What do young people believe?  What is the difference between those young people who continue to be a part of a Christian congregation and those who leave the church when they become adult? Who has the greatest influence on the faith of children and adolescents? What can parents and other church members do to nurture Christian faith in young people ?

These are just some of the questions that are addressed in the interview entitled Almost Christian? A Conversation About Adolescents and Christianity .

I want to encourage every person in the congregation to take 45 minutes and listen to Albert Mohler, President of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary interview Kenda Creasy Dean, professor of Youth, Church and Culture at Princeton Theological Seminary on the subject of young people in the Christian faith. I guarantee that you’ll learn a lot about what our young  people think about God, Jesus, and the Church. It’s also interesting to see what it’s like when a conservative Southern Baptist like Albert Mohler, and a liberal United Methodist like Kenda Creasy Dean find themselves in almost complete agreement on what is wrong with youth ministry and what churches can do in order to reach children and adolescents with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

You can find the the interview in MP3 format HERE.

You can find a transcript of the podcast HERE.

Click here to view the embedded video.

I also invite you to consider these wise words from Russell Moore found in the recent article entitled “Christ, the Church, and Pat Robertson“. In this article Moore challenges the idolatrous teaching of Robertson and the lie that goes by the name of “the prosperity gospel“, while reminding us how marriage should point us to Jesus:

Marriage, the Scripture tells us, is an icon of something deeper, more ancient, more mysterious. The marriage union is a sign, the Apostle Paul announces, of the mystery of Christ and his church (Ephesians 5). The husband, then, is to love his wife “as Christ loved the church” (Ephesians 5:25). This love is defined not as the hormonal surge of romance but as a self-sacrificial crucifixion of self. The husband pictures Christ when he loves his wife by giving himself up for her……

A woman or a man with Alzheimer’s can’t do anything for you. There’s no romance, no sex, no partnership, not even companionship. That’s just the point. Because marriage is a Christ/church icon, a man loves his wife as his own flesh. He cannot sever her off from him simply because she isn’t “useful” anymore……….

Jesus tells us he is present in the weak, the vulnerable, the useless. He is there in the least of these (Matthew 25:31-46). Somewhere out there right now, a man is wiping the drool from an 85 year-old woman who flinches because she think he’s a stranger. No television cameras are around. No politicians are seeking a meeting with them.

But the gospel is there. Jesus is there.

I recently came across an article entitled  Homeschool Blindspots that highlights some of the joys and sorrows of being a Christian parent. I shared the article with several people and I was surprised by how strongly they responded to what the author was saying. Because so many people have found this article to be helpful I decided to share it with the wider congregation. Although I can’t think of any homeschooling families in this congregation, the basic principles that the author lifts up are applicable to anyone who has children or works with young people. I would love to hear what you think about this article.

Please click Here to read the article

What teachings of Jesus especially help you understand suffering?

There’s the portion of Scripture in Matthew 18 where Jesus says, “If your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off. If your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out.” Here Jesus, the one who delighted in healing hands that could not work, restoring feet that could not walk, giving sight to eyes that could not see—here he is, saying cut off your hand, gouge out your eyes, if these things are causing you to sin. Jesus underscores his priority that yes, the physical body counts, but it does not trump the health of the soul.

When people ask about healing, I’m less interested in the physical and more interested in healing in my heart. Pray that I get rid of my lazy attitude about God’s Word and prayer, of brute pride—set me free from self-centeredness. Those are more important, because Jesus thought they were more important.

Summary: Richard Settersten and Barbara Ray examine the lengthening transition to adulthood over the past several decades, as well as the challenges the new schedule poses for young people, families, and society.

The authors begin with a brief history of becoming an adult, noting that the schedule that youth follow to arrive at adulthood changes to meet the social realities of each era. For youth to leave home at an early age during the 1950s, for example, was "normal" because opportunities for work were plentiful and social expectations of the time reinforced the need to do so. But the prosperity that made it possible for young adults of that era to move quickly into adult roles did not last. The economic and employment uncertainties that arose during the 1970s complicated enormously the decisions that young adults had to make about living arrangements, educational investments, and family formation.

The authors next take a closer look at changes in the core timing shifts in the new transition—the lengthening time it now takes youth to leave home, complete school, enter the workforce, marry, and have children. They stress that today’s new schedule for attaining independence leaves many families overburdened as they support their children for an extended period. The continued need to rely on families for financial assistance, the authors say, exacerbates the plight of young people from a variety of vulnerable backgrounds. It also raises complex questions about who is responsible for the welfare of young people and whether the risks and costs newly associated with the early adult years should be absorbed by markets, by families, or by governments.

Settersten and Ray stress that the longer transition to adulthood strains not only families but also the institutions that have traditionally supported young Americans in making that transition—such as residential colleges and universities, community colleges, military service, and national service programs. They emphasize the need to strengthen existing social institutions and create new ones to reflect more accurately the realities of a longer and more complex passage into adult life.

This is an important article that we should all have in mind as we ponder how our culture is changing and how that effects how we can reach people with the Gospel. We should be asking ourselves..in what ways have things like financial “security”, “getting rich”, “independence”, or “economic  progress”  been idols for us? How much time and energy do we spend thinking about them? How much time and energy do we spend thinking about these things compared to the time and energy we spend thinking about ….and worshiping …. Jesus? How are we reacting as these idols fail us? What will it mean for us to be more “inter-dependent”?  How will the failure of these idols open us up to new opportunities to lead people to our greatest treasure? (Matthew 6:19-34; Matthew 13:44-52; John 14:1-6; 2 Corinthians 4: 1-11).

You can read the entire article HERE.

You can read an executive summary of the entire journal in PDF format HERE.

Greg Koukl from Stand to Reason has an excellent article entitled Enhanced Solid Ground-Silly Putty Bible Study that helps you apply biblical promises to your everyday life. Koukl writes:

To many Christians, the Bible is like silly putty. Just add the Holy Spirit and it can be molded into almost anything at all.  That’s why I’ve devoted this issue of the Enhanced Solid Ground to offering a biblical argument against this practice.  I hope you give careful attention to the Scriptural case I present.

You can read the article in PDF format by clicking HERE. You will also want to download a helpful worksheet by clicking HERE.

Summary

    We can only legitimately claim a biblical promise if it is rightfully ours.

    We know if a promise applies to us by answering four questions: Who? What? Why? When?

    If the promise is for us, and we have satisfied the conditions, and the promise is for our time, then we can count on God to keep His word.

    If not, then we must leave the promise to its rightful owner and profit from the text by learning what we can from God’s faithful dealings with them.

I came across this article that talks about what it means to have a “relationship” with God, and how that relationship is related to the sacrament of Baptism. Here is one quote that really jumped out at me:

I don’t like the word “relationship” because it is a flabby word, laden with all sorts of modern connotations. Everything these days is a “relationship.” It’s become an Oprah-Doctor Phil word. We have lots of “relationships” – everything from spouses and siblings, to sports teams and to our favorite soft drinks. What we have with God and with our fellow Christians is koinonia – which is “fellowship” or “communion.” These words (“fellowship” and “communion”) are not only more historical and churchly, they also tend to remind us that our relationship with God is not like a boyfriend/girlfriend thing, not “brand loyalty,” not something driven by emotion or felt needs, – but something unique and mysterious, transcendent and eternal. Jesus is indeed our “friend” – but He is not our “buddy,” “homeboy,” or good luck charm.

But be that as it may, the “relationship” that converts to Non-denominationalism have with God was not initiated by them, nor by their brothers and sisters at church, but rather by God Himself – “before the foundation of the world.” God knew them in the womb and called them to a vocation in this life according to His plan. And God Himself saw to it that they were “born again of water and the Spirit” and washed them in the “washing of “regeneration” (literally “re-birth”) when they were baptized as infants in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

I encourage you to read the entire article HERE.

USA today has published an interesting article (HERE) on the spiritual lives or America’s young people which reads in part:

Most young adults today don’t pray, don’t worship and don’t read the Bible, a major survey by a Christian research firm shows.

If the trends continue, "the Millennial generation will see churches closing as quickly as GM dealerships," says Thom Rainer, president of LifeWay Christian Resources. In the group’s survey of 1,200 18- to 29-year-olds, 72% say they’re "really more spiritual than religious."

Among the 65% who call themselves Christian, "many are either mushy Christians or Christians in name only," Rainer says. "Most are just indifferent. The more precisely you try to measure their Christianity, the fewer you find committed to the faith."

Key findings in the phone survey, conducted in August and released today:

•65% rarely or never pray with others, and 38% almost never pray by themselves either.

•65% rarely or never attend worship services.

•67% don’t read the Bible or sacred texts.

You can see a PowerPoint presentation on the subject that has detailed responses to each spiritual question and breakouts among sub-groups by clicking HERE.

Question: In  what ways is your relationship to Jesus Christ a model for the young people in your life?

The report finds that 75 percent of teens between the ages of 12 and 17 now have cell phones, up from 45 percent in 2004. And the number who say they text-message daily has shot up to 54 percent from 38 percent in just the past 18 months.

“There’s now an expectation that teens will contact each other via text, and they expect a kind of constant, frequent response,” says the Pew Center’s Amanda Lenhart, one of the study’s authors.

In a post  at DailyTech reports that teen girls average 80 texts sent per day while boys average 30 (Click HERE).

One key reason for the rise in texting among teens is that teens general expect each other to be reachable and to respond to text messages no matter if they are in class or under close watch of parents. One key finding of the study showed that 87% of teen cell phone owners sleep with or next to their phones so they can answer text messages during the night.

The study also found that girls use punctuation in texts and boys tend to forgo punctuation. Study author Scott Campbell said, “If a girl puts a period at the end of a text message (to another girl) then it comes across as she’s mad.” Lenhart added, “They have these practices because they’ve learned that texts can lead to misunderstandings. It’s a deliberate thing and it’s also part of a culture that’s interested in differentiating itself from adult culture.”

The Psych Central blog has a related post entitled New College Addiction? Social Media, Facebook or Friends (Click HERE) that reports on some recent research at the  University of Maryland that found:

…students describe their feelings when they have to abstain from using media in literally the same terms associated with drug and alcohol addictions: in withdrawal, frantically craving, very anxious, extremely antsy, miserable, jittery, and crazy.

….researchers conclude that most college students are not just unwilling, but functionally unable to be without their media links to the world.

As you read these articles I invite you think about the ways in which the issues of urgency, anxiety, immediacy, and impatience play a role in our everyday lives. In what ways does the “need” for instant response and constant connection to others via media act as an idol/ false God that interferes with our relationship with God, and with one another? I invite you to consider what God’s word says about patience:

Patience in general
Love is patient and kind (1 Corinthians 13:4); the fruit of the Spirit is patience (Galatians 5:22); patience is better than pride (Ecclesiastes 7:8); if it were a matter of vicious crime I would have reason to bear with you (Acts 18:14); your comfort when you patiently endure the same sufferings we suffer (2 Corinthians 1:6); for all endurance and patience with joy (Colossians 1:11).

God’s patience
God is slow to anger (Nehemiah 9:17; Ps. 103:8; Ps. 145:8; Joel 2:13; Jonah 4:2; Nahum 1:3); God endured with patience the vessels of wrath (Romans. 9:22); God’s patience waited in the days of Noah (1 Peter 3:20); the Lord is patient towards you (2 Peter 3:9); in me Christ demonstrated his patience (1 Timothy 1:16); the riches of his forbearance and longsuffering (Romans 2:4); in your patience do not take me away (Jeremiah 15:15); consider the Lord’s forbearance as salvation (2 Peter 3:15); for 40 years he put up with them in the wilderness (Acts 13:18).

Be patient!
Put on patience (Colossians 3:12); be patient with everyone (1 Thessalonians 5:14); walk with patience and forbearance in love (Eph. 4:2); be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger (James 1:19); be patient until the Lord’s coming (James 5:7); be patient and I will pay you (Matthew 18:29); be patient and I will pay everything (Matthew 18:26); bear with me (Job 36:2); bear with me in a little foolishness (2 Corinthians 11:1); the Lord’s slave must be patient (2 Timothy 2:24); reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and teaching (2 Tim. 4:2); you also be patient (James 5:8); if when you do right and suffer for it you take it patiently, this is approved by God (1 Peter 2:20).
Day, C. A. (2009). Collins Thesaurus of the Bible. Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.

What’s the source of your creativity?

Faith and imagination. Faith is the reason I do what I do, imagination is the fuel that keeps the creativity flowing. The Lord Jesus Christ is my reason for creating and I have nothing but thanks and gratitude toward him for being allowed to do what I do, and ultimately, seize my wildest dreams as if they were just there waiting for me.

When did you become a Christian?

I grew up in a Christian home, with the most wonderful parents a kid could ever ask for. I came to know the Lord in middle school after hearing a testimony at church. From then on, I’ve just wanted to serve Christ in every way I know how, music being the only thing I’ve ever considered myself any "good" at. I guess my whole message or goal of this whole operation is to bring glory to Jesus Christ byall that I do and say, not just as it relates to Owl City, but in all areas of my life.

Do you want to be thought of as a "Christian musician"?

It’s up to you, honestly. It’s not my place say what people should think of me as. Actions should speak for that. I follow Jesus Christ wholeheartedly, so any definition that arises from that fact is all right with me. The same goes for Owl City. I am a Christian in a band. Is it a Christian band then? That’s up to those who ask that question.

Read the rest of the interview HERE.