Another great video from Jeff Bethke. So much truth in such a short amount of time.
Last night was my last day with Denton Bible Church Student Ministries. It was very difficult to make the decision to leave, but once it was made, I realized that it was the best decision.
After almost 2 years of working part time for Denton Bible Church I learned a great deal, but now I want to focus more on Seminary and my own web design business.
Working part time at the church for 29 hours a week unfortunately did not pay the bills and with school and 2 other jobs it meant that I had to work around 60-70 hours a week in order to successfully run my businesses and do well at student ministries. I realized that something had to give. I think ministry should be challenging, but it should not always leave you feeling burnt out and overworked. As Christians and ministers we should be serving joyfully from the overflow that God provides – I was no longer doing that.
What I will miss most is the students and seeing their bright smiles and watching and as they mature and learn to love Jesus. I am thankful to DBC for allowing me to serve in such a large capacity and I learned so much about what it means to work for a church.
So What’s Next…
I plan to start working more on my creative goals. I’d love to get more invested in an art-based ministry in Denton, TX. Maybe I’ll start my own, maybe I’ll join one that already exists, but either way I definitely see my life moving more toward art and design and how that impacts faith, culture and religion.
I also have written two books. One is fiction, the second is autobiographical. I’d like to work on them, fine tune them and then try to get them published.
I run a DJ business that has been booming. I’d like to figure out a way to make myself Denton’s Best Event DJ with a bunch of cool props and lights.
Lastly, I’d like to learn more in the realm of video editing with After Effects and brush up on my InDesign and Illustrator skills to accompany what I already do with Photoshop and Dreamweaver.
Most of my life I did not understand the importance of community. To me I never labeled by group of friends that I served alongside of at church. I didn’t realize that my Ultimate Frisbee team was it’s own community group and the people that I worked with at work, as well as the guys and girls I worked out with at the gym were all community groups that I was a part of.
What makes community important? It is our community that shapes and defines us. We have this desperate need to belong to a part of something and if that something brings us joy and excitement, well, then all the better. Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Stumbleupon, and a host of other online groups are all communities that people want to be a part of, but within those communities we place ourselves in much more granular communities.
Why is this important? Because we will go – and stay – wherever we find the most acceptance and comfort with who we are. If you are fat, you will often surround yourself with other fat people. If you are gay, then you might be in a gay community where you find acceptance and if you are pervert then there are a host of communities online that will accept you. Once you find that acceptance then you start to feel that you are “okay” with how you are because people love and accept you no inspite of your inadequacies, but because of your inadequacies. If you are fat and you suddenly slim down, you lose your fat friends. If you smoke and you stop smoking, your friends literally disappear in a puff of smoke. If you are single and you get married, well, more than likely you’ll see those single friends less and less.
That is why it is so important as believers that we “consider how to spur one another on toward love and good deeps, let us not give up of meeting together as some are in the habit of doing…” – as Christians we need to find acceptance in our church body inspire of our faults. We accept each other because our commonality is the love of Christ, not our muscle size, bank account size, the fancy shoes we wear or the type of sports that we watch or play.
Unfortunately, in many of our church communities we don’t spend time with each other on a real level. When we are at church or around our church friends we become a forced perfect version of ourselves. We don’t share our struggles. We don’t listen and we lack grace. But on an up note, I’ve noticed a big change in that in recent months and a new understanding of the importance of mentors, counseling, and community.
So go, join a small group, a sports team, or something positive where someone challenges you to be a better version of yourself. Don’t just fall into a groove of acceptance in a mediocre community that allows you to just exist and won’t accept you for who you are if you chance.
This is geared toward a male teen that I am mentoring currently, but feel free to modify it. I kept it pretty general and at the same time pretty direct.
Things You Should Know Now
1. Learn to think for yourself
a. Often times we let our friends or culture tell us what we should think or believe – be sure that you do your own research and to not take anything at face value unless it comes from a very reliable source.
2. Be Grounded
a. Mentally – Do you ever struggle with depression? Highs and Lows?
b. Spiritually – Do you have a church? Do you know where you will go when you die? Do you believe in Heaven/Hell?
c. Emotionally – How are your relationships? How do you react when you are upset?
d. Financially – Are you saving your money and spending wisely?
e. Physically – are you taking care of your body? Your teeth?
3. Sex
a. Sex is a gift and should be treated as something special between two people that are married.
b. Culture, television and media will try to devalue sex and make it something that is recreational and that should be done like dancing or playing sports. But it is much more emotional and physical and dangerous.
4. Pornography
a. Is addictive
b. Will subtract – not add from your physical relationships
c. Can be a destructive trap that keeps you from living in reality and leave you always wanting more than what is actually possible.
5. Drugs and Alcohol
a. Even after you are 21 there is a large emphasis on using alcohol to have a good time. It really isn’t necessary and can become a crutch for some people.
b. Alcohol, like many things in life, can be fun, but becomes dangerous when people are stupid
c. Drugs are illegal and addictive – but you probably already know this! The point is sometimes it is more fun to do them because they are illegal, but they will really only limit you from reaching your goals
6. Dream Big
a. Things rarely just happen, if you want something, take small steps to get there and eventually you will.
7. Failure teaches us more than Success
a. When we fail it means we are really challenging ourselves. If you win all the time you aren’t getting any better, you aren’t growing and you will become lazy and arrogant all the while your competition is getting stronger
8. Don’t limit yourself or allow other to limit you
a. If you want to try something, try it, don’t let fear hold you back
b. Be constantly looking for new opportunities to excel
9. Be Humble
a. No one likes arrogant people
b. Know the difference between confidence and arrogance
10. Be Unselfish
a. It really is much better to give than to receive
b. Participate in your community, give back, help others
c. Life can be depressing if all we focus on is our own wants and needs. Real fulfillment comes from helping others.