Matt Messner

Last night was the first time in forever that I was nervous before youth group. Ironically, I didn't really have much to do with it. A student that I am mentoring told me a while ago that he wanted to get into speaking. He had never preached before but I felt comfortable enough to let him do it on a Wednesday night. He did a great job. God totally used him. I can honestly say that at his age I would have wet my pants if I had to stand in front of my peers and preach. We had 105 students last night and they were so supportive of him. I was very proud of them. 

Matt spoke on the Gospel from Romans 1. It was a fairly deep message for a high schooler. Matt reminded us of Paul's undying commitment to the Gospel and how to live that out. 

The most exciting part for me was afterwards when a few girls game up to me and said that when Matt preached he looked just like me. The girls said his hand motions were identical. I took it as a great compliment. 

I believe God will use Matt greatly. I am very eager to hear what his future holds.

 

Middle Schoolers

I have had the opportunity to day a two day retreat with the middle schoolers here at our school. I am a rare person in that I would at times choose middle schoolers over high schoolers. No I don't use drugs  and am not crazy but I really do love that age. Many times I want to hug them. Many times I would like to use torture devices on them. They don't make any sense. But there is some order to their chaotic world. They are at an age where they are so confused, so scared, but can still laugh. All that to say I want to share 3 questions that these kids asked me.

Question #1- "Why didn't God stop sin from coming into the world?" 

Answer- God would be most glorified by this plan. Was sin a surprise to God? Heck no. What an insult. God knew what was going to happen but he wanted in the ages to come to share his grace with his created beings (Ephesians 2:7)

Question #2- "Why do bad things happen to good people?" 

Answer- We suck. There are no good people. Have you watched that show Two and a Half Men? It is impossible to deny total depravity after watching 5 minutes of that show.

Question #3- "Why does God give us parents, if he knows they are the type of parents that will divorce and leave?"

Answer- This is so heartbreaking to me. I can't answer that question. I think divorce is repulsive. The majority of my friends have been screwed by this man centered decision. It affects them forever. My own mother probably asks this question. I just want to tell whoever this kid is that this is not God who did this. God is madly in love with this kid. 

God has given me the greatest job ever. I don't make a lot of money but I can honestly say I feel like I am cheating the church at times because I have so much fun and blessing from this. 

I believe one of the keys to spiritual growth is hearing the Word of God preached (Romans 10:17). This should never replace personal reading of the Bible but rather be supplemental. I love hearing my pastor speak. He is so faithful in preaching God's Word. There is never a week off per se. 

I also love to hear some preachers online. If you have not immersed yourself into the world of podcasts do yourself a favor and educate yourself. I will give you three examples of great podcasts that you can receive for free online. 

The first and my favorite is Mark Driscoll. Driscoll is the Pastor of Mars Hill Church in Seattle. His leadership and passion can not be matched. He preaches with conviction, honesty, and intelligence. I love it when Pastors can be humorous yet not compromise on the Word of God. He once gave a story on grace that made me weep. I have never met him but love him greatly. 

The second man I want to tell you about is John Piper. Again, I have never met this man but he has mentored me for several years now. I find myself thinking about quotes from his books throughout the day. Piper wrote a book on missions called "Let the Nations Be Glad." No book (besides the Bible) has influenced my life more. I have never read a book where I felt as if God were talking through the author specifically to me. This book on missions ironically is what led me to become reformed in my theology. Piper is known for impacting one liners. For example, "Missions exists because worship doesn't."  Some books you may want to check out by him are: "Desiring God" and Don't Waste Your Life." 

Finally, the last podcasts I regularly listen to is called the White Horse Inn. This is a group of 4 Theologians who discuss issues of the modern American church through the lens of Reformed Theology. All four guys are reformed. They come from the Reformed Church, Lutheren Church and a Baptist Church. The Baptist Church is represented by Ken Jones. Ken Jones is an African American Pastor in Compton, California. His intelligence is unbelievable. 

Please go and check these guys out. They have helped me tremendously. 

The Hollywood Church

We went down to Hollywood today and met a guy named Chris who planted a church in Hollywood. It was a cool experience. I love hearing about guys who have sold out. He went to Master's Seminary and worked at Grace Community (John MacArthur's church) for years. After that he moved to Alabama and worked under Stephen Lawson. Apparently, while he was there God totally shattered his heart and gave him a passion for inner-city ministry. For those of you who don't know Hollywood is not a great place. Homosexuality, poverty,  drugs, and just sin in general runs rampant. It's a very sad and empty place. So God calls him here and God is doing some awesome through him. I just ask and pray that God would give me that faith. I say I would do it but would I? 

There Will Be Blood

If you have not seen the movie There Will Be Blood do yourself a favor and go buy it now. Daniel Day-Lewis plays Daniel Plainview who is an oil man in the late 19th century. The movie is a snapshot of his life. The movie starts with Plainview in his search for oil. As the movie goes on he becomes a wealthier and more successful oilman. I am of the opinion (with many others) that Day-Lewis is the best actor in the world. He is apparently a freak when it comes to taking on roles. He's one of those guys that takes on the character he is playing. 

The excellence of this movie is not that it makes anybody feel good but is full of truth. The fact of the matter is the movie is a tragedy. But, I really believe there was more truth in this movie than much of what we call literature today (even Christian literature). Daniel Plainview is a somewhat likeable character in the beginning of the movie. I found myself cheering him on and wanting him to strike rich with oil.  He takes on a child under his care with a deep intense love. As the movie goes on Daniel gets overwhelmingly greedy. The climax of the movie is when Daniel strikes it rich or as he says, "there is a whole ocean of oil under our feet." When they finally get to the oil it is at great cost. His son becomes deaf in an accident and Daniel sends him off to a special school. With his riches comes more and more evil.  You can even see it in his physical appearance. By the end of the movie he is a disowns his son, is a drunk and murderer (killing the evil pentecostal pastor). The movie ends abruptly after the murder. 

This movie could be summed up with the truth of I Timothy 6:10. Loving money is a root of much evil. This is to me the poison of the health and wealth message that so many people have fallen into. These poor souls have been told that godliness means blessing (typically financially). There is no promise of this in Scripture. The promise we have is death, persecution, sickness, heart-ache. Who are we to think that Jesus in all his perfection had to face incredible pain but we wouldn't. Don't love money love God. Don't love prosperity. Love Jesus. Make him your treasure. Make your time to be used for Jesus and his glory. The more you love money and worldly materials the more evil will follow you. 

Student Ministry

I love being a youth pastor. I love making a difference in teenagers lives. I don't remember being in seminary or college and getting any preparation for the emotional struggle of ministry. I think they should have a class specifically on that issue.  I have wanted to quit so many times but it's as if every time that happens God brings somebody to encourage me. That encouragement usually comes in the form of a teenager coming for spiritual help. I just met with a student that I love greatly. Something happened today that has never happened in ministry before. While he was on the verge of tears I thought to myself, "This kid is my brother." I would die for him. I mean that. 

Thanks to a couple girls in my youth group I have a blog now. I want this to be mainly for me.  My cheaper form of therapy. However, if people read this and are encouraged so be it. Thanks girls!!