youth ministry – words from wick

Different Moments, Different Scriptures, Uncategorized

the dirt…

Posted on July 4, 2022July 4, 2022 by Wick

Whether you’re a young person who’s just returned from a summer “Youth Camp/Retreat/Conference” experience, or you’re a little older and still reminiscing on those days, there’s a draw to a particular response. It’s natural. The response we often have is “Oh my goodness, that was a great experience in the presence of God, I wish we could recreate these conditions for all of my future experiences!” It’s good for us to know – we’re not the first ones to feel this way. We shouldn’t feel shame for having such a response. When God meets with us in a particular way, the temptation is to connect strongly to that “way”.

When Sarah and I first started dating, she wore a uniquely fuzzy coat. I remember walking her to her dorm on one of our first dates ever, and giving her a hug “goodnight”, wrapping my arms around the fuzziness of that coat. Just a few weeks later, as I was home on Christmas break, I saw a men’s winter jacket that had the same “fuzziness”, and you know I just had to get it. Even far from her, when I wrapped my arms around myself, I was reminded of that hug and looked forward to seeing her again. It’s part of how God has wired us. The neurochemical responses that form long-lasting memories (especially involving music/singing) connected to our “bonding/attachment” experiences can be a blessing.

Today’s lectionary reading from scripture gives us a similar story. Namaan was a commander in the army of Aram, who’d just been miraculously healed by obeying Elisha’s instructions to bathe 7 times in the waters of the Jordan river. He was saturated in these waters of a particular experience and found himself having a renewal and healing as never before. God was faithful, and released Namaan from the chains of disease. Namaan was grateful, and wanted to make sure he had access to this same experience as he went home. In his culture, gods were often tied to particular areas geographically, so it made sense for him to make this request:

“Then Namaan said… ‘please let two mule-loads of earth be given to your servant; for your servant will no longer offer burnt offering or sacrifice to any god except the Lord.” (2 Kings 5:17)

He wanted to bring some of this holy ground home so that any time he desired an experience of this God who met him in the waters of the Jordan, he could. We don’t have the response of Elisha recorded, but I wonder if he looked with compassion on Namaan as he helped him load up some dirt.

Imagine if I returned to campus after Christmas break, so thankful for my new fuzzy coat. Whenever I missed Sarah, I could wrap my arms around myself and be thankful for the warmness of such memories. But how sad it would be, if I was so contented/taken by feeling that coat around me, that I never pursued building a relationship or creating new memories of love together with her. It’s a silly illustration, but I hope you’re seeing the connection. How pitiful it would be if we came home, and tried really hard to replicate the transformational moments, missing out on the God who wants us to be aware of His presence in every moment and every location. God desires that we would not seek special moments with him alone, but abide with Him as He transforms every moment with Kingdom purposes (John 15:5).

We can be thankful for the experiences we have had of God, and even have moments where we wrap our arms around such experiences in the future. We should definitely remember these moments, and testify about them to others as we share what God has done. But let us not pursue the ground we stood on. Let us pursue the God who we met on that ground. The good news is – this is the same God who has promised to meet with us wherever we seek Him. (Proverbs 8:17) In fact, scripture says that God rewards those who seek Him (Hebrews 11:6).

May we seek Jesus and His Kingdom today, taking each step in the knowledge that we are entering a space He desires to make holy…

Different Books, Different Learning

With All Your Mind…

Posted on October 16, 2019October 16, 2019 by Wick

Long ago, I discovered the spiritual connections and benefits of staying connected to neurological research. Many of the same things have continued to provide helpful connections in personal devotion, youth ministry, and as we’ve grown in areas of parenting, and especially parenting a child who had experienced trauma before arriving in our home. It doesn’t make us experts, and these are not magic, but they certainly help give us a better understanding as we seek to be faithful with all God has given us.

So it is no surprise that I loved discovering the “Healthy Mind Platter” developed by David Rock & Daniel J. Siegel, M.D. It was discussed in Sissy Goff’s newest book “Raising Worry-Free Girls“. It makes sense, especially as we increase our understanding of how connected our neurological health is to every other aspect of our body & being. Many of us were raised knowing we needed to pay attention to a healthy diet: a specific amount of grains, meats, fruits/veggies, dairy, etc. But with a better understanding of our brains, comes an understanding of “diet” we are feeding our minds as well. The creators don’t suggest a specific amount of time for each category, but the understanding is that each individual may have particular needs for their own health. Each category comes with its own benefits, and our brains (& neuro-chemistry) respond accordingly in ways that help bring long-term health conditions that impact our entire being. They’ve broken the categories into (in no particular order):

Physical Time (exercise): Aerobic activity helps increase the oxygen levels in the blood, which contributes to brain health in important ways. “Exercise releases endorphins, which are neurotransmitters produced in the brain that reduce pain. Exercise also increases the serotonin…which is often known as the “happy Chemical” (Goff, 2019)
Time In (introspection/silent prayer/mindfulness): Reflect on what has happened, what is happening. This is time without screens on, where there is space to be aware. Time here could also be spent reading and/or writing.
Focused Time (learning/purposeful): This is time to grow or nurture a skill or study a subject. This helps build focus and makes or strengthens new connections in the brain.
Connecting Time (in-person/ eye-to-eye contact): Especially in a “virtually connected” world, this can be important for social development, as well as neurological health. At every age, our “mirror neurons” help contribute to our understanding of others, our ability to be compassionate, and even our self-understanding through the eyes of others.
Sleep Time: Healthy and consistent sleep patterns are more valuable than our production/profit-driven world often gives credit for. This gives our hippocampus time to process memories into long-term storage, restore and organize thoughts/feelings, and reminds us spiritually that we’ve been “set free” from the brick-making patterns of Egypt.
Down Time: When’s the last time you let your mind wander in a healthy way? To gaze into the falling leaves, watch water flow downstream, enjoy watching the kids play nearby, or simply lay back on the couch breathing slow? When your mind (or the kids) say “I’m bored” – let it be cause for celebration, in our overstimulated world. It allows time for recharging the brain’s batteries, inspires creativity, and allows contemplation.
Play Time: Not practicing an athletic ability, but truly “playing”. Here we have the opportunity to exist with lowered stress levels, build problem-solving, and remember to exist child-like. Go mini-golfing, play Chutes & Ladders, bust out the old Atari, forget who wins, and enjoy the game itself.

You can follow the links or read the books to dive deeper into any of this, but I wanted to share it simply here. We are called by Jesus to “Love the Lord your God with all of your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind.” (Luke 10:27) I hope and pray that growing in these areas will help me to be faithful with what God has given me, help me to improve as a father, as a pastor, and as a friend. May these things be a blessing to you as well…

Different Thoughts, Uncategorized

inter-generational…

Posted on June 27, 2017 by Wick

In so many areas of life/culture, groups of people are divided and set against each other. By race, understandings, generations, cultures, experiences, etc. The Church is always to be the place that no matter what your defining characteristics – we are ONE in Christ. No matter what definitions the world gives you, the foundational characteristic of “Beloved by God, in need of His Grace” is enough to build on for the Kingdom.

Even in the midst of this, there are understandings that improve our ability to serve and work and celebrate life together as one body. Overloading our accounts and pockets with grace, love, humility, and inviting the Holy Spirit to enable us to live/love like Christ are great places to start.

For years now, our culture seems to LOVE age-specific ministries. It’s great developmentally to focus on Jesus and life experiences in ways that are appropriate and easily assimilated into knowledge & life. The problem is when we make these the primary focus of doing church well. We have great kids’ programs for earning important badges. Next, we have a youth group experience with mountain tops and focusing this highly emotional season of life on Jesus. Next, we have students who enjoyed youth group so much – they want a similar experience with their peers as “College Age Ministry”. When that goes well, it seems successful and natural to provide a “Young Adult Ministry”. At some nebulous point after significant life events like owning a home, moving, getting married, etc…a person might simply quietly acquiesce into a “Regular Adult Class”, but not without first attempting a “(age range) Group”.

Like I said – some of this desire is good, and should be harnessed toward life transformation. But some of this simply provides a false experience of a Biblically diverse community made from several generations contributing to life together in the name of Jesus. Church is meant to be inter-generational, not just multi-generational. It’s not enough to say, “Wow, our church has a lot of (desirable age group here)!” Is that group integrated & connected with the other generations, self-identifying as a contributing and valued part of the whole?

Thankfully, many have been realizing this – and some never forgot it. The warning I’ve heard in their writings have been – don’t assume the Love of Jesus will simply wash away the varied (and beautifully important) differences each generation brings to the table. So in closing, I’ll include a chart here that I created after reading some articles/books on the topic. I found it an interesting study, as an artist might appreciate the palate of colors available before beginning a new painting technique… (although I’m more of the artists’ admirer, as Jesus holds the brush) ( (Side note: The authors often indicated that any discussion on generational descriptions is an exercise in Fiction. Of course, we cannot say that all (generation) are like this. But as they’ve studied, certain characteristics seemed common, and worth noting.)

Chart1 Chart2