Jesus Values a Good Reason for a Party!

This past Sunday we talked about Fun, as the last part of our Jesus Values series. I don’t know about you, but hearing about Jesus valuing celebrations makes me feel a lot cooler. We all have those one or two friends or acquaintances that don’t have a relationship with Jesus yet. And those are the ones who kind of make a face every time we mention going to church on Sunday mornings, or when we invite them to Grow or a New Life event. That face that says they know what we’re suggesting couldn’t possibly be any fun simply because it is somehow, even if not obviously, tied to being a Christian and Jesus. I get those looks too, don’t worry. If only they knew that we had beach balls, confetti and a rock band at service last Sunday before moving into our evening Grow session where we watched people scarf down hotdogs and marshmallow fluff, they may stop giving me those looks. Or maybe the looks would get weirder, who knows.

What those people don’t know yet is what we learned on Sunday. That Jesus values fun. That He values celebrations. That He knows that sometimes we need to sit back and say “Hey, this is good!” Not only does He value celebrations, but He tells us a lot about what’s worth celebrating. You can learn a great deal about people based on what they celebrate. You can tell what’s important to them and what isn't. For example, if someone celebrates their dog’s birthday (which I’m pretty sure not everyone does) you can bet that their dog is pretty important to them! We see people celebrate wedding anniversaries, graduations, engagements and lots of other things and we can assume that these are things they hold dear to them, otherwise they wouldn’t feel the need to celebrate, right?

So what did Jesus celebrate? If we go back to Luke 15, we see several examples given of reasons to rejoice. In the parable of the lost sheep, the man rejoices when he finds his lost sheep. The same goes in the parable of the woman with the lost coin, except this time she calls together her neighbors and friends, and tells them to come rejoice with her. If that’s not a party, I don’t know what is. Finally, in the parable of the lost son, the father is so happy that his son has come home that he has a feast, with music and dancing and everything. Here is Jesus, telling us and the Pharisees, that it is okay to rejoice and celebrate those things that are important to us, as long as what’s important to us is important to Him also.

Colossians 3:17 says: “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” This means it’s okay to have fun as a Christian, as long as you're giving thanks to Him for whatever it is you’re celebrating. You can have a party when someone gets baptized; you can listen to music and dance when you have a friend who takes a next step. Sometimes adults feel like a party and dancing is not something that they should be a part of, but Jesus didn’t say that rejoicing was reserved for children or teenagers. On the other side of that, sometimes as teenagers, we just want to have fun no matter what the reason, and we need to remember that Jesus values fun as long as we’re celebrating something important to us and thanking Him for what we’re celebrating. So have a party to celebrate your friend’s baptism, sing a song when you get someone new to go to church with you for the first time, do a little dance when your hard work at school or work pays off (or not if that’s not your strong suit) but celebrate and rejoice, because Jesus says we can!

What are you going to work towards this week, with the intention of celebrating when it’s accomplished? If Jesus gives us permission to celebrate in His name, then I am certainly going to be working intentionally towards that party! Who has a Next Step to rejoice about? :)

-Kristen Faulkner

Tim's Thoughts on HONOR

Great to be back with my teen peeps again!  I have to be at the top of my game with you guys.

OUT of all the important things that God wants us to do, what does New Life honor and revere above all other things? 
Or...out of all the things we could mess up, what's the one thing that we really can't screw up at?  KINDNESS.  That's what we honor above all else.  Course, ya hafta honor God first before you can start being kind, but let's assume that one.

Jesus purposely made the whole thing weasel-proof, because a lawyer was trying to weasel out of the main command of God.  JESUS purposely made the hero of the story NOT Mr.-Church-Guy (the Priest) or Mr-Scripture guy (the Levite) but the lowly yucky looked-down-upon Samaritan.  He was the hero.  Because he alone was the kind one.

KINDNESS is not being nice to a few people, because EVERYBODY does that.  Even Hitler was kind to his dog.  SO that can't be it.  Kindness is treating everyone like you like them.

And you know what that means don't you?  If kind people are Christlike, mean people are ANTICHRIST.  It's not cute or amusing or tolerable to have mean Christians... They are hurting the Kingdom. 

What are some creative ways you can show kindness in your world?  It's the ABSOLUTE most important thing. - TIM

Why Do Next Steps Matter?

 Why Do Next Steps Matter?

Last Sunday at Grow we talked about Next Steps and why they are vital to Suburban Survival.

The Journey

If you have ever been on a journey then you realize that next steps are really important. Whether you are climbing a mountain, running a race or taking a long car ride on a vacation you realize that every step you continue to take becomes just a little bit harder. Even though these times seem impossible they are necessary to reach the end goal.

Sometimes people don’t think of heaven in this way. They think, “I made it… now ill just wait out the rest of my time here.” If our relationship with God is a journey and Heaven is the end goal… then why do we think it is okay to stop taking next steps? That kind of attitude would leave you stuck on a mountain, short of the finish line or failing to arrive at your vacation destination in our other scenarios.

The Need for Next Steps

Do you remember some of the core things that you learned in the second grade? Maybe you learned to read or split an atom….easy stuff. Take some time and try to list a few of these things in your head. How would you react if a family member who was in the second grade approached you and said, “ I think I’m done with school. I have learned a lot and it seems like a waste of time for me to continue.” If you have a brain you would try your hardest to convince the child that you cared about that they still had plenty more to learn. The child might say, “I have made such progress! When I started school I was learning colors and now I know how to spell those same words that younger students struggle with.”

Obviously this is a ridiculous scenario but my hope is that it proves the point that we were meant for more than a 2^nd grade faith. In Philippians 3 Paul writes about how he realizes that he still has a lot of room to Grow closer to God. This is Paul we are talking about! If I’m a spiritual 2^nd grader he has his doctorate. The reason he talks about his need to grow closer to God is because he realizes that there is a continuous need for him to take next steps.

Some Facts About Next Steps

-Even though we are all at different stages there is no disputing that they need to happen.

-Next Steps are tough

-Some people wont understand

-You will want to give up

-You will become a step closer to having something to brag about.

-You will have less desire to brag.

Always take next steps… never stop growing closer to Jesus. 

Safety in Christ!

It was my pleasure to spend some time with all of you at GROW. I had a great time!

New Life values "Safety." We talked through the story of the woman caught in the act of adultery in John 8:2-11. If you haven't read it yet, or would like to reread it, simply click the link to do that.

Have you ever woken up and your first thought is along the lines of this; "Just survive the day. If I can just make it through the day." Are you the only Christian in your family and it's a high pressure life at home? Do you feel like there are kids at school who only exist to put you in survival mode? Have you ever felt like the pressure is too great and you really wish you had somewhere or someone to turn to?

I think there are 4 keys in the story of John 8 that will help you to see why it's the best choice to turn to Jesus. God has so much in store for your life and wants more for you than just survival. Here are the 4 keys we discovered.

Key #1 - Pressure should drive us to Jesus, not away from Him!

Often times when we are feeling pressure from outside influences or continually living in survival mode, it's easy to turn to things like sex, drugs, alcohol, cutting or worse, for answers. But as we see in the life of the woman caught in adultery, her pressure physically dragged her to Jesus. Don't allow the pressures of life to drive you another direction. Seek Christ! He is a safe place to land.

Key #2 - Realize that we all sin!

No one is perfect. We all sin. Teachers, parents, preachers, politicians, classmates and you. We're all in the same boat; imperfect, messed up people. When brought before Jesus and the accusers are closing in, you don't have to fear. Jesus' response is classic, "If you are perfect, you throw the first stone." You don't have to maintain some image of perfection for everyone to see. We already know you aren't. And neither am I. And Jesus understands that better than anyone else.

Key #3 - There is no condemnation in Jesus Christ!

Jesus, the One person on earth who had the right to condemn this woman for what she had been caught doing, instead chose to offer her grace. Romans 8:1 says, "Therefore, there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." That begs the question, are you in Jesus? Have you chased after Him with your whole heart? Are you passionately pursuing Him and His purposes for your life? Remember, He wants better things for your life than you do. He wants you to do more than survive. Jesus is safe because He doesn't condemn us, even when we deserve it.

Key #4 - Jesus has much more than survival planned for you!

John 10:10 says, "My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life." Jesus has come to give you more than you can even imagine. You can't come up with a cool enough plan for your life to match what Jesus wants for you. And that plan is far bigger than survival mode. Step out of survival mode. Run toward Jesus. He's a safe place to land. And He has big plans for you.

So there you have it. 4 Keys to Safety in Jesus from the story of a woman caught in adultery in John 8. Please comment or visit me on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ or my blog if you have any questions.

Grace & Peace,