This morning was indeed an early morning, but it is one of my favorite days of the year. See You At The Pole, a national event that encourages students to meet around their schools' flagpole to pray, is today. I, along with our Senior Pastor, Terry, were at one of the local high schools at 6:50 am praying with about 15 students and 10 or so adults. The sunrise was beautiful, and as we stood there singing Holy Is The Lord (by Chris Tomlin), it was truly a joy.
As a Youth Pastor, one of the things that "makes my joy complete" (Philippians 2:2) is seeing glimpses of students who claim to be Christians actually step up in public and take a stand for Him. I remind our Students often that they can fool me, they can fool their parents, and they can fool their friends, but they will NEVER be able to fool God, especially when it comes to their relationship with Him.
Every Sunday morning, as I have the privilege of leading our Praise & Worship time, I look out at the faces and wonder how many even have a clue as to what they are doing. I find that with our Youth (and Adults) there are many who want to appear to look a certain way in front of their "church" associates, but when there is an opportunity to see them in their true element, their walk does not match their talk. That is, they are very different people in their "real lives" than they are in their "church" lives. There are times when I meet someone who is a co-worker of one of our members/attenders, and there's always that moment of anxiety when they say "oh yeah, I work with someone from your church." You never know what the next sentence about that person is going to be, but that next statement can tell you a LOT about the church goer's life outside of the church.
Today, the challenge to myself (and to you, the reader) is to evaluate my (or your) life in every area. To do a self-check and see if I am of the "same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose" as Paul speaks of in Philippians 2:1-4.
PJ
1 comment:
Growing up in a serious Christian home(dad pastor, christian school principal), I 'took on' Christianity from the belief of my parents and out of fear of God. You learn all the language, all the dos and don'ts and you blend in---noone asks any questions---noone bothers you. I was a fool all the way around. When I turned sixteen, I literally couldn't stand myself anymore(but not for the right reasons). I wanted to be who I was and live how I wanted. The rebellion against God that had been internal for so long, continued to escalate over the next several years. God didn't change me until I was 24.
Of all of the daily exposure of Christianity and God's Word throughout my whole childhood, it didn't change me(but God undoubtedly used it mightly) until God took hold, His Spirit moved me and changed my heart. Thanks Pastor Joey...this is a REAL life issue. Thanks for addressing it.
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