Today’s daily encouraging bible verse:

“”Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.”

Isaiah 1:18

Today’s daily encouraging song:

Jon Foreman – white as snow

Today’s challenge for the believer: 

Today’s challenge is a personal challenge. Take 10 to 15 minutes of alone time with God today. Reflect on how you have been doing spiritually Ask God for forgiveness specifically with the sins that you struggle with. Ask him to ease your heart, and to help you to become As the song says, white as snow. 

Humbling to be back at the hospital where so many difficult and yet wonderful things happened. It is this hospital that saved my life in the year 2015.  It was God and their advanced technology, the ECMO machine, that kept me alive. There are some very emotional stories about my time here. Many firsts. It was here where I learned to speak again, eat again, walk again, and much much more. After awakening from the, it was several weeks before I got to go outside again. I remember very specifically the ceiling of the sun on my skin, the sound of the birds chirping and the water hitting the rocks. It was a wonderful moment. Seeing the garden again brought me so much joy. It was in that garden that I felt alive again. Another very important part of my hospital story was the time that I spent in the chapel. It was my favorite place. I love to go there and pray and just be silent with God. My favorite part was the same glass windows. Seeing them again today brought me a great amount of joy. I spent so many days praying that God would continue to strengthen me so that I could get out. Then when I got out I prayed that he would guide me along the right path and prepare me for the ministry that he would put me in. I have been doing many things since I’ve been out of the hospital, one of them being my service at Scottsdale Bible cactus campus. I have very much enjoy leading the highschoolers there and teaching a sermon with them each week. My other ministry is public speaking and telling my story of being in the hospital. Of how God pulled me through and gave me purpose.
I pray that this would be an encouragement to you today. That you would be reminded of the moments in your life for God spoke to you as clearly as I am speaking to you now. Remember those moments treasure those moments and whenever you feel loss go back to those moments. God bless!

The Big Idea: The power of the truth.

• OPENING GAME – You Lie
  • SUPPLIES
    • Boxes with crazy and creative things to put in boxes for the game (see below)
    • Room divider or sheet
    • This game originated on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.
    • Click here to see a very funny example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8vNn0WFUnY
  • HOW TO PLAY THE GAME
    • Choose 2 contestants, one to be the guesser and the other to either tell them the truth or a lie. Set up a divider between 2 contestants facing one another. You could even have 2 other youth volunteers hold up a sheet leaving the top open for the 2 contestants to be able to see one another’s faces. Try to come up with the most random and strange items to put in shoeboxes. Have the first contestant choose a box. They will explain or lie and give a made up explanation to the other contestant of the contents of their box. Their opponent will guess whether they are telling the truth or lying. This game could go on as long as you wish and you could even show them the clip of Jimmy Fallon and Emma Stone at the end.

• After the game, ask:
  • How could you tell when the contestants were lying?
  • Who surprised you the most with their ‘performance’ in this game?
  • How is this game like real life?
  • Why do you think that people lie?

• TEACH – Youth Group Lesson on Honesty

What is one of the best parts about living here in Arizona?

Is it the heat???I don’t think so

Possibly all of the great beaches we have??? Oh wait we don’t have any, so it can’t be that

Anyone?

In 2006 a Risk and Insurance ranking of this country’s 10 safest cities was done. Phoenix came in second.

Anyone want to make a guess as to why this is?

It is due to the fact that we are much less likely to be hit by a natural disaster. One of those natural disasters is called a hurricane.

A hurricane is primarily fueled by wind power. Did you know that there is a scale for measuring how bad a hurricane is.

The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale is a 1 to 5 rating based on a hurricane’s sustained wind speed.

Category 1 and 2 storms are dangerous, and require preventative measures. However they are minor.

When the number changes to a three things change significantly.

Hurricanes reaching Category 3 and higher are considered major hurricanes because of their potential for significant loss of life and damage.

This scale estimates potential property damage.

Sorce –http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutsshws.php

Who here remembers or has heard about Hurricane Catrina?

Hurricane Katrina made landfall as a Category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale. Maximum sustained winds for Katrina reached 170 mph before making landfall, categorizing Katrina as a Category 5 hurricane. The final death toll was at 1,836.

Lies are a lot like hurricanes. In hurricanes the stronger the wind becomes, the worse things get. I believe the same thing happens with lies.

The more lies we tell                              The easier it becomes to lie.

The easier it becomes to lie,                  The more frequently we lie.

the more frequently we lie,                     The more it becomes normal,

The more normal it becomes,                 The harder it gets to stop

The harder it gets to stop                       The more people we hurt in the process

Do you see how this spirals us out of control.

What if lying was had a scale like hurricanes do? What level would you be on the scale?

A simple category 1, or are you a dangerous category 5, reeking havoc to all of those you surround yourself with.

Hpw about the lies you tell. Are they category 1 or 5. I know for me its both. Just depends on the time

1)-Call in the morning and I say “I’m awake” when I definitely wasn’t

5) Lie to my parents about where I am going and instead go out and make bad decisions

Think about a time recently that you have lied. That or a specific lie that you remember.

Don’t worry you won’t have to share it out loud.

Do you remember why you told that lie?

Was it out of fear?

Were you afraid something would happen if you didn’t lie?

Was it in order to protect someone else?

Let’s say that you got away with your lie.

Regardless of whether or not you got caught—you knew that you were lying right?

What do you think is the largest most damaging lie? The category 5 lie if you will?

It’s the lie that you tell yourself about lying:

Things like:

No one will ever know.

It’s not going to hurt anyone

But, that’s not true is it?

Because you know.

And it does hurt people

Lying is hurtful.

Let me ask you this, Is it ever ok to lie?

If the answer is yes, how do you know when it is ok and when it is not ok?

So why am I telling you this? I hope you understand it is not to make you feel bad for any lie you have told in the past, or guilt trip you in any way.

It is to hopefully prevent you from lying and going down a dangerous path.

The path that the world takes. The path of darkness and lies.

You see, honesty doesn’t make sense to the world.

The world deals in money and profit, getting ahead and protecting yourself. Covering your own back before anyone else’s.

And when we desire those things more than we desire for God to be first, we let those things master us.

We become a slave to the lies and the sin.

John 8:34      Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.

We begin to say, do, and think things are ok that we never would have before, and sometimes we even come up with rationalizations that sound good to us.

They probably sound good to the world and others might even tell you that what you are doing is just fine. As a matter of fact that is the most likely scenario.

Here is the problem. By the world’s standards it might be fine, but those aren’t the standards that matter to God.

Can you think of an example in our culture in which lying is actually ‘ok’?

Can you think of another example of how our culture seems to make it easy to tell lies?

Give the groups a few minutes to think of examples to share.

Luke 22:31-34 English Standard Version (ESV)

31“Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat. 32But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”

33But he replied, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.”

34Jesus answered, “I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me.”

Luke 22:54-62English Standard Version (ESV)

Peter Denies Jesus

⁵⁴ Then they seized him and led him away, bringing him into the high priest’s house, and Peter was following at a distance. ⁵⁵ And when they had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat down among them. ⁵⁶ Then a servant girl, seeing him as he sat in the light and looking closely at him, said, “This man also was with him.” ⁵⁷ But he denied it, saying, “Woman, I do not know him.” ⁵⁸ And a little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.” But Peter said, “Man, I am not.” ⁵⁹ And after an interval of about an hour still another insisted, saying, “Certainly this man also was with him, for he too is a Galilean.” ⁶⁰ But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are talking about.” And immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed. ⁶¹ And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the saying of the Lord, how he had said to him, “Before the rooster crows today, you will deny me three times.” ⁶² And he went out and wept bitterly.

And here is a really important question: if nobody knows, is it really lying?

Is it still ok if no one knows or no one else is hurt?

Because Jesus says that even the small things matter.

If you are not honest with a small thing like an answer on a test, can you be trusted to be honest when the stakes are much higher?

“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.” (Luke 16:10)

Jesus says that as his children, we are to live differently. Separate from the world.

He even pointed to the Pharisees, the leaders, and basically told them that they are fooling everyone but not God…because God knows the heart.

Today, I hope that you take some time to look into your own heart. Don’t worry about the person who you know has lied to you in the past.  Worry about yourself.

The point is to be honest with yourself about how you have been dishonest. Not to beat yourself up, but to make a change. To start today being honest.

God knows the truth and he is actually looking for people He can trust to be honest with themselves.

The more we lie, the more we dull the ability to hear His voice and be led by His example.

Take some time tonight to be quiet and honest with God and then, this week, when you are tempted to lie, remember that when you are honest in small things….God can trust you with big ones.

It says more about you and your character than you can ever know.

Close in prayer.

Closing Announcements –

• Teen Guys/Girls Small Group Bible Study – Wednesday 4:30-5:30PM
  • Call 602-677-6200 for more information
  • Next week – Baptismshttp://scottsdalebible.com/baptism

Sermon – 

I am going to shoot it straight with you today, and always because I know you can handle it. A lot of people will discredit you because you are young, however I believe that everyone in this room has the power to be a difference maker. We all have the ability to change the lives of those who we surround ourselves with. I’m sure many of you have heard this verse.

1 Timothy 4:12 Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.

But, I take this very seriously.

For me I have been called to do something very specific. I’ve been called to become A minister. To reach out and tell my story to anyone who is willing to hear, but more importantly to tell the story of who Jesus is to anyone and everyone who will listen.

Now your call may not be to become a minister or missionary or anything like that. However I believe that it is our responsibility as Christians no matter what we do as a career to be spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ. Would you agree with me on that?

We are all called to spread the gospel. Each and every one of us.

Now some of us are called into deeper forms of leadership. This is a whole different animal that comes with an entirely different set of expectations. That is what happened to me. I was called one night in February 2015 after I woke up of out of a two-week coma, to change my entire life.  I gave up my job which I really enjoyed, but I gave it up not because I wanted to, but because I needed to. And that was not easy. But I did it because I believed God called me to do something.

Life has not been easy for me. Guys I’m not sure if you noticed, but I don’t have all my fingers or toes. When I first woke up I was unable to walk, unable to speak. But the bible says this.

Joshua 1:9 ESV

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

With God I was able to overcome all of the things that happened to me. I went through 10 to 20 life altering surgeries in the short 26 years I have been on this earth. That was difficult, but The Joy that I have in Christ is stronger than any physical pain that could come upon me.

Christ was there with me as I was wheeled into each surgery.

Video 1

Christ was with me when I first learned to speak again.

Video 2

Christ was with me when I felt the joy of eating again. I remember it like it was yesterday.

Video 3

You see God is with us at all times. Through the God and the Bad.

You see when it comes down to it, I wouldn’t change a thing that happened to me.

Now that’s not to say that life hasn’t been and won’t continue to be difficult.

Life is going to get difficult sometimes.

I felt that this week. I was flat out 100% completely overwhelmed. I was denied my health benefits for a time. This was just the straw that broke the camels back for me.

I was struggling so I called up on Rick and Pete and asked for them to pray over me. I spent the better part of Friday morning crying in their office while they prayed over me.

Then Rick directed me to Paus story. He reminded me of how difficult it was for Paul at times. Paul had it rough. When Paul became a Christian he was hated by many.

2 Timothy 3:12

In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.

Persecute – to pursue with harassing or oppressive treatment, especially because of religious or political beliefs,

Synony            Synonyms – afflict, torture, torment badger, bother, pester.

He used me and he can absolutely use you. But you need to be willing to take that next step. To be bold and fearless with your faith.

We as Christians throughout your life you’re going to present be presented with different opportunities to reach out to the lost. I’m curious to hear from you as a group what are different ways that you personally have in the past reached out to the lost people in your lives??

I pray a lot in the mornings and it sounds a lot like this. Father I thank you for this day and I pray that today as I move forward through my day that you would present for me opportunities to glorify you

There are many different ways to pray this prayer but what you’re doing when you do this is your not only waiting for things to come your way, your asking for God to present them to you.

You’re not just waiting for something to come but you’re seeking it out you’re looking for it.

This is how we become a difference maker.

How many people have in their phones the contact information of a friend who is not a Christian or not a part of this SBC ministry???

I’m going to give you a chance right now to be a difference maker. Anyone know what’s happening tomorrow night at the main campus? Matt Redman Concert.

Anyone Going. First I would like to challenge all of you who will be in own tomorrow night to make this concert a personal priority.

Christian music may not be some of your friends favorite things especially the non Christians. However guess what is…YOU. People like hanging with you or they wouldn’t be friends with you…

So Lets take that to the next step.  If you invited them to go to the movies with you or to some pop artists concert they most likely would.

So I want to give you the next 5 minutes to do that.

But I’m going to sweeten the deal to make it even easier on you.  I will Buy a free ticket for every friend that you invite

Say something like this:  I have an extra ticket to a Matt Redmand concert tomorrow night, would you like to come with me.

If they are available, I bet you $15 they would Go with you. If nothing else just because they enjoy spending time with you

Here’s the best part…The worst things that can happen is the person says No.

WHAT! NO! IM SO deeply hurt. I’m going to cry in the corner for hours… Wait that wouldn’t happen…. Everything would be fine.

However if they say YES, you have the opportunity to change someone’s life. Total best case scenario what happens next, someone comes to the concert, connects with God, Gives their life to Jesus and is given eternal life.

I would say its worth the risk. So if it’s not this concert I challenge you to find ways to bring your friends to Christ. I challenge you to be A DIFFERENCE MAKER!!||

Let us Pray.

Closing Announcements –

• Teen Guys/Girls Small Group Bible Study – Wednesday 4:30-5:30PM
  • Call 602-677-6200 for more information

Game –· Protect the President 

Video sermon – http://youtu.be/R6zvvdHATrs

Text Sermon – 

 4th of July weekend

That certainly was a fun game wasn’t it. You know what was cool for me was watching how much effort the bodyguard put into protecting the president. For those of you who got to play the bodyguard? What did that feel like? Being the protector? What was cool about it, was as the protector, you are willing to sacrifice yourself for your president. Now why would we do that? Well as far as the game goes we do it because were told were supposed to come but what about the real bodyguards in the Secret Service. The ones that serve the real president of the United States. Why do you think that they sign on to do that job? Do you believe it is a difficult job? I personally believe that it is because they believe in that president. They believe in this country. They sign on in order to protect someone who is going to make a big difference in this world. They sign on willing to sacrifice their own lives for the cause that they believe in. Now this is not everyone. I know there are some who would not go to these lengths in order to protect our liberties and our freedoms. We on the Secret Service this makes me think of all the women and men who have served this country. In one way or another. Some who have given their lives in the pursuit of freedom. Now why would someone do that. Why would they be willing to give their lives for freedom? It’s because they believed in. They believe that they are making a difference. That they are doing their civic duty. That they are playing their role in keeping America free. We’ll great deal to these people. I would like to take a quick moment of silence for all those who are serving our country currently and to all those who’ve died fighting for our freedom.
 
And then there’s the president. Who among you have the opportunity to be the president in this game? What about feel like? To be protected. To have someone completely willing to jump in front of you to keep you safe. To take a bullet for you, or in this case a dodgeball. We talked about why they did it, but for you it must us felt pretty special to feel that someone cared about you that much even if just for a moment.
 
You see this is a lot like how Jesus gave himself up for us. He was the Secret Service member. He was the one willing to make the sacrifice in order to protect the president, or us in other words, at all cost. He died on that cross so that we could live. And we’ll get to that in just a little bit. But first I have a few more questions for you.
 
Now we are here today to celebrate something. Something very special. So let me ask you this, and I want you to be very honest with me. I want you to share with me what first comes to your mind, not what you believe the right answer would be for church. Be honest.
 
What comes to your mind when you think of the 4th of July?
 
For me when I think of the Fourth of July the following things come to my mind, fireworks of course, barbecue by the pool and family. That was the typical Fourth of July for me. I’m sure that you all have stories much like this. They may be slightly different than mine, but you probably have some sort of routine that happens during this holiday.
 
Much like some of you may have, my family has tradition. We grew up and we did the same thing every single year for as long as I can remember. As far as Fourth of July goes, that was also the case. We would get together at my great uncles house have a barbecue and the kids would play in the pool. The adults would sit around chatting and talking about what’s been going on in their lives until eventually we go outside and watch the five works. Nothing too crazy special.
 
But that was wrong of me. Not the whole have fun with family and celebrate the things that you have. That was right. But I’ll tell you what I did wrong. I’ll tell you what I still do wrong to this day most the time. I forget about what this day is really all about
 
You see there is nothing routine about this specific holiday. This holiday is not just about barbecue and family. It’s about so much more. It’s about celebrating one word
 
Anyone want to guess what that word is. Freedom.
 
Unfortunately a lot of us take advantage of this holiday. We brushed past the idea of freedom. This day is a day where we remember how our country was formed. And there’s nothing routine about that. There were men that died and sacrificed their lives for us to be able to have the freedom we have here today. There are men and women still to this day fighting for this country so that you have the ability to live in freedom. You see freedom is not something that is just given it’s earned through the sacrifice of others. You’re all lucky, I’m lucky. We were handed down this freedom just by being born. If you were born in the United States of America you are automatically given the freedom that go along with that.
 
Well much like forgetting that the Fourth of July is not just about barbecues and family when we are handed things without having to do any work for them, it becomes very easy to forget sacrifice that was made so that we could have those things. I would like the name off a few people who have made an ultimate sacrifice for their country.
 
 ———————————-

Article Name: THEY PAID THE PRICE
You know the 56 men who signed our Declaration of Independence that first 4th of July–you know they were risking everything, don’t you? Because if they won the war with the British, there would be years of hardship as a struggling nation. If they lost they would face a hangman’s noose. And yet there where it says, “We herewith pledge, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor,” they did sign. But did you know that they paid the price?
 
Of the 56 signers of the Declaration, few were long to survive. Five were captured by the British and tortured before they died. Twelve had their homes–from Rhode Island to Charleston–sacked and looted, occupied by the enemy or burned. Two of them lost their sons in the Army; one had two sons captured. Nine of the 56 died in the War from its hardships or from its more merciful bullets. I don’t know what impression you’d had of these men who met that hot summer in Philadelphia, but I think it’s important this July 4, that we remember this about them: they were not poor men, they were not wild-eyed pirates. These were men of means, these were rich men, most of them, who enjoyed much ease and luxury in personal living. Not hungry men– prosperous men, wealthy land owners, substantially secure in their prosperity. But they considered liberty–this is as much I shall say of it–they had learned that liberty is so much more important than security, that they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor. And they fulfilled their pledge–they paid the price, and freedom was born.
 
AUTHOR: Paul Harvey:
SOURCE: Paul Harvey, News and Commentary. July 4, 1974
July 2, 2001. http://www.genealogyforum.rootsweb.com/specials/July4/TheyPaid.htm.
http://www.sermoncentral.com/illustrations/sermon-illustration-stories-freedom-sacrifice-america-8386.asp
 
———————————- 
You see it is because of these men that we are free in America today. Our freedom in Amerca is because of them. Our citizenship has been made through their sacrifice.
 
However there is another form of citizenship that we need to be grateful for.
Our citizenship in the eternal realm.
Now Just like the freedom that was handed down to us was something that we were just blessed with, the same goes with God.
In order for America to become what it was, men had to give their lives to the cause. They died in the pursuit of freedom.
 
Our Savior Jesus Christ died in the same way. You see Jesus shed the blood that should have been ours. Jesus paved the way for us to be given citizenship in heaven. He gave us the ultimate freedom. The freedom that comes from knowing that by believing in him we will be given eternal life in heaven.The freedom from sin.
 
You see we are all sinners separated from God. And until Jesus came along we were a slave to that sin. We were guilty with no opportunity for parole. And for many of us what we did was we allowed that guilt and that sin to eat us up inside, But not anymore. Not with Jesus. With Jesus we can be accepted for exactly who we are. He takes us in despite all of our sins and our flaws.
 
John 8:32-36

32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33 They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?” 34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave[a] to sin. 35 The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed

John 3:36
“He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”
Romans 8:1-2

Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.

Ephesians 2:1-3

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.

Without Jesus we don’t have freedom. Jesus wants you to lay down your guilt and your shame at the foot of the cross. For he made the ultimate sacrifice so that you would not live as a slave to sin. So that you may live forever with him free !
 
These are the things we celebrate today. We celebrate FREEDOM! We acknowledge that their was a price to be paid for that freedom and Jesus gladly paid that price for us. You know when I think about Jesus one of the craziest things that comes to my mind is how humbly he came to the cross. How he allowed himself to die the most gruesome death for us. And he did a gladly in those final moments of the cross after being tortured and persecuted, Jesus forgave. He said father forgive them for they know now what they do. What an amazing attitude. What it spectacular way to live out your life. I tell you one thing if I was on that cross I don’t think I would had the courage and strength to speak the way he did. And I have a theory has to why he did it’s because he understood. He understood how difficult it is to live in sin. He spent most of his ministry catering to the worst of the centers. And he did so without any judgment he did so that they might be free in him.
 
So, ask yourself these questions:
Have I truly been set free from sin in my life or am I continuing to do things that I know God doesn’t approve of? That is slavery. Slavery to sin Do you let worry, fear or anything else stop you from being free in Christ and his power?
That is NOT FREEDOM, and as a Christian, it is like you are living in a prison cell that has been unlocked.
Jesus does not condemn you. He wants you to be free. Free in every sense. Free to proclaim his good news and freedom to those in the world who are still captive. He is calling each of us to fight with him to free people from the chains of despair. He is calling us to join him in setting people free to truly live. But it has to begin with you being free. If you are not free in Christ, let’s ask that he would open your eyes and you would have the courage to accept the freedom that is yours.
 
Let us Pray!

Opening Game – Scavenger Hunt

Before the game starts, hide an envelope with money in it in your pocket.

Split the students into two groups.

Choose one student from each group and pull them aside.   Tell them where the treasure is, but tell them that they cannot give their teammates any hints at all.

Send the surely confused students back to their groups and tell everyone to start looking for the envelope—without giving them any rules or hints to where it may be.

After teams have been looking for a while, start passing out clues.   For every true clue you give the students, also give them a false clue.

After the students run around confused for a few minutes, eventually give them enough true clues to allow one of the groups to end up back in the youth room. They will tell you the password to get the envelopes final location. Your pocket 🙂

Teach – Evangelism

Wasn’t that a confusing treasure hunt?  As you may have realized I was giving you false clues part of the time to make harder on you. Did it make it more difficult to find what you were looking for? Absolutely.

You were being lied to. By your youth pastor. Now why would I do that? Well because it’s fun to lie (joke). No that’s not why, but we will get to that in a moment.

Let me ask you this, Wouldn’t it have been easier if I had given you directions at the beginning of the game? If I had handed you this map with the exact location of the treasure, would that have made it easier absolutely.

Now, I’m going to confuse you all just a little bit more. What if I told you that (names of students you pulled aside at the beginning) knew where the treasure was the entire time?

Pause and allow students to react.

That’s right, they knew exactly where the treasure was.   They even knew which of the clues that I gave you were wrong! They knew and they said nothing. If they had spoken up, your entire team would have won!

What kind of friend keeps their mouth shut when they know something that could help their friends? What jerks you are (joke) Just kidding.

So why didn’t they talk? Why didn’t you tell them?

Answer- Because you told us we couldn’t

Well that’s right, in this specific case it was because I told them they couldn’t. Let me ask you this? Who in your lives is stopping you from talking to others about Jesus? I know for me it was no one. You know who it was, It was myself. I was the one who convinced myself it was not my responsibility to talk to others about Christ.

Well that was a mistake. And God made that completely obvious to me. You see we were made to serve him. He is a part of each and every one of us. And the problem is that so many people don’t realize that is the case. So what do they do? They try to fill that empty hole in their hearts with other things. Sex, Alcohol, Drugs exc.

I know that was me. When It came to sinning I was the worst of them. Guys, I pretty much did it all. I didn’t know what was missing in my life, but I knew I was missing something. I believed in God, but I didn’t have a relationship with him.

So then one night, I fell on my knees and I prayed to the lord. I was honest with him. I admitted my guilt, and asked for help. I honestly didn’t expect much to happen, but my parents had introduced me to the lord and I was desperate. Then God did something amazing. He answered my prayer. You see the bible says in Matthew

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” Matthew 7:7

This could not be more true. This is evident in stories like mine and stories like Raymond.

The problem is sometimes God does not always answer your prayer in the way you expect him to! Often times it takes time for you to realize how God is working in your life.

In my life, God made it obvious to me through a series of events that I was on the wrong path.  It just took me some time to figure out how God was working in my life.

This was true of my high school story. You see I Desperately wanted to be cool. And I was. Just kidding. but seriously. I felt that all that mattered was what my peers thought of me. And for a while that worked. I was an actor in high school which meant I was great at lying. But the truth was I was lying to myself.

I was in the cool group. I hung out with the SRH crowd. Even though I had never set foot on a quad or dirtbike. We all sat together at lunch and I did everything I could to convince myself and them that I fit in. I drank with them. I even did an 8 mile rap in irish just to get attention.
The problem was I staked everything on those people…and people fail you. We all fail. Even the best of us. But I was blind. I was convinced these people were my friends. I was convinced they had my back. Until they didn’t that is.

It was prom night Jr. year. We all went to my FRIEND Scotties house after prom, because everyone knows that’s when the fun happens. His house was pretty big. He had a decent size house with one of those doors that leads into a laundry room that leads to another door that leads to the garage. Now the garage was where we all went to get our huka smoke on. So I was hanging out in the garage with a few of the people who I hung out with when one of the guys, asked me to come inside to hang. So I followed them in when all of a sudden both doors shut and it became pitch black. There were 4 other guys in the room and they jumped me. These people who I thought were my friends beat me up. Now I wasn’t badly hurt or anything, but it really took an emotional tole on me.

The worst part was Monday at school they didn’t just ignore it and forget it happened. They bragged about it. I vowed that I would no longer put my trust in people like that anymore. A few days later I met my best friend Chris York and he brought me to a  nondenominational church called Alliance Church.  God used the events and the people in my life to draw me closer to him.

Chris and I then slowly started to make a huge difference in our community. We made it our goal to bring others to Christ without fear. Have you all ever heard of the national day of prayer. Well on that day once a year we would all gather around the flag and pray. But we decided once a year was not enough. We made it a weekly thing . And I know we made a big difference. One person changed my life forever. Why??? He wasn’t afraid to introduce me to Christ. You see one person can make a difference. You shouldn’t be afraid to stand out. You should be proud of it.

Because we aren’t just dealing with a simple thing here. We are dealing with our  eternal salvation. Life eternal. We get maybe 70 to 100 years if were lucky here. However with Jesus we are given Life Eternal.

Eternity – infinite or unending time.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. Romans1:16

You should not be ashamed to share your faith. Being in high school, you’re going to rub elbows with a lot of people who don’t know Jesus on a daily basis.  You may even become close friends with some of them like I was. After high school this will become more and more difficult. Not for any other reason other than the fact that you won’t come in contact with as many people.

So going back to the game, There were two of you who knew the answer to the treasure hunt. You knew exactly where to go and what to do, while the entire rest of your group was lost. What type of friend would you be if you don’t tell others about Jesus?

I would Like to show you a quick video.

Not proselytize

https://youtu.be/owZc3Xq8obk

Proselytize – convert or attempt to convert (someone) from one religion, belief, or opinion to another.

Evangelize – convert or seek to convert (someone) to Christianity.

You see these are the words of an atheist, and in this specific case, he’s got it right. If you truly honestly believe that Jesus is your savior, then you believe that when it comes down to it, anyone who does not know Jesus does not get into heaven. That is what the bible says.

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6

There is no other way into heaven accept through Jesus. By acknowledging in our hearts the sacrifice that Jesus made for us, we receive our ticket to heaven. There is no other way. And this may seem harsh, but it’s true. The bible makes that very clear.

So if you believe this, it means that anyone who doesn’t believe this will spend eternity in hell. Eternity separate from God. So as Christians it is your responsibility to push them out of the way of the bus. It is your responsibility to share Christ with them.

What’s the worst that could happen. They don’t want to hang out with you anymore? Lets compare that to the best case scenario. You save their eternal soul and them come to experience the joy that you have learned to experience through Christ.

You seen as we said earlier, If you know Jesus, you already have found the greatest treasure in the entire world. And it isn’t (prize at the end of treasure hunt) . Although that is nice.

So what is standing in the way of you sharing Christ with your friends.

If you think of knowing Jesus as a treasure, shouldn’t that motivate you to share him with others?

It’s easy to just go throughout the school year focused on yourself.   It would be easier to not worry about telling people about Jesus this school year.   But if you did that, you would be withholding the secret to the greatest treasure in the world.

Matthew 13:44

“The Kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.”

Isn’t that verse so cool?   It shows us how excited we should be over the fact that we know about Jesus and Heaven.

The man in this story was so excited that he rushed to give away everything he had so he could get the treasure.

Now, if he was that excited, don’t you think he told all of his friends once he got the treasure?

Maybe you’ve never thought of having a relationship with Jesus as having a treasure.   I hope that after reading that verse, you will.

Think of how many people in your school don’t know Jesus and are just blindly wandering around looking for something.

Just like in the game, they don’t have clear direction on where they should be looking. They’re receiving false advice on where they should be going. They’re waiting on someone to tell them something that makes sense.

You could be that someone. You could be their Chris York.

Someone needs to tell the students at your school about the greatest treasure they could ever have.   The question is, will it be you?

Let’s Pray.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0BwKpi_S9JTCNRExwOUY3WmpibU0

Stress worry and anxiety. Is it okay? Is it a sin? That is a little bit of a complex question. Let me start by saying The Bible doesn’t tell us not to experience emotions. Anxiety itself is a natural response to stress, say – like sadness or anger. The key is what we do with those emotions once we feel them.For example, the Bible says “Be angry, but don’t let the sun go down on your anger.” Anger is the natural response, but we are not supposed to hold on to it. When anger becomes bitterness, we’ve fallen into sin. Anxiety itself is not the sin.Jesus says to us to cast our cares on to God – He wouldn’t say to “cast” (or throw) them if we didn’t first experience something that needs to be tossed . In other words, when we feel that anxiety, we have a decision to make. We have to decide to obey God and trust in him

We repent of the anxiety – meaning we think differently about it. The Word of God ministers in our souls, and we know God is in control and working all things for his good. Romans 8:28. 

We know our anxiety can’t fix anything. Matthew 6:27-33. So when we feel anxiety, it is good to be with brothers and those who can encourage us in the Word of God and in the Holy Spirit. Likewise, when we see others anxious, we should go to them and minister in love and encourage them. Now I’m not saying that each of us in this room has a problem with stress worry or anxiety. We all experience it at different levels. The level and frequency to which this happens is usually based on peoples personalities and how they handle their emotions. Personally I happen to be one of those people who don’t really worry or stress out that much. Now part of that is because I happen to be easy going. I just don’t let things get to me. However the main reason is due to the fact that I put my trust in the lord. I believe that he has an ultimate plan for my life. That means that stressing will do nothing but hurt my relationship with God and bring down my quality of life. Not everyone is this way. For those of you who have had the opportunity to meet my fiancé Jessica you may know that she is not so easy going. Now I’m not saying that in a bad way it just happens to be a personality difference. Some people worry more than others. That being said please don’t tell Jessica I said that. Just kidding, I always get her permission before talking about her. This last weekend Jessica and I took a trip to San Diego with the main campus at SBC. Now every time we go on a trip the same thing tends to happen. Were about to get in the car and take off after all bags are packed and all the prep work is been done. We have gone through the list and checked it all twice. It’s time to leave, but before we can even move the first words out of my fiancé’s mouth are always without fail “I think I’m forgetting something.” Can any of you relate to this feeling? Thus is an example of a small worry. However even the small things should be given up to God. If not you will end up like a crazy Janga game with all your peace’s on the floor.  Then there is the bigger worries. The kind that keep you up at night. When I was in the hospital in 2016 my family was filled with this kind of worry. I personally felt this worry when I was 18 and was tod I may have cancer. Durring that time it was super difficult on me, but I prayed to God and put my trust in him. I brought my sin to him and trusted that he had a plan for me. Again anxiety is not the sin, the sin is not bringing it to God. God wants us to come to him with our stress and our worries. You see if we don’t then it is us flat out NOT trusting that God has it covered. Not trusting that God will take care of us. There are many verses in the bible where God tells us exactly how he wants us to handle the stress. 1 Peter 5: 6,7 “Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” Now we serve a mighty big awesome God. Amen! We serve under the God of the universe. The same God that created everything that is before us. That same big God who held the oceans in his hand. But the beauty of our God is that he will never be too big for us. He wants us to enter into a relationship with him And that same God wants you to live a stress free life. Now why does he do that? Why would he ask us to come to him. Because he loves you despite all our mistakes. God is the ultimate provider. He wants to give you everything that you need. And let us not forget the ultimate gift that God gives us. The gift of LIFE in eternity with him.

Matthew 6:25-27 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?”Lets break this down a little. There are 3 major points that stick out to me

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life,

Does this mean that we should just sit and do absolutely nothing and expect God to provide. Absolutely not.

• Boat Story – There was a man who was drowning, and a boat came, and the man on the boat said ‘Do you need help?’ and the man said No ‘God will save me’. Then another boat came and he tried to help him, but he said ‘God will save me’, then he drowned and went to Heaven. Then the man told God, ‘God, why didn’t you save me?’ and God said ‘I sent you two boats, you dummy!'” 
All you do when you worry is stress yourself out. Also you make it so that God no longer has the opportunity to step in and be there for you. So how do we do this. How do we give our anxiety to God. Again I will point you directly to the bible.

Philippians 4:6,7. “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Wait a minute, it can’t be that easy. All I need to do is pray and God will relieve me of my stress. WHAT! YES!!! YES!!! It absolutely IS that easy. Why. Because Our God is that Great!!! His knowledge and understanding surpass ours. So bottom line, spend time in prayer with God and you will begin over time to feel a relief from your stress. Remember Jesus himself went alone to pray with God. 

Matthew 14:23 -“After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone

Now am I saying that this is super easy and as soon as you go to pray to God all life will be ok and nothing bad will happen. Absolutely not. For example If you didn’t STUDY for that test God won’t just fill your head with the knowledge. 
• I will close with this final verse. 

• Proverbs 3:5,6. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.”

Hey Everyone,

This past week I was blessed enough to tell my story at Scottsdale Bible Church. They did what was called a my story and filmed me talking about my hospital experience and how God helped me to make it through this difficult time.

My story is very unique, and I have been called by God to share it. The story I have to tell is all about the importance of counting your blessings.The story teaches kids, teens and adults that they should thank God for all of the little things He blesses them with. It is also all about learning to use their gifts to glorify God here on this Earth.

As stated previously, my story is very unique. Long story short, I have an autoimmune disease called ALPS; this disease makes it much easier for me to get sick. Because of this disease, last year, I was sent to the hospital with a diagnosis of Strep pneumonia and sepsis. I was on all kinds of life support and had to fight my way to stay alive. It became so severe that they put me in a medically induced coma to keep me alive. This lasted for a total of two weeks. After waking up, I was in the hospital recovering for a total of three months. During that time I was forced to amputate my fingers and my toes and went through a total of about 10 different surgeries. Unfortunately, I also lost kidney function and am now on dialysis.

What got me through this time was my belief in the Lord and His plan for me. It is with hope that I may share my story with the people in your congregation; and help inspire them to strengthen the relationship that they have with the Lord.

To find out more information on my story and ministry, you can check out my website at http://www.BrianSweeney.com

Hey everyone,

This weeks blog is all about becoming an example for other people. This weeks verse is first Peter 5:2-4

You will also find below a letter that I wrote. I would be very happy if you could pass it along to your local pastor. Hopefully this will be a way for me to share my story and encourage others. I can’t do without you so please please please help me out. 

I hope that you have a wonderful and blessed week. God bless!
———————————

To Whom It May Concern,
 
My name is Brian Sweeney, and I am studying Youth Ministry here in Phoenix, Arizona. It is my hope that I may reach out to you about teaching a sermon at your church. My story is very unique, and I have been called by God to share it. The story I have to tell is all about the importance of counting your blessings. It is about understanding that a relationship with God is the most important thing in the world, and that we have been blessed beyond our belief. The story teaches kids, teens and adults that they should thank God for all of the little things He blesses them with. It is also all about learning to use their gifts to glorify God here on this Earth. It is a wonderful talk for new Christians, long term Christians and even those who have not come to Christ.

As stated previously, my story is very unique. Long story short, I have an autoimmune disease called ALPS; this disease makes it much easier for me to get sick. Because of this disease, last year, I was sent to the hospital with a diagnosis of Strep pneumonia and sepsis. I was on all kinds of life support and had to fight my way to stay alive. It became so severe that they put me in a medically induced coma to keep me alive. This lasted for a total of two weeks. After waking up, I was in the hospital recovering for a total of three months. During that time I was forced to amputate my fingers and my toes and went through a total of about 10 different surgeries. Unfortunately, I also lost kidney function and am now on dialysis.

What got me through this time was my belief in the Lord and His plan for me. It is with hope that I may share my story with the people in your congregation; and help inspire them to strengthen the relationship that they have with the Lord.

To find out more information on my story and ministry, you can check out my website at http://www.BrianSweeney.com. I look forward to hearing from you and hope that I am able to be a blessing to your ministry.