Hey crew....sorry I missed yesterday....busy day being off and spending some quality time with my PS3...Anyways let's cover a couple of points today. Wednesday we pointed out that the first thing we should do with the elderly is to show them honor. Here's another couple of points we need to remember.
Treat them as family.
Read 1 Timothy 5:1-2.
Have you guys ever had to complete a family tree for a school project or anything? It's a pretty interesting experience most the time. There's all kinds of information that you learn that you may have not known about family that you thought you knew well. You also sometimes learn of family that you never even had!
So how is the biological family similar to the spiritual family? Isn't church supposed to be like a family? If that's true than everybody that you see on Sundays and Wednesdays are part of your spiritual family. Some of you have probably been influenced already in your lives by one or more of the elderly folks that we have at the church. If you haven't already, you will....I can promise that.
See, Timothy was a young pastor who had a church filled with people of all ages, including the elderly. Paul wrote to encourage Timothy to treat others with respect and honor, including the older members of his congregation. Timothy's challenge was to treat the elderly he ministered to as if they were his father or mother.
Why do you think Timothy might have needed this advice from Paul?
How are the elderly treated in our church? How will seeing the elderly as members in God's family - a family of which all Christians are a part - help you to treat them with greater respect?
Let's look at one more point quickly.....
Listen to their wisdom.
Read Job 12:12.
A lot of times we find it easy to dismiss the opinions of the elderly and we avoid taking time to visit them. But Job 12:12 is a reminder that the elderly have a wisdom which can only be gained from experience and long life. Some elderly people feel like no one wants to listen to them because of their age, but there are so many things to be learned from someone who has lived a long and full life in relationship with God.
So to rap this week up....let's summarize....we need to respect the older people in our lives and in our church family. We need to honor them, treat them as family, and listen and learn from their wisdom. Most of these things we already knew, but sometimes we need to be reminded! Have a great weekend and we'll see ya Sunday morning!
Heffe
Friday, August 13, 2010
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
How Do I Deal With Old People? - Day 2
Good Wednesday to everyone! Well I think a few people caught the hidden word play in the title yesterday... (How do I DILL with Old People......get it?......dill like a pickle.....anyways), but a few is better than none.
So yesterday we talked about the elderly and how our society, in a lot of ways, has devalued them to the point that we consider them a burden to us! So how does that affect me, a teenage - Christ follower? What do I need to do with the elderly? Well here's the first thing:
Show them honor.
If you read Leviticus 19, which I'm sure you all have, it presents a summary of how God's people were to live out His commandments in their community. God says that one way you can show you honor and respect Him is to honor and respect the elderly.
Read Leviticus 19:32
Do you ever stand up in the presence of the elderly - maybe to offer them your seat in a crowded room? How does this demonstrate that you honor them?
The fact that God commanded the Israelites to honor the elderly shows how seriously that we should take the responsibility of respecting older people. Senior adults often feel lonely or believe they are no longer useful. Simply because they are "old" doesn't make people worth less. God values all people, no matter what age they are.
What does it mean to "honor" the elderly to you and how can you do it?
Why is it so rare for the elderly to be honored in our culture today?
What is your typical response to the elderly: to honor or to dishonor them?
Hope that impacts your day in a small way today and we'll see you tonight at Ignite for another edition of Ask Anything.....we're gonna play "Dice of Death" so come check it out up in the Attic @ 6!
So yesterday we talked about the elderly and how our society, in a lot of ways, has devalued them to the point that we consider them a burden to us! So how does that affect me, a teenage - Christ follower? What do I need to do with the elderly? Well here's the first thing:
Show them honor.
If you read Leviticus 19, which I'm sure you all have, it presents a summary of how God's people were to live out His commandments in their community. God says that one way you can show you honor and respect Him is to honor and respect the elderly.
Read Leviticus 19:32
Do you ever stand up in the presence of the elderly - maybe to offer them your seat in a crowded room? How does this demonstrate that you honor them?
The fact that God commanded the Israelites to honor the elderly shows how seriously that we should take the responsibility of respecting older people. Senior adults often feel lonely or believe they are no longer useful. Simply because they are "old" doesn't make people worth less. God values all people, no matter what age they are.
What does it mean to "honor" the elderly to you and how can you do it?
Why is it so rare for the elderly to be honored in our culture today?
What is your typical response to the elderly: to honor or to dishonor them?
Hope that impacts your day in a small way today and we'll see you tonight at Ignite for another edition of Ask Anything.....we're gonna play "Dice of Death" so come check it out up in the Attic @ 6!
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
How Do I Dill With Old People? - Day 1
Alright, so this is not the most respectful title for sure, but I wanted to grab your attention for the blog this week! This past Sunday we spent the morning talking about abortion and where the Bible stands on the issue....so I thought that since we talked about babies Sunday morning we move to the other end of the spectrum this week and talk about the elderly.
Given enough time, we're all gonna be old one day. So what age do you think "old" starts at? 30? 40? 70? What do you think you'll be like when you're old? Will you be the crabby old person that hates everything, or will you be the sweet little old lady that everybody loves gettin' a hug from? What age do you think people are too old to contribute to society?
Throughout history, people who most of us might consider "old" have done some pretty amazing things! For example: Ronald Reagan was elected President of the United States at the age of 69. Harry Bernstein published his first book at the age of 96! Doris Hancock walked across the United States at the age of 90 and ran for public office at the age of 94. Arthur Winston didn't retire from his job until he was 100. George H. W. Bush jumped out of a plane on his 80th birthday. Olive Riley started blogging when she was 107. At the age of 84, Doc Pasowitz was still surfing everyday. Mae Laborde began her acting career when she was 93. Jack LaLanne did 1,033 push-ups in 23 minutes when he was 70. He published another book on physical fitness at the age of 95. Willie Nelson continues to write songs and perform across the U.S. at the age of 75.
I have to admit I was a little surprised when I found these facts. I was amazed at some of the things they could accomplish at their age, and amazed that they could accomplish them at all! I mean 1,033 push-ups in 23 minutes? Are you serious?
Our church has senior adults who have much to offer. You'll be learning a little bit more about some ways we are going to be connecting with them in the weeks to come!
Ok...back to the question....how do I deal with the old people....or elderly to be more respectful. First off, how do you guys feel about the elderly? Do you think our society values them? Do you think our church values them?
So here's a word for you: Euthanasia - the act or practice of killing or permitting the death of hopelessly sick or injured individuals (as persons or domestic animals) in a relatively painless way for reasons of mercy.
Our society doesn't put much value on the elderly, particularly those who are ill or in nursing homes. Through the years, our culture has devalued life to the point of accepting a practice called euthanasia. Euthanasia means intentionally making someone die, rather than waiting for the person to die naturally. This practice of killing painlessly is intended to all someone who is suffering incurably to die on their time-table and without pain.
So what do you guys think euthanasia communicates about the value of life?
I'm sure most of you already knew about euthanasia, so tell me what you think about it!
We'll talk more tomorrow!
Heffe
Given enough time, we're all gonna be old one day. So what age do you think "old" starts at? 30? 40? 70? What do you think you'll be like when you're old? Will you be the crabby old person that hates everything, or will you be the sweet little old lady that everybody loves gettin' a hug from? What age do you think people are too old to contribute to society?
Throughout history, people who most of us might consider "old" have done some pretty amazing things! For example: Ronald Reagan was elected President of the United States at the age of 69. Harry Bernstein published his first book at the age of 96! Doris Hancock walked across the United States at the age of 90 and ran for public office at the age of 94. Arthur Winston didn't retire from his job until he was 100. George H. W. Bush jumped out of a plane on his 80th birthday. Olive Riley started blogging when she was 107. At the age of 84, Doc Pasowitz was still surfing everyday. Mae Laborde began her acting career when she was 93. Jack LaLanne did 1,033 push-ups in 23 minutes when he was 70. He published another book on physical fitness at the age of 95. Willie Nelson continues to write songs and perform across the U.S. at the age of 75.
I have to admit I was a little surprised when I found these facts. I was amazed at some of the things they could accomplish at their age, and amazed that they could accomplish them at all! I mean 1,033 push-ups in 23 minutes? Are you serious?
Our church has senior adults who have much to offer. You'll be learning a little bit more about some ways we are going to be connecting with them in the weeks to come!
Ok...back to the question....how do I deal with the old people....or elderly to be more respectful. First off, how do you guys feel about the elderly? Do you think our society values them? Do you think our church values them?
So here's a word for you: Euthanasia - the act or practice of killing or permitting the death of hopelessly sick or injured individuals (as persons or domestic animals) in a relatively painless way for reasons of mercy.
Our society doesn't put much value on the elderly, particularly those who are ill or in nursing homes. Through the years, our culture has devalued life to the point of accepting a practice called euthanasia. Euthanasia means intentionally making someone die, rather than waiting for the person to die naturally. This practice of killing painlessly is intended to all someone who is suffering incurably to die on their time-table and without pain.
So what do you guys think euthanasia communicates about the value of life?
I'm sure most of you already knew about euthanasia, so tell me what you think about it!
We'll talk more tomorrow!
Heffe
Friday, August 6, 2010
How Can I Show That People Are Valuable - Day 3
Alright folks...I guess most of you are back at school RIGHT NOW....crazy to think the summer's gone! I don't want to get you sent to detention your first day cause you're checking the blog in the middle of class so let's dive right in...
We're talking this week about how we can show people that we know that they are valuable....we've already talked about not using people and not condemning and accusing people...so what about today?
See past what they are to what they can become
Read John 8:8-11 this morning....
By saying that only a sinless person should throw the first stone at the accused woman, Jesus demonstrated that He loved the woman and valued her in spite of her sin. As a result, each of the accusers walked away until Jesus was left alone with only the woman.
Those men left because they knew who they really were, and many of them had sin in their lives just as the woman did. God doesn't put sin on a ranking system, with one being worse than the other - sin is sin.
So imagine you're that woman, waiting to be beaten or worse, and Jesus challenges all those accusing you and they leave. How do you think you would be feeling about Jesus at that moment?
I hate planting/gardening stuff....it just doesn't really interest me, but it's still a pretty amazing process. I could bring a seed or a plant in it's first stages and we could all sit around and guess what type of plant it would become. The seed or the early plant might not look like it has that much potential...it might be really short or kinda ugly or really puny looking. But imagine seeing that plant full grown and in full bloom. The plant full-grown is obviously gonna look a whole lot different than the plant when it's first started. Once the plant has been given what it needs to reach its full bloom it looks remarkably different.
It's the same with people....some folks may not look like they have much potential, but with the right amount of love and a sense of being valued, they can become much more than anybody thought!
Has there been a time when someone loved you past your mistakes and poor choices and you became much more than you thought you could become?
How does believing in people can change demonstrate that you value them?
Jesus doesn't treat sin lightly but He does offer sinful people the opportunity to be forgiven and to live their lives differently. What the woman was caught doing was totally wrong and against God's laws. But, Jesus didn't condemn the woman, but instead forgave her and challenged her to leave her life of sin.
When we sin, it deeply hurts God because sin destroys our relationship with Him. When Jesus saw that the woman had been caught in the act of sin, His heart was, no doubt, broken for her. He extended compassion toward her. He saw past what she was at that moment to what He knew she could become (and what God had created her to be).
See Jesus was capable of balancing the righteousness of God with the love of God.
How can you maintain godly standards yet still express love to others who are doing what you know to be wrong?
It's a challenge sometimes to see past where people are now and to focus on who and where they could be....but I'm sure it's tough for people to do the same for us a lot of times too. Think on that today!
Heffe
We're talking this week about how we can show people that we know that they are valuable....we've already talked about not using people and not condemning and accusing people...so what about today?
See past what they are to what they can become
Read John 8:8-11 this morning....
By saying that only a sinless person should throw the first stone at the accused woman, Jesus demonstrated that He loved the woman and valued her in spite of her sin. As a result, each of the accusers walked away until Jesus was left alone with only the woman.
Those men left because they knew who they really were, and many of them had sin in their lives just as the woman did. God doesn't put sin on a ranking system, with one being worse than the other - sin is sin.
So imagine you're that woman, waiting to be beaten or worse, and Jesus challenges all those accusing you and they leave. How do you think you would be feeling about Jesus at that moment?
I hate planting/gardening stuff....it just doesn't really interest me, but it's still a pretty amazing process. I could bring a seed or a plant in it's first stages and we could all sit around and guess what type of plant it would become. The seed or the early plant might not look like it has that much potential...it might be really short or kinda ugly or really puny looking. But imagine seeing that plant full grown and in full bloom. The plant full-grown is obviously gonna look a whole lot different than the plant when it's first started. Once the plant has been given what it needs to reach its full bloom it looks remarkably different.
It's the same with people....some folks may not look like they have much potential, but with the right amount of love and a sense of being valued, they can become much more than anybody thought!
Has there been a time when someone loved you past your mistakes and poor choices and you became much more than you thought you could become?
How does believing in people can change demonstrate that you value them?
Jesus doesn't treat sin lightly but He does offer sinful people the opportunity to be forgiven and to live their lives differently. What the woman was caught doing was totally wrong and against God's laws. But, Jesus didn't condemn the woman, but instead forgave her and challenged her to leave her life of sin.
When we sin, it deeply hurts God because sin destroys our relationship with Him. When Jesus saw that the woman had been caught in the act of sin, His heart was, no doubt, broken for her. He extended compassion toward her. He saw past what she was at that moment to what He knew she could become (and what God had created her to be).
See Jesus was capable of balancing the righteousness of God with the love of God.
How can you maintain godly standards yet still express love to others who are doing what you know to be wrong?
It's a challenge sometimes to see past where people are now and to focus on who and where they could be....but I'm sure it's tough for people to do the same for us a lot of times too. Think on that today!
Heffe
Thursday, August 5, 2010
How Can I Show That People Are Valuable - Day 2
Alright youthies....well I hope you're all having a great Thursday....hopefully you guys got some sleep after our Ghost edition of Ask Anything last night! This week we're talking about how we can show that we believe people are valuable. Yesterday, we talked about not using people, so let's pick up right where we left off. Here's today's point:
Don't be condemning or accusatory.
Can you remember a time when you felt "tried and convicted" by a group of people? What is it about condemnation that makes people feel unloved?
Let's read John 8:6-7....
We don't know for sure what Jesus wrote on the ground while the woman's accusers continued to press Him for a response. Some think Jesus was ignoring the men; others think He was listing the men's sins; others think He wrote out the Ten Commandments. Regardless of what Jesus wrote on the ground, His answer forced the men to examine their personal lives for evidence of wrongdoing.
What do you think Jesus meant by His response in John 8:7? How could an honest assessment of our own lives help us avoid being condemning of accusatory toward someone else?
Do you think the woman was surprised Jesus didn't immediately condemn her?
When other people are caught doing something bad, are you quick to pass judgement on them? Why or why not? How does acknowledging your own sin and God's forgiveness of it help you to extend love to others?
Just as we mentioned yesterday, it doesn't feel good to be accused or condemned for mistakes we've made....often times it feels unfair, and it sure doesn't make us feel loved. We need to remember this as we think about our actions and relationships with those around us!
We'll see you guys tomorrow on the blog...have a good one!
Heffe
Don't be condemning or accusatory.
Can you remember a time when you felt "tried and convicted" by a group of people? What is it about condemnation that makes people feel unloved?
Let's read John 8:6-7....
We don't know for sure what Jesus wrote on the ground while the woman's accusers continued to press Him for a response. Some think Jesus was ignoring the men; others think He was listing the men's sins; others think He wrote out the Ten Commandments. Regardless of what Jesus wrote on the ground, His answer forced the men to examine their personal lives for evidence of wrongdoing.
What do you think Jesus meant by His response in John 8:7? How could an honest assessment of our own lives help us avoid being condemning of accusatory toward someone else?
Do you think the woman was surprised Jesus didn't immediately condemn her?
When other people are caught doing something bad, are you quick to pass judgement on them? Why or why not? How does acknowledging your own sin and God's forgiveness of it help you to extend love to others?
Just as we mentioned yesterday, it doesn't feel good to be accused or condemned for mistakes we've made....often times it feels unfair, and it sure doesn't make us feel loved. We need to remember this as we think about our actions and relationships with those around us!
We'll see you guys tomorrow on the blog...have a good one!
Heffe
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
How Can I Show That People Are Valuable - Day 1
Hey youthies....well ATL has come and gone with the rest of our summer, and most of you guys start back at the "S" word this week ("School" for those of you whose minds may be farther in the gutter than they should be!) With school starting back, you guys are entering one of the most fertile mission grounds around: your schools. You have the chance to fall back into your regular routine and continue impacting only the same old group of friends, or this year you can set out to change things up a bit and make a much larger footprint wherever you are! This week we're gonna look at a helpful question to get you started. Sunday we talked about how we can know that we are important to God and we found that He knows us, He's with us and He made us and therefore He loves us. So the question now becomes how can we show that other people are valuable?
So how do you guys determine how much value something has? Is it based on price?...or maybe whether you love it more than something else? If you do believe an item is worth greater value, do you treat it differently than you do items you don't think are worth as much? Why?
If you had a brand new iPad or a laptop or even a new Droid or iPhone, would you treat it differently than something you've had for let's say 2years? Why?
This month we're going to discover how our actions and attitudes indicate the value we hold for other people. So here's the first way that we can show people that we know that they are valuable:
Don't use people.
Has anybody ever told on you for doing something wrong? My sister used to "rat" me out all the time and usually I ended up paying for it with my rear end (My pops was a Marine who knew how to give convincing spankings).
What does it mean to use someone?
Read John 8:1-6......
How did the people in this story use the woman?
A group of religious leaders brought before Jesus a woman caught in the act of adultery...(basically she was having sex outside of marriage). But they didn't bring the man with whom she was having sex with....according to Jewish law at that time, the penalty for adultery was stoning to death.
How do you think this girl felt in the presence of all the people accusing her?
What could the religious leaders have done to show love for this woman in spite of her sin?
See, the religious leaders could have brought the woman to Jesus privately instead of accusing her in public. If these leaders were truly offended by this act of sin, they would have brought both the man and the woman. The accusers weren't really concerned about this woman - they were simply using her to trap Jesus. If Jesus said the woman shouldn't be stoned, He could be accused of not obeying the Jewish laws. If Jesus said she should be stoned, then the religious leaders could report Him to the Roman authorities who didn't let the Jews carry out their own executions.
The religious leaders used this woman for their own purposes. In what ways are people "used" today? Have you ever felt like you were "used"? Have you ever "used" someone else?
How does "using" someone demonstrate that you don't value them?
Being used is not an enjoyable experience....it's deeply hurtful to whomever is being used. If we truly believe that people are valuable and important then we won't do something that purposely is hurtful and causes them pain. Think on that one tonight and hopefully we'll see you guys at Ignite in about 90 minutes!!!
Heffe
So how do you guys determine how much value something has? Is it based on price?...or maybe whether you love it more than something else? If you do believe an item is worth greater value, do you treat it differently than you do items you don't think are worth as much? Why?
If you had a brand new iPad or a laptop or even a new Droid or iPhone, would you treat it differently than something you've had for let's say 2years? Why?
This month we're going to discover how our actions and attitudes indicate the value we hold for other people. So here's the first way that we can show people that we know that they are valuable:
Don't use people.
Has anybody ever told on you for doing something wrong? My sister used to "rat" me out all the time and usually I ended up paying for it with my rear end (My pops was a Marine who knew how to give convincing spankings).
What does it mean to use someone?
Read John 8:1-6......
How did the people in this story use the woman?
A group of religious leaders brought before Jesus a woman caught in the act of adultery...(basically she was having sex outside of marriage). But they didn't bring the man with whom she was having sex with....according to Jewish law at that time, the penalty for adultery was stoning to death.
How do you think this girl felt in the presence of all the people accusing her?
What could the religious leaders have done to show love for this woman in spite of her sin?
See, the religious leaders could have brought the woman to Jesus privately instead of accusing her in public. If these leaders were truly offended by this act of sin, they would have brought both the man and the woman. The accusers weren't really concerned about this woman - they were simply using her to trap Jesus. If Jesus said the woman shouldn't be stoned, He could be accused of not obeying the Jewish laws. If Jesus said she should be stoned, then the religious leaders could report Him to the Roman authorities who didn't let the Jews carry out their own executions.
The religious leaders used this woman for their own purposes. In what ways are people "used" today? Have you ever felt like you were "used"? Have you ever "used" someone else?
How does "using" someone demonstrate that you don't value them?
Being used is not an enjoyable experience....it's deeply hurtful to whomever is being used. If we truly believe that people are valuable and important then we won't do something that purposely is hurtful and causes them pain. Think on that one tonight and hopefully we'll see you guys at Ignite in about 90 minutes!!!
Heffe
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