Too often in today’s culture happiness is associated with some kind of euphoric feeling, pleasure, or ego boost. Ecclesiastes seems to give the most complete treatment of happiness. Consider these verses:

• Ecclesiastes 2:26

“To the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God.”

• Ecclesiastes 3:12-13

“I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live. 13 That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil—this is the gift of God.”

• Ecclesiastes 5:18-20

“Then I realized that it is good and proper for a man to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in his toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given him—for this is his lot. 19 Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work—this is a gift of God. 20 He seldom reflects on the days of his life, because God keeps him occupied with gladness of heart.”

• Ecclesiastes 7:14

“When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider: God has made the one as well as the other.”

• Ecclesiastes 11:9

“Be happy, young man, while you are young, and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth. Follow the ways of your heart and whatever your eyes see, but know that for all these things God will bring you to judgment.”

There are several things to note regarding Solomon’s treatment of happiness. First, when happiness is positive, it seems to be a gift of God. It is not something we find or achieve as much as it is something given to us by God, a gift that we should appreciate, but not one we should take for granted. Second, true happiness seems to be the result of pleasing God and not ourselves. Storing up wealth does not lead to happiness (this from a man who had Bill Gates kind of wealth). Third, there will be happy times in life as well as times that are not so happy. Both the happy and the unhappy times come from God. Fourth, we will be judged for what we do to make ourselves happy.

In a world where immediate gratification is championed as the ultimate purpose in life we must strive to help students see that a deeper purpose in life, namely a life committed to Jesus, is the only thing that can bring lasting and true happiness. Again consider the words of Solomon:

Something to Think About:

• What happens when you promise that Jesus will make students happy, and hard times come?
• If you use “fun” to attract students, how will you keep them? (I’m not suggesting we don’t use fun, just that we need to think about this)
• When you share the gospel, do you emphasis a life of happiness or purpose?
• As you teach the word of God, how do you help students develop a deeper understanding of what it means to be happy and how do you help them understand that happiness comes from God, not things or experiences?

All quotes from the Bible were taken from the NIV

Perhaps you read the quote of Spurgeon and you began to be defensive in your own mind.  I know I did.  I love to preach the gospel!!  Jesus death on the cross and His resurrection are the center piece of all of scripture.  Yet in youth ministry we get sidetracked by how many of our kids smoke pot, have sex, or do other things that are not approved of.  While it is true that these things do not honor God, it is also true that without a commitment to Jesus there is no spiritual reason for any person to avoid such behavior.

Love is one of those words that brings all kinds of different thoughts to mind.  Sometimes I begin to think about Beau Jo’s Pizza and how much I love it.  Other times I think about my wife and kids, they are amazing!!  I also think about the ultimate message of love found not in what Jesus said, but in what he did.  Too many people look for words of love when they should be looking for deeds of love.  What Jesus did in coming to earth, dying, and then going to Father to be our mediator (Hebrews 9, Phil. 2) is what defines true love.  How could we as ministers of the gospel not preach of such love?

Ephesians 4 speaks of the calling which God has placed on people’s life.  I am not gifted like Billy Graham, and I will likely never see thousands come to Jesus they way he did, Spurgeon did, or many of today’s evangelists.  I do not believe I have that gift, certainly not in that measure.  On the other hand the most loving thing I can do is tell people of the love of Jesus.

What if I was faithful in telling others of the love of Jesus and never saw anyone come to saving faith?  Then I would be a faithful worker whom God has gifted to other things besides preach.  Being called to the ministry is not about putting out a good effort; it is about whether you are designed to do God’s work in that specific context.  It is about whether you would bring more honor to god by doing something else.  How should we measure our calling in this area?  Here are a couple of thoughts:

• If a person is called, they must be able to clearly and effectively present the gospel.
• If a person is called they should understand the purpose of preaching is spiritual.  Though there are times to deal with drugs, sex, and rock n roll in a message, those should be dealt with as an application of a spiritual and biblical truth, not as the primary purpose of a message.
• If a person is called they will see people come to Christ as a result of their ministry.  I don’t know how many, and it would be presumptuous of me to throw out a number.  It may not be every time they preach and it may not be every other, but it should be noticeable and regular.
• If a person is called they should have a desire and even a passion to see people come to Jesus.

What if you are not called?  If you are not called, figure out what God has gifted you for and go do that whether it is in or out of the church.

Teach This

“In the second place, combined with the earnest desire to become a pastor, there must be aptness to teach and some measure of the other qualities needful for the office of a public instructor.”  -Charles Spurgeon, Lectures To My Students

I remember the first time I walked up on stage at church to do anything.  I had done virtually no public speaking of any kind.  All I had to do was get up and read some scripture.  I was in high school, and to be honest I don’t know why I was asked.  I thought I was going to be really nervous, but as the time grew closer I grew more confident not less.  There were no butterflies, sweaty palms, or anything.  I went up there and read the scripture and sat down.  Over the years I have absolutely been nervous from time to time, I have messed up, I have done well, and everything in between.  Nervousness is not a measure of a person’s talent when it comes to teaching, there are many factors of which this may or may not be one.  For me though it was one of the clues that maybe I could teach and preach some day.  There have been several clues over the years.  Some however think they can teach when in fact they should not.

Over the years I have heard a lot of people who thought they could teach but in reality could not.  I have also heard some people who thought that they were not very good at teaching or preaching and still do a good job of that very thing.  Perhaps there is much more to determining our own ability to teach than our own thoughts and feelings about the issue.

I have watched the first couple shows of American idol for the last couple of seasons.  I always wondered why some of those people who were trying out didn’t first sing for a friend who would be honest with them about their own ability to sing and perform.  Perhaps it would have saved them a lot of trouble.  Sure it is entertaining for us, but I would think it is embarrassing for them.  Some of them just think the judges (especially Simon who is actually my favorite) are stupid and don’t know a good thing when they see it.  Maybe some of them go away and realize they are not as good as they thought they were and find something more productive with their life.

Scripture makes this demand for those who would be elders or “overseers” in 1 Timothy 3:2.  Of course a person can develop their ability to teach, but this is an important part of determining calling.  So how do we measure that?  I don’t know that I have a definitive answer, but here are some things to consider:

• Is the person able to understand Scripture
• Can this person help others understand scripture
• Can this person help others apply scripture in their life
• Humor and storytelling doesn’t necessarily make someone a good teacher
• Can this person keep the attention of the audience

Prayer is one of those spiritual disciplines that most of us struggle with. This is especially true for those of us who seem to always be “plugged in”. Our lives are filled with noise from our cell phones, computers, TVs, radios and so on. Over the past 15 years I have noticed a significant decline in the number of students who are capable of praying, much less praying in front of other people. So how can we help students learn to pray? I will address this on two levels, what am I doing with my own kids, and how we can help students learn to pray.

Every night we read scripture as a family. Currently we are reading through the book of Judges. it is a little grousome at times, but it gives us opportunity to talk about God in some interesting ways. When we are done we simply ask each other who each person is going to pray for. My ten year old often prays for her friends and our family. My three year old boy also prays. Lately he has been praying for lisey, one of our volunteer staff who is raising money to go over to Germany to work with youth. His prayers often go like this, “Dear Jesus, I pray for Lisey that she gets money.” My daughter is a little more detailed in her prayers, but they are learning to pray and to do it outloud in front of other people.

So how do we help High School students learn to pray? Here are a couple small steps:

• Model it, but don’t make your prayers all glorious and majestic. Keep the prayers simple and achievable.
• Ask students who are comfortable to pray publically to do so.
• Ask students (probably in small groups) who they would like to pray for and have them pray simple prayers just like my kids do.
• Take opportunity to teach through the Lord’s Prayer
• Do a concert of prayer where the students are able to pray in an interactive way that is less intimidating.

Eventually they find their friend. In a church that is paying attention they are introduced to 7 or 8 people who’s names they will undoubtedly forget. So far things are good…as good as they could be anyway. The non-believer (let’s call her Angie) is nervous, her heart is beating a little faster, her breathing is slightly elevated, and just a tinge of adrenaline is flowing through her veins. Angie really isn’t shy, but a crowd like this is a little overwhelming so she is relieved to sit down so she doesn’t have to meet anyone else. Of course she only gets to sit for a minute and then it’s time to participate in a game (which the regulars love, but she is kind of scared) or the worship starts in which case the people around her are singing and she doesn’t sing well. After the music comes the message. She is thinking, “here comes that wacked religion stuff”. Instead she becomes engaged in the message and hears about the difficulties of following the negative messages of the culture we live in. The speaker quotes some lyrics from a popular song to make his point. He opens the Bible and reads a passage that actually makes some sense. Angie had thought the Bible was irrelevant, but apparently there is some good stuff in there.

The message is coming to a conclusion and the speaker at the end of a stirring message about making good decisions in the face of a negative culture simply adds this:

Bow your heads and close your eyes; if you would like to accept Jesus
tonight raise your hand and put it right back down. God bless you, you,
you, and you and you.”

The evening is ended with a prayer and Angie goes home wondering why she raised her hand. As she goes to bed that night she recaps the evening. It was fun, after being so nervous she actually enjoyed herself and thought the speaker made some good points. Still she isn’t even sure what she committed to. She wonders what the big deal is about church, she has heard the same kind of message (minus the Bible) from her school teachers and commercials on TV. She wonders who Jesus is and what it means to accept Him; further what does accepting him do for her? Oh well, she had fun so maybe she’ll give it another try if her friend invites her back.

• Is this the kind of experience you would want a visitor to have if they visited your church or youth group? Why?
• What good things happened in this fictional story?
• What things didn’t go the way they should?
• What is wrong with how the speaker ended the message?
• What are the essential parts of the gospel message? What does a person need to understand in order to make a decision to “accept Jesus”?

Some things never change and some things shouldn’t. Ministry isn’t about being able to keep up with the latest fads in an attempt to be relevant or using the latest and greatest curriculum it is about fulfilling the mission God has given to the church. Theological ministry is about making God’s mission our mission and it is about staying true to those things that never changes. Just as God does not change so the truths of God do not change. In Mt. 7 Jesus the story of the man who built his house on the Rock and the one who built his house on the sand. In order to have a long lasting ministry or to last long in ministry it is essential that we build a good foundation for our ministry.

The first question that must be answered when we think theologically about ministry is this, “What are the foundational truths upon which a disciple and ultimately a ministry is built?” That is a loaded questions that demands a well thought out response. Time magazine made some great observations. Ministry and ministers are definitely becoming more focused on the deeper foundational truths of the faith, but they also made a mistake. The foundational truths of the Christian faith never changed and healthy ministries have always realized the significance of doctrine in faith and in practice.

The first step in building a theological ministry is answering the question I asked in the last paragraph. In my last post I mentioned something called a DDP (Discription of a Discipled Person). This document is one way of answering the above question.

For a practical approach to this issue begin by answering these questions:

• What doctrines are non-negotiable? (This should not a be a long list, it is not a doctrinal statement)
• What does a fully devoted follower of Jesus need to know?
• What does a fully devoted follower need to be able to do?
• How can we help students know these things and develop these skills in our ministries?

The funny thing is that car was old. Sure it was in perfect condition. It had a new paint job and everything was pristine. Today Chevy is still making Camaros and they are amazing cars. In the end they are still just cars. They are completely new yet they still accomplish the same old purpose of getting you from one place to the next. What does this have to do with youth ministry?

Remember that book in the Old Testament, that one written by Solomon. He said there is nothing new (paraphrase). In ministry we would do well to remember this. It is amazing how relevant the Bible is in todays world. Some of the “new” things are just old things with new paint jobs. I am not against giving old things new paint jobs, especially if it is a Camaro. Some things, however, are not Camaros. My first car was a Ford Fairmont. It was baby blue and went 0-60 in 4.5 hours. The good news is tickets were hard to come by, I still managed. That car didn’t need a new paint job, it needed to be driven to the junk yard.

When something new comes along in ministry or anywhere else the first thing we should ask is, “where have I seen this before?” Many of today’s churches have been distracted by old things with new paint jobs. Many of those old things might look cool, they might even have flames painted on the side, but in reality they need to be driven straight to the junk yard.

New theology is usually just old, bad theology with a new paint job. The latest trends in ministry are trends, they will fade away. Recently I heard a sermon by a pastor who openly downplayed theology from the pulpit. He was attempting to make the Bible look attractive to a young and hip crowd of mostly college age people (we felt old with our two kids). I must admit I was disappointed. Clearly he had no idea what he was doing. The Bible isn’t a book meant for entertainment, although it can be entertaining at times. The Bible is not a reference book with short and simple answers to all of life’s little problems either. We should not present it to students in that manner. Instead it is a book filled with life changing truth (theology) about God, man, and how God saves man. It isn’t trivial, it isn’t an encyclopedia, and it isn’t to be taken lightly. It is the WORD OF GOD. I wonder if that is the impression we give to students when we read from it, study it, and communicate it to them?

I left church that day thinking, “if the pastor would just teach the life changing message of scripture he wouldn’t have to try so hard to make it sound interesting!”

Over the past 150 years adolescence has begun at an earlier age and ended at a later age. Boyfriends, girlfriends, and dating have taken on a new meaning (not that any of us know exactly what that meaning is). The only thing we know about cool is some have it and some don’t of course that seems to change on an almost daily basis.

The question becomes how do we help students navigate this difficult time? Teaching about abstinence, peer pressure, and being willing to go against the grain are all good things. Still there may be a more simple and effective way to help these student. Perhaps instead of telling them what they should and shouldn’t do we should give them an anchor.

Jesus Christ is the anchor. Students who stay attached to the anchor will never wonder too far away. Hebrews 12:1-2 says, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily hinders our progress. And let us run with endurance the race that God has set before us. ² We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from start to finish.”

As leaders who work with youth we must not forget that the best thing we have to offer is not our wisdom about sex, drugs, or avoiding the peer pressure . The best thing we have to offer is Christ himself, the gospel story. If we remember this we will do well, if we get sidetracked (which is easy to do) we will not be serving the best interests of the students or the kingdom of God. We need to stay focused.

As far as youth ministry is concerned, this was not the best environment to help a young boy(maybe 13 or 14 years old) grow spiritually, but for me it is one of my most important spiritual memories. I don’t know what it was, perhaps I was intimidated by all the gray hair in the room, whatever the case I paid attention. I even took notes. I learned about God and about my relationship with Him.

Perhaps youth ministry needs to take a closer look at teaching the Bible in more of an exegetical fashion. I wonder if teachers and preachers get in the way of God’s word when we try to make it “relevant” or we worry too much about keeping students attention? Maybe students are capable of more then we think. Maybe we should be challenging them to partake in “big church” with the intent of learning and growing in the same ways adults do.

As far as youth ministry is concerned, this was not the best environment to help a young boy(maybe 13 or 14 years old) grow spiritually, but for me it is one of my most important spiritual memories. I don’t know what it was, perhaps I was intimidated by all the gray hair in the room, whatever the case I paid attention. I even took notes. I learned about God and about my relationship with Him.

Perhaps youth ministry needs to take a closer look at teaching the Bible in more of an exegetical fashion. I wonder if teachers and preachers get in the way of God’s word when we try to make it “relevant” or we worry too much about keeping students attention? Maybe students are capable of more then we think. Maybe we should be challenging them to partake in “big church” with the intent of learning and growing in the same ways adults do.