Its been a week...What's new

To my students who went to Compelled by Love, it's been a week since we were in Portsmouth. How are things going? Many challenges were tossed at us, challenges that made us think about how we are to act and respond to those around us.

One that I would like you to look at this week is how can you remain close to God away from an event like convention. I call it the pursuit of a deeper relationship that moves beyone the emotion and feelings. Last fall at our retreat to Singing Hills I preached about Elijah having to learn to how God speaks even in the valley. For us it's the city, town and school. It's the "away from convention" place. Did anything change in your spiritual walk? Are you pursuing God, digging deeper, and putting into practice the things he spoke to you? That's the real reason we go and hear someone like Chilly Chilton. So we can learn how to work and walk in the "valley".

So I got a few things for you: Prayer, His Word, and Stepping out.

1) Prayer: It's here that we learn to speak to and hear from God. The book of Acts is filled with times of prayer and God moving as a result. A lot of those times were quiet pleadings of the Church for direction, salvation and healing. Through the Holy Spirit, God spoke and the Church grew and moved in power! Start here, it's the key to success as God is always faithful to speak to you!

2) His Word: If we dig into his Word as we pray, God speaks through it and reveals things to us that we need to be successful for him. Without his word, we become directionless and weak. Chilly told you that it IS GOD'S WORD his VERY WORD and you should be excited everytime you open your Bible because it is GOD speaking to you. Study it, pray through it and apply it to your life. Store it up in your hearts, and he will use it to light your path toward whatever task he has for you.

3) Step out: Once you are prayed up and studied up are you called to sit in a room all by yourself smiling cuz you found the key to the best party in town? NO! God calls us to share what we have found, we are to invite those who don't know yet to come and see what God has for them. We did not receive from God so we could be selfish, but that we could be like Jesus: Self-LESS. Sharing the good news with friends and enemies!

Let me know what God has been doing. Has he spoken to you, called you or used you to touch the lives of those around you. Let's mess with the world and practice radical acts of forgivness and Love. Overcome evil with good! Love those who are unlovable, in fact invite them to youth group! The P.O.W.'s of your community need someone who is: "just in the neighborhood." Get that Chuck Norris evangelism going, cuz the enemy ain't gonna give 'em up without a fight. What he doesn't get is that he is already defeated because you have overcome by the blood of the LAMB AND the WORD of your testimony. [Rev 12:11]

First night NNED YC 2011

What an awesome night here in Portsmouth. My students had a great time and were moved by the Spirit last night at C3. Pastor Chilly was unbelieveable. He preached out of Mark 2, the same verses that I had just a few weeks ago. It served to re-enforce what I have been preaching and teaching.

His word was timely and powerful. If you have a pulse and a heart beat you have purpose! Each one of our kids has been divinely created with a destiny and purpose that has been defined for them by the Father in Heaven long before they even took a breath.

It is quiet right now as I sit and type, and before the day gets going and I have to wake up some students...any thoughts on how to do that?? =] I would like to thank the Lord for everyone of my leaders, all my students parents and our church body. Without you I would not be able to do what I do. Your prayers, support and trust blesses me more than you know. A big thank you to Lori King who blessed us with taking 7 students to CBC so we could transfer to another vehicle!!! Without you we would have had to strap them to the roof. Thank you so much.

Sam, Deena, Sami and Joshua - you are constantly in our prayers!!!
Till later, figure out how you can be compelled by the love of Christ today.

Crucifixion = LOVE

How many times have you gotten mad at someone and decided you never wanted to talk to them again? What about that friend who you spent years with and all of a sudden they turn on you? What do you do when things like that happen? Think about how easy we get offended by people or things that happen. What’s going on there?

When we think about love and what it means exactly, would you think of beatings? Absorbing blows that don’t belong to you? Receiving rejection even from your closest friends and still finding a way to want to be their friend.

We (my students and I) talked a few weeks ago about being compelled by love. Paul tells us that Christ’s love is what compels us. What does that mean? I often look at that statement and ask what does being compelled really mean? But that is wrong. I should be looking and asking: What does Jesus love look like? For when I understand that and only then, will I be able to be compelled.

Jesus’ love looks a lot different than we think. We think about his ministry, his prayer life, his desire to see the lost found and his ability to heal. We also think of his great teachings about morality and justness, but have you ever thought about his absorption of abuse? His absolute rejection of hate and evil? What about his ability to forgive in the face of total rejection? The ultimate form of love for us was shown on the cross. Not just because Jesus died for our sins, but because he took all that evil (this world) had to give, absorbed it like a sponge and still looked down and said: “Father, forgive them.”

You see the most radical act of love is to forgive. It allowed Jesus to love his enemies. Really love them, everyday in every way.

In Peter’s letter, he makes the statement that Jesus left us THE example by which to live. Now in our world and our community is that possible? Jesus calls us to a radical way of thinking, doing and being. It requires us to let go of our right to retaliate when we are mistreated. Instead we are to trust God the Father to handle it and we are instead, to respond with Crucifixion Love. That is the love that drove Jesus to the cross in the face of his enemies, where he took all the evil this world had to offer and destroyed it by forgiving it. That is a very difficult assignment for us, but one we are called to. So what does that look like for you in your day to day life? Do you think it is possible to even do that today? Jesus faced the most vile and cruel form of punishment this world could come up with and he loved his executioners anyway. For the world to change we must practice this kind of crucified love. Its subversive and countercultural, but we are called to it nonetheless!

Some scriptural references:Matt. 5:38-42, Matt. 5:43-48, Matt 27:46, John 13:34-35 2 Cor. 5:14, 1 Peter 2:21-23