Check out my latest blog, click here.

What would be your initial honest response:

1. If you learned that the president of a Fortune 500 company owned and lived in one 1500 square foot home? 
2. If you learned that a famous female movie star had 7 changes of cloths (one for each day) and one pair of shoes in her closet?
3. If your best friend at work just told you that he was devoting all of his large salary increase to supporting his church’s mission efforts?
4. If you learned that a local successful attorney had just given up his practice to live in poverty among an unreached people group in Africa?
5. If you learned that your neighbors had just sold their expensive car and big home to move into an inner city neighborhood to start a house church? 
6. If your child’s best friend announced that instead of pursuing a career as a physician that they were going to attend a local Bible College to prepare for vocational ministry instead?
7. If you learned that a parent from your child’s ball team was pulling their child out of sports so the family could spend time together ministering to residents of a mobile home park?
8. If you learned that a family in your small group was sacrificing many of their comforts and conveniences in order to provide their children with a biblical worldview education? 
9. If you learned that your best friend’s family, which includes five children, was now seeking to adopt a sibling group from a foreign country?  

 Last Question!

 What would be your initial honest response if God asked you and your family to do any of these things?

Check out the latest news for the Peru team here.

Click here for Tim’s latest blog

As I grow older, the more amazed I become at how God moves in my life in graciously unexpected ways. He truly surprises me with His timing and with His plans as they unfold before my eyes. Having now lived through the usual phases of life marked by marriage, having children, raising children, the marriage of those children, the empty nest, and now the coming of grandchildren, it has been nothing like I had planned or expected.

But, I can say with joy that His ways and His plans have far exceeded what I had envisioned or could ever deserve (Ephesians 3:20). I could not have orchestrated a better plan on my best day. I have to admit that there were times of doubt, times when it seemed as if nothing was working out right. I questioned my ability to be the husband and the father God had called me to be. Failures were plentiful so, I questioned what, if any, positive effect I was having within my home.

Looking back now, I see that God was active in and around me the whole time. He was using my failures and my struggles to refine me. He was testing me and trying me in order to transform me into the image of His dear Son. I can see clearly now that my failures did not thwart God’s plans. He was guiding the whole process to produce good in the life of each member of my family. He was graciously providing wisdom and endurance beyond my own limitations to let me experience glimmers of success. But, even in those, I knew that He alone deserved the glory.

I say all this, to make a point. God is sovereign in every area of our lives. Our failures and our successes are used by Him to accomplish His purposes. Our efforts do have effect and influence but, never to the extent that we are in control of what is produced through them. Now that my girls are married and are bringing grandchildren into our family, nothing has worked out how I envisioned. But, it is far better than I ever expected. It is their turn at the plate now and I hope that they someday will appreciate the sovereignty of God over their families as well.

I love the comforting promise of Isaiah 46:9-11 -“Remember the former things of old, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, And I will do all My pleasure,’ Calling a bird of prey from the east, The man who executes My counsel, from a far country. Indeed I have spoken it; I will also bring it to pass. I have purposed it; I will also do it.” 

My admonition to us all is this: “Do everything for the glory of God then trust Him with the results.” Even through pain and struggle, success and failure, He alone can produce results which are better than we could ever imagine.

David Trent

Josh Griffin on March 7th, 2010 From www.morethanadodgeball.com

“In youth ministry, one of the hardest things I’ve had to experience is leading students into a growing relationship with Jesus, while their parents are doing the opposite. In a lot of cases, the parent wants the best for his/her teenager. It’s just that their definition of “best” might not match up with mine. There are some hard-and-fast rules to engage if you don’t want your teenager to care about God. The following are just a few.

1. Make sure their extra-curricular activities are priority over church. You should always make sure that their scholarships are intact, and that they don’t get kicked off the team. That’s definitely more important than their relationship with Christ and eternity, for that matter.

2. When your teenager screws up, ground them from church. Of course! If they don’t care that you take away their TV, cell phone, or friend time, hit them where it hurts. Take away church. Yeah – that oughta do it.

3. Don’t call them out when they need guidance. Always let them make their own mistakes. And if they’re about to do something super-destructive, it’s probably best that they learn on their own. Because learning it the hard way is always the necessary path, right?

4. Talk negatively about your church staff around your teenager. If your pastor messes up, make sure that you call a family meeting to roast him. You should definitely let your teenager know that people can’t be trusted, especially incompetent church leaders. Your teenager needs to know that trusting church leaders isn’t smart! If they don’t trust church leaders, there’s a small chance they’ll ever accept God’s direction in their life. And that’s the safer way to live.

5. Don’t model real faith. At the end of the day, the last thing you want to do, if you want your teenager to ignore God’s voice, is to follow it yourself.”

Please know my heart on this issue. We parents need to be leading our families to Jesus every chance we get. Maybe it’s time to take inventory of who or what we’re actually leading our families to.

After all, actions speak louder than words.

This post was written by Derek Duvall the FBC Middle School Pastor.

I love technology. Actually before I came to Bible College in Tennessee, I went to a school in Indiana for Electrical Engineering Technology, with the hopes of one day becoming the guy you might see on the Today Show on NBC, showing all of the latest gadgets for the year. But with technology comes dangers, and Satan desires to use anything he can for evil, we see this all throughout Scripture. And that is why the need to not only educate yourselves on the dangers of new technology, but also equip your youth to handle them in a mature, Christ-like manner is so important.

One technological advance I believe Satan is really using right now is the cell phone. It has great conveniences, for example it allows parents to contact their youth at anytime, but it also comes with great dangers.  Youth are able to make private phone calls, send text messages, picture messages, download music and games and now some can access the internet from their phones. This necessitates the same amount of parental monitoring, as a home computer.

It is not only the internet that opens up doors to content that you should attempt to protect your youth from; text messaging and picture messaging have also become a great danger. According to a report by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, “20% of teens have sent nude or semi-nude photos of themselves to someone else, and 39% have sent sexually suggestive message.” Also, a Girl Scouts survey in 2002 revealed “54% of teen girls thought they could have an ongoing, online relationship without their parents finding out.” If this percentage of teenage girls believe they can have an ongoing, online relationship without their parents discovering it, chances are, they think they can get away with sexually explicit text or picture messages.

This is not something that is just happening in the high schools; this is happening in our local middle schools as well. I was talking to a parent recently about this topic and the parent was informing me of the alarming number of middle school students who they have overheard in one way or another, talking about what is being called, “sexting.” Even if you believe your youth is one who would never send an explicit text or picture message, there is still a good chance they could receive one from someone else, even when unsolicited.

There are some conveniences to your youth having a cell phone, but with it also come many dangers. As a parent, you must protect them and train them up in the way they should go Proverbs 22:6. You must be diligent about teaching your youth the Word of God, in every opportunity Deuteronomy 6:7.

Some easy and practical things that can be done to protect your youth who have cell phones:

• Check the bill from your provider; it lists each number of sent and received calls and messages. You can then use this to monitor who your youth is sending/receiving calls and messages from – Parents, don’t be naïve, youth know how to delete information from their phones, if you check them – look at the monthly statement.
• Many cell phone companies also provide means in which you can limit or remove certain features. Give them a call a see how they can help you in protecting your teen.
• It is my thinking that there is NO reason for a teenage child to have picture messaging, I am not able to think of one reason to allow for the temptation to be allowed, but also it provides protection for your youth, in that if picture messaging is turned off it does not allow for them to receive an inappropriate picture message.

 If you are considering buying your youth a cell phone, remember that you have been given this child to shepherd and lead. You don’t HAVE to give into the peer pressure and culture that surrounds you and your child. Romans 12:2 “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind”. Don’t let the culture shape the decisions you make, but God’s Word!

Derek

As we approach what is suppose to be a “major snow event” in the Tennessee Valley, the anticipation is so thick you can feel it. It is the subject of discussion around work places and on the news. Schools and businesses are already closing before the first flake falls. And, the milk and bread isles of the grocery stores are looking bare. But, with all this anticipation, those who have lived in the area for any period of time know not to get too excited until the snow is actually on the ground. Knoxvillians who enjoy a good snow occassionally have had their hopes dashed too many times to buy into a weather forcast no matter how acurate it may seem.

I was thinking this morning about anticipation of another kind. I was wondering why I, and many other brothers and sisters in Christ, do not have the same sense of excitment and expectancy over the imminent return of our Lord and Savior! In Revelation 22:12 Jesus makes this promise, “And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work”. Now there is a forcast we can truly count on. Our Savior is returning and I personally believe it could at any moment! The question is, do we really live our lives in light of that truth?

The preparations made for a significant weather event rearranges. at least for a short time, our priorities and daily routines. So shouldn’t the expectancy of the Second Coming produce the same response in us except in a permanent way? If we truly believe the event is imminent (at hand, just around the corner) then shouldn’t we rearrange our priorities and alter our daily routines? What would that look like in the life of a Believer?

First, I think we would want to have our Lord return and find us at work in His vineyard. We would make less time for the many things that fill up our schedules but are of no eternal value and make more time for those things which further God’s Kingdom. If we knew for certain tomorrow was “the Day”, wouldn’t we make a profound effort to share the Gospel at least with those we know and love? Second, I think we would see our comfort, conveniences, and material possessions in a different light. We would readily lay those things aside in an act of loving sacrifice to our Lord in order to meet the needs of others, especially “the least of these.” The eternal would finally trump the temporal!!!

I hope that if we truly get a significant amount of snow and ice this weekend, that we all take advantage of the  ”down time” to reflect on our lives in light of Christ’s return. May there be areas of our lives that are permanently altered because we have by faith taken hold of this magnificent promise.

Have a great weekend!

David