What's in the way?

I was a youth pastor for 5 years and a high school teacher for 3 years. I've been around teenagers A LOT. And I loved it. There was literally never a dull moment. Some of my favorite moments as a youth pastor were the trips to camps, conferences, or retreats that we would take. All the youth leaders would get together before a trip and go over the game plan for the trip. Our biggest hope was that lives would be changed. And we also knew our biggest challenge would be distractions.

Here were some of the major distractions we knew would get in the way:

1. Horny Guys- There's no other way to put it. Teenagers hormones, especially the dudes, shift into overdrive on trips away from home where there are plenty of girls. I would compare some of the guys I took on trips to caged, rabid animals. Taking them away from home (their cage), was like releasing a wolf amongst sheep.

2. Love struck girls - girls are in full search of "the one". They are looking for a boyfriend who is husband material. It's a scary thing and always leads to some Real Housewives of New Jersey type moments. DRAMA.

3. Sleep Deprivation - Jr. Highers in particular like to pack 72 cans of Red Bull, drink 30 of them on the bus ride up to camp, stay up all night farting and giggling, and then slip into a coma when you actually want them to be awake.

I bring up all the distraction stuff because it is fresh on my mind. On my last post, I asked the question, what cultural tendencies get in the way of you following Jesus? That can be a hard question to answer.

It's hard because it is not easy to be self aware. I know I'm not. Thank God I married a woman who actually has some discernment and wisdom and is willing to share it with me.

I have a burden for you who don't follow Him. I want so badly for you to experience throwing your life into Jesus's story. There is such freedom in it. This freedom, shock, and awe is a natural reaction to an encounter with Christ. Read the story of Jesus healing the blind beggar in John 9. The blind man couldn't explain it. All he could say was, "I don't know...all I do know is I was blind and now I can see!"

I think some of you have drank the "cultural Kool-Aid" for so long you can't even identify the things that distract you from following Jesus. By "cultural Kool-Aid", I mean the distractions, myths and the lies you believe. These distractions, myths, and lies were identified and predicted by Paul in 2 Timothy 4. Read it.

Lack of faith has nothing to do with your reasons for not following Jesus. You have faith. Everyone does.

I have faith in doorknobs. When I turn it, I have faith that the door will open. Lack of faith is not the issue.

Along with faith, we all worship. We just don't all worship the same thing. Some people worship everything except Jesus. Do you worship your job and make it your identity? Do you worship your kids? Just go to any little league game and listen to the parents in the stands who think their kid is the next Albert Pujols. Do you hover over your kids so much that they distract you from any kind of consistent commitment to Jesus? Do you worship the next big life event? Whether it's the weekend, the bar, having a child, a vacation, or a job promotion? Is your life lived waiting for the next exciting event?

We all have faith and we all worship something. Doorknobs, jobs, little league all star teams, children, weekends, alcohol, politics, etc. In about a week, I will fall into my insane idiotic faith in Notre Dame football and that they will actually be good this year.

Are you putting your faith in the truth? Or in a lie?

Are you worshipping Jesus? Or yourself?

My hope is that more of you who aren't following Christ would choose to follow.

What are the cultural tendencies distracting you from becoming a part of His story?