Hello. Welcome to the online version of this week’s youth lesson. We hope you are doing well and enjoying the blessings God has provided in your life despite the circumstances.
It is amazing how Jesus can be in the midst of our trials when we don’t even expect Him. A new song by Zach Williams and Dolly Parton shares that message well:
Please continue to keep the front-line workers dealing with COVID-19 at the forefront of your prayers, along with those impacted by the virus, not just physically, but those who are struggling financially, emotionally or in other ways.
Please continue to pray for Pastor Paul and Sally as Sally has a biopsy soon on her pancreas. Pray for answers and solutions that further God’s plan for that situation. Dave Dillman, Holly’s dad, had surgery today on his wrist, which he broke in multiple places during a fall this past Friday.
Also please pray for the impact of our recent yard sale. God blessed us with great weather, an incredible attendance and impressive funds through the event, but we especially want to encourage him to work in the lives of those who attended, that they may draw closer to him through this all.
Part of my new job as the Middle Susquehanna Riverkeeper has led me to purchasing a boat that will be used for patrolling the waters. Thanks to guidance from Caz Russell, we found a nice Crestliner jet engine boat that should work really well and was available for a great price.
I have been working on refurbishing the boat, with Caz’s assistance, although I am not as far along as I’d like to be. One of the hang-ups has been removing old decals. Those things are pasted on with what seemed like Super Glue. I was told they’d come off with a razor, and my brain immediately pictured the razor-based box cutters called by some Exacto-knives. Not sure why I just started thinking that, but I got no where, chipping away at decals for more than an hour and not getting a single one off. I got frustrated and gave up.
Yesterday, Caz stopped in with the paint and checked out my progress. Concerning the decals, he recommended a razor blade. Again, I mentally pictured an Exacto-knife, but when running to Cole’s Hardware later for a few things, I asked about the razor for removing decals. Fifteen minutes and $1.49 later, I attacked the decals with a simple pink plastic-handled razor blade, and it was a miracle. The decals fell off like leaves on a cool, fall day.
It got me to thinking about how using the wrong tools can make a project so much more complicated than it needs to be. Imagine using chop sticks to eat a cup of pudding — you could do it, but it would take so much longer and take quite a bit of energy in the process. Another example: I was never a huge fan of mowing grass, even on a garden tractor, until several years ago when we moved to our current home and I purchased a zero-turn mower. It was a game-changer. Mowing the grass is something I now look forward to — I get annoyed when it is too wet to mow or someone else offers to mow for me.
This all got me thinking about the tools we use as Christians. Do we have the right instruments in our toolboxes to serve God, spread His message and be a light in a dark world?
There are numerous verses in the Bible that suggest what we need tool-wise to be successful. For some reason, I kept being drawn back to this verse from 2 Corinthians 10:3-6 (NIV):
For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. And we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience, once your obedience is complete.
Obviously, in this passage, the tools are referred to as weapons. Then, in looking at some other translations, I found the following version of the same verses in what is called “The Message” translation:
The world is unprincipled. It’s dog-eat-dog out there! The world doesn’t fight fair. But we don’t live or fight our battles that way—never have and never will. The tools of our trade aren’t for marketing or manipulation, but they are for demolishing that entire massively corrupt culture. We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ. Our tools are ready at hand for clearing the ground of every obstruction and building lives of obedience into maturity.
Now, I’m not a big fan of veering into different translations … each time someone translates the original Bible, there is an opportunity for something to be lost or the translator’s personal bias to work its way in.
However, what a powerful message this specific set of verses are in this translation … the “tools of our trade” are for “demolishing” the “massively corrupt culture.” We use our “powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ. Our tools are ready at hand for clearing the ground of every obstruction and building lives of obedience into maturity.”
It is like a Christian pep rally condensed into three short verses. It’s like those last-minute training montages to the tune of “Eye of the Tiger” that pumps up the movie audiences before Rocky Balboa takes on his next opponent in the boxing ring.
So, what tools do we have as Christians that help us defeat the worldly secular temptations, trials and other snares in our way? Here are a few:
- The Bible. The Gospel. We need God’s Word to influence all we do, and our actions should be based in God’s mentality and Jesus’ teachings. Can a Christian be a good Christian without a Bible? Perhaps, but that is as useful as eating pudding with chopsticks. Our church provides nice study Bibles for each person who graduates into the youth group. If you don’t have a Bible, please see Michelle or I as soon as possible. And when you have a Bible, use it. It doesn’t help if you don’t open it, read through the stories and absorb as much as possible. Check out the song “The Gospel” by Ryan Stevenson below.
- Prayer. God is always present, always listening and available via a prayer at any moment. The power of heartfelt, un-interrupted prayer can be overwhelming — just look at how it is portrayed and utilized in the movie “War Room.” Take time alone with God away from distractions. It may feel weird at first, but the more you do it, the more real and helpful it becomes.
- Church/Youth Group. Can someone grow as a Christian without attending in-person church? Yes, but without that tool, it can be so much harder. Being around other believers can challenge us (in a good way), can give us a support system that no Zoom meeting can replicate and provide godly people going through similar situations in which to confide and raise each other up.
- Godly friends. It is amazing how the people you surround yourself with can wear off on you over time. God’s word itself warns against yoking ourselves with those who are ungodly. There is extreme power in building a close group of friends who are believers and help you walk in faith … the song “Broken Together” from Casting Crowns or “If We’re Honest” by Francesca Battistelli come to mind as examples. Check out both below.
- A good devotional. Getting into God’s Word via the Bible can be challenging on a daily basis, but a devotional’s structure can help improve those odds. These are typically short readings with real-life examples that then dive into verses that can help inspire you to dig deeper.
- Other God-focused media. There can be a lots of danger hidden in worldly books, songs and movies. Even some Christian versions of these sources can lead us astray. However, building a library — or a playlist — of the songs, movies and books that stay true to God’s teachings and help uplift us can be a valuable tool to help us clear the ground of every non-Christian obstruction and build lives of obedience and maturity.
What other tools do you find helpful as a Christian? We’d love to hear your suggestions! And if you need anything, please reach out to Michelle (570-495-3740) or myself (570-847-2718).
Catch up on previous lessons here:
June 3, 2020: Beauty in the broken
May 20 & 27, 2020: Sowing seeds of salvation
May 13, 2020: Trash to treasure
May 6, 2020: Serving as samaritans
April 29, 2020: Adopted into the family
April 22, 2020: Living as lighthouses
April 15, 2020: Absorbing the truth
April 9, 2020: Preparation over procrastination
April 1, 2020: Standing up in the midst of a storm
March 25, 2020: What route do our roots run?
March 18, 2020: God’s calm guidance during a coronavirus craze
To submit a prayer request or ask any questions via email, click here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDcTvtuuVU8
