Category: Reflection

A thought hit me today as Dr. Gil Rendle was teaching his second session here at the Annual Conference for the Central Texas Conference. Here is what I tweeted:

“Does being a disciple imply that you are a wanderer? Because we are called to not a church but the world?”

This might be a controversial thought, but are we really called to church or is church the method through which God moves his mission and message?

“Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey everything that I’ve commanded you. Look, I myself will be with you every day until the end of this present age.” (Matthew 28:19-20 CEB)

What is interesting about this passage is that this passage occurs in the bible before the “Early Christian Church” even started. It is written before Pentecost (when the Holy Spirit showed up). Now before you argue with me as to when it was actually written let me clarify even further.

In that passage what does Jesus say that we as disciples are called to?

The world.

More specifically the people in our communities and in this world.

The church is just the method as to which God is using the message to be sent. Even further let me clarify that when I say the church I am not referring to our buildings, but really when it comes down to it these buildings dont mean much when it comes to eternal life. They will pass away and yet if we have eternal life we will move into a new community with our Savior.

May God bless you and the message you project to the world.

What a spirit filled day! Annual Conference is off to an amazing start and leaves me with great hope for the future of United Methodist Church! Today had many great things but I would like to highlight the parts where I felt God was moving.

Day one of Annual Conference is always that day that starts things off gradually so today was quite a light day. However it was a great day for the Youth and Young Adult Ministries.

Dr. Gil Rendle – Conference Teacher

If you have never heard of Dr. Gil Rendle you are missing out on one of the greatest speakers and visionaries in the Christian movement today! He has an amazing way to say the simplest things that have huge ramifications. Here are some “tweets” that were shared today:

“When people go through the wilderness God changes them. He transforms them. #ctcac2012”

“We have to learn a new way of life as the UMC. We have to be open to wording the gospels in new generational languages. #ctcac2012”

“We have to cease to be a “member oriented” church. #ctcac2012”

A lot of what Dr. Gil Rendle taught us today surrounded around the idea that the Methodist Church has been working so hard to do things that have been proven don’t work. It reminds of the quote from Albert Einstein once said: “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing and expecting different results.”

What resonated with me today was the last tweet that I mentioned above: “We have become a ‘member oriented’ church.”

The church was never something that was intended to have walls. Even though we have church buildings the church is something that goes beyond a building. We must realize that today! If we go to church on Sundays and praise God and then our lives don’t radically change we are radically missing the point. God desires to radically change the way we view things and its time that we started living that!

Center for Evangelism and Church Growth

Probably the biggest part of the day was the “Center for Evangelism and Church Growth,” which focused mainly on how to allow our churches to be more successful and productive through Vital Signs and The Healthy Church Initiative. What is most promising to me is that the United Methodist Church is trying to provide help not just for the big churches but also specialized resources and help for the smaller churches as well.

Youth and Young Adult Ministries

I had the extreme honor and was incredibly humbled by being interviewed by the Conference for a video that was about being more connectional and helpful to our youth leaders but also for our youth. This video was shown during this time, and I have to say that I was incredibly humbled to be featured in this way. During this report our CCYM President, Kevin Gregory also gave the “Student Leadership Address.” Kevin did an amazing job forming what the Student Leaders on the Conference level were all about and this was actually the part of the day where I felt God moving through Kevin. He worded that we, as the Conference Council of Youth Ministries are in the business of “Changing Hearts.” It was like a breath of fresh air to hear a youth in the church speak with such passion about his faith and desire to serve God and God alone for the transformation of the world.

Needless to say there is much HOPE!

There will be many other things to share with you throughout this week, but for now I am a Youth Minister that is very proud to be doing what I do, working alongside some of the best ministers I know, our youth.

May God bless you all in and around the Central Texas Conference by this update and remember you can follow all the action on Twitter by searching for the hashtag: “ctcac2012.”

All over the Central Texas Conference Delegates from all over Central Texas have descended on Waco, TX to discuss the current state of the United Methodist Church of the Central Texas Conference. I have the incredible honor of representing the North District as one of two young adult delegates. I am humbled to be given the opportunity to be a voice for the Young Adults. I simply ask that all of you keep all of us in your prayers as we discuss how to energize, equip, and connect our churches together for the common goal of discipling others for the transformation of the world.

Throughout the week I will be posting updates about the activities of the Annual Conference. I am very excited to see what God is going to do in and through us and even in spite of us. My God be glorified in all we do together this week!

“Relax in My Healing, holy presence. Be still, while I transform your heart and mind. Let go of cares and worries, so  that you can receive My Peace. Cease striving, and know that I am God.” (Jesus Calling, June 2 Reading)

Do you ever think that it’s not anybody else, or thing, or anything that gets in the way of experiencing God but it’s simply you?

Seriously think about your life right now.

I’ll give you a moment to seriously reflect on your life.

What things in your life are forcing you from Experiencing God?

As human beings we let the smallest of things throw us off our course. I don’t know about you but sometimes it really is astonishing how fast I can go from, “I am going to truly experience God”,” to “Naw I will just spend hours on end on Facebook.”

Not everyone is that specific, but it happens just like that. In an instant our priorities flip on each other. It’s astonishing!

So I am going to challenge you to do something right now.

FOCUS.

Turn everything off in the room that you are reading this except for your computer, phone or whatever you are using to read what I am writing.

Be very still.

Take a moment and close your eyes on focus on sitting perfectly still. Erase all things from your mind and just focus in this moment.

It is only when we take time to be still and breathe and focus on the stillness that we truly nurture the very core of our soul. We know that the world moves a mile a minute, but we are not meant to do that. Jesus himself would go off and spend some quiet time alone, because we are not made to go go go. We must take time and rest and relax.

Don’t let anything get in the way of truly experiencing God. Nothing. You in essence must get out of the way to truly to see, and feel God. After all in the story of Elijah God wasn’t in the earthquake, or the fire, or the wind, but He was the still small voice. Focus on that still small voice by GETTING OUT OF THE WAY.

Then you will truly experience the core of who you were created to be.

“There’s a season for everything and a time for every matter under the heavens.” (Ecclesiastes 3:1)

The other day I posted a blog titled, “Calm Before the Storm.” That was the beginning of what I will try to post regularly during the summer of what is happening in my summer and more specifically my first summer as Director of Pulse Student Ministries at St. Philips United Methodist Church.

What you can expect to see in the very near future:

Annual Conference: This year I have the privilege and honor to be a Young Adult Delegate to Annual Conference. During this week I will be attempting to post regularly on what is happening at this years conference, but also a good heads up is if you have twitter you can follow all the posts from twitter at this hashtag: “CTCAC2012.”

CTCYM 2012: This year I am the Program Director for the Central UMC in Rogers, Arkansas Living Center. This may be bold when I say this, but I am so excited about this years mission trip because everything is so fresh and new and we are trying new ways of curriculum and so forth. God is definitely at work!

These are just two examples of what you may see on my blog, “The Methodork,” in the very near future!

As it says in Ecclesiastes, “There’s a season for everything…” This season makes me very excited! I have the opportunity to build more relationships with the church community of St. Philip’s United Methodist Church but more specifically with the students and adults of Pulse Student Ministries! Stay tuned because I am sure God is going to do things that just have to be shared!