Monthly Archives: February 2010

Planning, Teaching, Youth Ministry

Wed Night Wrap Up #1

To give credit where credit is due: This post was inspired by youth ministry guru, Josh Griffin, and his HSM Weekend in Review posts over at More Than Dodgeball. Each week he posts about the weekend youth ministry service at Saddleback. I have been looking for a way to reflect and review my classes and this seems to be a good way to go. I’ve tweaked the elements of this a bit and hopefully over the next few weeks I can find a way to really utilize this format for my Wednesday and Sunday night teaching times. Thanks Josh! Love the site, love the podcast!

Wednesday Night Teaching Series: 1 Corinthinas (Week 3)
(Our Wednesday night is a combined class with Junior & Senior High students. It is designed to drive conversation from the biblical text and to connect biblical truths to everyday living.)

Big Question: Are you maturing in your walk as a follower of Jesus?

Bible: 1 Corinthians 3:1-9

Understandable Message: The church in Corinth was struggling to overcome sin and petty behavior that was stunting their growth as disciples of Jesus Christ. In this section, Paul tells the Corinthian believers that, while they think that they are mature, their actions actually show that they are still very immature in their faith. Specifically, they are arguing over who is the better teacher- Paul, Apollos, or Peter? He challenges them to see their leaders as the servants that they really are. Their focus should be on God not human leaders.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Paul says that the Corinthian believers were being immature Christians because they were jealous of and fighting one another (v3). What are other examples of Christians behaving immaturely?
  2. If you could wake up tomorrow and find that you had been magically transformed into “a mature disciple”, what would be the first sign that you would see that would confirm to you that you had become a mature disciple? What would be different? What actions would you be doing? How would you approach your life differently?
  3. Paul writes that he planted the seed of faith there in Corith and that Apollos watered it. Who planted the seed of faith in you? Who is, right now, watering your faith?
  4. Have you planted the seed of faith in someone that you know? Have you introduced someone to Jesus?
  5. Who are you watering? Is there someone that you are helping to understand their faith more fully? Who are you helping become a more mature disciple?

Element of Fun/Positive Environment: We had brownies!

Music Playlist: (I always play music as my students enter and leave the youth room) In Your Eyes, Times Like These, The Stand, All These Things I’ve Done

Favorite Moment: I loved hearing the teens tell stories about the people who have directly impacted their spiritual journeys. They talked about their parents or siblings, coaches and teachers.

Up Next: 1 Corinthians 3 pt. 2

Leadership, Ministry, Popular Culture, Youth Ministry

Mid-Week Thoughts

This is my 890th post! I’m trying to get back into the swing of posting and updating regularly. Here is what I’ve been thinking about and working through this week:

1. Major design update here at the blog. We are about to kick of the 5th year here at Kicking at the Darkness and I am trying to lay the groundwork for some great stuff to come. If you subscribe to the RSS feed, click over to the site proper and let me know what you think.

2. I’ve been listening to Kutless’ latest worship album It Is Well. Kutless puts their unique spin on It Is Well, God of Wonders, and Give Us Clean Hands. Driving guitars, tight vocals, awesome lyrics. Good stuff.

3. Very excited about class with my teens tonight. In our curriculum arc we have begun a New Testament Survey class on Sunday mornings. To supplement that I’m teaching through a handful of the epistles on Wednesday nights. We are typically very laid back on Wednesdays – couches, open bibles, lots of discussion. Tonight we keep digging in to 1Corinthians. Can’t wait!

4. Did you know that I have a Twitter account? I’ve been @michealfelker since 2007. Follow me & I’ll follow you!

5. I was sooooo disappointed with Brian McLaren’s latest book, A New Kind of Christianity. Totally lost me. Felt like I completely wasted my money. There I said it.

6. Why does listening to Led Zeppelin perk me up or make me drive faster? Whole Lotta Love is better than a dozen Coca-Colas.

7. “As a leader, everything I am and everything I do needs to be anchored in my identity with Christ. Leadership begins and ends with a clear understanding of the gospel and being rotted in the grace of Jesus Christ as a free gift.” (Dave Kraft, Leaders Who Last)

8. “I must settle once and for all: Am I going to live my life concerned with who is for me or who is against me or Am I going to be consumed with WHO I AM FOR?” (Andy Staney) I’m choosing he latter! How about you?

Discipleship, Firm on the Rock

Are You a Picture?

I came across a great song by Ben Harper tonight called Picture of Jesus. I want you to read the last verse and chorus:

Some days have no beginning
And some days have no end
Some roads are straight and narrow
And some roads only bend

So let us say a prayer
For every living thing
Walking towards a light
From the cross of a king

We long to be a picture of Jesus
Of Jesus
In his arms
In his arms so many prayers rest

I long to be a picture of Jesus
With him we shall be forever blessed

In 2 Corinthians Paul says, “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit (3:17-18).”

To be a picture of Jesus to the world is the challenge. The good news is that you don’t have to go about this transformation on your own. In fact, you can’t do it on your own no matter how strong you are or how determined you may be.

The Spirit transforms you into the picture of Jesus- transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory- road by road, day by day, minute by minute.

What an amazing blessing and an amazing promise! Amen!

Leadership, Life, Ministry, Youth Ministry Tips

Youth Ministry Tip #4: You Gotta Have Friends

This week’s Youth Ministry Tip could be one of the keys to ministry longevity. You MUST surround yourself with people who love you, care for you, have fun with you, and who develop you. You need friends.

Close Friends
We live in a society that isn’t big on deep, meaningful relationships. Find ways to buck that trend. Be intentional about gather a group of people around you that you can call friends. Friends help ease burdens, are there to encourage you, and help you build margin into your life. Who are your closest friends?

Ministry Friends
I am privileged to work amongst a great set of men in an area-wide ministry circle. We genuinely care for one another and enjoy each other’s company. Over the years we have moved from just planning events together to really getting to know one another. We share triumphs and heartaches, frustrations and practical advice. I love these men and I know they care for me and my family. Do you have a group like this around you? If not, what can you do to begin building this type of group in your area? If you are going to stay in ministry long-term you must surround yourself with people who are like-minded and who are in the trenches right alongside you. Who are your Band of Brothers or Sisters?

3 in the Morning Friends
Back in high school I had a group of my buddies that I knew were my 3am friends. These are the guys I could call at any hour on any day. In fact, I still consider these guys close enough to take my call at anytime. Life and situations have changed us (Babies and kids are asleep at 3am) but I am glad I have people like this in my life. Who can you count on to be there for you whenever you need them?

Ministry is not designed to be a solo journey. Get you some friends to help share the burden. Encourage one another and lean on one another.

Uncategorized

Phoning It In by Seth Godin

I had to repost this from Seth Godin’s blog. Life is way to short to phone it in.

“This was sort of shocking, at least to me:

I was talking to a religious leader, someone who runs a congregation. She made it clear to me that on many days, it’s just a job. A job like any other, you show up, you go through the motions, you get paid.

I guess we find this disturbing because spiritual work should be real, not faked.

But isn’t your work spiritual?

I know doctors, lawyers, waiters and insurance brokers who are honestly and truly passionate about what they do. They view it as an art form, a calling, and an important (no, an essential) thing worth doing.

In fact, I don’t think there’s a relationship between what you do and how important you think the work is. I think there’s a relationship between WHO YOU ARE and HOW IMPORTANT YOU THINK THE WORK IS.

Life’s too short to phone it in.”

All I have to say is right on brother! Thanks for the reminder and for the challenge!

Link

Jacob, LOST, Popular Culture

The End Is The Beginning Is The End

Lost is not just a television show; it has become an epic story filled with mystery that has garnered twenty-three million participants. Some might call them viewers, but a participant of Lost doesn’t sit in front of flickering electronic pixels, seeking to escape life through subpar television programming. Lost requires us to be involved. The story, which has blossomed into a marathon of cultural, literary, scientific, and religious allusions, offers to its faithful adherents ideas worth pondering, books worth reading, scientific theories worth exploring, and ideas that very nearly burn a hole in our pockets. Lost, in all its illustrative, complex glory, demands that we dialogue, research, meet ourselves in the characters, and share our latest discoveries with one another.

What makes this series unique is not merely the distinctive flashbacks and flash-forwards through time, the infinite twists and turns of the narratives, the endless symbolism, clever and often subtle references to philosophy and theology, spellbinding storylines, and captivating mysteries. It is the sum of these parts that has created an entirely new genre of television and attracted what may be the most committed and diverse fan base in television history. College students are discussing the show with their grandmothers, professors are citing the show in their teaching, and adolescent boys are buying posters of Evangeline Lily in the same way my generation bought posters of Farrah Fawcett. Theologians engage the historical and biblical references, blue-collar workers discuss the show on their breaks, white-collar workers debate their theories around water coolers, and on an island off the coast of Honduras, kids in an orphanage raptly and faithfully follow the antics of the castaways via bootleg copies of the series. (from The Gospel According to Lost by Chris Seay)

Tonight the final season begins. Lost has been an incredible treat for me these past five seasons and I am incredibly excited to countdown as final secrets and mysterious are revealed (hopefully).

To say I’m sad that a tv show is wrapping up sounds pretty lame. I mean it is just a collection of stories and scenes and to some these stories and scenes are incredibly weird and disjoined. However, to me, Lost is just plain stinkin’ awesome!

I will miss the hours of entertainment. I will miss the theorizing and guessing with my friends. I’ll miss the “I’ll-have-to-Google-that” moments that drove me to learning about all kinds of things from ancient Egyptian customs to philosophy to Flannery O’Conner to quantum physics and time travel. Lost is a nerd’s dream come to true.

Tonight marks the beginning of the end. I guess everything that rises must converge. I’ll meet you on the island… for one last season. Namaste.