!
The funny thing is that as teenagers and young adults we have lost our ability to have actual conversations with each other. We have lost the ability to speak. In today's society we spend more time in front of a computer (Facebook, MSN, Twitter, email, Blackberry) or television than outside actually talking to people. Something has even been developed that Moore calls "teenspeak". "Teenspeak" is the talking and text messaging that occurs (mainly between teens) in an ever changing code. LOL! ROTFL! FYI! IMO! CU! There are many more but I'm sure you catch my drift. Subgroups of teenagers and young adults even change the meaning of the code words, creating an inner circle and alienating other people.
It seems at times that adults don't give teenagers respect nor take what they have to say seriously. As a result, teenagers sometimes feel like they have to create something that adults don't understand to empower themselves and to give themselves some type of control. Hence using these types of "codes" that most adults don't understand.
Is this the type of control you feel you need in order to get respect or feel important? Or is this the way you feel empowered? Being a part or creating something that adults don't understand? Let us know what you think about the points above. Tomorrow we will take a look at how Jesus, when he was a teenager, empowered Himself and gained the respect of those around him with his words and his actions.
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