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Resisting Youthful Expectations Pt. 2

The last post was on the first clause of 1 Timothy 4:12: “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young,” (NIV); this post examines the second part of that verse: “but set an example for the believers speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, and in purity” (NIV).

In recent years, as society has progressed, the expectations and responsibilities placed on youth have steadily regressed.

This, of course, is not without its consequences.

As there has been a decrease in expectations, there has been a corresponding decrease in credibility. The expectations and responsibilities placed on a person are often dictated by that person’s perceived capabilities. If I believe you are capable of much, I am going to expect much of you. If our generation is being given low expectations, we should not be surprised when people assume we are capable of little. As Christians, we are called not to conform to these worldly expectations but to shatter them. When we do, our actions lend credence to our words and our testimony. Continue Reading...

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Resisting Youthful Expectations Pt. 1

Youth who are trying to stand faithfully on the Gospel will likely, at some point, be the target of an accusation that uses their youthfulness and lack of experience to discredit not only their opinion but also their witness and argument for Christ. In 1 Timothy, Paul wrote to a young Timothy to encourage him to stand strong in his ministry, despite his young age: “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, and in purity” (1 Timothy 4:12 NIV). We will take the next two weeks to analyze this verse for application among today’s youth, starting with the first clause: “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young.” Continue Reading...

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Humility with Joshua 8

Arguably one of the most basic, sinful inclinations humans have is pride: an inflation of self-importance and self-accomplishment. This is, after all, what the serpent appealed to when speaking to Adam and Eve in Genesis 3: “In fact, God knows that when you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:5 CSB). Adam and Eve ate out of a desire to elevate themselves and become equals with their all-powerful Creator. Every time we look around at our accomplishments and say, “Look what I have done,” we fall prey to the same sin as our Biblical ancestors: forgetting our place as servants who serve at the pleasure of the all-powerful One and acting in the pretense that we are equals or even superiors to God. Continue Reading...

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Four Parts of Prayer: Adoration

“Pray at all times in the Spirit with every prayer and request, and stay alert with all perseverance and intercession for all the saints”

Ephesians 6:18 CSB

 

The Bible is clear: we need to pray. But how? There are over 650 different prayers in the Bible and a they vary in regards to the situation and content.

A lot of times, our idea of prayer is asking for things. Is this wrong? After all, Mark 11:24 says, “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours” (ESV). Continue Reading...

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My Prayer

As I’ve written before, school is our mission field.

It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:7-8 ESV).

Jerusalem is what the disciples knew, it was where they spent their time. The place that we currently spend our time and that we “know” is school… it’s our Jerusalem.  As we go back to school, we are going back into our called mission field. Continue Reading...

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How Our Prayer is Different

Prayer is an integral part of any Godly man or woman’s life. Yet, it seems a lot of us don’t understand and appreciate it as well as we can and should.

That’s one of the reasons the posts in the next few weeks are going to have a large emphasis on prayer, starting with this one: understanding how the way Christians are called and able to pray is unique from others who pray.

This is something that is important to understand for many reasons. One of the biggest of these being that it can give us a realization of the importance of prayer that we often seem to forget as a culture. Continue Reading...

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Summer: A Time of Preparation

Unfortunately, Summer is starting to dwindle down with less than a month left for the majority of us. It’s sad, but it’s a good motivator to make sure we are using our time effectively.

Last year, at the beginning of Summer, I wrote a blog post about having a productive Summer and this is along similar lines. However, instead of focusing mainly on activity-based productivity, this is about spiritually-based productivity.

With school being such a stressful and busy time, the Summer is a great and much-needed time to disconnect, unwind, and reset for the upcoming year. As we prepare physically and emotionally for the stressful time, we also need to prepare our souls. Continue Reading...

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The Blessing of Embarrassment

Romans 8:28 says: “We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God: those who are called according to His purpose” (HCSB). If this is true, should we, as Christians, not look for good and God’s hand in everything that happens to us? Even in the midst of humiliation and embarrassment?

Embarrassment is never fun but with training and the right perspective, we can learn to see it as a blessing from God.

There are two major ways/reasons that embarrassment can be a blessing to us: Continue Reading...

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The Opportunity of an Insult

No one enjoys being humiliated. Unfortunately, humiliation is a part of everyone’s life, especially during middle school and high school, and it’s not uncommon for people’s attempts to humiliate you to come through insults (roasts). Generally, when we are insulted, we have this urge to make a comeback and insult them.

In Oswald Chambers’ devotional book My Utmost for His Highest I read about a revolutionary way of thinking: looking at each insult and effort to humiliate as a glorious opportunity to display the Gospel. Continue Reading...

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An Open Letter to Christian Parents

An open letter to Christian parents:

Do you know your children? I’m being serious when I ask that. Do you know your children? I don’t mean their personality, their hobbies- all the things a parent should know about their kids, I am referring to a deeper, more complete kind of knowledge. Do you know their soul?

The teenage years can be especially hard and the ever secularizing world around us makes it that much more difficult. A teenager needs (and actually desires) his/her parents’ help. Continue Reading...