Although you wouldn’t really be able to tell from looking out my window at the 3 inches of snow that fell today, the seasons are beginning to change.  Winter turns to spring.  Academic busy-ness turns to spring fever and summer fun.  The ministry madness of the Christmas to Easter season begins to turn slowly to the more relaxed pace and flexibility of summer ministry.

As I was glancing today through my calendar for the next few months, I couldn’t help but notice something.  While there certainly isn’t a lack of work to do, events to plan, and family functions to attend in the coming months, they are looking significantly less full than the past few months have been.  Things are beginning to wind down for a season – you know how I can tell?

• The number of youth events on my calendar has dropped.  SAC lunches are down to a minimum (due to upcoming holidays that fall on the 2nd Sunday of the month) and we’re preparing to wind down this academic-year-season of youth ministry at PLC.
• There are fewer classes on the calendar this quarter.  Since one of my registered classes this quarter is Field Study, which is mostly taking place in conjunction with my ministry at PLC, I have fewer classes per week and at least the notion of less homework.  It’s a nice reprieve and lead-in to summer.
• My little sister graduates from college in a month!  Even though her academic calendar finishes up about a month before mine, I’m already hearing the sounds of summer.

In addition to the change in perceived busy-ness, I’ve noticed a bit of a shift in my ministry.  What does this season look for me as I face a calendar with fewer events and more office hours?

• Evaluation – For the first time I am facing the end of this academic-year-season of ministry knowing with certainty that I’ll be continuing in my ministry in this place.  I’ve been spending a lot of time lately reflecting on how we’ve done youth ministry this year at PLC and trying to figure out ways to build on that for next year.
• Relational Connections – I’m beginning to step up my efforts in connecting with youth on their “turf” through coffee connections, texting (as much as I despise it sometime) and just checking in to see how they have grown during the course of the year.
• Future Planning – I’m in the early stages of figuring out where Youth Ministry at PLC will be headed next year.  We’re in a place right now where some shifts are beginning to happen, and I’m excited to see where God is calling us to go this Fall.

After the day I had today, I needed this reminder:

Tonight in my Theology of Scripture in Ministry class, we spent some time digging into the Sermon on the Mount found in Matthew 5:1-8:1.  As part of the study I ended up in a group handling the following case study:

You have been asked to assist in the preparation of 7th and 8th graders for their Confirmation at Easter.  As a layperson you and others from your church have been asked to explain what The Sermon on the Mount has meant to you in your walk of faith as a personal testimony.  You are sitting in a very informal group setting in a circle with these young people, the pastor and several other laypersons.  What would your understanding of The Sermon on the Mount contribute to this group?

As I started nonchalantly tossing around my thoughts on Confirmation (there’s a topic for another post) and 7th and 8th graders in general, something started to churn inside of me.  As I began a simple distillation of the Sermon on the Mount (a la junior high lingo) I began to see the sermon in a new light.  Now, there’s a lot to be said about the Sermon on the Mount – it’s probably one of the most well known sets of teachings given by Jesus in any of the gospels, and it includes a number of “all time favorites” (The Beatitudes, the “you are the light of the world” discourse, the Lord’s Prayer, etc.).  Right along with these “all time favorites” there is some pretty hard-to-handle stuff in there.

In Matthew 5:21-48 Jesus presents a number of discourses which include the phrase “You have heard that it was said… but I tell you” in which he essentially takes various Old Testament commandments and then heaps on additional seemingly impossible to achieve commands.  For example:

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.  If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away.  It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.  And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away.  It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go to hell.” (Matthew 5:27-30)

Now, as I was trying to figure out how to explain this series of “You have heard that it was said… but I tell you” statements to a group of 7th and 8th graders, I drew this comparison:  It’s kind of like if your teacher would say to you, “Your teachers last year taught you not to plagerzie, but I tell you that you can’t even look at another source while you’re writing a paper.  Don’t read anything.  Don’t listen to anyone speak on the topic.  Don’t talk to your classmates about the assignment.  For if you do any of these things you have already plagerized in your mind.”  There were a number of other examples that came to mind to use with junior highers, but basically you get the idea.

So what’s the point?

Jesus takes some old school commands, which although difficult, are obeyable.  One could reasonably go through life without murdering, committing adultery, divorcing his or her spouse, etc.  However, the instant Jesus gets a hold of these commands they become seemingly impossible.  I don’t think Jesus’ point here is to completely discourage his followers by making them believe that what he requires for discipleship is impossible and thus it shouldn’t even be attempted.  Rather, Jesus is demonstrating exactly what Paul has so beautifully stated in Romans 3:23 “…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…”  We need grace.

If we didn’t need grace, there would be no reason for Jesus to have come, died and risen in the first place.  There’s some beauty in the fact that we can’t live up to what Jesus teaches.  It means that we need him.  We need his grace.  I need his grace.

What a beautiful truth to reflect upon in this Lenten season.

I love watching people who I care about do the things that they are passionate about.  And more than watching, I love involving myself.

Perhaps that explains my recent fascination with high school basketball.  It’s strange.  When I was in high school, I never attended a single basketball game, and I had no desire to do so.  This past December, I attended my first high school girls’ basketball game to cheer on a girl from our youth group (and a friend of hers who is a frequent visitor) who play on the varsity girls basketball team.  Since then, I’ve made it to four additional games and become almost compulsive about checking scores for not only their team, but other teams in the district and conference, and even my own high school (which I graduated from over 5 years ago!).  I don’t even particularly care for the sport, but since I have a connection through a person I’m invested in, I have become involved.

I love watching people who I care about do the things that they are passionate about.  And more than watching, I love involving myself.

While in college I used to sneak up into the balcony of the chapel during the times when the worship dance ministry practiced.  I would sit up there reading, or journaling, or just watching.  It was almost as though through watching the movement of others in worship I was able to participate in that which they were so passionate about.  I’m not a dancer, and probably will never have the poise or grace to lead others in worship through dance, but since I had a connection through people I was invested in, I became involved.

I love watching people who I care about do the things that they are passionate about.  And more than watching, I love involving myself.

What is it that draws us into things?  What is it that involves us?  For me it is the passion of a person in whom I have a vested interest.  It kind of makes me wonder.  What is it that I do with such passion that others are drawn into involvement?  Is there anything that I do with such passion?

I’d like to think that I am passionate about following Christ.  But do I really follow Christ with such passion that others are drawn into a relationship with Him?  I sure hope so.

So, it’s surprising me a little bit that the transition from full-time youth ministry at Grace Lutheran Church in Fremont, OH to my current part-time position at Parma Lutheran Church has actually gotten harder instead of easier.  Back when I started in Parma, I was loving the fact that I had dropped from working 40+ hour work weeks down to 20 hours a week, but lately it’s seeming like those 20 hours are never enough.

In a lot of ways, it’s helping me identify some of the differences between  a “job” and a “vocation”.  Dictionary.com defines a “job” as “a post of employment; full-time or part time position”.  That makes sense to me… I’ve had a number of “jobs” during the course of my life: concession stand worker for the City of Mayfield Heights, filing and for Shuttler’s Uniforms, birthday party hostess for Chuck E. Cheese’s, camp counselor for Camp Mowana, and most recently Director of Youth & Education Ministries (at Grace) and Director of Youth & Young Adult Ministries (at PLC).  All of these “jobs” have fit the dictionary definition, but only the last few have qualified as fitting the Dictionary.com definition of “vocation”:

1. a particular occupation, business, or profession; calling.
2. a strong impulse or inclination to follow a particular activity or career.
3. a divine call to God’s service or to the Christian life.
4. a function or station in life to which one is called by God: the religious vocation; the vocation of marriage.

See, vocation is far more than a job.  And for me, youth ministry is far more than a job – it’s a vocation, a calling from God to pour Christ into the lives of youth, and to walk alongside them on this journey of discipleship.  So, in essence it’s a lifestyle (and I’m sure most of you in any form of youth ministry would agree with that – or any form of ministry for that matter).

So, maybe that’s my struggle in transitioning from a full-time youth ministry “job” into a part-time youth ministry “job” – my calling remains the same, and the more time I spend investing myself in that calling, the more joy I find in it.

So, what do you do when you’re confined to part-time hours in a full-time vocation?

I’ve been really challenged and convicted the past few weeks to examine the differences between being fully present and always available.  Are the two mutually exclusive or is it possible to balance the two?  This is a tough call for me, because I am a strong believer both in being fully present to God and people and being always available to a friend, youth, family member, etc. who is in need.  I credit some of my appreciation for being fully present to my time spent working at camp and touring with Spoke Folk.  These were both situations where we were strongly encouraged to be fully present in everything that we were doing, whether porch-sitting on a Saturday with whoever was hanging around at camp, or staying up late into the night getting to know the intimate details of a friend’s life who you’ve just met.  There is power in being fully present, and I strongly feel that the best relationships develop out of being fully present (that includes relationships with God as well as with other people!).

We live in a society today that practically makes it necessary to be always available.  We carry cell phones with us at all times (and really, who turns off their cell phone anymore?), update friends with the little details of our lives using Facebook status messages and Twitter, and are connected to the internet nearly 24/7 with high-speed internet access available pretty much anywhere we go.  So, where do we draw the line?  I’ve always been one to tell my friends/youth/etc. that they can call anytime if they need something, whether that’s in the middle of the afternoon or the middle of the night.  I try to make myself as available as possible for friends, family, etc.  I make it ridiculously easy to get in touch with me (I’m a (newly) avid texter, keep my cell phone with me at all times, spend far too much time on Facebook, am nearly always connected to Instant Messenger, and even update Twitter fairly regularly).

I’ve recently been giving some kids in the youth group a hard time about texting during youth stuff – it’s not so much a problem during “official” meetings, but when we’re in the car driving to an event, or hanging out playing games, or having coffee… it seems like our culture has taught them that interrupting any conversation to answer a text message/phone call/etc. is the norm.  It struck me the other day, though, that if I’m going to keep giving them such a hard time about it, then I should probably be able to articulate my reasoning for it. Especially since I’ve been guilty of doing the same thing with friends, and even during classes (shh! don’t tell!) lately.

I’m beginning to realize that it is absolutely appropriate to be “unavailable” sometimes – healthy, even.  Where do we draw that line, though?  Part of me wants to say that if I’m with a person (hanging out, having coffee, on a date, etc.) then I’m available to that person and that person only.  But is there ever a time in which it’s appropriate to allow for interruption?  Is it even possible in today’s society to be fully present without having our attention in some way distracted?

I think I’m going to continue wrestling with this.  I’m not even sure that there’s a black and white solution (in fact, I’m sure there’s probably not).  I think it’s an important discussion to have, though – with friends, with the youth I minister to/with, with family, etc.

What do you think?

I’ve been trying to shift my priorities in youth ministry for a while now with little to no success.  I’ve had the tendency for the year and a half that I’ve been in ministry to spend more of my “work hours” sitting behind a desk than actually spending time with youth (yikes!).  This week, however, I’ve taken the leap – and I love it!  Why didn’t I change my priorities sooner?

Because of the size of the church I’m in now (relatively small, and much smaller than Grace was), it’s pretty manageable for me to get to know all the kids in our ministry fairly well.  So, for the time being (until we start to experience some growth), I’m taking advantage of that and making it a top priority to do exactly that.  I want to know the kids that I’m ministering to and with.

In Matthew 22:37-39 Jesus says these words when asked about the “Greatest Commandment”:  “’Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” So, if Jesus said that these are the two greatest commandments, I’m realizing that I should be doing ministry in that way.  So, the new priorities for youth ministry:

1. Relationship with God: Deepening my own relationship with God and helping our youth to deepen their relationships with God by supporting and walking alongside them in this journey of faith.
2. Relationship with Others: Seeking to develop relationships with youth both in and outside of our congregation by meeting them in “neutral” territory (such as coffee shops, fast food restaurants, etc.) and on “their turf” (i.e. school programs, athletic events, concerts, etc.).

That’s it.  Everything beyond those two things is gravy.  These two things will be the meat of my youth ministry, and I’m excited to say that my schedule this week has already begun to reflect the shift in priorities!

How does your schedule (ministry or otherwise) reflect your priorities?

For those of you who weren’t able to be there, here’s the manuscript from the sermon I preached on Sunday, December 28th:

For almost a year now the desktop wallpaper on my computer has read: “I want to change the world” in nice big, bold letters.  That’s a bold statement: “I want to change the world.” When I think of world-changers, a number of names come to mind: Erin Satterlee is not one of them.  I think of people like Martin Luther King, Jr., Abraham Lincoln, and Mother Theresa.  I’m sure we could all create a list of names of people who have changed the world in great ways.  If we go back even further, we can find accounts of people throughout the Bible who changed the world–Elijah the prophet, John the Baptist, Paul the evangelist and missionary, and of course Jesus Christ, a man who, being God, changed the world more than any man in the course of history.  So, who are these people–these “world changers”?  Where do they come from?  What are their stories?  Who are the folks who change the folks who change the world?

In April 1885, a Sunday school teacher named Edward Kimble was just doing what he normally did.  He would go around neighborhoods and talk to them about Jesus.  He went into a shoe store one day and shared the gospel with Dwight L Moody, who obviously grew to become a great evangelist.  But it didn’t stop there.  In the 1800’s, Moody personally discipled J Wilbur Chapman, a great evangelist of his time, who discipled Billy Sunday who evangelized to more people during the 1900’s than anybody up to that point in history.  Then, in 1924, Billy Sunday evangelized to a group of business men, who decided to hold events in Charlotte, NC, that would host Mortiki Ham, who in 1934 would be a witness to a young man by the name of Billy Graham!  But if you do an internet search for the name Edward Kimble, he’s nowhere!  The only place this guy is found is in the story of Billy Graham, and yet he was the spiritual torch carrier for the salvation of millions of lives (Johnson Bowie).

We all know the stories of Moses, Noah, Paul and others who were the “world changers” of their day, but what about those people in the Bible who only appear once, in a single verse or paragraph?  Is there any significance to the “Edward Kimbles” of the Bible?

The gospel accounts found in the Bible give very little information about Jesus’ life between the time he was born and the time he began his ministry.  Today’s snapshot from Luke’s gospel is one of only two glimpses we have into what life was like for Jesus during his youth.  In fact, Luke is the only gospel writer that gives any account of Jesus’ childhood at all, and it is in this brief passage of scripture that we encounter Simeon and the prophetess Anna in the Lord’s temple.

Luke says that Simeon was a “just and devout man.”  God had revealed to Simeon through the Holy Spirit that he would not die until he had seen the Lord’s Christ.  It is in today’s gospel lesson that this promise from God is fulfilled, and Simeon, recognizing this fulfillment, praises God and speaks of the redemption that will ultimately come about through Jesus’ life.  He speaks truth and affirmation into the life of the boy Jesus.

The second encounter in today’s gospel text is with the prophetess Anna.  At 84 years old, Anna is described as a faithful woman who has spent many years of her life fasting and praying in the temple.  When Mary and Joseph enter to present the baby Jesus in the temple, Anna sees something in him that causes her, like Simeon to break out in praise to God.  She then speaks about the child to all who are looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.  She, like Simeon, speaks truth and affirmation into the life of the boy Jesus.

And then, it seems as though Luke hits the fast-forward button in his account of Jesus’ life.  He writes, “and the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him.”

So, is that it?  Nearly three decades of Jesus’ life pass between his birth and the start of his ministry and all we have to read about it are these two brief encounters in the temple.  Not only that, but this is the only place in the entire gospel narrative in which either Simeon or Anna are mentioned.  This is their role in the life of Christ, and apparently it’s enough.  And not only is it enough, but it’s significant enough to be the only event in Jesus’ childhood that is recorded in scripture.

What, then, can we draw from this passage?  There are two main points from the story of Simeon and Anna with Jesus in the temple that I’d like us to focus on:  First, each of these people spoke truth and affirmation into the life of a young Jesus, revealing his significance early on in his life.  Second, it seems that these two brief encounters are what propel Jesus to grow and become strong with the Grace of God upon him.

So, what does this have to do with being a “world changer”?  What do Jesus in the temple, Simeon and Anna have to do with you and me?  The story of Simeon and Anna in today’s gospel lesson reminds me of the affirmation from people and from God that has spurred growth in my own faith and ministry.

See, God has perfectly orchestrated a series of people in my own life who have affirmed and encouraged me in my calling to youth ministry.  Just this week, in the midst of my preparation for today’s sermon I was reminded of Ernie, a man from my church growing up who constantly encouraged me and nurtured me in my walk with God.  Whether it was a simple hug or handshake on Sunday morning or a challenge to try something new, Ernie constantly pushed me and encouraged me to grow stronger in my faith as a follower of Christ.  Through his faithfulness to the church and the truth and affirmation he spoke into my life, he left an impact that has lasted far beyond his death on Christmas Eve in 1998.  He may not have been Billy Graham, but he was certainly one of many who have been like Simeon and Anna in my life.

The truth and affirmation that Ernie and other significant adults spoke into my life during my youth and childhood has served as a constant and faithful companion to God’s call on my life to minister to young people in the church.  I can recall at a young age feeling that God had some sort of “special purpose” for my life.  During my early teenage years I can remember knowing with some level of certainty that God was calling me into some sort of ministry, specifically with young people.  This often led me into confusion since I was raised in a church that had very little visible evidence of “traditional” youth ministry – so I often felt as though the only true confirmation I had in my sense of calling came from the affirmation of significant adults who supported me and encouraged me along that path – the Simeons and Annas in my own life.  During high school and my freshman year of college I passively avoided answering God’s call to ministry by pursuing other vocations – I tried my hand at marketing, teaching and even web site design.  It wasn’t until I began working as a counselor at Camp Mowana that I began to answer God’s call to ministry.  In the years since then, the affirmation and truth spoken into my life by Godly men and women has grown increasingly important in my understanding and answering of God’s call.  Just as Jesus had people speaking truth and affirmation into his life during his youth, my own life and ministry have been greatly influenced by the truth and affirmation spoken to me by the Simeons and Annas in my own life.

When it comes down to us, each of us has been created, with our own talents and calling to fulfill our purpose in Christ.  That purpose comes in a variety of forms: teaching Sunday School, managing a business, working in a factory, or serving as a minister – our own “ministries” can manifest themselves in a variety of different ways.  So, maybe God isn’t calling you or I to be the next Paul or billy Graham, but I believe that he is calling us all to be world changers.  Perhaps you will be the Simeon, or the Anna or the Edward Kimble in the life of someone else.  So, next time you’re asking yourself those haunting questions: What am I doing in life?  How can I contribute to the Kingdom of God? be reminded that Jesus, who changed the world more than any other person is alive in you!  To God, it doesn’t matter what we achieve on our own or apart from him.  The truth is, “the folks who change the folks who change the world are still changing the world!”  So, maybe that nice big “I want to change the world” on my computer’s desktop isn’t such a bold statement after all.  Amen.

I’m pretty sure I had the exact opposite reaction at this moment in time.  Or perhaps I just sat quietly and soaked in the moment.  This is a little over the top.  Welcome to life in Jr. High Ministry, though.  This could be your life, too.

thanks los

At this weekend’s Sr. High Retreat, besides having the opportunity to share a place I love with new people, I was once again reminded why I love camp so much.

1. Milk Ring Hearts – People at camp know how to show their love with simple gifts.
2. Fleming Falls & Hoppy’s Cave – I learn something new every time I take that hike around camp.
3. Oatmeal – Maybe it’s because of “The Oatmeal Song” (which we all forgot the words to this weekend), but camp is the only place where I will eat “that crazy whole grain goo.”
4. Campfires – Even when they’re inside, it’s all the rage.
5. Worship – It seems to me that worship at camp is about as genuine as it gets for youth.  Sometimes it’s silly, sometimes it’s serious, but always it’s meaningful.
6. Dining Hall Antics – “Here’s to Erin and the way she eats spaghetti without silverware,” “Here’s to David and the way he does the dinosaur,” “Here’s to Casey and the way she does the hula hop.”
7. Healthy Physical Touch – Whether it’s hugs or high fives, for those of us who rank “physical touch” as high on our list of Love Languages, camp is fantastic.
8. Real, Transparent Conversation – Something about getting away from it all and being in “the middle of nowhere” creates a breeding ground for real and open conversation to happen.
9. Students Ministering to Students – I know this happens in churches and schools too, but it seems to get amplified at camp.  Students praying for each other, surrounding one another with love, and just being present with one another.
10. Relationships – There’s a lot to be said for the way relationships develop at camp.  Walls come down, and the opportunity to really get to know one another arises.  (Especially when nobody has showered in 3 days.)