Discover New Hope Fellowship

Last night we sent a team of 12 students from our youth ministry to Montana.  They are ready for God to do great things; they are open to being used by Him.  I ask you to join me in prayer each day this week.

June 10
Let’s pray for safe travel as students drive to their hotel in Rapid City, SD and have the chance to see Mt. Rushmore.

June 11
As students and workers arrive in Haugan, MT late in the evening, may they find rest and recuperation.  May God prepare the hearts of the people of Haugan and the people of St. Regis, that they might be open to the Gospel.

June 12
The first full day of work will start strong.  May the students feel energized and prepared, and may God provide direction and mission.  As students invite members of these communities to the church, may their hearts be open and receptive.

June 13
May God bring just the right people to the three worship services this day.  May our students sing, speak, and pray for God’s glory.

June 14
May Alan and Sarah be strengthened and encouraged, may their continuing work receive God’s greatest blessing.  As student’s complete outside work projects, may they be safe and productive.

June 15
Bring someone to you, Lord.  May someone recognize their need for a Savior as the Spirit calls them to Himself.  May they accept the sacrifice Christ made for their freedom.

June 16
May our students receive strength for their final day, may they be encouraged when reflecting back on the work God has used them to accomplish.  May they encourage Alan, Sarah, and the people of Haugan in their final full day there.

June 17
May our students have safe travel back to Rapid City, and may our workers receive a second wind of energy to finish this great work they’ve led.

June 18
May our students enjoy ‘Holy Exhaustion’ – knowing they’ve served the Will of God.  May students and workers have patience with each other on this long day of travel.  May our students be filled with the Glory of God as they return home.

Part 4 of 5

I love my DVR!  I like to set it to record my favorite shows, and then I can watch them whenever I want to.  I also skip the commercials.  My television shows revolve around me.  I also like Starbucks – where I can order a double grande skinny vanilla latte in a venti cup.  Starbucks is known for making coffee-drinks any way you want them.  My coffee shop revolves around me.  Using iTunes and an iPod, I can buy and listen to virtually any song ever published, within seconds of clicking a button.  My music revolves around me.  When I open up the Amazon Online Store, it recognizes that I’ve purchased things from them before, and immediately customizes their site to feature similar things that I might like to buy.  My bookstore revolves around me.  I certainly take advantage of these conveniences, but the Bible cautions me not to become overly concerned with them.

“Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.  Let us not become conceited, or provoke one another, or be jealous of one another.” (Galatians 5:25, NLT)

It’s easy for me to forget that the world doesn’t really revolve around me.  I’m not here to chase my own happiness or custom-build a perfect life.  When Jesus walked on earth, he didn’t seek easy experiences.  Instead he confronted the establishment, rescued us from sin, carried his cross, and died in agony from the world’s sinful choices.  In everything, Jesus brought glory to God the Father.

No matter how much I can customize my life on earth, no matter how much happiness or convenience I pursue, it’s all meaningless and empty.  For God’s purpose is so much larger.  It’s not about me; His purpose is all about Him: “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31, NLT)

As we walk through our sinful world, may we reject the world’s idea of happiness through selfishness, and embrace a life that seeks but one sole purpose: the glory of God.

Part 3 of 5

We love a good story. We know that television drama isn’t real.  We are aware that medical doctors don’t actually narrate sappy summations at the beginning and end of their workday.  We are aware that Dancing With The Stars should really just be called “Dancing” since no real “star” has ever appeared on the show.  We are aware that the bachelor’s rose was purchased by a stage hand at the local grocery store a few hours before the taping started.  When we engage with the story, however, we don’t let those realities get in the way.

One commonality among this type of entertainment is self-centeredness.  The dramas, especially, focus on the personal problems of characters.   An entire show can be about one character’s ever-evolving “love life”.

More and more technology shares this self-centeredness everyday.  Just before writing this, I quickly glanced at Facebook.  Of the hundred or so “updates” I could see, all of them were about the person who posted it.  One person had posted: “Make me feel better i wanna feel better. You make me feel better… put me back together.”

I’ve watched as so many young people engage in a constant stream of communication with their boyfriend or girlfriend.    Whether through Facebook or through text messaging, the conversation never stops.  It takes brief periods off for sleep, but otherwise there is a constant, never ending conversation happening between these two people at every waking hour.  So what is the problem?

Drama…It’s self-centered, attention-seeking, demanding, unattractive drama.  When you have constant contact with someone twenty-four hours per day, you run out of valuable things to say.  Instead you cling to this person and create the problems, situations, and traps that give you something to talk about.  You start testing just how much they love you.  You demand from the other person something they simply cannot give you:  your own happiness.

No matter how frequently you can communicate with someone, no matter how special they seem, and no matter how much time you spend together, it will never be enough.  A person will never fill that void.  There is a void inside each one of us that yearns to be filled by God.  As long as we try to fill that emptiness with other people — as long as we seek self-worth through selfish means — we are failing to accept the perfect solution, Jesus Christ.

May we accept our love and complete fulfillment from Christ alone, and relate to each other in love, without manufactured drama or self-focused living.

I’m encouraged each week that I attend services at New Hope, and I hope that you are too. As the summer schedule gets packed with vacations and activity, remember to carve out time to worship together with New Hope, your local church.  Hebrews 10:25 remind us “…let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.” I know I am always encouraged through worshiping each week with the people of New Hope, and I hope you are too.

As we head into the summertime, there is a lot of activity happening at the church. We’re preparing for a great Vacation Bible School, as well as several mission trips. Summer is a very busy time for your church, with a lot of ministry activity. Although summer is a very active time for the church, it is also a time when many families miss services while traveling. It’s important for the people of New Hope to remember that ministry to our community and within our fellowship continues at full-speed, even through the summer months.

I’ll be looking for YOU at worship this Sunday!

I missed seeing so many of our ‘regulars’ at worship last Sunday! Our youth ministry students led our service last Sunday, and it was a blessing to get to see our teenagers leading our fellowship to worship and to look at God’s Word.  The service honored our recent high school and college graduates.  Let’s remember them in our prayers as God uses them to accomplish even greater things.

I’m encouraged each week that I attend services at New Hope, and I hope that you are too.  As the summer schedule gets packed with vacations and activity, remember to carve out time to worship together with New Hope, your local church.   Hebrews 10:25 remind us “…let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.”  I know I am always encouraged through worshiping each week with the people of New Hope, and I hope you are too.

As we head into the summertime, there is a lot of activity happening at the church.  We’re preparing for a great Vacation Bible School, as well as several mission trips.  Summer is a very busy time for your church, with a lot of ministry activity.  Although summer is a very active time for the church, it is also a time when many families miss services while traveling.  It’s important for the people of New Hope to remember that ministry to our community and within our fellowship continues at full-speed, even through the summer months.

I’ll be looking for YOU at worship this Sunday!

Part 2 of 5

When television and radio were first introduced, ‘mass media’ was truly born.  In one moment, one person could be instantly communicating with thousands or millions of other people.  Nevertheless, only those who were on TV or Radio were able to communicate in this way, one-to-many.  Neighbors, friends, and loved ones still practiced old-fashioned one on one communication.  Even with the advent of the telephone, email, instant messaging, cell phones, and text messaging most average people used these tools in a one-to-one fashion.  It was just one person calling or messaging with one other person.

Then Facebook.  This web site changed the communication game.  Now, mass communication is practical and available to everyone.  By typing one short message and “posting” it on a wall, you communicate something to every one of your “Facebook Friends”.  The average person can now communicate with their friends and family though mass communication, one person talking to many people.  This revolutionary concept brings friends and family together.  It allows new avenues to share the Gospel message with large groups of people.  It encourages more consistent contact with those you love.  The advantages seem endless.

Unfortunately, the disadvantages are endless as well.  Christians must remember that our God is not surprised by new technology and that His word applies to our entire life whether online or off.

Tips for Facebook and the Christian Life

Don’t trade quality for quantity
Most “status updates” or “posts” on Facebook lack useful meaning.  Telling your friends on Facebook that you are eating Tacos isn’t the same as telling them that Christ loves them, or that you’re praying for them.  Just because you can communicate constantly, doesn’t mean you should.  “Careful words make for a careful life; careless talk may ruin everything.”  Proverbs 13:3

Just because you can say it publicly, doesn’t mean you should.
There are many people willing to engage in public fights on Facebook.  I have witnessed many relationships fall apart in the course of public postings on a Facebook wall. “If another believers sins against you, go privately and point out the offense…”  Matthew 18:15

Use Facebook as a tool to minister and to reach out in the name of Jesus.
Like any community, Facebook has people who are hurting and lost.  As Christians we have an absolute responsibility to this community.  “If any of you are embarrassed over me when you’re around your friends, know that you’ll be an even greater embarrassment to Jesus when he arrives in all the splendor of God, with an army of the holy angels.” Mark 8:38

Don’t Lie
Just like chain letters and email “forwards” occasionally Facebook statuses are “copied and pasted” so that they are passed along from friend-to-friend.  As Christians, we must be people of the truth.  Never forward along anything that you can’t verify is true.  Be known for being accurate and truthful so that your messages to others have real value. “So stop telling lies. Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body.” Ephesians 4:25

Let your words be useful.
Online or off, God calls us to use our words in a particular way.  “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.”  Ephesians 4:29

Part 1 of 5

“My daughter can’t go on mission trip if you’re not going to let her bring her cell phone,” the perturbed mother continued, “What if there is an emergency? She needs to be able to call me.”

What did we ever do without cell phones?  Today’s teens don’t know a world without the mobile phone.  They are connected constantly.  They use phones to connect with their friends through text messaging and Facebook.  Their lives are a constant stream of information, drama, and storytelling.  Their minds are distracted constantly, if only by the soft buzz of a vibrating phone.  From the moment they hear that sound, the compulsion begins.

When I notice that a student’s phone is making a noise while they are trying to do another task (like participate in a Bible study), I always start counting down from 30.  “29, 28, 27, 26, 25, 24…bam!  6 seconds before they looked at the phone,” I say to myself.  I’ve noticed that most students can’t last longer than about 15 seconds from the time their phone goes off until the time they look at the screen.

So, is this fundamentally changing us?  Ten years ago few people had cell phones, and no one had a phone small enough to carry in their pocket.  We were not constantly connected to each other, there was no unending stream of communication telling us what our friends were thinking or doing or seeing.  Instead, communicating with someone meant using complete sentences, and sometimes seeing them face-to-face.  We were not exposed to a word-for-word transcript of a couple’s breakup, or photos of a friend we once respected, now enjoying his “drunkest vacation yet”.  There was a time when what I was eating for dinner was irrelevant to my friends, but now apparently it is important enough for a “status update.”  There was a time when our minds and our hearts were present, in the moment, with the people we love.  What are we losing?

Is there a Christian response to this change?  What advice would the Apostle Paul give to believers in the New Testament Church about this shifting technological landscape?  Are we controlling this technology, or is it controlling us?

Over the next five weeks, this article series will explore those questions and more.

Sunday, May 23 is Graduates Day at New Hope Fellowship.  This is the day we honor high school seniors who are graduating from our youth ministry.  This service will be one of the most inspiring and entertaining services we’ve ever had at New Hope.  The students in our youth ministry have been working hard for over six months to plan for this special day, and we want everyone to be there to participate in this great service.

Please join us on Sunday, May 23, 10:00am at the Holiday Inn Conference Center for an inspiring service that you won’t soon forget.

Let us know you’ll be there by confirming on Facebook.

There is a song by a Christian Rock group that says: “This is your life. Are you who you want to be?”  This is a simple question, but has huge implications about the choices we make with our free will, given to us by God.  Recently one of the high school seniors in our youth group told me that his life’s mission was to “revolutionize lives for Christ.”  His purpose was clear; he is becoming exactly who God has called him to be.  As our seniors graduate from high school this month, I’m reminded of some fundamental principles by which all Christians are called to live.  Seniors, I challenge you to remember these things as you transition to a new part of your life.

You are a Person of the Truth.
Christians are to live everyday with the truth at the center of their thoughts.  The truth is that every person should be loved, that everyone can be forgiven, that Jesus is the only way to Heaven.  The truth is found in God’s word and in His creation.  It is rarely found in that email forward, or in the latest bit of juicy gossip.  “So stop telling lies. Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body.” Ephesians 4:25 (NLT)

If People Have Gathered for the Purpose of Practicing Sin, Christians Should be Elsewhere.
“Carefully determine what pleases the Lord. Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, expose them.”  Ephesians 5:10-11 (NLT)

Your Life’s Purpose is to Glorify and Honor God
“So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.” Galatians 6:9 (NLT)

Your Priorities are Already Determined
“Seek the Kingdom of Gods above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.”  Matthew 6:33 (NLT)

This summer will bring great opportunities for students involved in youth ministry at New Hope.  This year, we are offering mission trips to Montana, Guatemala, and Oklahoma City with each trip bringing a unique ministry opportunity.  Mission work is central to student ministry at New Hope, as we teach students to live ‘beyond themselves’ and be concerned with issues of social justice, ministering to the ‘least of these’, and reaching the lost for Jesus Christ.

We’ve launched a web page called “Mission Trip Central“.  The primary purpose is to communicate the latest information on the trips to parents and students.  Parents, you may want to mark this page in your favorites, as we will be keeping it updated as trip planning progresses.  Parents and students can find downloadable forms for scholarship requests and a sample letter for requesting donations at the Mission Trip Central page.

For our whole church congregation, there are ways for you to be involved as well. First, we appreciate the prayer support that we always receive from our church body.  We also need financial support.  With the current economic climate, there are many students who cannot afford the full cost of this trip and have applied for a scholarship to cover some portion of the cost.  Many students have worked hard to earn a percentage of the cost by doing various odd jobs, and working fundraisers.  Nevertheless, the trips this summer are particularly expensive and many students have been unable to earn the full amount.  We appreciate donations toward the mission trip scholarship fund in any amount.  While the total trip cost for Montana is about $450 per student, donations to the scholarship fund even as small as $25.00 can be helpful.  If you would like to sponsor a particular student on mission trip this year, some need as little as $100 to be able to go, while some need at much as $350 to be able to go.   If you can make any donation to help reduce the costs for students and their families, please contact me at the church office right away.  We’ll need to cover these expenses before May 30th.