STRESS TEST PART 2: CATALYST YOUTH- November 29, 2019

This week, we continued our STRESS TEST series by talking about bad news! The Internet and social media keeps us constantly connected! If something happens in the world, we can all hear about it instantly! And while it’s pretty cool how connected we all are, it also comes with a downside because we are constantly BEATEN UP by bad news. We can’t escape it! If a tragedy happens at the other end of the world, we can know about it (and see pictures and videos of it) minutes later! A study by the American Psychological Foundation found that more than half of people experience anxiety, fatigue, and sleep loss BECAUSE OF BAD NEWS! HALF OF PEOPLE!

Why is there so much bad news? Why doesn’t God put an end to all of it? Why does God let this kind of thing happen? If you’re someone who has asked those questions, then I think you could really relate to a guy in the Bible named Habakkuk.

Habakkuk was a prophet in the Old Testament (a prophet was someone who delivered messages from God to the people)…and Habakkuk was TOTALLY sick and tired of bad news…so in his anger and frustration, he turned to God!

 “How long, O LORD, must I call for help? But you do not listen! “Violence is everywhere!” I cry, but you do not come to save. Must I forever see these evil deeds? Why must I watch all this misery? Wherever I look, I see destruction and violence. I am surrounded by people who love to argue and fight. The law has become paralyzed, and there is no justice in the courts. The wicked far outnumber the righteous, so that justice has become perverted.” (Habakkuk 1:1-2)

It's almost as if Habakkuk was describing the evening news in 2019! “Violence is everywhere!”, “People are doing evil things!”, “Everywhere I turn is destruction and violence!”, “People love to argue and fight!”, “There is tons of injustice!”

Well, God responds to Habakkuk with some good news...but also some bad news... Habakkuk 1:5-6 says, “The LORD replied, “Look around at the nations; look and be amazed! For I am doing something in your own day, something you wouldn’t believe, even if someone told you about it.”

Ok, so far so good... but then in the next verse God tells Habakkuk, 

“I am raising up the Babylonians, a cruel and violent people. They will march across the world and conquer other lands”.

WHAT??? Basically, God tells Habakkuk that Israel is going to experience some bad times because of their sin and evil…that he’s going to raise up a nation (the Babylonians) to conquer them…and that hopefully through this process, the Israelites would turn back to God and change the way they were living.  But the really bad news was that He was going to use a nation that was EVEN MORE EVIL and CORRUPT and VIOLENT than the Israelites to do it!

This led Habakkuk to question God further. In Habakkuk 1:12-13 he said "How can you be silent? How can you allow evil people do have success?" Habakkuk was so angry that in 2:1 he basically says that he's going to go on a hunger strike until he gets some answers from God.

In Chapter 2, God answers Habakkuk and tells him, "You need to have faith". In other words, "You need to trust me. You need to trust that despite the bad news, I'm in control. You need to trust that evil won't go unpunished. You need to trust that I will fix everything that's wrong with the world."

Well, that kind of happened—the Babylonians don’t even EXIST today while Israel still does…so, they didn’t get away with evil…and the Israelites DID turn from their sin and start following God again for awhile…but a lot of those same problems with the world that Habakkuk complained about are still happening today. The world isn’t perfect! People make terribly wrong choices which hurt other people! There is still A LOT of bad news! 

You might wonder—why doesn’t God just stop it? Why doesn’t he just solve this problem once and for all if he loves us and wants the best for us?

Well, first of all, God doesn’t want to remove our ability to make choices. He didn’t want to make robots that were programmed to do the right thing and love him….he created us with the freedom to do good and evil! And unfortunately, most people on this planet make TERRIBLE choices that hurt themselves and others. God isn’t the one who has made a mess of our world… we’re the ones who’ve done that!

That said, God DOES plan on one day making everything wrong with this world right again… he PROMISES that the day is coming…that there will be an end to bad news…and 2 Peter 3:9 gives us the reason why he hasn’t done it yet…

“The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent”.

This verse gives us the reason why God hasn't yet become so fed up with the evil and injustice in the world that he puts an end to it all.  While we can look at the news and wonder why God isn’t doing it right now, this verse tells us that it’s because God is being PATIENT hoping that more and more people will come to follow him. It tells us that God doesn’t want anyone to be destroyed! He wants everyone to repent! He’s giving people the chance to know and follow him! But one day, the time will run out and we’re going to have to answer to God for the way we’ve lived our lives and the choices we’ve made. God reminds Habakkuk that even if an evil nation seems to be succeeding for awhile, NOBODY is going to get away with evil. EVERYBODY is going to have to answer to Him!

Habakkuk’s story reminds us of two important things we can do when we’re stressed out because of bad news and all of the problems in our world…

1. RUN TO GOD!

Last week we looked at how Jesus wants us to run to him to experience peace, help and strength when we’re stressed out. That He is bigger than our problems and actually WANTS to help us like a mother hen wraps its wings around her baby chicks.

What I think is really cool about Habakkuk is that he was pretty open and honest with God. He was full of questions, anger, and frustration! He even accused God of abandoning them, of taking his sweet time to do something about the world’s problems! Habakkuk actually says to God, “Why won’t you save us?”

This reminds us something important. God can handle our questions, our doubts, our frustrations and anger. He wants us to be REAL with him. He wants us to express ourselves to him! In fact, the Bible is full of verses that are very REAL and RAW prayers to God. 

For example in Psalm 44:23-24, it says,“Wake up, O Lord! Why do you sleep? Get up! Do not reject us forever. Why do you look the other way? Why do you ignore our suffering and oppression?”

God wants us to turn to him with our anger, our doubts, and our frustration! 

2. HAVE FAITH

When we don’t understand why God allows bad things to happen, God wants us to have faith--- to TRUST Him. To trust that even if something doesn’t make sense, he’s in control and he will ultimately FIX all of the problems with our world.

The Book of Habakkuk ends with Habakkuk singing a worship song to God where he’s full of joy and saying that God is his strength and help! That’s pretty cool. He started out all angry and frustrated with God, and ends up singing praises to God! Why the change? Because he knew that God hadn’t left him alone and he trusted that God was in control, even in the midst of really bad news.

When you’re stressed, when you’re overwhelmed by bad news, when you're feeling hopeless. Run to God! Talk to him about how you’re feeling! Express your worries, doubts, and fears to him! He wants to have that kind of relationship with us! And then, he wants us to simply trust him. Trust that he’s in control. Trust that he’ll bring good out of the bad. Trust that He’ll be with us on the bad days. And when we run to him and trust him with all of the problems in our lives and in this world, the Bible says that He will give us peace and help…we’ll find that, like Habakkuk, we won’t be as stressed out as when we started!

DISCUSSION FOR HOME

1. Talk to your teens about the news or world events. What are things that stress them out or worry them? What are some things that stress you out or worry you?

2. For the last two weeks, we've been looking at the importance of running to God when we're worried, stressed, or feeling overwhelmed. Ask your teen, "What does it mean to run to God? What are some practical things that they could do that would draw them close to God when they are stressed?" What are some things that YOU do?

STRESS TEST PART 1: CATALYST YOUTH- November 22, 2019

This week we launched a new series called STRESS TEST where we're focusing on how our faith can help us when we're stressed, worried, or feeling hopeless or overwhelmed.

There are A LOT of things that cause people to stress or worry: school grades/marks, tests/exams, doing something you’re uncomfortable doing, drama at school, friendships, bullying, future job/career, money, problems at work, problems at school, problems at home, debt, going on an interview, doing something new for the first time, sickness, death of a loved one, divorce or breakup, loss of a job, having to move, a traumatic event, deadlines, poor time management (leaving things to the last minute), noise, having to do something with no notice.

Sadly, it’s impossible to live a stress-free life! There are no magical stress fairies that can take all of your worries and concerns away. 

That said, there ARE things that we can do to help reduce stress and anxiety.  For example, if you don’t leave your school work to the last minute, you’ll experience less stress. If you surround yourselves with good friends and people who are really supportive and encouraging, you’ll experience less stress. Doctors recommend stuff like eating right, getting enough sleep, getting exercise, not using drugs, alcohol, or smoking, avoiding caffeine, medication, or not using electronic devices before bed (or not bringing them to bed with you) as things that will really help your emotional health. 

Those are all some really great tips. Some people also really recommend meditation—which is a practice in Eastern religions where you’re supposed to empty your mind, chant, or contemplate questions that you can never find the answer to- looking inward. But that’s not a model we’re ever given in the Bible. The Bible actually encourages us to seek God when we’re stressed, to look to Him instead of inside ourselves--- and that He will give us strength and help!

Psalm 46:1-3 says, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.”

The first part of that verse describes God as our REFUGE that we can run to. The dictionary defines a refuge as “a condition of being safe or sheltered from pursuit, danger, or trouble”. When we’re experiencing fear, worry, or trouble, it says that we can run to the God who loves us and can help us through! He can be our SHELTER!

The verse also says that God will be our strength when we are feeling weak, tired, or burned out!

The final cool thing this verse reminds us is that GOD IS AN EVER-PRESENT HELP. It reminds us that He promises to be with us and he can do something about our situation!

Have you ever been in the middle of a stressful situation but just the presence of someone else was a HUGE help? My kids can sometimes be scared or nervous to do something on their own, but if they know that I’ll be with them, it reassures them and takes away a lot of the fear and stress. They know they’re not alone. They trust me and depend on me to be their help because I love them! We can have that same kind of child-like trust and dependence on God! 

But in the end, it’s your choice whether or not you run to God for help.

In Matthew 25:37, Jesus told the people of Jerusalem that they kept making bad choices and walking away from God, and he used a strange metaphor to describe his desire to protect and help us: “ I have wanted to be like a hen who gathers her chicks under her wings. And you would not let me!”

That's a pretty cool picture. Jesus wants us to run to him for protection like baby chicks run to their mom! God doesn't force us to run to him, we have to make the choice.

What does that look like? 

• You can do that by reading what the Bible says or using a devotional book. 
• You can do that by praying and talking to God about what you’re going through. 
• You can do that by being a part of church and youth group on a regular basis to be reminded about what God’s word says and be encouraged.
• You can do that by worshipping God—where we focus on the person who is BIGGER than our problems! 
• You can do that by surrounding yourselves with Christian friends who you can talk to. (I can’t tell you the number of times someone encouraged me about what the Bible said when I was going through a tough time).

DISCUSSION FOR HOME

1. Talk to your teen about the things that might stress them out. Are they feeling overwhelmed or burnt out? Discuss possible things that they could do to help them.

2. Take the time to pray together and ask God to be your teen's refuge and strength, their ever-present help in times of trouble.

WHO CARES? PART 5- CARING FOR CREATION, CATALYST Youth- October 25, 2019

This week we wrapped up our “WHO CARES?” series by talking about the importance of caring for creation. Environmental issues have been BIG in the news lately. It was a main issue throughout the recent election and most of us have also probably seen Greta Thunberg in the news—she’s a 16-year-old environmental activist who is passionately demanding that we all change our lifestyles in order to save the planet from disaster! It's good that we're talking about caring for our environment.

But, it there’s been a downside to all of this talk about the environment, it's that it’s a constant stream of horror stories about what will happen if we don’t make drastic changes! There are some people who claim that IT’S ALREADY TOO LATE! That our kids or grandkids are doomed! How’s that for an encouraging word? A recent study by Barna Research and World Vision polled 15,369 18- to 35-year-olds across 25 countries and found that only 34% of them were optimistic about the future. 2/3 of young people are terrified of the future. They say that it looks bleak and hopeless. They don’t feel that there’s anything to look forward to. They are without hope! Is there a reason to hope? Are there any reasons not to fear? Tonight we looked at what the Bible has to say.

1. GOD MADE THIS WORLD FOR US

Right on page one of the Bible we’re reminded that WE aren’t here because of some weird cosmic accident that somehow created a world that perfectly sustains life and created plants, animals and people from NOTHING! Believing that it's all a result of an accident takes A LOT of faith.

Genesis 1:1, 31 says, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth…God saw all that He had made, and it was very good”.

John 1:3 says, "Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.”

These verses remind us that our world has been CUSTOM-DESIGNED by a CREATOR. That God enabled this world to sustain life and to be an enjoyable place for us to live! The Bible says that observing our world and how it works naturally points us to a Creator.

Job 12:7-11 says, “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”.

This isn’t saying that animals will LITERALLY take us to school and teach us stuff or that the earth has a mouth--- but it’s 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 couldn't have all appeared out of nothing by complete accident, but rather, “the hand of the LORD has done this.” All of science points us to God! We can understand and see his signature in EVERYTHING that he’s made!

2. GOD WANTS US TO CARE FOR CREATION

Genesis 1:26-28 says that God made human beings and told us to be fruitful and multiply- to fill the earth and GOVERN it. To REIGN over the fish, birds, and animals.

The words "GOVERN" or “REIGN” carry with them some negative connotations. They carry the meaning to "DOMINATE", to "TREAD DOWN", to "BE FORCEFUL" or they can simply mean "TO RULE OVER". This is why there are some Christians who believe that it's ok to just plunder the earth and do whatever we want- they feel that the Bible gives us the license to do it! The problem with this, however, is that those same words are used to describe God's LORDSHIP over us...and it's a REALLY positive thing. For example, in Psalm 72 it says that God will REIGN over the earth…that he will RULE over humanity and creation…and it describes what it'll be like-- that the world under God's rule will flourish, be at peace, where anyone in need will be taken care of, and where everything wrong with the world will be made right again.  "Ruling" over the earth doesn't mean abusing it, it means being GOOD rulers! Loving caretakers of it!

Psalm 24:1 says, “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to him”.

Have you ever lent something out to a friend, and when they returned it, it was broken or ruined? This verse says that the earth and EVERYTHING in it (including people) belongs to God-- so we need to make sure that we take care of it and treat this world (and everyTHING and everyONE in it) with love and respect! Sadly, over history, we’ve shown that we DON’T CARE—people have made a mess of the environment, people have mistreated animals, and human beings constantly do TERRIBLE things to other human beings! Which leads us to my next point…

3. SIN RUINS EVERYTHING

“Sin” is a fancy Bible world that refers to our choices to go our own way instead of God’s way. The Bible says we all have a SIN PROBLEM—we’ve all made choices to walk away from God and reject what He wants for us…in small ways and big ways….and it usually ends up hurting ourselves, our relationship with God, and hurts others too! But here’s the good news—God offers us love and forgiveness--- he offers to do what we can’t do—to clean us up and wipe away our sin--to make us brand new!

The Bible tells us that God created a perfect world for us…but that it’s because of our choices (our sin) that not only are WE messed up, but our WORLD is messed up! We’ve corrupted it! We’ve PHYSICALLY and SPIRITUALLY polluted it!

Romans 8:20-21 says, “Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time”.

This is saying that just like we long for God to one day make everything wrong with this world right again- that we want justice and peace, the Bible is saying that CREATION ITSELF IS GROANING IN PAIN and looking forward to that too!

What's even more interesting is that there are passages in the Bible that directly suggest that part of the problems with our world and environment are a result of our rejecting God. For example, in Solomon's day, there were plagues, famines and natural disasters happening...and God said that it was because the people had turned away from Him! Thankfully, he makes a pretty amazing promise:

"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." 1 Chronicles 7:14

God promises to actually HEAL OUR LAND if we turn towards him and walk away from our sin—that THE LAND will actually experience God’s blessing if we are spiritually healthy!

4. GOD HAS FUTURE/ETERNAL PLANS FOR THE EARTH

Revelation 21:1-4 says, “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”

A lot of times we think of “heaven” as living on clouds and playing harps for all of eternity…but in reality, God promises that he will RENEW the earth and we’ll live on it FOREVER with no sin, so sadness, no death! The Bible tells us that everything that’s wrong with US and our WORLD will one day be made right BY GOD. That doesn’t mean that it’s ok for us to make a mess of this world because God will clean it up in the end-- that's a kind of irresponsible way of looking at things. How we treat creation matters, because it belongs to Him and he has entrusted it to us, but we can also trust that God is in control!

5. DON’T FEAR

When we are driven to fear about the future, when we hear horror stories about what life will be like if we don’t change, we don’t have to let fear and hopelessness overwhelm us. For people who don’t know or follow God, fear is the default. They don’t believe that there’s a God who cares about them or is looking out for them! But the Bible reminds us that GOD IS IN CONTROL, THAT HE’S IN CHARGE, and that we can TRUST HIM with our future.

-Job 12:10 says, “In his hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind." 

-Colossians 1:17 says, "He is before all things, and in him all things hold together."

-Psalm 46:1-2 says, “God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble. So we will not fear when earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea”.

-Psalm 56:3 says, “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you”.

In Mark 4:39-41 it tells us about a time when Jesus was on a boat with his disciples in the middle of a huge storm that had them terrified! “Jesus rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Silence! Be still!” Suddenly the wind stopped, and there was a great calm. Then he asked them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” The disciples were absolutely terrified. “Who is this man?” they asked each other. “Even the wind and waves obey him!” 

God has power over the wind and the waves! God has power over our climate! God is the LORD of all creation! We don’t need to be filled with fear and hopelessness for our future…but we can trust that God is (and will be) with us. We can have hope!

Fear shouldn’t be the thing that motivates us to care for creation…what should motivate us is that we LOVE GOD and want to care for the world he’s entrusted to us! One of the ways we can WORSHIP GOD (showing that we love him and think he’s important to us) is by CARING for His creation! (That includes our planet, animals, AND people!)

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR HOME:

1. What are some changes (perhaps even simple changes) that your family can make to show care for God's creation?

2. Ask your teen: Can you explain some reasons why caring for creation is important for Christians? How does your faith in God affect/change how you see environmental issues?

3. Take the time to thank God for everything that he's created and ask him to help your family care for what he's entrusted to us.

WHO CARES? Part 4- CATALYST Youth, October 18, 2019

This week, we continued our series, "WHO CARES?" by talking about being generous with our money! While, for a lot of our teens, money is still pretty hard to come by…one day they’ll have some…and if no one teaches them what to do with it or how to use it responsibly NOW, they might make some bad choices when their wallets are slightly more full.

While a lot of people today have problems saving money and spend more than they make, people have an even tougher time being GENEROUS with it…because money can be used to buy so many shiny things! There’s a lot of temptation to keep it for ourselves, to spend it on own wants and needs… and it doesn’t get easier!

A 2018 study (Basic and Applied Social Psychology) tells us that the more money a person has, the LESS likely they are to be generous with it! Statistically, people who earn less give a greater percentage! WHY? Because you start to LOVE IT and want more of it and want nicer things, and want to upgrade your life…and eventually, you become SCROOGE! The Bible offers a lot of warnings about money.

Ecclesiastes 5:10 says, “Those who love money will never have enough. How meaningless to think that wealth brings true happiness”!

In Matthew 6:24, Jesus said that money can easily become our God--- where we serve it and are consumed by it—where it takes over our life!

Tonight we looked at a few things the Bible says about money and generosity...

1. PLAN TO GIVE

2 Corinthians 9:7 says, “You must each decide in your heart how much to give”.

It’s really important that you plan what you’re going to do with your money. Us grownups might call that “MAKING A BUDGET”. In KIDZONE we recently talked about the importance of “GIVE, SAVE, SPEND”

You need to plan out how much you should spend, otherwise you’ll be in debt and become a SLAVE to credit card companies for spending too much! You also need to plan how much you should save! Saving is important so that you have money for big purchases, for schooling, for emergencies, and for your retirement. Here, the Bible says  that we also have to plan how much we’re going to give.

A lot of people will ask you for your money, and there’s A BILLION WORTHY CAUSES everywhere you turn—so it’s important that you decide on what things are most important to you and to plan to give regularly towards those things.

2. GIVE CHEERULLY

2 Corinthians 9:7 continues… “Don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. “For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.”

A recent poll said this is why Canadians give:
• 89 % give because they have compassion for those in need
• 85% give because they personally believe in a cause and want to help
• 79% give because it makes a difference in their community
• 61% give because they are moved by the CAUSE. 
• 29%  say they give because of their faith
• 23% give because there’s an income tax credit 

Those are a lot of compelling reasons! When we give as people of faith, it's a way we thank God for all that He's blessed us with. Giving is a way we worship God! It tells him that He's important to us and that we value the things that He values! It shows that we trust him to take care of us and to provide for us! 

3. THE BIBLE MODELS SACRIFICIAL GIVING

Acts 2 is probably one of the coolest chapters in the Bible. It tells us about what the first group of Jesus followers (the first church) did on a regular basis and WHY the church grew from a handful of people to over 2 BILLION Christians in the world today (that’s ¼ of the world’s population).

Acts 2:44 says "All the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need". 

That’s pretty counter-cultural. People usually buy property as an investment, so one day they’ll own it and be able to retire or to pass it on to their kids. People today also LOVE stuff and possessions and are never really satisfied with what they have. We always want more. Companies call us CONSUMERS—(which means we eat and eat and are never satisfied). But here, these Christians MADE PERSONAL SACRIFICES to be a help to others in need. Instead of getting more possessions, they actually sold stuff they had in order to help others! They were SELFLESS instead of SELFISH.

What does that mean practically today? It means thinking of ways that we could give something up for ourselves to be a benefit to others.

Some creative examples:

• Instead of buying brand name clothes, get more affordable clothes and give the money you would have spent away.
• Instead of upgrading a perfectly good tech advice, wait and give some of that money
• Instead of eating out, decide instead to give the money you would have spent towards a charity or cause that's important to you.
• Instead of buying a drink/coffee each day, pool that money together to sponsor a child through World Vision or Compassion Canada!

4. GOD BLESSES THOSE WHO ARE GENEROUS WITH THEIR MONEY

“And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others. As the Scriptures say, “They share freely and give generously to the poor. Their good deeds will be remembered forever.” For God is the one who provides seed for the farmer and then bread to eat. In the same way, he will provide and increase your resources and then produce a great harvest of generosity in you.” (2 Corinthians 9:7-10)

This says that when we are generous, God will BLESS us…He will TAKE CARE OF US! It actually says that we will have EVERYTHING WE NEED and we’ll have left over to share with others! I should mention that this isn’t some magical formula where if we give $1000, God will give us back $10,000. When we start to give because we want the reward, it means we’re giving for the wrong reason—our hearts aren’t in the right place. This also doesn't say that God will give us EVERYTHING WE WANT...but everything we NEED. There's a big difference there. When we give cheerfully as worship to God, He will take care of us and we'll find ourselves even more able and willing to be even more generous!

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR HOME:

1. Discuss with your teens ways that your family is generous with money. What are some important needs you regularly give towards? Why? Have you experienced God's blessing/provision in your life? Can you give your teens some examples?

2. Discuss some of the creative ways you might give up something for yourselves so that you can give to others. (Listed above under #3). Are one of those things something that your family could try? What should you do with that money you saved? Do you have any other creative ideas?

3. Pray together and ask God to increase your willingness and ability to be generous! Thank God for all the ways He's provided for you and pray that He will continue to bless you and your family as you practice generosity.

WHO CARES? Part 3- CATALYST youth, September 27, 2019

This week at CATALYST, we continued our "WHO CARES?" series by talking about being generous with our skills, interests, and abilities-- all things that God has uniquely wired into us!

In Acts 9: 36-42 we learned about a woman named Dorcas.

DORCAS WAS A DISCIPLE!

She is the only woman in the Bible SPECIFICALLY referred to as a disciple (even though there were other women disciples at the time). This is pretty significant because it was a pretty male-centric society. Men were the ones who could have an education. Men were the ones who had positions of leadership. Only men would have been called disciples. This shows us how much God cares about gender equality. Jesus had women disciples who learned from him and were a part of church leadership! This was pretty counter-cultural at the time.

DORCAS WAS "ALWAYS DOING GOOD AND HELPING THE POOR"!

Because Dorcas was a person of faith who followed Jesus with her life, she naturally dedicated her life to helping others. She had an amazing legacy! She was known for helping the poorest of the poor in that society (specifically mentioning widows). Widows were among the most poor and vulnerable people because they didn't have husbands to provide for them (remember, it was a male-centric culture at the time). 

All through the Bible, it encourages followers of God to take care of the poor, refugees, widows, and orphans- to be involved in social justice issues. For example, in Deuteronomy 24:19 it encourages people to not keep all of their crops for themselves, but to leave some for foreigners, orphans and widows. This is something that the church (and Christians) are known for today. Nearly every major helping organization or emergency relief organization that is in existence today is a Christian organization or founded by Christians (Salvation Army, World Vision, Compassion International, Red Cross, Ottawa Mission, Capital City Mission, Ottawa Innercity Ministries). 1 John 3:16-17 says that we can't have God's love in us if we don't have compassion on people in need.

DORCAS USED HER SKILLS, ABILITIES & INTERESTS TO HELP OTHERS!

Acts 9:39 says, "All the widows stood around him (Peter), crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them".

Dorcas had some skills! She knew how to sew! She knew how to make clothing, and she used those skills and abilities not just for her own benefit or livelihood, but so that she could be a help to others as part of the church community.

God has given us all unique skills, interests, and abilities, and they haven't been given to us so that we hoard them for ourselves, but so that we can show CARE to others. It's important that we think about our skills, abilities, and interests and how we each might be able to use them in ways that assist with the mission of the church (to help people know Jesus and to share his love with others), or ways that help people in need.

DISCUSSION FOR HOME:

1. Dorcas was known as being someone who was always doing good and helping the poor. Talk about what your teen would like to be known for- what they would want remembered the most about them. Does any of it include generosity, kindness, or giving?

2. As a family, talk about the ways that you might use your skills/interests/abilities to help others or as a part of the church community. Help your teen think of ways that they could use what God has given them to be a help and benefit to others. Encourage them to talk to Pastor Ben or Christine about ways they could serve at Arlington Woods or at CATALYST youth.

3. Pray together, thanking God for some of the talents, abilities, or interests that he's uniquely given each one of us. Ask God to help your teens be known for their generosity-- that they would give of their time, their abilities/interests, and their money to be a help and benefit to others.

WHO CARES? Part 2- CATALYST Youth, September 20, 2019

This week at CATALYST youth, we talked about GENEROSITY—particularly about how we can be generous with the most valuable thing that any of us have or ever will have--- no, it’s not money—it’s TIME! Time is so valuable to us that we get paid by the hour! We often spend money to save time (like avoiding lineups at an amusement park)! Some adults will pay for people to wash their clothes or clean their homes, or do things that they COULD do themselves. People will eat at restaurants and spend more than they would on groceries in a week JUST BECAUSE it saves time and is convenient! People can even become really angry if their time is wasted!

We all have the same amount of time every day! Days can pass by quickly, our time can fill up quickly, and once we spend that hour, DESPITE what AVENGERS: ENDGAME teaches us, we just can’t ever get it back!

My dad recently learned an important lesson about time. He was feeling a bit sick and went to the hospital only to discover that he had a heart attack! They thought it was pretty minor until they ran tests—and they ended up doing a quadruple bypass on him (putting in new tubes so that blood isn’t blocked from getting in/out of your heart). In fact, the doctor said that if he hadn’t gone to the hospital when he did, he could have just DROPPED DEAD at any time!

That’s a pretty scary thing to hear--- and even though teens might not think about it very often, the reality is that WE HAVE NO GUARANTEES how long we have to live. An accident or sickness can happen at any time! Nobody has a guarantee of living for exactly 100 years and in being good health the whole time! Every single day that we have is a gift from God to us! So what are we going to do with that gift?

 Psalm 90:12 says, “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”

This is a prayer that we would remember how precious time is and that we would use our time WISELY—to manage our time well and to spend some of our time on things that REALLY matter. That doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t play video games or binge-watch Netflix, because it’s super important to relax and unwind and have fun, but IF THAT'S ALL WE DID every night, we might have regrets later on. We might feel that we wasted the time that God gave us. We might feel that we should have invested it more wisely. We might wish that we had spent our time doing things that would have helped others or made our world a better place. Instead of regretting stuff later, it makes A WHOLE LOT OF sense to manage our time well NOW!

This week, I shared from the Bible about two valuable ways that we can spend our time. We looked at a time when two sisters named Mary and Martha invited Jesus over to their house for dinner in Luke 10:38-42.

LOVE GOD WITH YOUR TIME

Martha was angry and annoyed with Mary, but it turns out, Jesus said that she was spending her time wisely. What was she doing? She was listening to his teaching. She was talking to him. She was investing in their friendship. 

This reminds us of something really important. The most important thing that any of us can do—the thing that matters more than anything else is that we know Jesus, that we’ve experienced his love and forgiveness, and that we are growing closer to God spiritually! 

Jesus, in Matthew 16:26 said, “What do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?” 

In other words, if you are rich and famous and have everything you ever wanted in life, but are far from God, then all of that other stuff is just empty and meaningless! 

We can love God with our time by setting time aside in our schedules to grow in our faith (being a part of CATALYST, singing and listening to worship music, reading the Bible or doing a devotional etc...). Don’t go days, weeks, months or years without investing in your friendship with Jesus!

LOVE OTHERS WITH YOUR TIME!

Martha sometimes gets a bad rap here. She was doing something pretty important. She was doing something that was pretty great! She was showing generosity by spending money on food to prepare an awesome dinner for Jesus who was tired from travelling. She was showing hospitality by turning her home into an AIR BnB for Jesus! She was loving Jesus with her time too!

Of course, the main thing we can learn here is that we can be SUPER BUSY doing all kinds of good things, but if we don’t know and follow Jesus than NONE OF THAT REALLY MATTERS. Knowing God is the most important thing…and then loving others with our time naturally comes from that! 

Oftentimes kids or teens might think that because they don’t have a job and don’t have very much money that they can’t really be generous- that generosity is something that only adults can do. But even if they don’t have any money (or very little of it), they can still show GENEROSITY with their time---the most valuable thing they have! We can all be generous with our time by not being too busy to help others (think of the Good Samaritan!). We can be generous with our time by being a help around the house or volunteering in the church or community.

We are encouraged in the Bible to NUMBER OUR DAYS- to think about the time we have, and make wise choices with how we spend our time. Two of the wisest uses of our time is to invest in our friendship with Jesus and to devote some of our time to caring for others.

HOME DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. Talk about ways that you (as parents), or as a family, show generosity with your time. Why is it important to you?

2. Talk about how you and your family can be like Mary. Mary hung out with Jesus and listened to his teaching, and Jesus said this was the BEST way she could have spent her time! What are some things that you can do as individuals or as a family to ensure that you're growing in your faith? Is there something new you could start doing?

3. Pray together and thank God for the time he has given you! We are blessed to be alive and every day is a gift! Ask God to help you spend your time wisely and not to neglect carving out time in your schedules to grow closer to God and to make time to help, serve or volunteer in ways that shows others that you care.

WHO CARES? PART 1- CATALYST YOUTH Sept 13, 2019

This week, CATALYST youth returned, and we kicked off a brand new series called "WHO CARES?" where we'll be talking about friendship, generosity, selflessness (as opposed to selfishness) and kindness.

This week, we looked at the important of surrounding ourselves with REAL FRIENDS and being that kind of friend to others. What is a REAL friend?

A FRIEND SHOULD BE A VOICE OF WISDOM

One of the things the Bible says is that we should choose friends who are WISE. 

Proverbs 13:20- Walk with the wise and become wise; associate with fools and get in trouble.

What that’s getting at is that if you’re hanging out with people who use their heads and make wise life choices, it’s going to benefit you a lot! The Bible tells us here that wisdom rubs off! If you’ve got friends who are making good life choices, then they’ll influence you for the better! Of course, the opposite is true. If your “friends” are like the little devil sitting on your shoulder, it’s going to bring you disaster!

A FRIEND SHOULD MAKE YOU A BETTER PERSON

Proverbs 27:17- As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend.

Back in Bible times, people would sharpen knives by rubbing the blades against each other, and this little proverb is telling us that a great friend will make you better and stronger! Being around them will make you a better person! They will be a benefit to you!

A FRIEND SHOULD BE THERE FOR YOU

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10- “Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble”.

This verse again reminds us that TRUE friendship should be one where you HELP EACH OTHER SUCCEED, and then the last part of the verse says, “SOMEONE WHO FALLS ALONE IS IN REAL TROUBLE”. When you need help, a real friend should be there for you! 

If you call yourself a Christian (if you've accepted God's love and forgiveness and are trying to follow Jesus with your life), there's one other thing the Bible encourages us about friendship:

A FRIEND SHOULD HELP OTHERS COME TO KNOW AND FOLLOW JESUS

When I was a teen, my closest friends were people who encouraged me in my faith. They would remind me sometimes of what the Bible said and how it related to something I was going through. They would actually PRAY for me and with me! They would encourage me to be a part of the church or a part of our youth group! They helped me grow closer to God instead of pulling me farther away!
That’s the kind of friend that God wants us to be to others!

John 1:43-46 tells us about how a guy named Philip was that kind of friend:

“The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, “Follow me”. Philip then found Nathanael (his friend) and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” 

“Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked. “Come and see,” said Philip.

Philip was a guy who met Jesus and was pretty much totally convinced that Jesus was the son of God- the Messiah—the person God promised who would save the world from their sins! So much so, that he left his job to follow Jesus around and help him! I imagine his friends and family thought he was completely crazy! But before Philip left to hang with Jesus…he did one simple thing- he went and found his friend Nathanael and told him about Jesus.

Nathanael had a lot of questions. He kind of doubted what Philip told him. He was a bit skeptical. He was like, “SURE…This person that you met from Nazareth is God’s promised savior. NOTHING good comes from Nazareth, it’s a small, insignificant town!”

And Philip simply said—“come and see for yourself”!

You probably have friends like Nathanael—friends who have questions about God or faith (even if they haven’t told you yet), they might have doubts, they might be a bit skeptical. Some of your friends have probably never heard of Jesus beyond hearing his name used as a swear word! They’ve probably never even been inside a church before! 

SO CAN YOU HELP INTRODUCE YOUR FRIENDS TO JESUS?

Here are a few pro-tips to help you be like Philip:

PRO TIP 1:  PRAY FOR YOUR FRIENDS! 

Pray that they would come to know and follow Jesus and that God would use you to be a part of that introduction! Pray that your friends would make wise choices!

PRO TIP 2: LITERALLY STOP AND PRAY FOR YOUR FRIENDS! 

If your friend tells you about something rough they’re going through, here’s a CRAZY idea that takes a bit of boldness—just offer right then and there to pray for them! Just say, “Would it be ok if I prayed for you right now?” Most of the time, even friends who have never been to church before will REALLY appreciate you praying for them and it shows them how much you love God and that you really care about them!

PRO TIP 3: BE OPEN AND HONEST ABOUT YOUR FAITH. 

Don’t hide the fact that you’re connected to church or a youth group! When your friend asks you what you did over the weekend, tell them about CATALYST! They might ask you questions about it and there might even be an opportunity for you to invite them along with you!

PRO TIP 4: INVITE YOUR FRIENDS TO JOIN YOU AT CATALYST! 

Some of them might say “no thanks”, but some might want to come out! If you don’t invite them out, you’ll never know!

PRO TIP 5: IF YOUR FRIEND HAS QUESTIONS ABOUT GOD/FAITH, AND YOU DON’T KNOW THE ANSWER, JUST SAY, “LET ME GET BACK TO YOU”. 

You can even email myself or one of our youth leaders with the question and we can help you out! You don’t have to have all the answers all the time! When Nathanael had questions—Philip didn’t have all the answers—he just told him to come with him to meet Jesus for himself!

PARENT/TEEN DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. Have your teen think about their friends. What are some of their AMAZING qualities? What makes them REAL friends? Do any of them share some of the characteristics that the Bible says are important?

2.  Remind your teens of the PRO-TIPS that Pastor Ben shared. What are some simple ways that your teen might be able to show/tell their friends that their faith is important to them? What are some simple things they could do that might help introduce their  friends to Jesus?

3. Parents- pray for your teens. Pray that they would be a REAL friend to the people around them. Pray that God would help them make great choices when it comes to the friends they choose.

HIGHLIGHT REEL PART 5- ISRAEL'S EPIC FAILS

This week, we talked about FAILS! I’m sure every single one of you have watched fail videos on Youtube, where people wipe out, fall down, or embarrass themselves for the entire world to watch over and over again! Fail videos get MILLIONS of views! But of course, in real life, FAILS aren’t quite as much fun.

Have you ever felt that as hard as you tried, you just ended up failing? Have you ever felt like giving up? Have you ever felt super frustrated with yourself or had super low self-esteem and thought of yourself as the WORST?

Tonight, we continued our series "HIGHLIGHT REEL", by looking at how the people of Israel were experts at failing! They failed constantly! In fact, sometimes when I read the Bible, I get kind of frustrated! It’s kind of like watching a movie like INFINITY WAR and wishing that things would end up differently….that Star Lord would just keep it together for 5 minutes! That’s often how I feel when reading about the people of Israel, because it seems that they constantly made the same bad choices over and over again!

The last time we got together, we had a bit of a movie night--- watching the classic ANIMATED movie- The Prince of Egypt. That movie depicts God's epic rescue of the Israelites from slavery, culminating in a wall of fire falling from heaven to block the Egyptian army from attacking them, and then God telling Moses to smash his staff into the sea, parting the water and creating a path for the Israelites to escape to safety. It was an amazing moment! I would like to think that if I had gone through that experience and seen God working incredible miracles with my own eyes, that nothing would stop me from trusting and following him in the future…but that wasn’t the case for the people of Israel!

After walking through the Red Sea, the people spontaneously sang this amazing worship song to God (the first worship song recorded in the Bible)—where they celebrated the fact that God had rescued them, that God loved them, that he had promised to take care of them and give them a future full of hope! But then the failing started! Here are just a few of Israel's MANY fails...

FAIL #1: They had run out of food and wished that God had killed them in Egypt and that following God was pointless. (Exodus 16:3)

FAIL #2: They had run out of water and doubted that God could take care of them. (Exodus 17:3)

FAIL #3: They thought that Moses (and God) had abandoned them, so they made a golden calf and worshipped it as one of the gods that rescued them from Egypt. (Exodus 32:4)

FAIL #4: They were right on the edge of the land that God had promised them, but were too scared to enter the land. They accused God of being a horrible leader who didn't know what he was doing, and when Moses and Aaron tried to talk sense into them, they tried to kill them! They then talked about choosing a new leader and returning to Egypt. (Number 14:1-4, 10)

FAIL #5: They rejected God as their leader and asked to have a king like other nations. (1 Samuel 8)

MULTIPLE FAILS #6: All through the Book of Judges, the people of Israel went through what’s known as the SIN CYCLE. They loved and followed God for a little while, but then would start to adopt the values of the cultures around them, would ignore how God wanted them to live and go their own way (including worshiping false gods and doing evil). When they experienced hardship and difficulty because they had walked away from God, God sent messengers (Judges) to tell the people to get back on track and to ask God to forgive them….and they did….until they started ignoring how God wanted them to live and go their own way again. This cycle is repeated 7 times!

All through the Old Testament, the people of Israel are known for their FAILS. They’re known for rejecting God and going their own way over and over again! They’re known for doubting that God would take care of them over and over again! It just drives me crazy! But I think all of these FAILS are in the Bible for a couple of really important reasons.

1. WE ALL FAIL!

Every single one of us! All of us have sinned (where we’ve made choices to reject what God wants for our lives and go our own way). It’s not easy to do the right thing. It’s not easy to live our lives the way God designed them to be lived when we’re surrounded by loads of temptation and where everyone else lives however they want! 

As much as I’m frustrated at reading how the people of Israel failed over and over again, what makes it worse is that I’m EXACTLY the same! I try to follow God and make right choices--- to live the way he wants me to--- and I might get it right ¼ of the time….but the other ¾ is just epic fails! I can SO relate to the story of the Israelites. These guys were colossal failures! They constantly sinned against God! But here’s what really amazes to me….

2) GOD’S LOVE & GRACE SURPASSES OUR FAILURE

Psalm 103:8-10 (Message) says, “God is sheer mercy and grace; not easily angered, he's rich in love. He doesn't endlessly nag and scold, nor hold grudges forever. He doesn't treat us as our sins deserve, nor pay us back in full for our wrongs”.


This kind of amazes me, but God never gave up on the people of Israel. He never said, “Ok, that was the last straw--- I’m leaving you bozos to do life without me! I’m totally fed up with you! You guys are FAILURES!” All through Israel’s story, God constantly offers them second chances! He constantly begs them to repent (to say sorry for their sins and try to make better choices)! God displays an incredible amount of love and patience! The people of Israel didn’t deserve it at all! I mean, maybe one or two chances…but after hundreds of years of FAILS, they didn’t really deserve God’s love and forgiveness anymore….but God kept offering it to them over and over again!

God had mercy on them! Mercy means being offered forgiveness when you deserve punishment. God showed them AMAZING GRACE- the dictionary describes grace as “the free and unmerited favor of God”. We can’t earn it!

Here’s the deal. We all fail. We fail all the time! Some of us have failed today! We’ve all sinned! We’ve all rejected God and have decided to go our own way….and none of us deserves God’s mercy and grace! And yet he KEEPS extending it to us because he loves us like crazy. Because he wants us to be tight with him. Because he wants the very best for us. And he’s willing to put up with all of our crap and forgive us a BILLION TIMES because he just loves us so much!

That blows me away! No matter what we’ve said or done! No matter how many times we’ve failed, God doesn’t look at us (at me) like we’re garbage! He doesn’t walk away from us or treat us like we deserve, but he CONSTANTLY offers us a second, third, fourth, ONE BILLIONTH chance!

That is amazing! How can we not live for him when we’ve experienced a love like that! And that’s why, even though it frustrates me a ton, I’m glad the history of God with the people of Israel is recorded for us because it proves the LOVE, the KINDNESS, the PATIENCE, the MERCY, the GRACE of God!


When you fail….when you fall flat on your face...when you feel that God couldn’t possibly love you or forgive you, we’re reminded that HE WILL NEVER STOP LOVING OR FORGIVING US….that his love is RECKLESS! It’s MIND-BOGGLING! When you’ve failed, when you’ve sinned, God wants you to go to him- to ask him to forgive you even though you don’t deserve it and to accept his love, his mercy, and his AMAZING grace!

YOU CAN PRAY:

Jesus, I mess up so much. I sin against you. I don't deserve love and forgiveness, and yet you offer it to me over and over again. Thank you for loving me like that. Please forgive me for my sin, for my choices to go my own way instead of your way. I invite You to come into my life. Thank you for your mercy! Thank you for your grace! Thank you for your love. Amen. Note: If you said that prayer after reading this, send Pastor Ben an email to let him know- ben@arlingtonwoods.ca.

HIGHLIGHT REEL PART 3- ABRAHAM'S ADVENTURE

Last week, we talked about how God wants us to know and follow him….to do what’s RIGHT, even if it’s really hard! He wants us to live life the way he designed it to be lived! That kind of thing might seem a little CRAZY today! Most of your friends might not really know or care that much about God and what he wants for their lives…so if you’re someone who is living in a way that’s different from them…it definitely STANDS OUT! 

I shared a story of how, when I was a teenager and decided to follow Jesus, God brought some awesome changes in my life. For example, I used to swear like a sailor (do sailor's really swear a lot???), but soon after I invited Jesus into my life, I found that I wanted God to be proud of the things I said. Well guess what? It wasn't long until people noticed that my language was different. In fact, I had friends who even DARED me to swear and offered me money just to say a bad word--- just so they could hear it coming out of my mouth! Isn’t that crazy? 

That's just one example that reminds us that if you are serious about loving and following God, people MIGHT think that you're a bit odd. They might not understand why you do what you do. It might lead them to ask you some questions! They might even make fun of you because of it! Tonight, we're looking at the story of Abraham and how God invited him on an adventure....to follow him!

Genesis 12:1, 4 says, “The Lord had said to Abraham, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. So Abraham departed as the Lord had instructed, and Lot (his nephew) went with him. Abraham was seventy-five years old when he left Haran.”

Imagine this. Imagine that your mom or dad called a family meeting and told you that God spoke to them and said that he wanted them to move to a new country (and they aren’t sure what that country will be…they’ll find out on the way), AND THAT THEY WERE DOING IT.  How would you feel? Scared? Angry? Shocked? Would you think they were totally insane?

Well, that’s what God was asking Abraham to do—to leave life the way he had known it, to step WAY OUTSIDE his comfort zone, and move to a new country—to go on an adventure. And he wasn’t an adventurous 20 year-old either--- he was 75 YEARS OLD! That’s like your grandma or grandpa deciding all of a sudden to move away without giving their next address! You would probably try to talk some sense into them! You would probably tell them that they should sit back, relax and enjoy life instead of going off to do something crazy! But here’s the deal—God had a special plan for Abraham…and God just asked Abraham to trust him--- to trust that he would lead him someplace good—to trust that he had a good plan for his life!

God actually told Abraham that “if you love and follow me, I’ll be committed to you and your family. I’ll be your God and you will be my people. I’ll take care of you! I’ll bless you! In fact—ALL PEOPLE ON EARTH will be blessed through you!” God said that Abraham would have a huge family with many descendants!”

Now, here’s Abraham. He’s 75 years old. And God is telling him to move to a new place and that he would have KIDS. He didn’t have any kids at the time…and his wife was just 10 years younger than he was (65 at the time)! Well, guess what Abraham did? He followed God on this adventure. He trusted that God would take care of him….and He moved away to a new country and it wasn’t until YEARS later that he had a kid.  In fact, he was 100 and his wife was 90 when they had their kid. It was kind of a miracle! His wife Sarah, actually LAUGHED HYSTERICALLY AT THE THOUGHT THAT AN OLD LADY LIKE HER COULD HAVE A KID! But God kept his promise!

And spoiler alert—Abraham’s descendants would become the people of Israel---and all through the Bible, we see God sticking with them even when they bailed on him and sinned---God constantly offered them love and forgiveness, even if they didn’t deserve it….because of the commitment that he had made with Abraham ----and Jesus—the saviour of the world (remember, God said that he would BLESS THE ENTIRE WORLD through Abraham) was born in that family line! Joseph, Jesus’ adopted dad was a descendant of Abraham!

So, God had pretty big plans for Abraham and his family---but if Abraham had said, “No way! I’m too old! I want to play it safe! I don’t want people to think I’m crazy!”—none of that would have happened!) Instead, Abraham packed up and went on this road trip

There’s something that we can learn from Abraham’s story….and that’s that God asks us to FOLLOW HIM- to live life the way he designed it to be lived and to trust that He knows and wants the best for us!

For you, following God might not meaning moving to a strange new country or having a kid when you’re 100 years old…but it’ll definitely mean that you’ll stand out in a crowd! Just like for Abraham, following God can be super risky and might seem totally crazy to some people!

It might be as simple as living in a way that’s different from other people around you (actually living what you believe). That might mean being honest when you could get away with something or refusing to gossip or make fun of somebody else. It might mean asking someone for forgiveness when you did something wrong or hurt them in some way?

Following God might mean going on a mission trip to help others around the world or to share God’s love with others. For example, even our trip to the Capital City Mission as a youth group might be something that’s out of your comfort zone or something that scares you---  but it’s a way that we can be a help and show God’s love to others who might be poor or looked down on by the rest of society! FOLLOWING GOD ISN’T SUPPOSED TO BE COMFORTABLE AND SAFE!

Following God—might mean GASP—actually letting your friends know that you’re someone who loves God and that you go to a church or youth group….and maybe even INVITING THEM TO JOIN YOU!  Sure, some people might think it’s kind of weird, but you never know how just an invite might change somebody’s whole life!

Following God might mean giving money to charity, giving money to the church, or volunteering in the church or community when you could spend the money on yourself or spend your time sitting at home playing video games instead!

That’s what following God looks like—it means standing out--- it means being COUNTER-CULTURAL--- doing the opposite of what a lot of others around us might do--- being committed to doing what’s right, even if it’s really hard or might mean people think we’re crazy!

Each one of us will have to make the decision for ourselves--- If God created me to know and follow him….AM I ACTUALLY GOING TO DO IT? Am I going to live life the way he designed it to be lived? Am I going to go on the adventure that God has planned out for me?

Abraham is a pretty inspiring old dude. He trusted God with his life- and it meant stepping WAY OUTSIDE his comfort zone--- but as a result, God blessed him and his family in AMAZING WAYS—and ultimately, God used his family to be a part of his plan to SAVE THE WORLD—to offer love and forgiveness to EVERYONE through Jesus! Just like God called Abraham to an adventure, he's calling us to an adventure-- and we can trust that when we follow him, wherever it leads it'll be a place where we can really make a difference with our lives.

QUESTIONS FOR HOME

1. What is the most adventurous thing you've ever done? Parents, share some stories with your teens about adventures you've gone on! Can you think of ways that you trusted or followed God even if it was out of your comfort zone? What happened?

2. What do you think a Christian should look like? For example, what are some things that a Christian might say or do that might be different from what others would do? When people look at you, do they see those things?

3. Take the time to pray together and ask God to help your teen trust and follow Him. Pray that your teen would do what's right EVEN if it's REALLY hard and everybody else is going in the opposite direction. Pray that your teen would hear God's leading and direction in their life and that they would trust God enough to follow him wherever he leads.

HIGHLIGHT REEL PART 1: CREATION- Catalyst Youth, Feb 22, 2019

This week, we kicked off a brand new series at CATALYST called "HIGHLIGHT REEL" where we're looking at some of the GREATEST MOMENTS, the highlights, in the Bible!

Kicking things off, we started right on the first page of the Bible looking at the CREATION story in Genesis.

We talked about how, in our culture today (including school) we're never really given the possibility that we were CREATED as even a potential option or possible theory. Instead, we're told that our existence is a result of some weird cosmic accident that happened billions of years ago, and over the process of time, that accident somehow produced a planet that’s perfectly suited to sustain life, and that the accident also created all of LIFE itself-- including creatures that evolved into living, intelligent and creative PEOPLE with distinct personalities, skills, and interests!

But the problem is that no textbook or scientific study has ever been able to explain HOW life started….how something came to exist out of nothing! It’s a big question mark even in the scientific community.

The reason why scientists, our textbook writers, and the people on the news choose to believe that life came about because of some random chance, as far-fetched as it might seem, is because they start off with the assumption that there is no God. Science is all about observing and reporting on those observations, and for the most part, it discounts the supernatural. Because of this, they are looking for any natural explanation for our existence. But tonight, we explored how-- if we have open minds, there is a A LOT more reason to believe in a creator than to believe that all of life and creation just happened by accident. When we try to explain life without factoring God or the supernatural into it, we’re left with a lot of big question marks--- because EVERYTHING coming from NOTHING is a pretty big miracle!

In the first few pages of the Bible—in the Book of Genesis, we’re given an alternate theory for all of us to consider--- what I think is a far more plausible reason why life exists and why this planet is perfectly suited for us! 

Now there are some Christians who interpret the Creation story very LITERALLY—where they believe that God created all of those things over a LITERAL period of 6 days…and that each of those days was a 24 hour period (which, I might add- is not impossible—because we’re talking about God here).

There are others who aren’t super nitpicky about the specific details of the Creation story, These people would suggest that it’s not really important whether or not this happened in 7 literal days---or whether it took a billion years--- or whether God sped up the growth process of our planet to make it appear older than it is, or whether or not there’s a million years between each day of creation, because this was never meant to be a scientific research paper-- it was something that was passed down from generation to generation and was told in a way that could be easily remembered and memorized so that people could learn and remember ONE IMPORTANT TRUTH.

The key takeaway from the Bible’s creation story, and one that ALL Christians agree on--- is that WE WERE CREATED. That, “IN THE BEGINNING, THERE WAS GOD…AND HE CREATED!”

If there is a CREATOR—than it means that we aren’t here by accident. It’s not random chance that our planet is the only one we’ve ever discovered that can sustain life and has life on it! The Bible tells us that our planet and humankind was CREATED with intention and purpose by a God who loves us.

John 1:3 says, “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made”.

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”.

This isn’t saying that animals will LITERALLY take us to school and teach us stuff or that the earth has a mouth--- but it’s 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 couldn't have all appeared out of nothing by complete accident, rather, “the hand of the LORD has done this.”

I’ve used this example before, but if you were to walk in the woods and happened across a chair— you wouldn’t assume that it just grew out of the ground and naturally appeared that way--- you would ASSUME that it was CREATED and put there by somebody. 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 mold—that someone shaped the materials and put it all together.

But here’s the thing--a chair, in comparison to humanity or what we see in nature, isn't really that complex. 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 yet we say it’s OBVIOUS that someone made the chair, but it’s not OBVIOUS that someone created life? That life is a completely random occurrence!

Our textbooks always say that the first spark of life came from nothing. That a big bang happened (and again, 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 of my favorite illustrations. 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. But 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! 

I'm a colossal failure when it comes to baking. Just a little while ago I made some homemade bread…but I accidentally had one ingredient wrong--- I used Baking Soda instead of Baking Powder. Let me tell you, the look on my kids faces said it all--- just one simple mistake and the bread turned into a doorstop! To say that a loaf of bread could be made out of nothing, with no intelligence, no creator, nobody stirring or mixing things together is completely ridiculous! I mean, BAKING is insanely complicated—you’re supposed to mix it--- but if you OVER-MIX it, you’ve ruined it! How a tree works (this living thing that grows from a seed, produces delicious fruit, and even creates oxygen) or how a baby is born is WAY more complex and miraculous than making a loaf of bread.

But, that’s what we’re being told is the most PLAUSIBLE explanation for our existence—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 OR CAUSING IT TO HAPPEN! 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 loaf of bread made itself!

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! The evidence is ALL around us!

So what does that mean for you and me?

Well, if we agree that all of the complexity of life and this planet couldn’t have just happened by accident, then it leads us to ask some deep questions!

WHO CREATED US? CAN WE KNOW OUR CREATOR? DOES THIS CREATOR HAVE A PLAN AND PURPOSE FOR OUR LIVES?  IS THERE AN ACTUAL RIGHT/WRONG WAY TO DO THIS THING CALLED LIFE?

Next week, we’re going to look at the story of Adam and Eve—and what it says about who God is and why we were created.

DISCUSSION FOR HOME

1. What are some reasons why people might disbelieve that God created all of life and creation?

2. This week we looked at how all of Creation bears God's signature (that creation tells us about God). By looking at life and creation, what are some clues that reveal that it isn't be accident-- that we were created?

3. If God is our creator, what do you think that means for our everyday life? Should it affect or change how we live?