Screaming at the top of their lungs!

Do you remember when you were a kid and there was that one person that you always wanted to be around and that you looked up to? The youth of today are looking for that kind of person to! They may not be able to find it in their friends or their family, but they are seeming to find it in the media. When the find that person in the media they look up to them and put them on a pedestal that sometimes may not be that healthy. So my challenge for us, as adults, is to give the youth of today people that they can look up to, that can set realistic goals, that can show them that we are human and not just dolled up people that look and are made out to be perfect.

These students are ready for change, they're ready to be shown who true Christians are, they're ready to be shown that it is okay to mess up. The issue is not them acting out like many of us may think, the issue is them wanting attention from the people that they look up to. They are like a little child screaming at the top of their lungs, crying out, wanting someone to help them. They need our guidance and our love. There may have been times when we were younger when the people around us looked at us and thought that we were not worth it or really annoying. But the truth is, THESE STUDENTS ARE SO WORTH IT!!!!



When the "Baby Boomers" are dead and gone, when "Generation X" is dead and gone, the ones who will be left are my generation and the youth of today, and in my opinion they SHOULD NOT be left in the dark. It is up to us to show them the path that Christ has laid out for us. Granted there may be a few that falter and lose their footing, but we need to be right there for them and pick them up when the fall and show them that they are worth it!

This video is my prayer for these students. It may sound contradictory to what I'm saying in the beginning, but PLEASE continue to listen until the end...IT'S WORTH IT!!!!



JOIN IN THE FIGHT FOR THESE STUDENTS LIVES!!!!

THEY'RE READY....ARE YOU?

PS I am in no way advertising/endorsing AARP. I found this video and it is to be used for illustration purposes ONLY.

Looking Back

I know that its been quite some time since I've posted anything on my blog. Over the past few weeks and months I have been looking back on my life and realize that there are a lot of experiences that I want to share with people and just the people in my family. One of those experiences came at just the right time.

Last month my family and I lost a great person who was a very strong individual who meant a lot to us. My grandma was an amazing woman and she loved her family dearly. There was nothing that she wouldn't do for us and that we wouldn't do for her. One evening when she was over to have dinner at my parent's house there arose a situation that escalated into an argument between me and another member of my family. After I and the family member had settled the argument I went down to talk to my grandma and apologize for what had happened. As soon as I said that I was sorry Grandma looked at me right in the face and said: "Matthew, its okay and I forgive you. I love you and I know that these kinds of things happen." I don't know if she realized it or not, but what she had just said to me changed my way of thinking about forgiveness forever!

I know that my grandma loved me very much, and my family very much too. But the one think that I cannot get over is how much of what she said to me was a lot like what Christ did for us on the cross. Our human nature gets in the way of our relationship with him and sometimes we get preoccupied and get into arguments like I did with one of my family members, but Christ still looks at us in the face and says, its okay, I forgive you.

During this period of time while my family and I are still morning the loss of our grandma and mother. There has been a hope for us that we will one day see our grandma and mother again! And even still I am looking back on what has happened over the past month or so and there is one song that has rang so true in my life. Oddly enough I just found this song today, but when I listened to it I could not but think about all things that God has done for my family and I. The song is "God's Been Good" by Legacy Five. This song is so true because God has been good to me and my family over this past month. I just hope that as you read this you can see that God has been good to you in your life even though there may be times that you felt like he was so distant and maybe that he was not even there. But never forget that he is so good and he knows what he is doing.



RIP June A. Anderson; June 4, 1926-June 11, 2010 I LOVE YOU GRANDMA!!!!

Staying instead of Sending

Lately I've been thinking, which I know is kind of scary I know. Why is it that we are sending more people out to other countries to do missions work, when in all honesty, we need God A LOT here in the U.S.? Jesus, in the Great Commission, told his disciples to go out and make believers of all nations. The United States is part of the "all nations" too. So why is it that we have forgotten that there are a lot of people who need God right here on our own soil?

The reason why this has been on my heart lately is because there are a lot of hurting people in the United States that are our neighbors, family members, coworkers, etc. And I realize that it is easier to go out and minister to people that we don't know and that we might never see again, but why are we so scared? God is right there with us, guiding our us every step of the way. And there might be one of the instances that all we have to do is walk up to a person and ask them if they want to accept God into their lives because God has been already been working in their lives up to that point. It might even be easier than that. All you might have to do is speak gibberish and they'll be ready to accept Jesus into their lives.

Something else to think about too. The youth in today's society are the next leaders for this nation. Heck, my generation are the next leaders. But no one is showing us how to lead. We've been left to fend for ourselves. How scary is it knowing that we've been left alone to figure things out for ourselves, when the adults are just sitting back watching!!!! Let me tell you from personal experience it STINKS!!!! We might be hard to talk to, or relate to, but just talk to us. Show us how we're supposed to do things. I know we're hardheaded, but just take the time to show us how to lead. Because to be honest...WE'RE THE BIGGEST MISSIONS FIELD!!!! Right here, on our own turf, the biggest missions field is the next generation that is going to take control of things after the generation that is in control is gone. Do you want to die knowing that you left us to fend for ourselves, with nothing going for us.

Now there may be some people who read this that are thinking that they've been doing all they can to help to keep this from happening. I have a question for you though, and not to sound critical, here's the question: Have you really done everything you can? Have you showed other people how to lead other than your kids or your family members? Have you been looking outside your comfort zones for the people that really need that guidance or the love of God?

I don't want anyone to think that I'm just ranting in raving about something. I have been trying to put these things that I've talked about into practice and I will continue to do so. All I ask is that we not forget that we have a missions field right here in our own backyard. So what are you going to do about it? Are you willing to commit to do what God has called you and I to do in Matthew 28? It will be a tough process, but there's nothing too tough for when God is guiding our footsteps.

Total Surrender

This past week I had the opportunity to go to Brown City Camp to help lead worship for Senior High Students. Every year there is a worship service in the main tabernacle that is youth lead. So this year the band that I played with lead over 2000 people into the throne room of God. Now the songs that we decided to play were not the typical church camp songs. However, we did play "Amazing Grace" and "Jesus Paid it All," but that was our extent of hymns. Even still they weren't the kind of hymns that you'd find in the hymn book with piano and organ. We played them with a more contemporary feel.

There was one song in particular that I wasn't sure how well it would go over with the adults. The name of the song is "Arms Open Wide" and it's off of the new Hillsong United CD, you'll find it at the end of this post. We, as a band, had played it a couple of times during the Senior High sessions, but I was still kind of leery about how well it would go over with the adults. Chris, our leader, had put it in the order of service after the speaker was done giving his message, and while people were supposed to come down to the alter for prayer, guidance, and what-not.

So while the speaker gave the alter call we began to play the song. As Chris began to sing the first verse I had a sense of peace come over me. It was a weird feeling, not that I've never had that kind of feeling before, but I wasn't sure why I was having the feeling. But as we continued to play adults all around the tabernacle began to stand and worship in total surrender. God was doing some pretty amazing things with the people in the service.

There was one man in particular that I saw sitting towards the back that caught my attention. As we built up the song and went into the bridge, which is the "big" part of the song for those of you who are not music savvy, this man who had to be in his mid to late 70s stood up and just opened his arms, and without reserve, began to worship God as if there was no one else in that big tabernacle. It was at that moment that God spoke to my heart and said that he can speak to ANYONE through ANY song, NO MATTER WHAT generation they're from. When I got that sense of peace I had to look down at my feet because I almost lost my composure while I was playing, which is never a good thing. But for the remainder of the service I had to look at my feet because I know if I would have looked up I would have lost all composure.

What I'm trying to say is that we should NEVER underestimate God. He is alive and well and he is working in old and young alike. But my question to you is, what are you doing to help show his love to others? I'm not just asking you this question, I'm asking myself this question too. God loves you and all he wants you to do is to run to him with "Arms Open Wide" and show others that love as well.

Inspiring Quote

Have you ever gotten on YouTube looking for a video and then come across a totally different one than what you were looking for. I have had those instances before, but I had one today that really got me to think.

I was looking for a video that would have some kind of a motivational background for it so that I could maybe show it sometime next school year at church, that is if I'm able to stick around in the capacity that I would enjoy, but that's a totally different story. As I was watching the video I was thinking to myself "This is a waste of time," but just as I was about to close it a quote from Braveheart the movie was said. The quote was so profound because of what I have been working on for the fall with other pastors here in the student ministries office at NMC that I needed to stop the video and kind of step back and think about what it truly meant. What William Wallace said was: "Free men you are, but what will you do with that freedom?"

WOW!!!!!

That is so true as Christians. We are free because of the blood of Christ but all too often we don't do anything with it. We, as a staff, had been talking about how we need or should challenge our students about how they should live out their faith, especially since many of them came back from our summer camps wanting to live out their faith. But it hit me that we are free and we do abuse our freedom by not telling our friends, families, coworkers, etc. about the true freedom that we have in Christ.

So my challenge is that you would go from this post and actually do just that. Go and share the freedom that you've received from Christ Jesus and not take it for granted.

AWED BY GOD

Have you ever watched a sunset and been totally awed by God's handy work? Usually I don't watch sunsets that often, and growing up on Lake Huron I don't know why I didn't take advantage more often of God's creativeness and his mighty work. But a couple of weeks ago when I had the opportunity to go to Nappanee Missionary Church's Jr. and Sr. High camp I was awed by God and how creative he is.

The camp was at Beulah Beach Camp in Vermillion, OH, which is on Lake Erie. While I was there helping lead students into a deeper relationship with the creator God of the universe, I was able to watch some pretty amazing paintings that God wanted to show our students. There was one night in particular that he wanted to show us his glory and this picture is of that night. God showed off and showed up that night. It began with some worship where everyone was singing praises to our God, but then after a while it turned into a different kind of worship. It was the kind of worship where everyone from our group was looking at the mighty display of God's creativity. The students were worshiping God with all they had and with all they were. It was amazing to see what God was doing in each of their lives.

After being home for a little over two weeks God is still doing some amazing things in these student's lives. Just this past Sunday morning I had the opportunity to play the drums in one of the services that takes place at NMC, and there were people in the service that said that they could sense something different in the students. God is raising leaders out of this youth group in this church and adults are noticing. This is no longer the forgotten generation, this is the changed generation.

Breaks my heart!!!!

As I was looking at another friend's blog I came across this video, it absolutely broke my heart.

How can we just go about life taking advantage of the small things when these kids have nothing. What are you going to do?