High School Annual Celebration

Our High School Annual Celebration was a great night of gathering together to eat some amazing desserts and learn what God has been up to this year in this ministry!  Tim shared the "Why?" behind all of our regular events and trips and several students shared their passion to see others get involved in this unique and powerful community of Jesus-seekers and Jesus-followers. And SERVE 2014 applications are officially available!

Middle School Annual Celebration

Huge thanks to all of the parents and students who gathered on Sunday night to celebrate what God is doing through Youth@Hope's Middle School Ministry! We ate yummy desserts, saw slideshows of photos from the year, and Tim shared our vision for seeing every student get involved and stay involved in a place where they are growing in their faith straight through their senior year of high school and beyond!  (We also had some fun at the end! http://youtu.be/gDmVxT3zKWI)

"Wake Up!" Week Two

We were so blessed to be led in worship this Sunday by former student, Josiah Blizzard, who shared with us about finding true freedom in Christ.  We also heard from another former student, Abe Howell, and his friend Craig about what it means to go beyond believing to truly following Jesus and allowing Him to transform our lives!

Getting Creative at Blast and Connect!

This week our we spent time laughing at, oh sorry - I mean "with", our high school leaders as they showed us their silly (or brave!) side.  Scott gave us a great lesson about how our God is like an inventor and how creative He was in making each one of us!

ZONE!

Tonight's Zone was a sure-to-be-remembered classic! We played Saranac Ball and Sardines, which included discovering secret hiding spots of old :)

WITH = THICK

One of the things that makes any holiday special is the meal that comes with it.  Sometimes it's multiple meals, but they almost always involve lots of people and lots of food.  We live in a busy, hurried culture and it's rare that families or groups of friends ever sit down for a meal for an extended period of time.  Even now at most Christmas gatherings, people are in and out - they have to come late because they have something else going on or they leave early.  And even if we're there, many of us often spend the majority of the time with our attention focused, not on the people there but on a little screen in front of us.  Even when we're with people, we aren't actually "with" them.

This is the last week of our "Christmas WITH Us" series.  We've been talking about this verse in Matthew that says, "Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means ‘God is with us.’” Christmas can be summed up in this idea that when Jesus was born, it was a clear message from God that He is WITH us.  First of all, that He was physically present as a person with us.  But even greater than that, He is FOR us - He wants what is best for us and was and is willing to go to great lengths to make that happen.  Last week we talked about how He is sticking WITH us through the good, the bad and the ugly of life.

This week, the "WITH" that we're talking about is a THICK with.  Not only is God interested in our lives, not only is He in it for the long haul of every up and down, His desire is that your entire life would be completely wrapped up in a deep, close relationship with Him.  He's not interested in a shallow, thin, once-in-a-while connection with you.  He wants something much greater than that.

So, long, long ago, before the days of smartphones, iPods, or personal video games, long before the days of television and telephones, long before the days of every-day after-school sports practices and games, long before the days of obsession with career-advancement and nighttime meetings, there was this thing called "supper".  

"Supper" was a gathering at the end of the day when work ended and people came together to eat a meal.  In the Bible this meal is sometimes referred to as the "deipnon".  This meal wasn't just about the food - it was about putting aside everything else to be WITH each other.  These meals lasted for a longer period of time than our meals do and way more important than what was on the table was who was around the table.  Because while you were eating, you were not working or doing other things, you were spending face-to-face time with someone - getting to know each other, sharing your stories and ideas, and developing a relationship.

Last week I talked about how Jesus had twelve disciples who followed Him around and learned from Him.  One of those disciples was named John.  After Jesus died on the cross, rose again and then left the earth, John continued spreading the message of Jesus and near the end of his life, God gave him this huge crazy vision of the future of the church and the end of the world.  John wrote down what he saw and heard from God in this book called Revelation.  

The first part of Revelation is a vision of Jesus Himself and in this section, John recorded seven letters or messages from Jesus to seven different churches or groups of churches.  Some parts of these messages are encouraging - basically a pat on the back and a push to keep pressing on.  Some of the messages have warnings that hard times are coming to them.  But some of them are what we call a "rebuke" or a correction on something that wasn't right and a plea from Jesus for them to make a change.

The seventh letter is the harshest of them all and that's the one I want to talk about tonight.  

“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth." Revelation 3:14-16

To Jesus, this was the ultimate danger for those who believed in Him - claiming to be His follower, claiming to have a relationship with Him, but allowing this relationship to remain "lukewarm" - shallow and thin - a here and there, "when it's convenient" kind of thing.  

Toward the end of the letter, Jesus offers them a remedy to this problem.  

"Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me." Revelation 3:20 

The remedy is a meal with Jesus.  Not a meal like we look at them today - a meal like that "supper" I talked about earlier.

When God came to this earth to be WITH us, He wasn't just coming to be a sidekick we could call on when times get tough or when we need some help.  He wasn't just coming so that we could be saved and then "pay Him back" our "dues" by reading the Bible or praying or going to church or youth group every once in a while, when it's "convenient" for us.  He wasn't just coming so that we could get some sort of "warm fuzzy feeling" every once in a while to carry us until we need a refill.

He came to be THICK with us.  He came so that He could have a deep, intimate, real, constant, completely life-changing relationship with every single person who has believed in Him and received Him.  Because THAT is what's best for us.  

The problem is that we live in a world where "supper" rarely exists, where technology has made us think we have real relationships but we don't, and where it is completely acceptable to be lukewarm and just do things when they are convenient for you.

So, living in this culture is it even possible to have a THICK relationship with God?  I truly believe that it is, but it's not going to come without a fight and it's not going to happen without you being really intentional about it.  

A THICK relationship with God comes from DAILY MEALS.  Spending time with God once or maybe twice a week by coming here isn't going to get you anywhere.  It has to be an every day thing.  And not just a passing meal where you shove a pop-tart or a slice of pizza in your mouth and run out the door.  You might have to start small - even with five minutes a day, but start somewhere!

This "meal" might look different for you than it does for others, so figure out what works best for you.  For me, it's studying the Bible and journaling.  That is how I connect with God the best.  For some people it's praying or listening to worship songs or doing a devotional book. For most of us it's a combination of those things, or something different every day.  I promise you that if you can be diligent about this, even if it feels like an obligation at first, you will get to a point where you won't WANT to miss a day because you won't be able to imagine getting through your day without that face-to-face time with Jesus.

A THICK relationship with God also comes from CONSTANT SNACKING. I have this amazing little book called "Practicing the Presence of God" which is filled with the words of a man who lived in the 1600s named Brother Lawrence.  Brother Lawrence was a kitchen servant at a monastery and he wrote about how he acknowledged the presence of God in every activity of his life, no matter how small - with every step he took, with every dish he washed, he was fully aware of the presence of Jesus being with Him.

No detail of your life is too small for God!  He's with you in everything - when you snooze your alarm in the morning, when you're brushing your teeth or deciding what to wear.  When you're walking from class to class, when you're responding to that Snapchat, when you're kicking that soccer ball or doing your homework.  And IN every single thing you do, you have the opportunity to just acknowledge in your head that He is with you.  Every single time you do that, you are thickening up your relationship with God.  Even if it feels lame or unnecessary or insignificant!

Psalm 34:8 says,"Taste and see that the Lord is good".  The more you get a taste of the goodness of God, even if they are just little tastes throughout the day, the more you're going to want even more of Him, because He is SO good!

It's not easy and growing in your relationship with Him takes time and energy - it doesn't just happen. So, here are three practical tips:

1) TURN IT OFF

When I described that meal earlier, I mentioned that coming together for that meal meant that the day's work was over and everything was put aside for that time to be together.  Your greatest enemy to a THICK, deep relationship with God in this culture is technology.  We have so much going on and so much "noise" that it's getting really hard to hear Jesus knocking on that door.  

There are a lot of benefits to technology, like having the Bible accessible to you anywhere, anytime.  But in general, most growing Christians I know are finding the distraction level is out of control and it isn't working. If you want to go deep with God, you're gonna have to set some limits - I don't know what that looks like for you, but maybe it just means getting yourself a real, paper Bible.  If you need help with that please ask us, we would love to help you get one!

2) TALK OUT LOUD

If you were here last week we read a verse that talks about how God knows even our deepest thoughts, which means we can communicate with Him just by thinking.  But actually talking out loud to Jesus is one of THE best ways to truly understand that He is WITH you. I don't mean as you're walking down the halls at school or when you're sitting in Chick-Fil-A with your friends (that might not be the best idea!). But when you're alone having that face to face time with Him, talk to Him as if He's sitting right there. Put an empty chair in front of you if you need to. It's SO uncomfortable at first, but more than anything I've ever tried, doing this makes your relationship with Him incredibly real.

3) JUST SAY JESUS

When I was in high school and college I worked at a summer camp in Vermont and there was a camp pastor there named Pastor Wayne.  One night around the campfire, Pastor Wayne said to us that if we ever were praying and we didn't know what to say, we could just remember this one phrase: "Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner."  I remember thinking, "That's weird.  I'll never need that."

But for some reason I remembered it and I cannot tell you how much that simple phrase has meant to me - I have probably said it thousands of times in those moments when I just want to pray but for some reason I don't have the words to say.

You don't have to make it complicated.  As you are going throughout your day, you don't have pray long prayers or say the right things, just say His name!  There is unbelievable power in the name of Jesus and all you have to do is say it.  Say it out loud, say it in your head, sing it, yell it. Just say it and acknowledge that He's there.  

If you haven't made a decision to believe in Jesus and receive Him into your life, maybe you're here because He is knocking on the door of your heart, and He's waiting for you to open the door and let Him in.  If you have accepted Christ, maybe He's knocking because you've been shutting Him out - or only letting Him in at certain times- when it's convenient for you.  Maybe you need to get honest and realize that you've been lukewarm, that your relationship with God has been shallow and thin and something needs to change.

Psalm 63:1-8 

O God, you are my God;

I earnestly search for you.

My soul thirsts for you;

my whole body longs for you

in this parched and weary land

where there is no water. 

I have seen you in your sanctuary

and gazed upon your power and glory. 

Your unfailing love is better than life itself;

how I praise you! 

I will praise you as long as I live,

lifting up my hands to you in prayer. 

You satisfy me more than the richest feast.

I will praise you with songs of joy. 

I lie awake thinking of you,

meditating on you through the night. 

Because you are my helper,

I sing for joy in the shadow of your wings. 

I cling to you;

your strong right hand holds me securely. 

Make It Real For You

"Taste and see that the Lord is good." Psalm 34:8

 

Read this:

 

    Imagine that you’ve planned a wonderful surprise party for your best friend. The guests have all arrived. You’ve loaded the decorated dining room table with her favorite junk food... Everything is ready for the guest of honor. You can barely wait for the big moment of “Surprise!” because you know your friend will feel so loved and celebrated.

    Finally, the time has come. And gone. Your friend is late. Your other friends are whispering in the darkened living room and trying unsuccessfully to hold back waves of laughter. Suddenly, your cell phone rings. Your friend’s image appears on the screen.  “Shhh!” you say to the others just before answering the call.

   “Hey, where are you?” you ask casually.

    Instead of saying she’s on her way, your friend says she’s too tired to come over and has decided to watch the last two episodes of her favorite show online. She’s already in her pajamas and will check out whatever you wanted to show her tomorrow. You try to convince her that tonight is so much better and you really want to share something with her. But with a friendly “See you tomorrow, I promise,” she hangs up.

-Lysa Terkeurst

1) Every day you have a “surprise party”-size meal with Jesus waiting for you, all you have to do is show up.  But so often we choose other things.  List the top three things that you choose instead of having a “meal” with Jesus:

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2) Do you find it easy or difficult to think about God as you go through your day?

 

   

    Write down two things you do every day where you could set a goal to just acknowledge    Jesus’ presence with you in those moments.  Write “JESUS” on a sticky note and put it in a place where you will see it during those times.

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3) Talk out loud to Jesus today.  Try it for 5 minutes.  If you’re not ready for that, just say “JESUS” out loud right now and start there!

 

 

WITH = STICKY (Week Two)

One of the parts of the Christmas season that we all love (and don't love!) is this thing called FAMILY.  Christmas means getting to see family we don't see every day and there's something special about being together over the holidays.  But there are also some major downsides - awkward conversations and crazy relatives who you've successfully avoided all year and you're just thinking, "Get me out of here!".

This is week two of "Christmas With Us" and we're talking about this one word "WITH" and how Christmas can pretty much be summed up in this idea that the Almighty God above all things, the most powerful force in the universe came to earth to be WITH us - to be a person among these people He created.

Last week we talked about how God being with us as a person in Jesus was more than Him just being physically together with us - it was actually Him making it very clear to us that He is FOR us.  Instead of sitting up in Heaven with more important things to do, He is deeply interested in our lives - He wants what is best for us and He was and is willing to go to great lengths to make it happen!

This week the WITH that we're talking about is a STICKY with.  If "with" means two things coming together, then if those two things were to no longer be together they would no longer be "with".  God's promise to be WITH us means that He is sticking Himself to us and not leaving or separating Himself from us - no matter what.

Speaking of families, Jesus Himself might have a pretty good chance of winning the craziest family contest!  When God came to earth, He was born into a mess.  And He very much knew and very much chose to enter into this mess!

Just to start it off, we read last week about the mess of Mary getting pregnant before her and Joseph were married and he almost called off the engagement altogether.  All of that would have been controversial enough in itself!  But the mess of Jesus' family goes much deeper than that.

Have you have ever done any research on your family tree or family history?  I've done a little on mine, but I lose interest quickly because all we really know about people is their name and maybe their occupation.  I think it would be SO cool to actually have more details about what they were REALLY like - you know the good, the bad and the ugly!  Unfortunately, all you normally get is a name and maybe, if you're lucky, an old photograph. 

The first chapter of Matthew starts off with a "family tree" of Jesus' family line all the way back very close to the beginning of the Bible.  In this time and culture, the family line was carried through the heir - the first born son of each family.  In some cases, a son other than the first-born was chosen, but in general, this is how it worked.  So, what you will find in Matthew 1:1-16 is a list of men leading all the way to Jesus, whose earthly father was Joseph.

When you look at this list of men, it's kind of obvious that women had to be involved in this in some way - you know, since MEN can't give birth to babies!  Where are all the moms?  If you look at the list again, you will see that four women were considered important enough to be mentioned.  And you might think they were mentioned over all the other moms (who were completely left out) because there must have been something really amazing about them.

These four women who were mentioned either came from or created their own mess.  Ruth was not an Israelite, but after her husband died, she re-married and became part of this family line.  She did, actually do a very honorable thing and probably did "deserve" her honorable mention.  Rahab also did an honorable thing, but she was a prostitute.  Bathsheba is listed as David's wife, but if you read the story in 1 Samuel 11, you will learn that King David saw her from a distance, bathing, and had her brought to him.  Then knowing that she was a married woman, David had sex with her and ended up getting her pregnant.  Since he didn't want to get caught, he had her husband killed in battle.  And then there's Tamar - a deceptive, desperate widow who dressed up as a prostitute and tricked her father-in-law into having sex with her so that she could get pregnant and have children. Talk about a mess!

And as Jesus grew up and began His ministry, the mess didn't get any better.  His immediate biological family had their issues, but more important to mention is that people that Jesus spent the most of His time with.

Later, Levi invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners (tax collectors were like the bottom of the barrel, like the lowest of the low in that day). There were many people of this kind among Jesus’ followers. But when the teachers of religious law who were Pharisees saw him eating with tax collectors and other sinners, they asked his disciples, “Why does he eat with such scum?” Mark 2:15-16

Even Jesus' closest followers - His twelve disciples - were a mess!  Usually when a teacher like Jesus picked disciples to follow them, they picked the best of the best.  But Jesus sought out the rabbi-school drop outs and, although they were devoted to Him and stuck with Him, over and over again they proved their 'drop-out' status!

My favorite story about this is found in Mark 14.  In this passage, Jesus is about to give His life on the cross.  He's in spiritual, mental and physical agony.

They went to the olive grove called Gethsemane, and Jesus said, “Sit here while I go and pray.” He took Peter, James, and John with him, and he became deeply troubled and distressed. He told them, “My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” Then he returned and found the disciples asleep. He said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Couldn’t you watch with me even one hour? Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak.” Then Jesus left them again and prayed the same prayer as before. When he returned to them again, he found them sleeping, for they couldn’t keep their eyes open. And they didn’t know what to say.  Mark 14:32-34, 37-40

What a mess!  

And the mess didn't end there.  Because His family didn't end there. 

But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children. And because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, “Abba, Father.” Now you are no longer a slave but God’s own child. And since you are his child, God has made you his heir. Galatians 4:4-7

The family line of Jesus didn't end when He was born.  He didn't have any children of His own, but every single person who has believed in Him and received Him into his or her life over the past 2,000 years is on that list as His child, as His heir!  When you make a choice for YOU - not because of your family's beliefs or because you've just "grown up this way" - to make Jesus real in your life, you are on that list!  

The deal is that NONE of us get on that list by "honorable" mention!  We are on that list, like those women that were mentioned, BECAUSE we are a mess and because God has chosen to be WITH us in our mess!  You are His family and no matter what kind of mess you have come from, are in now, or will get yourself into in the future, He came to this earth so that you could become His child and be WITH you - and STICK with you - through it all.

The greatest picture I know of this is found in a book called Psalms and what I'm going to read was actually written by King David, who I mentioned earlier.  Yeah, the guy who committed adultery and murder - that guy.

"O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me. You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away. You see me when I travel and when I rest at home.You know everything I do. You know what I am going to say even before I say it, Lord. You go before me and follow me.You place your hand of blessing on my head." Psalm 139:1-5

The verse I want to focus on is this one:  "You go before me and follow me."  Other versions say that He "hems me in" or "squeezes me in".  Basically, this word means that He is encircling us or surrounding us.  He is all around - He goes before us and He is behind us.

If you have believed in Jesus and received Him into your life, you are His child and his heir and this is also true of you:

1. God isn't just playing "follow the leader" - He's lifting me up from BEHIND.  He knows your before, your past.  He knows everything you have ever done, thought or said.  He knows every mess you've ever created or been a part of.  And this verse means that through it all, He's got your back!  He is protecting you and lifting you up from whatever pit you might find yourself in.

2.  God doesn't need to follow me into my mess, He's already there AHEAD of me.  Sometimes our messes come from things outside of our control.  Sometimes we create our own messes.  Most of the time it's some sort of undecipherable combination of the two.  But regardless of whose fault it is, He already knows it's going to happen!  And He's preparing you right now for whatever it is.  Just like he came to earth to be born in a barn full of smelly animals, God loves to meet us in the mess and be the one who pulls us out of it.  He is always there with His deep, profound love, and total, complete forgiveness.  He offers us healing and hope, He shines His light bright even in our darkest times.

3.  No matter what, I can't UNSTICK God from being with me.

Listen to the words of David again:  "I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me. I could ask the darkness to hide me and the light around me to become night— but even in darkness I cannot hide from you. To you the night shines as bright as day. Darkness and light are the same to you." Psalm 139:7-12

When you read this, you get the feeling that David is overwhelmed by the fact that he can't just give up and he can't get away from God's presence in his life!  Even if he wanted to UNSTICK God from him, it wasn't going to happen, no matter where he went.

As you go through this season and you're at your family gatherings, my challenge to you is to just stop at least one time for one moment.  Look around at all the crazy, and remember that as a believer in Jesus, no matter how crazy and messy your life has been or will get, God is WITH you!  You are part of His family and during this season we remember that He came.  He came to get hands on into the mess and shine His light and His love and His healing.

If you haven't made that decision to believe in Christ and become part of His family, the offer is laying right here and all you have to do is take it. You don't have to clean up your mess first and you don't have to be "good enough".  All you have to do is believe and receive Him into your life. Why not give Him the chance to surround you this Christmas? 

Make It Real For You

"You go before me and follow me." Psalm 139:5

Is there anything you have done or that has happened in your past that you feel "disqualifies" you from God being WITH you?

If you have believed in Christ and received Him into your life, you can trust that He will be WITH you through every high and every low!  How does it make you feel to know that you are a member of Jesus family?

Do you have any fears that you might screw everything up and that God might stop being with you?

The quote below is from the letters of a man named Brother Lawrence who served as a kitchen worker and sandal-repairer in a monastery in France in the 1600s.  He wrote about his experiences of God being WITH Him constantly, even in the very boring details and moments of life.  The language in this might be hard to understand, but read it through a few times - it's worth it!

"I think it proper to inform you after what manner I consider myself before God, whom I behold as my King. I consider myself as the most wretched of men, full of sores and corruption, and who has committed all sorts of crimes against his King. Touched with a sensible regret, I confess to Him all my wickedness, I ask His forgiveness, I abandon myself in His hands, that He may do what He pleases with me. This King, full of mercy and goodness, very far from chastising me, embraces me with love, makes me eat at His table, serves me with His own hands, gives me the key of His treasures; He converses and delights Himself with me incessantly, in a thousand and a thousand ways, and treats me in all respects as His favorite.  It is thus I consider myself from time to time in His holy presence." - FromThe Practice of the Presence of God, Second Letter

Do you truly believe that God embraces you with this kind of love - no matter what?

WITH (Week One)

It's that time of year again!  I am personally not much of a fan of Christmas - I'm just not into all the commercialism, but I do absolutely LOVE Christmas movies.  I don't know what it is - something about the "sentimental-families-getting-together-warm-coziness".  I could watch some of these movies over and over and never get sick of them!

One of my favorites (even though I thought someday I would surely get sick of it!) is Elf. If you haven't seen the movie, I'll give you a little background:

One Christmas as Santa is making his rounds, a baby boy from an orphanage sneaks into his bag and lands himself at the North Pole.  He is named "Buddy" and is adopted by one of Santa's toy-making elves and raised to believe he is also an elf.  One day, grown-up Buddy overhears a conversation revealing he is not actually an elf. He is devastated, of course, and leaves the North Pole to go to New York City in search of his biological father, Walter Hobbs.  It turns out that Walter doesn't even know Buddy exists and even after DNA testing, still refuses to truly accept and love him as his son.

The scene we are going to see is about Buddy and his new-found half-brother Michael:

Christmas in our culture is about a lot of things.  It's about shopping and getting good deals - and buying lots of fairly useless gifts for each other.  For kids, it's about waiting all year to get that list of gifts they've been dreaming of and trying to stay on the "good list" for.  Christmas in the movies is all about "the time of year when miracles happen" and families always learn that they really do love each other.  Christmas is about decorating your house with lights and lawn blow-ups and going nuts every single one of the 317 times you hear your favorite Christmas Carol on B101.

But in reality, Christmas is all about one word: WITH

This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. Joseph, her fiancé, was a good man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly. As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. 
“Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through his prophet: “Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means ‘God is with us.’" Matthew 1:18-23

At Christmas we celebrate this one simple but ridiculously amazing truth: God is WITH us.  Christmas is a huge birthday party for a baby who was born 2,000 years ago and who was anything but a normal baby.  This baby was the God of the universe, the most powerful force to ever exist, huger than our brains could ever comprehend a single ounce of.  The God who created humans actually became one of those humans so that He could show us that He is WITH us.

If you look up the definition of the word "WITH" in a dictionary, you'll be quickly overwhelmed because it has so many meanings.  Of course, the main definition is the idea of two things coming together.  For example: "I like to eat my Oreos with milk."  Milk and Oreos come together.  Or "I am in this room with you".  You and I are together.  

But the "WITH" I'm talking about is more like this: Imagine two guys were talking and one of them was saying something that the other agreed with or the second guy just wanted to support him in some way, he might say something like, "Dude, I'm WITH you, bro!"

"I'm WITH you" in this situation means more than just physically being in the same room or space as that person, it goes deeper because it means that you are on the side of that person or that you are FOR them.

The Almighty God becoming an itty bitty baby was not just Him saying, "I am physically with you", it was the fleshing out of the much greater idea that God is FOR us.  That He is not just sitting on His throne high up in Heaven doing "more important things".  He is not just watching us screw things up and then striking lightning bolts down, laughing and saying "I told you so".  No, He is FOR us.  He wants what is best for us and He was willing to go to great lengths - even as far as becoming a helpless baby, completely dependent on the care of imperfect human beings - to show us that He is FOR us.  He did it so that He could say, "I'm with you, bro!"

Have you ever stayed overnight in your house alone?  We talked about fear a few weeks ago and I have to say that this is probably one of my greatest fears.  I'm spoiled because we live with Tim's parents, but I absolutely hate it when Tim is away and it just happens that they are going to be away, too.  I have trouble sleeping and I hear every little noise.  EVERY little noise.  But if even one of them is there, I'm totally fine!  Just the PRESENCE of another person changes everything.

The funny thing is that if someone was really going to break into our house with the intentions of hurting us (which is what I'm so afraid of) they would probably be large and armed and so - no offense to my husband (he's amazing!) - but what in the world do I think Tim is going to do?

I don't know if he could beat up the bad guy, but what I do know is that Tim is FOR me, that he absolutely wants what is best for me and that he would do everything in his power to keep me and our girls safe.

The reason I chose this video clip is this: Michael and Buddy are walking through the park and the snowball-throwing bullies come out in full-on attack.  From what you know of Buddy, you might think, "This is not going to end well! What in the world is HE going to do?"  But then while Michael is making his one measly little snowball you see that in that time Buddy has made this entire PILE and he just starts chucking them like a machine gun.  The bullies had absolutely NO chance!  Even the biggest and best of them were no match for Buddy's "out of this world" magical powers.  Michael had some really great power on his side!

The verse we just read in Matthew actually comes from a book written about 700 years before Jesus was born.  It's called Isaiah and the verse is Isaiah 7:14 - "Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel which means ‘God is with us’."  700 years before it actually happened, God was preparing His people for what was to come.

Later on in the same book, God says this:

"Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand. See, all your angry enemies lie there, confused and humiliated. Anyone who opposes you will die and come to nothing. You will look in vain for those who tried to conquer you. Those who attack you will come to nothing. For I hold you by your right hand—I, the Lord your God. And I say to you, ‘Don’t be afraid. I am here to help you.'" Isaiah 41:10-13

When God was saying this it was during a time where His people were involved in lots of physical, life-threatening conflict over their land and their freedom.  What we just read was Him reminding them that they would never do battle alone because His power was not far away or just intervening every once in a while, His power was with them.  And that's because He was WITH them - He was FOR them. He wanted what was best for them and He was willing to do whatever it took to make that happen.

Most of us will never be involved in the kind of battles the people God was talking to in this passage were involved in.  But we all have battles in our lives.  Sometimes our enemies are actual people who just seem to have it out for us.  Sometimes our biggest enemy is actually inside our own minds - which means we struggle with an enemy who never seems to go away.  You might even feel at times that God Himself is your enemy because the circumstances and situations in your life don't seem to be working out the way you hoped for them to.

But no matter what it looks like or feels like, God truly is FOR you and He wants all of His power to be very real in your life!

This second clip from Elf is toward the end of the movie.  Santa's sleigh has crashed in Central Park in New York City and Buddy is trying to help Santa fix the sleigh. Buddy's girlfriend, Jovie, Michael, Walter, and Walter's wife, Emily are all gathered with a crowd at the edge of the park.  The problem at hand is that Santa's sleigh needs more "Christmas spirit" to fly again - the "Spirit Clausometer" not quite at 100%.  Jovie remembers Buddy saying that "the best way to spread Christmas cheer is by singing loud for all to hear", so she leads the crowd in a song.

Walter, Buddy's dad has been really resistant to all of this Christmas cheer, but he's starting to warm up to the idea.  So watch Walter in this scene:

(Watch 2:39-4:00)

"You're not singing, your just moving your lips!"  When God says He is with us, He's not just moving His lips. And He's not just half-hearted, doing His obligatory 'job' as God to help His people out 'every once in a while'.  He is FOR you.  He has a deep interest in YOUR life, He wants what is best for you and He's willing to go to great lengths to make His power real in your life!

Before that first Christmas, God had promised to be with His people and He had been with His people.  But when God came to earth as a human He was putting His actions where His mouth was and saying, "This is real. I AM WITH you."

The question is: Are you doing battle alone?  Or is God's amazing, out of this world power WITH you?  We kind of have this idea in our culture that God is just with everyone, but there is only one way to guarantee and know for sure that God is truly with you.  God's promise to be WITH His people only applies to His children.  And John 1:12 says, "To those who received Him (Jesus), to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God."  

He came as a baby that first Christmas so that YOU could have the opportunity to receive Him into your life and become one of His children.  So that you could believe in Him and then know that He is WITH you every second of every hour of every day!

But like Walter in the movie, are you just moving your lips?  Or are you really WITH God?  Have you had a time in your life where you declared, "This is what I believe and Jesus, I want to receive you into my life"?  If you haven't done that, why not do it right now.  All you have to do is talk to Him and make it official.  Do it now!  Don't go another minute without being sure that God is WITH you.

Jesus, I know I need Your power in my life.  I believe you came to this earth to live, die and rise again.  Please forgive all of my sin and come into my life right now.  I need You to be WITH me.  Amen.

Make It Real For You 

What are your three biggest life-battles?

How do you most need God to be WITH you?

Have you "made it official" with Jesus that you believe in Him and want Him to be with you?

Wake Up!!

Tonight was quite a night at Community! We heard, not only from the incredibly talented Scott Smith, but from our new friends Sam and Christian, interns from Vermont who boldly challenged us to "Wake Up" from our spiritual slumber. Combined with a powerful time of worshipping God, it was a night not to be missed!

God Is Like A Rock

Tim taught our 5th - 8th graders a practical and fun lesson about how we can depend and trust in God, our unchanging Rock!  The balls of paper you see are "rocks" we used in a really fun game :)

Declaration Sunday

God, we believe that You are worthy.  

We believe that You are greater than all other things.  You came to this earth to show Your deep love for us.  We want to give this year to You as we praise You and live our lives for You.  Amen.

 

God is not dead,

He is alive in my life, even when I don't feel Him.

 

God is faithful

and He has a plan for my life, so I have nothing to fear.

 

God is my provider

and I will choose to trust Him and not worry about the things I don't have. 

 

God is full of forgiveness

and my failures will never be too great for Him to forgive.

 

God is full of mercy

and because of that He gives me the power to forgive others who hurt me.

 

God is Healer

and is working to heal what is broken in my life.

 

God is my Hope

and even though I see so much darkness around me, I will keep my eyes on Him.

 

God is my peace

and nothing else I try to fill my life with to make me feel better will ever compare to Him.

 

God is true

and even though I have doubts, I will choose to believe.

 

God is right

and His ways are so much greater than my own, even when His ways don't make sense.

God is here

in my life and I believe that He is with me now and will be with me

through every high and every low.

 

God is my Father

and I can rest and live in His crazy love for me. I am a child of the one true King!

 

God is freedom

and He has the power to free me from anything that is holding me back from surrendering my whole life to Him.

 

God is changing me

from the inside out, I'm not who I was and I can't wait to see how He's going to continue to use my life in His Kingdom.

 

God is real

and I want to know Him and I want Him to know me.

 

God is Love

and nothing can ever separate me from His love.

 

God is good

and He has filled me with His love so that I can share it with others, even when they don't deserve it.

 

God is a giver

and has given me this community so that I can grow in my faith and learn to serve others. I will not give up on these people, even when things get rough.

 

God is worth it

and pursuing Him is the most important way I can spend my time.

 

God's words in the Bible are powerful

and I will learn them so that they can change my heart and mind.

 

God is strong

and nothing can be stronger than His power in my life.

God has never failed before

and He won't start now!

Good Times!

Various groups of students got together today to have fun and get to know each other better!  The freshman/sophomore girls were treated to make-your-own pizzas and chocolate fondue at Erin's house. We also decorated t-shirts!  The junior/senior girls cooked dinner together at Mo's :) Several guys gathered to cheer on the Eagles and play cards at Tim's!

Youth@Hope Annual Alumni Breakfast!

One of our favorite days of the year! It's amazing to gather together and get life updates from our former students :)

Happy New Year!

"In the next five minutes, you will receive sustaining grace flowing to you from the future, and you will accumulate another five minutes’ worth of grace in the reservoir of the past. The proper response to grace you experienced in the past is gratitude, and the proper response to grace promised to you in the future is faith. We are thankful for the past grace of the last year, and we are confident in future grace for the new year." John Piper

In other words...

When you look at your past, instead of seeing and being torn down by your faults or the faults of others, you can choose to see a deep, wide, full ocean of grace and forgiveness from our God of unfailing love.  

And as you look toward your future, instead of seeing and being weighed down by your worries, fears and frailties, you can choose to see a waterfall of grace rushing down on you - grace for every moment!

We can't wait to see the power of God's AMAZING grace working in the lives of students in 2014!