Hebrews 12:18-29
I'm confused. Of course those who know me will say that's nothing new, but what makes this one different is I'm not able to make sense of that which is confusing me. Let me tell you what's confusing me and maybe you'll make better sense of it than me.
Verses 27-28 of today's reading tells us that all things created will be removed from earth and all we'll be left with is things that are not created, for which we should be thankful. If we're to read this at face value we are to accept that God will leave us with nothing and we're to be happy about it. Do you see my confusion?
My confusion is made deeper because of what I've learned about the Hebrew bible and the word "create". According to the books I've read and the people who've taught me about the Hebrew bible the word "create" is only used in conjuncture with God. In other words only God can create - produce something from nothing. That logic leads me to think that everything God has made will be taken away and we'll be left with, well, nothing. See my confusion?
However, I must also remember my New Testament teachings and apply the understanding that the book of Hebrews is written in a Greek-world. The word used in this passage is not defined as create, but rather "make". So, is this passage then talking about things which are made, which is something humankind does?
What we have now is the author of Hebrews telling us that God will once again shake - disturb, topple, agitate - the earth so that the things which are made by humans is removed, and all that will remain is that which is unshakable; that which is not made by humans - that which is made by, or created by, God.
This is beginning to make more sense.
What I read now is that when our world falls apart around us it's through our understanding of God's love through Christ that we will have the things which are truly important to hang on to. It's when we lose our jobs that through Christ we understand we are still alive and help is available through our different communities. It's when someone close to us passes from this earth that through Christ we understand they are in a place where pain and sorrow are no longer a part of them. It's when our closest relationships shatter that through Christ we know there will always be someone who loves us more than any earthly relationship could have.
Things such as a job, house, partners, and material belongings are made by humans. That which is created lives in our hearts, and that thing is unconditional acceptance by God. Everything else created by God or made by humankind becomes that which leads, or tries to lead, to helping us understand that acceptance. The things which are made by humans can eventually crumble, but the things which are created by God will be with us forever.
Okay, maybe I'm not so confused any more.
Wednesday, August 21, 2013
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
For Me? Awww, You Shouldn't Have
Jeremiah 1:4-10
In another church I served as the Youth Director we had enough young people for a choir. It was a really good choir filled with the exuberance of youth. We had the perfect mix of youth who were good and knew it and youth who were weren't as good, and knew it. The choir was a great way to not only worship God, but to also build confidence and humility.
During rehearsal one Sunday I walked around the choir as they practiced their upcoming song. I smiled as I listened to a boy or two try to reach the high notes with voices trying to pull through puberty. I smiled even more as I watched girls roll their eyes when the choir director asked them to repeat a section again. These were typical teens willing to worship God through song and that's what made it a wonderful choir.
As I walked past the front row of girls I heard what I thought was the most angelic voice I've heard in a while. I paused to find the voice but had a difficult time because it was a very faint sound. It was as though this voice didn't want to be heard, but could not hide. Then, as my eyes met with those from which this voice was coming, the voice went silent and her eyes went down. Everyone noticed the absence of that voice and turned to see why it went silent. Instead of attracting more attention to her I walked away and didn't bother rehearsal again.
After rehearsal I approached this young lady to tell her how much I appreciated her voice and she shouldn't shy away from it. I explained it as a gift from God that she should happy to carry for God. Time went by and we had more Sundays to talk about what a gift from God was and how we're given certain gifts which God hopes we'll use to help make God's kingdom on earth a better place.
Then, one Sunday during rehearsal, out of nowhere a voice, angelic and loud, rang above all other voices, stopping the rehearsal midway through the song. Cheers from the choir rang out and a tear formed in the eyes of the choir director and myself. Later this young lady told me that she finally understood what it meant to have a gift from God and she just wanted to share it with everyone in God's name.
God has a purpose for us all. Chances are we know what our gifts are, but for some reason we're afraid to use it. Just as God said to Jeremiah, "I am with you to deliver you." God knows the gifts God has given to us and God is there to guide us in developing these gifts in order that someday we'll be able to use these gifts to help God in realizing God's intent for us; to be in relationship with God, others, and ourselves.
In another church I served as the Youth Director we had enough young people for a choir. It was a really good choir filled with the exuberance of youth. We had the perfect mix of youth who were good and knew it and youth who were weren't as good, and knew it. The choir was a great way to not only worship God, but to also build confidence and humility.
During rehearsal one Sunday I walked around the choir as they practiced their upcoming song. I smiled as I listened to a boy or two try to reach the high notes with voices trying to pull through puberty. I smiled even more as I watched girls roll their eyes when the choir director asked them to repeat a section again. These were typical teens willing to worship God through song and that's what made it a wonderful choir.
As I walked past the front row of girls I heard what I thought was the most angelic voice I've heard in a while. I paused to find the voice but had a difficult time because it was a very faint sound. It was as though this voice didn't want to be heard, but could not hide. Then, as my eyes met with those from which this voice was coming, the voice went silent and her eyes went down. Everyone noticed the absence of that voice and turned to see why it went silent. Instead of attracting more attention to her I walked away and didn't bother rehearsal again.
After rehearsal I approached this young lady to tell her how much I appreciated her voice and she shouldn't shy away from it. I explained it as a gift from God that she should happy to carry for God. Time went by and we had more Sundays to talk about what a gift from God was and how we're given certain gifts which God hopes we'll use to help make God's kingdom on earth a better place.
Then, one Sunday during rehearsal, out of nowhere a voice, angelic and loud, rang above all other voices, stopping the rehearsal midway through the song. Cheers from the choir rang out and a tear formed in the eyes of the choir director and myself. Later this young lady told me that she finally understood what it meant to have a gift from God and she just wanted to share it with everyone in God's name.
God has a purpose for us all. Chances are we know what our gifts are, but for some reason we're afraid to use it. Just as God said to Jeremiah, "I am with you to deliver you." God knows the gifts God has given to us and God is there to guide us in developing these gifts in order that someday we'll be able to use these gifts to help God in realizing God's intent for us; to be in relationship with God, others, and ourselves.
Monday, August 19, 2013
Shelter In Place
Psalm 71:1-6
Our church's 57th Annual Luau was held this past Saturday. It's what we call a take-out luau because the luau plates are pre-sold and picked up on a certain date. This take-out luau is the culmination of almost a year's worth of planning, months of concentrated organizing, weeks of finalizing plans, and days of old-fashioned hard work.
I try to be there when we dig the imu (a pit in which we cook food, in this case pigs and sweet potato). I'm also there when we drop the pigs into the imu and take them out. Of course there's a lot more to it than just dropping and removing pigs, but instead of going into the details of everything that's involved I'll simply say that these "work days" are intensive in the amount of physical labor one puts in.
I want to blame the amount of work I do during these work days for the body aches I feel for for about the next week, but in all honesty I have to say it's age. I'm finally comfortable in acknowledging I'm not physically as young as I want to be. However, I have good health and a sharp mind, so I guess it all evens out.
Another labor-intensive duty I took part in this year was the assembly of our take-out boxes. Imagine if you will a gathering of over 100 people working together to assemble 8 different items into a box, 3400 times. It takes a little over 7 hours to complete and when we are done the mental and physical fatigue is astounding. I really don't have words to describe it except to say the rest of the night consists of a hot shower and a very long slumber.
Of course one would not be able to continue for the combined work days without finding the space to rest. Each person has their place to hide - some go into the shade of a large tree to lie on the grass, some find a chair in a breezy hall, others go completely off the church grounds and sit in their air-conditioned cars. Wherever the choice of rest and relaxation might be, one thing is certain: the peace one finds there is extremely welcomed.
The same kind of peace is what I imagine the writer of this Psalm felt while describing the sanctuary of being in God's "fortress". The peace God brings to us when we need a place to take refuge can be just what one needs to escape the daily, and sometimes day-long, pace which our schedules demand. We get very busy going from one place to another, never finding time to just sit and be.
Today, as you go from place to place, trying to finish your daily routines as fast as you can, take a moment to reflect on how much you have to be thankful for. God is waiting for you to say hello and to simply give you a hug and to whisper a kind word in your ear.
Our church's 57th Annual Luau was held this past Saturday. It's what we call a take-out luau because the luau plates are pre-sold and picked up on a certain date. This take-out luau is the culmination of almost a year's worth of planning, months of concentrated organizing, weeks of finalizing plans, and days of old-fashioned hard work.
I try to be there when we dig the imu (a pit in which we cook food, in this case pigs and sweet potato). I'm also there when we drop the pigs into the imu and take them out. Of course there's a lot more to it than just dropping and removing pigs, but instead of going into the details of everything that's involved I'll simply say that these "work days" are intensive in the amount of physical labor one puts in.
I want to blame the amount of work I do during these work days for the body aches I feel for for about the next week, but in all honesty I have to say it's age. I'm finally comfortable in acknowledging I'm not physically as young as I want to be. However, I have good health and a sharp mind, so I guess it all evens out.
Another labor-intensive duty I took part in this year was the assembly of our take-out boxes. Imagine if you will a gathering of over 100 people working together to assemble 8 different items into a box, 3400 times. It takes a little over 7 hours to complete and when we are done the mental and physical fatigue is astounding. I really don't have words to describe it except to say the rest of the night consists of a hot shower and a very long slumber.
Of course one would not be able to continue for the combined work days without finding the space to rest. Each person has their place to hide - some go into the shade of a large tree to lie on the grass, some find a chair in a breezy hall, others go completely off the church grounds and sit in their air-conditioned cars. Wherever the choice of rest and relaxation might be, one thing is certain: the peace one finds there is extremely welcomed.
The same kind of peace is what I imagine the writer of this Psalm felt while describing the sanctuary of being in God's "fortress". The peace God brings to us when we need a place to take refuge can be just what one needs to escape the daily, and sometimes day-long, pace which our schedules demand. We get very busy going from one place to another, never finding time to just sit and be.
Today, as you go from place to place, trying to finish your daily routines as fast as you can, take a moment to reflect on how much you have to be thankful for. God is waiting for you to say hello and to simply give you a hug and to whisper a kind word in your ear.
Thursday, August 15, 2013
Light It Up
Luke 12:49-56
In case I've never mentioned it I have the most caring, loving, conscientious step-son in the world. Okay, I might be biased, but I'll stick to my claim forever.
He knows I work late on Wednesdays and he also knows my wife doesn't really like to be home by herself at night. In his caring way he makes it a point to visit his mom for dinner every Wednesday. They sit, talk, and eat together until I get home. He usually stays until the late night news is over then goes home.
On one of those nights I had come home earlier than usual and was able to share in part of their night. They had already eaten dinner so I sat at the table and ate my wife's amazing meatloaf while they watched TV and talked. When I was done eating and cleaning my dishes I sat with them and he asked me what I wanted to watch. I told him whatever they wanted to watch was fine with me.
We ended up watching a reality show which highlighted survivalists hiking through the mountains. On the show the groups are divided by skills. There are the hunters, the guides, and the shelter-makers. Each group has their own instructions and the others depend on their decisions and skills. The task for that particular night was to cross a ravine, find a pre-determined sheltered spot, and catch and cook dinner. My guess is that's pretty much how every show goes.
The survivalists each have the same things on them: a knife and water container. This made it interesting when it became time to light a fire. The fire was necessary for important reasons; to cook, for heat, and for light to name a few. The fire-lighters didn't have a flint, or stone and metal, or any other trick known to start a fire. All they had were were 2 sticks and slightly wet kindling.
They took quite a long time to get the fire started which got them worried as they knew without the fire they wouldn't eat that night, or worse they might freeze. Through the magic of television editing we also got a glimpse of the hunters trying to catch fresh-water eels to eat. As they were catching their food comments such as "I hope the fire is lit when we get back because I'm cold and hungry" were made.
It was obvious that without the fire it was going to be a miserable night.
In this passage from Luke, Jesus makes the comment that he wishes the fire he came to spread was already lit. Jesus recognizes that his work on earth is difficult and if just a little bit of God's love existed his work would be that much easier. Unfortunately he came into a time when the world in which he lived was very divided.
The people of Jerusalem had forgotten God's commandment to take care of those who cannot take care of themselves. Instead of sharing God's unconditional love he found Pharisees who condemned, tax collectors filled with greed, priests hungry for power, and a general feeling of oppression at some level by everyone else.
Jesus Christ came to this world to spread a fire of passion for God, instead he spent his ministry gathering wet kindle and doing his best to light a fire with nothing but 2 sticks. At the end of his earthly ministry that fire Jesus tried to light exploded at the foot of his cross. In the years that followed that fire grew larger and stronger until, some would say, it grew out of control.
We are living again in a time of division, greed, and love of power. The fire-light of Jesus is slowly dwindling to embers. Do not let it go out and instead fan the flames and help that fire grow bright and strong once again. Be the kindle God needs in this world, others are counting on you.
In case I've never mentioned it I have the most caring, loving, conscientious step-son in the world. Okay, I might be biased, but I'll stick to my claim forever.
He knows I work late on Wednesdays and he also knows my wife doesn't really like to be home by herself at night. In his caring way he makes it a point to visit his mom for dinner every Wednesday. They sit, talk, and eat together until I get home. He usually stays until the late night news is over then goes home.
On one of those nights I had come home earlier than usual and was able to share in part of their night. They had already eaten dinner so I sat at the table and ate my wife's amazing meatloaf while they watched TV and talked. When I was done eating and cleaning my dishes I sat with them and he asked me what I wanted to watch. I told him whatever they wanted to watch was fine with me.
We ended up watching a reality show which highlighted survivalists hiking through the mountains. On the show the groups are divided by skills. There are the hunters, the guides, and the shelter-makers. Each group has their own instructions and the others depend on their decisions and skills. The task for that particular night was to cross a ravine, find a pre-determined sheltered spot, and catch and cook dinner. My guess is that's pretty much how every show goes.
The survivalists each have the same things on them: a knife and water container. This made it interesting when it became time to light a fire. The fire was necessary for important reasons; to cook, for heat, and for light to name a few. The fire-lighters didn't have a flint, or stone and metal, or any other trick known to start a fire. All they had were were 2 sticks and slightly wet kindling.
They took quite a long time to get the fire started which got them worried as they knew without the fire they wouldn't eat that night, or worse they might freeze. Through the magic of television editing we also got a glimpse of the hunters trying to catch fresh-water eels to eat. As they were catching their food comments such as "I hope the fire is lit when we get back because I'm cold and hungry" were made.
It was obvious that without the fire it was going to be a miserable night.
In this passage from Luke, Jesus makes the comment that he wishes the fire he came to spread was already lit. Jesus recognizes that his work on earth is difficult and if just a little bit of God's love existed his work would be that much easier. Unfortunately he came into a time when the world in which he lived was very divided.
The people of Jerusalem had forgotten God's commandment to take care of those who cannot take care of themselves. Instead of sharing God's unconditional love he found Pharisees who condemned, tax collectors filled with greed, priests hungry for power, and a general feeling of oppression at some level by everyone else.
Jesus Christ came to this world to spread a fire of passion for God, instead he spent his ministry gathering wet kindle and doing his best to light a fire with nothing but 2 sticks. At the end of his earthly ministry that fire Jesus tried to light exploded at the foot of his cross. In the years that followed that fire grew larger and stronger until, some would say, it grew out of control.
We are living again in a time of division, greed, and love of power. The fire-light of Jesus is slowly dwindling to embers. Do not let it go out and instead fan the flames and help that fire grow bright and strong once again. Be the kindle God needs in this world, others are counting on you.
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
And I Complain When Traffic Is Bad
Hebrews 11:29 - 12:2
Okay, so...after reading today's passage I really feel bad for complaining about anything that's happened in my life. I mean, at least I'm still alive, right?
Sure, I've had tough times in the 51 years I've been on this earth, but nothing even close to what is being described for us in Hebrews. I'm not talking about the list of cool stuff - conquering kingdoms and quenching fires - I'm talking about the other list.
Torture, flogging, and stoning are not really my idea of a good day, you know what I mean? And yet, when I take a look at what is being said in this passage I realize that there are leaders, if not heroes, from the Judeo-Christian history who have been through all of that, and more.
What I admire about these people is that have been through the things they have in order to stand and fight for that which they believe strongly in. Which of course makes me think how much I am willing to go through for what I believe.
I know that the culture I live in doesn't stone people to death anymore, but I also know stoning still exists in the world. I am blessed to live in a society that doesn't promote public displays of humiliation as a punishment for crimes, but I know the practice still exists in the world. I live in a country where speaking your mind and living in freedoms of choice is encouraged, but I know that those same comforts are not enjoyed across other places on the globe. Yet, as I sit in my home with food and water and electricity available at every turn I do nothing to discourage the lack of those same things for billions of others.
So, once again, what am I willing to do in the name of Christ in order to ensure God's love is shared equally by all? I guess that's where the thought for today will lead me.
Okay, so...after reading today's passage I really feel bad for complaining about anything that's happened in my life. I mean, at least I'm still alive, right?
Sure, I've had tough times in the 51 years I've been on this earth, but nothing even close to what is being described for us in Hebrews. I'm not talking about the list of cool stuff - conquering kingdoms and quenching fires - I'm talking about the other list.
Torture, flogging, and stoning are not really my idea of a good day, you know what I mean? And yet, when I take a look at what is being said in this passage I realize that there are leaders, if not heroes, from the Judeo-Christian history who have been through all of that, and more.
What I admire about these people is that have been through the things they have in order to stand and fight for that which they believe strongly in. Which of course makes me think how much I am willing to go through for what I believe.
I know that the culture I live in doesn't stone people to death anymore, but I also know stoning still exists in the world. I am blessed to live in a society that doesn't promote public displays of humiliation as a punishment for crimes, but I know the practice still exists in the world. I live in a country where speaking your mind and living in freedoms of choice is encouraged, but I know that those same comforts are not enjoyed across other places on the globe. Yet, as I sit in my home with food and water and electricity available at every turn I do nothing to discourage the lack of those same things for billions of others.
So, once again, what am I willing to do in the name of Christ in order to ensure God's love is shared equally by all? I guess that's where the thought for today will lead me.
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Break Down The Wall
Psalm 80:1-2, 8-19
The youth from our church are at the beginning stages of planning our annual Penny Carnival. I would tell you how many years it's been going on, except that I can never remember. I do know it's somewhere between 15 and 20, maybe a little more than 20. Either way, the Penny Carnival is something the community has come to expect as an alternative to walking door to door on Halloween night.
Every year we select a non-profit organization to whom we will donate the proceeds from this community event. This year our youth have chosen the Youth Outreach program at Hale Kipa. This program helps teens and pre-teens who are living on the streets. The youth who use their program are mostly runaways who come through the foster care system. Not all of them are runaways, though, there are those who have been kicked out of their homes because of one reason or another.
To listen to the stories of the youth who call Hale Kipa family, is to understand how the walls of division really need to come down. One young man told me that he was kicked out of his house simply because he wanted to stop lying to his family about his sexual choices. The courage it took for him to tell his family he was gay was met with the hatred he never believed existed in his home.
This young man was immediately kicked out of the house at the age of 16 and forced to live a life of prostitution and drugs on the streets. As he sarcastically said, "Because that's so much better of a life than being in a home where those you expect to love you don't even want you around."
Today's Psalm is written in response to the destruction of Israel. Some of the people in that city were living with the same kind of un-love the young man felt in his own home. If one wasn't a part of the upper societies within Israel, they were treated as a lesser member of the community. Maybe this forced separation is why God "tore down the walls" of that great city; to bring the people together and to help those who built the walls to see what really lives on the other side.
I haven't seen the young man I spoke about for close to 4 years now, but I do know he was part of a community who believed in him regardless of the person he chose to be. He was already clean and sober and no longer prostituting on the streets by the time I heard his story. In fact, he was building up the courage to talk to his family again. Somehow I have the feeling that the walls in his home had come down and he would be together with a family who would be, at the least, willing to talk things through.
Restore us O Lord God of hosts, let your face shine, that we may be saved.
The youth from our church are at the beginning stages of planning our annual Penny Carnival. I would tell you how many years it's been going on, except that I can never remember. I do know it's somewhere between 15 and 20, maybe a little more than 20. Either way, the Penny Carnival is something the community has come to expect as an alternative to walking door to door on Halloween night.
Every year we select a non-profit organization to whom we will donate the proceeds from this community event. This year our youth have chosen the Youth Outreach program at Hale Kipa. This program helps teens and pre-teens who are living on the streets. The youth who use their program are mostly runaways who come through the foster care system. Not all of them are runaways, though, there are those who have been kicked out of their homes because of one reason or another.
To listen to the stories of the youth who call Hale Kipa family, is to understand how the walls of division really need to come down. One young man told me that he was kicked out of his house simply because he wanted to stop lying to his family about his sexual choices. The courage it took for him to tell his family he was gay was met with the hatred he never believed existed in his home.
This young man was immediately kicked out of the house at the age of 16 and forced to live a life of prostitution and drugs on the streets. As he sarcastically said, "Because that's so much better of a life than being in a home where those you expect to love you don't even want you around."
Today's Psalm is written in response to the destruction of Israel. Some of the people in that city were living with the same kind of un-love the young man felt in his own home. If one wasn't a part of the upper societies within Israel, they were treated as a lesser member of the community. Maybe this forced separation is why God "tore down the walls" of that great city; to bring the people together and to help those who built the walls to see what really lives on the other side.
I haven't seen the young man I spoke about for close to 4 years now, but I do know he was part of a community who believed in him regardless of the person he chose to be. He was already clean and sober and no longer prostituting on the streets by the time I heard his story. In fact, he was building up the courage to talk to his family again. Somehow I have the feeling that the walls in his home had come down and he would be together with a family who would be, at the least, willing to talk things through.
Restore us O Lord God of hosts, let your face shine, that we may be saved.
Monday, August 12, 2013
Sing A Song Of Grapes
Isaiah 5:1-7
About a dozen years ago I attended a half-day workshop that talked about the present course of Youth Ministry. The workshop took an honest look at how the youth of the early 2000's were, or were not, actively participating in their church's overall worship experience. The data they presented was alarming but not yet tangible, so we took the information with us and put it in a drawer.
As most things we "put in a drawer" it was forgotten about and when the time came to clean out the desk it was looked at and believed to be not important. In the year 2013 I see how a lot of the information given to us on that day is valid now. If we had taken what was given to us a little more seriously maybe we wouldn't be in the place we are in today's churches.
The workshop pointed out that one of two things had to happen if we wanted mainline churches to have any kind of sustained growth. Either churches had to begin holding services that closely reflected youth worship or youth worship had to begin reflecting the style of worship our churches were having. The workshop went on to help us realize that it is no longer a good thing to have the youth separated from the rest of the church.
In those days we called it the one-eared Mickey Mouse theory. If you drew an outline of Mickey Mouse with one ear connected and one ear disconnected you could label the 3 circles in this way: the large circle would be the church, the smaller circle that was joined to the head was all other ministries, the disconnected circle was the youth group.
The point of workshop was to help those coming to the age of millennial-worshipers understand that if we continue to build a wall around our youth we are encouraging them to never be able to find a church that replicates their current experiences as they move on in their lives.
The truth is that with the upbeat music, multimedia presentations, and comedic-like messages all we have done to/with our youth is provide such a specific type of experience that they aren't comfortable with anything else. We had forgotten that the best way to honor our God is to honor the true meaning of what being Christian is - to be inviting, not invited.
To use the language from today's passage we have built a great vineyard and now that the grapes have come to fruition we see that they are wild grapes, or grapes not suitable for either wine-making or eating.
The question for us today is what are we to do? Isaiah's answer was to clear the entire vineyard and start over. I don't think we need to go that far - not yet. I do think we need to take a very good look at how we cultivate the soil from this point forward, though. We do this by honoring God's love by living God's grace; be unconditionally accepting of all people and go out of your way to help those who are oppressed.
And, if you want better grapes at the next harvest, teach our youth to do the same. This time try it without the multimedia and comedic-messages.
About a dozen years ago I attended a half-day workshop that talked about the present course of Youth Ministry. The workshop took an honest look at how the youth of the early 2000's were, or were not, actively participating in their church's overall worship experience. The data they presented was alarming but not yet tangible, so we took the information with us and put it in a drawer.
As most things we "put in a drawer" it was forgotten about and when the time came to clean out the desk it was looked at and believed to be not important. In the year 2013 I see how a lot of the information given to us on that day is valid now. If we had taken what was given to us a little more seriously maybe we wouldn't be in the place we are in today's churches.
The workshop pointed out that one of two things had to happen if we wanted mainline churches to have any kind of sustained growth. Either churches had to begin holding services that closely reflected youth worship or youth worship had to begin reflecting the style of worship our churches were having. The workshop went on to help us realize that it is no longer a good thing to have the youth separated from the rest of the church.
In those days we called it the one-eared Mickey Mouse theory. If you drew an outline of Mickey Mouse with one ear connected and one ear disconnected you could label the 3 circles in this way: the large circle would be the church, the smaller circle that was joined to the head was all other ministries, the disconnected circle was the youth group.
The point of workshop was to help those coming to the age of millennial-worshipers understand that if we continue to build a wall around our youth we are encouraging them to never be able to find a church that replicates their current experiences as they move on in their lives.
The truth is that with the upbeat music, multimedia presentations, and comedic-like messages all we have done to/with our youth is provide such a specific type of experience that they aren't comfortable with anything else. We had forgotten that the best way to honor our God is to honor the true meaning of what being Christian is - to be inviting, not invited.
To use the language from today's passage we have built a great vineyard and now that the grapes have come to fruition we see that they are wild grapes, or grapes not suitable for either wine-making or eating.
The question for us today is what are we to do? Isaiah's answer was to clear the entire vineyard and start over. I don't think we need to go that far - not yet. I do think we need to take a very good look at how we cultivate the soil from this point forward, though. We do this by honoring God's love by living God's grace; be unconditionally accepting of all people and go out of your way to help those who are oppressed.
And, if you want better grapes at the next harvest, teach our youth to do the same. This time try it without the multimedia and comedic-messages.
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