the    sides

I challenged my LIFE Group to journal at least 8 of the next 14 days (shoot for 60% success in arenas of spiritual formation is my goal) these two questions.

What is God doing here (pointing to my heart)?

What is God doing there (pointing around me)?

The rub of the matter is this - I’m not exactly peachy king comfortable answering either one of these questions on my blog but I feel the need to do some of it on the blog so that my blog doesn’t resort (if it hasn’t already) to just one more mask I have on.

What is God doing here?
With me preaching alot more now than ever, I have to admit something…I like it. It’s not just that I like it, but I think that God is gifting me with some insight and application of the Scriptures that I’ve never had before. That’s the sorta good news…

The sorta bad news is this - I am more aware of short-temperedness and swagger than ever before. In student ministry, it helps (at least I thought/think/re-thinking) to have a little edge/arrogance/swagger/bravado. It feeds the counter-culture angst that most students have and the parents are okay with it because at least the role model who has the edge loves Jesus and doesn’t do drugs.

The problem is this - is the bravado (for lack of a better word) leading students closer to Jesus?

Part of it is my wiring/DNA and I’m not quite ready to apologize for that. The part that pushes parents to release their teens for the Kingdom, the part that challenges teens to place their reps and money and in some cases (mission trips) their lives in the unsafe hands of Jesus, the part that refuses to believe that youth ministry is supposed to be safe, glorified babysitting while parents do the ‘real work’, the part that is resistant to labeling reality into sacred and secular categories - those parts I’m hoping/believing are God-honoring.

But the other part - is that on the chopping block of spiritual transformation?