Category Archives: Discipleship

Discipleship

The Call

I’ve been preparing and studying this week for a series on the Sermon on the Mount I’m calling The King’s Speech. We will kick it off this Sunday and to be completely honest, I don’t think I have ever been this excited about a teaching series before. I can’t wait to share what I feel God has been teaching me about what it means to live in His Kingdom and under His rule through the power of His Son.

I’ve uncovered some amazing similarities between King George VI’s speech at the beginning of Britain’s involvement in WWII (made famous most recently by Oscar winner Colin Firth and the film), Joseph Campbell’s The Hero’s Journey, and the Sermon on the Mount that I want to share with you here on the blog. However, there is something that I want to just marvel at for today.

Matthew 5-7 is where you can find what we have traditionally called The Sermon on the Mount.

When was the last time you read this and stopped to remember: These are the words of The Son of God. Jesus spoke these words to call us to live within his Kingdom. These are the Words to Life. This is Truth. These words lead to real life now and eternal life in the presence of the Almighty.

It has been this realization and intentional observation that has made all this difference for me this week as I have studied and sought God’s direction and instruction for my life.

Take some time today to read through Matthew 5-7 and marvel at the words of Jesus. Imagine he is speaking directly to you. He is calling you to choose Life.

Will you accept or refuse His call?

Bible Study, Discipleship, Leadership, Ministry, Mission, Personal Leadership, Questions, The Word

Leadership Tuesday

Each Tuesday, I’ll be posting thoughts, resources, and challenges to help develop our Leadership muscles. Today I wanted to share with you some of the questions I began wrestling with after reading Philippians yesterday.

As I read, I noticed that Paul is pleading with the church in Philippi to live in unity, have one mind, and to be singular in focus. As leaders, Paul is speaking directly to us. If you have some time today, please read Philippians before you read the rest of this post.

Here are 9 Leadership Questions that we each need to think about and pray through if we are going to be all that God desires us to be:

1) Am I praying with joy for those I lead? Philippians 1:3-5 – Paul prays with joy for those he considered partners in the gospel. You and I have to do the same if we want to be a true spiritual leaders of the people God has entrusted us with.

2) Am I praying for an increase of love and knowledge and depth in my own life and in the lives of those I lead? Philippians 1:9-11

3) Am I living in such a way that those closest to me will know that whatever happens to me- good or bad- Jesus Christ will be praised? Philippians 1:12-26

4) Am I looking to Jesus as my model of service and unity or am I simply trying to keep everyone around me happy and cordial? Philippians 2:1-4 – Jesus shows us what love looks like in public.

5) What am I complaining about? Philippians 2:14-16 – If we want to be different than the world around us, let’s start by putting the KIBOSH on complaining. In Inception, Leo DiCaprio’s character has a great line where he tells his team that he believes “positive emotion trumps negative emotion every time.” As a leader I have the responsibility to serve as an ANTIBODY within my sphere of influence to STOP INFECTION and DECAY (complaining, divisiveness) IMMEDIATELY. This starts with stopping the infection in myself.

6) Am I committed to the mission of following Jesus? Philippians 3:7-11 – As I read this passage I was reminded of Dallas Willard’s quote about THE COST OF NON-DISCIPLESHIP, He says, “Nondiscipleship costs abiding peace, a life penetrated throughout by love, faith that sees everything in the light of God’s overriding governance for good, hopefulness that stands firm in the most discouraging of circumstances, power to do what is right and withstand the forces of evil. In short, it costs exactly the abundance of life Jesus said he came to bring (John 10:10)” Failing to commit to Jesus is a bigger risk than following Him.

7) What am I holding on to in my past that is keeping me from experiencing NEW LIFE in Jesus? Philippians 3:12-14 – What ever this is, I must lay it down and move on toward who Jesus is call me to be.

8. What is something I can rejoice in today, right now? Philippians 4:4-6 – One thing that you can rejoice in is that what ever you are worried about- that thing that kept you up all night- you can take that to the Father in prayer. Let this truth give you peace and guard your hearts and minds. Praise Jesus!

9) Do I spend more time thinking about these things or do I spend more time focused on the junk that the world sends my way? Philippians 4:8-9 – Last week, the world spent too much time praising, laughing with/at, and deconstructing Charlie Sheen. Admit it, you gawked at the train wreck. Your neck got sore from staring at the flaming wreckage. Mine did too. This week, let’s do the opposite. Let’s spend time meditating on things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy.

Thanks to Perry Noble for inspiring today’s post with his 21 Questions Leaders MUST Wrestle With from the Book of James.
Discipleship, Jesus is the Christ, Sermons

Unstoppable

Unstoppable iPad Bgrnd

Yesterday, I kicked off a brand-new series entitled “UNSTOPPABLE” that is based on the life of Elisha.

Elisha was FULLY COMMITTED to the mission that God called him to. In fact, he was so committed that long after Elisha was dead and buried a group of Israelites were in the process of burying their friend near Elisha’s burial place. Their funeral was interrupted by the news of a Moabite raiding party and since there was no time to bury their friend, they threw his body into Elisha’s tomb. When the dead man came in contact with Elisha’s bones THE MAN CAME BACK TO LIFE! (2Kings 13:20-21)

Elisha was so committed to God that even his bones did miracles!!! Take about a legacy of faith!!!

We too can have the ability to impact and change lives long after we are gone.

This faith legacy begins when we COMMIT TO FOLLOWING JESUS. Jesus doesn’t just want some of our life- He wants it all. He tells us that he wants all of us- our heart, mind, soul, and body.

Are you FULLY COMMITTED to FOLLOWING JESUS with EVERYTHING you have?

If not, what are you waiting for?

2010, Best of..., Book Review, Books, Discipleship, Leadership, Ministry, Mission

Top 10: Books of 2010 pt. 1

1) Sun Stand Still by Steven Furtick
This was, without a doubt, my favorite book of 2010. I received an advanced copy over the summer and quickly read it twice. If you need a message to kick you in the pants, if you need something to stir up your faith and desperation for a holy and mighty God, then this is the message you’ve been looking for.

“This book is not a Snuggie. The words on these pages will not go down like Ambien.
I’m not writing to calm or coddle you. With God’s help, I intend to incite a riot in your mind. Trip your breakers and turn out the lights in your favorite hiding places of insecurity and fear. Then flip the switch back on so that God’s truth can illuminate the divine destiny that may have been lying dormant inside you for years. In short, I’m out to activate your audacious faith. To inspire you to ask God for the impossible. And in the process, to reconnect you with your God-sized purpose and potential.”

“If you’re not daring to believe God for the impossible, you’re sleeping through some of the best parts of your Christian life. And further still: if the size of your vision for your life isn’t intimidating to you, there’s a good chance it’s insulting to God.”

“There’s nothing our world needs more desperately today—in individuals, families, businesses, churches, and communities—than God’s saving, supernatural acts. And he’s ready to act if we will be bold enough to ask, not just for a good day or a better life, but for the impossible. Then step forward to act in audacious faith. Each of us is called to be a Joshua—each in our own way, in our own circumstances, with our own God-given personality. As you’ll see in the pages ahead, you and I are called not just to have faith but also to regularly activate our faith by asking God for giant outcomes, taking giant steps. If we have the audacity to ask, God has the ability to perform. That’s how God turns his amazing promises into everyday reality in every generation—for Joshua’s and for ours. You and I may not see the same miracles Joshua did, but we serve the same God. His nature never changes. The same power that stopped the sun and raised Christ from the grave lives in every believer. God still demonstrates his power and supplies his provision in direct proportion to the faith of his children.“

Audacious faith isn’t some newfangled, extrabiblical variety of faith. It’s a return to the core of Christianity: trusting Jesus completely in every area of your life and setting out to devote your life wholly to revealing his glory in this world. Critical clarification: We are saved by grace through faith in Christ—period. Don’t look at the challenge to act in audacious faith as an add-on to this saving faith. It’s a call to press deeper into that faith, until it becomes more and more effective in your everyday life. The opposite of audacious faith: passive unbelief.

2) Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy by Eric Metaxas
The number 2 book of 2010 goes to an incredible story of discipleship and dedication to Jesus! You may know part of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s story but this book gives you the rest of the legend behind this amazing young pastor and his battle against the rise of the Third Reich. I want my son to read this book with me one day.

3) Rework by Jason Fried and David Hansson
This was probably the most practical book of the year as it helped me change some habits that kept me from getting everything done that I needed to do. The book is one part instruction manual and two parts inspiration. Check out these two highlights:

Imagine you’re standing in a rental-car office. The room’s cold. The carpet is dirty. There’s no one at the counter. And then you see a tattered piece of paper with some clip art at the top of it pinned to a bulletin board. It’s a mission statement: Our mission is to fulfill the automotive and commercial truck rental, leasing, car sales and related needs of our customers and, in doing so, exceed their expectations for service, quality and value. We will strive to earn our customers’ long-term loyalty by working to deliver more than promised, being honest and fair and “going the extra mile” to provide exceptional personalized service that creates a pleasing business experience. We must motivate our employees to provide exceptional service to our customers by supporting their development, providing opportunities for personal growth and fairly compensating them for their successes and achievements … * And it drones on. And you’re sitting there reading this crap and wondering, “What kind of idiot do they take me for?” The words on the paper are clearly disconnected from the reality of the experience. It’s like when you’re on hold and a recorded voice comes on telling you how much the company values you as a customer. Really? Then maybe you should hire some more support people so I don’t have to wait thirty minutes to get help. Standing for something isn’t just about writing it down. It’s about believing it and living it.

Whenever you can, swap “Let’s think about it” for “Let’s decide on it.” Commit to making decisions. Don’t wait for the perfect solution. Decide and move forward. Decisions are progress.

4) Leaders Who Last by Dave Kraft
Read this book and avoid being in the 70% of leaders who burn-out and fail to leave a meaningful legacy for anyone. Simple as that.

5) Church Planter by Darrin Patrick
Want to know what this book is about? Watch this video. Now, go change the world.

Books, Discipleship

Who Do You Say I AM?

Last week I finished reading a new biography on the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the great Lutheran minister who stood toe to toe with the Nazis during World War II. He was eventually arrested by the SS and executed for opposing Hitler and standing for Jesus Christ. Take a second and read the words of the Nazi “doctor” who presided over Bonhoeffer’s execution. Dr. Fisher-Hullstrung wrote,

“Through the half-open door in one room of the huts I saw Pastor Bonhoeffer, before taking off his prison garb, kneeling on the floor praying fervently to his God. I was most deeply moved by the way this loveable man prayed, so devout and so certain that God heard his prayer. At the place of execution, he again said a short prayer and then climbed the steps to the gallows, brave and composed. In almost 50 years that I have worked as a doctor, I have hardly ever seen a man die so entirely submissive to the will of God.”

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a man who could answer the question “Who is God?” Bonhoeffer knew who God was and that belief directed his every step, his entire life.

I don’t believe that you and I or our children will ever have to face the Nazi gallows but everyday we are confronted with forces that, at best, trick us into apathy toward God and at worst, seek to separate and destroy our relationship with him.

The only way to confront these forces is to run directly into the arms of our big God who has a big love for us. This God sent his son so that we may have life and have it to the full. When we believe the truth about God we cannot help but follow His call.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy by Eric Metaxes

Campus Ministry, Discipleship, Jesus is the Christ, Leadership, Ministry, Youth Ministry

Gauging the Temperature Pt. 1

I’ll let you in on a little secret ambition of mine. You ready?

I want to be the Bobby Flay of my sphere of influence.

I want to be known as a great cook. Not just someone who can prepare a good meal. No, something greater! I want to amaze people with the way I combine meat, seasonings, flame, and creativity. For my birthday last April my parents bought me an honest to goodness bar-b-que smoker and grill. I love grilling and had no problem using the propane side of my new toy. About a month ago, I gave the smoker an inagural spin. I bought a book extolling the virtues of Low and Slow grilling and followed the lessons to a T. What happen was that I was able to cook two whole chickens perfectly! The flavors of the marinade combined with the flavors of the smoke made for and incredible dinner and a lot of leftovers. I can’t wait to work my way up to slow cooking some ribs and pork shoulder. Believe me- it is on!

The most important thing that I’ve learned about this style of cooking has been learning to monitor the temperature inside the smoker/fire box. You don’t want to keep opening the lid each and every time you check on your food. The lid has to stay closed. 1.5 hours for my chicken and up to 8 hrs or more for pork shoulder. The only thing that gives me insight into what’s happening inside is temperature reading on the outside.

As the summer comes to a close I’ve been thinking about my students and their return to school. Right now many of them are running hot and on fire for Jesus. They have expressed excitement for their faith, concern for their friends, and many have made deep commitments to discipleship. Summer gives me the perfect opportunity to be among them on a consistent basis outside of their school year routine. When I am with them I get to monitor the temperature of their lives. As they head back to school I want to make sure that I find ways to monitor their faith, give them encouragement or direction, and help feed their spiritual fire.

Next: 3 Ways to Monitor Your Youth Group Temperature During The School Year

Discipleship, Experience, Jesus

The Love of a Father

This Sunday is Father’s Day. I have been given the opportunity to preach again this weekend and I’ve been praying and seeking guidance on what God wants me to share about his nature, his Son, and the task set out before us as disciples. As I’ve been sitting here at my desk this morning I’ve been trying to wrap my mind around being a father and what it means to me a dad. My mind keeps going back to a video I showed in chapel back when I was a Campus Minister. The video told the incredible story of Dick and Ricky Hoyt. If you haven’t heard of these men, I’ll let this video from Ironman speak for itself (if reading in RSS, please click through in order to see the video).

I’m not going to lie to you. I weep every time I watch this. I don’t shed a tear or two. I don’t get misty eyed. My tear ducts let loose and torrent, my face contorts, and my shoulder move up and down. I boarder on sobbing. What a testimony to the love, commitment, and determination of a Father on behalf of his son!

I’m not sure yet what I’ll be sharing on Sunday but right now, the lesson of this video is shaping the way I want to parent. It is shaping the way I see Our Father.

Discipleship, Jesus, Jesus is the Christ, Preaching, Sermons

Sermon: Over The Edge

Take a moment and let’s read the words of Jesus from Matthew 11:28-30.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30 TNIV)

I’m here to tell you. I am TIRED! The month of April has wore me out! Anyone else here just plain tired right now?

When I about 12 years old I had a season pass to Wet ‘n Wild in Garland. I would ride my bike to the park and then spend the entire afternoon riding the rides and hanging out in the wave pool. Oh. I loved the wave pool! If you’ve never been to one of these water parks there is a large pool in the center of the park and every fifteen minutes or so a bell rings, kids go crazy, and everyone flocks to the pool to enjoy the waves. A giant machine pumps water into the big pool and causes these massive waves to build up and if I remember right these waves can get as high as 30-50feet (Don’t check that fact. Just trust me).  The wave pool really is a ton of fun but it can also be really, really dangerous. One time I was in the wave pool and I was extremely tired. I decided I was going to climb out of the pool at the ladder but I slipped, fell into the high waves, and then struggled to stay above the water. The waves kept coming and pounding me and I was helpless to do anything. By the time it was over I felt bruised, beaten, and helpless. I was done with the water park.

The sheer power of the water and the constant beat-down I received from the waves drained me of all energy and stamina. I couldn’t take the constant pounding. I just wanted to quit. I was tired. I was used up. I was done.

Maybe that’s how some of you feel today as you sit here. April has been a difficult month for us all and some more than others.

  • Stomach bug
  • TAKS test
  • Surgery
  • Illness
  • Accidents
  • Emotional pain
  • Allergies
  • Death

This week I heard a seminar teacher challenge me with this thought. He said each week, someone in your community is In Trouble, Under Tension, or Going Through Transition. That pretty much sums up our problems doesn’t it?

This week, some of you were In Trouble. Your marriage is in trouble. Your kid is in trouble. Your job is in jeopardy. The credit card payment is due and you have no idea how you’re going to pay it. The brakes went out and there goes your bonus. Trouble is beating you down.

This week, some of you were Under Tension. (Joker- Dark Knight Score- The tension just keeps being ratcheted up as the film progresses) That relationship you’re in did not get better, in fact it is now worse. You were tested this week to compromise your integrity and your faith. You are under tension. Some of you in here are Under Tension with God. Your faith has taken so many hits you don’t know if God is even real. You are struggling to even care about your faith. You are living Under Tension.

This week, some of you are Going Through Transition. You are adding a family member. That means a new budget and a new schedule. You got promoted and demoted. Your teen started driving or got in a wreck this week- either way you’re transitioning into a new payment plan with your insurance agency. Life may be full of transition but transition/moving is tough.

Trouble, tension, and transition can be overwhelming. For some people the problems in life get too much to handle. People get depressed, apathetic, and despondent. Life becomes way too much to handle. When life becomes this hard we can relate to these words of Lamentations:

“Remember, LORD, what has happened to us; look, and see our disgrace.

Our inheritance has been turned over to strangers, our homes to foreigners.

We have become fatherless, our mothers are widows.

We must buy the water we drink; our wood can be had only at a price.

Those who pursue us are at our heels; we are weary and find no rest. (Lamentations 5:1-5 TNIV)

However, there is good news. Today’s message should not leave you feeling like Debbie Downer. Here is the Good News:

“What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who then can condemn? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written:

“For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:31-39 TNIV)

Have you ever heard of the Tojinbo cliffs of Japan. These cliffs on the northern coast of the Sea of Japan are a formidable sight. Powerful winds and waves have pounded these shores and over time they have carved these ominous and treacherous cliffs.

Just looking at these cliffs you can almost imagine the sheer power and the drama that carved these cliffs can’t you.

The country of Japan has been faced with a suicide epidemic over the last few years. The suicide rate in Japan is more than twice that of the US. According to Time magazine, 1 in 5 Japanese men and women have contemplated suicide and 30,000 a year for the last 10 years have committed suicide. That is 300,000 people! In fact the article I read was from 2009 and that year from Jan to April, 11,236 people had committed suicide that year.

Many of those suicides happen at the Tojinbo cliffs. When the weight of the world comes crashing down on people they come to these cliffs to contemplate the end of their lives.

Maybe some of you have been in a similar place in life. The weight of the world seems like it is about to crush you and you just need some help, some relief.

Some of you know what it is like to stand at the cliffs of Tojinbo. You know what it is like to feel overwhelmed, lost, afraid, and alone. I think feeling alone and abandoned is the worst part of our pain. And Satan loves to exploit this. He’ll whisper to you that God doesn’t care. God can’t hear you. God has abandoned you. Satan loves to make you feel alone.

For years, the people who went to the cliffs of Tojinbo to end their lives were alone. However, since 2004, they have someone looking out for them. There is now someone who meets them at the cliffs, who counsels them, and who takes them in.

From TIME.com:

For five years, Yukio Shige, 65, has approached people at the cliffs’ edge with a simple “Hello” and a smile. He might ask how they came there and at what inn they were staying. Sometimes after a light touch to the shoulder, Shige says, they burst into tears, and he begins to console them. “You’ve had a hard time up until now,” he says, “haven’t you?”

The retired detective from nearby Fukui City has patrolled the cliffs two or three times a day since 2004, wearing white gloves and a floppy sun hat, carrying binoculars to focus on three spots on the cliffs where suicides are most common. After he’s talked them off the cliffs, Shige–a trained counselor–takes them to his small office, (for) counseling sessions. For men, Shige says, the biggest problems are debt and unemployment; most of the women are there because of depression or health issues. “If it’s a case of sexual harassment, I’ll go with her to the office and confront her boss,” says Shige. “If a child has issues with his father, I tell the parent that he is driving his child to suicide and get them to write a promise to change. They hang it on the wall.”

In April, on the fifth anniversary of starting his operation, Shige sat reading a three-page, handwritten letter he had received that day from a Shizuoka man, one of many he gets from those he has helped. The letter concluded by thanking Shige for providing the man with an awareness of the love that surrounded him. As Shige finished reading, the melody of “Amazing Grace” rose from his cell phone. “I want Tojinbo to be the most challenging place,” he says. “Not where life ends, but where it begins.”

Guess what? In your life today at your cliff of Tojinbo- whatever your feeling, whatever your trouble, whatever the pain- you have Yukio Shige and his name is Jesus Christ.

You see, Jesus himself has been to the cliff. In Genesis, we find the first prophecy ever concerning Jesus. God warns Satan about the coming King by saying that, Satan will bite his heel but that Jesus will crush his head. One of the Hebrew words for a cliff is SHE-en and it means Sharp as a Tooth. Jesus triumphs over the Sharp Teeth that try and destroy us.

Jesus left the throne room of heaven to become a man. He walked the earth and lived among us. He didn’t just speak to us from afar behind the pearly gates. He didn’t call out from behind the clouds, “I feel your pain!” No! He came to earth and he touched and healed the sick, the poor, the hurting. He knows what you’re going through because he knew suffering while on this earth. His family rejected him, his followers abandoned him, he was beaten and hung on a tree.

Jesus deals with the true source of our pain- Sin. One of my favorite parts of the article is when Shige deals with the source of the people’s pain. If the problem is the boss, he talks with the boss. If it is a family member, he talks to the family member. He goes straight to the source of the pain and the problem.

For us all pain and hurt and confusion come back to Sin and its effects. Sometimes the sin is committed against us and sometimes we suffer the consequences of our own sin. God was no satisfied with sin separating Him from us.

“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2Corinthians 5:21 TNIV)

The Cross is where life begins. If you are struggling in your life right now with anything you are at a moment of challenge. How will you respond? Will you give up, abandon hope, abandon faith? Will you believe the lie that you are alone and that God wants nothing more to do with you? OR… Will you believe that through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ you have an advocate and a Savior more powerful than any problem in your life?

“We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

If we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.

Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.

In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 6:2-12 TNIV)

Discipleship, Leadership, Ministry, Popular Culture, Prayer, Religion, Resources, Youth Ministry, Youth Ministry Tips

Youth Ministry Focus: New Stats

USAToday published an article this morning looking at the religious habits and beliefs of today’s 18-29 year olds. In some respects the article is nothing new to those of you who are currently working with churches or with teenagers. However, this study shines a bright light on the need for strong, Gospel-intensive, disciple-making leaders to step up and fill in the obvious void. I have included the article below and highlighted some of the stats and comments that I found most interesting. We’ll unpack some of these later in the week.

Survey: 72% of Millennials ‘more spiritual than religious’
By Cathy Lynn Grossman, USA TODAY

Most young adults today don’t pray, don’t worship and don’t read the Bible, a major survey by a Christian research firm shows.

If the trends continue, “the Millennial generation will see churches closing as quickly as GM dealerships,” says Thom Rainer, president of LifeWay Christian Resources. In the group’s survey of 1,200 18- to 29-year-olds, 72% say they’re “really more spiritual than religious.”Among the 65% who call themselves Christian, “many are either mushy Christians or Christians in name only,” Rainer says. “Most are just indifferent. The more precisely you try to measure their Christianity, the fewer you find committed to the faith.”

Key findings in the phone survey, conducted in August and released today:

  • 65% rarely or never pray with others, and 38% almost never pray by themselves either.
  • 65% rarely or never attend worship services.
  • 67% don’t read the Bible or sacred texts.

Many are unsure Jesus is the only path to heaven: Half say yes, half no.

“We have dumbed down what it means to be part of the church so much that it means almost nothing, even to people who already say they are part of the church,” Rainer says.

The findings, which document a steady drift away from church life, dovetail with a LifeWay survey of teenagers in 2007 who drop out of church and a study in February by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, which compared the beliefs of Millennials with those of earlier generations of young people.

The new survey has a margin of error of +/-2.8 percentage points.

Even among those in the survey who “believe they will go to heaven because they have accepted Jesus Christ as savior”:

  • 68% did not mention faith, religion or spirituality when asked what was “really important in life.”
  • 50% do not attend church at least weekly.
  • 36% rarely or never read the Bible.

Neither are these young Christians evangelical in the original meaning of the term — eager to share the Gospel. Just 40% say this is their responsibility.

Even so, Rainer is encouraged by the roughly 15% who, he says, appear to be “deeply committed” Christians in study, prayer, worship and action.

Collin Hansen, 29, author of Young, Restless, Reformed, about a thriving minority of traditionalist Christians, agrees. “I’m not going to say these numbers aren’t true and aren’t grim, but they also drive people like me to build new, passionately Christian dynamic churches,” says Hansen, who is studying for the ministry. He sees many in his generation veering to “moralistic therapeutic deism — ‘God wants you to be happy and do good things.’ … I would not call that Christianity, however.”

The 2007 LifeWay study found seven in 10 Protestants ages 18 to 30, both evangelical and mainline, who went to church regularly in high school said they quit attending by age 23. And 34% of those had not returned, even sporadically, by age 30.

The Pew survey found young people today were significantly more likely than those in earlier generations to say they didn’t identify with any religious group. Neither are Millennials any more likely than earlier generations to turn toward a faith affiliation as they grow older.

I agree with Hansen. Yes, the numbers seem overwhelming. The task is daunting. The consequences of failure are real. However, all is not lost my friends. Remember, the gates of Hades will not overcome the Body of Christ.

Looks like we’ve got some work to do.

Discipleship, My Jesus Month, Prayer

My Jesus Month Guidelines

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Today I am embarking on an incredible journey where I am trying to truly, literally, fully live and walk as Jesus walked. It is my 30th birthday and the Bible tells us that Jesus began his ministry at the age of 30. In an effort to understand my Savior more fully I will be doing three things this month: I will attempt to live “Jewishly,” read the four Gospels weekly, and to live out the commands and teachings of Jesus as  literally as possible.

As I was trying to explain to my sister what I would be doing during my month of living like Jesus she had a hard time wrapping her mind around what I would actually be doing. She said, “I still don’t fully understand what some of the changes you’ll be making will mean for your day to day.” In an effort to clarify what I want to do here is a list of the guidelines I’m setting for my Jesus month:

Eating Kosher- I decided to keep my kosher laws as simple as possible. I have 2 rules:
1) Avoid “unclean” foods such as pork, shellfish, and bottom feeders. So… I can’t eat any catfish or shrimp or pork or camels this month. 2) Ed Dobson wrote extensively about keeping Meat and Dairy dishes separate. That will be my goal as well. Farewell Chicken Nachos. I’ll see you May 1.

Looking Like Jesus-One way to live more Jewishly will be to dress the part and to join with some of the traditions that are very foreign to this city boy living in 2010.

The Tallit Katan is an undershirt/underpancho that has the tassels attached to the four corners. There is no doubt in my mind that Jesus wore the fringe on his garments. The commands for wearing the fringes come from Numbers 15:37-41 and Deuteronomy 22:12. Before today I gave wearing the the tallit a trial run. Each time before I put it on, I recited the traditional blessing: “Blessed are you, Lord, our God, King of the universe, who has sanctified us with his commands and has commanded us to wrap ourselves with the fringes.” Believe me, I am keenly aware that I am wearing the tallit katan. It isn’t uncomfortable but it is a bit stiff. Maybe over the course of the month it will relax and fit like a Hanes undershirt.

I am also growing out my beard. Not because every painting we see of Jesus shows him sporting a sweet beard but because of the command found in Leviticus 19:27. It says, “Do not cut the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard.” I stopped shaving about a week ago so I am a little ahead already in the beard department.

When I told my wife my plans for this month she mandated that I wear sandals. So, I am wearing sandals too.

Observing the Sabbath- Each week I have a day off built into my schedule. Since my son’s arrival I have truly enjoyed the benefits of a day off from ministry. I have done little to no work- I rest and enjoy my son. I still check my email and occasionally I’ll have to finish a pwrpnt or work on something youth ministry related but nothing compared to the years before. I would work nearly as much as a regular work day. The Sabbath is different than just a day off. It is a day set aside for the glory and remembrance of our Lord. When I can I will observe the Sabbath (sundown on Friday to sundown on Saturday) to the best of my ability. No phone, no computer, no tv. Just rest and time to spend with my family.

Eating with Sinners- Jesus was accused of being of the Devil because he associated with “sinners and tax collectors.” So, how can I, today in my community and context, eat with sinners?

As I was sitting at lunch the other day, I was asking myself this very question. Typically, I take a book with me and use my lunch hour to read. Sometimes I have my iPod with me. As I reflected on this I realized that my current lunch habits isolate me and close me off from the dozens of people sitting around me. Jesus withdrew to solitary places to pray and reflect but when he was in the marketplace- the community- he was engaging people in discussions, meeting with and reaching out to people. Jesus ate with people.

In order to “eat with sinners” this month my plan is this: whenever I am out at lunch during the day, I will look around the restaurant for a guy or a group of guys eating and I will ask if I can join them at their table. Not a perfect solution but definitely an interesting one. I feel like I’m on the right track because this proposition makes me really uncomfortable.

Other-
Get up before dawn and “retreat to a quiet place”
Give away “treasures”
Praying the prayers Jesus prayed
Celebrating a Passover seder (check)
Living simpler
Curtaining media intake

So this is just a short list of some of the external changes that I am making during this month. Some of them are minor but most are major. Of course, I understand the limitations of external changes. Walking like Jesus isn’t only about what I wear or what I eat. However, it is my hope that these external changes will act as a catalyst to shake up my routine to make dramatic internal changes.

I planning on posting about my Jesus month again next week. I want to make sure I have time to record and reflect on what I’m experiencing. Again, if you have any suggestions for my Jesus month, write them in the comment section.