"Starting A New Life"

Over the past couple of weeks I've attended a couple of High School Graduations with one or two more to attend!  I'm a "people watcher" & I enjoy watching the expressions on the faces of the High School Graduates just before there name is called.  Most of them have a smile on there face.  But every once & a while you will catch the look of total shock on the face of that one graduate because it has hit them that they are actually going to be "starting a new life" without their own comfort zone! I very well remember the wise words of my Grandfather when I graduated from high School & started my first job, "Your fun is just beginning!".  Like the saying goes, "life comes at you fast".  I graduated from High School 25 years ago & I've come to realize that life is "full of surprises"  & you never know what's "around the corner".  But I've also realized that nothing catches God by surprise & not only that, but He will be with us through all the "surprises" of life.  You see when we start this "new life", if we have accepted Christ, He promises never to "leave or forsake" us.  So High School Graduates, when you start this new journey of life, don't forget to take Christ with you!  And that's the thought for the week from a 42 year old Youth Mnister!

Thanks Mom!

I know "Mother's Day has come & gone, but I have a purpose for writing this at this time.  I can't keep thinking about all the things that a mother goes through on a daily basis, most the time without a "thank-you" given to them by their own family member!  It's a crying shame that we only recognize them & all they do one time out of the year!  I recently went on line to see the value (salary wise) my wife was worth  @ salary.com.  On this sight you can enter the hours along with the category & enter in your zip code to match the hourly rate that is given in your area. I was given a figure of around $155,000.00 plus around $19,000.00 in overtime a year!  We often forget the many "hats" that a mom wears on a daily basis.  I well remember the "hat" that my Mom wore as the "football cheerleader" when I played football in Jr. High.  Even though I only played one snap the whole season, she went to all my home & away games.  When I would look up in the stands, she was smiling or giving me the thumbs up!  What I'm trying to say is we need to take the time every week, not just Mother's Day to tell & show Mom we love & appreciate her through a phone call, hug, a note, or even cleaning our room or helping around the house! I just want to say "Thanks Mom"!  And that's the thought this week from a 42 year old Youth Minister.

"Hide & Seek"

I love Spring!  Warm weather, mowing grass(or letting my sons mow!), planting flowers, starting a garden(as soon as the rain lets up!), & longer days of light!  Most of these I can enjoy because of the Daylight Savings Time.  I love going outside in the evening & enjoy a game of "Thomas Wiffle Ball"!  Another game I like to play is "hide & seek".  In my younger years we would get a ton of kids together(the more, the better!) & play even into the darkness.  (A dark basement of a church is also great or even turning off all the lights in your own house!)  The object is not to get found & if you get found, not to get caught before reaching base.  While thinking about this amazing game that we love to play, I think in the real game of life, we try to play that same game with God.  He may ask us to do something that may be out of our comfort zone, and just like Jonah, we run & try to hide in the opposite direction.  Or it may even be something we're trying to "hide" from God because we haven't fully committed our hearts & lives to God.  I believe David had it figured out when he said, "Search for the Lord and for his strength; continually seek him"(Psalm 105:4).  He found out that it was better to "seek"  the Lord than to hide from Him!  Do you find yourself at times playing 'hide & seek" with God?  Enjoy and  play the game, but not with God.  And that's the thought for the week from a "42 Year Old Youth Minister"!