This week all over the country, people will gather with their families to celebrate Thanksgiving. I would like you take time this week and think about what you are thankful for in your life.
I am thankful for my awesome God whose grace and mercy never cease.
I am thankful for my amazing wife who is patient and kind with me.
I am thankful for my wonderful son who exhibits passion and excitement.
I am thankful for my dad who continues to support and encourage me.
I am thankful for the rest of my family who loves me.
I am thankful for the students at Rochester Church who love God and each other.
I am thankful for the parents at Rochester Church who love their children.
I am thankful for the entire Rochester Church family who live out the Good News.
I am thankful for so many other friends around the country (and the world), who provide love, support, and encouragement.
There are many other things that I am thankful for, but the people listed above are at the top of this list. Yes, I have a house to live in, a car to drive, and food to eat. But it was in the Creation narrative that God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone.” So, as I list what I am thankful for, it is the God of Creation and the human beings created in his image that top the list.
Being created in the image of God means we are created for community. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit have invited us into community with them. So as I celebrate this season of Thanksgiving, I begin be celebrating those who I have become a part of my existence. Without them, life would lack meaning and purpose. Without them, I would not be able to fully experience the abundant life that God promises. A life without relationships and community is a life without, well, life.
Thank you, God, for life.
shine!
Jason
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Labels
I'm currently reading a book entitled The Geeks Shall Inherit the Earth by Alexandra Robbins. It provides interesting insight into the world of teenagers today and the things they have to deal with in their lives.
One of the most troubling things I am coming across in this book for far is the idea labels. Now, to be fair, people have been labeled throughout history. But, there seems to something more severe, more intense about much of the labeling today. Today's teenagers are the loneliest generation in history, even thought they are the most connected. The adult world has often abandoned them, so an underground sub-culture has develop that is unlike anything I knew as a teenager.
In the midst of that development, labels seem to have become more powerful than ever. In a world where students can communicate 24/7 via texting, Facebook, and other technological tools, drama can unfold in ways that we could never even have dreamed of 20 years ago. Something you said in a private conversation at lunch could be broadcast for hundreds of students to read before dinner time. One comment could change the social landscape for a student.
Labels have become more powerful, dangerous, and damaging. Another reason for this is the increased absence of adults from adolescents lives. With the hectic pace of today's society and the ever-present ability to communicate with virtually anyone, we are losing the safe haven of home and the ability of students to escape from the adolescent world. When I was a teenager, I could come home, sit with my parents, and have time away from the drama that was high school. Many of today's students don't have that luxury. Text messages and Facebook posts keep things going all through the evening and even into the night.
Don't get me wrong. I love technology. And there are a lot of benefits that this technology offers. But there is also a dangerous side. And even if a particular student decides to avoid the world of texting and Facebook, the actions of other students who do use them can still have an impact.
In addition, the pressure seems to be greater than ever to succeed. While GPAs and ACT scores have been important for a long time, I don't think we fully understand the high level of stress today's students feel to get their GPA up from a 3.4 to a 3.5, or that push to get their ACT score up one more point. It could mean a difference of thousands of dollars in scholarship money.
So what does all of this have to do with labels? When students feel alone and abandoned, labels before even more powerful. When a student's value is based on how well they perform, labels become more defining. Labels can cause pain. Labels can change social status. Labels can impact the entire adolescent experience.
It's true that at some level, labels are unavoidable. You will have circles of friends you hang out with. People will use adjectives to describe your personality. But labels that put up walls, tear down people, and divide us are wrong. We are all unique, but none of us deserve to be labeled.
The apostle said, "So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus." (Galatians 3:26-28 NIV)
In the Kingdom of God, there should not be any labels, except one. "Child of God."
We cannot change how the world acts, but if we are citizens of God's Kingdom, we live by a different standard. We should be a people who embrace all, regardless of the labels the world has placed on someone. We are different, or at least we should be. If there is anywhere that labels like that need to be removed, it is in the body of Christ. Otherwise, we have missed a key element of what it means to be people of God.
shine!
Jason
One of the most troubling things I am coming across in this book for far is the idea labels. Now, to be fair, people have been labeled throughout history. But, there seems to something more severe, more intense about much of the labeling today. Today's teenagers are the loneliest generation in history, even thought they are the most connected. The adult world has often abandoned them, so an underground sub-culture has develop that is unlike anything I knew as a teenager.
In the midst of that development, labels seem to have become more powerful than ever. In a world where students can communicate 24/7 via texting, Facebook, and other technological tools, drama can unfold in ways that we could never even have dreamed of 20 years ago. Something you said in a private conversation at lunch could be broadcast for hundreds of students to read before dinner time. One comment could change the social landscape for a student.
Labels have become more powerful, dangerous, and damaging. Another reason for this is the increased absence of adults from adolescents lives. With the hectic pace of today's society and the ever-present ability to communicate with virtually anyone, we are losing the safe haven of home and the ability of students to escape from the adolescent world. When I was a teenager, I could come home, sit with my parents, and have time away from the drama that was high school. Many of today's students don't have that luxury. Text messages and Facebook posts keep things going all through the evening and even into the night.
Don't get me wrong. I love technology. And there are a lot of benefits that this technology offers. But there is also a dangerous side. And even if a particular student decides to avoid the world of texting and Facebook, the actions of other students who do use them can still have an impact.
In addition, the pressure seems to be greater than ever to succeed. While GPAs and ACT scores have been important for a long time, I don't think we fully understand the high level of stress today's students feel to get their GPA up from a 3.4 to a 3.5, or that push to get their ACT score up one more point. It could mean a difference of thousands of dollars in scholarship money.
So what does all of this have to do with labels? When students feel alone and abandoned, labels before even more powerful. When a student's value is based on how well they perform, labels become more defining. Labels can cause pain. Labels can change social status. Labels can impact the entire adolescent experience.
It's true that at some level, labels are unavoidable. You will have circles of friends you hang out with. People will use adjectives to describe your personality. But labels that put up walls, tear down people, and divide us are wrong. We are all unique, but none of us deserve to be labeled.
The apostle said, "So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus." (Galatians 3:26-28 NIV)
In the Kingdom of God, there should not be any labels, except one. "Child of God."
We cannot change how the world acts, but if we are citizens of God's Kingdom, we live by a different standard. We should be a people who embrace all, regardless of the labels the world has placed on someone. We are different, or at least we should be. If there is anywhere that labels like that need to be removed, it is in the body of Christ. Otherwise, we have missed a key element of what it means to be people of God.
shine!
Jason
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
iChristmas 2011
With “Black Friday” only a few weeks away, I wanted to take this opportunity to remind everyone about our annual iChristmas campaign.
The ARISE Ministry will once again be celebrating iChristmas. This is an opportunity to live out the true meaning of Christmas. Here is the challenge to our students:
As you are making a Christmas list for your parents, write this on the list: “Please buy me one less gift and put the money you would have spent on that gift into an envelope marked ‘iChristmas’ and put it under the Christmas tree with my other gifts.” The one gift should be more than a pair of socks, but what you are willing to sacrifice is up to you.
Starting on Sunday, December 25, students can turn in their iChristmas money in the ARISE Black Box on the wall in the main lobby.
Each year, the money raised for iChristmas supports a ministry of the Rochester Church. In the past, the ministries we have supported include our missionaries in Rio and Uganda as well as Cass Park. This year, we are planning to contribute all iChristmas funds to the DuBaere Family Fund. (Please make checks out to “Rochester Church of Christ” and write “DuBaere Family Fund” in the memo line.)
Thank you to all of the students who participated in iChristmas in previous years. Continue the iChristmas tradition this year. For those of you who didn’t have an opportunity to give an iChristmas gift last year, make this the year to start a new tradition.
As the push for Christmas begins, please consider what you are going to sacrifice for iChristmas this year. Imagine if 50 people each contributed $20 this year. As a ministry we would collect $1,000. That amount would be a huge blessing to the DuBaere family.
As you think about iChristmas, consider the blessing you could be to another family in our church. You might think $20 isn’t much, but together we could have a huge, positive impact.
shine!
Jason
The ARISE Ministry will once again be celebrating iChristmas. This is an opportunity to live out the true meaning of Christmas. Here is the challenge to our students:
As you are making a Christmas list for your parents, write this on the list: “Please buy me one less gift and put the money you would have spent on that gift into an envelope marked ‘iChristmas’ and put it under the Christmas tree with my other gifts.” The one gift should be more than a pair of socks, but what you are willing to sacrifice is up to you.
Starting on Sunday, December 25, students can turn in their iChristmas money in the ARISE Black Box on the wall in the main lobby.
Each year, the money raised for iChristmas supports a ministry of the Rochester Church. In the past, the ministries we have supported include our missionaries in Rio and Uganda as well as Cass Park. This year, we are planning to contribute all iChristmas funds to the DuBaere Family Fund. (Please make checks out to “Rochester Church of Christ” and write “DuBaere Family Fund” in the memo line.)
Thank you to all of the students who participated in iChristmas in previous years. Continue the iChristmas tradition this year. For those of you who didn’t have an opportunity to give an iChristmas gift last year, make this the year to start a new tradition.
As the push for Christmas begins, please consider what you are going to sacrifice for iChristmas this year. Imagine if 50 people each contributed $20 this year. As a ministry we would collect $1,000. That amount would be a huge blessing to the DuBaere family.
As you think about iChristmas, consider the blessing you could be to another family in our church. You might think $20 isn’t much, but together we could have a huge, positive impact.
shine!
Jason
Sunday, November 06, 2011
True friendship
The idea of what a friend is has often been distorted in our culture. Many times, friendships are based on what is in it for us. We want friends that will serve our needs and give us what we want.
While it is true that friends should show us love and be there for us, friendship is so much more. Friendship is built on trust, love, and mutual support. Many times, friends will let us down, and when that happens, we should be there for them with an attitude of forgiveness and reconciliation.
Obviously, some friendships have to end because one of the people in the relationship is acting in destructive ways. If you are constantly lied to and mistreated, it may be appropriate and necessary to end the friendship.
However, Jesus offers a friendship that exceeds any other. In Romans, 5:6-8, Paul describes it this way: “You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
A true friend will do something for you, even when you don’t deserve it. Jesus displays his love for us by giving his own life, even when we live in ways that hurt him.
But Jesus’ friendship is not just something he shows us. It is also something he asks us to live our in our own lives. In John 15:12-14, the apostle records the following words that Jesus spoke, “My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command.”
Jesus came to show us love and teach us love. He is a friend and asks us to be a friend as well. If we believe that Jesus is our friend, then we should learn from him what it means to be a friend. He once told an expert in the law, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind,” and “Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37,39)
If we are going to have a friendship with Jesus, then we have to learn to be a friend like Jesus. And that is based on loving God and loving one another. Those two principles are at the heart of what true friendship looks like.
shine!
Jason
While it is true that friends should show us love and be there for us, friendship is so much more. Friendship is built on trust, love, and mutual support. Many times, friends will let us down, and when that happens, we should be there for them with an attitude of forgiveness and reconciliation.
Obviously, some friendships have to end because one of the people in the relationship is acting in destructive ways. If you are constantly lied to and mistreated, it may be appropriate and necessary to end the friendship.
However, Jesus offers a friendship that exceeds any other. In Romans, 5:6-8, Paul describes it this way: “You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
A true friend will do something for you, even when you don’t deserve it. Jesus displays his love for us by giving his own life, even when we live in ways that hurt him.
But Jesus’ friendship is not just something he shows us. It is also something he asks us to live our in our own lives. In John 15:12-14, the apostle records the following words that Jesus spoke, “My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command.”
Jesus came to show us love and teach us love. He is a friend and asks us to be a friend as well. If we believe that Jesus is our friend, then we should learn from him what it means to be a friend. He once told an expert in the law, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind,” and “Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37,39)
If we are going to have a friendship with Jesus, then we have to learn to be a friend like Jesus. And that is based on loving God and loving one another. Those two principles are at the heart of what true friendship looks like.
shine!
Jason
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