As I write this I hope you will forgive me if my thoughts are a bit jumbled. I am a little bleary eyed today and I am sipping on diet coke in order to get my brain functioning to half capacity. You see, I just return from a wonderful, glorious three day retreat in a beautiful area just outside Nashville, TN. Did I mention that I was with our youth group? Did I mention that we stayed up late and pigged out on sugar food (yep, chocolate was one of them)? Did I mention that we played fun games and laughed? Did I mention that I fell in a hole and twisted my knee and ankle and hobbled during our retreat? Did I mention that God showed up in a big way?
Some of you know I am not as young as I use to be and are wondering why I would punish my body by helping out on a youth retreat. Well, all I can say is that I love youth and God has blessed with an ability to relate to them. Oh yeah, my body takes days to recover now but it is all worth the blessings.
This weekend was to help our youth draw closer to God and to discover His purpose for their lives. It was to help our teens discover that they are a new creation in Christ. It is exciting to see what God does in a teen’s life.
Many great spiritual awakening and revivals have started among young people. I cannot explain why this occurs except maybe they are not “stuck in the mud” as we older adults are. Maybe they are more willing to allow God to mold them into what He desires. I know from personal experience that I often do not want God to push me from my comfort zone and be used in a different way. Sometimes, I just do not like change. However, I find that teenagers are ready for change. They are want direction and guidance to make our world a better place. Christian teens are hungry to become what God wants them to be. When a teen is totally sold out to the Father, it has a ripple affect where other lives are touched too.
Our teens challenged me this weekend to release some of my baggage that holds me back from being all God wants. I do not want to be stuck in the mud and going through the same old stuff. I want a renewal of God’s Spirit to work in me so I can touch other people. I want whatever it takes to see lost people won to Jesus.
Was this youth retreat worth a few extra calories, bags under my eyes, and a sore knee? You bet it was. What are you willing to do in order to change the world for Christ?
Some of you know I am not as young as I use to be and are wondering why I would punish my body by helping out on a youth retreat. Well, all I can say is that I love youth and God has blessed with an ability to relate to them. Oh yeah, my body takes days to recover now but it is all worth the blessings.
This weekend was to help our youth draw closer to God and to discover His purpose for their lives. It was to help our teens discover that they are a new creation in Christ. It is exciting to see what God does in a teen’s life.
Many great spiritual awakening and revivals have started among young people. I cannot explain why this occurs except maybe they are not “stuck in the mud” as we older adults are. Maybe they are more willing to allow God to mold them into what He desires. I know from personal experience that I often do not want God to push me from my comfort zone and be used in a different way. Sometimes, I just do not like change. However, I find that teenagers are ready for change. They are want direction and guidance to make our world a better place. Christian teens are hungry to become what God wants them to be. When a teen is totally sold out to the Father, it has a ripple affect where other lives are touched too.
Our teens challenged me this weekend to release some of my baggage that holds me back from being all God wants. I do not want to be stuck in the mud and going through the same old stuff. I want a renewal of God’s Spirit to work in me so I can touch other people. I want whatever it takes to see lost people won to Jesus.
Was this youth retreat worth a few extra calories, bags under my eyes, and a sore knee? You bet it was. What are you willing to do in order to change the world for Christ?
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