FAME Sermon Series

On October 7, 2009 I will begin a new 6 week sermon series entitled "FAME". It is based on the book of Joshua, and is inspired by the verse Joshua 6:27, "So the LORD was with Joshua, and his fame was in all the land."

Here is a promo for the series:



We will be taking a look at the book of Joshua, not in it's entirety, but sections that will help us determine the qualities, actions, and desires of a person who God makes FAMEous . . .

FAME is not to be desired for FAME's sake, but seeking to please the LORD is to be desired. When we walk obediently God will allow us to be heard because we will proclaim HIS FAME!

Join us on Wednesday nights at 6:15 PM at Temple Baptist Church's Garage for great worship and messages about FAME for HIS NAME!

213 W. Curtis St, Simpsonville, SC 29681
www.templebaptistonline.org
864.963.5834

A Heart for the Nations . . .begins here!

This week our student ministry at Temple took on the Acts 1:8 Challenge. We had more grandiose plans for a New York trip this same week, but many things contributed to its demise. That turned out to be just what we needed! 

This week our students experienced missions in our Jerusalem. And they did it well. 

We served the homeless Monday night by feeding them and sharing the gospel. That was a great start to an amazing week.

Tuesday and Wednesday nights we went door to door with practical gifts of batteries and light bulbs for homeowners so that we might have the opportunity to share Christ with them at the end of a spiritual survey.

We canvassed about 300 + homes. Thursday night we took bottled waters to Heritage Park to give away to families at the park. All of those experiences gave our students practical opportunities to share Christ. We had many students who surveyed people about their spiritual lives and shared the Gospel when appropriate.

Through the surveys and intentionally engaging people for the sake of the Gospel they also had their eyes opened without having to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars to go around the world (but we hope we get to do that soon too!)

One night during our post service worship times students shared their experiences going door to door. Many of them were amazed at how many people in little 'ol Simpsonville, SC either don't care about their relationship to Christ, or are unaware of what it takes to know Christ through grace and faith. Our students we amazed at how many people are depending on their works to get them to heaven.

What was I surprised about? Well, I guess it would have to be the

people who stood out. I won't call but one name. Mitch Lane was the man this week. This rising 8th grade boy went CRAZY this week sharing Jesus with people at their homes. He prayed with 3 people this week to follow Christ as their Lord! Look at him! 

Nothing ceases to amaze me! He is a great boy and I LOVE HIM because he GOT IT this week. Develop a heart for God AND men! He was not going to let someone slide by with a questionable testimony . . .so he shared with them the gospel, asked them if it made sense and if they wanted that for themselves, then he led them to pray to Jesus! SIMPLE AS THAT!  He will be a soul winner!

Others had a great week also. Got a text message from one of  our rising 8th grade girls excited because she and her Mom had invited people at Walgreen's to the car wash that we were doing for the community so that we could share Christ again.  That kind of stuff makes my Student Pastor's heart jump with joy!

So, what now? 

First, understand that Christ commanded us to share '"as are going . . .(Matthew 28:19)" not just during a prescribed week of missions.

Second, begin to pray like Jesus prayed in John 17:20, “"I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word;” Jesus said I will pray now for those who will become followers later after my disciples share the gospel!

Third, as you work on being a witness begin to let your eyes wander.  What is God doing on the horizon of the Kingdom of God th

at He may would allow you to become a part of?  Maybe you have questions about mission work, even as a middle school or high school student.  If you do you need to visit The Task web site for some answers and questions you have not thought of.

God is at work. I am glad ecstatic to be around while it happens, and I look forward to seeing students develop a heart for the nations . . .it will start here!

Thank you Lord for hearing my prayer and beginning to give some of our students a heart for the nations!

Technorati Tags: acts 1:8,temple baptist church,temple students,missions,heart for the nations

Seeing them off . . .

Every year, one of the best, and saddest times of year is the Graduate Recognition service! I LOVE seeing students become what they were made to be; matured college students . . . BUT, I always hate to see them leave our ministry! Now that I am over College & Career ministry, as well, I get to soften the blow of losing them for a while!

Enjoy our tribute to the Class of 2009!

One of my students

Students will surprise you all the time. Sometimes they do things that you don't know they can do. I am hoping I have found a video kid that can do some of videos for us. If so, I will train up the child in the way that he should (his natural bent), and he shall not depart from it. . .I hope!

This is a funny guy! Presenting Aaron Montgomery . . .

Baptist Press - Reflecting his passion for spiritual growth, Pastor reads 68 books about faith in a year - News with a Christian Perspective

WOW!  Pay particular attention to the comments from the pastor about the book by Rainer, "Bridger Generation."

Baptist Press - Reflecting his passion for spiritual growth, Pastor reads 68 books about faith in a year - News with a Christian Perspective

 

How do we think differently, outside-the-box, and understand how to prepare a new generation for the work of the kingdom?  It is found books new AND old. 

 

New is not best and old is not worst.  God has blessed us with great Christian authors throughout time to stretch every generation.

 

Well, I gotta go read!  See ya later!

Goodbye Generation

Here is a link to a book that is due out in August '08. You can go here to join the Facebook Group.

Goodbye Generation

Discipling with Words . . .

Although I definitely do not prescribe to the thoughts that modern or postmodern psychological arguments or theories are the penultimate authority, I do believe that there are some good premises in those fields. These fields of study are just as any other human endeavor, they are subject to being tainted by the fallen human nature. So with that said, let's take a look at what one of its members said.

Lev Vygotsky

Lev was a psychologist, was born in 1896 in Orsha, in the Russian Empire (today in Belarus). Vygotsky was tutored privately by Solomon Ashpiz and graduated from Moscow State University in 1917. Later, he attended the Institute of Psychology in Moscow (1924–34), where he worked extensively on ideas about cognitive development, particularly the relationship between language and thinking. His writings emphasized the roles of historical, cultural, and social factors in cognition and argued that language was the most important symbolic tool provided by society. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

Vygotsky said that we think in words. I can’t have thoughts that I don’t have the words to think those thoughts with. Many people that are bilingual probably think in the language that is native or more comfortable. I have neighbors that are Russian and Colombian, and every time I hear them speak to each other, they do it in their native tongue.

A tribe in the bush that did not have a word for tomorrow, never tried to save food or water or other necessities for tomorrow. They lived only for today. Ethnically/socially/culturally do we think differently and are unable to comprehend and positively affect the culture they are in.

Look at the vocabulary of today's teens.

Sic = cool, the best, apart from the rest.

WHATEVER = a Nihilist thought of this whole life that seems to be prevalent among teens.

Scripture says that there comes times when the groaning of our heart is the only thing that we have to offer up to God in prayer. The scripture says that the Holy Spirit intercedes on our behalf.

Also, in marriage, the sexual act may serve the purpose also to communicate to your partner the feelings and love that you have for them. Hopefully, that is not the only way for you. There are other ways to communicate love to your helpmate.

What about as it relates to discipling students?

Speaking the Language of the Faith

We need to get our students to understand the faith, right? How can I get them to not look at me on Wednesday nights like they are hearing new things all the time?

They need to understand the language.

Small groups are great for this. If this generation of students are going to be the revival generation it will be helpful, and I believe necessary, for them to understand the language of the faith.

Christian Smith, in his groundbreaking research study THE NATIONAL STUDY OF YOUTH AND RELIGION, exposed several conclusions about the factors that lead students to understand their faith and practice it in a regular manner. One of the most intriguing conclusions that I picked up on concerning the articulation in the language of the faith.

Smith's study can be read in detail in his book, Soul Searching, The Religious and Spiritual Lives of American Teenagers.

What Are Articulate Christians?

When Dr. Smith conducted his interviews he asked teenagers what do they believe. Many times it seemed as if students never had been asked that before, or at the very least had never thought about their answer.

By contrast the teenagers could articulate what they thought or believed about AIDS, STD's, safe sex, drugs, and other socially pertinent subjects. So, the question that begs an answer is this: Can a faith that one cannot talk about be real to the person?

The answer is not cut and dry, however, the sincerity and depth of the faith almost always can be determined as not very significant.

How do we get Faith in their vocabulary?

Two other observations strike a cord with me.

First, we as Christian Educators should not shy away from teaching our teenagers about the deeper things of the scriptures. Schools demand that our teens learn the intricacies of calculus, writing essays in great detail, and how the anatomy of living creatures works, so why can't we expect them to understand the deeper things of scripture?

For one, I believe that the deeper things can't be taught if they are not understood by the educators wether they are a student pastor, volunteer worker, or parent. Another reason that we can't teach the deeper things of scripture is a fascination with the big stuff that does not lend itself to teaching in a more intimate setting that is conducive to teaching in a way that breeds DISCUSSION. . .We can teach overarching themes, such as Christology, in our weekly student gatherings, but where is that concept being taken deeper?

Second, we need to create groups that help get our students into discussion about the things of the faith. First off, parents should be doing this in the home with students. That is their God-given responsibility, and we should encourage that not to happen by marginalizing parents in student ministry. Make them evident parts of the ministry. In addition, we create these small groups for discussion, interaction, and depth of conversation with the added benefit of inserting another caring adult into the lives of a teenager.

Teenagers can be skewed to think nobody cares for them. If we equip parents to disciple their teens, we come along side families as student pastors, and we involve another caring adult into the life of a student to teach, train, and love on them I believe that we will eventually produce a teenager that can articulate their faith.

Conclusions

• It is very important that we grow up teenagers that understand and can talk about their faith in a way that demonstrates that they understand and own their faith. We have to grow their vocabulary.
• It takes parents, student pastors, and other caring adults to surround teenagers with the environment to learn. Multiple adults in the life of a teenager is necessary.
• If a person can not verbalize their faith it can be surmised that 1. they have not been properly disciples and 2. their faith is not authentic to them.

Wether or not Iddo used small groups are not is irrelevant. The main thing is that he had a job to produce young men who could fulfill the purpose of the Lord in the Temple and he did it. That is our calling: Produce teenagers that are capable of fulfilling the calling of God on their life.

They must be able to articulate their faith to a fallen world.