It's always difficult when we spend time, energy, and emotion pouring into someone, praying for someone, and they graduate still being unhappy with life. They are still confused about a lot of things, and don't want to follow the Lord. Thankfully, God is bigger than us.
Tom has a friend, Jake (name changed), who got very close to Tom. He came to club a few times, but mostly just liked talking to Tom. He dropped out of school before he graduated, and got in trouble very often. Last time we saw him, we all had lunch together and he shared stories of having to get people out of his home with a gun.
A few days ago I saw Jake and a few of his friends at the grocery store. I said hello, but no conversation really sprung out of it. A day or two after that Jake called Tom and said something happened and he thinks it has to do with God and his life is forever changed. Tom invited him to the young adults group at his church.
Jake actually came, which is a good sign because he normally disappears pretty quickly. It was a beautiful picture that night for any Young Life leader. There were 5 guys there that graduated from Solanco and were heavily involved with Young Life. All them are growing in their faith, and participating in their churches.
What a wonderful picture of the body of Christ. What a wonderful picture of what this ministry should be doing: feeding people back into the church. Young Life ends after high school, the church doesn't.
Sunday, September 23, 2012
Thursday, September 6, 2012
Hey, I just met you...
Ministry can get very complicated because there is no "off the clock". There
are no clear boundaries of when ministry starts and stops because it's a
lifestyle. Luckily, I'm not in it alone. I'm not even close to in it
alone. Day in and day out there is a community of people in Solanco that intentionally care for people. The leaders, the senders, and other Christians in the community attempt to love to the best of their ability. That means we try to be there for people. We try to be there through joyful times and times of sorrow.
Most of you know a few weeks ago there was an unfortunate
accident where Kenny Meeder, going into his junior year of high school, accidentally killed himself while messing
around with a gun. Tom is pretty close with Kenny and the "Little Britain Crew,"
as they all live out there and are such a close group of friends. Naturally, this
accident hit them all pretty hard. Tom and I got to be there for them
because we have been there for them in the past. One of Kenny's best
friends, Justin, came to camp this summer. Tom has had countless
conversations with Justin and Chris after club, and just hanging out.
I've taken Lexi out to lunch and talked to her in the halls about what's
going on in life. I spoke about WyldLife to a 6th grade class and met Kenny's little sister, Taylor. And now, tragedy has come. Heartache, anger,
confusion, and pain has set in. And we get to be there for them. We get
to hug them at the prayer vigil, we get to look them in the eyes at the
funeral and just nod in agreement over how hard this is, and we get to
take them to the beach and just relax.
This past Sunday Tom, myself, and the newest leader at Solanco (and my
fiancee), Brian Rufo, got to take 6 of our friends to the beach. There
were conversations about Kenny. There was typical drama. But mostly, it
was just fun. We played in the waves, we ran in the sand, and we
laughed. We finally got to be together and laugh. Taylor has been adopted by this group of friends, composed of 4
juniors and a sophomore in high school. They have become somewhat of a
family. While out to dinner at Grotto's Pizza, we were talking about how
great the buffalo chicken pizza was. Chris commented that he didn't
have a slice, and Zeb, who was about to put the last slice in his mouth
stopped and handed it to Chris. Tom almost fell out of his chair
laughing saying "this is why I love you guys!! You care for each other
so much!" Zeb just shrugged his shoulders as if to say "Of course we do,
we're family."
There has been a roller coaster of emotions over everything that's
happened. But something most people don't see is how much support all
the Young Life leaders have had through every step of this grieving
process. Our senders team has given money so Tom and I can just lavish
love on our friends. They have covered gas, food, and even offered to
donate meals to the family. Most of our senders team was at the funeral
and met the families of all the kids effected by Kenny's death. I've
been handed money on the fly in a parking lot, at a soccer game, or when
I stop by someone's house so we can pay for the beach trip. We've been
in prayers, and we've been asked countless times how we're doing.
This isn't about Young Life leaders entering into kids lives. This isn't about whether these kids come to club in the fall. This is about the the Body of Christ being obedient to our call to love our neighbor as ourselves, and that is only taken seriously when we love the Lord with everything inside of us. We cannot express how this community has shown us Christ. We cannot express how thankful and humbled we are to be around so many people that are pursuing the Lord and allowing us to see them do it. This is a true community: We are broken sinners, redeemed by Christ, trying to pursue Him and love our neighbors.
Thank you all so very much. We are honored and humbled to be in your lives.
Love,
SLC YL
 |
| Tom, Justin, CJ, Chris, Lexi, Taylor, Sarah, Zeb, Brian |
 | ||
| (Back)Rufo, Tom, CJ, Justin, Chris, Zeb (Front) Lexi, Taylor |
 |
| Lexi, Taylor, Zeb, Sarah |
This isn't about Young Life leaders entering into kids lives. This isn't about whether these kids come to club in the fall. This is about the the Body of Christ being obedient to our call to love our neighbor as ourselves, and that is only taken seriously when we love the Lord with everything inside of us. We cannot express how this community has shown us Christ. We cannot express how thankful and humbled we are to be around so many people that are pursuing the Lord and allowing us to see them do it. This is a true community: We are broken sinners, redeemed by Christ, trying to pursue Him and love our neighbors.
Thank you all so very much. We are honored and humbled to be in your lives.
Love,
SLC YL
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
You Don't Know What Makes You Beautiful
 |
| LBP and Bre |
This past semester in the Southern
Counties area is a perfect picture of how life normally goes: some clubs
appear to be doing well and some clubs not as well; some leaders are
excited to be running the race and others are tired; some of our high
school friends have been as involved as ever and others have seemed to
fall off the face of the earth. The refreshingly good news in all of it
is the Lord's steadfast faithfulness. Whether club appears to be
successful or not does not stop the Lord from loving us unconditionally
and lavishing even our farthest out friends with His love. Whether
leaders are excited or exhausted doesn't change the fact that God is
graciously using them and molding them into the people He desires. Even
if our dear friends have pushed us away, they cannot escape the grasp of
the Lord. The only reason we can love Him is because He has first loved
us. He doesn't need us to do ministry, but He wants to bless us and
change us through the process of ministry, all the while using it to
change others.
We had the privilege of bringing a junior to camp last summer who has acquired the nickname "LBP" (creatively using her initials as a nickname, only the most creative people can do Young Life...). She hadn't come out to many events in the spring last year, but I knew her really well from soccer, and knew she loved the idea of Young Life. After going to camp she was committed. Not just to me, not just to Young Life club, but to the Lord. She saw how the Lord had changed people at camp, and she wanted Him to do that to people she knew at school.
Even though LBP is a ball of energy, she's not the most outgoing person, so getting people to club was hard for her. I talked to her all semester about what it looks like to really care for people, and by the grace of God this year on the soccer team we have 7 freshman that she got to love and invest in. All of the freshman girls on the team look up to LBP and think she's the cutest girl ever (if you know her, you know it's impossible to NOT think that about her). So she slowly started talking to girls about club, which they are extra curious about because I'm their coach and the Young Life leader.
We had the privilege of bringing a junior to camp last summer who has acquired the nickname "LBP" (creatively using her initials as a nickname, only the most creative people can do Young Life...). She hadn't come out to many events in the spring last year, but I knew her really well from soccer, and knew she loved the idea of Young Life. After going to camp she was committed. Not just to me, not just to Young Life club, but to the Lord. She saw how the Lord had changed people at camp, and she wanted Him to do that to people she knew at school.
Even though LBP is a ball of energy, she's not the most outgoing person, so getting people to club was hard for her. I talked to her all semester about what it looks like to really care for people, and by the grace of God this year on the soccer team we have 7 freshman that she got to love and invest in. All of the freshman girls on the team look up to LBP and think she's the cutest girl ever (if you know her, you know it's impossible to NOT think that about her). So she slowly started talking to girls about club, which they are extra curious about because I'm their coach and the Young Life leader.
Two weeks ago at club was an extremely joyful night for LBP. Two of the soccer
girls came to club and had a blast. One of them even brought her older
brother that's a senior at the high school. After club LBP was
experiencing pure excitement because she actually felt like the God of
the universe was HERE to work in people's lives. She felt like their
lives were going to be changed and that she somehow got a front row seat
to watch it happen. LBP is now learning what it means to make disciples
of all nations (or of all classes in her high school), not because
someone got up and talked about it, but because someone got to walk
through the process with her.
Please
be praying for the freshman girls on the soccer team and LBP. Pray that
they would feel loved by her enough to follow her everywhere, even a
silly thing like Young Life, so that they can encounter the God of the
universe that wants them to know that He loves even THEM.
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Seniors OWN
You are. My fire. The one. Desire. Believe. When I say. That I want it that way. Tell me Why.
If you don't love music from the early 2000's, then you must not work with high school kids. Tuesday night was full of laughter, ridiculous songs, questionable games, and a message that will not soon be forgotten. Senior run club. A Solanco tradition (you know... all 2 years of our existence). The seniors own the night. Leaders help write the club talk, but other than that we are kept in the dark. And we like it that way, because our seniors run club better than we do.
The night was amazing! Energy was high all night, right through the club talk and into burger king. The way they led the games was funny and engaging, and they worked as a team. Laura and Holly (picture right) gave the best camp sell just because of how they feed off of each other. The seniors could read how the crowd was feeling about songs and games and adjust accordingly. Not only was the night amazing, but they were amazing.
I was asked what my favorite part of the night was. To be honest, it was when two of my really close friends got up to share with their friends what sin is and how it effects us and the world. Caleb (picture left) explained what a lot of people, including himself until recently, think sin is: the bad things we do. But it's so much deeper. Sin is a condition of our heart that we can't seem to fix ourselves. We try so hard to just be good people and do the right thing, but we can't do it. So it's got to be something deeper. Then Caleb confessed some of his sin to a room full of people he sees everyday. He talked about how he takes it as a personal challenge to make people like him, and he does that to build up his pride and to feel better about himself. Then he apologized to everyone in the room for not treating them the way they deserve to be treated.
Next, my close friend, Shira (picture below), got up to confess as well. She talked about how she always desired to be needed, and how that would come out in a lot of unhealthy ways. She was honest and vulnerable in her confession. Then she talked about how there has to be a punishment for sin. She gave the illustration of how she broke a light in someones room and hid it so they wouldn't know. She didn't have to take the punishment, but the person had to pay
for a new light. Someone had to pay for it. So what is the punishment we have to face? It's eternal death: separation from everything good (love, relationships, success, and ultimately God). But we also have hope, because eternal life is an option, which is the opposite of eternal death: living in everything good.
They came up to me after club saying they couldn't remember anything they said. The Lord spoke through them last night. He also spoke to the hearts of all their friends there, especially to the hand full of people that went up to them after club and at BK to talk about their club talk. Shira and Caleb experienced the Lord teaching them something very profound by taking a chance and proclaiming the message that has changed their lives. They were terrified, but the Lord used them in such an amazing way. They didn't just teach their peers last night, they taught me too. They taught me about community, being vulnerable, and taking the time to think things through. They taught me faith. I am so grateful for my friendship with them.
Love,
SLC YL
If you don't love music from the early 2000's, then you must not work with high school kids. Tuesday night was full of laughter, ridiculous songs, questionable games, and a message that will not soon be forgotten. Senior run club. A Solanco tradition (you know... all 2 years of our existence). The seniors own the night. Leaders help write the club talk, but other than that we are kept in the dark. And we like it that way, because our seniors run club better than we do.
The night was amazing! Energy was high all night, right through the club talk and into burger king. The way they led the games was funny and engaging, and they worked as a team. Laura and Holly (picture right) gave the best camp sell just because of how they feed off of each other. The seniors could read how the crowd was feeling about songs and games and adjust accordingly. Not only was the night amazing, but they were amazing.
I was asked what my favorite part of the night was. To be honest, it was when two of my really close friends got up to share with their friends what sin is and how it effects us and the world. Caleb (picture left) explained what a lot of people, including himself until recently, think sin is: the bad things we do. But it's so much deeper. Sin is a condition of our heart that we can't seem to fix ourselves. We try so hard to just be good people and do the right thing, but we can't do it. So it's got to be something deeper. Then Caleb confessed some of his sin to a room full of people he sees everyday. He talked about how he takes it as a personal challenge to make people like him, and he does that to build up his pride and to feel better about himself. Then he apologized to everyone in the room for not treating them the way they deserve to be treated.
Next, my close friend, Shira (picture below), got up to confess as well. She talked about how she always desired to be needed, and how that would come out in a lot of unhealthy ways. She was honest and vulnerable in her confession. Then she talked about how there has to be a punishment for sin. She gave the illustration of how she broke a light in someones room and hid it so they wouldn't know. She didn't have to take the punishment, but the person had to pay
for a new light. Someone had to pay for it. So what is the punishment we have to face? It's eternal death: separation from everything good (love, relationships, success, and ultimately God). But we also have hope, because eternal life is an option, which is the opposite of eternal death: living in everything good.They came up to me after club saying they couldn't remember anything they said. The Lord spoke through them last night. He also spoke to the hearts of all their friends there, especially to the hand full of people that went up to them after club and at BK to talk about their club talk. Shira and Caleb experienced the Lord teaching them something very profound by taking a chance and proclaiming the message that has changed their lives. They were terrified, but the Lord used them in such an amazing way. They didn't just teach their peers last night, they taught me too. They taught me about community, being vulnerable, and taking the time to think things through. They taught me faith. I am so grateful for my friendship with them.
Love,SLC YL
Friday, March 30, 2012
The Best.
This semester has been kind of ridiculous. And by kind of, I mean really. There has been so many great things happening in the midst of difficult things, but I suppose that's what was meant in Ecclesiastes 3:4 "a time a weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance". There has been beauty in the midst of pain and the presence of the Lord in darkness. 
Club has slowly been growing all semester, and this is something to celebrate because our campaigners have been reaching out to new people and caring for them so well. To the left (in the middle) is Shira. She's a senior at Solanco. Behind her is Julia, a freshman. Julia and Shira eat lunch together and are forming a really healthy friendship. To the left of her is Owen, another senior. Owen is a great guy that finds excitement in his care free, "scary", lifestyle. Both Owen and Julia keep hanging out with Shira because they know there's truth to what she tells them about life. To the right is Shayne. Shayne is a junior that plays drums at club. He loves club and loves to invite new people. Shayne has a really hard, unfair, life though. He loves club because he is cared for there. He's not over looked or even looked down on. In the front is Lydia, my co-leader. She sacrificially gives of herself to make all of those people, her friends, feel loved and valued.
I can give you countless stories of our campaigners taking chances. They bring people to club, some not even their close friends, just because they want them to experience Christ. Mike has been investing in some underclassmen guys that never stop giving him a hard time. Mike isn't the most popular guy in school, but he brings new people to club just about every week. Laura is a senior that is caring for the freshman girls on the soccer team and earning their trust so they will follow her to club. Shira drives 45min to pick up a mini van full of freshman to drive back to her house for club. Caleb cares for the guys that lead music with him (a full band with drums, electric guitar, bass, acoustic guitar, and singers) and is always thinking of the next person that will love club. Frank has finally been able to get his little brother out to club after try
ing for over a year.
There's story after story of campaigners that want their friends at club to hear the Gospel, and that is a demonstration of their faith that God is who He says He is, and that He changed their lives forever. What makes it even sweeter though? The cherry on top, if you will? My amazing co-leaders. Tom and Lydia (picture to the right) continually show up in the lives of our friends to SHOW them that they are worth it. Tom has gotten countless kids to club because he shows up to lunches week in and week out to talk to kids and meet their friends. Lydia has gone to just about every midnight opening of a movie with girls and has had sleepovers with them to listen to them talk about their lives and point them to Christ. We get the privilege of loving our high school friends unconditionally and living life along side of them. We get to love each other. I have the best co-leaders I could ask for not just because they love me well, not just because they love kids well, but because they love the Lord and are pursuing Him. Which, coincidentally, is why we have the best campaigners too.
We are blessed beyond measure.
Thank you for all your love and support.
SLC YL (Solanco Young Life)
Club has slowly been growing all semester, and this is something to celebrate because our campaigners have been reaching out to new people and caring for them so well. To the left (in the middle) is Shira. She's a senior at Solanco. Behind her is Julia, a freshman. Julia and Shira eat lunch together and are forming a really healthy friendship. To the left of her is Owen, another senior. Owen is a great guy that finds excitement in his care free, "scary", lifestyle. Both Owen and Julia keep hanging out with Shira because they know there's truth to what she tells them about life. To the right is Shayne. Shayne is a junior that plays drums at club. He loves club and loves to invite new people. Shayne has a really hard, unfair, life though. He loves club because he is cared for there. He's not over looked or even looked down on. In the front is Lydia, my co-leader. She sacrificially gives of herself to make all of those people, her friends, feel loved and valued.
I can give you countless stories of our campaigners taking chances. They bring people to club, some not even their close friends, just because they want them to experience Christ. Mike has been investing in some underclassmen guys that never stop giving him a hard time. Mike isn't the most popular guy in school, but he brings new people to club just about every week. Laura is a senior that is caring for the freshman girls on the soccer team and earning their trust so they will follow her to club. Shira drives 45min to pick up a mini van full of freshman to drive back to her house for club. Caleb cares for the guys that lead music with him (a full band with drums, electric guitar, bass, acoustic guitar, and singers) and is always thinking of the next person that will love club. Frank has finally been able to get his little brother out to club after try
ing for over a year.There's story after story of campaigners that want their friends at club to hear the Gospel, and that is a demonstration of their faith that God is who He says He is, and that He changed their lives forever. What makes it even sweeter though? The cherry on top, if you will? My amazing co-leaders. Tom and Lydia (picture to the right) continually show up in the lives of our friends to SHOW them that they are worth it. Tom has gotten countless kids to club because he shows up to lunches week in and week out to talk to kids and meet their friends. Lydia has gone to just about every midnight opening of a movie with girls and has had sleepovers with them to listen to them talk about their lives and point them to Christ. We get the privilege of loving our high school friends unconditionally and living life along side of them. We get to love each other. I have the best co-leaders I could ask for not just because they love me well, not just because they love kids well, but because they love the Lord and are pursuing Him. Which, coincidentally, is why we have the best campaigners too.
We are blessed beyond measure.
Thank you for all your love and support.
SLC YL (Solanco Young Life)
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