Upward, Outward, and Forward

Constantly, I have been having to remind myself of this phrase. "Upward, Outward, and Forward." I heard this while visiting a church a couple of months ago for the first time.

The church was in the middle of a prayer series and the pastor was talking about prayer and the Kingdom.

Working camp is one of the best things that has ever happened to me, but Satan has a special tool he likes to use for camp counselors. Sometimes camp can bring out the "me monster."

I did this, I do that, what about me.....the list goes on an on. Sometimes on long days the "me monster" takes over my mind.

In the front of my production binder is the sermon notes from that Sunday. It was one of the fullest pages of notes that I had taken in a church service in a while. But the very first thing on it is that phrase: "Upward, Outward, and Forward."

That phrase has so much power behind it. It's saying that our prayers should be constantly Upward, Outward, and Forward. Upward-meaning that we give God our thanks and praise Him. Outward-meaning we praying for the people and circumstances around us. Forward- meaning that the decisions we make now glorify the Kingdom and prepare us for something greater constantly.

It's impossible to have the "me monster" rule your life when your prayers are always focused on being grateful, on others around you, and being future focused. The now doesn't seem so bad when there is so much future ahead. Your problems seem like nothing compared to the guy you met at sunday school in the morning that is battling cancer. It's hard to complain when you're too busy being grateful.

The bible says "seek the lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart." What that means is pray upward, outward, and forwards always. Then your ways will align with His will.

---------------------------------------------------------How I'm praying-------------------------------------------------------


Camp:
Upward-so very grateful that God created the paths in my life to lead me to the hotel room I am writing this from now. So very grateful for the paths that I have crossed in communities and on my team. So very grateful for the message we have to spread and the reason for spreading it.
Outward- Always lifting up my team. Praying for the communities we are in, and we are going to. Praying for the camper who we will come in contact with. Praying for the other teams that are working so heard toward the same mission.
Forward-praying that we help spread the gospel to campers who will one day lead in their communities. Praying that the wisdom, knowledge, and skills that I learn from camp help lead me towards my future goals. Praying for the communities we are going to later in the summer and that they would continue to prepare well.

School:
Upward-Grateful to be in a place physically, and financially to attend secondary educations. Grateful for the staff and teachers at my university. Grateful for the way that God got me there.
Outward-Praying for the people on my campus everyday. Praying that revival breaks out and our campus of 25,000 would be changed. Praying the hearts of administration would be softened.
Forward-Praying that what I am studying leads me to where God's will has put me in my life. Praying that I am being a good steward and will be fiscally able to handle debts incurred from tuition.

Family/Friends:
Upward-Grateful to be surrounded by wonderful people who love me and would do anything for me. Grateful for the opportunities brought by friends and family. Grateful for those friends and family who are my brothers and sister in Christ and grateful for the one who aren't so that I can be on mission.
Outward-constantly for the health and decisions. Praying for their lives to be following God's will constantly. Praying for extraordinary things to happend in their lives.

Church:
Upward-so so so so so so very grateful for the community of believers God has put me in. So very grateful for the message they share. So very grateful for the way that God has blessed them, and the way they have handled attacks from Satan.
Outward-Praying that my community would be changed and filled with light. Praying that my church family staff is following in step with God's will and that they are provided for in ways they don't understand.
Forward- Praying that God brings the gifts and talents they need to keep spreading their message. Praying that they are thinking with God sized dreams and being good stewards. Praying that decision now would only cause the message to further spread in the future.

Future Wife:
Upward-Grateful for what both of us are learning while we may not even know each other. Grateful for her life.
Outward-Praying that she would be blessed. Praying that she knows she is loved. Praying that she knows the Lord and is walking in step with Him. Praying she is provided for.
Forward-praying that God is equipping our hearts for what the future holds. Praying that I am becoming a man in order to be ready. Praying that I never give away too much of my heart, and same for her.

Job/Career:
Upward: Grateful for the opportunity to live in a place where I can obtain a good job with good pay.
Outward: praying that God is equipping the people who will be around me for the work we will do. praying that I am able to be a tool to help fulfill a need.
Forward: Praying that everything I do now is only providing the skills for what that job holds. Praying that where ever this is, that God's hand is already on it and blessing it.

No Room for Air

I haven't seen enough days to be considered a seasoned production director, but I felt something in a room which was under my direction that I'd never felt before.

If you didn't know, I work for WinShape Camps for Communities (day camp for 1st through 6th grade). Kids day camps are insane. We are constantly moving. In the auditorium we go through 10-12 transitions in 30 minutes. That's insane. It's loud, fast, fun, and interactive.

But today something different happened.

This week we are at one of the largest camps in WinShape history. We are serving over 500 campers as staff members this week and I have never seen anything like it. It has been the most encouraging week of camp I have seen.

Thursdays are always a little more rowdy. It's "village day" so there is a lot of cheering and masses of little people in red, green or blue. The campers are comfortable with their environment and with their new friends. It's always a pretty wild day.

The combination of it being Thursday, and the room being full of 500 1st-6th graders is what made this moment so real.

Our theme of the day is mission. "Don't just walk it, talk it." We teach the campers about working out their faith in Christ everyday.

The passage the camp pastor uses is Colossians 3: 12-17.

"12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16 Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. 17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."

If that passage didn't strike a chord with you, go back and read it until it does. There are so many profound things that can be pulled from there. 

Before the camp pastor speaks we play an animated motion graphics video of a child reading it. Today was the first time I had seen this video in a production environment. 

As the passage began, campers became dead silent. That's right. 1st graders on a row with 20 other first graders were completely silent. There was no room for air in that room. God's spirit was working through that passage at that very moment. 

If you don't understand the point I'm trying to get across, it's that we are teaching this to 1st through 6th graders. Imagine a world where this generation was so focused on that one passage like today, that they lived it out constantly. They realized they are HOLY and DEARLY LOVED. The PUT ON COMPASSION. Compassion alone could help shake the Kingdom for His glory, but they go on to also PUT ON KINDNESS, HUMILITY, GENTLENESS and PATIENCE.

This was the center of our message today. 

Think about the world where this generation put a filter on everything they did or said, not allowing anything that would be ungrateful to our God to be shown or said. 

This is our mission, and there is no room for air. 

"Don't just walk it, Talk it."

God Sized Prayers

Tonight and the up and coming week are resonating with one very large theme..."God Sized Prayers"

We begin our first week of camp on Monday which means that this weekend is major prep time. I'm so excited about what God has in store for us. We are easily going to be one of the largest WinShape Camps for Communities camps ever. We are close to hitting 500 campers.

As we go through our list of things to do, and supplies we are realizing just how big this camp is going to be. It gives me chills. Its going to be HUGE.

I was talking to a church staff member today and he boiled their success in registering campers down to one thing...a God Sized Prayer. Their staff came together with the goal of 300 campers and they said that it wasn't enough. They wanted something only God could accomplish in such a small town and they got it. Now we are maxing out their facilities and picking up a ton of help. There is an undercurrent here that I don't even thing we fully understand. An undercurrent of prayers, of a movement. of a town wanting to make a difference, of a people seeking out their community.

Before that, there were God Sized Prayers about starting the ministry that would one day become WinShape Camps for Communities. And before that who knows the God Sized Prayers that got us here today.

I've recently started reading The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson after receiving it as a staff gift.

Batterson says "Bold prayers honor God and God honors bold prayers." This up coming week is proof.

He goes on to say "The greatest moments in life are the miraculous moments when human impotence and divine omnipotence intersect-and they intersect when we draw a circle around the impossible situations in our lives and invite God to intervene."

We could easily see the huge hurdles in the way of the next week, but more importantly is for us to understand that where we see impossibilities, God sees miracles.

I cannot WAIT for the coming week and I would ask you to take time in your prayers to lift my team up as we embark on one of the most exciting weeks of our lives.

Romeo and Juliet

Romeo and Juliet, a familiar tale to us all, is the tragic tale of two lovebirds that were separated by their families’ oath to remain sworn enemies.

When it comes to church dating, many of us have been faced with a similar tragic story. If you’ve been there before, you know.

…Dating someone from “the other church.” 

We all know “the other church.” It was the church that let their youth group read Harry Potter. It was the church whose pastor wore jeans to preach on Sunday nights.

Why, oh why, would you ever want to date someone from “the other church?”

Your love for “the other church” Juliet only grows because of the disbelief and disapproval of your church family.

You realize that you and “the other church” Juliet must attend movies in a different town together. Frozen yogurt joints are no longer an option while you’re with each other. The Christian bookstore and Chick-fil-a take a financial hit from your branching out into other territory.  The youth group catches wind of you attending a lock-in at “the other church” and decides to have an intervention style accountability session, but you won’t let Juliet go.

Fortunately, very few of these stories end in the tragic death of Romeo and “the other church” Juliet, but they can serve as a great lesson for us.

At the end of Romeo and Juliet, the families are reconciled over their loses.

Assuming there is no messy break up that causes Romeo and Juliet to end up on the prayer request page of your churches new website…maybe dating Romeo/Juliet-style in churches can be an eye opening experience.

Maybe dating someone from another church can help you realize the church body you belong to isn’t the only one doing great things in your community. Maybe the story of Romeo and Juliet is about broadening your idea of worship. Maybe you could even bring two church bodies together!

Whatever the case is, don’t limit yourself to looking for Mr. or Mrs. Right within the four walls of your church. Who knows what you might end up learning by branching out?

Weaving Patience

I was informed of something profound by a new friend the other day. The word waiting, as translated in the old testament, comes from the hebrew word "qavah" which has a literal meaning of "to bind together like a cord." Weave if you will. The idea of weaving together string to make rope.

Why is this profound? I find myself in a period of waiting in my life. I am still in school, yet I know what I want to do with my life. I feel like a sitting duck, but this encourages me not to be.

Some of you may be in this similar situation. You can also apply this to relationships. Some of you are on the edge of your seat waiting to meet the person you are going to marry. But God has a reason.....

You see, God gives us times of waiting in order to "weave" together what we are moving toward. That can be God "weaving" us further into sanctification, but also mean us "weaving" together what we know God has called us to. A time of preparation. Not a time to sit back and do nothing. Prepare. Spiritually, physically, emotionally, financially, etc.

A couple days after hearing this I was reading the story of Joseph in Genesis. Joseph had a dream that one day his brothers and parents would bow to him as king. Now, God's favor was on Joseph, so I don't believe this was something he boasted about and was prideful of, nevertheless he told his father and brothers.

They didn't like him much after that. His brothers ended up faking his death and sending him into slavery.

Joseph then went through some tough transitions and situations. In each of these situations, he ended up succeeding. He ended up being sold into Potiphar's household, and moved up to the head of the house. He was then tricked by Potiphar's wife, ended up in prison. Was so well regarded in prison, had little to no supervision. Interpreted a couple of dreams for some of the prisoners. Long story short ended up the right hand man to Pharaoh.

(this is a very shortened version of Joseph's story...read Genesis 37-42 for all the juicy details)

Famine came over the whole world, Joseph had a solution that caused the whole world to flock to Egypt for  food. In the end, Joseph's family came to him (without recognizing him) and bowed before him for food.

I totally butchered how great of a story this is, and I highly encourage you to read it.

Here's my point, God gave Joseph a dream, and we know that it took at least 16 years to fulfill it. Joseph didn't sit back and become complacent in the situations he found himself in. He worked hard, became trustworthy, and moved up in each of these situations. We don't hear much about Joseph's character, but he had to be a patient dude.

Be patient where God has you in this moment, and give it your all. Whether its a vision for where God is going to lead you, or whether you are waiting for that person God is going to bring into your life, begin weaving and allowing Him to weave together your future.

Inspiring Leaders

I don't claim to be a great leader by any means. I have a ton of faults and continually look into new ways to improve on my leadership skills.

One lesson I have learned through people who have impacted my life is how to inspire the ones who you lead. I have seen great examples and terrible examples. In order for any business or ministry to be successful, the people you lead have to believe in what your doing.

The question then is, how do you inspire the people you lead to make your organization even better?
Hopefully this will help you start.

1. BELIEVE. In order to create a following, you have to be passionate about what you are leading. No one will buy into an idea that you're not convinced will work.
2. LISTEN. People will become involved more in something they have a part in. Institute ideas from your followers. Listen to what they're saying. The smallest changes could mean the world.
3. DELEGATE. This is the lesson I have to remind myself of most, but you must give your followers something to be proud of. Delegation is a great way to get things off your plate and give ownership to your followers.
4. CELEBRATE. Wins mean everything to the people you are leading. Take the time to celebrate what your organization and followers have done well! Congratulate and encourage. Build a culture that cultivates innovation through the desire to do better.
5. TESTIFY. Tell stories. This is especially important in ministry. Too often we get caught up in logistics and forget why we are working toward whatever our organization goals are. Stories can expand your vision back out. This helps your followers understand their place in what you do.

Hopefully these ideas aren't too obvious and they are a help for you in wherever you have been gifted to lead.

SPEAK NOW! (nothing about Taylor Swift)

So many times in my life, I have heard stories of how God has plainly laid things out for friends and acquaintances. There have been a few instances in my life where God gave me an idea or vision, but I tend to not trust him to reveal things in HIS time, by HIS means.

I look for Him to answer prayers through the "open the bible to a random page" method. Or the "attend 1048392 church services" method.

I was reading through Acts 10, and (as I am writing this, I am proving to myself what I am writing about) God revealed something very important to me.

He uses different mediums to speak to different people, but His timing is ALWAYS perfect.

You have this story about Cornelius, who from how the scripture reads, led a life that to the Pharisees would be seen as acceptable. He regularly sought after God and gave to the needy. God sent an angel (medium 1) to Cornelius with very specific instructions. He was told, in short, to send for Peter. He sent three of his men to fetch Peter.

The next day, as the three men approached, Peter goes to the housetop to pray. He fell into a trance and had a dream (medium 2), much less specific than Cornelius' interaction. While pondering the vision, the men arrived at where Peter was.

While pondering his dream, the Holy Spirit (medium 3) spoke to Peter and told him to go down and find the men. Peter went with the men back to Cornelius. There, Peter preached the Gospel of Jesus Christ (medium 4) and the Spirit worked through him in order to reach the people surrounding Cornelius who were living by the law. All who were there were baptized. Kingdom advanced.

Within this one story, God speaks to at least two different people in four different ways. Lessons this teaches me:
1. God can speak to us through supernatural means. The angel was what instantly got Cornelius' attention
2. God can speak to us through dreams. When we are walking instep with God, he can use our subconscious level to communicate with us. This is how great pastors and leaders come into visions and ideas.
3. God can speak to us through the Holy Spirit. Much like the idea of having an "angel" on our shoulder, the Holy Spirit can whisper immediate direction into our lives.
4. God ca speak to us through people. Whether it's friends or acquaintances, God uses people to speak to us. In this case the Holy Spirit was leading the people around Cornelius to Christ through what Peter was saying. 
5. God's timing is PERFECT. Just as the men were arriving, Peter went onto the roof to pray and God gave him this dream. Plus, if you read the scripture, you see that Peter happened to be hungry and dream about food....

In no way is this an exhausted list. Proof: God speaking to me through the revelation of this blog post and you seeing this blog post on Twitter and God (hopefully) speaking to you through it.