How have you seen your identity in Christ impact your ministry?
What helps you restore your identity?
My identity in Christ definitely gives me encouragement on days when my lessons are more dry or just not as good. This identity keeps me going if I ever mess up or say something stupid. Especially being Reformed, God's grace and sovereignty give me the security that I need when things are just not going my way.
What helps restore my identity? Lots of reading from Reformed folks like R.C. Sproul and even Calvin keep me afloat. Taking time to sing from my hymnal and read the Scriptures also helps. Here lately, God has been showing himself to me through my friendships. It's like they make his love more tangible.
What helps restore my identity? Lots of reading from Reformed folks like R.C. Sproul and even Calvin keep me afloat. Taking time to sing from my hymnal and read the Scriptures also helps. Here lately, God has been showing himself to me through my friendships. It's like they make his love more tangible.
The next is about youth culture: Are you up to date with youth culture? This lecture is 10 years old, how do you recommend we stay current? – what has helped you?
At this point, I am out of ideas on keeping in touch with current trends in the culture, but here is my answer: Right now I'm pretty fluent in the Hunger Games books and the Twilight books. I can talk to the 13-year-old about them. I usually follow YouTube trends to see about culture. I'm a bit out of touch. Sometimes, there will be media commentary shows on YouTube like Whatthebuck that I watched for a while. Facebook also keeps me posted on what's going on. Sometimes I read what's trending on Yahoo!. I listen to the radio from time to time. I actually would like to be more up-to-date. I look forward to other remarks.
I don't even follow WTB anymore because I finally couldn't get past his gayness. I haven't found a really good alternative, though reading the news helps.
For now, I'm feeling a weight off of my shoulders, although I also can't help thinking about events this week. Last year, I joined the EPC church by becoming a member of the church where I youth pastor. This past weekend at Presbytery, my dad joined the denom as an ordained minister. We are both free from the PCUSA, but until now we had not felt free from Smyrna, my home church. Now, I've been released from that as the preacher this week decided that it's okay to ordain gays. I honestly didn't see that coming, but I had been estranged from the youth pastor since about 2005, who has no restraint in his liberal ideologies. Our falling out became official just before the new year. He left a perverted looking comment on facebook. I commented on it. He sent me a nasty letter calling me judgmental and unfriended me.
Now, I know that judgment is probably my biggest flaw, but this guy doesn't really know me anymore. And besides, isn't it judgmental to call someone judgmental? Either way, I'm shaking Smyrna's dust off my feet for the time being. I really do feel free from that old weight, but I still feel sad for the youth of Conyers who have to be influenced by this. But on the bright side, I can focus on my own ministry without being divided by another master, and you don't know how happy that makes me.
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