youth (3)

I almost wanted to retaliate against this article, but began seeing the deeper issue the article points out. The church is one of the only places that people go where we arrive and separate; yet say we're building families!

But it's not that grouping ages in stages is inherently ineffective in the church; it's our neglecting of the opportunities to connect, pursue and go together while we are separated.  What do you think?

http://www.charismanews.com/us/41465-youth-groups-driving-christian-teens-to-abandon-faith

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Rebranded from OneHope‏

Dear fellow laborers,

We are very impressed with a 9 week series produced by OneHope. (The "Book of Hope" Cru Inner City Jacksonville Ministry uses for Boxes of Love, Easter Bags, Power Packs are produced by them).

This series is directed toward at-risk youth, using high quality video, rap, spoken word and lesson plans. Here is the video promo:  

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B5i1vfFzOX2vUENMNEVYY3ZaQVlOTzJVaUhxbG1ZZ2JvbjRR/edit

Rebranded uses Bible and personal storytelling to tell truth in a non-confrontational way.

Cru is partnering with OneHope to get the word out to people who have a heart for the youth. Not only is this series powerful, but it is FREE. OneHope only asks that your ministry follow the link below to give basic information on yourself and your ministry. Once you follow the link you'll be given a passcode to download the videos, audios, PDFs and lesson plans. (A word of advice: you will need a good amount of disc space so have your Dropbox, external hard drive or hard drive ready!)

http://www.surveygizmo.com/s3/1847392/ReBranded-Facilitator-Info
You may forward this link to others but please ask each person to download their own copy via the link.

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Equipping Giant Killers

I recently had the great privilege of speaking to a group of 80 giant killers. They don’t all realize they are giant killers, but they truly are.

Before I spoke, God spoke to me very distinctly: “This will be the most important message you’ve ever given!”

“Wow, Lord,” I replied. “So this will be the BEST message I’ve ever preached?”

“No, Jim! I didn’t say that,” He replied. “I said the most important message—there’s a difference.”

He explained that it would be my most important message because some of the most important people would be in the room—people who were hungry to hear the Word of God and change the world for Christ.

This is not a “church” group. They’re just a bunch of young people who meet in someone’s basement every Saturday night. People start arriving at 7:30 p.m., and the hosts have to kick everyone out at around midnight.

It’s not an exaggeration to say that revival is starting to break out. Lives are being changed. People are being set free from drugs and other addictions. There are testimonies of physical healings and of demons being cast out.

I hope my message to these giant killers was an encouragement, but I KNOW the group was a great encouragement to me. In fact, I think it’s given me a new vision for my life. Instead of knocking my head against the wall trying to change my fellow Baby Boomers, I want to find ways to pour my life into the coming generations.

There’s a Biblical principle here. We all know the Bible story about how David killed the Philistine giant Goliath (1 Samuel 17), yet that’s not where the story ends.

You see, there were more Philistine giants down the road, and they surfaced many years later. However, by this time, David was “weak and exhausted” (2 Samuel 21:15)—just like many of us Baby Boomers may be feeling today.

Things were looking bleak when one of these giants cornered David and was about to kill him. The old slingshot apparently wasn’t available anymore.

But never fear—God was raising up a new generation of giant killers. One of David’s young protégés, named Abishai, came to his rescue and killed the giant. No problem.

After that, David’s men told him he needed to remain in a support role, no longer on the frontlines of giant-killing. So, while the enemy giants continued to rise up against Israel, the young giant killers continued to rise up as well. Although none of them gained the fame of David, people like Sibbecai, Elhanan, and Jonathan killed their giants too.

What about you? Perhaps, like David, you’re feeling a little too old to slay giants like you used to. Yet I have good news: God can still use you to help raise up the new generation of giant killers.

Do you see how exciting this can be? When Goliath taunted the people of God, only David was available to slay him. But toward the end of David’s life, there were multiple giant killers ready for service. So, Baby Boomers, get ready for your new role—equipping giant killers for the thrilling work ahead (Ephesians 4:11-12).

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