Writing
I have a bit of a love hate relationship with writing. I love idea's, I love thinking, I love trying to work out clever ways to communicate what i am thinking. However, when it comes to sitting down and 'crafting' something...I often find it tough. I lack the patience required to spend the time making a writing piece truly well written.
Having said that there are times when I start to write and just cannot put the pen (well actually, generally keyboard) down. Idea's flow and I really enjoy the process. For years I thoroughly enjoyed blogging here regularly...but over the past year I have had real difficulty with this.
Part of this probably has a lot to do with the fact i have another blog to update. AussieGreenThumb.com is going really well and is showing signs that it could actually be a profitable blog down the track. However what this means is I need to write roughly 15-25 articles per month of around about 500 words PLUS a monthly newsletter of around 2000 words. This can sometimes feel like quite a chore and generally doesn't leave me with much motivation to write anything else.
At the start of this year I also started to write a book. Well it is probably more truthful to say i started to plan to write a book. I do actually still intend to write this book however it will likely be over a number of years. A lot of what I want to write in it is being road tested in my ministry. I have always been someone who wants to do things before I am qualified to actually do them, or before the best time for me to do them. An example of this is that within a year of starting youth ministry I wanted to train leaders. I wanted to write leaders manuals to help new leaders in ministry. I wanted to run training courses for youth leaders from other churches. However...who would want to hear from a 19-20 year old with 1 years experience? Now with 7+ years experience and as a youth pastor I am starting to be involved in this area. What this leads me to think is that my book, though it is a great idea, if probably something I should actually write in 5 years time (or write over the next 5 years and release in 5 years time).
I do desire to write more here, especially as I go through the process of planting a church. I'd love to discuss what is going through my mind. Hopefully there will be times where I will not be drained from the other writing projects I have on the boil.
The crazy world of Middo
So I have been very scarce around here for months. I make no apology for that nor do I promise to be back regularly. However I do want to give a mini update of what is going on in my world right now.
Right now you could almost say I have many, many eggs in the air and I just hope I can keep juggling them all. I am a Youth Pastor of a small but growing youth ministry. I am the lead pastor of a church plant targeting uni students at ECU Mt Lawley. I am owner and operator of a gardening business in Perth WA and I am also trying me hand at running a gardening hints, tips and traps website online.
I am a person who likes to think about the big picture. I am a person who likes to dream. Right now the biggest difficulty I am having is working out how I can possibly fit all the 'dreams' I have for each of the area's I mentioned above into a 7 day, 24hr per day week. Seriously, in about 6-12 months time, if everything went AMAZINGLY...I will be facing some significant issues!
One of the biggest difficulties is that I am not very driven by money. Read that sentence again, I did say it is a difficulty. I say this because I find it very difficult to choose doing something that will 'pay better' over something that ignites the fire within. Often times what I really enjoy doing and what actually provides a lot for other people...doesn't pay so well.
This hasn't been a problem really, until now. In just under 2 years I will be getting married. I also am traveling between here and the US/other parts of the world in the next year or so which is not cheap. Then there is the general costs of life. I really need to be thinking about setting myself up while I can...but I am caught dreaming about other things.
Time will tell what has to make way, my gardening business or my gardening blog, but something will have to change in about 12-18 months time!
Book review – You can be everything God wants you to be by Max Lucado
Max Lucado is a fabulous Christian author who writes inspiring Non-fiction books and one of his latest titles, You can be Everything God wants you to be is no exception. Lucado suggests that every single person has been created with a purpose in mind and that God has uniquely equipped each person to carry out the jobs which he has purposed for us. Lucado also suggests that we will be most content when we find the 'sweet spot' in life that God designed us for.
I was encouraged and inspired by this title. Lucado really helps put into perspective what living the Christian life is all about. Far from being able following rules, regulations and rituals the Christian life is all about finding the place in the world that we were always designed to be. Whether that be as a teacher, engineer, cleaner, pastor, whatever. When we find our sweet spot in life, everything clicks into place and we will realise just why God has given us the gifts and abilities that he has.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Legalism
Long time since i posted on here regularly but meh, it happens, sorry 
This week I am preaching at Inglewood Community Church. Throughout the month of April we are doing a series called 'leaving religion behind'. This week I have the task of tackling legalism. Well actually, I'm going to be talking on freedom in Christ but legalism is the antagonist in the equation, that which turns Christianity into 'religion'. This blog post is not about this though but instead inspired by some of my research. One of the illustrations that I am going to give are strange laws that we find around the world (and mostly in the US of A) Now I have found far too many good ones to use for my sermon so i thought I'd share the overflow here. Now, I make no claim that these are 100% true (though the Aussie ones I'll use in my sermon I am 95% sure are) but they are funny none the less.
Here we go!
In Virginia, chickens cannot lay eggs before 8:00 a.m., and must be done before 4:00 p.m.
In Washington State, you can't carry a concealed weapon that is over 6 feet in length.
In San Francisco, there is an ordinance, which bans the picking up and throwing of used confetti.
In Michigan, married couples must live together or be imprisoned.
In the state of Colorado, a pet cat, if loose, must have a tail-light.
In California, a law created in 1925 makes it illegal to wiggle while dancing.
In Utah, daylight must be visible between dancing couples
In West Virginia, one can't cook sauerkraut or cabbage due to the odors and the offence is subject to imprisonment.
In Missouri, a man must have a permit to shave.
In New York, it is against the law for children to pick up or collect cigarette and cigar butts
Gee, we really are good at making dumb laws, aren't we?
Book Review – The Selfless Gene by Charles Foster
In his book 'The Selfless Gene', Charles Foster attempts to compare Creationism and Evolution and contends that neither is the answer to the question of how life began. Instead he argues that the beginning is not so much a black and white 'it was God in 7 days' or 'it was evolution' but instead perhaps a bit of both.
I found this book to be a really interesting read. As someone who has studied both theology and part of a science degree (which involved teaching on evolution) I have always been interested, probably more so than necessary, with the evolution and creationism debate. I really liked the way that Foster discussed both creationism and evolution, suggesting both pro's and cons for both, and am in strong agreeance that the 'answer' to how life and the world began is not likely a simple a+b=c. I think Foster dares the reader to ask the hard questions, whether they come from a creationist or evolutionary perspective, and wonder whether or not everything is as simple as they might have believed when they first started reading The Selfless Gene.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their Booksneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
When God Moves
I think one of the best things about serving the God that we do is that he is very exciting to be around when he moves! There is a lot going on in my world at the moment which i will undoubtedly blog about later when it is more confirmed than currently, but I am daily becoming more and more excited as I start to see more and more of what God has in store!
One bit of news that I will release now is that I will no longer be moving to the US next year. Now do not fret, nothing has gone wrong between Kelsey and I. In fact we are closer than ever! However it has become clear to us that God has a lot in store for us here in Perth, so instead of putting all that on hold for a couple of years I'll be getting stuck into it all, well, now!
Exactly what this means for Kelsey and I is not determined yet. It does mean she'll end up coming over here at some stage but when that is we are not entirely sure yet.
So yeah, my world is a little crazy at the moment but it is an exciting crazy and it is always good to be serving the awesome God we serve
Rome wasn’t built in a day
Wow, something crazy is happening, 2 blog posts in ONE DAY. Anyway...
Lately I have been doing a lot of reading, planning, thinking and praying (in reverse order). My mind is wizzing with thoughts and idea's and I am constantly having to remind myself of the well worn cliche 'Rome wasn't built in a day'. I am reading many, many books about youth ministry written by very successful leaders. However the key thing that is standing out to me is that they were successful OVER TIME. They didn't get to where they are now overnight.
As I read I am filled with so many idea's of what youth ministry 'could be' and then I am struck by the reality of what it currently is. This isn't a problem, but it would become a problem if I thought I could breach the 'divide' overnight. I am not naive enough to think that, thankfully.
Right now I am working out in my mind what th3 2-3 focuses need to be for me this year. I have a planning and visioning document that I put together at the start of the year and I am really focusing on sticking within that plan for now.
What I am also reminded of as I go through this is how awesome God is. I am only where I am now because of him and the more I call on HIM to help me, the easily I feel things become...not because I am doing any more but because I can see how he is picking up the slack.
We truly serve an awesome God!
Fruit that lasts
I'm currently reading through Tim Hawkins book 'fruit that will last' in preparation for a youth leader training/networking afternoon. Tim has some absolutely fantastic incites into 'youth ministry' form his 21 years experience and the book is challenging to say the least!
One of my major focus' this year, in fact in my mind my number 1 focus, is to develop a strong leadership team as a foundation for the future of this ministry. My coach asked me last time we met 'how would you leaders respond to the question 'Why do we do youth ministry'. He also challenged me to think about what I'd like my leaders to be like, what character attributes, how they might think about and understand youth ministry. These are all area's that Tim covers very well.
The key for me is looking at how to encourage my youth leaders to understand youth ministry as being all about one thing, bringing honour and Glory to God. One of the main 'acts' that leads to this is producing fruit that will last. Everything we do, in my opinion, should be about producing fruit that will last and therefore bring glory and honour to our God. This is, in a nutshell, the 'why' of youth ministry.
What about you, what do you think is the purpose and mission of youth ministry? Why do you think churches have youth ministries? Why are you IN youth ministry, if you are?
The challenge to ‘be’ as opposed to always ‘do’.
I will be the first to admit that I am a task oriented person. I like lists and I like task lists. I like to sit down, start a task, complete a task and then move on down the list. One of the first 'tasks' I do each week is to write a to-do list for the week. Now, I do not think that any of this is wrong at all but this week I have been strongly reminded, by many different circumstances, that I need to be better at 'being' and to possibly 'do' less.
What does this mean? It basically means that I find it very easy to be seen as busy 'doing' lots of stuff, but I perhaps forget to just 'be'. To sit at the feet of God in prayer, to be present in the lives of my leaders and youth. To not see these things as something to be ticked off my list but as ways of 'being' the person God is calling me to be.
One change I have made recently is how I spend my Tuesdays. My Tuesday start with a Inglewood Church pastors meeting and breaky where we talk about church issue and spend time in prayer. Then we have breakfast together. These times are really good and I have found them to be very beneficial. The change I have made is what I do after this. Without trying to make it a 'task' with a set time or anything, I have decided to start the rest of my Tuesday in the youth room praying, singing, reading the bible etc. I have no set 'time' for this, it might be 20 minutes, it might be an hour, but I am finding it helpful to ground me, help me 'be' and not just try and 'do do do' all day. THEN I go to my desk and work out my 'to do list'.
This is one small part of what it means to 'be' as opposed to just 'do'. I am still putting flesh on this skeleton as to how it looks across my week and across the youth ministry I am involved in, but I have definitely sensed God reminding me about this throughout this week. We'll see how it goes!
Feeling encouraged
2 very encouraging things happened for me tonight. It is one of those cases of hearing about some fruit from previous labour that I might otherwise have never heard.
When I started in youth ministry in 2003 there was a small group of 4-5 boys that I was dealing with. Tonight I discovered one of these boys is now a leader at another youth group. This might not sound amazing to you but when youth ministry stats show that by FAR more kids leave the faith than stay with it, ANY youth I've had the privilege of knowing that is still walking the walk of faith excites me. In fact, as far as I am aware every one of those 4-5 boys is still involved in church in some way and they have all finished high school. There is definitely differing levels of 'faith' amongst them, but their is hope that all of them will still be in the faith in 10 years time. I have to be honest, this excites me.
The second bit of encouragement is I discovered something I prayed for over the years has come to fruition, though not as I probably expected. Over the years when I was at Subiaco we prayed that Shenton College would have an opening for our youth group to be involved. We prayed and prayed that we could somehow impact that school and that doors would open for us to be involved. Tonight I discovered another youth group has THIS YEAR started to do some things at this school. This excites me! Though it is not Subiaco, this really doesn't matter! The fact of the matter is God has answered prayer and opened the door for his people to move in the school. Awesome!
It is little victories like these that really enthuse and excite youth pastors because some times victories are few and far between! Why am I in youth ministry? Because of little victories like these.