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Where are we now?

by Mike Feng

July 23, 2002

I've been thinking about what has been going on in the Youth Group lately. And I have to say I'm happy about it. We've been seeing many new faces on Wednesday nights. Small groups have been getting better and better. Sunday School has been a blessing. It has been a fun and productive time.

So the question then is, where are you? We've been talking in Sunday School about tools that can equip you to move above the level of mediocrity in your spiritual life. We've been looking at those tools in the context of God's vision for your life personally and for our Youth Group corporately.

Do you have a vision for your life? Have you asked God to give you insight as to how he wants to you use you for the rest of the summer? Having a purpose-driven life makes you a very dangerous and dynamic Christian. It means that you will begin to stretch yourself through God's power to do things that you thought you'd be too scared to do. You'll see God work miracles in your life and in the lives of your friends.

Do you have the determination to see the vision fulfilled? Are you in this just for a quick fix? Or do you have the staying power to see this through the long term? What we are trying to do does not happen overnight. It's not something that you just snap your fingers and see results. It takes time, hard work, sleepless nights, and endless hours on your knees in prayer. God will give you the energy and the desire to see His work to completion. But you have to ask for it.

What is important to you? What are the things in your life that you sacrifice in order to do something else? How do the various activities in your life get racked and stacked? If you have been given a purpose and a vision from God, that has to be first priority. That seems like a very obvious fact and something that no one would argue with. But how often does it slip behind other things? Isn't it funny how work, sports or friends seem to take up so much time that we no longer have time to devote to God even to the point of skipping Quiet Times to sleep? When we live our lives like that, do we truly make God and his purpose in our lives the number one priority? By our actions, others will see what our priorities are. And by your own actions, you can see for yourself what your priorities have become.

How are you doing with the battle in your mind? We all see the public faces of our friends. There seems to be very little that is offensive to God or to others. Does our private face reflect that same level of purity? Do you have people in your life who can put a mirror in front of you and show you what your private life is like? It is so important to have our lives in order before God. If there is any hint of compromise, Satan can exploit that and render us useless. It is therefore our responsibility to avoid that by taking steps to defend against it. And that is through accountability.

Vision. Determination. Priorities. Accountability. Have you counted the cost of doing God's work? How are you doing in these areas? Where do you want to be in these areas? What can you do to arm and defend yourself against Satan's attacks in these areas?

We are in a battle folks. Load up! It's time to fight.