Category: Just for Youth

by: Jonathan Painter

Solomon writes in the book of Ecclesiastes, “I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all.” (Ecclesiastes 9:11) Solomon notes that no matter how talented you are in your field of skill, there are still two factors which you cannot control. These factors are time and chance. The runner may be swift, but his success still depends on time and chance. The soldier may be strong, but the battle is still affected by time and chance. There are two things that I notice regarding the speculation of Solomon.

1. Prepare in the face of time and chance.

The point of Solomon’s writing was not to discourage preparation. The runner must still train and prepare to be swift for the race. The soldier should still train and prepare for the battle. The wise man must work to feed his family. What Solomon is conveying in this passage is that preparation does not guarantee victory because time and chance are still a factor. Preparation is necessary. The runner who does not train to be swift and allows himself to be fat and slow will not win the race. A fighter who does not train his hands, eyes and mind will not win the fight.

Young person, in your life, preparation is most important; however, do not convince yourself that since you have prepared you will never face a storm. Yes, please prepare yourself, but keep in mind that there will be trials and you may not always feel like you are on top because time and chance happens. A surgeon goes into a heart surgery. He has made all the appropriate preparations. He himself has been properly prepared for the operation. During the operation the surgeon does not make one mistake; however, he finds that when he is finished his patient did not pulled through. What went wrong? All the preparations were made, but time and chance happened. A wise man will face the fact that although all preparations have been made, things could go wrong because man cannot control time and chance.

2. Pray to the One Who controls time and chance.

The surface of this verse seems very doom and gloom, and the first part of this article has taken on the same affect; however, the beautiful part of this verse is in this, GOD HOLDS TIME AND CHANCE IN HIS HAND! Therefore, if I am saved, my Father holds time and chance in his hand. Therefore, my chief preparation for any task ought to be PRAYER to my Father. Young person, prepare for every situation of life, but as you prepare, be sure to pray. Does this mean we will never face trouble in our life? No! We will still face struggles, for struggles make us stronger; however, we can know that we have a personal relationship with the Father Who holds time and chance.

I could not imagine living life as a lost man. Time and chance would be such a scary thought if I did not know the One Who controls it. Knowing God and walking with Him gives us the confidence we need to face time and chance. God will allow us to struggle some to help make us stronger. Yet, we must always remember that God will not give us more than we are able bear.

Jonathan Painter
Youth Pastor
Lincoln Baptist Church
Lincoln, NE

by: Steve Cox

Proverbs 18:14, “The Spirit of man will sustain his infirmity; but a wounded spirit who can bear?”

Proverbs 18:20-21, “A man’s belly shall be satisfied with the fruit of his mouth; and with the increase of his lips shall he be filled. Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.”

Genesis 37:1-5, “And Jacob dwelt in the land wherein his father was a stranger, in the land of Canaan. These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brethren; and the lad was with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives: and Joseph brought unto his father their evil report. Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many colours. And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto him. And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more.”

Rejection: 1. To refuse to accept, recognize, believe, 2. To refuse to grant; deny as a petition, 3. To cast away as worthless; discard.

This subject is one that everyone struggles with. No one wants to be rejected. When someone rejects you, they are saying that you are not important to them right now. They refuse to accept you for who you are. When someone rejects Christ, they are saying that Christ is not important to them, or they don’t need Him right now. In Isaiah 53:3, “He was despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrow, and acquainted with grief; and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.” Christ is still being rejected every day. When a man slams the door in your face, although it does not feel good, he is not slamming the door on you, but on Christ. Christ knew how rejection felt when the crowd yelled, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!” Rejection is nothing new to our Saviour, but to us as Christians, we struggle with it.

Everyone wants to feel accepted, not rejected. When a young person is rejected from a certain group of kids, it hurts very deeply. Rejection can lead to a wounded spirit. Rejection can cut straight to the bone; so deep that no one seems to be able to heal our hurts.

There are three groups of people from whom we can experience rejection:

1. Friends: Your friends are what make you or break you in your youth. I would be very careful trying to fit in with a certain crowd. The right crowd of friends won’t reject you, but will help you to be a better Christian. If a certain group rejects you, it is probably not the right group to be with anyway. Get your Bible out and study the lives of Daniel, Joseph, David, Joshua and our Saviour. These men did not try to fit in with any certain group, yet still faced rejection. The apostle Paul experienced this when he said, “Demas hath forsaken me, loving this present world….”
2. Foes: This group of people is the one group you can expect rejection from. Handling rejection from this group is still tough. You have to remember that the reason you are being rejected has to do with what you believe and what you stand for. You will have some enemies along the way because of the stand you take for Christ. 2 Timothy 3:12 says, “Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.”
3. Family: This group of people may hurt you the most when it comes to rejection. I have personally dealt with many teens who have faced their family turning their back on them. Living for God, going to church faithfully, reading your Bible, having a prayer life, practicing biblical separation and other things can cause your family to reject you. In Genesis 37, we see a young man by the name of Joseph who was hated and rejected by his brethren, sold into slavery, falsely accused, forgotten, etc… By Genesis 50:20 he says, “But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.”

As we have seen, rejection can come from all kinds of people, but we don’t have to let it destroy our spirit. Here are some ways to overcome and handle rejection:

1. Get in God’s Word: This is the greatest source of strength to heal a wounded spirit. Have a schedules time each day to read your Bible. Set some goals of how much Bible you can read in a week or in a month’s time. Try to read the Bible through in one year.
2. Memorize Scripture: This will get the Word of God embedded in your heart. You will need this when going through tough times. I can’t tell you how many times I have needed a certain Bible verse, and that very verse pops into my mind. “Thy Word have I hid in my heart….”
3. Have a faithful prayer life: Jeremiah 33:3 says, “Call unto me and I will answer thee…” God will always hear your prayer and will heal your wounded spirit.
4. Get to the man of God: During this time of rejection, seek godly counsel from your pastor or youth pastor. You will need this in your life to fill that void. Psalms 1:1 says, “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.”
5. Try to avoid dating relationships in your early teen years: As a youth pastor, I don’t promote boyfriend – girlfriend relationships among our teens. I don’t think it is wise to get tangled up in a premature relationship. I have discovered that most of these relationships end in hurt feelings and rejection. Teenagers are not ready to tackle a dating relationship at fourteen, fifteen, sixteen or seventeen years of age. I know this doesn’t set very well with a lot of parents, but they want the pastor or youth pastor to piece broken hearts together after the break ups and the rejection comes. Teens get emotionally wrapped into these relationships and when they don’t work out, they go into a state of depression. As silly as it sounds, it is a very true and harsh reality. Parents, do your teenager a favor and let them be a teenager. They will still experience some rejection, but when they are old enough to start dating, they may be mature enough to handle the rejection part as well. For example, I asked my wife out two times, and both times she rejected me. It was a tough thing to go through, but with me being a senior in college, I was able to handle the rejection. I later asked her out again and she accepted and we have been married for several years with two children. Dating relationships are a great thing if you handle them correctly and those involved are mature enough to be in a serious relationship.

Every single person is going to have to face rejection sometime in their life. Unfortunately, there are no exceptions. Following the simple points above will help you when that time comes. Ultimately, how you handle rejection will determine your success in life.

Steve Cox
Youth Pastor
Trinity Baptist Church
Mocksville, NC

by: Rick Walter

Have you ever been locked out of your house? Have you ever tried to unlock a door only to find out that you have the wrong key in your hand? Perhaps you have walked out of Wal-Mart and accidentally tried to get into the wrong vehicle in the parking lot. The only thing that kept you from becoming a felon was the fact that you had the wrong key for the car. There is a group of people in the Bible that had a similar problem.

In Luke 11:52 Jesus Christ is addressing a group of lawyers. “Woe unto you, lawyers! For ye have taken away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered.” Jesus told this group of lawyers that they had “taken away the key of knowledge” and because of that, they have “entered not in.” Not only were the lawyers left standing at the door, but they also caused others who were trying to gain entrance to be left outside. Picture the scene with me.

The lawyers are standing at a door. Behind the lawyers stands a line of people waiting for the lawyers to open the door so that they can also enter in. As the first lawyer in line tries the doorknob, he finds it to be locked. Naturally, he pulls out his key-ring and begins to fish for the right key to open the door. He tries the first key, but the door is still locked. He moves to the second key and then the third, but still nothing happens. As he continues to try and fail, frustration begins to mount. Those standing in line behind him begin to wonder if the door will ever be opened. Some get discouraged and get out of line for they have better things to do. Finally, after exhausting all of his keys, someone suggests a certain key. The lawyers all look at each other in disdain. They say among themselves, “If none of these keys will open the door, surely that key will not work either.” You see, they had discussed this key before arriving at the door and found that it did not meet their criterion, and they discarded it somewhere along the trail. Now, to their chagrin, they realize that it is the only key that will open the door, but they do not have it. The absence of that one key has kept them and everyone else who was depending upon them locked out.

That, my friend, is the scenario today. All around us there are people standing at the door of Heaven trying to open the door, but it is locked to them. Person after person walks up and tries his keys in the door, but it remains locked. These dear, sincere people are simply using the wrong keys to try to gain entrance. If they could just find the right key and gain entrance they would lead the way for many others.

One day, I stood at that door as a ten year old boy. I had no keys but those that had been given me by my Catholic church and my Catholic school. I had heard the preacher preach and so badly wanted to go through that door, but I did not have the right key. My Uncle Bob came and showed me the key from the Scriptures. That day, the door opened to me, and though I did not know it then, there was a line of people waiting behind me. Because I gained entrance into that door, my six children have also gained entrance. Not only have my children gained access, but hundreds of others that I have been able to lead to Christ have gained access. These will all be in Heaven because someone showed me the right key.

Heaven is the destination for where people are longing. Nobody wants to go to Hell. Many people may joke about it, but in their hearts they want to go to Heaven. In their defense, they are standing at the door just like I was as a ten year old boy. They are trying all of the keys that they know to use, but they are getting frustrated because they have the wrong key.

Jesus Christ is the door. John 10:9 says, “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.” In John 14:6 Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” There is only one way into Heaven, and that is through the door, Jesus Christ.

In essence, these people are standing in front of Christ trying to convince Him to let them into Heaven. They are trying the key of baptism to open that door. Some try the key of church membership in order to persuade the door to open. Still others are using the key of a good life, but in each and every case the door remains locked. Those keys will not unlock the door into Heaven because that door is a door of faith. Acts 14:27 says, “And when they were come, and had gathered the church together, they rehearsed all that God had done with them, and how he had opened the door of faith unto the Gentiles.”

Paul and Barnabas had just returned from one of their missionary journeys, and they gathered the church together to tell of the wonderful things that God did on that trip. They told the church that God had “opened the door of faith” to the Gentiles. The door that leads to Heaven is a door of faith. That means faith is the key that unlocks the door. “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9) Faith is the key that unlocks Heaven’s door. Acts 15:9 puts it this way, “And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.” We are “sanctified by faith” according to Acts 26:18.

All over this world there are people standing in line in front of Jesus Christ doing all that they can do to gain entrance into Heaven. What they do not know is that the keys they are trying to use will not work. Faith is the key that persuades that door, Jesus Christ, to open unto them.

One key is all that it takes to open a door. One key called faith is all it takes to open the door of salvation. On my personal key-ring there are many keys. I have church keys, house keys and car keys on that ring. Only one key opens the door to my home. I do not need to get a new key-ring and fill that ring with house keys. I just need for one of those keys to be the house key. A person does not need a key-ring full of faith. That person simply needs one small key of faith to be on that ring somewhere. Jesus spoke of “faith as a grain of mustard seed.” He said that a little faith could cause a mountain to move. If it only takes a little faith to move a mountain, I would say that it must only take a little faith to open the door of Heaven. A person does not need to have faith in the entire Bible. He does not need to believe every doctrine of Scripture in order to be saved. No, that person just needs to have faith in Jesus Christ.

The sad thing is that God’s people have the right key. We know which key will open the door of salvation to those who are standing there in frustration, but many of God’s people will not stop and point out the proper key on the key-ring so that a person can gain entrance into Heaven. If you and I will take the time to show someone the right key, that person will be able to unlock the door and get in. Not only will that individual be able to get in, but now the door is open for others who were standing in line behind him.

One day a little boy named Jack Hyles stood at that door, but he did not have the appropriate key to unlock the door. Someone saw him standing there and took enough interest in his soul to point out the key of faith. Jack Hyles used that key to unlock the door of salvation and gained access to Heaven. That in turn enabled over one million others who were waiting in line behind him to also be able to go in. Somewhere out there today is a daddy who longs to be saved. If someone were to care enough to show him which key to use, that man’s wife and children could also be saved. Somewhere out there is a little boy who wants to be saved, and if someone cared about his soul, many others could be saved through his preaching.

All around us there are people struggling to get in that door, but they are trying all of the wrong keys. Unless they find the right key they cannot enter in. If they do not gain entrance, then those waiting in line depending upon them cannot get in either. It is your job and mine to go find that person and point out the appropriate key for them. If one person finds the right key and trusts Christ today, it will open the door to countless others and change eternity for many. Please do not leave them locked out.

Rick Walter
Pastor
Victory Baptist Church
Winthrop, ME

by: Matt Crouch

2 Timothy 4:3-4 “Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;”

When my friend Paul and I were thirteen, we found a stolen motorcycle in the woods near my house. We knew we needed to report the motorcycle to the police, but we did not want to take the time to walk back home to do so. Instead, we decided to enjoy a morning of exploring the woods before calling the police. Later that day we made the call and returned to the woods to meet the police. On our way back, we met our friend Eric who was obviously excited. Eric was just leaving the woods where he had led the police to the stolen motorcycle. When we asked why he was so happy, he reached into his pocket and showed us the two-hundred dollar reward from the dirt bike owners. Seeing all that cash, we learned what the Apostle Paul was trying to teach Timothy in our key verse: Opportunities are limited!

Teenager, it would serve you well to learn that the opportunities that God gives you are limited. I want to share some very important opportunities that you have in life – and I encourage you to embrace them now.

1. The opportunity to know God in your youth – Ecclesiastes 12:1 states, “Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth…” Your teen years are quickly passing, and they are a wonderful time to get to know God. I encourage you to develop a quality relationship with your Heavenly Father now.
2. The opportunity to spend time with your mom and dad – Friends are important, and I understand your desire to be with them, but the truth is that in most cases you will lose contact with most, if not all, of your friends after high school. It is a fact of life that your life and the lives of your friends will go in separate ways soon after graduation. I do not suggest that you abandon your friendships; I’m simply explaining that your time to spend with mom and dad is a limited opportunity, and you need to invest in your relationships with them. You will never have this thought at you mom or dad’s funeral, “I wish I would have spent more time with my friends.” Spend valuable time with your parents now.
3. The opportunity to develop a good relationship with siblings – Most of you are thinking, “My brother and/or sister drives me crazy!” Realize that God gave you your siblings for a reason. One of my dearest friends in this world is my sister, Terri, and one of my wisest counselors is my older brother, Bryan. I thank God for my relationship with my siblings. Since I have become an adult, it has been my brother and sister who have stood by me on my best and worst days – not my friends from high school. The time to spend quality time with your siblings is now.

I also challenge you to realize that today is a limited opportunity. Proverbs 27:1 says, “Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.” Please realize that today, or any other day, could be your last day to take advantage of the opportunities that God has given you. Make the most of every God-given day now, and do not waste the opportunities to make the most of your relationships with the family God has given you.

Matt Crouch
Youth Pastor
Grace Baptist Church
Flower Mound, TX

by: Jonathan Painter

One day is so short, but yet so long. Twenty-four hours can seem like an eternity or can seem to pass in a matter of seconds. I once drove from East Texas to Miami, Florida with a friend. We took turns driving, but we did not stop except for gas and food. I literally watched a day pass before my very eyes. I saw the day from 12:00 AM to 11:59 PM. I saw the sun come up, and I watched the sun go down.

It has been said that the average person makes 35,000 conscience decisions every day and an innumerable amount of unconscious decisions within every twenty-four-hour period. All it takes is for one of those decisions to be wrong in order for one to wreck their life.

David found out the cost of making a bad decision in one day. He decided, one day to stay home from battle during the time when kings went forth to battle. The activities that ensued from that decision are documented in 2 Samuel 11, “And it came to pass in an eveningtide, that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king’s house: and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself; and the woman was very beautiful to look upon. And David sent and enquired after the woman. And one said, Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite? And David sent messengers, and took her; and she came in unto him, and he lay with her; for she was purified from her uncleanness: and she returned unto her house.” It only took one day for David to make a decision that would mar his reputation for the remainder of his life and throughout all history. 1 Kings 15:5 says, “Because David did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, and turned not aside from any thing that he commanded him all the days of his life, save only in the matter of Uriah the Hittite.” David’s sin with Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah, which later caused him to execute Uriah, was the only sin that was noted by the LORD after his death.

We must ever be conscious of the fact that our life might very well be defined by a bad decision made on a single day. Our life and future may hinge on one day. It only takes one bad decision on a single day to destroy one’s purity. It only takes one bad decision on a single day to destroy one’s testimony. We must be mindful of this truth and guard our steps as we walk through our lives day by day. How must we guard ourselves?

1. We must guard our walk with God. When we walk with God, we are giving ourselves a better chance at avoiding bad decisions that could negatively affect our future. We often have the right intentions, but amidst our busy life we forget to truly walk with God. Read God’s Word, spend time in prayer and memorize God’s Word. “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.” Psalm 119:11
2. We must guard our associations. I would venture to say that often a large percentage of those 35,000 decisions we make are affected by peer-pressure. We worry about what those around us will think hoping that we have made a decision that they will be pleased with. The wise person will surround themselves with people who will not put pressure on them to do bad, but rather good. This will help us avoid making the wrong decision that might affect our life forever.
3. We must guard our counsel. The wise young person realizes that there is a need for good godly counsel in their life. The wise person will seek this counsel from a God-fearing, Bible-based source. “Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.” Proverbs 11:14

It is vitally important for us to remember that all it takes is just one day and our life could be changed forever. Guard yourself and your decisions everyday and you will find that your future will be better for it.

Jonathan Painter
Youth Pastor
Lincoln Baptist Church
Lincoln, NE
http://www.youngpreachersofamerica.com

by: Mark Lenentine

When you think of horrible sins what do you think of? We might respond with murder, homosexuality, robbery or other things that WE would never do, but what if the misconduct that God severely frowned upon was not on our “bad list?” The more I read the Bible, the more surprised I am at the things that displease God. Some are very obvious, but you might find that some of the worst are the sins we try to avoid focusing on. Why would we not focus on things? It is simple and natural to remember how much God hates the sins of others, but often the wrong that can seriously derail YOUR future hits a lot closer to home than you might think. The sin I want to briefly talk about is the sin of being unthankful.

In Romans 1, God addresses the vile wickedness and downward spiral of the unsaved. The list gets progressively worse and worse, and frankly quite disgusting. Then God throws something completely unexpected into this list. Verse 21 says, “Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.”

As Americans, we become very self-centered. To compound this, the younger you are the more likely you are to have been directly or indirectly trained to focus too much on self. I see and talk to young people all the time who think that everyone somehow owes them something. All these people have some carefully concocted reason as to why this is justified. But with so many people so dissatisfied with their life, especially young people, we have to question the root cause. So, I simply want to ask the question: Are we somehow underprivileged or just incredibly unthankful?

This has been on my mind a lot recently. You see, God, very obviously, orchestrated some divine appointments over the past few weeks where my life crossed the path of someone else who lives a very difficult life. God knew I needed these reminders to help me become more focused on others and to be much more thankful for what He has given me.

Recently, we had a Vacation Bible School at our church. It is a wonderful outreach opportunity because for 5 straight nights you get very close to a group of young people – closer to their personal life, family and home than you might ever be at any other time.

I think of a couple of children, no older than 8, who were riding home from a night of VBS in the backseat of my car. I sat in solemn silence as one of them tried to relay to the other her home situation. She tried to explain how she lived with her mom, but dad lived down the street. She said that her dad had remarried, so she also had a step mom. As for her mom, she said she was living with her boyfriend, so she explained her mom’s boyfriend was not yet her step dad. Maybe the saddest thing was that she explained all of this like it was completely normal.

I also think of a junior high boy who is brand new in our youth group. This week I got to meet his mother and little brother. He even showed me around their tiny two bedroom apartment. When I asked him where his room was, he replied that he didn’t have a bedroom. He slept on the couch because mom and brother slept in one bedroom and his mom had to rent out the other bedroom to a stranger. He explained that his single mom didn’t make enough money at her job at a local fast-food restaurant and that she was trying to make ends meet.

Now, I know that your life isn’t perfect either. Everyone has their struggles, but the funny thing about problems is that can get you focused a whole lot on YOU. Without thankfulness, we can forget about ALL THE MANY blessings that God for some reason showers on us daily and focus on the one or two areas or situations where we wish were different. By doing this, we destroy our faith by continuously painting our loving God in a negative light. God doesn’t just do good, GOD DEFINES GOOD. A daily reminder of this ought to be how good God is to you. I have read a very thought-provoking statement several times: “What if God only gave to you tomorrow the things you thank Him for today?” This is convicting!

Let me give you a few thoughts about thankfulness:

1. Thankfulness has nothing to do with what you have.

2. Being unthankful is an admittance of self-centeredness.

3. Being unthankful stems from a misunderstanding of who God is and who He made me to be.

The list from Romans 1, cites the dangerous and even disgusting life of those who do not acknowledge God. Notice the context, “…neither were thankful…” It then goes on to mention that:

• They become vain – they only thought of themselves v.21
• Their heart was foolish and became darkened v.21
• Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools v.22
• They changed the true God into an image v.23
• God gave them to uncleanness v.24
• They began to dishonor their bodies v.24

As the progression continues, we see that these same people would even goes so far as to engage in immorality, lewdness and even homosexuality. The revealing truth in this passage is that one of the driving forces behind wickedness of this magnitude is a lack of thankfulness. This is not a stretch at all from the passage. The Bible is very clear that a lack of thankfulness for who God is and who God made me to be destroys the very boundaries of what is right and proper. There are many things you could say about the sad condition of society today, but amidst it all, let’s not be guilty of this simple, yet incredibly powerful truth about thankfulness.

I challenge you – take a few minutes and thank God for what He has given you. Then, go further and thank God for what He has done. Don’t stop there though. Thank God for who He made you to be. Last, go even further and thank God, not just for what He has done, but thank Him for who He is. This simple exercise of thankfulness will do more than you could ever imagine to keep your heart right and focused on the goodness of God and the righteousness in which we are to walk.

How’s your thankfulness?

Mark Lenentine
Assistant Pastor
Gospel Light Baptist Church
Rio Rancho, NM

by: Jonathan Painter

“And the king sat upon his seat, as at other times, even upon a seat by the wall: and Jonathan arose, and Abner sat by Saul’s side, and David’s place was empty. Nevertheless Saul spake not any thing that day: for he thought, Something hath befallen him, he is not clean; surely he is not clean.” – I Samuel 20:25-26

We find here in this story from the first book of Samuel that Saul is seeking to destroy David out of jealousy. We would see if we read the preceding chapters that Saul made attempts on David’s life. David behaved himself wisely with the realization that there is but one step between himself and death. In light of these facts, David felt that discretion dictated that he not attempt the king’s feast for his nobles and princes. Therefore, when the feast was put on, we find that Abner, Jonathan and King Saul was there, but David’s place was empty. The king had expected the presence of David at the dinner, but when he was absent we find that Saul simply reasoned within himself that David was unclean. Saul assumed that David had a problem or an issue that hindered his attending rather than the truthful fact that David was absent for fear of what hr would do, and had already tried to do.

We are quick to recognize the folly of Saul’s reasoning, but would we be so quick to admit that we are the same way? We may not be seeking to kill someone as was Saul, but our reasoning for actions that we take follows along the same line.

It’s not MY fault!

Saul could not recognize that HE was the cause for David’s absence, but rather that David must have been unclean. We do not want to admit that if we are involved with a strained relationship it might just be our fault. We gripe and complain about the other party involved, but we never analyze the situation honestly to see if we might be at fault. We complain about how we can’t ever get anything from our parents, but we fail to recognize the bad attitude we display that is straining that relationship. You get upset at a peer at school because they irritate you, but you won’t realize that you are simply an irritable person. If you are in a strained relationship or a conflict with a friend or authority in your life, you would be wise to step back and analyze the situation and find where you are at fault. “And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?” Matthew 7:3

Let me throw a pity party!

Unfortunately, Saul’s life illustrates a disturbing pattern that develops when we are unable to recognize our own faults. “That all of you have conspired against me, and there is none that sheweth me that my son hath made a league with the son of Jesse, and there is none of you that is sorry for me, or sheweth unto me that my son hath stirred up my servant against me, to lie in wait, as at this day?” 1 Samuel 22:8

Saul continues to blame David for his problems and also Jonathan, but he goes a step further and begins to get upset because nobody seemed to be sorry for him. Saul wanted to have a pity party; he wanted his servants to be weeping over him and consoling him because he was in a conflict with his servant David, and his son Jonathan.

Sadly, this is often our response to conflict. We have to tell everyone about it in order to receive consolation from our “friends.” I have found that in a conflict, the party who speaks the loudest is usually the one at fault. David simply tried to be faithful, but it was Saul who had grown jealous and sought the destruction of David. Saul could not see this, and furthermore was attempting to move all those around him against his faithful servant, David.

Innocent people are hurt

The conflict between Saul and David became so great that innocent bystanders were hurt. “Then Ahimelech answered the king, and said, And who is so faithful among all thy servants as David, which is the king’s son in law, and goeth at thy bidding, and is honourable in thine house? Did I then begin to enquire of God for him? be it far from me: let not the king impute any thing unto his servant, nor to all the house of my father: for thy servant knew nothing of all this, less or more. And the king said, Thou shalt surely die, Ahimelech, thou, and all thy father’s house.” 1 Samuel 22:14-16  Saul allowed this conflict to get so big with his inability to recognize the real problem that innocent people suffered.

When you let the conflict you are involved in fester for so long it will eventually affect people who aren’t even involved. We begin to talk about the conflict and influence others against our “enemy” causing enmity between them. You may not physically kill someone because of your conflict, but you might kill a friendship or spiritually wound someone. Don’t let a conflict linger because you are unable to recognize your own fault in the issue at hand. Analyze it honestly with thoughtful prayer, fix yourself and you will find that most conflict will dissolve very quickly if you would just recognize your fault.

Jonathan Painter
Youth Pastor
Lincoln Baptist Church
Lincoln, NE

by: Shannon Foote

1 Corinthians 12:12-27

were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling? But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him. And if they were all one member, where were the body? But now are they many members, yet but one body. And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you. Nay, much more those members of the body, which seem to be more feeble, are necessary: And those members of the body, which we think to be less honourable, upon these we bestow more abundant honour; and our uncomely parts have more abundant comeliness. For our comely parts have no need: but God hath tempered the body together, having given more abundant honour to that part which lacked: That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another. And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it. Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. For the body is not one member, but many. If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? If the whole body 

God, through Paul, lays out a very descriptive and clear illustration of the “Body of Christ” or the church in 1 Corinthians 12:12-27.

We all have a part in the productivity of our local church. Of course, we as parts of the body of Christ all share one duty and that is the producing of life, just as in our bodies. Every part of the body may have various functions, but all of them take part in the area of producing life. New life in the church is created through leading those who are spiritually dead and separated from God to the saving knowledge of eternal life in Christ.

God gives each of us a specific function in the church. Maybe you are part of the hands that serve in the church, the legs that go out and bring people to the church, the one to provide a shoulder to cry on, the money muscle of the church and you give to allow the bills to be covered, or maybe you have the eye of a huge vision of what could be accomplished through your service. I do not know what abilities and talents that God has blessed you with, but I am absolutely positive that He gave them to you to use to serve Him through the local church.

I want you to ask yourself this question. Am I fulfilling God’s role for me in my church?

For centuries doctors have known that the human body contains a set of tonsils, yet only in recent years have they established exactly what it is they do? We have to be certain that God put them in our bodies on purpose, but it took an enormous amount of research to discover His purpose for them. I know several people who have had their tonsils removed, and there is little to no set back as a result. DON’T BE A CHURCH TONSIL! One, who is not really noticed as a member, who can be easily removed, and in no time it would be as if they were never part of the body at all.

God has never called anyone to simply exist. We all have a specific job to do for Christ, and if we fail to fulfill that task, we cause the whole body to suffer as a result. God gives us different abilities for a reason; He has designed the body with only two eyes and two hands, indicating to us that not everyone can have those roles to play. Could you imagine if your internal organs were to bicker and quarrel over what function they were to fulfill, and if they did not get their way they would just leave? Your body would be in serious trouble if that were to occur, yet we have trouble seeing how our behavior would cause the same outcome in the body of Christ.

Please allow me to encourage you to speak with your pastor or church leader, and find the right function for you to be involved with at your church. There can never be too many servants in the church. We are all members of this body once we are saved, but the role we play in the body can and will be developed over time. If you are right now struggling with the task you have been given, please just keep doing your part. God will promote you in due time. If you would fit the description of a church tonsil, please remedy that by getting busy as soon as possible.

Shannon Foote
Pastor
Grace Baptist Church
Marrerro, LA

by: Jonathan Painter

The eyes are the gateway to the heart of a man. What a man sees will eventually affect the way his heart turns. Job 15:12 says “Why doth thine heart carry thee away? And what do thy eyes wink at,” It is vitally important that we protect our eyes if we want to guard our heart. This is an exceptionally hard thing to do today. We live in an age and period of time when the world makes many passes at our eyes, on billboards, magazine racks and the internet. It seems as though every time we turn around the guard on our eyes is challenged. Sometimes it seems like such a hopeless fight, yet it is a fight worth fighting.

Job was a wise man, and he realized the correlation between the eyes and the heart, as well as the mind. Job 31:1 says, “I made a covenant with mine eyes; why then should I think upon a maid?” Job knew that whatever he saw would begin to turn in his mind, and would eventually affect his heart. Young person, it is your responsibility to set your defense in array and prepare for battle, because the enemy is coming at you hard and fast. How will we raise our defense? How will we guard our eyes, mind and heart?

First of all, PRAY. Prayer is one of the most valuable weapons at our disposal as a Christian soldier, yet we so rarely use it. Pray daily and ask God to help you guard your eyes, heart and mind. I don’t mean a simple ten-second prayer, but pray from the heart. Put thought into your prayer. When you start out your day with the Lord, your day has a good start. Make your preparations, set forth a personal strategy of defense for yourself, but never forget, “The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but safety is of the LORD.” Proverbs 21:31

Secondly, MEMORIZE SCRIPTURE. When I was about fifteen, I realized the importance of keeping the guard of my eyes. I had good parents who taught me to look away when I came across such things that I should not see. However, I found myself slower and more reluctant to look away, and eventually even looking for things that I should not see. My conscious smote my heart, and I turned to God’s Word. “Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word.” (Psalm 119:9) I began to look up and study verses that had to do with the eyes. I memorized Job 31:1 as well as Psalm 101:3, “I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me.“ I used these verses to strengthen my defenses, and every time I was tempted to look at something I should not have, I would use God’s Word which I had tucked away in my memory to help me resist temptation. “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7) I know that all this may seem simple, and you have heard it many times before, but it is true and it works!

Next, AVOID. “Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away.” (Proverbs 4:15) If you are serious about defending your eyes to save your heart and mind, then you will avoid sights and situations that would put such defense in jeopardy. I had a young man tell me one time, “I go to the local swimming pool during the summer; I just don’t look at everyone else.” That is crazy, yet this is a young man who said he was called to preach. He made this statement many years ago, and not only did he never preach; he isn’t even in church anymore. “Mine eye affecteth mine heart…” (Lamentations 3:51) I cannot tell the future or predict what could have been, but maybe he would have fulfilled his call to preach if he had been more careful about guarding his eyes.

One of the materials, I struggled with was Sports Illustrated. I loved sports, especially college sports, and Sports Illustrated could be found in almost any doctor’s or dentist office. However, I found that the pictures and advertisements posted in this magazine covered far more than sports. When I began to strengthen my defenses as a fifteen-year-old boy, I resolved never to read a Sports Illustrated magazine again. I needed to avoid it, to turn from it, and pass away. That was almost ten years ago, and I have kept that resolution. I have never been sorry for it, and I don’t feel I have missed out on much. I rather feel I have been spared a lot of trouble with my eyes by avoiding that publication.

It is important not to forget to WATCH THE BACK DOOR! After you have set up the defenses we have already mentioned, be sure to be on your guard against the little things. When we think of guarding our eyes, we generally think of pictures. However, there is another avenue of temptation for the eyes that is quite as deadly as pictures. WORDS! Be careful, my friend, what you read. When you read things that are inappropriate it creates the images in your mind. You may not have let your eyes rest on a wicked photograph, but what you read created a wicked picture in your mind. Be on your guard, Satan, is sly, and this old wicked world is out to get you. The internet will not be your friend, be careful what you search for, be careful what pages you visit, be sure to be on your guard every minute.

It may be necessary to GET HELP. If you get caught up in the sin of the eyes, and you feel that your defenses have been broken down, get help. Don’t give up! God has put good people all around you who can help you build your defenses again. ACCOUNTABILITY is a huge reinforcement for you defense system. “For by wise counsel thou shalt make thy war: and in multitude of counsellors there is safety.” (Proverbs 24:6) Guard your heart! Guard your mind! Guard your eyes!

Jonathan Painter
Youth Pastor
Lincoln Baptist Church
Lincoln, NE
http://www.youngpreachersofamerica.com

by: Jonathan Painter

“For a dream cometh through the multitude of business; and a fool’s voice is known by multitude of words.” Ecclesiastes 5:3

In the heart of every young person there should develop a dream. A dream of what they can do and where they can go, of how they can better themselves and impact the world. Every young person ought to have a vision of what they can do in the work of God. I understand that not every young person who reads this piece will be someone who has been called into full-time Christian service, but every young Christian who reads this ought to have a dream, and in that dream there should be a place given to the work of God in your local church. We should dream, but how is our dream accomplished?

The Bible shows in Ecclesiastes that dreams will be accomplished by action. Young people of action accomplish their dreams, but a foolish young person will sit around and only talk about their dreams. The wise young man who develops a dream will begin to work and accomplish the business that will help him accomplish his dream. I once knew a young man who had a dream of owning his own business while being a good Christian laymen and active in his local church. This young man began to work towards owning his own business as a teenager. The other guys would go out and play ball, but he would go out and work in the field of his future. The friends of this young man would go and purchase gaming systems and video games, while he began to build a savings account for his new business. This young man grew up and is now a wealthy business owner who often helps his local church financially. How did this happen? The young man had a vision, and worked to accomplish his dream.

There were two young ladies both counting the days until they would grow up and have a husband and a home of their own. One of the young ladies spent time as a teenager learning to cook, sew, and take care of the housework with her mother. The other young lady spent her teen years texting and calling all her friends, playing video games and drooling over fashion magazines. When these two ladies grow up, which will be prepared to fulfill her dream? I dare say that the young lady who spent her time preparing to be a wife and mother will be the best prepared to fulfill her dream as a homemaker.

Now, please do not misunderstand the truth of the lesson in this article. I am not criticizing leisure time, but rather the over-excessive use of leisure time. There are two types of people in the world, there are those who talk about getting something done, and then there are those who roll up their sleeves and do it. My friend, do not be one of those who simply sits idle talking about a dream as a fool does, but rather be a young person of action who sets forth with diligence to accomplish the dream God has placed in your heart.

Jonathan Painter
Youth Pastor
Lincoln Baptist Church
Lincoln, NE
http://youngpreachersofamerica.com