Are you trusting God for a good school year?

Take a few minutes to read over the story of Daniel in the lion's den in Daniel 6:1-28.  So we all know that school is starting very soon.  What comes to your mind when you think about this coming school year?  Maybe you think of sports or dances or dating or big football games.  There are so many things to think about that we often forget to let God in and include Him in our plans.  It's easy to just go to church on Sundays or come to the DEEP on Tuesdays, but what do you do the rest of the week?  Stand out this year!  Don't blend in with the crowd and don't be average; step out and let God rock your world this year and you will experience a year like no other!  There are many practical ways that you can live for God this school year and be used by Him.  First, live a clean life so others will not be able to accuse you.  In the Bible, others tried to find fault with Daniel but they could find nothing.  He was trustworthy and lived with integrity.  Watch what you do this year because it will come back to you.  Don't follow the rest of the world, be like Daniel!  1 Timothy 4:12 is a great verse that encourages us to set an example in "speech, in life, in love, in faith, and in purity".  Consider how everything you do this year, even the small things, will affect you.  Second, realize that others will try to trip you up in your Christian walk.  Important people in Daniel convinced the king to issue a decree saying that nobody could pray to any God except the king.  Do we fall into peer pressure from friends?  We need to recognize every situation and decide if it's tripping us up.  If it is, we need to flee from those situations or from those people who try to trip us up spiritually.  Third, we have to choose to do what is right.  Daniel still prayed even though he knew it would probably cost him his life.  He knew praying was the right thing.  In spite of what the outcome would be, we need to do the right thing!  If we don't know what the right thing is, check the Bible!  Fourth, we need to realize we can encounter difficulties when choosing the right thing.  I mean, none of us has been thrown in the lion's pit for doing the right thing, but we all have faced difficulties.  Maybe you have faced friend, family, or personal difficulties when you have done the right thing, but God wants us to do the right thing and He will always be faithful.  Finally, we should know that trusting God equals excitement!  What happened to Daniel as a result of his trust in God?  God shut the mouths of the lions and saved Daniel.  If Daniel had not obeyed in the first place, he never would have experienced this miracle from God.  What are you trusting God to do this year in school?  Have you asked Him to give you a vision?  Step out from blending in with the crowd this year and trust God to do amazing things!  He will rock your world and He will rock your school!

Staying in the Hug

Take a few minutes to read Luke 15:11-21. So in this story, the son wanted to try things on his own and he left his father and went out into the world. We do the same thing to God so many times. God, as our father, wants to keep us in his hug, his embrace because that is the best place for us to be. In this story, there are many things that the son did that we have been known to do as well. First of all, the son wanted out. How often do we want out of God's arms, even though we know it's the best place for us? Second, the son lived undisciplined and messed around with sin. Satan knows how to tempt us and knows how to make sin look really good. Third, the son wasted everything living this way. We think things are going so great when we live the way we want to until we realize that we have lost everything that was so great when we were living for God. Guys, sin can draw you in and it can destroy a lot of things in your life! Fourth, the son found himself feeding the pigs, which is most likely not what he expected. How often do we find ourselves doing things that are not in God's plan for us? Fifth, the son realized that what he was doing was wrong. Do we ever stop to think about what we're doing and how it will hurt us and where it will take us? Sixth, the son admitted he was wrong. Our Father is a loving and forgiving father. We have to admit we're wrong and we have to turn the other way and stop doing what we're doing. Finally, the son got up and went to his father. We need to make an effort with God. We need to realize where we've gone wrong and run to God. Now what about the father's response? It is much like God's response for His children. The father in the story saw his son when he was still way off. Jesus is always watching us and always wanting to hug on us. The father in the story ran to his son, heart pounding, just so he could embrace him. That's how God is with us. He wants to pursue us and love us and embrace us just like little children get hugs from their daddies. The father wanted his son back in his arms and once he was there, the father threw a party! God loves us so much that He rejoices when we come back into His arms, no matter what we've done. Are you in God's arms tonight?

Pool Party August 19

Live Kind

Pastor James and his youth group from Massachusetts shared a great message with us. You know, we live in a world that is full of messages. I mean, we are surrounded by advertisements, letters, phone messages, text messages, all sorts of messages. But what are these messages saying? What messages are being sent and what messages are being heard? There are some very famous messages left by some very famous people that we all know pretty well. But these messages are not very important in the long run. But the message Jesus spread is still relevant today. It is an important, easy, powerful message that needs to be heard and it comes down to this: Jesus Loves You! As Christians, we know this message and our lives have been greatly affected because of it. We know a message of love, hope, peace, promises, and comfort. Why aren't we sending this message? A lot of times we are very exclusive as Christians because it is comfortable but what about the people we could be reaching? Pastor James shared one of his favorite movie lines which is "The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return." That's true guys, people want to be loved and they want to fit in. God loves us so much but He doesn't love us any more than He loves the people who hate Him. The only way to reach people for Christ is to love them like Christ loves us. If his love is shining through us, people will notice and they will want what we have. Guys, your friends are searching for something that satisfies them, they just don't know it's God that will satisfy them! So let's show them! No matter where you are in life or what you've done, God loves you so much! Teenagers and young adults are the leaders of culture, the world looks to us for fashion, television, and music. If others are willing to follow us, why wouldn't we give them something great to follow? Just take chances to love on people. It doesn't have to be long or involved, just a simple act of kindness. Take a look at Ephesians 4:32 and try to remember it as you go throughout your day. "Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ, God forgave you."