Lifesavers

     I am no longer surprised by anything that our youth today do.  In fact I have not been surprised by the things they are capable of for a long time.  They are such forward thinkers.  The only questions are which youth will step up next, when, and what great thing will they decide to do.  I got the next answer to those questions on Wednesday night.
     There was an article in the hood county news on Wednesday about a Tolar youth organization called Lifesavers.  Two of our youth from Acton were featured in this article which gave Blane Morris and Matt Moody the chance to speak for a few minutes about Lifesavers.  Their mission is for kids to inspire kids to choose to make a difference in this world and their communities through simple acts of kindness.  The youth started the program to help others in need which has included collecting food and clothing for the food pantry, raising money and groceries for a janitor who was injured and out of work, adopting 40 Tolar "angels," and feeding 250 homeless and volunteers later this month.  They will also be collecting new unwrapped toys for Tolar Christmas for Kids and Families.

 *Our AUMC youth will be bringing unwrapped toys on Wednesday to donate to this program if anybody who reads this would like to bring some items to donate*

     These youth saw a need and met that need on their own.  And that is what we need from these young people is to be self starters.  See a need and meet a need in any way they can.  As long as we continue to have young people who think about the needs of others we have great hope for the future.

Thank you to Matt, Blane, and the rest of these Tolar youth.

Grace & Peace
Kevin

Making Disciples

"Our mission is to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world." (Mission statement of The United Methodist Church)

     It is a great mission statement.  But like with other things, it is easier said than done.  In the great commission the last thing Jesus says is "go and make disciples."  If Jesus said it than it has to be important, right?  It is easier said than done, but that is no reason to give it any less than our best.  So how do we make disciples?  It's a tricky question because there are so many ways to do it.  It's like philosophy which I liked more than math because a lot of times there was no right answer just the having an opinion and defending your answer well.
     So how exactly do we make disciples?  Well there are a lot of ways but I have found some simple things that a person can do to help make disciples.  At least these are the 4 Simple Things that helped me:
     1.  Family:  Having a family who believes in the importance of faith, church, and disciple making was very helpful to me.  It is much easier to believe in making disciples when your family believes in its importance as well.
     2.  Church ministries:  Not just going to church but being a part of a church and being able to participate in church ministries and contribute to the church as a whole.  One of the biggest influences on my life was going to youth group when I was in junior high and high school.  It made a huge impact on me.  I do wish that youth could have and been allowed to be a bigger part of the church as a whole, which is why I am have advocated for it for our current youth.
     3.  Mentors:  I think mentors get left behind a bit in how big a part they play in helping make disciples when we look at #1-3, but realize that mentors are of significant importance.  I did not have a so called "mentor" in name growing up, but looking back on it over the last few years I have come to realize they were there in a mentor capacity and still are today.  Mentors are so important because they provide honest feedback, are someone to lean on, you can bounce ideas and concerns off them, and they are there to help you unconditionally no matter the situation.  Mentors are huge in facilitating discipleship development.
     4. Understand that it is now about you:  Making disciples is not and will not be about you, it is about someone else.  But along with that, I have been able to walk with youth and others in their faith and that is rewarding to be able to have an impact on others.  And to know that those who disciples will make disciples, who will make disciples is what it is all about.

I know there are numerous ways to help making disciples so feel free to chime in.  There is no exact science on how to go about making disciples, we just do it.  My hope is that you find a way to make disciples that works for you.  It is of great importance and we are all capable of doing it.

Do or do not, there is no try :)


Grace & Peace
Kevin