STUDENTS! Reality Weekend 2011 is quickly approaching! Here are the details you need to know:
WHEN: Jan 14-16, 2011 WHAT: A discipleship weekend with an amazing band, awesome speaker & great fellowship! WHERE: Small groups in local homes WHO: 6th -12th grade students (ALL friends invited!) WHO: Jared Herd (speaker) & Phil Wickham (worship) WHY: To experience God & grow closer to Him as His disciple!
You need to register by JAN 5 & turn in your form to me here at NLBC. This is something you do NOT want to miss out on. It will be such a great experience & the Lord could use it to change your life forever!
CHRISTMAS! The most wonderful time of the year! The time of giving, family & love. But also the time to celebrate the birth of our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ. And as we celebrate His birth, let's take a look at the men searching for Him nearly 2,000 years ago.
Matthew 2 gives us the story of the magi following the star as they searched for the baby. They tell Herod they were looking for the "king" so they could come & "worship" Him. It was an extremely significant event & an extremely significant search. And all they had to do was follow the star. In fact, they were "overjoyed" at the sight of the star & excited about where God was leading them & what they were going to find. They were on the search.
So this brings me to the question: what about YOU? What are YOU searching for?
Are you searching for the things of this world? Acceptance? Popularity? A boyfriend/girlfriend? Belonging? Love? Too often we get lost searching for the wrong things in this world. Too often we lose focus on our search & get lost. If we were magi, it's safe to say we've lost sight of the star.
And even Isaiah 41 tells us about thirsty people looking for water. Which makes sense, right? But even you who are thirsty & only searching for water, you will not be satisfied. You will not be fulfilled. You will not get a drink. Because you're looking for the wrong thing.
The thing about the wise men was they got where they needed by following God's leading. They trusted what God had revealed to them & trusted in God's star He had provided for direction. They were seeking Him & searching Him. They were looking for God! They weren't trying to get there alone. They didn't use a compass or bust out a prehistoric GPS. They trusted God's leading & sought Him first & foremost.
Matthew 6:33 commands us to "seek first His kingdom & His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." We are commanded to seek God first. Seek Him over ALL things. Seeking & searching for Him should be our top PRIORITY over everything else.
And when we figure out we're called to seek God first & search for Him alone, we also realize God has been waiting for us all along. He has been drawing us back to Him & waiting for us to get there. In the story of the prodigal son, he gets lost & ends up in a "far off country." Some distant land. But when he realizes he's lost, he searches & seeks his way back home. And upon his return, he finds his father waiting. Waiting for him to come home. Waiting to celebrate his return.
So again, what are you searching for? Is seeking God's plan for your life top priority? Are you seeking His will & His word first & foremost?
Or have you lost sight of the star? Have you gotten lost in this world & lost in your sin?
The time is now to come home. The time is now to seek God's leading & come back to Him. He's waiting. Just like Jesus was waiting for the wise men to find Him 2,000 years ago, Jesus is still waiting for you today.
Jesus is the star. He is THE way. He will lead you to the father.
It's critical you guys stay informed so you can continually be involved in New Life Student Ministries & make sure you're not missing out on anything AWESOME. Which is basically everything we do. So, be informed:
Chris August & Point of Grace! Tomorrow night. 7 PM. FBC Benton. Doors open at 6 PM & tickets will be $12 at the door or $10 if you swing by & get them early. We won't be providing transportation but we sure will be sitting together! Come worship!
Mall & Movie Mayhem! This Saturday will be our new & exciting December event. Meet here at NLBC @ 11:45 AM. Going to see the new Chronicles of Narnia film at 12:10 PM & then off to Little Rock for some Christmas shopping & fellowship at the mall! Bring about $20 for your movie & food.
Spring Break! Because it's Christmas, your next $100 deposit won't be due until Jan 14. That way, Christmas won't be as stressful & won't cost you an arm & a leg. And some of us don't have an arm to lose.
Do you like low prices? Do you enjoy not paying much to do things & go places with our student ministry?
If this sounds like you, then you'd love fund-raising! This is a great way to ensure things are cheaper for you to be involved so you & your parents can enjoy supporting & attending New Life Student Ministries!
Sonic Cards! Sell those puppies for $5 a piece & we'll be banking. Remember, if you steal, you will die. Read Acts.
Child Care! This friday night we'll be hosting children (and some of you) to provide child-care. Parents will drop off theirs kids at the church so they go to Christmas parties, shopping, out on a date, etc. So be here from 6 PM - 10 PM & bring you a sack dinner.
Rubber Bands! Get your very own New Life Student Ministries rubber band. And for the Christmas season, they're on sale for only $1.00.
T-Shirts! The time is now to get our new t-shirt. It's a hot Christmas item & these shirts are straight up slinkin. Only $15 my friends.
And if you're not too excited by these fund-raisers, just think this will be all of you after we raise some money & lower costs:
MC Hammer brought us such a relevant truth in the word legit. It has become a highly popular word used in today's culture & is our standard for something or someone that is real & authentic. When we think of legit, we often think of someone completely real. Completely sold out. 100% authentic.
But when we look at ourselves as Christians, are we legit? Are we for real? Are we authentic? 100% sold out?
Often, we get the wrong idea thinking we're legit. We think we're real because we were raised in a Christian home. Because we have good morals, make good decisions & treat people right. Or maybe because we go to church. And even believe in God & Jesus.
Bu those things don't make us legit. It's WAY more than that. Granted those things are how we should be living & what we should be doing, but to become truly legit, we must truly become LIKE Jesus. Become His disciple.
From the start, we were made to be like Him. Genesis 1:26 tells us we were created in God's image & likeness. And then Ephesians 4 calls us to renew ourselves in becoming like Him once again. So, from the very beginning, we were made to be like Jesus.
And once we realize being legit means becoming like Jesus, we take on the role of becoming His disciple. And being His disciple calls for us to:
Live in God's Word. In John 8:31, Jesus tell us we are truly His disciples if we hold to His teaching. We are truly disciples if we follow what He tells us & obey His commands. 1 John 5 tells us that loving God is obeying Him.
Loves Others. Jesus tells us in John 13 that "all men will know you are my disciples if you love one another." Loving each other is huge. Love God. Love others.
Show It. John 15 challenges us to produce fruit in order to show we are disciples of Jesus. It should be completely evident to this world & all people that we belong to Jesus by what's produced in our life. By our words. Actions. The way we live. It must be evident.
So why? Why must we be legit? Why is it so necessary to be real & authentic as followers of Jesus? Because we are called to be a light in this dark world we live in. Philippians 2:15 challenges to be authentic "so that you may become blameless & pure, children of God without fault in a crooked & depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe." We are called to show & share the light of Christ to this dark & sinful world.
Nobody wants to follow something fake. Nobody wants to believe in something that's not real. If we're not real as Christians, who will want to follow us to Jesus? How will we lead others to Him if we're not legit ourselves?
Be real. Be authentic. Be legit. 2 legit. 2 legit 2 quit.
