New Years Goals

Hello friends!

If you still read this blog, you get a gold star! 2010 wasn't the best year in terms of blogging. Personally, I'm ok with this, because I was so busy with other amazing things in terms of ministry and personal life that I didn't really have time to sit down and blog! But starting today, I'd like to get back in the saddle and write a bunch more.

You could call it a new years resolution, but to be honest I'm not such a big fan of that particular tradition. For one think, I think it's something like 80% of everybody who makes a new years resolution will loose it by the 21st. Not a very encouraging number!

Instead this year, I have a couple of goals that I'd like to accomplish. I'm trying to use them as a marker of success, something tangible that I can actually see and feel good about. And each of these goals is something that the blog will have something to do with, so hopefully it will encourage more writing! So, in no particular order, the goals of 2011!

• Complete the MS 150. I've been getting into bike riding on and off for the last year. A couple of months ago at a dinner, I was talking about how much I was enjoying it, and my friend Travis asked me if I'd like to bike the MS 150 with him. It's a 150 mile ride to raise money and awareness for folks with Multiple Sclerosis. At first, I honestly kind of laughed it off. 150 is a large number of miles. But then I realized that it was something I needed to do. And so with the arrival of an indoor trainer and a fairly strong resolve, I'm in the process of training for the 150 in June. This goal has really impacted a great deal of my daily life. I'm working out 6 days a week, shifting between really hard rides and recovery rides. I'm working on eating better, including not going out to a fast food restaurant this whole month (so far so good on that one!) and eating more fruits and veggies. And even in the winter, I'm taking at least one outdoor ride for 20+ miles. I have a lot of friends helping me out with this, and it's been a great feeling to get back in shape! Soon, I'll have some information as to how you can support me both with encouragement and financially, but at the moment I'm really enjoying the ride!
  
• Write more. At Westminster, we recently picked up a printing press. Pastor Jim joked that we were on the cutting edge of the late 16th century, but still, this thing is going to be cool. Ed and I are working on a bible study/devotional for the season of lent, and I'm also kicking around an idea about a book for how to evangelize as a Presbyterian (we are soooooo horrible at that!). Also, we're working on a new blog for college students, where I will be doing a lion's share of the writing. I really enjoy writing and getting things out on paper, but for the last couple of months I just haven't been in it. It's kind of wacky. This year, most tangibly, I'd like to have more blog posts than I did in 2010. When I'm blogging, I tend to write more in other areas, so we'll start with that!
  
• One on One Time with Students. One of my favorite parts of being a youth pastor is spending quality time one on one with students. Unfortunately, a lot of times I make my schedule in such a way that I don't have time to take kids out or get to hang out with them. I'd like to try to change that this year, by committing to the goal of hanging out with a student one on one at least once a week. By the way, if you're a student and you're reading this, give me a call and we'll get together!
  

Some of those goals are pretty lofty, but I think they're all achievable. What are your goals for the new year?

Godspeed,

Jason

Laurelville for the rest of us part two: Toying with Emotions

Hello again friends!

I have done enough three day evangelism inspired retreats to know how things are going to go down in terms of teachings. On Friday night, as emotions and caffeine are still riding high, tell a funny story or seven, get the kids into the idea of being on a retreat, and maybe name drop Jesus once or twice. Saturday morning, offer the sin talk. This can feel slightly sketchy, as usually the day time activities on Saturday are dangerous enough that someone could actually die, and the last thing they would ever hear is that there's a sin problem. This of course has never happened, but it's just enough to make me nervous. Saturday night, you give the good news of the gospel. Typically here, you want to over-emphasize the pain and the torment and the tribulation that Jesus went through, so that the kids will be good and emotional. If they're crying, you're winning. Then you let them loose for 20 minutes of silence to make their peace with God. Sunday, you wrap things up with more jokes and a talk about how to keep living as a Christian in the world you're headed back to.

It's a formula, and I throughly dislike formulas.

Which is why it was so refreshing to hear from our speaker Kent this weekend! His teaching style was a little bit different than what I was used to on these kind of retreats, and in a very good way. He stuck to the formula listed above, but he tweaked it enough and in such a good way that it really hit home with me, as well as the kids. So if Kent doesn't mind some positive critique (and who does?) I offer up three things that Kent did this weekend that made me appreciate what was being said:

1. Be up front. Sometimes speakers in this situation will do what John Acuff affectionately refers to as the "Jesus Juke." One moment you're talking about monkeys at the zoo flinging poo at you (true story, I heard that one once) and the next you're equating it to the four spiritual laws. I think kids any more just want us to be honest with them up front about what we're speaking about, and that's exactly what Kent did this weekend. No bait and switch, no hiding meanings in cute stories. Here's what I'm going to talk to you about today. The kids knew exactly where he was going, and I think it made it a little easier for them to get there with him.
   
2. Let the good news sound like good news. Kent made Saturday night's talk about the gospel and Jesus' sacrifice on the cross sound like, well, good news. It wasn't heavy. It wasn't depressing. There wasn't an orchestra playing in the background to make kids feel a certain way. Again, in a straight forward kind of way, Kent just showed us the person of Jesus. Rather than present the scandal of the cross and elicit a guilt response, Kent presented the scandal of the cross (let's face it, it will always be a scandal) as Jesus' biggest act of love, and invited people to celebrate in that. The change was subtle, but dang did it make a big difference, at least in this youth leader's eyes
   
3. Prepare them for a healthy response. The Sunday morning talk always feels a bit to me like "Now you be a good boy or girl, or else Jesus is gonna zap you!" This was once again not the case for Kent. In fact, his goal was to get kids plugged into their local youth groups so that the celebration of Jesus' grace could continue well beyond the weekend itself. I didn't have any non-youth group kids with me this weekend, they were all pretty well established regulars. But if I had, this talk would have meant a lot to me. It would have opened the door to a discussion about what Church is really all about, and how to best include yourself in that if you made a decision to follow Christ that weekend.
   

So if you're reading Kent, well done! To the rest of us, my question would be what impact does the subtle shift in tone of our teaching (or just straight up living) have on our efforts to share the gospel with others?

Comments encouraged!

Godspeed,

Jason

Laurelville for the rest of us part one: retreat.

Hello friends!

I must once again apologize for the lack of regular posting on the blog. I had meant to post a bit from the National Youth Workers Convention, but man I was so into everything that was happening I just didn't have time to pull out my laptop and write. A quick recap of that will come later I think. I have lots of notes to look back over.

This weekend, I took a group of 11 students to Laurelville Camp for a weekend retreat. It was an amazing weekend, with great times of building relationships and worship and games and all kinds of fun things. But while this was a trip meant for the kids, as I was wandering around and taking it all in I realized that there were any number of lessons that those of who who hesitantly apply the label "adult" to ourselves could learn. So we're going to work through a series of these things in the next couple of days, so keep tuning in to see where we're headed.

As is the tradition for any Veritas youth retreat, we began the weekend by taking away the devices that our students hold most dear. Cell Phones, iPods, Nintendos, basically anything that plugs into a wall. This ritual is always remarkable to me, because when it's happening, as I'm snatching the precious device from their hands, I always get resistance. Veterans know this is coming, but they still put up a fight. Rookies look at me as though I have three heads. "My cell phone?" they ask me. "How will I keep in touch with the world back home?"

That's the point, isn't it?

A retreat is exactly what it sounds like. Get away, back up, fall back, retreat. For 36 (what I would call) glorious hours, we are cut off from the world. No one will hear from us, and we won't hear from anyone else.

I've been at Westminster for four years now, and I've been doing youth ministry for about 8 at this point. Do you know that in all the times I've taken away the cell phones, nothing earth shattering has ever happened back home that required a student's attention? If it did, I always keep my phone on me so that parents can get in touch. But it's never come to pass that someone back home desperately needed to be in touch with the students. Funny how that works, right?

We got into a great discussion the one night as a group about how the concept of a retreat allows us to leave behind the very things that get in the way of our relationship with Christ. In fact, with the distractions set aside, it became clear for the students what the distractions actually are. It was like spraying bright orange paint on a hunter in camouflage.

And when I handed the phones back...almost no one used them on the way home.

So the question comes to us: What would you like to retreat from? You could argue that there was no way you could retreat from your cell phone (or your job, or school, or worry, or fear...), but I bet you could. I bet you could turn off the computer for a couple of hours and put your focus entirely on Christ and his work in your life. I won't deny that it will require an obscene amount of courage, but I believe it can be done.

Godspeed,

Jason

NYWC #0: Anticipation

Hello friends!

Every year, Christmas comes in November for me. The one thing I look forward to more than most things every year is a chance to take a trip to the host city of choice, relax with some fellow youth workers, all the while digging and learning how to master our craft a little bit better.

As I mentioned last year, I had some concerns. I think most of those are gone, and have been replaced by concerns of sharing a bus with 4 smelly youth leaders for 10 hours on a trip to Nashville. But today, I want to share a little bit about what I'm looking forward to at the Youth Workers Convention this year:

• Worshiping Crowder. Jars of Clay. Brandon Heath. Starfield. How can you not get excited about letting these folks lead you in worship.
  
• Fellowship Each year we go to the convention, there's time to hang out with friends from here in the 'Burgh as well as meet some new friends. (Small moment of regret: Ed has to stay behind because of classes. Truly, my heart breaks for this.)
  
• Food We eat like pigs wherever we are.
  
• Rest Every year, without fail, I will choose a block of seminars to skip and take a nap in a hotel room. I long for this right now. I could use a rest.
  
• Tic Long I heard him give a message on leadership a couple of years ago, and I would love to hear him give a similar message again after all he's been through.
  
• Marko Same deal as Tic. These guys have a tremendous amount to teach us.
  
• Coffee As if I needed an excuse, coffee is always in over-abundance at the convention. The fact that we're driving down instead of flying will only increase my final input.
  
• Time with Sarah This year, Sarah is making the trip with us. This is sheer joy.
  
• Breakout Sessions I took a quick glance at the schedule, and found at least 2-3 sessions I want to be at in each block. If only I could find a way to split myself into three different people.
  
• Blogging I always enjoy blogging through my thoughts at the convention every year. Last year I worked through the theme of how 6 years into my youth ministry career things were essentially the same, but totally different. Who knows what I'll come up with this year!
  

Are you coming to the convention this weekend? What are you looking forward to?

Godspeed,

Jason

Prayer as a conversation

Good morning friends!

This morning, it was really affirmed for me that one of my favorite parts of my job is to meet with people one on one and have a conversation with them. I love to preach, I love to lead worship, and of course I love dodgeball. But in truth, I don't love any of those as much as I love getting to know a person through a conversation over a cup of coffee.

After a meeting this morning with a new friend, I started to think about how our prayer life is really meant to be like this. I don't know if God is a fan of Starbucks or not, but I think our prayer life should more mirror the kinds of conversations we have with our friends than it does a formal speech or presentation. And so, as I'm working on a new devotional for students and for folks at the Bridge, I thought I'd share some thoughts and tips on how to view prayer as a conversation.

1. Let God do some speaking.

I've said on this blog about a few thousand times that we Americans are terrible at sitting still, being quiet, and listening for the voice of God. Some times we even complain that we feel distant from God, that he's not around to answer our prayers. The truth is, we so frequently don't give God any room in our prayers to talk to us.

One of the ways God speaks most clearly to his people is through his word. The Bible is in fact the inspired (literally: God breathed) word of God, so naturally it has some of God's very words for us today! The Bible is an incredibly effective prayer tool among other things, so spend some time in the scriptures to see what God might have to say to you.

2. Honesty is the best policy.

Some times I know in my own journey I hold back from God. I feel like I'll be struck with lightning if I complain about the tiny things that are happening in my life. God surely has bigger and better things to deal with, right?

I don't know that there's anything more important to God than getting to know the heart of his people. If you're struggling with something, make sure you take it to God. If you are feeling angry with God, know that he's a big God and he can handle it. Surprisingly few people have ever actually been struck by lightning by God, so don't worry about that. If we affirm and believe that God is a loving and caring God, then we should know that he has our best interest in mind, and wants to get to the heart of what we're experiencing.

3. 21 days to a habit.

I have had friends who have told me that they want to keep in touch with me, that they really desire to be close. But then I don't hear from them for years on end, and so I am forced to doubt their desire. If they wanted to be in touch, they would be in touch.

The same thing goes with God. If we're serious about being with God, if we're serious about being closer to him, we should make a habit of going to him in prayer. Pick a time of day that works for you, and stick to it. There are tons of prayer books and guides out there if you need some help.

Are there any other tips that I left out? Anything that you have found helpful in your prayer life? Please feel free to share in the comments!

Godspeed,

Jason


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Location:University Dr A,Pittsburgh,United States

To our veterans

Hello friends!

I don't like war. I think more often than not, the wars we fight these days are not very well thought out. More often than not, I think at there are any number of ways we could solve our problems that didn't include tanks.

However...

I don't want anyone to be confused. When it comes to the men and women who have LITERALLY said to their nation "I lay my life down for you", I have nothing but the deepest respect. Their sacrifice is incredible. And today we say thank you.

Really, it's kind of ridiculous to think about the kind of freedoms we have been given by their commitment to us. Just a few days ago, I dressed up as a banana and danced on the side of the road all in the name of bringing kids to Jesus Christ. While it might take you years to figure out how I concocted those ideas, no one would question my freedom to do it.

So if you have served this nation in uniform, please know that my thanks and my prayers are with you. I know its probably not all that easy to come home. If you haven't served in uniform, I encourage you to say thank you. I know I wrote this post a little bit late in the day, but I bet you can still say thank you the day after veterans day. It'll still count!

Godspeed,

Jason


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Location:Highview Dr,Upper St Clair,United States

Technological Sabbath

Hey friends,

Last Sunday I went down to the Open Door in Highland Park. It's so very rare to have a time of worship where I'm not in charge of something, and so I've been meaning to make a habit out of going to the Open Door to just worship!

BJ gave a sermon about taking a Sabbath that was really quite good. Truth be told, taking a Sabbath is something I'm fairly good at. Mondays are sacred days. There is to be no meeting. There is to be no office visits. I think three times in the four years I've been at Westminster I've come into the office on Monday to pick something up, but I try to do so under cover of darkness where no one can see me or ask me a question or anything. Literally, Monday's are sacred for me. So I was going into this sermon as though it were all review.

Not so! BJ encouraged those of us who are already taking a Sabbath to take it a step further. One of his specific suggestions struck me right between the eyes: What if you took a technology Sabbath?

I'm not sure if you can comprehend the difficulty that was posed to me in that suggestion. Ever since I got my iPhone and I could e-mail and Tweet and Facebook and even blog from anywhere I darn well felt like it, I was hooked. Addiction was hard and heavy. So, I make a vow to turn my e-mail accounts off, to not check Twitter or Facebook, and to only use my laptop to work on making music (more on this aspect of a Sabbath later...).

I survived!

Actually, it was quite pleasant. There were no angry e-mails waiting for me when I got to work this morning complaining about my sluggish response time. The J-Blog didn't fall apart without a Monday post (which, honestly, when was the last time I posted on a Monday anyway...). I didn't have hoards of angry tweets waiting for me. Truth be told, almost no one noticed I was gone.

Moreover, the lack of attention paid to technological vices freed up some time to do what I truly love to do on a Sabbath day. Ed and I went hunting in the morning. I spent the late morning/early afternoon song writing and recording a couple of things for a project I'm working on. I read this goofy thing composed of many pages bound together, I think it was called a book. I spent time with Sarah. What I thought would be a test of my endurance actually turned out to enrich my Sabbath experience.

Are you taking a Sabbath? If you are, could you take it a step further and take a rest from something distracting in your day?

Godspeed,

J