Well, we had a great time during Mid-Summer Mania. On Wednesday night, during Wacky Water Wars, Andrew walked away with the guys record in the slip ‘n slide and and Katy did as well for the girls. On Thursday, while at Metro Beach Park during DU, Bri turned a quintuple play during three ball “kick ball”. On Friday, at the Tigers game, Mercedes learned that hitting a home run in real life is harder than hitting one while playing on the Wii. We had a great time and I hope that you all not only had a great time but were also challenged in your walked with the Lord because of the reality of what He did for you on the cross.
Update: Here is a link to pics from Friday night at the Tigers Game.
I am so grateful to those who have given their lives to attain and protect my freedom and to those who are currently in harms way to do the same. Thank you.
I also just posted several more video clips from our week at Northland Camp, including the girl’s Tug ‘O War (Susan, you can thank me later for putting this one up). You can find them here.
The Friday night of Mid-Summer Mania we are going to a Tigers game. Starting tomorrow night there will be a sign-up list in the Teen Room. Make sure you sign up if you are planning on going. The cost is $15.
Hey, there are several video clips from camp that are now up under the Video Clips tab. I’ll probably put more up soon and as soon as I get done with fixing a few things from the video I put together, I will post it on the main page. Enjoy!
Camp is under a month away. Each of you that are going to camp will get a letter tonight giving you all the important details, but if you want to download it you can click on the picture below to get the letter. Please remember to fill out the permission slip on the second page…you must have that completely filled out to get on the van when we leave!
I just read a small book titled Worldliness: Resisting the Seduction of a Fallen World. You can buy it here for only $10.39. Not very long ago I shared some thoughts on from the chapter “God, My Heart and Media” (here, here and here). The next chapter is titled “God, My Heart, and Music” and while I disagree with the author more in this chapter than any other part of the book, he still has several challenging practical thoughts when it comes to our music choices.
The question is this, how can we use music for God’s glory? After all, as he writes, “Music is meant to be a means of bringing glory to God.” Then he shares several specific steps we can take as we pursue glorifying God with our music. Here are a few of them:
Specific Steps
Delete or throw away music you’ll listen to only if you backslide…it’s wise to get rid of what could hinder our growth in Christ
Listen to music with others. Part of the joy music communicates comes from sharing it.
Evaluate your current intake of music. Areas to consider include how much music you listen to, what types, in what situations and times of day, and for how long.
Go on a music fast.Maybe you can’t imagine giving up your music far a month, a week, or even a day. But there are few more effective ways to measure the place music holds on your life, thinking and behavior.
Listen to old music.Music that stands the test of time is worth giving our attention to. We’re shortsighted, proud, and poorer if we never appreciate the music God has given throughout history.
Intentionally thank God every time you enjoy music. Music is a gift from God. But God never intends his gifts to replace Him as the object of our desire and delight. Music, like all of God’s gifts, is meant to draw our hearts and attention to His glory, His power and His love.
Hey, don’t forget about the camp work day this Saturday. We’ll get started at 9:00am and go until the jobs get done. Anyone needing help for camp should plan to be there. If you plan on coming, make sure to sign up on Wednesday night. See you then.
That is what I was asked a few weeks ago concerning parents going through a teenager’s stuff, like his room, computer, email, iPod, facebook, phone, etc. So, should parents be able to do that?
My answer in short is YES!
I know that’s not the answer that you might want to hear, but I think it’s the right one. Here are a few thoughts to consider.
Your parents are your authority. You live in their house. They are in charge, and not you. Simply put, that’s the way God made things. He has given them the opportunity and responsibility of raising you and if they believe they need to go through something of yours, they can.
Accountability to your parents is a good thing.We all need accountability. You can read more about that in this post from a few days ago. Personally, my wife knows every password to all of my stuff and she can check any of it at any time. This does make it hard to surprise her with something and ensure she doesn’t know it’s coming, but other than that, it is a great accountability.
The stuff isn’t yours anyway…it’s Gods. I Corinthians 4:2 tells us that we are stewards, we are people that have been given things to take care of. All that we have is from the gracious hand of God, so when your parents go through your stuff, they’re not really checking out your stuff, they’re checking out God’s stuff that He has entrusted you with.
One objection I heard raised was this, “but if they go through my stuff, it shows that they don’t trust me.” To that I simply say that I understand what you are saying and want to agree, but then I look at my own heart and I read what the Bible says about all our hearts, that they are deceitful and desperately wicked. You say, when they look through my stuff that shows that my parents don’t trust me and I say, to some degree yes…and you shouldn’t trust you either.
Having said all this, I am not advocating that parents should always look through their teens stuff, but simply that they have the right and responsibility to do so from time to time.
Well, we had a great time during Mid-Summer Mania. On Wednesday night, during Wacky Water Wars, Andrew walked away with the guys record in the slip ‘n slide and and Katy did as well for the girls. On Thursday, while at Metro Beach Park during DU, Bri turned a quintuple play during three ball “kick ball”. On Friday, at the Tigers game, Mercedes learned that hitting a home run in real life is harder than hitting one while playing on the Wii. We had a great time and I hope that you all not only had a great time but were also challenged in your walked with the Lord because of the reality of what He did for you on the cross.
Posted by Pastor Joel 
Posted by Pastor Joel 
Posted by Pastor Joel 
I just read a small book titled Worldliness: Resisting the Seduction of a Fallen World. You can buy it 
Hey, don’t forget about the camp work day this Saturday. We’ll get started at 9:00am and go until the jobs get done. Anyone needing help for camp should plan to be there. If you plan on coming, make sure to sign up on Wednesday night. See you then.
That is what I was asked a few weeks ago concerning parents going through a teenager’s stuff, like his room, computer, email, iPod, facebook, phone, etc. So, should parents be able to do that?
