News - January 2013 RSS Feed

This past weekend was a busy one for the kingdom of God. Last Tuesday, we commemorated the 40th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision that made abortion a federally acceptable practice. This Saturday, landmark crowds were drawn to Washington, D.C., and other state capitals, to march for life. It is reported that over half a million witnesses spoke up for the Gospel of Life in D.C. I have heard glory stories of Christians that marched in Austin and speakers that passionately displayed the truth of God’s love.

In my past blog posts, I have talked about moments in my life that I see as God taking a two-by-four to my face. I had a similar moment a few weekends ago, but it was different then my other “Oh…whoa” moments. This one brought about a mixture of sadness and gratefulness.

Often in youth ministry, we get caught up in two extremes. We either focus on “teach, teach, teach” or on “praise, praise, praise”. What I hope that our ministries do is unite the teaching we do with different types of prayer and spirituality. While lifting our voice to the Lord in song through praise and worship has its time and place, it cannot define or fully reach the various spiritualities of our youth. As ministers, we absolutely must incorporate different styles of prayer in our regular catechetical nights.

The other day I was driving to meet up with an old friend and I found myself reflecting on the spirit of the new year. We’re barely over a week into 2013. I mean, it’s still like more of an idea than a reality at this point, but I have high hopes for it. 2012 was a good run, with ups and downs, and highs and lows, a good dose of life – but I’m excited for something new.