CATALYST Youth- "BEST PRESENT EVER!", Friday, Dec. 8, 2017

This week we talked a bit about some of the most terrible presents we've ever received.

I remember when I was a kid, my grandma knit me a pair of wool socks—which was super nice and thoughtful, and she put so much work into making them, but I’m allergic to wool. Another Christmas, my aunt couldn't get me the toy I wanted because it was out of stock, so she promised to get it when it came back in stock....AND I'M STILL WAITING FOR IT! There was one time when we told the kids' grandparents not to get any really big gifts for the kids because we live in a small apartment and don't have a lot of room...and they gave my boy an 8 FOOT LONG CATERPILLAR that played the alphabet song at ear-piercing levels!

Because we're only got a few weeks before Christmas, this week we talked about the BEST PRESENT EVER! The reason why gift giving is a thing at Christmas is because Christmas began with one AMAZING GIFT-- a miracle-- something incredibly supernatural and mind-boggling-- that Jesus, this promised saviour, was born!

1. A GIFT WE REALLY NEEDED

Getting something that you REALLY need is pretty much the perfect gift. Nobody wants a gift that they have no use for, that will gather dust on the shelf or never be worn because it’s made of wool.

The Bible tells us that this gift of salvation is something that we really need. It says that we all have this sin problem where we keep doing the things that are the opposite of what God wants for us…and that every time we sin, it’s like we’re building a wall between us and God—and we are in desperate need of RESCUE. So God decided to do something about this—he decided to personally make a way for us to be rescued from sin, find forgiveness, and to have a restored friendship with him!

Matthew 19:25-26 says that the disciples asked Jesus, “How can anyone ever be saved? Jesus looked straight at them and said, “There are some things that people cannot do, but God can do anything.”

We can’t save ourselves—we can’t solve our sin problem. We NEED God’s help. And that’s what Christmas is about!

2. SPECIAL DELIVERY!

The way he chose to rescue us is incredibly weird and mind-boggling. The deep theological word for this is INCARNATION—which describes this mystery of how the God of the Universe was born as a human being in order to take the sins of the world on himself, so that we could be saved! It sounds kind of crazy, doesn’t it?

In fact, it's so hard to believe that when Joseph learned that his fiancée, Mary, was pregnant…and that she claimed that it was something that supernaturally happened…and that she was pregnant with the saviour of the world—he didn’t believe her! The Bible actually says that he was going to call off the wedding because he thought she was either lying or insane (which is probably a pretty natural response in that situation).

Matthew 1:18-25 says, “While Joseph was thinking about this (how to quietly break things off), an angel from the Lord came to him in a dream. The angel said, “Joseph, the baby that Mary will have is from the Holy Spirit. Go ahead and marry her. Then after her baby is born, name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” (The name, Jesus, literally means “saving one” or “rescuer”.) So the Lord’s promise came true, just as the prophet had said, “A virgin will have a baby boy, and he will be called Immanuel,” which means “God is with us.”

Now, while this was enough to convince Joseph, it’s still really hard for US to believe this incredible story just because a guy had a dream that cleared the whole thing up a couple thousand years ago. But thankfully, we have more than a dream to convince us that this was a real, miraculous moment in history!

A) PROPHECY

Often times you might see a movie where they tell you that there are prophecies written that talk about something that’s going to happen in the future—that a hero is going to rise up and rescue the world. Well, those movies use the Bible for their inspiration.

You see, the Bible is a book made up of a lot of smaller books that were written hundreds of years apart by different people in history—so even though it’s all compiled in one book, the books of the Old Testament were written and recorded HUNDREDS of years before Jesus was born…and what’s shocking is that the Old Testament has a bunch of prophecies that all came true in Jesus. The author Josh McDowell says that the odds of even 8 of these things, written hundreds of years before Jesus was born, being fulfilled in one person, is over 1 out of a quadrillion! It’s just impossible!

So, let’s just take at just a few of the things that came true in Jesus:

-The saviour would have a virgin birth (Isaiah 7:14- written 700 years before Jesus was born)

-The saviour would be God (He will be called Immanuel, which means “God With Us”- Isaiah 7:14, Isaiah 9:6-7- written 700 years before Jesus was born)

-The saviour would be born in Bethlehem—a small insignificant town—(Micah 5:2- written 700 years before Jesus was born).

-The saviour would have his hands and feet pierced- Psalm 22- (this was 400 years before crucifixion had even been invented as a form of capital punishment and was written 1000 years before Jesus was born!)

We don’t have time to look at them all, but just google “prophecies fulfilled byJesus” and it’s just mind boggling that all of these things recorded hundreds of years before Jesus came on the scene could come true in one person. Unless it really was God’s plan all along!

B) JESUS’ LIFE

If we’re still looking for proof about the truth of this Christmas story, we just have to look at Jesus’ life. He taught people about God and known for his wisdom. He was followed around 24/7 and no one ever caught him sinning. The people who followed him believed that he was God. He did incredible miracles in front of tons of eyewitnesses, including raising one person from the dead who had been sealed in a tomb for 4 days! These miracles were so incredible that crowds of people were worshipping him and ready to make him king...which is why the government and religious leaders of the day saw Jesus as a threat and killed him! None of that would have happened if Jesus had just been an ordinary person.

C) JESUS’ RESURRECTION

On top of that—Jesus didn’t stay dead! He was crucified and buried—and then three days later he rose from the dead (which is why we celebrate Easter). During that time, he talked and ate with tons of people. 1 Corinthians 15:6 says that he met with over 500 people just at one time, and that a lot of the people were alive at the time Paul that Paul wrote those words and could attest to it being true!

One of Jesus’ followers, Thomas, was super skeptical about the whole thing. He thought the other disciples were lying or insane (kind of like how Joseph felt with Mary), but in John 20, he actually talked to Jesus himself and touched his wounds. After doing so, he became so convinced that he not only said right there that Jesus was God, but he spent his entire life telling other people about his experience!

I wanted to highlight those things because Christmas represents an amazing moment in human history—where God became a person so that we could be saved from our sin problem and have a friendship with him! We’re talking one of the biggest miracles EVER!

3. A GIFT OF LOVE

Gifts are pretty amazing. Nobody owes you a gift. Presents represent the fact that somebody REALLY loves you and thinks you’re awesome. John 3:16-17, one of the most famous verses of the Bible, says this- “For this is how God LOVED the world: He GAVE his one and only Son, so that EVERYONE who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to SAVE the world through him.”

This whole master plan, all of these incredibly miraculous things, all happened because God loves us, because he wants a friendship with us, because he wants us to experience his forgiveness! He wants us to be a part of heaven with him!

The reason why we celebrate Christmas, is we’re celebrating how, even though we don’t deserve it and tend to mess up all the time—God loves us and offers us forgiveness!

If you were in a life or death situation, and somebody stepped in to save you, you would probably be pretty thankful. I’ve heard stories of how paramedics who saved people’s lives were invited over for BBQ’s or became friends with the people they helped because they just wouldn’t be alive if those paramedics hadn’t stepped in to help.

This is why Christmas is celebrated! Jesus stepped in to save us! Jesus stepped in to rescue us! This is the BEST PRESENT EVER!

No discussion this week, but please look over the email I sent to the group about the different opportunities we have to give as a group this year. Each December, we let teens vote on how they would like to give the money they've given in our youth offering. The email I sent out contains links to give more information about each opportunity to give. Thanks! PB

CATALYST Youth- Friday, December 1, 2017- "THE GREATEST STORIES EVER TOLD: PART 3"

This week we continued our series "The Greatest Stories Ever Told" where we've been looking at some of the stories (parables) Jesus told that communicated some truth about God or life. As a fun treat, this week we had story time with Pastor Ben! He read one of his favourite children's books to the group (and one that's VERY similar to a story Jesus told). You can view it on Youtube below (but Pastor Ben's rendition was WAY better).

If you haven't guessed, the story we focused on this week was Jesus' most famous story- "The Good Samaritan"- found in Luke 10:25-37. 

In it, Jesus was teaching crowds of people when one guy stood up and asked Jesus a pretty important question. “How can I be a part of heaven one day? What is it that I have to do?”

That’s a question that a lot of people have. A lot of people think that if you're a good person (so you don’t kick puppies and you help old ladies across the street) that you’ll get a golden ticket to heaven when you die. And while Jesus DID say that loving others is important (and that's what we focused on this week), Jesus said that the most important thing is that we love God (that we accept his forgiveness, have a restored friendship with him, and follow him with our lives). Really, if we love God and follow him, a natural result is that we'll love others.

Jesus then went on to tell this famous story to the crowd about a man who was travelling on the street and was beaten, robbed, and left half-dead at the side of the road. As the man lay there, a couple of people who you would have expected would have helped the guy (they were both church leaders) actually crossed to the other side of the road or seemed too busy to help. Maybe they just didn’t want to get their hands dirty? But then, Jesus said that a SAMARITAN MAN—someone who was considered to be an enemy because, at the time, Jewish people and Samaritan people didn’t get along, stopped when he saw the man.

The Samaritan man didn’t just stop to think about helping. He actually bandaged up the man’s wounds. He then put him on his donkey and helped the man get to a place where he could be taken care of. AND THEN the Samaritan man payed the guy’s medical bills and said he would return to pay if there was anything else the man needed. When Jesus finished the story, he told the crowd—"I want you to go and do the same thing".

It’s really easy to be selfish and to care only about yourself and doing the things that you want to do. It’s pretty tempting to spend every night watching Netflix or playing video games instead of volunteering in the church or community. It’s pretty tempting to spend your money all on yourself instead of using it to help somebody else. We all have to fight against that urge to be selfish and greedy every day! It also might be pretty tempting to join in on making fun of somebody or gossiping because all of your friends are doing it- but, here, Jesus says that he wants us to be known for our love!

The thing I love about the Smartest Giant in Town is that this giant didn’t have a lot—he was known for wearing a pretty grubby gown. So, on the one day where he decided to spend money on himself—to get a bit of a makeover—as he walked, he kept bumping into people who needed help…and the guy LITERALLY gave the clothes off of his back in order to help others! Of course, the twist in the story is that while he spent money on clothes to make him look "smart" (a British term for being well-dressed and attractive), it was actually his heart—it was his love for others—that made him look good- not what he was wearing on the outside.

Similarly, in Jesus’s story of the Good Samaritan, this guy took the time to stop and help. He actually bandaged the injured man’s wounds (which probably would have been pretty gross and messy), and then he used the money he had to ensure that the man would get the care and help he needed! Jesus said that this guy should be our role model! If you love and follow Jesus—this is the kind of reputation God wants you to have.

Most young teens probably don’t have jobs right now, or don’t have a lot of money to give and be a help to others (one day they might!), but that doesn’t mean that they can’t be like the Good Samaritan or the Smartest Giant in Town. What I think is so cool about the giant was that, as he did his normal everyday stuff, whenever he encountered someone in need, he stopped and DID WHAT HE COULD to help. You don't have to have thousands of dollars to help people, you can simply do what you're able to do! Even the small things can make a difference!

Are you known for your kindness? If people were to describe you, would they describe you as someone who really cares about others? Would they describe you as someone who helps people—and not just around Christmastime, but ALL YEAR LONG? One of the best ways that you can show others that you love God and are serious about following him with your life is through the things you say and do—sometimes even the little everyday things. This week, (and hopefully every day after), I really want to challenge you to be on the lookout for people who might be in need or in trouble and then to DO WHAT YOU CAN to be some kind of help- to be the SMARTEST TEENAGERS IN TOWN.

DISCUSSION FOR HOME

1. Ask your teen about the "Smartest Giant in Town". What was the story about? It's very similar to a story Jesus told- do they remember what it is? What is the point of both of those stories?

2. Ask your teen to think of some simple everyday situations where they might be able to show kindness, helpfulness or generosity. (Examples- standing up for someone who is getting made fun of or not joining in on gossip, saying hi and being friendly to someone who looks sad or seems to be having a bad day, holding the door open for someone instead of letting it slam in their face, giving up your seat on the bus for an older person or a pregnant lady, doing your chores or helping your parents without grumbling and complaining- but being happy to help).

3. This month, get the family together and brainstorm some ways that you show generosity, kindness, or be a help to others as a family. While giving money to help people in need MIGHT be a good option, try to think of other simple, practical things you could do that are more "hands on". (For example- helping a neighbour, baking cookies and delivering them to someone, volunteering somewhere as a family, inviting someone over to dinner, buying food and giving it to the food bank).

CATALYST Youth- "THE GREATEST STORIES EVER TOLD PART 2", Friday, November 17, 2017

This week, we’re continuing our series on THE GREATEST STORIES EVER TOLD- looking at some of Jesus’ parables—these made up stories meant to communicate some kind of truth about God or life. Most people LOVE stories. It’s the reason why binge-watching is a thing. If you don’t know, “binge-watching” means sitting down and watching a bunch of episodes in a row without stopping. Of course, NETFLIX makes that pretty easy because it auto-plays the next episode without you even having to click a button! (And by the way, IF you watch a ton of shows on Netflix without stopping, after about four or five, a little pop-up will appear asking if you’re still alive and whether or not you want to watch more. Don’t ask me how I know this). We love stories so much that even Netflix is hinting that we might be over-doing it a little!

Well, as I mentioned last week- JESUS knew the power of a story. He was known for travelling around and talking to huge crowds of people, often telling stories (parables) in order to help teach people something important. He told stories so that people would remember what they heard and would be able to pass it on to other people—and it’s the reason why there are a lot of people who’ve never even been in a church, but they would know a lot of the stories that Jesus told.

This week, we’re going to look at another of the GREATEST STORIES EVER TOLD. This one is about a couple of guys who were building their own houses…and for one of the guys, it ended in complete disaster.

Matthew 7: 24-27 (NLT)
Jesus said “Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. But anyone who hears my teaching and ignores it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash.”

Now, the first guy in Jesus’ story was pretty smart… I mean, it sounds like he knew exactly what he was supposed to do because he was following the plans! And because of those plans, he ended up building a solid home on a really good foundation that could withstand any kind of storm or hurricane that came its way. There’s a reason why, when you build a house these days, you have all sorts of professional people involved. You don’t want to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on a house only to discover that some guy who had NO TRAINING did all of the electrical wiring and that it could burst into flames at any moment. The first guy in Jesus’ story did things “by the book”. He followed the building codes. He followed the plans, and his house was pretty awesome

But then Jesus tells us about another guy who didn’t seem to be too good at following instructions. Maybe he thought that the instructions were irrelevant, out-of-date, or flawed? Maybe he just wanted to do his own thing instead of following the “rules”? Maybe he was just super lazy and wanted to do a rush job? Ahatever the reason, Jesus said that when the storm came, his house, which he built on sand, on a foundation that wasn’t really secure, was totally wrecked! There was nothing left!

Now, the reason why Jesus told that story is because he wanted to convey the importance of not just recognizing that the instructions exist, but TO ACTUALLY PUT THEM INTO PRACTICE…TO FOLLOW THEM! I don’t know if you’ve ever tried to build or help your parents build something from IKEA, but those instructions (even though they are made of ridiculously simple pictures with no words) are pretty important! There was one time when I bought two shelving units from IKEA, and after I successfully built one by following the instructions, I was pretty confident that I could just build the second one by remembering how I did the first one. Well, after about a half-hour of work on the second shelving unit, I began to notice that I had built the drawers upside down with the opening at the bottom, so, even if you managed to get your clothes inside it, if you pulled it open, all of the contents of the drawer would fall onto the ground. It was so frustrating! I had wasted time, and had to unscrew the whole thing and follow the instructions closely so I wouldn’t mess it up again!

The same thing is true for a LEGO set. I’m a pretty huge fan of LEGO, and when I buy even a small Star Wars set for my office, I’m often amazed at how so many tiny, random, pieces can be built into something that looks pretty cool. But of course, if you were silly enough to not follow the building instructions, even if you studied the picture on the box pretty closely, the odds of you actually building the set successfully are pretty slim. Those instructions are there to help you build the set the way it was designed and created to be built!

Now, when Jesus is talking about following his instructions, he’s not talking about the instructions that come with the furniture you get at IKEA or the LEGO manual…although those are pretty helpful…but he’s talking about GOD’S WORD, THE BIBLE, GOD’S INSTRUCTION MANUAL FOR LIFE!

There are some people who think of the Bible as being out-dated…that because it’s old, it’s irrelevant. There are some people who feel that the Bible has TOO MANY INSTRUCTIONS…so they pick and choose what to follow and what to ignore. Some people feel that it limits their freedom…that following it might mean giving up something that seems pretty fun… so why bother?

But, I tend to think of the Bible as being INSTRUCTIONS DIRECT FROM THE MANUFACTURER! As we talked about a few weeks ago, God DESIGNED US, he CREATED US…and because of that, HE REALLY DOES KNOW AND WANT WHAT’S BEST FOR US! He knows how life is meant to be lived! In fact, Jesus himself said in John 10:10 that his purpose was to give us RICH AND SATISFYING LIVES! The whole point of God’s instruction manual isn’t to rob us of fun, but to help us through life, to point us in the right direction, and to keep us safe from danger!

I remember, when I was a new dad, I had to safety-proof our apartment so that it would be safe for our little boy. Because I wanted to be a good parent, I had to place restrictions on what he could play with, I had to show him what was safe and what wasn’t safe, and I had to warn him about stuff that could hurt him. I remember that there were times when he would cry or fuss because I wouldn’t let him wrap the cord for our drapes around his neck, or when I put a safety gate at the entrance to the kitchen so he wouldn’t grab stuff off the stove. He didn’t like those rules and boundaries, because he just didn’t understand that the thing he seemed to desperately want might hurt him OR WORSE!

Well, God is the ULTIMATE GOOD PARENT, and even if we don’t always understand WHY he tells us to stay away from stuff, why something is considered sin (something that separates us from God), we need to TRUST that it’s for a GOOD REASON- it’s for our health and well-being! God doesn’t want our lives to be all busted up because we make horrible mistakes and do what we want instead of what he wants. Like we talked about last week, he also doesn’t want any of us to be lost—to end up far from him and to miss out on heaven. Of course, we all have the freedom to accept God’s instructions or reject them, but we have to understand that God warns us about stuff and tells us the right way to live for a reason.

That’s one of the reason why we have CATALYST on Friday nights, it’s why people get together in churches all over the world. Whenever we get together, we want to have fun together and be a great community, but we also want to check out what God has to say about life, so that when we “build our lives”, so that when we make important choices and face big decisions, we would look to that instruction book direct from our manufacturer instead of going our own way, doing whatever we want, and possibly making a real mess out of things. Be committed to be a regular part of CATALYST youth! Be a regular part of some kind of church community! During the week, take a few minutes each day to read the Bible and think about what it says! At CATALYST we offer a bunch of different Bibles and even devotional books you can borrow to make it easier for you to make Bible reading a daily habit.

Jesus said in Matthew 6:24, “-“Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock.” Let's be like the wise builder!

DISCUSSION FOR HOME

1. Have you ever ignored the rules or instructions for something (like a recipe, something you built, something your parents told you) and it ended in disaster or really regretted it later? Share that story with your teens. Have they ever decided to ignore rules (maybe as younger kids) and were nearly seriously injured? Talk about it why rules exist.

2. As much as we don't like rules, they are pretty essential for survival. Encourage your teen to spend a few minutes each day reading the Bible or using a student devotional (there are some online resources below). Maybe that might look like doing family devotions together after a meal? Tell them that, at least a couple of times during the week, you want them to tell you about what they read and what they think it means for their lives.

ONLINE DEVOTIONAL RESOURCES:

STUDENT DEVOS 
DEVOZINE

DAILY DEVOS
FOR KIDS/YOUNGER TEENS: KEYS FOR KIDS

Kids Worship and Lyric Videos 2017

Here's a list of songs we've done in our KIDZONE program over the last year. In some of these cases, we've made our own lyric videos and purchased the songs/videos whenever possible.

1. SONG OF LOVE- HILLSONG KIDS

Purchased through: http://hillsongstore.ca/crazy-noise-digital-lyric-videos/

Listen on Spotify

2, BE STRONG- HILLSONG KIDS

http://hillsongstore.ca/crazy-noise-digital-lyric-videos/

3. FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT- KIDSPRING

4. THE GREATEST COMMANDMENT- HILLSONG KIDS

Purchased through: http://hillsongstore.ca/crazy-noise-digital-lyric-videos/

5. GOD MADE A WAY- KIDSPRING

6. STOP AND GO- YANCY

Purchased through: http://www.worshiphousekids.com/

7. SUPER WONDERUL- YANCY

Purchased through: http://www.worshiphousekids.com/

8. MY GOD IS NUMBER ONE- YANCY

Purchased through: http://www.worshiphousekids.com/

9. LOVE WILL NEVER FAIL- KIDSPRING

10. PRAISE THE LORD EVERYDAY- KIDSPRING

11. JESUS SAVIOR- KIDSPRING (CHRISTMAS SONG)

CATALYST YOUTH- "The Greatest Stories Ever Told", Friday, November 10, 2017

I LOVE a good story! I can burn through a novel in DAYS, sometimes HOURS, but it takes me FOREVER (and sometimes NEVER) to read a book full of facts and statistics.

I would say that most people LOVE stories! It’s why some movies make HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS! We want to escape from reality for a bit and be taken on a journey through our imagination. There actually isn’t a lot of difference between sitting in a movie theatre, and being a kid, sitting on the lap of your mom or dad while they read you a story. (Except a movie might not help you learn to read and its budget is a whole lot bigger).

Jesus was an amazing storyteller! In the Bible, Jesus’ stories are called PARABLES- which means that they’re made-up stories that communicate to us some important truth about God or life (they have a moral). The reason why Jesus told stories is because he lived during a time before TV and the Internet, and he KNEW that people would remember a story WAY better than they could ever remember a bunch of facts, and if they remembered the story, then hopefully, they would remember what the story meant and would be able to pass it on to other people!

This week we kicked off a new series called, “THE GREATEST STORIES EVER TOLD”, by looking at three stories Jesus told about people who lost something valuable.

STORY 1: THE LOST SHEEP (Luke 15: 1-7)

STORY 2: THE LOST COIN (Luke 15: 8-10)

STORY 3: THE LOST SON (Luke 15: 11-31)

You can read all of the above stories here.

All of Jesus's stories here have a few things in common. They all involve something that was lost. The thing/person/animal that was lost was incredibly valuable to the person who lost them. They searched for the thing that was lost (The dad didn't leave home, but the Bible says he was on the lookout for when the son decided to return). In all of the cases, when the thing that was lost was found, there was a huge celebration. As we talked about, parables are stories meant to convey some truth about God and life…and there’s really ONE BIG THING that Jesus’ “lost stories” tell us.

“LOSTNESS” ISN’T GOOD

In all of these cases, the caretaker of the sheep, the owner of the coin, and the dad were all pretty stressed—they were sad—they were worried, they were freaked out—and these are all pictures of God.

Last week, I talked about how God is our creator—that he designed all of nature and humanity and that WE”RE HERE FOR A REASON. We’re not a result of some cosmic accident where we have no purpose. The Bible tells us that one of the main reasons why we exist is to know God and to have a friendship with him. To be close to our Creator and to live life the way he designed it to be lived so that we’re happy and fulfilled and have as few bumps and scrapes as possible.

I remember one time when I couldn’t find my daughter at the playground, and in those few seconds (which seemed like an eternity) the worst things flashed through my mind. Someone kidnapped my kid, my kid is lost forever, my kid is in trouble or hurt somewhere and I can’t help her. In those few seconds I felt complete fear and horror.

Thankfully, I ended up spotting her, and when that happened, all of those fears suddenly melted away and I breathed a huge sigh of relief. My heart rate returned to normal. But that experience reminded me just how much I love my kids and how much of a wreck I would be if either of them ended up being lost or in trouble.

Jesus is telling this story to remind us that God loves us like a good parent loves their kid, and that if we don’t know God…if, like the son in the story, we walk away from the closeness of our Heavenly dad and live life apart from him, we’re in trouble. The word the Bible uses to describe this ”trouble” is “sin”, which basically means to go your own way instead of God’s way—to choose to do life without him—and this is a bad thing, not only because we’ll likely make a lot of bad choices and live with a lot of regrets in life, but because we’re separated from the God who loves us. The Bible says that if we’re separated from God, we’ll never be a part of heaven one day!

That separation HORRIFIES GOD like it HORRIFIED me when I couldn’t find my daughter on the playground. These three stories Jesus told reminds us just how much God loves each one of us- that we are VALUABLE to him! That we are meant to be “in his sheep pen” or “in his pocket” or “in his living room”. We’re meant to be close to him! We're meant to "do life" with him!

At the end of all these stories, when the person who represents God finds the thing that’s lost, the person becomes super excited! They jump up and down! They call their friends! They throw a huge party! This reminds us that being SAVED FROM SIN—being forgiven of all of the bad things we’ve ever done—and having a restored relationship with God, is a HUGE DEAL. In fact, Jesus said that when a person who is lost returns to a friendship with God, there are angels in heaven throwing a huge party! They’re dancing! They’re cheering! They’re screaming! All of heaven is celebrating!

These three stories that Jesus told tell us something really important—that we are MEANT to know and follow God—that we are ALL MEANT to be close to him- that he doesn’t want any of us to be lost and to live life and spend eternity without him! The really great news is that, just like the son in the story, even if we’ve done stupid things and made a lot of terrible mistakes. Even if we’ve done things that we know God isn’t proud of—he offers us forgiveness and a brand new start. The thing he wants most is for us to be found, for us to come home!

DISCUSSION FOR HOME

1. Do you remember a time when your teen was lost or you discovered that he/she was in trouble? Talk about it. How did it make you feel in that moment? Remind your teen that this is how God feels if you don't have a close relationship with him.

2. Ask your teen what they think it might mean to "stay close to God". Ask them about Jesus' story about the lost son. What might that mean for us?

5 TIPS ON HOW YOU CAN HELP US BE A MORE WELCOMING CHURCH COMMUNITY

Last week, I shared "5 tips on how YOU can help us be a more welcoming church" with our CONNECT: Family & Friends group. It's such good stuff, I thought I would post it on our parents blog for anyone to view or share. Feel free to do so.

We don't do a terrible job at community. In fact, I often have people tell us about how blown away they are at how welcomed and at home they feel at Arlington Woods. But, the simple truth is that it's VERY TEMPTING to only sit with the people you know, to only talk to the people you know, and to never walk across the room to be a friendly face to somebody new. Have you ever been in a room full of people but felt completely alone- that no one would miss you if you were gone? It's a terrible feeling. We don't want any kids, teens, or adults to EVER feel that way when they're a part of something at Arlington Woods.

In Matthew 5, Jesus spoke in the Sermon on the Mount about the importance of loving others. He emphasizes that "loving others" doesn't mean just loving people who love you back, but even loving your enemies! He goes on to say in Matthew 5:47- "If you greet/welcome only your friends, what’s so great about that? Don’t even unbelievers do that?" That's a pretty big challenge. Jesus expects us not to just be welcoming and friendly to people we know, but also to the outsider. To someone who isn't yet known.

In Matthew 25:35-36, Jesus has some super awesome things to say to some believers: "When I was hungry, you gave me something to eat, and when I was thirsty, you gave me something to drink. When I was a stranger, you welcomed me, and when I was naked, you gave me clothes to wear. When I was sick, you took care of me, and when I was in jail, you visited me.”

Are you welcoming to those who are "strangers"- people you don't yet know? Are you hospitable? Often times we think this passage is talking about how we treat homeless people (who literally have no home), but we need to remember that guests on a Sunday or a church event might also be "homeless" in the sense that they are looking to be a part of a loving, caring, community. They want to feel welcome and valued. If they leave not feeling that, the odds of them ever coming back are slim to none.

To continue to be a warm, friendly, and welcoming church, it takes a bit of effort and work on our part. It means stepping outside our comfort zones. Here are 5 simple tips that I DARE you to try out this (and every) Sunday.

1. OPEN YOUR EYES

Before you stop and chat with the people you know, look to see if there's anyone who you don't know at the church. That might mean a brand new person, or someone who has attended for years but you don't really know.

2. WALK ACROSS THE ROOM

Make it your mission to welcome that new person you see before you get caught in a conversation with your usual circle of friends. This is tough because the person you talk to might not be the best conversationalist or might be an introvert, but Jesus wants us to welcome those people too! Please don't assume that someone else will welcome them. That "someone else" is YOU!

3. REMEMBER THEIR NAMES 

Make an effort to remember that person's name! I'm horrible with names--and often times when I meet someone, I forget their name one minute into the conversation. Write it down! Think of a celebrity that shares that name or a rhyme to help you remember.

4. INTRODUCE THE PERSON TO YOUR CIRCLE 

Being hospitable doesn't mean that you have to manage the conversation on your own. Bring that person and introduce them to the people you know so that they can feel invited into community and get to know others. It's such a SIMPLE way to help people feel welcomed and valued. You can also introduce them to one of our pastors too!

5. LOOK OUT FOR THEM

In following weeks, look out for that person you met to welcome them back. Call them by name! Follow up with them! Introduce them to others! Invite them to sit with you! Get to know them better!

CATALYST Youth, "ORIGIN STORY"- November 2, 2017

In superhero movies, we often get an ORIGIN STORY- the story of how the hero (or the villain) was just a regular person until something amazing happened- where they were bit by a radioactive spider or struck by lightning, or a container of toxic waste fell on the person’s head, or they were hit with a gamma ray…and all of a sudden this normal person’s genes changed at a molecular level and they became a superhero or supervillain!

Of course, none of us would be dumb enough to let ourselves get struck by lightning or to actually take a swim in some radioactive waste in the hopes of getting superpowers, because there really isn’t any scientific formula that you can follow to be a superhero like in the movies. There is no actual evidence that something like that could actually happen!

This week, we looked at OUR origin story. The origin story of our planet. Where did we come from? How did our planet come to exist? Are all of the plants, animals, and people alive because of some weird cosmic accident… or were they CREATED?

In nearly every text book, class, or scientific article, we’re never told that we were CREATED… we’re never even given that as an option. All of those sources usually tell us that we are a result of some weird cosmic accident that happened billions of years ago, and over the process of time, that accident somehow produced LIFE that evolved into living creatures. But here’s the problem- no textbook or scientist can explain where LIFE came from or how it came to exist out of nothing! It’s a big question mark in the scientific community.

Recently, there was a science and technology report from CBCnews about how Canadian scientists believe (AND TAKE NOTE OF THAT WORD…BELIEVE) that life on Earth came about because they THINK that a few billion years ago a meteorite that carried a molecule that contained some of the building blocks of life splashed down into a pond of water…and that SOMEHOW, life began. Of course, where those life-infused molecules came from is another huge unanswerable question for our scientific friends.

This is humanity's best guess at our origin story. This is what is being taught in schools and presented on the news as if it’s 100% true. But personally, I think it’s as crazy as saying you’ll get superpowers if you stand on the roof with a metal pole in a lightning storm.

Now, the reason why scientists, our textbook writers, and the people on the news choose to believe that life came about because of a big bang or a rock falling into some water, as far-fetched as those things might seem, is because they start off with the assumption that there is no God. If you don’t believe that God exists and you don’t believe that God created life, then I guess you don’t have any better option than to say that we’re a result of some weird cosmic accident. I mean, what other option is there? That aliens did it? If aliens did it, where did the aliens come from? When scientists try to explain life without factoring God into it, they’re left with a lot of big question marks. And sadly, you’ll read in your textbooks that the weird cosmic accident is the TRUE origin story. Scientists say that this is the TRUTH to our existence, even though their version of the truth, in my opinion, takes a whole lot more faith than it does for someone who believes in God.

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT OUR ORIGIN STORY?
The Bible says that we’re not a result of a random space rock landing in some water but that we were CREATED—that we have an intelligent designer! John 1:3 says, “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made”.

The Bible says here that EVERYTHING we see or use originally came from something that God created! This verse tells us that God is the only way for us to adequately explain the complexity of life and nature. For example, if you were to walk in the woods and happened across a chair—would you assume that it just grew out of the ground or would you assume that someone created it? By looking at it, you would see that it was sanded or painted, that pieces of wood were cut, that metal or plastic was melted down and poured into a mould—that someone shaped the materials and put it all together. A chair, in comparison to humanity or what we see in nature, isn't really that complex. Just look at an apple tree. It grows apples, and if you plant an apple, it’ll grow another tree. And the fruit is DELICIOUS to eat! Look at our bodies—our eyes compete with some of the best cameras that technology can build! When we cut ourselves, our body has the ability to heal itself! Look at our minds—we can create and invent all kinds of amazing things, from a tablet to an amazing piece of artwork! Nature, our bodies and our minds are far more intricate and complex than a chair—and we say it’s OBVIOUS that someone made the chair, but it’s not OBVIOUS that someone created life?

Our textbooks always say that the first spark of life came from nothing. That a big bang happened (and there’s no answer to who might have caused that big bang), and somehow a spark of life occurred and it started as a plankton and it took billions of years for that plankton to slowly improve and eventually become a human being. Our textbooks say that the answer is in the "billions of years"—that somehow, when you add a long period of time to the equation- ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE! But, that doesn’t make sense.

To use another illustration. I’m a fan of LEGO—I actually have a big collection of Star Wars Microfighters in my office. A LEGO set isn’t very complex. You can have a box with around a hundred pieces that contains ALL of the parts inside to build that exact model. If I shook that box for billions of years, do you think at the end, a fully built LEGO set would be inside the box? No. If anything, the pieces would wear down and degrade over time! But, that’s what our textbooks are trying to pass off on us as truth—that the building blocks of life (and remember, they can’t explain how those building blocks of life came to exist in the first place) somehow became something as complex and intricate as a human body over billions of years WITHOUT SOMEONE ACTUALLY CREATING IT! Our bodies and minds are WAY more complex than a few pieces of shaped plastic! To say that we evolved over a process of billions of years with no intelligent designer or creator is a HUGE stretch of logic! It’s like saying that a simple LEGO model built itself! It’s like saying that a simple cake or casserole came about because all of the right ingredients (with the exact amounts of ingredients) happened to be in a pot, and they happened to cook at the right temperature, and someone happened to take it out of the oven at the right time.

Let’s take a look at a few other things the Bible has to say about our ORIGIN STORY.

Job 12:7-11- “But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this? In his hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind”.

Again, this is saying that by scientifically examining animals, the earth, plant life and all of the things we find in nature, the intricacy of those things lets us know that they didn’t all appear out of nothing by complete accident—but that “the hand of the LORD has done this. In his hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind.”

Psalm 19:1-4 says, “The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship. Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known. They speak without a sound or word; their voice is never heard. Yet their message has gone throughout the earth, and their words to all the world”.

Here, the Bible isn’t saying that nature LITERALLY talks to us—but that everything in nature, is in a sense, SCREAMING out that it was created by a “craftsman”- by an intelligent designer!

Romans 1:20 says, “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse”.

This is saying that when we take a walk outside, when we see the birth of a child who grows up to think and create and have a unique personality, when we see animals around us—these things all SCREAM OUT THAT THEY WERE CREATED! All of this complexity doesn’t exist because of random chance.

Here are some amazing facts about our planet- all taken from scientific studies. It's important to note that in ALL OF THESE CASES, these scientific studies say that these things are all a result of random chance.

AMAZING FACT #1- THE POSITION OF THE EARTH 
There's a reason we've found life on Earth and nowhere else. Our world orbits the sun at just the right distance — it’s not too hot, it’s not too cold. If the earth was just a fraction closer or farther away from the sun, we would all freeze or burn up!

AMAZING FACT #2- THE EARTH’S ROTATION 
The earth's rotation brings the sun up each morning and, thankfully, puts it back down. If it weren't for this, one side of the world would be unbearably scorched and the other would be so cold and dark, it couldn’t sustain life. The only place where people could survive would be right at the border between constant sunlight and constant darkness.

AMAZING FACT #3- GRAVITY 
Science can’t really explain where gravity comes from, but it’s something we experience every single day. To put it in simple terms, gravity provides a certain degree of weight to things. Gravity holds us perfectly to the earth. With less gravity, we would float away like a balloon or an astronaut floating off into space. With more gravity, all life would be crushed under the weight of this force.

AMAZING FACT #4- MAGNETIC FIELD 
The Earth has this magnetic field that gives us our atmosphere. Without our atmosphere—the gasses in the air- nothing would survive. The magnetic field also protects us from the radiation of the sun.

AMAZING FACT #5- WATER 
70% of our world is covered by water. About 60% of an adult’s body is composed of water. Without water, no life would exist. Nothing would grow. And water is something VERY unique to our planet. So far, it hasn’t been found anywhere else.

AMAZING FACT #6- VEGETATION 
When you look out your window and see the colour green, It is nature's sign that sunlight, carbon dioxide and water are being converted into plant food by photosynthesis. Those plants give off oxygen so we can breathe, they provide us food! If trees didn't exist, we would have more carbon dioxide than oxygen and we wouldn’t be able to breathe!

Just these few amazing facts tell us that this world is perfectly suited for us. If just one of those things were missing, life wouldn’t exist. If we were just a fraction farther or closer to the sun, life wouldn’t exist. The odds of all these things happening by accident are just impossible! But, because the scientific community starts with the assumption that there’s no God, they really can’t adequately explain how and why life exists beyond “an explosion happened, the building blocks of life came from “somewhere”, and happened to land in a place perfectly suited for life, AND those tiny living organisms (which again, can’t be explained) somehow changed to become incredibly complex living beings who can think, create, and reproduce".

Textbooks contain a lot of truth. Science is very helpful at discovering how a lot of things work. But if you're looking for answers about our ORIGIN STORY- those textbooks and scientific studies are asking us to believe something that takes a whole lot more faith than believing that life and our world exists because of an Intelligent Designer. The scientific community is biased. They start with the assumption that there is no God and then attempt to somehow explain the intricacy of biology and nature without the supernatural. This is why their best guesses are so far-fetched and illogical.


The Bible tells us that we have an Intelligent Designer. It tells us that a loving God created this world that is perfectly suited for us. It tells us that we're not here by accident, but that we're here on purpose. It tells us that all of the intricacy of our bodies, plants, animals, and our world didn’t come from nothing! All of that intricacy is God’s signature. An artist’s signature.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. Have your teen take a look at a fruit or vegetable. Cut it open. Taste it. Ask them where they think it came from. How does it grow? (Look it up online). Ask them where the first seed came from? Do they think it's amazing? Discuss how this can't grow on any other planet- that our world is perfectly suited for this to grow and reproduce. Something this simple reminds us how amazing nature is and how perfectly suited this world is for us. To suggest that all of this happened by accident is pretty incredible.

2. Can your teen think of an example in a book, textbook, or class where it conflicts with what the Bible has to say about our origin story?

3. What stood out to your teen the most from Pastor Ben's talk at CATALYST? Was there something in particular that reminded them that God is our creator and that we're not all here by accident? What fact did they learn that might help them explain to a friend about how we have an Intelligent Designer?