moving on

Technology is a strange thing. You love it. But a year from now... you'll hate it cause the latest and greatest has arrived.

Sometimes it's worth upgrading.  Other times... it's best to keep what's working now.  After all... upgrading doesn't mean something stopped working... it's just that something else is better.

Time to upgrade.

Thanks Blogger.

elevatejh.tumblr.com

The Pursuit of Happiness - A Guest Post

The Pursuit of Happiness by Chris Choe (7th Grade, 9:30AM service)

Happiness is the thing almost everyone chases after, or not.

Luke 21:1-4
As he looked up, Jesus saw the rich putting their gift into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. "I tell you the truth," he said "this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on."

The Mexico Mission Team went to Mexico a few days ago and we saw little Mexican kids who lived on almost nothing. Was happiness their goal? Not at all. They were happy already, but why are we yet still whining about the things we don't have? Think about what they don't have compared to us. Almost nothing. I thought about it and questioned, is happiness just another obstacle to keep us from God? 100% No. Happiness is a gift from God. So we should be smiling and become happy now. It is a gift that we should respect a little more than caring about what we do not have. God has told me things through my sight and trust me, seeing things is a lot different than hearing about them.

Give cause it's not yours.

My dad is the richest dad in the universe.

A Christian can say that.  How cool is that?

You are not poor.  You are rich.  You live in the US.  You live in Southern California.  You live in LA.

But forget all that... your Father in Heaven... he owns the universe.  And he will take care of you if you honor him.

Honor him with your money.  Honor him with your attitude.  Honor him with your heart, body, mind, and soul.

That has been the whole point of the "RED Letters from Jesus" series.  Jesus said some crazy things in the Bible... but more than anything, he asks us to do as he commands, and there will be a reward.  Honor Jesus... Honor Father God, and he will take care of you.

That's reassuring. That's life changing.

That's the Bible.

-P. Kev

LOST

I'm a huge LOST fan.  I'm not even going to pretend like I'm not geeking out about the series finale (Sunday, May 23rd, 9:00pm - 11:30pm) or the simple fact that ABC is devoting almost the entire weekend program to one show.  Seriously... here's ABC's LOST schedule for this weekend:

Saturday May 22nd
8PM - 10PM - LOST Pilot (The two hour First Episode that started it all!)
Sunday May 23rd
7PM - 9PM - LOST Recap of the entire series
9PM - 11:30PM - LOST the LAST EPISODE!
11:30PM - 12:30PM - Jimmy Kimmel Live, a tribute to LOST. (And quite possibly the last time that the producers ever discuss LOST! If we don't get answers by 12:30... we may never get the answers we want!)

Crazy, right? Yes. I am a fan. And clearly... I want you to be a fan too.  But why?  Cause LOST is an awesome, life changing show about some weird, mystical, magnetic island?  Cause LOST is a GREAT show with GREAT characters and GREAT writing insights?  Maybe.  But I think more than that, I want you to be a fan so I can talk to you about it.  So we can experience it together.  So that there's something that we share together.

In fact... that's how it is with all good things in life, isn't it?  That when we run into something awesome, or we hear/see/taste/feel something amazing... we want to share it with the people we care about.  If you eat something amazing, you offer a bite to someone else so they could share your excitement and enthusiasm for it.  Or when you watch a movie, you bring people with you to share that experience.

But what about Jesus?

Isn't Jesus magnificent? Perhaps even more so than a TV show? Than any person you know? Than even life itself?  Don't we sing worship songs at church that talk about how much Jesus means to us?

So how come we don't talk about it him? Why are we ashamed to admit it? Why are we so inclined to hide what we do every Sunday morning?  Why shy away from what we're doing on Wednesday nights?

Maybe Jesus doesn't mean as much to us as we say he does.

But can I tell you an incredible secret?

Jesus loves you more than you can imagine.  Even if you never say a word about him... he loves you.  Even if you HATE him... he loves you.

Romans 8:38 - 39
For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Not even your lack of love for Jesus can separate you from his love.

And THAT... is worth talking about.

-P. Kev

Do Not Worry - A student blog!

WHAT WHAT?! ANOTHER GUEST BLOG?

THIS TIME FROM A STUDENT?

Yes, ladies and gentlemen... from a student!  I'm excited to share our very first blogpost from a student.  Hopefully this will be the start of many more to come!



"Do Not Worry" by Alice Choi (6th Grade, 9:30AM service)
Matthew 6: 25-34
"Therefore i tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? ...
And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet i tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your Heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

Jesus is soo right.
Why are we worrying all day and night about what we should wear, eat, or drink the next day?
What we CAN eat, drink, and wear are all gifts from God.
Shouldn't we be spending more time with God, rather than worrying about tomorrow?

In this passage, Jesus is saying that our Heavenly Father already know that you need them. He is asking us to not worry, but to seek his kingdom and his righteousness.
"Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself."

-Alice Choi (6th Grade)

Are you really?

Does eating kimchee make you Korean?
Does eating at a Korean restaurant make you Korean?
Does eating at a Korean person's house make you Korean?
Does syling your hair a certain way make you Korean?
How about what you wear?
What about speaking the language?
The car you drive?
The friends you have?
The things you talk about?
Your grades at school?

None of those things unfortunately.  You're born Korean... or you're not.

What about being a Christian?

Does reading the Bible make you a Christian?
Going to church once a week?
Singing a praise song?
Not singing a praise song?
Pretending to listen to a sermon?
Participating in small group?
Not participating in a small group?
Praying for your meals?

None of those things unfortunately.  You're born again... or you're not.

Are you a born again Christian? Or not?

-P. Kev

DWELL

Here's a treat for everyone! A guest post from Connie Su teacher!

“Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.”
– Philippians 4:8

This is good advice.

I mean, sometimes, bad things happen and we come to dwell on the negative.  Sometimes I feel completely misunderstood and betrayed by my friends, I get all disappointed in myself for not doing as well as I’d like to academically, or I read something really stupid online and get all hot and bothered about it.  And I mean, not to say that feeling these things is unjustified (depending on the circumstance)… But really, dwelling on the negative only makes me bitter and not so nice to be around.  It’s actually embarrassing how ugly it gets. 

It’s so different when my thoughts are on the good.  And it’s not even just thinking about “good things.”  I can dwell all day about the goodness of myself and of this world – the good things that happen to me me me, and the goods things that I I I have done, the happy things of the world we live in…but you know, I’m forced to recognize everyday that the only thing in this world that’s really good – is God.

When I’m dwelling on the REAL positives – on how good God is in my life, how good God is PERIOD for just being Himself – my heart is changed and I am transformed.  Crazy awesome.

And you know, this is actually more than just good advice.  The verse in Philippians says to DWELL. It doesn’t say that you should dwell, or that it would be nice if you could dwell. It simply and clearly commands you to dwell on such things. 

So, you need to do it.  Not you should do it.  But you MUST dwell on what is true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, of good repute, excellent and worthy of praise.

Let’s take God’s word and really put it into practice.  And this too is a command. (Philippians 4:9)  The Bible promises that the God of peace will be with you.  In fact, check out verse 7: “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”  How cool is that?  Our God is so good. DWELL my little friends. Let’s dwell.

Happy dwelling!

-Con.

Obey your Parents

Ugh. So hard.  So difficult.

But the truth is... everything that's truly worth it in life... is attained through hard work.  So yeah, it's gonna be difficult and it's gonna hurt.  But I guarantee it's worth it.  God himself guarantees it.

Don't be dumb. Don't take the easy road.

Obey and be rewarded by God.

Exodus 20:12 - Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you.

-P. Kev

FML

Romans 12:2 - Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will.


FML. DGAF. I hear this crap all the time. There was a period of my life... where this junk was a part of my vocabulary as well.  I'm trying my best to not say this anymore.  Why?

Cause I have more to live for than what this world is telling me I need to live for.  Watch TV for an hour, and you will know what the world is telling me I need to live for.  I need to drink this, I need to buy that, I need to go here and experience that.

But open the Bible for once...and you'll see that NONE of those things are important.  God says to pursue him with everything, and to love your neighbors as yourself.  That's the things that most dear to the heart of God.

And FML and DGAF aren't the attitudes that are going to help us do that.  Let's face it. You're American.  That automatically means that 90% of the rest of the world is envious of YOU.  Most likely, you're in the richest 95% of the world.  And yet... you can still say that?  You don't think that offends God?

I do.

And so I'm going to stop.  I'm going to stop pretending like my life is crappy.  I'm going to stop pretending that God owes me more "stuff".  Rather, I'm going to live like the gospel is REAL.  I'm gonna live like the Bible is TRUTH.

And instead of websites like FML... I'll read websites like this and be inspired.

http://www.givesmehope.com

-P. Kev

Wisdom (teeth)

Seems like everyone is losing their wisdom.

Teeth I mean.

What are wisdom teeth?  Here's the official definition: Wisdom teeth are the third and final set of molars that most people get in their late teens or early twenties.

I've pulled out 2 of them myself.

So if you had to pull out any wisdom teeth lately... be it because of braces or some other reason, I hope you're all doing alright.

I had a thought today though. Sometimes... our wisdom teeth need to go.  It may be painful and it may hurt for awhile... but sometimes they need to go.  They grow up with you... and they're usually the last physical representation of your youth.  When your wisdom teeth are grown out, it's kind of like your body's way of saying "Welcome to adulthood."  But many of us will live our lifetimes without getting rid of our wisdom teeth.  We gives excuses: it's too painful. It's too expensive.  It's not really necessary.  I'll take them out when it hurts...

And in a way, pulling out wisdom teeth is like evaluating the friends and relationships that we have in our life.  I mean really think about the people that surround ourselves with.  The people we trust.  The people we've grown up with.  They're our best friends... our shoulders to cry on... our army when we need it.  But deep down inside... we know that some of these relationships and friendships aren't good for us.  But we make excuses to stay their friend - It's too painful not to be their friend anymore.  I can change them.  We've been friends for so long.  They'll hate me.

Proverbs 13:20 - He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.

It's interesting that God doesn't say that a companion of fools becomes a fool... but suffers harm.  You may not do everything your friends do, but we've all gotten in trouble just for being somewhere we weren't supposed to be or we were with someone we weren't supposed to be with.  Your friends' behavior is destructive, and eventually, you will be brought down with it.

As junior highers, there aren't too many of you guys who get this... but I hope that repeating this in your life... you will eventually understand.  Your friends' destructive behavior is not worth being around.  And this is a promise... their behavior will eventually get you too.

The earlier you get rid of your wisdom teeth... the better.  Don't wait til your wisdom teeth all come out and mess up the alignment of your other teeth.  Don't wait until your wisdom teeth loosen your main teeth... and you have dental issues the rest of your life.

The sooner you recognize which friends are destructive, the better.  Don't wait until their behavior explodes and you're caught in the explosion.  Don't fall victim to your friends' inability to change.  You really want to do them a favor though? Bring em to church.  Don't be pulled into their world... pull them into the arms of Jesus.

When you're with your friends, who's doing the pulling?

Get rid of your wisdom teeth.

-P. Kev

our website

It's become increasingly clear to me that our website serves a very important function.  And that function is to keep us all connected throughout the week.  Unfortunately, being as I'm the webmaster, designer, content creator, etc. it's pretty hard to do consistently.  So I'm gonna open it up.  We're creating a section on our website called "Student Life" and the idea is to open it up so that you guys can contribute content to the website.  We want you guys to write about what God is doing in your life.  All submissions will be subject to approval of course, and each article you write will be accompanied by a photograph.

The big question is why?

Because I believe in stories. A story gives life to the change within your heart. A story illustrates that Jesus is alive and well in our hearts and lives.  A story is proof that God is working.  So what if we were to gather all our stories in one place? How awesome would it be to leave a trail of evidence behind... the evidence of God working?

I hope that as we continue our spiritual journeys together, that you would take some time to think about your story; your life with God.  If you could tell it... how would it go? What would you say?

-Kevin

I wasn't even sure we'd make it...

http://elevatejh.com/Elevate/giveLOVE.html

It was week 8.  I knew I only had a few weeks to motivate everyone again.  So I shared the story of the "Brown Box":  The story of a student who had been saving money for something special.  I had just shared that story with our High School group a week before... and I realized just what a powerful testimony it was.  What I didn't realize was that the "Brown Box" wasn't just one student's story.  It was actually OUR story.   That Sunday, I saw that so many of you guys had been doing the same thing.  And that absolutely floored me.

Two weeks before that... I really wasn't sure that we would finish the giveLOVE project.  For a moment, it seemed like the motivation had run its course, and the inspiration to give was waning.  Which, to me, made sense.  I mean... how could 150 JR. High students possibly give at a rate of nearly $1,000 a week for 12 weeks straight?  No way.  And then my mind flash backed to that horrible moment nearly 3 years ago when I had to call Compassion International and let them know that we could no longer support the 6 children that we had pledged to support.  And my heart just sank.  That's a phone call I never ever want to make again.  I felt defeated... and genuinely stressed out.  What if we come short?  What if we only make it to $8,000?  Should I raise up $2,000 on my own so we can say that we made it?  Those were the questions that I started asking myself... and then the story of the "Brown Box" connected.  And it reignited another flame... and then it was really over.

The week after the "Brown Box", I shared another story.  I'll call it "Pockets".  It was story of a student who stood in front of our giveLOVE box and emptied out his pocked of ALL the change he had.  I heard the coins clink in the bottom of our offering box.  That sound simultaneously broke my heart and made it overflow with joy... because those coins came with faith.  Faith that even a few dollars worth of change was worth something to God.  Faith that even though that student didn't have a lot, he gave what he had, and was unashamed about it.

The week after, I saw another student carrying a bag of coins.  I don't know if she was inspired by "Pockets"... but I know that the spark had turned into a fire.  Towards the end of our campaign... there were coins everywhere.  A pain to count... but a joy to see.  And then week 11 hit.

We knew were going to succeed.  There was a collective sigh of relief.  We had raised $9921.95 in 11 weeks.  We were only $80 away from our goal of $10,000 for 2 life giving wells.  I thought to myself at the time, "Wow... God is so faithful.  He recognized the heart of the students, and he enabled us to reach our goal."

But God had bigger ideas.

We started these well projects with the intention of teaching our students that life isn't about living for ourselves.  We wanted to teach the students that we are incredibly lucky and wealthy to be living and going to school where we were.  We wanted to teach the students that we could change the world.  That final day of week 12, we sat in our room for an extra hour, as people kept coming into the room to give.  I had just announced that "today was it"... there would be no more donations accepted.  And so even though our worship service ended at 12:30... we sat there until 1:30, counting the money that kept coming in.  Students that kept sneaking in and wanting to donate more.  You guys came with coins even.  We only $80 left to go... but you gave more that day than any other single day.  We all teared up as we heard the final number.

$11,773.

A month ago, I wasn't even sure we'd make it to $10,000... and here I was, staring at a piece of paper that had the final number we collected.  My heart swelled with joy at what we had just done.  My mind flashed to the future with pictures of people drinking from the two wells that we were a part of.  My mind flashed to the moment when we'd be able to see the coordinates of our wells on Google Earth.  But I held the tears back.  Real men cry alone... while their wives are sleeping... or they pretend they have to take a dump and cry in the bathroom.

The next week... I was stoked.  I was so excited to share with everyone the final number.  We all knew in our hearts that we had completed our goal.  But no one knew the final number.  I sat in the 8AM service that Sunday, doubly excited because the KM congregation was finally going to know what we had been up to these past few months.  The audio for the announcement wasn't working... but I didn't care.  I showed the same Charity:Water video that I had been showing everyone... the one with Hillsong's "With Everything" as the background music.  But I saw it differently.  In the quiet... with no audio... just the visuals... it hit me like lightning.  For the first time... at the age of 28... I was doing something to change the world.  And I had just shared that experience with fellow Elevate Staff members... and with our students.  That someone who was 12 or 13 or 14... that they got a chance to do something to change the world... crazy.   I still smile thinking about that.  And again... I just thanked God in my heart, and that day, I got to share with you guys some of the best news I've ever shared in my life. (Besides the gospel.)  I tried my best to encapsulate everything we learned from this experience.  About money, about life, about obedience/faith, and about giving.

But God had bigger ideas.

I really thought we were done.  And then the news came in.  An adult congregation member, upon hearing what we did... decided that they wanted to give to our well fund.  And so all of a sudden, $11,773 turned into $16,773.  A week later, I was told again that someone ELSE had decided to give... and now our $11,773 turned into $21,773.  I also heard of yet another amazing student giving story.  And it wasn't so much about money... but dedication and diligence.  The "vacuum" story.

And then just 2 days ago, I got a text message.

$26,773!

As of 3/21... that's our story.  And at this point, I'm not going to be so foolish as to think that we're done. I believe that the repercussions of our giving will still continue to echo throughout our church... but more important, I hope that you will allow this echo throughout your heart.

So to everyone who gave, thank you.  To everyone who put in $10 a month... to everyone who gave away their New Year's money... to everyone who gave up their lunch money... to everyone who gave on top of their normal tithe... to everyone who emptied their pockets every week... to everyone who thought that they would make an extra large donation in case we didn't finish... to the students who inspired this blog post and the three stories "Pockets", "Brown Box", and "Vacuum"... to the families who were inspired by what we did... thank you.  If nothing else...

I hope that you see that God has bigger ideas.

What the wha?!

It’s stunning.  It’s... amazing.  It’s awesome.  It’s breathtaking.  It leaves you wide eyed and wondering what happened.  There aren’t a lot of moments in life where you realize that God has used you to change the world.  In fact... for many people... they will NEVER experience that.  

But not for us.  For the rest of our lives, we will remember that God stepped into our lives, and challenged us to make a difference in this world.  With nearly a billion people in this world without clean water, we stepped in to make a difference.  

Just like Jesus multiplied 2 fish into 5 loaves of bread, he took our commitment to 2 wells and turned it into 5.  (6 if you count what High School is doing!)  And that’s the way that God loves working.  Give him a little, he’ll turn it into so much more.  That’s what the Holy Spirit wants to do in our lives as well.  Take a little bit of our dedication... and turn it into something more.   Take an invitation we give to a friend to come to church with us, and the Holy Spirit wants to turn it into something more.  

So stop living like your contribution doesn’t matter.  Stop living like we can’t make a difference.  

Cause we just did.  You did.

Obedience

So I've been reading a lot of blogs about Haiti lately.  A lot of people now are able to go in and out of the country of Haiti a lot easier, and it seems like everyone is now making trips there.  The one thing I'm noticing about people going to Haiti is not only the fact that everyone is taking pictures there, but that everyone is going to find stories of the people there.  Everyone is not only taking a camera, but a video camera to shoot interviews and stuff.  I find it fascinating that when tragedy occurs... that's when we want to find out the stories of the people in Haiti.  I mean... 2 months ago... did it matter?  Did a person's life in Haiti matter to someone in the US?

Not really.  And that's perfectly understandable.  It's perfectly normal.

But God doesn't call us to be normal.  He calls us to radical obedience.  While the world is "rebelling" against our parents, God calls us to "Honor your father and mother, so that you may live long in the land that the LORD our God is giving you." (Exodus 20, Ephesians 6).  And as difficult as that is on a day to day basis... there's a promise to that.  God will bless us through honoring them.  God will provide for us through our parents in some way.  And there's hope in that.  God isn't asking us to do something just for the sake of doing it, God is asking us to obey him, and honor our parents because it's for our benefit.  And I love that part of God's heart... that he wants the best for us.

Now going back to Haiti and learning about people's stories... what will it take for you to care about the people around you?  Many of you guys talk about how scary it would be if an earthquake of that magnitude were to hit SoCal... is that what it would take for you to wake up and notice the people around you that don't know the gospel story?  Is that what it would take for you to begin wondering what stories are going on around us?  It shouldn't take an earthquake for us to realize how fragile life is.  It shouldn't take an earthquake to realize that there are lost people all around us at all times.  It shouldn't take an earthquake for us to start caring about each other.  Life is too short to hate each other... life is too short to take things so personally that we let things just sit in our hearts for weeks or months at a time.

The world was changed by the few men and women in the Bible who were willing to submit and become obedient to their heavenly Father.  The choice is yours.

"The entire law is summed up in a single command: Love your neighbor as yourself." - Galatians 5:14

-P. Kev

Discipline

So as the opener of "The Toughest Thing" series, I really wanted to open with something that we could all relate with: discipline. 

It's crazy... but this one thing in our life... if we could just get it down... it would solve so many problems in our life that stem from distractions, laziness, indulgence, etc.  We'd be healthier, we'd be better students, we'd be more productive people.  And as much as the idea of discipline and the idea of become a better person sounds good... in practice, discipline is so hard.  It's one of the toughest things in life to really get a hold of.  And not just as a student, but in all areas of life, no matter how old you are, I think this will always be a struggle.  

And because it will always be a struggle, I think that's why it's considered a "fruit of the Spirit".  As backwards as this may sound, it's difficult to "will" ourselves to self control and discipline.  Discipline requires more than just simply "wanting" change.  It requires something more.  It requires resolve.  It requires a change of heart.  It requires a radical departure of our current way of thinking.  And that's where the Holy Spirit comes into play.  It's the Holy Spirit that lives in us, causing us to change... and as we allow the Holy Spirit to do his work inside of us... that's when we bear his fruit.  Discipline doesn't come from us... it comes from the Holy Spirit and his deep work in our souls. 

So the big question: Are you allowing the Holy Spirit to build this self control and discipline in you?  Because the difference between a successful life and an unsuccessful life depends on your level of discipline and self control. 

Chew on that. 

-P Kev.

The Man your Man could smell like

I love this commercial.

The Man Your Man Could Smell Like

If only it were actually like this.  If only you could apply something as simple as deodorant and turn into someone else completely.  But we know... life isn't like that.  If you want to change yourself, improve yourself... it takes hard work.  Wanna lose weight? You gotta eat right and exercise.  Wanna go to a great college?  You have to study while everyone else is playing.  Wanna have great family relationships later on?  Then you have to honor your parents right now.  Wanna have great marriages later on?  Then you need to guard yourself and your heart right now while everyone else is dating and doing whatever they please.

The point is... live like no one else now... so you can live like no one else later.

-P. Kev

LENT

Lent starts today... Ash Wednesday.  Have you thought about what you're going to give up for Lent?  I haven't figured it out yet.  Too many things I want to give up... and yet can't live without.

And that's a shame.  Jesus is asking to spend a little bit more time with me. He wants me to give up something so I can use that time to spend with him instead.  And all I'm thinking about is how much I can't live without those things... but how much more can I live without him?

What in your life is getting in the way of spending time reading the Word and praying? What in your life is getting in the way of forming a tighter relationship with your Savior?  What in the world is MORE worth it?

As we think about what we want to give up... I hope it reveals the true state of our relationship with Jesus... and the love for our Savior.

Where do you stand?  What will you give up?

-P. Kev

Website Update

Whew.  It takes a lot to update a whole entire website.  But a little bit at a time... that's what matters.

I just wanted to take a second to really explore the notion of character and how it applies to our everyday life.  Character is EVERYTHING.  You will rise and fall based on your character.  So even in the darkest corners of your life... where you think no one's watching... no one is looking... that's when your character means the most.  Because even if you think no one's watching... God is patiently observing us.  Will we be patient?  Will we be loving?  Will we take the high road?  Can we be accountable when it seems like no one cares or it doesn't matter?  Can we keep our emotions in check?

Character is EVERYTHING.  On Facebook, on MySpace, in emails, in texts... in phone conversations.

What kind of character are you building?  As a young man or woman... the actions you take now shape your character forever.  That's a big deal.  People who live with regrets right now... people in prison... people living with guilt... they didn't intend on growing up and ending where they were.  They didn't grow up wanting to be criminals, wanting to be on the wrong side of the law.  But they compromise a little here... and then compromised a little there... and before they knew it, they threw their character away.

1 Timothy 4:12 - "... But set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith, and in purity."

-P Kev.

what the what?

How come the website's been dormant for so long?

Cause there's a rehaul coming, sucka.

Wait for it...

Agreed.

Here's a great article from Jeff Elkins.  To most of you... this isn't gonna hit home.  But to those of you that really understand this... you need to help.

Here's where the article's from:
http://www.catalystspace.com/content/read/something_more/



Recently my family and I had an incredible experience at a church in Baltimore.  The church did everything perfectly.

• The front door was held open for us by a gentleman with a kind smile.  I immediately felt welcomed. 
• The layout of the entry way was awesome.  Even though it was my first time at the church, and there were a ton of people coming in and out, the natural flow of traffic let me know exactly where to go. 
• The welcome desk was well labeled and prominent on the left hand side of the entry way.  It was staffed with friendly helpful people; and there were no lack of easy to approach greeters with clearly visible nametags standing around expectantly hoping someone would ask them a question.
• Beyond the Welcome desk there was a room full of breakfast treats and the smell of coffee was in the air (a huge plus for me).
• A greeter identified us as visitors and led us to the Children's check in area. 
• The Children's Sunday School Check-In Desk was also extremely easy to find.  Check-in there was great.  One of the workers escorted us to the classrooms, explained to us the security procedures, and answered any and all the questions we could possibly have.
• The worship service was impeccably pulled off.  The music was sincere, not showy in anyway.  There were multiple worship leaders, but it was extremely smooth and enjoyable.  The songs were relevant, fresh, and easy to pick up for someone who might not know them.  They did a great job of trying to help people engage Christ without terrifying those that might be new the the church experience.
• The sermon was clear, relevant, and engaging.  The pastor's points were well thought out and communicated.  My attention was held the entire time.  There were no unnecessary rabbit trails or rants.  It was challenging but not offensive, informative but not burdensome, fun but not ridiculous.  It was a good message.
• After the service we went to get our kids and they were beaming.  Yes...that's right...our kids loved Sunday School there.  Usually a new church experience will send them all into tears, but not this time.  They couldn't stop sharing stories about how much fun they had.

This church is a well oiled machine.  They have it down.  They do all the things church growth authors say should be done to create a wonderful church experience.  They pull off an excellent attractional worship service.
As we drove home I asked Wendy what she thought.  Reflectively she said, "That would be a very comfortable place to fall into, but there has to be something more."   I agreed, "Yeah.  That was amazing...but I don’t believe it is going to turn Baltimore upside down for Jesus."
Now, please don't think we are being judgmental or critical when we say "there must be something more."  You must understand:
First, I think this church is incredible.  I have attended a lot of churches, and I've never been to one that pulled off an attractional worship service like they did.  Seriously, they did an amazing job.
Second, please know that I am very much part of this church; and therefore commenting on myself as much as my experience this past Sunday.

Now I'm not a member; but I celebrated and worked in churches like this one over the years.  I applauded when churches like this one risked everything, denied all contemporary wisdom, and fought the status-quo to become environments that were comfortable and inviting to outsiders.  I cheered as these churches put down the hymnals and put lyrics on easy to see screens; as they got rid of the traditional pews and went to more comfortable stadium seating.  I defended speakers that were struggling to give sermons in more "seeker friendly" ways and did my best to mimic them.  I got fired-up about worship music becoming more like the music my generation listened to.  I created environments that were fun, comfortable, and exciting, and then instructed the congregation to "bring their lost friends next week!"  I've built crazy sets for Sunday mornings, hung flyers on door knobs, cooked pancake breakfasts, pulled off insane visual illustrations, put on Easter pageants and Hell Houses, delivered invitations with soft music playing behind me, and on, and on, and on...

So you see, when I speak about the attractional church I am not an outsider.  It is very much a part of me. It has defined my walk with Christ. It has been the beat of my heart; but recently my heart has begun to ache.

So back to "something more..."

My problem is two fold:

First - I believe that the church is the only organization that can bring healing to the pain of Baltimore.  Because it is the only group empowered by the Holy Spirit, it is the only group that can bring dead things to life.

Second - the things that used to work, the things that used to excite people about coming to church, the stuff that used to bring people to the healing power of Jesus, now seems to be the status quo and are no longer working like they used to.  The people in my community that are disconnected from God are not attracted to our worship services any more, no matter how relevant we make them.  (This is not just my personal experience.  There are tons of studies out there now showing that less and less people every year are attending church.)  They don't care what the music is like.  They don't care how relevant the message is. They don't care if it is welcoming an inviting.

You see, the attractional based model assumes that there are groups of people out there that would attend a worship service if that worship service was simply welcoming and inviting.  One author I read recently called these groups of people "window shoppers."  The goal of the attractional church has been to create a beautiful window that would draw people in...but these groups seem to be quickly diminishing.

In an attractional church, the primary activity of the body, the front door where people are introduced to the church, is focused on being comfortable and exciting.  It therefore, unintentionally, feeds the consumer attitude already present in our society.

Now, I don't know yet how to fix this, but here are a few things I have come to believe firmly in the last year...

We have to stop making our front door (where people come to check us out) a worship service; we need to make it our lives.  People should not be encountering the Holy Spirit for the first time by watching believers worship.  They should be introduced to the Holy Spirit through the insane, crazy, wild, reckless, sacrificial love of Jesus that defines everything we do, every conversation we have, every breath we take.

We should not be known for our music, our teaching, our environments, or our kids programs.  We should be known for our humility, our brokenness, our passion for the poor, our acceptance of the outcast, our forgiving justice, our non-judgemental righteousness, and our generous giving of ourselves to others.

We must stop making the tools the point.  We have to recapture what Jesus meant when He said, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath."  If we continue to make our worship service, our programs, our small groups, our activities, our spiritual disciplines the defining focus of what we do we will find ourselves loosing Jesus on the journey.

Let it be said that we carry in us the attitude of Jesus.  That we are people defined by our love for God and our love for others.   Let the world be amazed at how wildly we give of ourselves, at how recklessly we serve, at how humbly we live, and at how unsafely we love.  Let it be said that when you encounter one of us you never before felt so valued and cared for.  Let membership in our community not be defined by the where we are from 9:30 to Noon on a Sunday, but rather by our reputation in the community as people that live differently.

And let the cry of our lives be, "Jesus is Lord.  Tomorrow in eternity."

This is my hope for the church.

Jeff Elkins lives in Baltimore with his wife and three kids.  He recently left his job as a pastor and is working with a small team to rethink what it means to be the church in the inner city.  Jeff writes two blogs: one for the examiner.com and a personal one with his wife about their adventures.