The Sharpest Tools in the Shed

 For some of you, reading that title immediately got you singing Smashmouth's "All Star" (just writing it got the song stuck in my head). I tip my hat to you. Well, last night I had a blast bringing back 4-Square in the gym. Turns out I'm not as rusty as I thought! We also brought back the insanely dangerous awesome game of Hungry Hungry Humans. If you don't know what that it is, just go look it up quickly on YouTube and you'll be sorry you missed out. ;)

Have you ever had to mow the lawn? When I was a teenager that was one of my responsibilities at home. I hated it. I always ended up sweaty and gross, covered in bits of grass and dirt and almost always with at least one new bug bite. The job itself seems pretty simple - turn on your mower and walk over the grass. On paper its a very simple job. But add in the heat, bumps in the ground, sticks in the way, and elevation changes and that simple task just became a lot harder.

Now imagine that I go out to mow my lawn and I think to myself "Hey Mike, you don't need a lawnmower to do this, you can handle it yourself!" And then I proceed to bend down and start ripping the grass up with my hands. With this method, how long do you think it is going to take me to finish "mowing" the lawn? The whole day? Maybe several days? With the size of my current lawn, I think the grass where I started will have regrown by the time I finish, meaning I'd have to start all over again! My hands would definitely be hurting something bad by the end of it (assuming I managed to finish at all).

The obvious question in this scenario is "Why didn't I use the tools at my disposal to handle the work more wisely and efficiently?" I had the tools, but I was choosing not to use them. And that's what we talked about last night: God has given us specific (and powerful) tools to handle the problems of life. So let's look at those together. Check out what James says in chapter one of his book:

James 1:2-5 - "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you." (Emphasis mine)

The first tool God has given us is prayer. DO NOT underestimate the power of prayer. Prayers aren't just empty words spoken in a conversation, they are words filled with hope and expectation spoken to the God who can actually answer them. It is one thing to say "I wish I was wiser." It is something else entirely to pray and ask God for wisdom. When I wish for something, I'm just expressing a desire. "I wish I had some pizza right now." "I wish I wasn't lactose intolerant." "I wish I was as buff as Dwayne 'the Rock' Johnson." But when I pray for something, I am asking God to give me what I desire. The difference? God can actually give it to me.

In fact, according to those verses above, God gives out wisdom freely. You want the wisdom to handle the problems of life? Pray and ask God, and He will give it to you.

I would also like to note that these verses assume that we will face trials of many kinds. James is like "Hey guys, you're going to run into problems, you just are." And he says we should "consider it pure joy" when we do. Why? Because facing problems is what causes us to grow and mature - both in life and in faith.

When I started to rock climb at the Gravity Vault, I got very comfortable climbing 5.9s (just one grade more difficult than beginner). That's all I wanted to do because I was good at it. Finally, my friends challenged to try something harder. When I did, I failed. I couldn't do it. I wasn't strong enough and didn't have the skill or technique to do it. But they encouraged me to keep trying, to keep facing the problem. And as I did, I slowly became a stronger climber and was able to work my way up the grading scale all the way to 5.12s (one step below expert). If was never challenged to do something harder, I never would have grown stronger. So James is right to tell us to take joy in facing our problems, because through them we grow stronger, more mature and complete in our faith. And prayer is one of the tools God has given us to overcome those problems.

Now let's look to tool #2, and for that we'll take a look at Proverbs 3:1-6 - "My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart, for they will prolong your life many years and bring you peace and prosperity. Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight."

Well, the joke is on you. We've actually been using tool #2 this whole time! The second tool God has given us is His Word - the Bible. Proverbs, in particular, is packed with wise sayings about how to handle (or avoid) the problems of this life. The Bible, the Word of God, is not just a bunch of stories about the history of Israel or even all about the life of Jesus. It is full of the knowledge of God, and guidelines for living wisely and confidently in this broken world.

I'm not much of a "car guy", to the point that I can never even remember what size windshield wipers I need for my car. It seems like a small problem, but the wrong size can make it so they don't work properly on the car. There are a couple of ways I can go about trying to figure it out: 1) I can buy a bunch of different sizes until I get the right size, 2) I can go ask a mechanic or someone who would know (although they can get it wrong), or 3) I can look it up in the vehicle's manual - which will tell me exactly what size wiper I need.

I think too often we try to face our problems with option 1 - we keep trying different things until something works. Sometimes we'll opt for option 2, and ask someone for advice (but they could be wrong or give bad advice). Really, our first thought should be option 3, to go to God and His Word for the right answer of how to handle whatever situation we've come across.

As these verses advise, we should keep the Word of God close to our hearts, reading portions of it every day and continuing to think about them throughout the day. We should definitely be living by the teaching of the Bible, loving others and being faithful to our word every day. And in verses 5-6, it says we should trust God fully and not rely on our own understanding of things. We need to recognize when we don't know what to do and then go to God for guidance. What will happen when we do this? He will show us the right way to go.

There is a 3rd tool hidden in there, too. The book of Proverbs was written by a man to his son (using God's wisdom as his primary source of knowledge). God hasn't sent us out into the world alone. No, He has given us a global community of fellow believers to support us (and whom we should support). When we're not sure what to do, we can go to other Christians and ask for advice and guidance (this is literally what Pastors are there for).

So, God has given us several tools to work with in facing the problems of this life. He has given us the power of prayer so we can ask for His help directly, His written Word so we can use it as a reference and guide, and other Christians who can encourage and support us in times of need.

If you are reading this, here is what I want you to do. Think of a problem you are facing right now (it can be anything, big or small). It shouldn't be too hard to think of one - we all face problems on a daily basis. Once you have a specific problem in mind, I want you to pray and ask God to give you the wisdom to handle that situation. Do it. Right now. Pray something like this: "God, give me the wisdom to handle this situation the way You would want me to."

Once you have prayed, look to the Bible. In order to be reading this you must be in some kind of web browser, so open up a new tab and look up what the Bible has to say about what you're dealing with. Maybe you are struggling with a particular sin, or drama in your friend group. If its the drama, you can look up what the Bible has to say about our relationships with others and how to maintain peace and harmony.

Once you have done this, follow the advice. If you're not sure what to look for, or you're not sure what to do in response, use tool #3. Ask your fellow Christians. Shoot me a message or ask another one of the leaders from youth group. Don't just sit there in confusion, seek out an answer.

God has given us these tools so that no matter what problem we face, we are equipped with the tools we need to face it. He doesn't send us to mow the lawn without a mower. He doesn't leave us to pull up the grass by hand. He equips us to face life, and He stands with us and faces it with us. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight."

God bless yall.

In One Ear, NOT Out the Other

 Hiya folks!

Once again we had one of those smaller groups last night, but we still had a blast playing some 9-Square together. Saw some new faces as well as some old faces, but of course, all of those faces were wearing masks...

For this post, let's jump right into the message. Last week we looked at 7 things that the people of God were devoted to in the earliest days of the church: Teaching, Fellowship, Breaking Bread, Prayer, True Community, Praising God and Welcoming New Members. This week we focused in on the first one: Teaching. Now, we've already established that our group is fairly "devoted" to teaching, if you mean that as we have a message every week. However, we are not devoted like the early church was devoted.

Before we go any further, let me ask you. When it comes to school, do you ever ask yourself "When am I ever going to use this in my life"? I did, a lot in fact. I felt like we were learning just for the sake of learning. And you know how much of that knowledge I've kept? Not much. The knowledge went in one ear, stuck around for the test (usually) and then went right back out the other ear. When I think back to my youth group days, I think something similar happened. I mean, back then the leaders taught a message every week, just like we do now. But, I never did anything with them. I don't even remember any of them. 7 years of messages - gone. One could argue that some of it stuck, and I am sure that's true. However, at the time I wasn't applying any of it. We might hear a message on kindness, but I wouldn't be kinder after it. We might hear a message on selflessness, but I wouldn't be any less selfish after it. And here lies our issue with our devotion to teaching in our group. How many of you can honestly say that you actively apply every message shared on a Wednesday night? Is your life any different after hearing a message from God's Word? If the answer is generally "no", then you have a devotion problem. Listen to what James says in his letter to the churches:

James 1:22-25 - "Do not merely listen to the Word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the Word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in the mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom and continues in it - not forgetting what they have heard but doing it - they will be blessed in what they do."

Let me ask another question: Have you ever pulled out your phone to check the time, only to do it again 2 seconds later because you already forgot what the time was? Yeah, I've done that, sometimes 10 times in a row. Or how about reading the same sentence 12 times before finally registering in your brain what it says? That's what James is talking about in this part of his letter. When we treat God's Word like we treat checking the time (unconsciously listening), we deceive ourselves into thinking we are doing what God wants us to do. But we're not. James is basically calling out these church people and saying "Yo guys! You're listening to sermons every week, and yet its like it is going in one ear and out the other! Quit it! Close your other ear!" He says to not be hearers only, but doers. When we "do", or apply, what God says in the Bible, James promises that we will blessed in doing it. It will go well for us and our efforts will not be for nothing.

So the questions is, how do we become doers and not just hearers? How do we devote ourselves to teaching?

I said it last week and I'll say it again - take notes. When I was a student, I only took notes at camps and retreats, and never at youth group. And do you remember how many of those YG messages I remembered? Zero. Even worse, I have no notes to go back to like I do with the camps and retreats. So not only did I not apply what I was learning at the time, but I have completely forgotten it! Just bringing a notebook and a writing utensil to Youth Group (and actually using them) can go a long way in devoting yourself to teaching. It will help you remember what has been taught (just as this blog is intended to do) and find ways to live it out in your life.

Another way to become devoted to teaching is to join a Bible Study when we offer them. It just so happens that we are starting two studies at the end of this month: How To Be a Man and Experiencing God. Each study we offer is unique and works through a different aspect of our faith, and each one contains specific applications to help you connect what you're learning to real life. With rare exceptions, these are group studies, which means you will be learning and growing spiritually alongside your peers. You get the opportunity to ask questions and discuss life application together, rather than trying to figure it all out on your own (which we were never intended to have to do). That is a huge part of the learning process, and I believe it is part of why virtual learning is so tedious. Plus, the discussion can be a lot more focused in a small group than in our Summit meetings.

The main idea here is to not only hear the Word of God, but to do what He says. Look for ways to apply each message to your life. For this one, that means bringing a notebook and writing utensil to Summit next week, and/or joining a Bible Study.

How can you be devoted to teaching?