Here is a brief outline of week 2 in our Exposed Series
We’ve Been Lied To!
Lie # 1: The OUTSIDE matters more than the INSIDE.
… God does not see the same way people see. People look at the outside of a person, but the LORD looks at the heart (1 Samuel 16:7).
Charm can be deceptive and beauty doesn't last, but a woman who fears and reverences God shall be greatly praised (Proverbs 31:30).
Lie #2: SEX matters more than LOVE.
Let love be your greatest aim (1 Corinthians 14:1).
There are three things too wonderful for me to understand--no, four! How an eagle glides through the sky. How a serpent crawls upon a rock. How a ship finds its way across the heaving ocean. The growth of love between a man and a woman
(Proverbs 30:18-19).
Lie #3: MYSELF matters more than OTHERS.
Don't be selfish; don't live to make a good impression on others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourself (Philippians 2:3).
Lie #4: Who I HAVE matters more than who I AM
You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit them together in my mother's womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! It is amazing to think about. Your workmanship is marvelous--and how well I know it (Psalm 139:13-14).
Thought For The Week:
Do I BUY the LIE?
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Exposed, part 1, What was God thinking?
This is the first part in the series called Exposed, which is all about God's truth and plan for sex and dating.
WHAT WAS GOD THINKING?
We started off by talking about sex as a gift that God has given us, but the world has distorted.
Here is an outline of our time together.
2 MYTHS about SEX
Myth #1: Sex is WRONG
God created sex and here is what the Bible has to say about things God created.
For everything God created is good… (1 Timothy 4:4)
Myth #2: Sex is LIMITLESS
Don't use your body for sexual sin like the people who do not know God
(1 Thessalonians 4:5)
The REALITY IS, GOD MEANT SEX FOR GOOD, BUT IT HAS BEEN TWISTED AND MADE BAD.
What was God's plan for sex?
Intended for a MAN and WOMAN
So God created human beings in his image. In the image of God he created them. He created them male and female. God blessed them and said, "Have many children and grow in number. Fill the earth… (Genesis 1:27-28)
This may seem pretty obvious but not really in this day in age. We did a brief talk about homosexuality and that fact that it's a sin, but still doesn't give us the right to tease people or make fun of people who are struggling with it. It's a sin just like having sex before marriage is a sin. Both are not part of God's plan.
Intended for MARRIAGE
So a man will leave his father and mother and be united with his wife, and the two will become one body (Genesis 2:24).
Marriage should be honored by everyone, and husband and wife should keep their marriage pure. God will judge as guilty those who take part in sexual sins
(Hebrews 13:4).
CLOSING THOUGHT: God’s PLAN is PERFECT
Will you follow it?
WHAT WAS GOD THINKING?
We started off by talking about sex as a gift that God has given us, but the world has distorted.
Here is an outline of our time together.
2 MYTHS about SEX
Myth #1: Sex is WRONG
God created sex and here is what the Bible has to say about things God created.
For everything God created is good… (1 Timothy 4:4)
Myth #2: Sex is LIMITLESS
Don't use your body for sexual sin like the people who do not know God
(1 Thessalonians 4:5)
The REALITY IS, GOD MEANT SEX FOR GOOD, BUT IT HAS BEEN TWISTED AND MADE BAD.
What was God's plan for sex?
Intended for a MAN and WOMAN
So God created human beings in his image. In the image of God he created them. He created them male and female. God blessed them and said, "Have many children and grow in number. Fill the earth… (Genesis 1:27-28)
This may seem pretty obvious but not really in this day in age. We did a brief talk about homosexuality and that fact that it's a sin, but still doesn't give us the right to tease people or make fun of people who are struggling with it. It's a sin just like having sex before marriage is a sin. Both are not part of God's plan.
Intended for MARRIAGE
So a man will leave his father and mother and be united with his wife, and the two will become one body (Genesis 2:24).
Marriage should be honored by everyone, and husband and wife should keep their marriage pure. God will judge as guilty those who take part in sexual sins
(Hebrews 13:4).
CLOSING THOUGHT: God’s PLAN is PERFECT
Will you follow it?
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Jim, week 4, The Tongue
This was the last week of our Jim series, which is an overview of the book of James.
SCRIPTURE: James 3:1-12
TOPIC: The Tongue
Although the tongue is just a small part of the body, it has tremendous implications for our lives. The tongue is a difficult topic that James makes very clear using 3 important illustrations.
1. Bits in the mouths of horses
Horses are controlled by little bits in their mouths. Horses without bits have caused massive amounts of destruction. Just with their mouth, you can control a horse. It's the same with our tongues. If we can't control that small part of our body, we can be very destructive and hurtful. We can do a lot of damage.
2. Rutter of a ship
Even in a fierce storm, the rutter of a ship can control a ship and the direction it goes. It's such a small part of the boat but has the power to control. It's the same with our tongues. Our tongues are small but have the power not just to hurt but to change lives in a positive way. With our words, we can help people, encourage people, and and share the of Christ with people.
3. A forest fire
Forest fires start with just a small spark, but before you know it a whole county is destroyed. Our tongues have the same kind of power. Gossip spreads so easily. A few words can be passed on and distorted to hundreds of people in a matter of minutes. Reputations can be destroyed. Feelings can be hurt and lives may never be the same.
Our words have a tremendous amount of power.
We finished the night with worshiping God through song with the Edge band leading. I challenged students to think about the words they are singing and to think about the verse in James 3 that says, "Out of the same mouth, come blessing and cursing." We curse others with the same mouth we praise God with.
SCRIPTURE: James 3:1-12
TOPIC: The Tongue
Although the tongue is just a small part of the body, it has tremendous implications for our lives. The tongue is a difficult topic that James makes very clear using 3 important illustrations.
1. Bits in the mouths of horses
Horses are controlled by little bits in their mouths. Horses without bits have caused massive amounts of destruction. Just with their mouth, you can control a horse. It's the same with our tongues. If we can't control that small part of our body, we can be very destructive and hurtful. We can do a lot of damage.
2. Rutter of a ship
Even in a fierce storm, the rutter of a ship can control a ship and the direction it goes. It's such a small part of the boat but has the power to control. It's the same with our tongues. Our tongues are small but have the power not just to hurt but to change lives in a positive way. With our words, we can help people, encourage people, and and share the of Christ with people.
3. A forest fire
Forest fires start with just a small spark, but before you know it a whole county is destroyed. Our tongues have the same kind of power. Gossip spreads so easily. A few words can be passed on and distorted to hundreds of people in a matter of minutes. Reputations can be destroyed. Feelings can be hurt and lives may never be the same.
Our words have a tremendous amount of power.
We finished the night with worshiping God through song with the Edge band leading. I challenged students to think about the words they are singing and to think about the verse in James 3 that says, "Out of the same mouth, come blessing and cursing." We curse others with the same mouth we praise God with.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
"Jim" part 3, favoritism
This week at Edge, we were on our 3rd night of our series called, "Jim" which is an overview of the book of James. We took a look at James 2:1-13, which is all about favoritism, or judging others.
This is a really important topic for all people, and especially middle school students. Here is the basic outline.
1. I started with a few example stories of favoritism.
2. We talked about what favoritism is...favoritism is writing someone off because of a superficial reason. It's making judgments about someone without even knowing them.
3. Favoritism is a sin.
4. "Love your neighbor as yourself" is the way to avoid favoritism.
5. Mercy triumphs over Judgment.
The bottom line here is when we look at a person, we need to see them how God sees them, as valuable, worth creating, and worth dying for.
We finished the night with breakout discussions on the topic and challenged students to think of one way that they could show that they value to someone they may have previously judged.
This is a really important topic for all people, and especially middle school students. Here is the basic outline.
1. I started with a few example stories of favoritism.
2. We talked about what favoritism is...favoritism is writing someone off because of a superficial reason. It's making judgments about someone without even knowing them.
3. Favoritism is a sin.
4. "Love your neighbor as yourself" is the way to avoid favoritism.
5. Mercy triumphs over Judgment.
The bottom line here is when we look at a person, we need to see them how God sees them, as valuable, worth creating, and worth dying for.
We finished the night with breakout discussions on the topic and challenged students to think of one way that they could show that they value to someone they may have previously judged.
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Full Throttle, week 2 recap
In week 1 of this series, we talked about why it's important to grow in your faith?
This week, we answered the question, "How do you grow?" Last night, we talked very practically about what spending time with God looks like. We broke it into 2 segments...
1. Listening to God
2. Talking to God
After each segment of teaching, we gave students a chance to practice these disciplines. It went really well and hopefully students not only had a chance to refuel last night, but also to learn how to refuel on their own. They each received a prayer card to show them a good method of prayer called P.R.A.Y. praise, repent, ask, yield.
Here is a very basic outline of the teaching.
Listening to God
1. Listening to His words
The whole Bible is filled with God's words for us. If we read as if it were God's words to us, God is speaking to us.
2. Listening to His people
Sometimes God uses His people to speak to us. We should listen to wise, godly people.
3. Listening to His Spirit
God has given believers the Holy Spirit for a reason. Sometimes, the spirit nudges us to do something. That is God speaking to us.
Talking to God
1. Talking to Him honestly
God wants us to be open with Him. We shouldn't always say the things that we think we should say. We should say the things we are feeling.
2. Talking to Him respectfully
As honest as we should be with God, we should also respect him because we are talking to the God of the universe.
3. Talking to Him continually
The bible says pray continually. We can have an ongoing dialogue with God. He is always there for us. We can always talk to him.
Takeaway: Each student was given a little race car at the very end to remind them to spend time with God. Our series was called full throttle, because in order to be living the Christian life in full throttle, the pit stops are vital. Hopefully the car will be a friendly reminder of the need to refuel by taking pit stops with the Lord.
This week, we answered the question, "How do you grow?" Last night, we talked very practically about what spending time with God looks like. We broke it into 2 segments...
1. Listening to God
2. Talking to God
After each segment of teaching, we gave students a chance to practice these disciplines. It went really well and hopefully students not only had a chance to refuel last night, but also to learn how to refuel on their own. They each received a prayer card to show them a good method of prayer called P.R.A.Y. praise, repent, ask, yield.
Here is a very basic outline of the teaching.
Listening to God
1. Listening to His words
The whole Bible is filled with God's words for us. If we read as if it were God's words to us, God is speaking to us.
2. Listening to His people
Sometimes God uses His people to speak to us. We should listen to wise, godly people.
3. Listening to His Spirit
God has given believers the Holy Spirit for a reason. Sometimes, the spirit nudges us to do something. That is God speaking to us.
Talking to God
1. Talking to Him honestly
God wants us to be open with Him. We shouldn't always say the things that we think we should say. We should say the things we are feeling.
2. Talking to Him respectfully
As honest as we should be with God, we should also respect him because we are talking to the God of the universe.
3. Talking to Him continually
The bible says pray continually. We can have an ongoing dialogue with God. He is always there for us. We can always talk to him.
Takeaway: Each student was given a little race car at the very end to remind them to spend time with God. Our series was called full throttle, because in order to be living the Christian life in full throttle, the pit stops are vital. Hopefully the car will be a friendly reminder of the need to refuel by taking pit stops with the Lord.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Full Throttle, Week 1 Recap
We are back with Edge recaps so that parents can stay in the loop and know what their son or daughter heard at Edge...
Full Throttle is a series on growth. It started last night and now is just a 2 part series. We are focused on 2 questions...
1. Why GROW in Christ?
2. How can I GROW in Christ?
This first week, we focused on talking about why it's so important to grow.
Ask your child about the Nascar Analogy: I talked about our Christian life as a Nascar race. When we accept Christ as Savior, we are crossing the starting line (the green flag) and usually it's a strong and exciting start...full throttle, and when we finally meet Jesus face to face, we are crossing the finish line (the checkered flag). So what happens in between the green flag and the checkered flag?
Pit stops are vital to the success of a Nascar driver. Without them, they will be pushing their car around the track. It's the same with us. Just like those cars, pit stops are vital for us. We have to refuel by spending time with God in order to keep running on full throttle.
We really focused on the relationship part of growing. If you were to start a friendship with someone, you are going to spend time with them, talk to them, and listen to them. It's the same with our relationship with God.
Ask your son/daughter about the story of my first girlfriend in 8th grade. Ask them how it was a really bad example of a relationship.
The secret to growth is spending time with God.
As we spend time talking and listening to him...we get to know him better and even start to see as he sees.
WHEN WE SEE AS HE SEES, WE WILL DO AS HE SAYS
Next week, we will focus on the practical question of "How do I grow?"
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Sunday AM Change
Hello parents,
I am excited to announce a change happening in Edge starting on Sunday, March 14th. Pastor Joe’s challenge for this year for our church is to go from being consumers to disciples. This challenge along with 6 years of doing Sunday morning Edge the same way has caused me to rethink our format. Right now, 180 students sit under my teaching in the gym. Because of the size, it is difficult to interact with students, connect with their different levels of maturity, and give them a chance to respond. While I know that growth takes place, I kept asking myself, “Is there a way that we could engage students more in order to see more growth?” With that said, our Sunday format is being renovated in order to be more intentional and purposeful about seeing students grow deeper in the love for Christ and the church. This program is called, THE CORE. The purpose of The Core is two part…
1. to create atmospheres where middle school students can grow more intentionally at their level of maturity
2. to help students understand what it means to serve in the church.
Explanation of THE CORE
All middle school students will gather together for the first 15 minutes of the hour for hanging out together, icebreakers, and Edge announcements. Then students will split into 3 classes by grade level. There will be a very qualified teacher and several assistants that lead this class with curriculum provided by me. Classes will be 40-50 students in size (as opposed to 180) which will enable the teacher to facilitate more discussion, connect with students at a deeper level, and give a chance for students to respond each week to the lesson. Along with these classes is a service program. If students are involved in an Edge small group, their small groups will rotate serving in our children’s ministry on a monthly basis. Each month, 4-5 different small groups would be assigned to an area of children’s ministry for the whole month (instead of going to class). That way, students will be growing/learning in a class for 3 months, then serving for a month (GROWTH AND ACTION).
TIME CHANGE
The difficult part of this new plan is finding the space to make it all happen. In order to accommodate for this change, we are going to have to move Edge to the 11:30 AM hour. While this isn’t our first choice, it is the only way to make it happen with the space available to us. With this change, we will be able to meet in 3 large classrooms versus the 10 AM hour where there is no space available. We definitely don’t want to throw a wrench in your usual Sunday morning plan, but our purpose cannot be accomplished without this change. We feel it is more important to make this purposeful change than to worry about which hour we meet.
THE DETAILS
Starting on Sunday, March 14th, students will meet together at 11:30 in room 8/9 downstairs for our opening program (checking in, hanging out, games, and announcements). Then they will split into 3 rooms (Room 8/9, 10, and 11) for their grade specific classes. These classes will include creative teaching, student interaction, and discussion.
I realize that this change will mean that parents have a lot of questions/concerns about what this means for their family? We have spent hours with our best thinkers here at the church working out what this will mean for families. I can assure you that we have thought of most (if not all) of the questions/concerns that you might have. Feel free to ask questions and express concerns. We realize that most of the concerns will have to do with inconvenience because of what your family is used to. Please consider making a small sacrifice to allow your son/daughter to be involved in this program.
There has been a lot of thoughtful and prayful consideration of this change. I am really excited about how God might use this program in to deepen our student’s faith.
Thanks,Todd
I am excited to announce a change happening in Edge starting on Sunday, March 14th. Pastor Joe’s challenge for this year for our church is to go from being consumers to disciples. This challenge along with 6 years of doing Sunday morning Edge the same way has caused me to rethink our format. Right now, 180 students sit under my teaching in the gym. Because of the size, it is difficult to interact with students, connect with their different levels of maturity, and give them a chance to respond. While I know that growth takes place, I kept asking myself, “Is there a way that we could engage students more in order to see more growth?” With that said, our Sunday format is being renovated in order to be more intentional and purposeful about seeing students grow deeper in the love for Christ and the church. This program is called, THE CORE. The purpose of The Core is two part…
1. to create atmospheres where middle school students can grow more intentionally at their level of maturity
2. to help students understand what it means to serve in the church.
Explanation of THE CORE
All middle school students will gather together for the first 15 minutes of the hour for hanging out together, icebreakers, and Edge announcements. Then students will split into 3 classes by grade level. There will be a very qualified teacher and several assistants that lead this class with curriculum provided by me. Classes will be 40-50 students in size (as opposed to 180) which will enable the teacher to facilitate more discussion, connect with students at a deeper level, and give a chance for students to respond each week to the lesson. Along with these classes is a service program. If students are involved in an Edge small group, their small groups will rotate serving in our children’s ministry on a monthly basis. Each month, 4-5 different small groups would be assigned to an area of children’s ministry for the whole month (instead of going to class). That way, students will be growing/learning in a class for 3 months, then serving for a month (GROWTH AND ACTION).
TIME CHANGE
The difficult part of this new plan is finding the space to make it all happen. In order to accommodate for this change, we are going to have to move Edge to the 11:30 AM hour. While this isn’t our first choice, it is the only way to make it happen with the space available to us. With this change, we will be able to meet in 3 large classrooms versus the 10 AM hour where there is no space available. We definitely don’t want to throw a wrench in your usual Sunday morning plan, but our purpose cannot be accomplished without this change. We feel it is more important to make this purposeful change than to worry about which hour we meet.
THE DETAILS
Starting on Sunday, March 14th, students will meet together at 11:30 in room 8/9 downstairs for our opening program (checking in, hanging out, games, and announcements). Then they will split into 3 rooms (Room 8/9, 10, and 11) for their grade specific classes. These classes will include creative teaching, student interaction, and discussion.
I realize that this change will mean that parents have a lot of questions/concerns about what this means for their family? We have spent hours with our best thinkers here at the church working out what this will mean for families. I can assure you that we have thought of most (if not all) of the questions/concerns that you might have. Feel free to ask questions and express concerns. We realize that most of the concerns will have to do with inconvenience because of what your family is used to. Please consider making a small sacrifice to allow your son/daughter to be involved in this program.
There has been a lot of thoughtful and prayful consideration of this change. I am really excited about how God might use this program in to deepen our student’s faith.
Thanks,Todd
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