You using that chair?

Yo, so true story - One day Breanna was walking and bumped into this chair that said, "Do Not Touch." She didn't seem to think anything of it, there seemed to be no reason to not touch it. So she leaned on it while texting, but when she went to walk away, she was stuck to it. No matter what she tried, she couldn't free herself. A short time later, Hannah is walking by and sees Breanna. She tries to pull Breanna off the chair, but can't and in the process touches the chair. Now they're both stuck. Along comes Elliott and Lauren. Upon seeing some damsels in distress, Elliott tries to be a knight in shining armor. Again, the attempts are unsuccessful and Elliott and Lauren both manage to get stuck on the chair too. Out of no where, Max comes flying in with some ninja moves, assesses the situation, and like those who've gone before him, winds up stuck to the chair. Christy was out for a run and finds the group all stuck to the chair. Instead of helping, she starts taking pictures of them, including a selfie (don't believe me? ask her to show you this picture!). But she can be a little clumsy and stumbles into the chair, getting herself stuck too. 

Next Natalie comes walking by. She's a little smarter than the others. Rather than getting herself stuck, she actually manages to get everyone unstuck!

Galatians 5:1-6 For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. 2 Look: I, Paul, say to you that if you accept circumcision, Christ will be of no advantage to you. 3 I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to keep the whole law. 4You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace. 5 For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love. 

Now say one of them decided that they really liked the chair. They didn't really mind being stuck to it, they actually kind of liked it. Although they've gotten unstuck from the chair, they want to continue staying stuck to it. How would you respond to them? What would you do if you saw Max or Hannah walking around with a chair stuck to them?

It would be silly for anyone of us to want to stay stuck to a chair, but that's silly skit is an analogy to the way that we live life. There are so many ways where we opt to stay stuck (submit ourselves to slavery), instead being unstuck (free because of Christ).

Check out the chorus of this song by Hillsong: "Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom! Where the Spirit of the Lord is chains are broken, eyes are open. Christ is with us." I don't know about you, but I want that freedom Christ is offering. I don't want to live enslaved.


1) What's an area in which you see you are stuck to a chair?
2) For freedom Christ has set us _____________; stand firm therefore, and do not _____________ again to a yoke of slavery.
3) What's a practical step you can take this week to experience the freedom Christ offers?

4) Take some time and journal about this passage:

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Written for the youth group devotional book. Check out the youth group blog for more. Mycbcyouth.blogspot.com

We Keep Accountable Because We Love

Do you have one of those friends who tells you what you don't want to hear? Like the little angel sitting on your
shoulder pointing out to you why you shouldn't make whatever dumb decision you're about to make?

At one point in college, I was going through a bit of a rough time and as a result, I wasn't reading my Bible or praying – I was just going through the motions. One of my roommates called me on it. To this day, I can still hear her telling me that I needed to change – "Good Christian girls can get pregnant before they're married, pastors can have affairs and leave their families..." If you don't live for God daily, you can end up like that too…

We Spend Time With Because We Love

If you were stranded on a desert island, who would you want to be stuck with?


My guess is either answered with Leif or Scott because they'd build you a shelter and catch you food. OR you answered with one of your closest friends because that's a lot of time you'll be spending together and you want to be with someone you like.

Time is something we all value and are often careful with how we use it. When people make the time to hang with us in whatever capacity, it lets us know that they love us.

Read Luke 10:38-42.

There are three characters in the story, who are they and what are they doing?
1)

2)

3)

When Martha asks Jesus to make Mary help, he tells her, "there's only one thing worth being concerned about." (Luke 10:42a NLT). What is that one thing?


Mary opted to spend time with Jesus. Jesus said that was better than worrying about cooking and cleaning and everything else. (That's not to say those other things don't matter, my last devo was on serving… We just got to keep things in check.)

The New Testament is full of passages that talk about "one-anothering"… It's a kind of silly phrase but it groups together all these different verbs that we are to do for or with one another… Love one another, serve one another, instruct one another, forgive one another, encourage one another, confess to one another… in order to do these things, we must spend time with one another. "So then, as we have the opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith." (Gal. 6:10 ESV). We spend time with others because we love them.

Have you ever watched White Wolves? For those of you that haven't had the privilege, a group of teens and their leader go on a backpacking trip, very much like the wilderness trip, with less canoeing. Their goal is to get to the top of Eagle Rock. They eventually make it to the top and disaster strikes! Their trip turns into a rescue mission and they go through struggle after struggle on the way. In the beginning of the movie, Pandra tells Kara she likes Adam. As the movie goes on, Kara and Adam continually end up spending time together, they raft together, sit together at campfires, etc. They develop a deeper relationship because they spend time together. We just need to make sure the people we choose to spend time with our good people… What does 1 Corinthians 15:33 say about this?


There's one more thing we can learn from the story of Mary and Martha – we spend time with God because we love him. Jesus wasn't just any old friend Mary was hanging out with. If you look back at Luke 10:39, it says she was listening to His word. If we love Jesus, we will spend time reading His word and praying. We can't know Him and His will for our lives without spending time with Him. "If you love me, he will keep my commandments." (John 14:15 ESV). 

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This is a devotional I wrote for the teens on the Ecuador missions trip. Our theme for the devotionals is "We _____ because we love." We came up with a list of 11 (one for each day), and this is one I was assigned.

We Serve Because We Love

Welcome to Ecuador! I don't know what you were expecting, but I can tell you for sure that over the next 10 days our focus will be on serving – serving God and serving others.


We all have read numerous Bible stories and verses that tell us we should serve. "And whosoever would be first among you, shall be servant of all." (Mark 10:44 ASV). "Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God." (Heb. 13:16 ESV). "As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God varied grace." (1 Pet. 4:10). I could make you read the passage in John about Jesus serving the disciples by washing your feet. However, knowing we should serve is a no-brainer! You all know that, that’s why you’re here.


If I come over your house and ask you to get me a drink, you'd do so gladly (at least I hope you would). However, if your mom or your little brother were to make that same request, would you be as willing to serve them as you were me? My guess is you're a little less likely to want to do so... You might roll your eyes or mutter under your breath a little while doing it (I know cause I’m right there with ya).


Serving isn't just about what you are doing, but how you do it. We see this when we're eating out – there are good waiters and bad waiters and lots of time that has to do with their attitude or demeanor. We want the people serving us to be kind and pleasant, and to do the job well.


We are here in Ecuador because we love. We love God and want to honor Him through serving. Right now, you're probably excited and ready to start doing whatever is on today's agenda. You'll quickly do whatever it is that's being asked of you. However, as the week progresses, you're going to start to get tired and worn out. And you might start getting annoyed by constantly being around people. And when Jeff or Reiner or whoever asks you to do something, you're a little less likely to want to do so... You might roll your eyes or mutter under your breath a little while doing it.


If we serve because we love, our attitude or demeanor should reflect that. "Do all things without grumbling or disputing." (Phil. 2:14 NAS) or worded a little differently, "do everything readily and cheerfully – no bickering, no second-guessing allowed!" (Phil. 2:14 MSG). What we do isn't as important as how we do it. This applies not only to this week, but once we are back home as well. If we say we serve because we love, we need to serve joyfully, so others can actually see that love.


For example... Think about Jonah, what comes to mind when you hear his name?




As I wrote that question, immediately this song popped into my head: "Jonah was a prophet, ooh ooh, but he never really got it, sad but true." I know that the book of Jonah is a familiar story, but I would still like for you to read it. If you have time, read all four chapters. If not, read Jonah 3:10-4:11.


After running from the Lord, Jonah went and served God as he was supposed to, but he did it with some eye-rolling and muttering – and a hike up a cliff. He loved God, so he served Him, but he did it out of obligation and took no joy from what he did. When I think of Jonah, I think of how sad it was that he missed out on the joy of serving because of his bad attitude. Sure, God was still able to use him and the Ninevites were saved, but Jonah missed out.


What does this mean for you? As we go through the week, make sure that as you serve you do it with a good attitude. Not every job you get assigned is going to be fun or easy, some could be a pain… When we serve joyfully, it lets people see our love for them but more importantly our love for God.
"And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, especially to those who are of the household of faith." (Gal. 6:9-10 ESV).




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This is a devotional I wrote for the teens on the Ecuador missions trip. Our theme for the devotionals is "We _____ because we love." We came up with a list of 11 (one for each day), and this is one I was assigned.