Welcome to our 45th online lesson. You can catch up on those by clicking here. We have some cool content coming up that I’ll share in a bit.
First, a song we have used quite a bit that ties into this week’s lesson.
Prayer needs continue for Sally and Pastor Paul … with her radiation treatments starting soon and Pastor Paul’s grieving process of losing his brother recently to COVID. We also want to continue praying for Pat and Candy Mitchell with the grieving process and developing a new norm.
Carl Renninger’s brother, John, is dealing with an increase in health issues and needs our prayers. We also want to continue to remember Johnathan Foote, the gentleman that Ruth Smith recommended for our attention.
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Every year, the greater Wesleyan Church’s Youth/Next Generation ministry puts on a special training for church youth group directors and others connected to youth ministries. It is called Fuel, and typically happens in mid- to late-February. Michelle and I were able to attend two years ago in Cincinnati in advance of the District Convention in the same city later that year.
This year, due to the circumstances, Fuel is being offered via email and online resources provided to us via 16 video sessions covering a wide variety of topics important for youth ministry, for parents of youth and for the youths themselves. Since we have access to that, I will be sharing one video per day on our PAW Youth Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1905641993018515
If you are not a member of that group, I’d encourage you to request to join and we’ll add you. The sessions are each interesting in their own way and a good discussion point not only for youth group leaders and their youth members … but also parents and their kids. Each day, I’ll share a different video, and we can have some conversation in the comments section below about the topic, what we can take from it and how we can improve not only as a youth group, but also within each family.
To kick things off via this weekly blog post (and our Wednesday night in-person session), we will focus on the “How to Dream Big” session by Nathan Saucedo.
First, let’s look at a story from the book of Judges … specifically the incredible shrinking army of Gideon as outlined in Judges 7:1-8 (NKJV):
Then Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) and all the people who were with him rose early and encamped beside the well of Harod, so that the camp of the Midianites was on the north side of them by the hill of Moreh in the valley.
And the Lord said to Gideon, “The people who are with you are too many for Me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel claim glory for itself against Me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’ Now therefore, proclaim in the hearing of the people, saying, ‘Whoever is fearful and afraid, let him turn and depart at once from Mount Gilead.’ ” And twenty-two thousand of the people returned, and ten thousand remained.
But the Lord said to Gideon, “The people are still too many; bring them down to the water, and I will test them for you there. Then it will be, that of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall go with you,’ the same shall go with you; and of whomever I say to you, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ the same shall not go.” So he brought the people down to the water. And the Lord said to Gideon, “Everyone who laps from the water with his tongue, as a dog laps, you shall set apart by himself; likewise everyone who gets down on his knees to drink.” And the number of those who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men; but all the rest of the people got down on their knees to drink water.
Then the Lord said to Gideon, “By the three hundred men who lapped I will save you, and deliver the Midianites into your hand. Let all the other people go, every man to his place.” So the people took provisions and their trumpets in their hands. And he sent away all the rest of Israel, every man to his tent, and retained those three hundred men. Now the camp of Midian was below him in the valley.
Imagine being Gideon for a moment. He has this massive army ready to take on the Midianites at God’s request, and suddenly God tells him he has too many soldiers? Slowly, Gideon sees his army whittled down and I am sure his anxiety proportionally went up. The smaller the army he had to fight with, the bigger the miracle it would take to deliver them from the hands of their enemies. With each subtraction of military help, Gideon was forced to dream bigger and bigger.
Ultimately, God follows through with His promise to protect Gideon and his small army … even though the soldiers went into battle armed not with weapons but trumpets and empty jars with torches inside.
When all 300 trumpets sounded, God caused the Midianites to turn on each other with their swords.
What situations in your life feel equally overwhelming as what Gideon faced up front with his tiny army? Take that to the next level by asking yourself what big dreams you have for God that you put on the back burner because they seem too big, too unattainable?
Like the song shared at the beginning, “Reason” by the group Unspoken, God provides us with the tools we need to not only dream big, but also pull upon God’s power to see those dreams come through.
Is it worth noting that our big dreams that we bring before the Lord should be big dreams for Him and furthering His kingdom. Ministry opportunities in which we take a huge step toward helping people draw closer to him — regardless of hw impossible it may seem up front.
Take a few minutes to watch the following video presentation by Nathan Saucedo, one of the Fuel breakout sessions. You will need to click on the link and go to the YouTube browser for this one since it is a private video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NaX02eCTesE&list=PL5Sm4D0_WBCXX5NIOvKfaty_Io3rAvz5H&index=15
As Nathan shares in the video, take some time to think and pray over the following questions:
- What big dreams (for God) did (or do) you have?
- How has the scope of those dreams changed?
- What excuses have you thought about which pull you away from that dream?
- What is one big God-focused dream you have that would blow people’s minds?
Please let us know what your dreams may be in relation to yourself? The youth group? Send us your thoughts via email by clicking here.
Thankfully, when we have big dreams, we can take comfort that God is Someone who listens:
