Feed Me Week

May 12, 2013 — 2 Comments
Photo Credit: Bruce Tuten(Creative Commons)

Photo Credit: Bruce Tuten (Creative Commons)

Last week I took a Feed Me Week.

I take one at the end of each school year.

A Feed Me Week is to a sabbatical rest – I intentionally steer clear of my ministry obligations, I make sure not to plan any speaking engagements, I try not to work past my normal hours, I take a break from my blog (hence why you didn’t see any posts last week), and I put mentoring on hold.

It’s a great way to end a busy school year.

But Feed Me Weeks are much more than taking down time. They are more than just laying on the couch watching TV, going for bike rides, and hanging out with friends.

Feed Me Weeks are just that – weeks where I intentionally feed my spirit and my soul.

Continue Reading…

In Leadership, Life, Youth/College Ministry , , ,
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Opening the Door

May 2, 2013 — 9 Comments
Photo Credit: Wee Keat Chin (Creative Commons)

Photo Credit: Wee Keat Chin (Creative Commons)

I’m just waiting on God to open that door.

As Christians, we use that phrase way too much.

It’s become almost cliche.

Whenever we don’t know what to do, whenever it seems that the obstacle is too difficult, whenever there’s someplace we want to be but don’t know how to get there, we end up waiting on God to open that door.

Waiting on God to open a door is equivalent to us doing nothing.

Yes, we need to wait on God’s timing. Yes, there are certain doors only He can open. Yes, we need to wait on Him to open those doors.

That doesn’t mean we sit around and wait for our dream to fall out of the sky on a silver platter. Continue Reading…

In Your Dream , , ,
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Choking Out the Dream

April 30, 2013 — 4 Comments
Photo Credit: iStock Photo

Photo Credit: iStock Photo

We all have dreams we’ve stopped pursuing.

As we get older, as we take on more responsibilities, our dreams can seem foolish. Or irresponsible. Or downright impossible.

There are bills to pay, mouths to feed, homes to purchase, vehicles to repair, taxes to pay, retirement to plan, vacations to fund, clothes to buy, iPhones to update, yards to maintain, home repairs to make, student loans to pay off, credit cards to pay off, car loans to pay off. Did I mention anything about bills to pay?

It’s no wonder our dreams fall to the bottom of our priorities. Our lives are inundated with much more important responsibilities.

And so our dreams begin to fade.
Fall to the bottom of our priority list.
Are choked out by the realities of life.

And begin to disappear all together. Continue Reading…

In Living our Faith, Your Dream , , , ,
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Greater than You Know

April 29, 2013 — Leave a comment
Photo Credit: Flickr User kelsey_lovefusionphoto (Creative Commons)

Photo Credit: Flickr User kelsey_lovefusionphoto (Creative Commons)

“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Matthew 28:19-20

It’s difficult for us to see the impact we have on people’s lives.

Sure, there are those we can easily point to and see the impact we’ve made.

The friend who came to Christ after your conversation.
The coworker who is now going to church because you invited him.
The young person who is beginning to like how God created them because of your mentoring.

Those are easy to see. We can point to the fruit in their lives and know the difference we’ve made.

But what about the people we pour into once or twice and don’t see again?
What about the friends who don’t change right away?

That impact is much more difficult to see.
But it doesn’t mean an impact wasn’t made.

Continue Reading…

In Deeper, Living our Faith , , ,
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Uncovering God’s Call

April 28, 2013 — 11 Comments
Photo Credit: iStock Photo

Photo Credit: iStock Photo

The number one question I get from college students and young adults revolves around discovering their dream or calling.

They don’t know how to determine for sure what God has called them to do.

It’s true for many of us.

We expect God’s call to come through some burning bush.
We look for it written on a neon sign in the sky.
We’re convinced it’s some complicated process divorced from our desires and passions.

Discovering God’s call is anything but easy.

It takes years of prayer.
Decades of trial and error.
Forcing yourself to do something that deep down, you don’t really want to do.

Or does it?

Continue Reading…

In Living our Faith, Your Dream , , ,
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