Family Time

We are enjoying some family time in Greenville, SC this week. I always look forward to some intentional family time. I use the word intentional because if we do not make the commitment to spend quality time with our families, we can easily burnout our closest relationships.

I love serving as a pastor to students. I love preparing messages. I love teaching students. I love helping adult volunteers become great youth leaders. I love seeing people come to Christ and be baptized. I love so much of what I get to do in the ministry. I'm at times blown away that God  allows me to be a part of His mission to seek and save the lost.

I want to be completely honest. It is easy for me to become so lazer focused upon everything I listed above and be less engaged when I come home. God has revealed to me over the past few years that my first ministry is Cassidy and Micah.  You might be thinking, "Duh!" I understand it but it is easy for those in ministry to sacrifice our families on the altar of the church. I'm learning slowly that my greatest impact is in my home.

Intentional family time looks like this for us: Praying. Listening. Laughing. Encouraging. Forgiving. Asking for forgiveness. Eating food together.

I'm learning that intentional, planned time with my family is vital for us to grow closer to God and each other. I hope that as the years go on that our love for God and serving God grow hand in hand.

This week I'm spending quality time with those closest to me, my family.

Happy Thanksgiving!

What ways do you spend intentional time with your family?

3 Minute Devotional | 1 John 3:14-15

If we love our Christian brothers and sisters, it proves that we have passed from death to life. But a person who has no love is still dead. Anyone who hates another brother or sister is really a murderer at heart. And you know that murderers don’t have eternal life within them. 1 John 3:14-15

(3:14). In this first verse John lays out the first test of spiritual growth. This test is if we love others.  John uses a statement that reveals a total contrast for being a Christ follower. The phrase is, “passing from death to life”. This is a total and absolute change from separation from God to eternal life. The perfect tense is used here to signify that we remain in life once we have passed from death. In other words, there is not a constant movement from one to the other.  John goes on further to say that he who does not love his brother still abides in death.

(3:15). John further elaborates on what the neglect of the command in verse one actually is. He equates hate with murder. Why is this? The scriptures tell us that God desires truth in the inward parts. At the time of the writing of this letter, there were those who taught that one could live in sin and still be a believer. Others taught that one only had to keep the letter of the law and not the spirit. In other words, it was wrong for you to kill someone but hating that person within your own heart and mind was permissible. This is why John says that one who hates and one who kills are equally guilty in the eyes of God.

Action steps: 

 - Find a way today to encourage other friends in their faith. - Ask God to reveal any hate that is in your heart. Ask Him to help you release the hate and replace it with love.

Branding your Student Ministry

Recently I joined a roundtable discussion with a few great youth pastors! A few weeks ago I joined youthmin.org as a contributor and I'm excited about partnering with them in helping encourage others in student ministry. We discussed how to brand your ministry. We talked through the purposes of branding and shared helpful tips.  It was the first time I used Google+ hangout, but I can see how useful and fun it can be to collaborate and learn from other youth workers!

If you are looking for helpful resources to help you in student ministry, check out youthmin.org!