Part II: Good Point! But I’ll Have to Think About It Awhile… Maybe Tomorrow

All of these insights accomplish absolutely nothing unless our strength, which is the sum of all our ability to influence events around us, is exerted at the moment of decision.  You look at that list of stuff you have to do and you decide, “I’ll do it now.”  Faith without works is dead.  Good intentions are not enough.  Saying “Yes” to God without following through only heaps up more guilt and shame.  “Later” is not guaranteed.  You may not live to see another day.  And in a sense, “later” will never really arrive because we must always take action in the moment that is present.  We live forever in a place called “now”.  That is why the author of Hebrews pushes the point, “Today, if you will hear His voice, harden not your hearts.”  All action must be taken “today”.

Be Strong! Take Action!
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Part II: Time Management Basics for Teens

“Rise up, O men of God! Be done with lesser things; Give heart and soul and mind and strength to serve the King of Kings.”

This first verse of W. H. Walter’s classic hymn sums up beautifully the Greatest Commandment restated by Christ in Mark 12:30.  It points to the need for a distinctively Christian theology of time-management.  To “rise up” demands throwing off the chains of sloth, lethargy and procrastination.  To “be done with lesser things” implies establishing a criteria for evaluating our priorities.  To “give heart and soul and mind and strength” to serve God requires purposeful, zealous, intelligent and forceful action—all four components of the human personality working together.  Simply put, loving God as we should requires us to manage our time differently.
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If you haven’t heard yet, FamilyCamp made an exciting announcement last month: Darrin and Amie Patrick from The Journey in Saint Louis will be teaching at FamilyCamp this year!

Darrin founded The Journey in 2002 with a desire to plant a church in the heart of Saint Louis, Missouri.  He is Vice President of Acts 29 Church Planting Network, and serves as the executive director for another church planting movement called 360-St. Louis, a network which joins the church and the business community in planting gospel-centered churches.

Today, The Journey runs six services across four campuses, and continues to aggressively plant churches in St. Louis and beyond.  Having 3 children of their own, Darrin and Amie have a huge heart to see families centered around Christ so that the church can be reformed and the world can be reached.

While at FamilyCamp, Darrin and Amie will lead the Saturday morning breakout session titled, ‘Enjoying your Marriage’.  Then on Sunday, Amie will lead, ‘Being a Christ Centered Woman’.  Finally, on Monday, Darrin will give us the closing charge to be missional agents of change as we Reach the World and Reform the Church by Restoring the Family.

Friends… this camp will be God-glorifying and life-changing.  We hope that you will join the movement and get registered today!

Part I: “Cut Me Some Slack!”

It’s Monday morning.

You’re up, but that’s about all. There are five different things you were supposed to do last week that are all staring you in the face. School work. Chores. Projects incomplete. So what do you do? Just thinking about it makes you tired. So you decide to take a break, finish that novel, or maybe catch up on your sleep. You can hit everything hard later this afternoon.

Yeah, right.

It’s called procrastination. And it gets everyone some time or another. But when it moves in to stay, when it becomes a part of your character, part of your personality, you, my friend, are a slacker, or what the Bible calls a sluggard. You are just plain lazy, or, to use the old English term, you’re a sloth. Read More »

For a couple of days this past week God graciously gave me more free time. I could’ve spent it engaging in good communication and fun activities with my wife and kids, but I unfortunately did not take advantage of them while I had the extra time.

Instead, I took advantage of them, especially my wife, in a wrong way by viewing and using my extra time as an opportunity to get more “stuff” done.  At the end of the day, I knew that I had deceived myself into thinking that the other stuff was either more important, more urgent, or would make me feel better about having things checked off of my to-do list.  I didn’t feel better and I knew that my wife and boys needed that extra time with me.

So, here I am confessing, repenting, resolving to be more considerate and wise with how I manage my time, specifically my “extra” time, and exhorting you to do the same.

Has there ever been a time during your family worship where you felt like the entire family was distracted?

I know in my house, this has happened on more than one occasion.  It doesn’t matter how animated I become or how creative I tell the story, sometimes my family seems miles away. Read More »

Simplify Family Worship

A man who is like a spiritual father to me began what he called a “family altar” with his wife before they were married, and has faithfully continued the practice through the arrival of children and grandchildren for more than fifty years. Sadly, it seems that few men among even the best evangelical churches today could speak of daily family worship in their home. In the minds of some, active church involvement eliminates the need for family worship. For others, Bible reading, prayer, and singing praises to God together as a family have been crowded out by the television, the Internet, and a non-stop schedule that makes even meals together a rarity. Read More »

If you look in Webster’s dictionary, there are two definitions for the word ‘pansy’.  The first is the description of a beautiful garden flower that is often violet in color.  This is a very pleasant definition.  The second definition is not so encouraging.  It reads:

pansy – a weak or effeminate man or boy…

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If Jesus’ body was still lying lifeless in the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea; if we only had Good Friday, but not Easter/Resurrection Sunday; if He never rose from the dead, then…

1. You shouldn’t come to FamilyCamp, because we’ve got nothing to preach that matters (I Corinthians 15:14).

2. The Bible should not be trusted for this life or the life to come (John 2:22).

3. Jesus would be nothing more than a dead deceiver (John 2:18-22; Matthew 27:39-44, 62-66).

4. Good Friday wouldn’t be good at all (Matthew 27:45-50; Luke 24:13-21).

5. Our faith would be meaningless (I Corinthians 15:14).

6. In fact, our faith would be worse than worthless; it would be harmful (I Corinthians 15:14-15).

7. Death would be the end.  The dark and empty end (I Corinthians 15:16).

8. In fact, we would still be in sin, under the wrath of God, and death for all would mean eternity in hell (I Corinthians 15:17-18).

9. As those who trust in, love, and follow Jesus as the only Savior, Lord, and Hope of salvation, forgiveness, cleansing, acceptance, and eternal life, we should be more pitied than all people, even than the hardened atheists who live for themselves(I Corinthians 15:19).

10. There would be no purpose or joy in life at all (I Corinthians 15:30-32).

 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen alseep.” — 1 Corinthians 15:20

Since children are supposed to honor their parents (Deuteronomy 5:16; Ephesians 6:1-3); since wives are called to respect their husbands (Ephesians 5:22-24, 33b), since  husbands are commanded to love their wives (Ephesians Ephesians 5:25-33a), and of course, since fathers and mothers are exhorted to love their children (Ephesians 6:4; Colossians 3:21; Titus 2:4), then the question must be asked…, “Why?”.

The easiest and clearest answer is simply because God says so (note the passages mentioned above).  Not only does God command that we love our family members, but He calls us to love all of our neighbors (Luke 10:25-37) as well, and even to love our enemies (Matthew 5:43-48).  But now we ask, “Why has He commanded it?”.
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