Beating Repetition

When I went to Cambodia some years ago, we saw many ruts that would develop in the road due to the rain water that would collect. Our missionary friend who road a dirt bike to the local villages would say, sometimes you would get stuck in these rain ruts and would have to ride them out. Sometimes when you would stand in these ruts you would even sink down to being waist high with the rest of the ground!

How do you view ministry? Are you stuck in a rut? I do think it can be easy to feel like ministry can be a rut if your eyes are off of Jesus Christ. Ministry is with people but the focus should always be Christ. A book that we have been going over with our leaders in the ministry is, “On Being a Servant” by Warren Wiersbe. He defines ministry as this, “Ministry takes place when divine resources meets human needs through loving channels to the glory of God.” In this book, he talks about how we are not manufacturers of ministry but we are distributors.

If you are finding yourself in the rut of ministry and having a pity party than I suggest making sure your perspective aligns with the cross. It is easy when certain things may not go as planned or feeling unappreciative for all the hard work but you must ask yourself why do you do ministry? It is because of the work of Jesus Christ that I go in and out everyday. That is why Paul tells us in Colossians 3:23, “Whatever you do, work heartily as for the Lord and not for men.” What a great opportunity we have to work with such a crucial age group. As Ephesians 5:16 tells us, “make the best use of our time, because the days are evil.”

On a more practical note with being stuck in a rut, not only making sure your focus is right, make sure you have a strong godly leader that you can go to that may understand the task of ministry. This person can pray for you and encourage you as this is battle ground.

Who Knew…Video Games and Stress

Cha Cha released on their website the pro’s and con’s about playing video games. To summerize their report, the pro was playing video games like Tetris can help reduce the recurring flashbacks for those who with post traumatic stress syndrome. The report came from a study done by a journal, PloS One. The reason why Tetris seemed to help those deal with stress was they would be distracted.

The con’s were those who are considered “addicted” were prone to have aggressive behaviors and become depressed. They were more likely to use drugs and alcohol. Also gamers were more likely to drink caffeinated beverages such as energy drinks, soda, and coffee.

In a study by Kay S. Hymowitz, that 12 to 17 year old males will play video games for over 2 1/2 hours every day. I do not know what is considered addicted but for someone to play that long or longer a day seems like an “addiction.” I am no way condemning video games but I am asking the parents to monitor their child’s video game playing, content and length.

Here are some questions to ask:

• Do I know what the rating of the games are that my child is playing? To see the ERSB click Here.
• If they play online do I know what they talk about with other gamers?
• Do I monitor their length of play?
• Do I set up time frames when they can and cannot play? For example, they can play after homework, 6:00pm and must be turned off by 7:00pm.
• Do you notice a behavior change; becoming more aggressive or language has changed?
• Do you pick certain days they cannot play at all?

These questions should be asked as a parent so you can be more involved and help them in the ways of the Lord. The Bible talks about not having anything take the place of God. Video games can become someones god if they allow it to control their lives. Be proactive!

For the article by Cha Cha click: VIDEO GAME

For the article by the Kay S. Hymowitz click: Article

 

Too Much Text can Lead to Sex

In an article by the Associated Press, Tuesday November 9 said that “Sex, drugs more common in hyper-texting teens.” Their study showed them that teens that text 120 times a day or more are more likely to have had sex or used alcohol and drugs than kids who don’t send as many messages.  The studied showed they were three and half more times to have sex than their peers. Another interesting fact that the study revealed was that those who sent over 120 text a day would also spend three or more hours a day on Facebook or other social networking websites.

Dr. Scott Frank who was the author of this study concluded that the number of teens are very susceptible to peer pressure and also have permissive or absent parents.

Have we started a monster with technology and cell phones? When you look at the advantages of them, being able to communicate with your children, the security of knowing where they are and what they are doing, it could be comforting. But what about the disadvantages such as the rise of  sexting (sending explicit images through your phone), not knowing what they are talking about or whom they may be talking with. Despite the disadvantages, technology creates an opportunity to communicate with your children about the dangers and advantages as well as expectations.

How well do you monitor? Here are some questions that can help.

• Do you know who your child is texting and what about?
• Do you ask your child to not delete the history and to show you periodically their sent and received messages?
• Do you know how many texts they send and have you established limits on how many they can send and what hours they can send them?

It is your responsibility as a parent to help train your child up and teach them to be responsible with using technology. It will require some work, and discipline and will create a little strife if it has not been established already but this monitored approach sure outweighs the regret and hurt that can come from not being monitored.

For the complete study of this article: Associated Press

Teenology

I recently came across this book in our new section of our bookstore and I am familiar with Jim Burns and his writings on youth ministry. As I started reading I realized how well this book is written for parents dealing with teens.

Jim Burns is president of HomeWord which is a center for educating, equipping, and encouraging parents and teens to build God-honoring families.

One chapter I really appreciated was ch. 4, Creating a Media-Safe Home. Due to our culture and the influx of technology it is very important for parents to protect and help their children understand the dangers as well as the advantages of technology.

 

 

 

Here are a few points of application that he gives to have that safe home:

• Follow the web site rules and safety tips, and set privacy  settings. With this also make sure your teen sets their page to private so only their friends can view their pages.
• Keep a computer with online access out of their bedroom. If they do have one you are only asking for trouble.
• Do not allow younger teens to add new online friends without your permission.
• Do not allow your teens to have multiple email accounts and user accounts.
• Have your children tell you and agree to tell you when they receive inappropriate or threatening messages.
• Set clear expectations about cell phone use.
• Follow through with discipline.

For more information visit HomeWord or pick up a copy of Teenology by Jim Burns and you can see these points and more on pages 75-77.