Underground ReLOVEution

The Genealogy of Jesus Christ

2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, 3and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram, 4and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, 5and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, 6and Jesse the father of David the king.

And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, 7and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asaph, 8and Asaph the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah, 9and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, 10and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos, and Amos the father of Josiah, 11and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.

12And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel, and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, 13and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, and Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor, 14and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud, 15and Eliud the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob, 16and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.

I grew up in a sinful family. My dad is quick to rage and my mom is a workaholic and worships at the idol of success. My brother is a drug addict and my sister is not far behind him with alcohol. My extended family is full of alcoholics and angry individuals. My dad's side is Irish and all of his family is loud, mean and a bunch of alcoholics or recovering alcoholics. My mom's side is Norweigan and most of them are really wierd and cold. My mom's side is REALLY mean to each other, but in a more back stabbing way, with veiled comments and cold shoulders and critical attitudes. Because of the way my family is, I'm burdened with certain sins that others aren't. It's much easier for me to be an alcoholic and I can find myself being super critical of people. It's something that I have to battle every day, the sins of my parents and grandparents. Because they act that way, it becomes normal for me to act that way. Some of you may see the same things in yourself. Maybe your parents are abusive and it has caused havoc in your life. Maybe they aren't very nurturing and it has caused sin in your life or hurt in your life. Maybe you are the one who your parents kept pushing to be the athlete in high school and nothing was enough. We all carry our own baggage.

In Jesus' time, your family said a lot about you. Jewish people felt that you could learn everything you needed to know by who your parents were. In John 9 a group of Pharisees try and blame a man's parents because he was born blind and so either they or he must be sinful. They assume that you are a good person or a bad person by who your parents were. They got this becasue of something in the Old Testament called "generational sin". The idea is that if one person sins, his sins affect his children and his children's children for a few generations. A good family was well respected while a bad family was embarrassing.

In Matthew's gospel, he is trying to make a point that Jesus is the Messiah, the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies. Throughout the Old Testament, there were all these prophecies predicting that a man would come and save the nation of Israel and he would be their Messiah. Messiah was huge for a first century Jew because he was their hope. The Messiah would be a king and a conquerer and would bring peace to the Jews and establish a kingdom. He would have to be of the highest stock and have the best family.

That is why it is interesting who Jesus is connected with. First he points out that Jesus is from Judah through Tamar. I won't give you the whole story, but read Genesis 38:1-30 and you'll see that it isn't the most inspiring story of a spiritual hero. Next he mentions Rahab, a prostitute and a Gentile at that. If Matthew really wanted to make Jesus seem Messiah like, he wouldn't be bringing up these non-Jews and certainly would avoid all the sinful stories in Jesus' family. He is supposed to be a King! Don't mention those things.

The last thing I want to point out is that Matthew also says that Jesus came from "David... the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah". For those of you who don't know the story, David was a great king who saw a married woman bathing on a roof and slept with her, getting her pregnant. He then had her husband, Uriah, one of his most trusted soldiers, killed in battle so he could marry her without causing a stir, hiding his sin. David who in many ways is the best man in Jewish history, was a murderer and an adulterer. Matthew not only mentions David but points out his sin and how Jesus came from a sinful family.

So what's the point. What I want you guys to get is that Jesus came to save you from generational sin. Maybe you look at your family and you think "I don't want to end up like them". Maybe your dad abandoned you when you were young and you hate him for it. You vow that you won't do that to your kids. Maybe you felt that nothing was ever good enough for your mom and so you are angry at her and made promises that you wouldn't be like her. The truth is that without Jesus, you are going to repeat the same mistakes and your kids will repeat the same mistakes. But Jesus came to change that cycle. Jesus came to create a legacy. When you get saved, your heart changes, and through continual repentance and regeneration, you can change the course of your family and your kid's kids. Jesus came from a broken home, and yet he was perfect throughout his whole life. He redeemed his families legacy of adulterous murderers. Not only that but he is wanting to change your heart and redeem your family legacy as well. I believe that it is so important to think on this. Instead of accepting your family sin or making claims that you will never do what your dad did, we need to turn to our Heavenly father and let him redeem our families.

If anyone is dealing with issues that they want prayer or discipleship for, you can email me at jonathan.ullberg@gmail.com or talk to a leader on Tuesday night/Sunday morning. We want to work out what repentance and redemption look like in your life and we are here for you.

Just remember, Jesus came from a broken family situation.

I am sure that you have heard all the Christmas stories before. Maybe if you grew up going to church you can recite these stories in your sleep. What once was new has now become tradition. Traditions immortalized by nativity scenes, Christmas songs that depending upon your disposition are either magnificently addictive or horrifically overplayed; or whatever else your family has started using to celebrate or commemorate Christmas.

The thing with traditions is that they are supposed to remind us of something that was important to us. But our traditions seem to lose their value over time, and the meaning becomes lost to history. We keep on doing the same things over and over, but at some point when we ask ourselves, “Why are we doing this?” the answer “Because we have always done it this way.” Doesn’t work anymore.

So since I can never leave well enough alone… Why are you celebrating Christmas? I don’t need/want a response, but I want you to ask yourself this question. Why celebrate Jesus birth? What is Jesus… to you?

I think that some of you that celebrate because Jesus reminds them of Santa Clause…

Track with me for a moment here. What are the most attractive things about Santa?
1. you don’t have to interact with Santa, you write him a letter, he
simply slips into the house and leaves presents, eats half a cookie
then hits the neighbors.
2. Santa theology is very black and white; you either made the list or
you didn’t. If you didn’t it was because you were bad.
3. He brought presents based on behavior. If you were good you got a
lot of bank. There was a very clear reward system. Good = hot wheels,
big wheels, legos. You didn’t have to get into the spirit of
anything, everyone knew it was about the toys: cold hard toys.
4. Kids who were bad… well lets be realistic they expected gifts too…
and well did Santa ever miss anyone’s house that you know of?

It strikes me that this is the same way that many of the people I know interact with Jesus.

1. Visit church once or twice a year – catch a good vibe, then off to eat.
2. Jesus theology is very black and white, you either make the list or
you don’t and if you don’t it is because you are bad.
3. You get blessed based on behavior, if you are good, preachers on tv say
that you should be getting a lot of bank. There is a very clear reward
system. Good = money, house, car… you don’t really have to get into the
spirit of anything… Everyone knows it is all about the cash: cold hard cash.
4. People who don’t follow what Jesus says… well lets be realistic, they think
they are good people and expect heaven too…

Certainly you can see the parallels to these stories and the second one is completely made up!

The Bible talks about this baby that we celebrate the birth of, as our greatest hope. The only one who can save us from our current condition and our future destiny. This whole story revolves around a group of people who desperately need hope. This story revolves around a group of people who desperately need to have God on their side. This story revolves around a group of people who if God doesn’t come through for them… its over.

We celebrate the birth of this child who offers that hope for all of us, offers a God who is fighting for us. We celebrate the birth of a child who will come through for us, in a way that we least expected. A child who would show us what God is like, and how to respond to Him.

I know that for Christmas there are going to be gifts, family, friends and memories. But I don’t care about that as much as I care…

Why celebrate Jesus birth? What is Jesus… to you? Someone to give your all to? To put all your hope and trust in, for today and as many tomorrows as we have left? Or. . . are you celebrating a tradition without meaning… The myth that Jesus is like Santa Clause, only around to give us what we want?

For a the unedited version check out my blog

Have a Happy Christmas!

Steve

One of my favorite artists is Sufjan Stevens. Many of you probably haven't heard of him, but he is an indie rock artist from Michigan. He has come out with two CD's that are themed after states. Come On and Feel the Illinoise and Michigan: The Great Lakes State. He is a Christian but doesn't like organized religion, however you can hear his faith come out through his lyrics in songs such as John Wayne Gacy Jr. and his Christmas album. Here are a few songs from him and his official website so check him out.

John Wayne Gacy Jr. is a song about a serial killer from Illinois who would dress up as a clown and then kidnap, rape, and murder little boys, putting them under his floorboards. The song is dark but the last lines are the most important, where he says And in my best behavior, I am really just like him. Look beneath my floorboards, for the secrets I have hid. He talks about how deep down he is totally depraved and sinful and his sin is just like this serial killer. He understands how the Bible talks about how everyone is sinful and totally depraved.


He also does some really good hymns and songs on his Christmas album such as Come Thou Fount:


One of the saddest songs I've ever heard, Casimir Pulaski Day:


And finally, just for fun, the song Chicago:

When I watch Christmas movies and shows, I find there's always a good guy and a bad guy. Like the Whos' & the Grinch, Scrooge & the Ghosts, Rodolph & Abominable Snowman, Snow & Heat misers wait there both bad. The point is that in most stories there's this over riding sense of good and evil. the question is, must evil exist to have good? Can you have one without the other? I once said to appreciate joy you need to experience pain. was there a time without pain and suffering? If so surely it wasn't without joy. This I do know, Christmas is a perfect time to share what our lives were like without Christ, and the joy He brings in our pain.


Super,

Merle & Rayleen

A few weeks ago Steve talked through a part of James about being friends with the world. I was just reading the book "Desiring God" and one thing that John Piper said really struck me as interesting. In his book he is talking about how we were created to find happiness and joy in God alone and so our goal is to be Hedonists, but finding our pleasure in Jesus and not the world. This chapter was on prayer and how it is part of our Hedonistic lifestyle (in a good way):

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"But someone will say, "Yes, but not all prayers are prayers for God's name to be hallowed or for His kingdom to come. Many prayers are for food and clothing and protection and healing. Is this sort of praying not self-centered?"

It may be. James did condemn a certain kind of prayer. He said:

3You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. 4 You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. 5Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, "He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us"? (James 4:3-5, ESV)

So there is a kind of praying that is wrong because it makes a cuckold out of God. We use our Husband's generosity to hire prostitutes for private pleasures. These are startling words. James calls us an "adulterous people" if we pray like this.

He pictures the church as the wife of God. God has made us for Himself and has given Himself to us for our enjoyment. Therefore, it is adultery when we try to be "friends" with the world. If we seek from the world the pleasures we should seek in God, we are unfaithful to our marriage vows. And what's worse, when we go to our heavenly Husband and actually pray for the resources with which to commit adultery with the world, it is a very wicked thing. It is as though we would ask our husband for money to hire prostitutes to provide the pleasure we don't find in him!

So, yes there is a kind of praying that is self centered in an evil sense.

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I love John Piper.

Quick note from Holly:


Hey guys, this story is from CNN. It caught my eye because I Jesus is huge about justice, and he has given me a passion for it....just read about this amazing man and what he was able to accomplish for justice in his lifetime. I promise you that although this article is long, it is not a dry read. As you read this, think about the number of years that have gone by since genocide was outlawed. I'll tell you now...60 years. 60 years...it makes my heart stop. My grandparents lived in a time when people were so blind about this terrible injustice, there was no name for it. We know the name now, and there is work to be done. So take a glimpse into the history of the word genocide.



Polish Jew gave his life defining, fighting genocide


Story Highlights

• When Hitler exterminated Europe's Jews, the word "genocide" did not exist


• It was created by a Polish Jew whose family perished in the Holocaust


• Raphael Lemkin combined the Greek "genos" for race with the Latin "-cide" for killing


• He went on to fight for the U.N. treaty making genocide a crime
  (CNN) -- Paris, 1948. In the shadow of the Holocaust, the fledgling United Nations meets to adopt one of its first human rights treaties.
  
  Raphael Lemkin asked, "Why is the killing of a million a lesser crime than the killing of a single individual?"
  

Applause shakes the room, cameras flash -- and at the center, a single, tired, unassuming man: Raphael Lemkin.

It was, at last, a victory for a tireless crusader who had fought for his entire life against genocide -- and coined the term that describes the world's most heinous crime.

"This new official world made a solemn pledge to preserve the life of the peoples and races of mankind," Lemkin later wrote.

Sixty years ago this month, the U.N. voted unanimously to adopt the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. It was ambitious, serious, far-reaching -- and largely the result of Lemkin's lifetime of effort.

A Pole and a Jew, Lemkin had watched in horror as Hitler nearly succeeded in his plan to exterminate the Jews. Six million Jews -- including 40 members of Lemkin's family -- died at the hands of the Nazis.

Today, we call what happened at Auschwitz and the other death camps "genocide." But at the time, there was no name for the Nazis' crimes. The word "genocide" did not exist.

In 1944, Lemkin wrote a book about the Nazis. In it, he combined the Greek "genos" for race with the Latin "-cide" for killing: Genocide. Lemkin had named the crime he spent a lifetime trying to prevent.

As a child in Poland, Lemkin was inspired by the stories his mother told him at the fireside -- stories of history and heroism, of suffering and struggle. As a Jew he witnessed cruelty and persecution firsthand: from the bribes his parents were forced to pay, to a pogrom that killed dozens nearby.

From his mother, and from his circumstance, Lemkin developed early a strong desire to better the world and protect the innocent and the weak.

"The appeal for the protection of the innocent from destruction set a chain reaction in my mind," Lemkin later wrote. "It followed me all my life."

As a teen, Lemkin learned through news accounts that the Turkish government was slaughtering its Christian Armenian citizens. The government claimed it was putting down an Armenian revolt. Over 8 years they killed a million Armenian men, women and children in massacres and forced marches. To this day, Turkey denies a genocide took place. Few of the perpetrators ever faced justice.

"I was shocked," Lemkin wrote. "Why is a man punished when he kills another man? Why is the killing of a million a lesser crime than the killing of a single individual?"

Lemkin didn't have an answer to the question. But, as a young man, he devised a bold plan. He would write an international law that would punish -- and prevent -- racial mass murder. By October 1933, Lemkin was an influential Warsaw lawyer, well-connected and versed in international law. At the same time, Hitler was gathering power. Lemkin knew it was time to act.
He crafted his proposal making the destruction of national, racial and religious groups an international crime and sent it to an influential international conference. But his legal remedy found little support, even as anti-Semitism was becoming Germany's national policy. When Hitler invaded Poland in 1939, Lemkin knew his worst fears were about to be realized.

"Hitler had already promulgated ... his blueprint for destruction," Lemkin wrote. "Many people thought he was bragging, but I believed that he would carry out his program."

Lemkin fled Warsaw with only a shaving kit and summer coat. He survived months in the forest, traveling furtively, dodging falling bombs and fighting for the Polish resistance. He managed to reach his parents one last time -- only to say goodbye.

"Do not talk of our leaving this warm home. We will have to suffer, but we will survive somehow," Lemkin said his parents told him. "When their eyes became sad with understanding, I laughed away our agonizing thoughts, but I felt I would never see them again. It was like going to their funerals while they were still alive."

Reluctantly, Lemkin left his family to their fate and became one of the lucky few to reach the United States, where a friend arranged a job at Duke Law School. Though now safe, Lemkin remained anxious.

"I had not stopped worrying about the people in Poland. When would the hour of execution come? Would this blind world only then see it, when it would be too late?"

Troubling letters arrived from home. His father said they were surviving on potato peels and nothing else. His mother assured him, "What counts is that we are all together, alive and healthy."

"Something ... told me they were saying goodbye," Lemkin later wrote, "in spite of my parents' effort not to alarm me."

Days later, the Nazis took eastern Poland -- a death sentence for Lemkin's family. By 1942, the U.S. had entered the war, and the Germans had accelerated their deadly work. Concentration camps ran day and night, like assembly lines. At Auschwitz, more than a million perished.
Even though word of the slaughter was reaching America, it seemed of little interest to the press and politicians. Lemkin was outraged.

"The impression of a tremendous conspiracy of silence poisoned the air," he wrote. "A double murder was taking place. ... It was the murder of the truth."

Lemkin tried everything he could to stop the killing, even writing to President Roosevelt.
Roosevelt responded, urging patience.

"Patience," Lemkin wrote. "But I could bitterly see only the faces of the millions awaiting death. ... All over Europe the Nazis were writing the book of death with the blood of my brethren."
Jewish groups pressed Washington to bomb the camps or rail lines. The Americans refused. Although Allied planes took photos of Auschwitz in 1944 as they scouted nearby targets, the U.S. didn't want to divert military resources from winning the war.

Frustrated, Lemkin decided to take a different tack. He would use the Nazis' own words to prove their depravity.

Taking hundreds of pages of Nazi laws and decrees, Lemkin wrote a comprehensive book that laid bare the Nazis' brutal plans. And he invented a word for the crime the Nazis were committing. Genocide.

With the crime named, he hoped the world could no longer turn away. But no help came.
Even the Nuremberg trials were a grave disappointment for Lemkin. They did little to codify genocide as an international crime -- and did nothing to prevent it from happening again.
But Lemkin knew he must keep trying. He revived his 1933 proposal and set his sights on the fledgling United Nations. He hoped this new world body, born out of the ashes of World War II, could create and enforce an international law against genocide.

Lemkin put everything aside and made the passage of a genocide convention the focus of his life. He wrote and rewrote the text of the convention, lobbied delegates, wrote to leaders worldwide in their own languages -- Lemkin was fluent in more than 10 -- to gather support.
On December 9, 1948, the U.N. met in Paris and voted unanimously to adopt the Genocide Convention.

Days later, Lemkin fell gravely ill and was hospitalized. For nearly three weeks, the doctors struggled with a diagnosis. Lemkin finally offered one himself: "Genociditis," he said, "exhaustion from working on the Genocide Convention."

A decade later, Lemkin would die from a fatal heart attack, penniless and alone, having given his life to the fight against genocide.

I have a confession to make... I love hip-hop. Yep, there it is, out on the table. Ever since my early days of Jr. High I've had an infatuation with the hip-hop culture and music. I tried to supplement it. I would listen to Toby Mac and GRITS and KJ-52 and John Reuben, but it wasn't good enough. Eventually I realized that I didn't like Christian hip-hop, I liked good hip-hop. I couldn't let anyone know, so I hid my feelings. I bought Sufjan Stevens and Radiohead albums hoping to make sure no one knew about my love for hip-hop. Eventually I did grow to love indie music and now those two are two of my top three bands. Still, every time I'd listen to the radio and a good rap song came on, I got a little excited and my palms started to get clammy. The hooks, the rhymes, the beat, it was all there and I still loved hip-hop deep down.

So a year ago I saw a sign on the wall of the church and it was for a concert for the rapper LeCrae. I dismissed it quickly thinking it was just another Christian rapper and he probably sucked. Months later I was listening to a podcast with an interview with this guy and I became intrigued. He talked about how his songs had deep theology and how he was trying to reach out to the hip-hop community with his lyrics. I decided to give him a chance and so I listened.

I loved it. The guy is all at once being missional, theological, deep, inspiring, and... oh yeah, his music is just good. A lot of people ingrained in the hip-hop culture have really connected to and grabbed onto his music. He is doing what I want our church to be doing, taking our message to the culture. Not recreating the culture, nor isolating ourselves from the culture, but leading the culture with good music and a good message.

Without further ado, here is his video from YouTube for the song "Rebel". If you are not a hip-hop fan, that is ok, but if you are a closet hip-hop fan and have been hiding behind David Crowder and Death Cab, it's time to come out of the closet.

Rebel Intro


Don't Waste Your Life:

I've been thinking a lot about how to reach out to our community and see more people come to know Jesus. One thing I've noticed since I've been in youth ministry is the idea of depth. No matter how big, small, cool, lame, or interesting we've been in the youth ministry, one thing has never changed and that has been this sense of depth in the youth group. We deal with deep things, we talk about deep things, we worship deeply and we pray to a deep God. We don't stay shallow or on the surface, and we're not just about having a fun time, but about having Jesus move all of us and move us deeply.

This is AWESOME! It's something that I don't ever want to see change. I don't want to become like other youth groups where there are a lot of people and a lot of excitement but no depth. I want to be a place where Jesus is sought after deeply.

Part of the deal though, is that the church is called to "momentum". In the Gospel of Mark Jesus says:

18And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

We are part of a church that was made to move. Jesus' Great Commission was to go to the end of the earths and make disciples of him. Our movement is one of momentum. While reading this book An Unstoppable Force, Erwin McManus made a comment that momentum=mass times velocity. Velocity is our goal, that we are growing deeper and moving towards Jesus. I think we have that. I've been so encouraged over the last few weeks hearing stories about different students who are following hard after Jesus and really pursuing him. That's awesome. The other part of the equation is Mass though. Mass means people. I want to clarify this because I don't want this to become about having a massive youth group with no depth. That would be horrible if we became shallow and lost what made this place beautiful, but I want to see more people invited into this place of depth. We need to be about the people around us, seeing them as desperately needing more, needing depth. When we have depth or velocity, and mass, it truly is an unstoppable force and God can begin to transform this area through you guys, the students. I believe that he has something big for you guys, here. Not a few years down the road when you graduate and go do something with your life, but now, while you are in high school or jr. high. I believe you guys can do something big NOW.

So go.

Something I'm going to try to get people to respond. What did you think of youth group this last week? Did you like the new way to worship with the different stations? Did God do anything while it was going on or was it just boring?

Here's a new question for your answering pleasure.

What are the most important things (only three) that our youth group/church is supposed to focus on/be about? If you had to choose three focuses or "ethos", what would they be? Not a right answer here, just looking at what you guys think.

Go.

Exodus 34:6-7 - "And He [the Lord] passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, 'The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet He does not leave the guilty unpunished; He punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation.' "


I was trying to find another funny video for you guys. I remembered that my dad was the sound guy for a Christian band in the 70's so I started to look up some of their stuff on YouTube....because I figured it was more legit to make fun of my dear old dad than anyone else. What I ended up coming across were a series of videos called Jesus Freaks, from a tv show in the 70's. Clicking on the first one I began researching this one guy called Lonnie Frisbee. Ok I don't think I need to say anything else...his name says it all.



You may be wondering, what my problem is or why anyone would find something like this interesting? I love learning about church history. I am sure many of you are familiar with the Vineyard Church. Mr.Frisbee was very active alongside John Wimber in pioneering the Vineyard Movement.Lonnie Frisbee however, was a homosexual and eventually left his wife and kids to pursue a homosexual lifestyle. And it wasn't exactly a secret to anybody.I grew up going to a Vineyard church. It ended up crashing into pieces when it was discovered that the pastor had a second identity and was having phone sex with young girls, and a huge pornography problem. I am not excusing his sin, but it makes me wonder about the origin of his sin. The Bible speaks about generational sin, and I wonder if sexual sin became prevalent in the Vineyard churches by being launched alongside a man deep in sexual sin? Maybe that is why so many establishments that are made in Jesus' name eventually suffer a heavy blow, because it was not founded completely under people who have died to their flesh.

Getting into all of this reminded me to keep allowing God to search my heart for any dark corners I don't want him to see, even if dealing with it involves too much pain or humiliation.

I wanna use this as a discussion tool and not just as an essay writing tool, so here's the question of the day.

What struggles do you have in evangelizing/talking to your friends about Jesus? How should Christians go about evangelizing?

Go.

...and the word fell out of its leather binding.

The inner pages of my Bible have wrestled free from their constrictive outer shell. I usually try to keep them together in order to prevent further mutilation of the curled, gold-edged sheets. The inscription on the inside, printed in neat architect-style handwriting, are words of blessing from Pastor Steve as I graduated high school. It begins thus:

"MY HOPE IS THAT YOU WEAR THESE PAGES RAGGED FINDING THE ANSWERS TO YOUR SOUL- SEARCHING QUESTIONS. I PRAY THAT YOU NEVER LOSE THAT ABOUT YOURSELF..."

Confession: I have intentionally abused this Bible. Sometimes I throw it around in order to speed the fulfillment of Steve's hope for me. I wear his words as some sort of spiritual identity. I want you to look at my Bible and be impressed by how much I love God. I like that it looks well-used. Makes me feel proud.

Is the better way that someone would look at my life and know that I love God? I think we can fake spirituality by adopting the right Christian words or being seen at the right youth group events or destroying our Bibles. I sometimes even deceive myself in this way. But to know God and be known by Him... this is what I desire for me and encourage for you this week. Can we agree to stop playing games?

God, give us courage to be seen by you...and others...for what we truly are.

Today I watched the Outreach Team work on a skit and here are a few photos I took while they were practicing....

Sierra Green as The Girl and Sam Hathaway as Jesus
Pat Dinneen, as The Boy, steals The Girl away from Jesus...


But then he trades off for another girl, Kayla Zacharias 

Connor Trimble came along and gave her a drink....
...and left her on the ground....

Brooke Menzies, the Devil, began to torment her mind.... 


....and gave her a knife....

After hesitating, she threw the knife away and ran towards Jesus....

but all of those past things clung to her, throwing her back...she fought hard but couldn't make it....


Jesus, who all along was cheering, pulling and calling her, finally jumped in... 



Jesus threw aside everything that was attacking her that had kept her from him...

She was ashamed...but he covered her...
...and held her close...
This is another version of the skit where the boyfriend just beats up Jesus....
Umm...just kidding... but they look goofy.
And Connor....

Now you should be excited for what the Outreach Team is doing and look forward to the first showing of this skit! Because pictures don't quite cut it for a skit, but they wanted to see the pictures I took of them...

So, I had this thought last night, and it might be totally random and not a very good point, but I want to spill it out.

Why don't we get excited about Jesus?

Recently I went camping with a whole bunch of my guy friends, and one of the guys who came was not a Christian. We had an awesome time hanging out, fishing, camping, making fires and talking about how we would fight bears.

The whole time we didn't mention Jesus once.

Why?

Because we were scared, or at least I was scared.

I figured that if I talked about Jesus, this guy would get annoyed/scared/frustrated/angry at the mention of Jesus. I'd been so turned off by Christian culture that made evangelism this fire and brimstone yelling in the streets with a bullhorn, that I was afraid to mention the name of Jesus around this guy. Not only that, but I've realized that I'm afraid to talk about Jesus amongst my Christian friends.

I have no problem talking about youth group, and how exciting the "movement" is and what awesome social change is going on because of Jesus, but when it comes to just talking about how much I enjoy Jesus, the words don't come out.

These last few months, my relationship with Jesus has been in a really good place. God has been showing me more of himself and showing me my own sin, and it's been REALLY good. So why don't I share it. When I'm sitting around, why don't I say stuff like "man, Jesus is so good." or something like that. I'm not talking about ramming a worldview or theology down someone's throat, but does the world know that we enjoy being Christians or that we enjoy Jesus. Why won't I let my joy overflow into words of praise around people. Maybe if people were to hear me get excited about Jesus, they would be more willing to love him too, or wonder about him.

I think sometimes we get afraid of sharing our faith. When I was in high school there was this Christian who wanted to share his faith with his friends, but he didn't want to say anything. He wanted his words to do the talking. James talks about our speech and our actions lining up, but I think that this guy missed the point. Talking about Jesus isn't bad. It isn't. Maybe it doesn't have to be arrogant or manipulative, but why can't I just share what Jesus has done in my life or share my joy about Jesus.

Anyway, that is what I'm thinking right now.

This question keeps nagging at me: Do I really want to love selflessly?

I mean, let's be honest. If I love people without caring about getting anything back, I'm taking the risk that...I might not get anything back. I know that might sound shallow, but I'm just trying to be real. If I pour myself out in love, more concerned about caring for others that I care for myself, I'm afraid that I won't be cared for. If I don't meet my needs, who will?

God asks us to trust that we will be provided for. He wants us to love unconditionally and selflessly, like Jesus. I'm realizing once again what an amazingly difficult call it is to love others like myself. Such a high standard. I love me so much! =) So, with that said...

Anyone who is interested in a relationship with someone of the opposite sex, who has a crush, who is in a relationship, whatever...you should check out this podcast I just listened to.

You can find it on iTunes, under DISCUSSIONS by Patrick Dodson. The episode is called "Unconditional Love."

It gives really good ideas for people who want to date and lays out what it means to be godly within a relationship. It will rock your world, I promise.

Thanks, Bekah and Charlie, for letting me know about it.

Peace.

So here are a few links for the Advent Conspiracy. The idea is that we are going to give up a gift this Christmas and use the money to donate to help someone in another country.

Here is the original website: Advent Conspiracy
World Concern: A website that has many easy ways to give, $70 buys a goat that can substantially support a third world family. There are also wells and other things that you can do. Check out the Global Gift Guide.

Hey :)

So I've been slacking on posts since this amazing blog started but I wanted to give all of you a random reminder...

USE YOUR LEADERS.

We love you. A lot. Don't hesitate to call us. Make sure our numbers are in your phones. If one person's busy, go on to the next. You are our favorite students in the whole world.

Also, if any girls who attended the retreat at the Schwindts' cabin have stories of how things have been going since then, please make sure to let a leader know. We get super encouraged by that kind of thing.

Walk in Christ. Love you guys.

WHY IS GOD NOT ENOUGH? This thought haunts my head. It feels like a trick question. I know He is everything. Why is He not everything we need?


Why do we need? Why did God design us so we need things other than Him? There's that song that says "You are more than enough," but how that be when we depend on people, we couldn't live without water or food and babies can't survive without touch. (This is true. We need touch, it stimulates our skin... but I'll stop because this is not a science lesson..or is it??)

Why do we need? Is it just to humble us as a reminder that we can't do it alone?

How do we honor God by eating? Is it simply a way for people to come together? Why do we need people? Is it just to encourage each other in pursuing God? Why do we need to refuel our bodies? Is this an example of how we need to daily put God in our minds and hearts to function? WHY? Why do we need sleep? Is this God's way of telling us we can't do it on our own? Is this the point? Then why is God not the only thing we need? Or is He?
During sleep when our body goes through all the rem cycles, our brain is still actually processing things. Is that the only time when we are truly silent and God can instill His truth in us?

Maybe He is everything we need, but He is so much bigger we don't understand He's in everything.



Maybe it is like this picture where once again I'm looking through a telescope(I actually took this through a telescope), so I can only see part of the trunk of a giant beautiful tree. No matter where I look, I'll only see part of the tree and not ever get the whole comprehend the whole thing because my view is so limited. Maybe God will slowly make my view bigger and I will be able to grasp these concepts..Right now I'm trying to find the significance of the portion of the tree I can see.

A great article on engaging culture from a Christian perspective. READ IT!!! It's good.

http://theresurgence.com/Six_Ways_to_Engage_Culture

We talked today in jr high about getting our own relationship with God, not one that is from our parents or from what we hear, but truly stepping out with God and taking initiative. This poem, The Vision, represents what we can be if we actually do this. We can't change the world for God if we don't know him. Our revolution starts with the basics...getting to know God. My sister Bek sent Auston and I a postcard a few months back. The front reads, "To start a REVOLUTION, one must begin with themself." How true... It begins with today, chosing to be with God above all things, growing my love and relationship with him.

Can we strive for this guys, I want to change the world...


The Vision
So this guy comes up to me and says "what's the vision? What's the big idea?" I open my mouth and words come out like this… The vision?
The vision is JESUS – obsessively, dangerously, undeniably Jesus.
The vision is an army of young people.
You see bones? I see an army. And they are FREE from materialism.
They laugh at 9-5 little prisons.They could eat caviar on Monday and crusts on Tuesday.They wouldn't even notice.They know the meaning of the Matrix, the way the west was won.They are mobile like the wind, they belong to the nations. They need no passport.. People write their addresses in pencil and wonder at their strange existence.They are free yet they are slaves of the hurting and dirty and dying.What is the vision ?The vision is holiness that hurts the eyes. It makes children laugh and adults angry. It gave up the game of minimum integrity long ago to reach for the stars. It scorns the good and strains for the best. It is dangerously pure.
Light flickers from every secret motive, every private conversation.It loves people away from their suicide leaps, their Satan games. This is an army that will lay down its life for the cause.A million times a day its soldiers
choose to loosethat they might one day winthe great 'Well done' of faithful sons and daughters.
Such heroes are as radical on Monday morning as Sunday night. They don't need fame from names. Instead they grin quietly upwards and hear the crowds chanting again and again: "COME ON!"
And this is the sound of the undergroundThe whisper of history in the makingFoundations shakingRevolutionaries dreaming once againMystery is scheming in whispersConspiracy is breathing…This is the sound of the underground
And the army is discipl(in)ed.
Young people who beat their bodies into submission.
Every soldier would take a bullet for his comrade at arms. The tattoo on their back boasts "for me to live is Christ and to die is gain".
Sacrifice fuels the fire of victory in their upward eyes. Winners. Martyrs. Who can stop them ? Can hormones hold them back?Can failure succeed? Can fear scare them or death kill them ?
And the generation prays
like a dying manwith groans beyond talking,with warrior cries, sulphuric tears andwith great barrow loads of laughter!Waiting. Watching: 24 – 7 – 365.
Whatever it takes they will give: Breaking the rules. Shaking mediocrity from its cosy little hide. Laying down their rights and their precious little wrongs, laughing at labels, fasting essentials. The advertisers cannot mould them. Hollywood cannot hold them. Peer-pressure is powerless to shake their resolve at late night parties before the cockerel cries.
They are incredibly cool, dangerously attractive
inside.
On the outside? They hardly care. They wear clothes like costumes to communicate and celebrate but never to hide. Would they surrender their image or their popularity? They would lay down their very lives - swap seats with the man on death row - guilty as hell. A throne for an electric chair.
With blood and sweat and many tears, with sleepless nights and fruitless days,
they pray as if it all depends on God and live as if it all depends on them.
Their DNA chooses JESUS. (He breathes out, they breathe in.)Their subconscious sings. They had a blood transfusion with Jesus. Their words make demons scream in shopping centres.Don't you hear them coming? Herald the weirdo's! Summon the losers and the freaks. Here come the frightened and forgotten with fire in their eyes. They walk tall and trees applaud, skyscrapers bow, mountains are dwarfed by these children of another dimension. Their prayers summon the hounds of heaven and invoke the ancient dream of Eden.
And this vision will be. It will come to pass; it will come easily; it will come soon.How do I know? Because this is the longing of creation itself, the groaning of the Spirit, the very dream of God. My tomorrow is his today. My distant hope is his 3D. And my feeble, whispered, faithless prayer invokes a thunderous, resounding, bone-shaking great 'Amen!' from countless angels, from hero's of the faith, from Christ himself. And he is the original dreamer, the ultimate winner.
Guaranteed.

I'm sorry I didn't get pictures of everyone, but here are some photos from the Sr High Girls Retreat last weekend on Lake Entiat. 

The token posed Bible picture... Anna Anderson and Molly Sligh

Molly and Anna were nice enough to let me get in their face and take pictures of them even though they felt really awkward.









The girls chased all the ducks away.


Models: Abby Hutchinson, Erica Bond, Maddy Schwindt and Nikki Arnold