The Good Stranger (Neighbor)

I like most of Jesus' teachings and stories ("parables" for you sticklers).
I like the story of the lost sheep and prodigal son. Story of people with logs in their eyes trying to get saw dust out of someone else's. I like the lessons learned in hugging lepers and rubbing mud spit in someone's eye to heal it. Jesus was a great visual and experiential teacher.
BUT
There are a few I have trouble with, such as the parable of the Good Neighbor (Luke 10).
The story goes like this. . . kinda.

An American soldier was walking through the rough part of town, on the wrong side of the tracks, which ever side that is. He got beat up, mugged, and left for dead between two dumpsters.
A public elected official walking by, saw the man laying there and quickly moved on, leaving him because he had an important meeting to attend. He said he would call someone when he got back to the office.
A short time later a Pastor and Elder, on their way from lunch, passed by the man, and quickly hurried on thinking the miscreants might still be around and didn't want to end up in the same shape. They decided the best thing to do is pray for him at tomorrow nights prayer meeting.
Finally, a young Muslim man came by, saw the man between the dumpsters and stopped. He slid the soldier out, took off his t-shirt and quickly made a bandage on his head and other places that needed attention. He then picked the soldier up onto his shoulder and carried him 4 blocks to the Emergency room.
At the hospital, the hurt man didn't have a wallet or ID, so the Muslim man put his credit card on file to cover the medical needs of the hurt soldiers. He then came back the next day to check on his recovery, and each day after that until the man went home.  

Then Jesus asks, "Which of those people showed love to the hurt man?" 

You know the answer, right? The third one.one that stopped to help. The one who got his hands dirty, interrupted his day.

So I have to ask myself. Do I walk by hurting people? I know first aid, CPR, emergency preparedness. But, I don't encounter many mugged people.

Or could those be spiritually hurting people?
Could they be spiritually beat up and left for dead?
Could they be eternally dead and I just walk by choosing to only pray for them or get on to something else?

I think the same thing about another teaching of Jesus. (Matthew 25:31-46)
He told them:

• I was hungry and you didn't feed me. 
• I was thirsty and you didn't give me water. 
• I was a stranger and you didn't welcome me.
• I was naked and you didn't cloth me.
• I was in prison and you didn't visit me. 

Is this a list of physical activities the church is suppose to do? In other words, if you do these things, then Jesus will invite you into his kingdom and there will be celebration. Or if we don't do them we will we be thrown into darkness with weeping and gnashing of teeth. I don't think it is that, because we are saved by grace through the resurrection of Jesus, not works.

Could this be a  list of spiritual concern?

• I was spiritual malnourished and you didn't give the Words of Life.
• I was thirsty for righteousness and you didn't give the Living Water.
• I was a stranger to them and you didn't introduce us.
• I was naked and in shame, you didn't tell about the robes of righteousness.
• I was imprisoned by sin and waiting death, and you didn't release me with the free gift of salvation.

A regular neighbor would do the first list pretty easily; water, food, cloths, etc.

A spiritual neighbor would do the second. To see the spiritual beating people take, the darkness they live in. To understand the shame and fear, the nakedness of the soul. 

These beaten and spiritually mugged neighbors all around us need a Good Neighbor to show the love of Jesus. The Life of Jesus. The Grace of Jesus. The take-the-time-and-don't-give-up-on-me-of Jesus. 

This is my on-going struggle with the church being in the world but not of the world. How do we live these teachings out if we isolate ourselves from the hurting world? We have to have time away from it, of course. We have to have time and opportunity to dig into the world, get spiritually trained and built up. To get our skills sharpened apart from the distractions of everyday life. (read into that be together as the church, for edification, education, correcting, rebuking, worshiping Jesus.)

This is my struggle with Boy Scouts. Do I stay because kids and leaders are spiritually beat up and left for dead? Do we stay and try to feed little bites of the Words of Life? Give a taste of the Living water in their canteen? Help them see there is a uniform of righteousness and armor of faith? That wilderness surviving isn't near as important as spiritual thriving?

By leaving BSA, am I just walking by and onto something else easier? Am I just praying for them, but still leaving them to their own devices?

How do I be a Good Neighbor?

We teach boys to burn flags. . . properly.

I love the opportunity to teach and train boys to be men.
Boy Scouts of America gives me a great place to do just that.

In our little country of the USA, there are many conflicting voices; loud, shrill, quiet, calm, violent, or fearful. Undignified and some refined. All have their opinion about things like mayonnaise or mustard, pastels or earth tones, paper or plastic, stand or kneel, burn or dance, tear down or leave it be. I must make two confessions; I believe that not all opinions are equal and not all questions are valid. I hold strongly to the belief that there really are stupid questions in life, and your opinion, if it is trying to be forced on other people, better have something to back it up.

Any person in America has the right to believe or think anything. They even have the right to express themselves, and get together with other like-minded idiotic people of the same OR DIFFERENT mindset to talk about it. Isn't that what the 1st Amendment of the Constitution protects?

I do not want the government or anyone else telling me what I can or cannot teach as a Pastor within God's church and with God's people. That is the duty of  The Holy Scriptures and The Holy Spirit. Because I want to be protected, I will defend the right of a Muslim, Spiritualist, Wiccan, whoever, to worship in their own way. Even if I do not agree with them. I won't help them, but I will protect their right to do so. This is Freedom of Religion, protected under that same 1st Amendment of the Constitution.

So back to teaching boys. The 1st Amendment of the Constitution of the United States is really well seen and taught within the scouting movement. (We practice and teach the 2nd Amendment as well, but that is for another day.) We teach boys to fulfill their duty to God and their country, these two come up a lot together. We teach respect for other faiths. Within our own unit we have Christian, Muslim, Morman, Catholic, and None or the above. We also have a natural born Jordanian, English, and some kid from up the head of a hollow (pronounced "holler").

You know what the ironic thing is, these kids don't realize it. They don't know they are a hodge- podge of abnormality.

In teaching respect for the flag of the United States of America we cover the history, the care, storage, and presentation. We teach about wearing, using it for different purposes and flying the flag upside down (this is a sign of distress). We teach that people in America are free to burn the flag.

One of the boy will always ask the question, "Is it illegal to burn the flag?" we take the same 1st Amendment approach. A person has a constitutionally protected right to burn the flag out of anger, disagreement, protest, or just don't like the color blue. They have the right to jump up and down on it while screaming about their restricted rights. The very flag they hate, is a symbol of their protected right to do so.

Flag retirement done with a BSA Troop

As a side note, we also teach this; If someone is not an American citizen, they don't have to nor should they be expected to Pledge Allegiance to the Flag. It's good to stand out of respect for flag that is protecting you, but you don't have to pledge allegiance. I wouldn't say the Canadian Pledge if I was there for something, but I would stand out of respect for that sovereign nation whose protection I am under at the time. Most all of this teaching time happens in the individual units, packs and dens.

Now back to our real goal of the teaching time. How to properly "burn", let's not use that word, "RETIRE" a flag from service. In this case, at a District event with several Boy Scout and Cub scout units from 3-4 counties.

There is a lot of confusion over how, when, where, and all the details about retiring a flag from service. There are ceremonies written and shared. There are different ways to prepare the flags; quarter them, separate the colors and the field of stars, keep it whole but folded in a square. However it is accomplished it is to be done with dignity. Respect is key to properly retiring a flag from service.

Boy Scouts standing vigil, protecting the fire and flags. Sept 2017

At our district event we had a large amount of flags. The red stripes alone filled 3 garbage bags, as did the White stripes. The blue starry fields filled two bags worth. Something strange happens during this type of ceremony. As a brief history is given of the flag and description of how they were being retired the entire camp is silent.

The Boy Scouts started with the White stripes and then formed a circle around the fire so as to protect it and those participating. The cub scouts followed their lead.

Then we went through the Red stripes with leaders and adults. The cub scouts, these boys who were 10 minutes earlier yelling and laughing, and jostling each other around watched each adult submitted their portion to the flames. This is not a quickly done ceremony. It takes a while for this to happen. I know strange, right.

The blue starry fields are held to last. These were for our military, First Responders, and children of military personnel. The entire group of over 250 people stood. As the first of the blue went into the fire the camp saluted. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited for these flags one last time as they waved in the air as flames. Once the pledge was finished everyone remained standing. They were not asked to stand. They were not told to stand. They were not expected to stand. Everyone stood in silence as Old Glory shown one last time.

The Blue Starry Fields being retired by current and former military personnel. Sept 2017

Everyone left in silence after the last piece was added. The older boys scouts remained and kept vigil over the fire as it died to embers and then dust. The next morning the grommets were collected from the ashes and buried in the woods so no part of the flag could be desecrated or disgraced in any way.

The Flag is a symbol of the protected right to stand or kneel in its presence.
The Flag is a symbol of the protected right to be silent or scream at it.
The Flag is a symbol of the protected right to respect or disgrace it.

The Flag also means I have a responsibility to teach the next generation. To teach the rights and liberties we Americans hold so dearly. To protect people of other faiths and nationality. To allow others to express their beliefs, protests, or ask stupid questions. To also teach the right to make an informed decision while at the same time showing respect to everyone. It doesn't mean we have to help them or encourage them, but respect their right to do so.

All of this happens by teaching boys to burn, sorry, RETIRE, the flag.

6 Reasons I build my own Pinewood Derby Car with my kids

 I was asked one time why I build Pinewood Derby Cars. "Why not just focus on the kids and let them have the lime light? Make their cars incredible instead of spending too much time on your own." Here is some info on helping your little Henry Ford get started with something other than a black block of wood. 6 Steps to getting started

I thought about that question a lot. In fact I didn't start out making my own car. I spent all the time on my sons car. With him. Then one year I decided I wanted to build one too. Just to try it out. His car was coming along nice, he was getting older and could do more work on his own. Plus who wouldn't want a Rat Rod Ford Effie. (My son doesn't apparently.) So I set out to create a fun and unique truck. This is it.

53 Ford F100 Rat Rod Pinewood Derby Car 2012

I was pretty proud of it. To keep with the rat rod theme, I robbed the wheels off of one of my old pinewood derby cars. (They are reshaped and sanded which is illegal now days)

It has a flat walnut bed, 13 gauge finishing nail bed rails, & bullet gas tank. Custom Altoids tin grill, trimmed out with super fast fire flames. (This truck is as slow as the tractor)

This little endeavor had some surprising benefits. Here are a few of them.

1. My Kids see me working on the same type of project.

How often do kids want to feel like they are doing something grown up and not childish. Seeing me do the same project lets them know, "Hey, this isn't just kid's stuff." Also my excitement and attention to detail (cool details like over sized blowers coming out of the engine) helps them dream bigger too.

Daughter's butterfly car, my tractor, and son's hot rod being painted at same time.
They usually take turns on mine while painting their own.

You know how tedious sanding is? If you are sanding on your car while watching Phineas and Ferb, They are more likely to sand on their car at the same time. Have them check you car, let them find rough spots (Whoops, you accidentally missed those on purpose.)

2. I don't take over their project.

Every pack has those dads that brings in a $500 car and tries to pass it off as his little ADHD Carroll Shelby built it last night. I like to talk to kids about what THEY did to their car at check-in. It's pretty east to tell who did what. Sure kids need help, guidance, instruction, encouragement, and for us adults to do some of the detailed parts. But it should be mostly the kid's. As a kid gets older, the cars should look worse because we are doing less. (It could be we are spending so much time on our masterpiece.)

3. They learn by Explain, Demonstrate, Guide, Enable. (EDGE)

I will let them practice on scrap wood before letting them use the scroll saw to cut on their car. Yes, I let my wolf and bear use a scroll saw. I don't walk away and most of the time my hands are on theirs.
We talk about safety and glasses, and how to hold the wood. I let them cut stuff out for my car. It gives them more saw time and dad time.

I do the same thing with sanding. Go with the grain, and let them see how bad it looks going against the grain.

Painting takes time and sometimes when I see they are just slapping it on I will take a picture and make them sand it and paint it over. They usually do a much better job and compare the two. They are usually glad of it as well.

I can sit down with them when they are painting as well. They are working. I can help if needed. We have some fun conversations without me painting it for them. This might be the best part of the whole experience.

Old dirty, rusty tractor. It doesn't have wheels yet.
(It didn't matter. It was the slowest car at the race.)
Do you realize how nice it is when a kid does NOT have the slowest car there. I do now.
Every kid there had fun picking on me about beating my tractor.

They can see me putting "mud" or "rust" or repainting something, and they starting thinking beyond just finishing the car.

4. I enjoy making them.

I can't lie about that. I like wood working and carving. I enjoy teaching kids to do the same. I also like cars and painting, trying something new. I added so much wood to the tractor, getting it down to weight was almost impossible. It was a completely hollow shell. Challenge is a fun part of it. Next year I know even more to help the kids with.

5. I let them help me with my project. (And no, that is not sanding it for me.)

They will cut on it, drill, spray paint it when they are painting theirs. Sure it might have runs in it, but I'm not building show cars. I want them to brag about their sister's car or my car, just as much as their own car. It goes back to being helpful, being a part of something important. It makes them feel great to help me. 

Our family set of cars all lined up and ready to race.

6. They learn, that going the extra mile can be fun and rewarding.

When you do something different or challenging, and people ask, How did you do that? Everyone starts thinking differently about the Pinewood Derby. It's fun to talk about.

The Pink Tornado can tell you how to soak thin wood so it can be bent and clamped down to make butterfly wings that stick up and off of her car, because she did it.
The Pup can tell you about gluing lead weights in an angry bird to make it heavy, because he did it.
I can tell you a tractor looks really cool. It is the slowest car you can make, but I did it.  

Each year we learn something different and add it to our knowledge for next year.

Have fun.
Build a Pinewood Derby Car.
Let the kids rub it in when they beat you.
And they will be just as proud of your car as their car.

Come to think of it, these are the same 6 reasons I like my kids being in church with me.

More than a Backpacking weekend

So, I have to admit, right off the bat, this is a little weird for me.

I'm going to give you the background and history of what I am linking to.

We look good after hiking 10 miles.

Elijah and I have wanted to go backpacking for a long time. Katie has been wanting me to have "THE TALK" (dun, dun, duuuuun) with Elijah for a long time. So she picked up the Passport 2 Purity weekend kit produced by Family Life Today. It is Dennis Rainey's ministry similar to Focus on the Family.

I decided the hike and the P2P program would go good together. We would get away for a weekend, get to go back packing, get in the woods, just be the two of us. The hike was humid, the mountains steep, the views incredible, the food awful, the blisters hot, the water fresh and cold, the sleep was hard. All of the good stuff that goes into a great hiking trip. I loved it. Even the 5 mile detour we took on the second day. I loved every step of it.

Elijah, well, he might of thought it was tough. I haven't challenged myself this way in a long time, physically or relationally. I pushed myself and came out on the other end of the trail with jello legs and felt incredible.

But let me back up.

Eating breakfast and listening to P2P

We were doing the Passport 2 Purity program. It is a really good product. It is funny at times when it needed to be. It also gets series. It went into a good amount of depth and left a lot of unnecessary stuff out. From a Christian father's point of view, I was relieved and thankful for how it was made. Before we went, I sent a message to Family Life Today and asked them to pray for us as we were doing their program that weekend. They assured me people would be praying the entire time we were out and to let them know how it went.

A few days afterwards I did. I thanked them for their prayers and for providing a good quality, memorable weekend for us. They asked me a couple of questions, which I answered and that was it. Well, until a lady contacted us named Mary. She said they shared our story with their staff and everyone wanted to know more about it, because as far as they knew nobody else had done it this way. So a few questions turned into an embarrassing interview and that interview turned into an interview with Elijah, and all of that turned into an article written about our backpacking weekend. Which is right here.

"More Than A Backpacking Weekend" on Family Life Today "The Family Room" ezine

Now it says it's written by me, but it was written by Mary based on our interview. (I wrote what you are reading now, she wrote that, there is a big difference in the quality and refinement.) It also includes a blurb about how the program is structured. Which I am totally fine with.

What Eastern Kentucky Looks like from Pine Mountain on a beautiful June day. 

Now to the dads and moms out there.

If you are unsure about how to have "THE TALK" (dun, dun, duuuuun) this is the way to do it. It is a really relaxing and safe way to have the talk (dun dun duuuuun). It gives a guideline of how to relate your thoughts and experiences within it. It has suggestions (which I kinda changed to match us and hiking). It has a whole parent pre-weekend guide and cd/mp3s to listen to. It has books so you can stay on topic. It has music and stories, and interviews, and all the stuff that makes a good quality resource. It has separate guy/ girl sessions. AND it isn't full of any "Christian Cheese", over spiritualization, disgusting pictures, or other things that have made tools like this terrible. Don't try to be a tight wad and just get the student journal. Buy the whole P2P Getaway Kit. It's worth it. You will be glad you did. You will have more fun and they will remember it better.

If you have questions, contact me. I would love to encourage you in this little adventure, however you choose to do it.

Until then, try to stay on the right trail. Climbing back up is a whole lot of unnecessary work.

Still trying to be worked into something useful,
Mitch

So you think God is calling you to Youth Ministry?

My first piece of advice is to go back to God and double check. Make sure He has thought this through. HahaHa!!! No really.

Youth ministry is one of the most rewarding ministries and the most heart-breaking. It is not for the faint of heart or weak stomached. I think you know this, but it is not just fun and games. It is life and death. You are answering a very serious calling and will require you to really think about what you believe and if it matches with scripture.

Students are leaving the church in droves because of reasons of "it's boring" to "not relevant or practical". (https://answersingenesis.org/christianity/church/already-gone/) So to be a youth minister you be aware of this simple, discouraging occurrence. Church leadership may look to you to be the single solution to this phenomenon. Parents may claim it is your lack of attention to their child as the reason for their kid not wanting to attend. Pastors will tell you it is activities and fun outing that keep students involved. Others will say your group is too "clickish", and to fix it. All of these may be true in some simple form, but are by no means absolutes.

Kids do NOT need a Jesus Channel entertainer. They do need to know the Church, The Bible, you, the Pastor, Jesus are really all that you say they are, and will be there no matter what. You will pour your life into kids and they will just walk away one day. Then other kids you would not have thought will turn around and be wanting to be youth ministers themselves.

Another warning is the Bible says we should not be quick to want to be teachers because we will be judged tougher (James 3). I know you know that, but you have to remember, this warning is for you now as well, not just the preacher.

I still have a lot to learn about youth ministry. Here are 10 really big ideas, that I have learned, that I believe make a big difference. 

BTW. I am very proud of you for allowing God to sanctify you this way and following his leading.

1st. Your job is to point people, kids, families to Jesus. That is your number one priority. Ministry has to be vertical. Kids need to look up to see where their help comes from. I really believe the central theme of all of scripture is "giving Glory to God". That is done through Jesus and Jesus alone. ITS ALL ABOUT JESUS. I wish someone would have reinforced this 15 years ago. I know and knew that, but it wasn't always number 1 on my list. It's easy to get caught up activities, surviving, being there, that we forget that at times. If you try to do other things beside teach Christ, you will burn out and run out. Also Kids will not get what they really need; Christ in them to will and to act according to His purpose, for His Glory.

2. Support their parents. Encourage them to follow their parents. Repeat what their parents say. Be very careful in saying a parent is wrong or that you think it should be different. Your age and experience doesn't allow for it. Even with a daughter out of high school, I don't talk against parents or undermine them.This is tough when you see a dad blatantly against the church or a mom putting a daughter down. You have to keep in mind we have to Honor our father and mother. It is the first command with a promise.

3. This goes along with 2. See yourself as a "Family minister" not just youth. Your kids have to live in the home and the best change comes when the environment changes and has support. Also Jesus said he is the dad of this family we call church, so family is the core of the church. You are working to support the core. You can not teach youth and kids apart from their family life. Support it and think about the whole family as you teach, plan activities, costs, theology, etc.

4. Love your youth and kids as Jesus loves you. As messed up and stinky as the boys are, love them. As spiteful as the girls are, love them. Tell them you love them. Give them hugs and tell them you are proud of them for small things. In short, always be encouraging. Search for that little glimmer of something amazing and valuable in your kids, and really bring that out for everyone to see. Then God can show off and he gets the glory.

5. Make the gospel fun. You can have Jesus as the focus and center and it be a blast. It should be a sin to bore a kid with the gospel, or adults for that matter. (I can't remember who said that, but it's true.)

6. Keep it simple, but don't dumb down the Bible. Kids have things dumbed down for them all the time and they realize it. Kids need to be challenged by scripture. The apostles said several times, "This is a hard teaching". If we have to think, we will grow.

7. Get your hands dirty. Jesus was an active teacher and a doer. James said if we have faith we need to prove it. Jesus said if you abide in me you will bear fruit. So find simple projects in the community. Collect stuff for a Christmas food give-away. repair wheelchair ramps or help old people plant veggies in the flower beds. Get dirty. Make their faith seen. Jesus got down in the dirt with people. Jesus in John 15:8 people will see our good works and glorify our father in heaven. Having the kids work with a vertical mindset, point people vertical.

8. Find a unique way to involve kids in worship. This can be tough for some churches. But something like a stick/ dowel rod ministry, or puppets to do for younger kids or vbs. Maybe art to music if you have a really creative kid. something more than handing out bulletins or taking up offering. Something that takes practice. Creative. Takes them out of their comfort zone.

9. Get other adults involved as helpers. If you aren't artsy, I bet there is a lady in the church that is, get her to lead that part and you be a part of it. If you don't know construction, get a dad who can teach the youth how to fix porch rails. Find a little old couple to teach the youth how to plant veggies for people and get the stuff together. God gives us the body to meet all the needs of the church, so use it. It will give more support from the church, which will make everyone more receptive to more people and ministry opportunities.

10. . . could be anything. See what God is doing already and jump on. You don't have to come with everything yourself. But as a warning, every good idea is not for you or your group. Think it through, listen to older wiser believers, and pray you are following God's direction.

  

You can meet anywhere you can move chairs out of the way.
You can teach anything as long as the Bible is open and the primary source.
You can play anything as long as nobody looses an arm or face.
You can go just about anywhere and have a good time together.
But have I mentioned Jesus has to be first. If I didn't keep that in mind. I think you have that as your first thought, but it is easy to get distracted from that fact later on. 

You think God is calling you to be a youth minister? 

Congratulations. Enjoy it. 

Have fun with Jesus.

Point youth vertical.