Student Not a Student a.k.a. Games Youth Pastors Play

"Okay, is that guy in high school, or is he as old as he looks? He acts 16 but looks 26. I just don't know."

That was a common thought in my head last Friday. I had the privilege of being at an amazing event for high school students, but I was having the hardest time counting heads. I counted four times before giving up and estimating. It wasn't because everyone was moving around so much. It was because I couldn't tell whether a number of students were in high school, or if they were adults there as chaperons.

It was confusing, and awkward.

Have you ever had a conversation with someone, and the entire time you were unable to focus on what they were saying because you were trying to figure out how old they are?

I find myself playing the "Student not a Student" game. The rules are simple. You pick a member of the crowd and guess if they are a student or an adult.

This seems to be happening more and more. My wife would say it's because I'm getting old. True, typically at a youth rally 98% of the people are younger than I am. However, playing "Student not a Student" is nothing new. One day in high school my friends and I spent a week thinking that a new classmate was a new teacher.

I don't want to go all Jerry on you, but what's the deal with the 17 year olds looking 26 and the twenty five year olds looking 16?

Here are some tips I've come up with to tell.

- Ask them to moon walk. If they do it they're "Not a Student" if they look at you like you're from the moon then they're a "Student."
- Watch the Mosh Pit. If the individual tires after three or four jumps they're "Not a Student" if they last an entire song and still have energy for a second they may be a "Student" but it's tricky a secondary test is needed
- Observe the Mosh Pit Exit. Does the subject leave the pit under duress only to sit on the side for 20 minutes breathing into a paper bag? Definitely "Not a Student." Do they sprint out grab a slice of pizza and had back in? "Student"
- Ask how they got their iPhone. First off, do they have an iPhone? I don't. If they do they're probably not a pastor. If they paid for it themselves then mostlikely they're "Not a Student." If their parents paid for it then most likely you can ask what grade they are in.
- Use words you don't know the meaning of but think students would use. If the subject responds in kind then they are "Not a Student." The possible responses of a "Student" are too many to list. Chances are, if they do anything other than respond in kind, they are a "Student."
-Do you detect the musty smell of dried baby spit up on them or detect a last minute spot wash. Chances are a "Not a Student" only has one or two good youth rally outfits. If they have kids there is a grate likelihood that they were puked on moments before going out the door. That leaves no time to change, if there even is something clean and rally worthy to change into, and barely time to spot wash. Is one patch slightly cleaner than the rest? Is there a fait smell of sour milk about them? If yes then most likely "Not a Student" or a sloppy eater. If no most likely "Student."
- Ask a student you know for help. This is ultimately my go to move. It has never failed. Somehow studetns can always tell. They must have some sort of radar for it. As good as the moon walk test is, it can be foiled. This test is sound.

Hope this helps.

Here's wishing that everyone just looked thier age. Well, at least for now.

Grace and Peas

I sat down to read through 2 Peter yesterday. I didn’t get far. I stopped after the second verse.

It wasn’t because of a lack of time, or add, or the commencement of an emergency.

There is a word in verse two that needed some time of pondering and application.

As you read through second Peter verse one is all typical of the opening of an Epistle. In the first verse you learn who is writing the letter and whom they are writing to. And so we learn that Peter is writing a letter to people of faith.

Now the second verse of an Epistle is typically reserved for a greeting of some form. Peter stays true to the script, however he unloads a doozey of a greeting. Some authors go for the ever spiritual: “greetings” Some writers ramp up the holy talk with a phrase like: “Grace and peace.” Peter, never one to be outdone, takes it to the next level in his first letter: “Grace and peace be yours in abundance.” Then in his second letter he outdoes himself:

“Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.”

That’s where I stopped.

I know God. I think.

I mean, I’ve read all about him. We’ve had some wonderful one-sided conversations. I even work for him.

I think it’s safe to say that I know him.

It’s also safe to say that I know Jesus. I know that Jesus and God are one, so as such if I know one I should know the other. I know that Jesus died for my sins, so I try and make sure that he didn’t have to die for too many. I know that Jesus is preparing a place for me in heaven. I know he loves me.

Is there more to know?

I like to think that I have grace and peace in my life. I certainly have peace because I know that death is not the end for me. Knowing God helps me remember that heaven awaits me when I die. I experience grace in that I’m not getting what my sins deserve. Despite being guilty of breaking the law I’m not going to jail. Thus I have grace and peace through the knowledge of God and of Jesus.

Normally, as I’ve read this letter many times, I skip right over this verse. I kinda check it off as having accomplished it.

Yesterday, however, that word abundantly jumped out at me.

The aforementioned level of grace and peace is so minimal—it is far from an abundant kind of grace and peace.

What would an abundance of grace and peace look like?

Have you seen something burdened by abundance?

I’ve seen ships burdened by an abundance of logs. They seem to be near sinking. There are too many logs to carry. Those ships are bursting with an abundance of logs.

I’ve seen a sponge loaded with an abundance of water. You can’t come into contact with it without getting wet.

I’ve had balloons burst in my face with an abundance of air. The balloon could not contain it all. Air got all over everything.

It’s seems abundance is barely containable if it’s even containable at all.

I’ve seen people bursting with an abundance of joy. You can’t get close to them without them dumping joy all over you. They cannot contain all their joy. You look at a person with an abundance of joy and you know right away that they have joy. It’s obvious to everyone around. As annoying as the joy abundant can be, you never look at them and go: “I bet something’s bothering them.”

Yet people’s first impression of is probably not that I have an abundance of grace and peace. Some days they may wonder if I have any at all.

I do not have an abundance of Grace and Peace.

Yet Peter wants us to have an abundance of both. He wants us to be so bursting with grace that we leak grace all over everyone we meet. We should have such an abundance of peace that when we enter a room peace is everywhere.

Are we exploding at the seams with grace and peace?

Do those who come into contact with us leave dripping with grace and peace?

Is my, or our, grace and peace contained, or is it all over the place?

What would it look like for a church to ooze grace and peace?

What would it look like for the church doors to open after the service on Sunday and have a tsunami of grace and peace hit the neighbourhood changing it forever?

It seems that knowledge of God and of Jesus should produce the abundance of grace and peace I lack. So I’m kinda left concluding that somewhere I’ve missed really knowing God.

Or maybe I’ve only been getting to know God in a past tense. God did this… God did that… What about what God is doing today? What about what God will do tomorrow? What about who God is today and tomorrow?

I'm hoping that as I go through Peter's second letter a little slower than usual, I'll learn something more about God that will help me know him better, and then maybe I'll be bursting with an abundance of grace and peace.

1st Anniversary

A year ago today I woke up for the first time as the youth pastor at Lakeview Heights Baptist church. It’s been a wonderful year.

Waking up that morning I had no idea what the year would hold. It wasn’t that many days previous that I woke up with nothing more on my agenda than catching some waves while my wife went to work.

That morning I knew only two things: church started at 10 and that afternoon there was a church picnic where we would be formally welcomed.

Getting ready that morning was odd. I didn’t bring my full wardrobe with me. Much of our clothes and things were packed away. We though we’d bring them up once we found a more permanent residence. We had a place to stay for a couple months and hoped we would have a house by the time those months were over.

I combed though the few shirts in the closet wondering what I should wear for my first day “on the job.” Now I don’t even remember. I’m sure no one else does other, but at the time it seemed a life changing decision. I thought fortunately Sheena is here to help with the decision, “Sheena which one?” That’s not her preferred way to be woken up. It’s a common alarm sound though.

“I don’t care. They all look fine.”

One of those statements is a lie. Do you care to guess which one?

Maybe they both are. Truthfully, she only cares if I pick the wrong one, and each shirt does look fine on the hanger. However, once a “fine” shirt is paired with a bottom it’s “fine level” can plummet. It may remain fine, or it may become a bad choice. On rare occasions the “fine level” of a shirt rises to the level of “excellent choice.” Usually if it does manage to rise it peaks out at “good.” (For a comprehensive understanding of a shirt’s “Fine Level” see the appendix above and to the right.)

Once ready we were off to the church. We walked through the church doors and were lovingly greeted by a sweet older lady: “Who do you belong to?”

“Jesus?”

How do you answer that?

Hands down the weirdest greeting of my life. Weirder than “What did you hit your head on?”

While I was in my head exploring the theological (Jesus paid the price for me), grammatical (shouldn’t it be “To whom do you belong”?), and social justice (sadly there are still slaves today) implications of her greeting Sheena was explaining that I was the new youth pastor reporting for duty.

Okay, she didn’t use the words “reporting for duty,” but how cool would it have been if she did?

As soon as Sheena explained that our reason for being at the church went beyond praising God with fellow believers, we were quickly introduced by our new friend to all her friends who gave her a look that said: “we know who these people are. It was only a month ago that we voted to hire him.”

A lot happened in that month. We quit our jobs, packed up our house changed our cell phone number, and said many “see-you-laters.” And we tried to pack in as much “Island Living” as possible while still doing the previously mentioned duties.

It’s been an unbelievable year. I thought I should take the time to run through some of the non-ministry highlights of the year. Perhaps later I’ll run through the ministry highlights.

- We moved to a new town

- I began working at a new church

- We lived in four different homes in our first four months

- Sheena began working at a new hospital in a new health authority

- We found out we were expecting

- We bought a house

- I turned 30

- One nephew and two nieces were born

- Our car was totalled

- We became parents

- We bought a new car

- We’ve had many guests help turn our house into a home

- I got a class four learners license

It may seem like a short list but each one carries major weight. Perhaps that’s why I woke up sore this morning. My wife says it’s because of point number seven. I say it’s been a busy year.

I suppose that it’s uber fitting that tonight I spend our one-year anniversary with the youth group. It’s been a joy getting to know them, a pleasure to open my life to them, and an honour to minister with them.