Too Many Deborah's in the Church

I learned a long time ago from C.S. Lewis that "moderation in all things" is a good philosophy for life. However, something I have noticed in my church and others similar is the heightened role of women in the church. Now, please here me out. I am not accusing women of anything, nor am I a misogynist. I believe that women have a vital role in the church, but I do believe that men have a vital role too.

As a student minister, I have noticed an abundance of women who are eager to work and serve in the church. This is a good thing. I wish that there would be an abundance of workers in my minister no matter gender, ethnicity, or socio-economics. An abundance of servants is such a great problem to have. However, I see a disparity in the level of commitment from the men in the churches.

I have come to see some effects of this disparity in the church. Let me explain:

1. A lot of women volunteers in student ministry = a lot of teenage girls
2. A low amount of men volunteers in student ministry = a low number of teenage boys

Like I said, I think this may be a cause and effect relationship. So, how can you the average church going dude change this? I would like to share some suggestions for men.

1. Find a ministry that is low of men servants and consider joining

2. Look for young men who need a mentor, and build a relationship.

3. Ask your church ministers how you can serve?

4. Pray for new opportunities to serve in the community, like little league soccer.

5. Up your game in whatever areas you are already serving.

6. Bring your Christians buds to church and help them get involved.

7. Try a new ministry that seems really challenging to you. God may grow you through adversity.

To the women, I say keep up the good fight. You are the life blood of many churches right now. If you can get your husbands into the church and get them active. A working man takes pride in what he does. It's not that I want women to feel bad about their role in the church. I want them to be excited about what could be their man's role in the church. Share the faith.

Judges 4:9 "She said, “I will surely go with you; nevertheless, the honor shall not be yours on the journey that you are about to take, for the Lord will sell Sisera into the hands of a woman.” 

Can a Baby Be Illegitimate?

What is an illegitimate baby? This phrase was once a regularly used expression in American culture, but its use has fallen out of popularity. The Free Dictionary defines an illegitimate baby as "the condition before the law, of the social status, of a child whose parents were not married to each other at the time of his or her birth." Society at one point assigned a stigma to such children. These children were considered dirty or unclean. Many cultures still feel this way. Illegitimate children held no rights as children when it came to claiming the name or inheritance of their fathers.

The frequency of children found in this situation is occurring more and more in our culture, but because of cultural changes the old sentiments of illegitimate children are not the same. Last year CBS News posted an article that reported half of all first babies are born to unwed mothers in America. Furthermore, with the rise of reality television shows about teen pregnancies such as 16 and Pregnant, Teen Mom, and Fifteen and Pregnant. The concept of illegitimate children and such is not longer taboo.

Another great insight from the article from CBS is that many young people have changed marriage from a "cornerstone event" in their life to a "capstone event" in their life. In other words marriage is the last thing on their list of accomplishments instead of one of their accomplishments. Young people are holding off such commitment levels until they are secure financially, socially, and relationally. Their line of logic is that if they must constantly shift in their career and education until they are ready to be settled why not be relationally as well. This means they are willing to try out various relationships like jobs, degree majors, and where they want to live. The article further reported that the women who are not getting married are the ones without economic stability. This led to the most revealing statistic of 45% of women will have given birth by age 25 but only 38% of women are married by that age, and by age 30, two thirds of women will have had a child out of wedlock.

When I survey this question, the real question is not about illegitimate children but of illegitimate values and morals. As the father of a daughter, I am worried for the future of my daughter. I want my daughter to experience the greatness of having a great man of a husband. I want her to experience the joy of having a child together that is desired and welcomed into an already existing family unit. However, this is not the trend.

Parents, I strongly urge you to talk with your kids about the value of marriage. Christian parents, we have no excuse but to raise our children according to a pattern that is the antithesis of our culture.

Church Revitalization and Criticism

I hope everyone had a great Christmas and New Year. I took a break from blogging to spend time with family. I am very blessed to have such godly influences in my family. The holiday season always seems to lift me up and encourage me as I spend time with my family who are all struggling to engage the world with ministry. My father is a music minister, my brother is a worship leader, and my youngest brother and I are attempting to start a new business Florida Fowl Waters as a platform for waterfowl hunting and leading people to Jesus. I am so richly blessed.


Another thing that comes from a family that all struggle with ministry to some extent is understanding each other's struggles when it comes to criticism. Criticism is part of the job description when you work with people. My dad has been in vocational ministry working at churches for about 30 years. He has received his fair share of criticism throughout the years. My middle brother leads worship at a church plant. He receives little criticism about how he leads worship. He predominantly reaches college students and young families at his church, and they all love his style of music.


As I was preparing to write this blog it struck me that this is probably the greatest point of tension for ministers in church revitalization. This blog is a series based on an article from Thom Rainer 9 Questions You Should Ask Yourself Before Leading a Church Revitalization. Thom Rainer has lately been championing church revitalization, even as recent as 3 days ago with his most recent article. Church revitalization is by nature to work with established churches to rebuild and reconstruct to be healthy once more. Church plants are by nature fresh beginnings. When a person attends a church plant, they understand that everyone is on the learning curve, and change happens almost on a weekly basis.
I personally, feel this is why so many young ministers are interested in church planting and not revitalization. However, I feel called to church revitalization. I feel like it is the business of God to raise the dead, heal the sick, and give joy to the downtrodden. I get to be part of this when I join in a church revitalization project, but I certainly have to deal with the criticisms that come with territory.


Here is a list of criticisms I have faced, and how I find myself handling them.

1. Tradition: This is perhaps the most obvious of the problems and criticisms I receive. It's the preverbal "We've never done it that way before." I receive this when I tell students we are changing a program or going to a new summer camp. This is hard because people are often emotionally attached, but I know that if I am diligent to do my homework and make a case for why we are changing, I often do not receive as much push back. The people deserve to know the "why's" behind our ministry and decisions.
2. Too Much Preaching/Teaching: This one is funny to me, because people will actually tell me that I am too focused on Scripture in my ministry....like that is possible! I believe that a healthy church starts at the grassroots level by teaching the Scriptures to teens. An armed and trained Christian is a dangerous Christian. However, there must be moderation in your ministry between discipleship, service projects, and fun events. You may be criticized towards the other end of the spectrum from me.
3. Lack of Trust From People: I get this the most from either young or impatient youth ministers. This remains a hard lesson for me still. Patience is the name of the game in church revitalization. Sometimes true revitalization in a church can take an entire generation. Trust is slowly gained, so be willing to work with the people over a long amount of time.
4. Too Much Change: I remember Jerry Vines saying years ago that the bigger the ship, the slower it turns. Similarly, if a youth minister tries to turn the ship to quickly it can capsize. I am a big proponent of strategic phases. Work towards your goals.
5. Lack of Resources: Sometimes in youth ministry you feel like you are scraping for funding. Foremost, I believe that the best fundraiser for a youth ministry is to get your quality students active in the church. Let the product sell itself. However, sometimes churches have this mentality of poverty, and will shrink away from doing what God has called them because of the test of faith. My solution is get creative. Do not get angry, but use what God gives you. The finances will come with time.
6. Lack of Vision: The pastor lays out the primary vision for the church, so make sure you are working in that vision. Second, you must also have a vision for the youth group. If the youth minister doesn't have this vision, he will struggle to garner followers and supporters.

Church Revitalization, Student Ministry, and Missions

In continuation of the Revitalize series, I want to discuss the next subject from Thom Rainer's blog 9 Questions You Should Ask Before Leading A Church Revitalization. In my last blog from this series we discussed prayer and its necessity to church revitalization. The subject of prayer seems trite, but many ministers take prayer for granted. Instead, I argued for strategic prayers. Furthermore, I would remind my readers, that I am a student minister not a senior pastor. All of my arguments come from the perspective of a second chair youth and college minister who is attempting to aid in the church's revitalization.

The question for discussion today is #2 "Will I see this opportunity as a mission field?"

Far too many ministers view local church work and missions work either domestic or international as too separate of concepts. This is foolish, because all Christians are missionaries. The change from one person to the next is the specific mission field and spirituals gifts given by God to the individual.  In his book Breaking the Missional Code, Ed Stetzer argued that the first step of a church to become mission minded is to have a burden for its immediate community to share the gospel with them. IN response to this mindset, the Christian should adapt the mentality of a missionary, meaning that he or she will adjust his mannerisms and methods to reach the surrounding culture while not losing the essential gospel. Missionaries have called this process contextualization for many years.

The question remains, how does being mission minded relate to church revitalization? As a student minister, it is important to note that many ministers do not know what goals they want to accomplish in ministry. I believe to properly answer the question of revitalization and missions, one must answer the more important questions of what we want to accomplish in the first place. I believe that the purpose of student ministry is to prepare teenagers to be mature, spiritual adults. I do this through a 3part discipleship strategy over a 7 year progression: spiritual maturity, personal mission, and multiplied influence from Ephesians 4:11-13. Each of the three areas have measurable indicators to understand and develop students into spiritual adults and leaders.

The second mark of my ministry is personal mission, and this is where the purpose of youth ministry correlates to church revitalization. There are three phases to personal mission: service, evangelism, and missions. Each one builds upon the prior. Service is the simplest, takes little training, and can be accomplished simply with a rake and trash bag at elderly person's back yard. Evangelism is the act of a student sharing her faith with another student in a personal manner. Mission is the use of both service and evangelism in the aid of planting churches and ministries. Thabiti M. Anyabwile confirmed these principles in his book What is a Healthy Church Member. The notion that Anyabwile supported is that a church can only be healthy when its members are healthy. This is further developed by the sister book What is a Healthy Church by Mark Dever. Church revitalization is then directly tied to the health and activity of the Church in the community to reach people for Christ. Stetzer returned to this topic later in the afore mentioned book to argue that a mission minded church leads to healthy church growth both numerically and spiritually.

Perhaps there are still some wondering why a youth minister is asking this question or even cares to discuss it. May I remind my readers that revitalization is a slow process that can take years to secure and more years to develop into a strong part of the church worldview. If the church would like to change its worldview, the best way to accomplish this goal is to develop its future leaders. Many churches focus on the median and senior adults for the leadership and leadership development, but this is often too little and too late. Change the mentality of the students and church will change the mentality of the church for long term results. If a student makes missional students, the church will be in a much healthier state. However, as a warning, if the church does not offer anything for students once they reach college and young adult ages, they will go to another church where they can work out their faith. Student ministry is to prepare leaders; adult ministry is the best platform to utilize those leaders.

Where's Dad? Effects of Fatherlessness on Teens

I grew up in what was once considered the stereotypical home. I grew up with both my parents in my life, married, in the same house, and still are that way. I have two brothers, and not one of us ever doubted or wondered if mom and dad were going to be there tomorrow. We knew that our parents loved each other and were committed to their marriage and to us. Now, this notion is becoming old fashioned and antiquated. As far back as 1992 this debate began to come to the front of people's minds. LA Times noticed the trend that due to the rise in divorces, the nuclear family was being redefined in an article they posted called "Parenting: Breaking the Mold." This trend has escalated with the growing trend of single parenthood, births outside of marriage, teen pregnancies, and homosexual parents adopting. Recent movies have begun to push the traditional family concept away such as the Box Trolls. As a student minister, I can confirm the statistics and trends that this really is happening and at an increasing rate. As time goes by more and more students come from homes other than the traditional model.

This has further given rise to a particular phenomenon: fatherlessness. Due to a lack of fidelity between partners, a woman will have a child or two with one man, but they move on and separate. The woman may choose to have more children from other men, and so may the man. However, what is interesting is the men seem to move on from both the woman and his offspring, while the children tend to stay with the woman. Technically, this trend has given rise to two phenomena: fatherlessness and single motherhood.

According to the National Center for Fathering, the extent of fatherlessness in America is of epidemic proportions, citing that as many as 24 million children in America live without "a" father figure present. The further noted that of children in grade school 39% do not live at home with their biological father. The problem with these statistics are the results. To list a few: 71% of all high school dropouts, 71% of all teenage pregnancies, 85% of children with behavior disorders, 63% of youth suicides, and 85% of youth in prison: all these are from fatherless homes. Good or bad philosophically or metaphysically, the statistics show there is a relationship that should be heeded.

Many Christian leaders have offered solutions to such a problem. One school of thought is student ministry, and the other is family ministry. I believe that it takes both. Yes, the youth ministry should engage students by the means of other students, but I see a very distinct model in Joshua and Judges for Christians to follow.

In Numbers 26:65 God decreed that an entire generation would pass away over the next 40 years because of their disobedience. The only two to be left would be Joshua and Caleb, the men who trusted God. This means that these two men would be the oldest men in the nation. They would be the only father and grandfather figures to many people. This gap would have been an enormous role to fill, but they did. In Joshua 24:31 it says that the next generation served God throughout the lifetime of Joshua and the leaders he raised up. In Judges Othniel became Israel's next leader of Israel. He was Caleb's son-in-law. These men stood in the gap and assumed the role of father figures.

Yes, I believe that as churches we need to try and reach the whole family, but I believe this is best accomplished by presenting our own families and desirable. We do family ministry best leading our own families with godly wisdom and inviting others into our family. We encourage other fathers to do the same. There is no real in depth complex method to accomplish this, because each family is different, and each father is different. We must father the fatherless.

Last Class of my Masters



Yesterday I completed my last official class for my Master of Arts in Christian Studies Degree. It has been a long and arduous struggle for me, and especially for my family. I begun at one school in one degree program, but moved after two years of not enjoying my education. I transferred to another school and a different degree. I have loved this program but in the midst of changing jobs, two children, demands of full-time ministry, and two moves, I had to take a break from my studies. Now, I have come to the end of my classes. All that lies before me is my thesis.


What is designed to be a three year degree has taken me five, but in that time I have learned many lessons along the way. I would like to share my lessons with you from my Graduate studies.


1. No Excuse is Good Enough:
People understand that everyone has a busy life, but the successful people in life get things accomplished. Half-hearted papers turned in late are simply no longer acceptable.


2. Good Research is Good Research:
Some students attempt to cut corners and simplify their research. They choose shoddy sources with questionable logic to support the argument they want to make. Many researchers will make a source support their argument, even if the source does not lend itself to such.


3. Do the Work:
Successful people work hard! Last minute cleverness does not replace good work.


4. Logic is Supreme:
Many people do not know the basics of logic and argumentation. As such their arguments will have holes or weak premises. However, good thinkers must use logic to their advantage.


5. Be on Time:
Late is no longer acceptable. Neither is last minute. A person must learn to manage his or her time.


6. Be Humble:
There is nothing new under the sun. Many other scholars and thinkers have been studying the same material as you for much longer. Be wary if you believe you discover something new in philosophy or theology. Many students are arrogant and do not stop to understand their inadequacy.


I have enjoyed my degree, and yes I have learned a few other things along the way, particularly pertaining to my degree. Nonetheless, the life lessons I learned are of equal value of the content I learned. Thank you to my professors for not giving up on me during my break. I intend to finish strong.

How the Traditional Church Can Reach Millennials



What is a Millennial? A millennial is a person born in the 1980's to the early 2000's. Many different people have tried to place a particular year on this gap, but there is no possible way to accomplish this. Millennial is less of a specific age bracket as much as it is a perspective or worldview. Millennials are entrenched in postmodern thought and opinions. Western culture has changed a lot in the last few years.


Postmodernism is driving this cultural change. Postmodernism according to Brittanica is "characterized by broad skepticism, subjectivism, or relativism." They further define the term as "a general suspicion of reason." Millennials, we have a difficult time believing. I myself and a millennial, and I think in a very postmodern pattern. I never accept someone for who they are. I am always looking for the hidden agenda. I truly am a skeptic as are many other millennials. Additionally, I am very skeptical of reason. Millennials hate the idea of naivety! The thought of blindly accepting information as true makes me cringe.


There is so much more to understand and discuss when it comes to postmodernity. However, I would like to share what the implications of postmodernism is upon millennials and how their perceive the church. My first senior pastor I served under was Shelly Chandler, and he taught me that perception is everything. So let me list some of the implications:

• aversion to institutionalism
• aversion to naivety
• aversion to tradition
• aversion to purposeless enterprises and efforts
• aversion to dogmatic theology
• aversion to absolute statements
• aversion to metanarrative
• desires diversity
• desires professionalism and excellence
• desires sound logic
• desires relevancy
• desires personal relationships
• desires to belong to a greater cause

Why do these implications matter so much? Because the church is generally perceived in the aversion section of these implications and not in the desire section. Today's traditional church is highly institutionalized, with the existence of committees for everything, liturgical traditions, institutional architecture. Many traditional churches use phrases like "God said it, I believe it, that settles it;" but this makes millennials cringe. Millennials also do not like metanarratives that attempt to define them, such as God's plan for redemption. They want to define the metanarrative.


However, I am millennial, yet I am very passionate about my faith and even work at a church. What happened? Let me clarify upon one of the concept of relativism. I abhor relativism and am a strong proponent of absolute truths. I particularly affirm the inerrancy and infallibility of Scripture, but I had to travel to this place. My travels happened through the use of logic. I am a philosophy buff, and to be honest so are the bulk of millenials, because we want to have the question "WHY" answered for everything.


So, I suggest a new tactic for traditional churches wanting to reach the younger generation. First, show compassion to this generation until it hurts. Express your love for them through service to them and their families. Second, be less dogmatic and more explanatory of logic. Assume that your people know nothing about the Bible. Assume your people do not even accept the Bible as authoritative, which could be argued that they do not according to some of their lifestyles. Teach and preach everything from ground zero. You have to make Christianity logically appealing to the point that all other options seem undesirable.


Ajith Fernando was a Christian from Sri Lanka, a culture that has been entrenched with pluralism for millennia. In his commentary on the Book of Acts, he noted that 70% of all evangelism in the New Testament was apologetic in nature, meaning that the evangelist had to reason with the recipient of the gospel. The New Testament era was one of the more pluralistic times in western culture, and I believe a return to apologetic evangelism and sound logic can serve the church well.