The “We don’t need Church” generation… August 15, 2007

A recent article was published in USA Today entitled “Young Adults aren’t sticking with Church” (Click here for the article)I have to tell you, I understand why, but I never did until I became a “young adult”.

My dad is a pastor and I have always grown up in church. I remember being actively invovled in youth group and hearing the statistics that over 50% of students that grow up in church turn their back on their faith when they leave high school, and thinking how can that happen? I didn’t understand it, but then I graduated highschool. Once you leave high school the community you once felt in your youth group is gone and you set off “on your own” The truth you  know, or thought you knew is bombarded with worldy stuff and it is tough to stand your ground. The best point the article makes is that most young adults don’t feel like church has anything to do with their relationship with God. Today’s society is all about finding your own spiritual journey, finding what works for you and if someone doesn’t accept that then they are judgmental and close minded. Spiritualness is all about the individual so there isn’t a need for church because it is personal and doesn’t need to be shared with others. That is the thinking any way. 

The question that churches need to start asking is  how do you change that way of thinking? Everyone desires a sense of community and wants to fit in somewhere. But churches do not provide that most of the time for people after they leave high school. There is a gap between high school and adulthood. So they look for the community in other places and that is when the mentality of my relationship with God is between me and God and I don’t need anyone else begins. In their new communities they find anything goes and the truth they once knew begins to be questioned. So the question is, how do you make people see the importance of church and the importance of connecting with other believers, which ultimately will lead to the importance of relationship with God? And how to you build that community after highschool? That is what nobody seems to be able to figure out. Sometimes it seems that churches can’t figure it out, so they give up trying, but because of that churches are losing people to the world.

Please don’t misunderstand me, I think that most churches really are making a difference in God’s kingdom. There are the churches out there that reach out to their community and are the first to respond in crisis or disaster. There are churches that are biblicaly sound and strive to let God guide them, they grow and really impact their community. I don’t want to give off the “I hate church” idea, because the opposite is true. I love church. The church is the bride of Christ. God designed the church to influence this world and the churches that do it God’s way are doing that. But the church needs to realize that a “we don’t need church” generation is forming and it is time for the church, each church, to look at what that means for them and what they can do to change that way of thinking.  

Back From Belize August 7, 2007

Well, before I get in to the amazingness of the trip, let me first put your biggest fear to rest. I am not dead. I know that you were worried after my last post, but I survived. And yes, I did go snorkeling, but I was right, I didn’t enjoy it at all. It went a little something like this….

“Who wants a life jacket”? Snorkeling boat guy asks.

“I do, in fact I think maybe just to be safe I should have two”. I respond. Boat guy laughs because he thinks I am joking. I strap my life jacket around my waist (you can’t get in the snorkeling position very well if it is around your neck) put on my flippers, goggles, snorkel and I am ready to go.  We count off into groups of 12 and of course I get put in group number 1. Without a second to think it is time for me to get in the water. My little sister Elise who was also on the trip jumps in first. After a few deep breaths I follow. Suddenly when I get into the water my sister is no where to be found. Did she drown? Is she a really fast swimmer and I forgot? Well neither were true. I look around and see her clinging to the ladder of the boat.

“Robbin, I don’t want to go. I am not going”! Elise says.

“What, of course you are going to go. Come on it will be fun, you will regret it if you don’t go. Look I am out here. We will go together. Come on you can do”. I say jumping into older sister mode. So we both set out away from the boat. Elise gets the hang of it instantly and begins dashing off after our snorkeling guide. I however am not enjoying myself quite as much. Every time I put my face in the water, my goggles fog up so not only do I not see anything under the water, but when I put my face up I can’t see anything around me either. As I am trying to de-fogg my goggles a wave comes and fills my snorkeling tube with water causing me to cough and get a not so great taste of salt water in my mouth. I have been at it about 5 mins. and decided that was all I needed. I put my arms up and did the distress wave as instructed so that a snorkeling guide could take me back to the boat. But just as I suspected everyone is busy snorkeling so no one sees me. I look and see my sister way out in front of me having the time of her life and decide, well good I got her out her, thats all that matters anyways and I begin the trek back to the boat. Let me tell you, it is hard to swim against the current, but I made it back and ate watermelon and pineapple with the boat crew until everyone returned from their snorkeling adventures. Some of you may think I regret quiting so soon, but I actually am quite proud of the 5 mins. I spent snorkeling. I now can say I’ve done it and no one can ever tell me I have to go again, because I’ve tried it once. : ) Oh, yeah and I am still freaked out by fish, they really are just a little creepy.

But now on to the important stuff. The trip was amazing and God worked in some big ways. Here are a few highlights:

Ministry:

• Vacation Bible School: Our main focus while we were down there was VBS and it was incredible. We were told to expect 20-30 kids the first day and we had 95 kids ranging from 2 years of age to about 16 years of age show up. By then end of the week we had 120 kids packed into the tiny one room church. It was amazing to see the church packed with kids singing praises to God and very loudly proclaiming Bible Points — God is real, God is with us, God is Strong, and God is Awesome– during our shouting wars.
• Church Services: We had the amazing opportunity of participating in their church services. Each student had the opportunity to share a devotion and testimony and did a great job. One of the most amazing parts of the trip was watching students get out of their comfort zone big time and allow God to use them. They were awesome!! Best church service highlight was Sunday night as we were worshiping the windows of the church were open and a gentle breezed filled the church as if it was God saying, “Thank you my Children”! There was some very good stuff going on.
• Visitations: We had the opportunity to do follow up visits with people that had made decisions at a revival conference the church had a month before we got out there. It was an incredible opportunity of encouragement and prayer. On one of the visitation days, one of our groups, met with a guy named Alvin and were able to share the gospel with him and one of the guys from our group even gave him his bible because Alvin did not have one. Alvin said he didn’t really believe in God and was much for church. But our group invited him to come to the Wed. night service at the church we were helping with. About 20 mins. into the service we looked back and there was Alvin standing by the door. It was very exciting to see him there and the students and church members greeted him and loved on him. If you think of it keep Alvin in your prayers that he will continue to be shown God’s love.
• Orphanage: Our first night in Belize we went to the orphanage. It was exciting to jump into ministry without wasting any time. The kids at this orphanage were starving for attention. We walked in the door and they instantly began to jump on us and cling to us. One little girl just wanted to hold my had the whole time we were there. We had a great time playing with them on their play ground area and then we were able to give them the gospel message and pass out bears that the children from Northern Hill’s VBS made for them. Each bear had a card with it that said it was made special for them by (insert Northern Hill Child’s name) and had the verse John 3:16 on it. The children at the orphanage were so excited to get the bears and hugged them tight. It was hard to say good bye to these precious children at the end of the day.
• Nursing Home: This visit was a tough one. All of the clients of the nursing home were there because they had no family left to take care of them. Many of them were very sad and lonely. It was amazing to see our students interact with them and pray for them. Everyone kept telling us that it was such a blessing for us to be there. I like to think that the couple hours we spent there help to give them a little hope. Many of our students shared the gospel message with them through their prayers. It is my hope and prayer that each one of them will have the opportunity to know where they are going when they die and they won’t have to be afraid of going there. Please keep them in your prayers. A few specific names are Maria and Ray.
• Construction: We did minimal construction, but were able to help pain a ceiling in the mission house of the church. Pastor Floyd, his wife Dahlia, and two daughters Abigail and Miracle hope to eventually move into this house so they can be closer to the church. There is still a lot of work that needs to be done, but they were so grateful to us for helping them start the process. Please keep them in your prayers as right now they pay $500/month to the government for the house they live in now. They live about a half an hour away from the church and gas prices in Belize our outrageously expensive, some places they are $10/gallon. Pastor Floyd just step out in faith and quit his second job to be a pastor full time. Currently he is making almost nothing, but praying for the Lord to provide. His passion was amazing and his faith astonished me. Please pray that God will continue to provide people and funds to finish their house.

Fun Times:

• Howler Monkey Tour: This was a lot of fun. We were taken on a guided tour through a howler monkey conservation to see these crazy apes. When they howl they sound like the T-Rex from Jurassic Park. It is a pretty crazy sound to hear. Some of us were even able to feed them some bananas.
• Tour of Mayan Ruins: This was quite the site to see. The structures were amazing. We even got to climb one of the buildings. We could definitely feel the burn in our legs on that one.
• Caye (Key) Caulker: On our free day we went to Caye Caulker which is a small island on the Caribbean sea. It was beautiful!! We also had the opportunity to snorkel, which was more fun for some than others (as you have already heard): ) We stayed in a resort on the island and had plenty of free time to enjoy God’s creation. It was a great way to end our amazing trip.

Belize Bound… and we’re off! July 27, 2007

Tomorrow myself, 3 other adult sponsors and 11 high school students head to Belize for a mission trip. God has already done amazing things in preparing us to go. He showed up big time when we were raising funds and he has already begun to stretch us in ways we didn’t even think we could be stretched. I know that he has big things planned and I am super excited for the trip! We will be working with a thriving church down there and it is my hope that we are able to encourage and minister to them big time!! Beware because when I get back I just might blog a little more often then, oh lets see once a month, like I do now. I just might blog daily with hopefully incredible, glorifying God stories. : ) As you think of us this next week please keep us in your prayers.

 Here is what I am not excited for in Belize. On our free day at the end of the week we are suppose to go snorkeling. Some of you are probably thinking that is amazing! You are going to be in a beautiful country, with a beautiful clear ocean. How could you not be excited? Yeah, well I am not a big fan of the whole swimming thing and fish freak me out. Lets picture the scenario:

Robbin who is a terrible swimmer, she just flops around and pretends to swim hoping she doesn’t drown, is snorkeling. Suddenly a school of fish surround her, the other snorkelers are happy to see the beautiful colors and uniqueness of each fish and they are thinking to themselves, oooh, ahhh, pretty. Robbin on the other hand is freaking out, she tries to put her swimming skills to use to get away, but is in too much of a panic and can’t remember how to stroke with her arms and kick with her legs, and suddenly she begins to drown. Sure, there are other snorkelers in her group that could probably save her, but they are too busy looking at the fish to see their fellow snorkeler going under, so Robbin Drowns. 

  +      +     = 

See… not too good of a scenario is it? I am trying to figure out how I am going to get out of it, without being that wussy leader. The way I see it if God wanted me to swim with the fish, he would’ve made me one. But he decided to make me a human, so I think I will do just fine staying on the beach…

Will Robbin Go snorkeling or will she be the wussy leader? Find out next week when she returns from her trip…. if she returns… dun, dun, duuuuuuun!!

Verse for the Day… June 11, 2007

My Grandma sent this verse in an e-mail that was talking about my cousin who was in a terrible car accident. God protected her and she is now in rehab and will have a tough road to recovery, but she WILL recover. God is good! Hope this verse is an encouragement to you, it was to me.

Psalm 16:5, 8, 11

“You, Lord are all I have

And you give me all I need.

My future is in your hands

I am always aware of the Lord’s presence

and nothing can shake me!

You will show me the path that leads to life

Your presence fills me with Joy

and brings me pleasure forever!

The Amazing Nancy May 19, 2007

Today we worked with New York city Relief, which is a bus that goes around to different parks in the city and hands out food, clothes, and prays with people. It is a great organization that is based out of Elizabeth, New Jersey and travels to NYC in their soup making, kitchen equipped, clothes distributing bus. I had the pleasure of talking with a lady named Nancy. Let me start by saying that she is a very special lady! She came to the bus to get some hot soup. As she was signing the sign in sheet, I asked if there was anything she needed prayer for. She replied,

“Oh, honey there are so many things I need prayer for”.

She then went on to tell me a little bit about her life. She has suffered from a drug addiction for many, many years and is in the process of detoxing. She has been clean and sober for almost a year. She then went on to explain that is through the grace of God that she was able to find her sobriety. She was able to come to know Jesus through the bus ministry. She is now in the process of helping her husband of 25 years detox.

Nancy is an incredible person because she is willing to admit there is a problem and she has the courage to do something about it. She draws her strength from God and he has proved to be faithful. She said that she cries in the mornings in the shower because things have been so tough, but God gives her the strength to face each day. She said she had to hit rock bottom until she finally cried out to God, but he was right there to meet her. She didn’t have to go anywhere fancy or do anything special. He came to her once she was ready to come to him. He wants to do that for you to, so what are you waiting for? Go to him and let him meet you,  if you haven’t already. And if you have come to him before continue to go to him daily because after all,  how can any of us get through the day without strength from the Lord?

Back in NYC! May 15, 2007

Well, this week I am back in NYC helping Center For Student Missions. It feel so great to be back. Once you are here it really is hard to not love it! I am excited for the opportunities I will have this week to serve in soup kitchens, after school programs, churches, and homeless shelters. It is interesting because as much as I want to bless people by serving them, I know and expect that I will probably be blessed more. It is funny how God works like that. He calls us to serve, but through that he blesses us. It is just another way we are able to see his amazing love. I will try my best to keep you posted this week on what is going on, but to begin, here is a poem

New York City

Filled with Diversity

From Street Corner to Street Corner you go

There are people you see that cling to hope

The world around is zooming by

People don’t realize to cherish the time

There is so much to see, so much to do

People miss it, don’t try anything new

They are stuck in a cycle that never ends

In the process losing family and friends

Until finally, one day they stop

They look around and they look up

There is the answer they have always seeked

They couldn’t find it anywhere else, not home, not work, not the busy street

A Fathers loving arms they are surrounded by

Finally there is a purpose for their busy life

No matter how magnificent or amazing a place is it is nothing, absolutely nothing without knowing the peace and joy of Christ’s Love. No matter where you are, whether it is Po-dunk town, Kansas or Brooklyn, NY people need Jesus.

A Band Shelter Community… May 2, 2007

Today I sat at my desk working away to the sounds of thunder, rain and flashes of lightening. It was a major spring rain storm and nothing could have made me happier. I love thunderstorms. When I was younger we lived in a house that had a tin roof over the back patio and my favorite thing was to fall asleep to the sound of the rain on the tin roof. Now rainstorms make me smile for another reason. They remind me of a time that myself and a dozen other strangers quickly became apart of a little community…

My first week in New York last summer I was participating in Staff training week. This week consisted of learing our way around the NY subway system and team building. My favorite day of that week happened when we were doing some training in Central Park. We were all gathered in a circle discussing the wonderful jobs of a city host when all of a sudden out of nowhere the sky opened up and started to pour. Here in Colorado there is usually some sort of warning before it starts to really pour. Usually it spinkles a little and thunders a few times giving everyone a fair chance to take shelter. This is not the case in NY. There was no warning, no time to get inside, the sky open up and poured. We all instantly grabed our things and ran as fast as we could to the first thing we saw… a band shelter. We were not the only ones who did this. Dozens of other people soon appeared from different parts of the park and were dashing for the shelter. It poured and poured for about an hour and half all we could do was sit there and watch it. Sounds boring, right. It was the best afternoon ever!

          

 The community was made up of chess players, card players, couples in love, mom’s and their kids, let’s call him an entrepenuer that tried to sell everything he could get his hands on and a saxophone player. The saxophone player serenaded us all as we sat and watched the rain. It was amazing.

For that brief hour and a half we were all brought together. We were forced to stop and take a breather from the busy hustle and bustle of NYC, of life. The rain was beautiful. We were able to take time to appreciate it. We talked to people we never even would’ve looked at and laughed becaue what else were we going to do, we were stuck. Sure we had plans that were suppose to fill that hour and keep us busy. But how great it was just to stop and relax. Just to stop and sit. Just to stop and appreciate the people around us and the creation around us. Sometimes we need to just stop more often and look around. I am probably one of the people most guilty of this, but we get so caught up in our life that we miss out on it. We are so busy thinking about what we are going to do next or how we are going to make it better for us in the future that we miss the now. I was forced to stop and it was one of the greatest hour and a half ever. Why don’t I just stop more often? Why don’t you?

Calling all Reese’s Fans! March 21, 2007

Today, I discovered the most amazing snack food ever! So amazing in fact that this is what I decided to discuss in my post that will end my very long blogging drought. This snack combines all of my favorite Reese’s items in one, it is the Reese’s Snacksters.

 Not only does this snack include Reese’s Pieces, my favorite candy, but it also has cereal puffs, peanut butter chips & cereal squares. It is like trail mix, but with an amazing peanut butter taste! I know what you are thinking– how can it get any better? But it does!Each bag only contains 100 calories and there is 0 grams of trans fat. So even all you health conscious people out there can enjoy this tasty treat without feeling guilty! So go out and get yourself a box of Reese’s Snacksters and see what you think. I got mine at Target, but I am sure they can be found at any local grocery store. Happy Snacking! : )

Now if only someone from Reese’s would read this post and give me some props (a.k.a. money) for the great promotion I just gave them.

“God Loves Me Too”? February 9, 2007

Today I was sitting at Starbucks (I know big surprise there) and I was remembering this past summer. Many of you know I spent the summer in New York City working with an organization called Center for Student Missions (www.csm.org). I was a city host and led high school groups that came on mission trips around the city. I loved every second of it. It was an amazing experience.

 Today, specifically, I was remembering a homeless guy that we met in Thompkin Square Park. We had just finished dinner at my favorite restaurant Sonar Gaow and did not finish all our food so the group I was hosting that week decided they want to pack it up to find someone to give it to. I thought it was a great idea and knew that at that time there were a lot of homeless that gathered in the park. For some reason though on this night there was not very many people in the park like I was expecting. We were about to give up and head to the subway to go home when we saw an older man sitting on a bench. Two of the girls from the group approached him with the food and said, “Here we want you to have this and we want you to know that God loves you”.

 The man looked up at them with tears in his eyes and said, “God loves me too? I have done so many terrible things there is no way that God loves me too”. None of us were expecting an opportunity like this, but God knew and I know that he brought us to the park on that night for a reason. The group went on to share the Gospel with him and explain that there was absolutely nothing that he could do to make God stop loving him.  He didn’t make a decision that we know of that night, but I know that the group had a big impact on him just by  saying “we want you to know God loves you”.

Remembering this story got me thinking. How many people do I come in contact with on a daily basis that doesn’t know God loves them? Who do I know that if I were to tell them “God loves you”, their response would be surprise.  The Message translation of Phillippians 4:3-5 says,

” Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean reveal in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you are on their side, working with them, not against them. Help them to see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute”!

 Who do I know that doesn’t know God loves them? Can those people see me celebrating God everyday? What happens if Jesus does come back today and I never tell those people that God loves them and has an amazing gift for them?

What about you? Who in your life needs to hear the words “God loves you”. He could come back any minute. Time is running out to tell them. Don’t let any opportunity go by without telling those people “God loves you, no matter what you’ve done, no matter what you do, no matter who you are, no matter what you look like, God loves YOU and nothing can ever, ever take that away” . Aren’t you glad that you know that. Think about what it will mean to the people who don’t know it yet.  

School Days are Here Again. January 25, 2007

I have had many complaints from people that I need to Blog again. I  know that it has been almost a month since my last post, but here’s the deal, I am back in school again and taking 18 credit hours, so suddenly most of my time as been sucked up by that. I wish, though, that I could spend every night intensely blogging for all of you to read, but there is just no way…. unless you guys help me. Here is a list I compiled of a few things you all can do to help me so that I have more time to blog.

 1. I have many papers that I need to write over the course of the semester, two of them are research papers, so anytime you are bored you can right a paper for me. The research papers need to be 14-15 pages in length and the other papers can be 600-800 words. If intersted comment below and I will send you a topic.

 2. I am taking 6 classes, each with 1-3 textbooks, so I have a lot of reading to do, so if any of you are intersted in doing my reading for me and then writing a summary that I can read so I can get the main points without taking the time to read, comment below and I will tell you the book titles. Keep in mind I am tested on most of my reading so it is important that you give a detailed summary and don’t miss any big points.

3. Sometimes I get assignments that really I see as busy work, but unfortunately I am graded on them, so if some of you could be on call so that when I get these assignment I can e-mail them to you so you can take care of them for me that would be great.  

4. I am working part time so I can pay for books and tuition and stuff like that, so if some of you wanted to fund my life then I will definitely have the time I need to blog more often.

 So there ya go, 4 simple things that you can do to help. Once those are taken care of really I can do nothing, but blog. It will be awesome. Again if you are interested in helping please comment below so that I can give you more details.

 Okay, so that really probably will never work, but how great would it be if I could just delegate all my school assignments. Too bad. Thats why I’m going to school so I can get a job where people will do the work for me. Yeah that will be a good time. : )