Every once in a while we (as youth leaders) get a glimpse into the mind of a youth.  Here is one of those opportunities I’d like to share with you.

This is not a student of mine, but one of Pastor Brian’s students.   

“What defines somebody as being a “loser?”

 a loser is somebody who. . . . doesnt drink on the weekends with friends. doesnt have a matching shirt with their shoes. stutters in front of girls when asking them on a date. doesnt defend themselves when they’re made fun of. wears a jacket because of the person who gave it to you. A Loser is somebody who. . . . doesnt have a girlfriend for more than 2 months. sits by the phone, hoping somebody will call. thinks that girls are out of his league. wishes for a personality other than his. wishes he could have somebody to love. A Loser is somebody who. . . has a stepfather and a father, neither that smile or hug interacts with his little sisters, instead of his weight training. has never been told “you’re intelligent, smart, and capable” by a guy. joins the military to make his father proud finds out he still thinks your a fag. A loser is somebody who. . . . doesnt lose his virginity by senior year. hasnt tried smoking at least twice. buzzes his own hair because he’s so ashamed. lies to his friends, so that they still embrace you as one. find out theres more to friendship than being cool. A loser is somebody who thinks his friends have left him, when they were there the entire time.. . . . I’m a loser”

I love raw honesty and I wish I knew more losers.

It’s glimpses like this that keep me in the ministry.  

And the winner of the Guess the BS contest is:

 BRENT ALEXANDER (pictured below)!

(or this is just one of the pictures I found when I googled Brent Alexander - kinda looks like him)

He’s the final tally

Brent 3.1 (the only man to take advantage of bonus points!)

Jesse 3

Jamie 2

And the rest shall go unnamed to wallow in their in their shame.

Thank you for playing! There will be another game soon.

Congrats Brent, you are the champion!

Brento email me your addy at sdelony@yd.org and I’ll mail you your prize.

For last week’s (and previous) games go here.

Now for some reason, I never liked the last Pope (I’m not catholic, so my opinion really holds no water). JP just really rubbed me wrong [and no that's not some subversive catholic innuendo]. Probaly not his fault, I just remember having these neighbors when I was growing up who were catholic. Their whole house was John Paul - not Jesus - but just the Popey. I always found it weird.

But new Pope, well so far I don’t mind the guy. Sure, he looks like the emperor from the Star Wars movies, but you just have to get past that.

Okay my point is in here somewhere… I was reading an article about the Christmas and the Vatican. Popey had some pretty sharp observations that really got me thinking.

“Is a ‘Savior’ still needed by a humanity which has reached the moon and Mars and is prepared to conquer the universe; for a humanity which knows no limits in its pursuit of nature’s secrets and which has succeeded even in deciphering the marvelous codes of the human genome?”

So the question remains: are we a people who have fooled ourselves into believing that we don’t need a Savior?

When I look over the world I live in, my answer to this question is “Yes.”

What do you think?

More Popey here.

Okay folks this is the last one and since it’s close - this week is worth 2.1 points!

So it’s still an open field!

This is a simple game. Each week I’ll display a scene from the Bible featuring Legos First to guess wins! I’ll keep a cumulative score going and the winner will receive a prize after a few months (it will be a REAL prize and I’ll ship it out to you wherever you are!) So post your answer in the comments box.

So guess! Win!

Also: BONUS POINTSwill be awarded to the person who lists the best WORST XMAS present ever received.

For last weeks contest go here.

This is it folks. It’s all over after this one. So try hard and we’ll see to is triumphant!

 Totals:

Jesse:3

Jamie:2

Bonnie: 1
Chris: 1
Stac: 1

Joe: 1

Prizes will be awarded soon!

One thing that really rang in my ears during our Christmas Eve service was the angel’s description of Christ to Joseph and Mary.

Actually, before I get to that point, let me rewind to the preface of these events. Picture this, the angel Gabriel - a warrior, and imposing figure (this is noted by the fact that his greeting are always begun with “Do not be afraid” or as the message puts it “foo, don’t wet your pants) shows up on the scene. He knows Christ [though no one else yet does]. He has served under King Jesus, so anything he says about Christ is a bit of a understatement given to a people who really have no idea what they’re getting themselves into. Needless to say he is not only the messenger of God, he also knows what he’s talking about first hand.

Luke 1: 32-33 [Gabriel speaking to Mary]

32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”

Matthew 1: 20-21 [Gabriel speaking to Joseph]

20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

And I know I’ve said this before, but this idea brought me back. I truly believe that how we view Christ effects how we’ll follow Him. Jesus was not meek and mild. He was and is the commander of an angelic army (remember the “Do not be afraid” guys - yeah he’s their leader). He is the Son of the Most High - the destined ruler of His People. He is also the savior King - sent to set the captives free.

Do I hear meek and mild? Hardly. So as we choose to call ourselves christians - followers of Christ, remember who it is we serve. Never forget we serve the King.

(sweet photo courtesy of youth Pastor Brian)