I was reading in Joshua 24 today and the challenge that Joshua throws out to the Children of Israel really got me to thinking about the teenagers of this generation.
Joshua 24:14-15, "Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD. And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."
Joshua made it a Personal Choice:
Joshua says: "As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."
Joshua had been around for quite sometime and he seen the Lord work in the life of Moses and the Children of Israel. Joshua experienced the goodness of God himself because he showed great faith in God over the years. It was Joshua and Caleb who came back to camp and told Moses to go into the Promised Land and take what God had given them, but the people listened to the other 10 and wandered for 40 years. Joshua knew who was in control then and he knew who was in control now.
The "norm" for youth group today seems to be more of a babysitting club than a training platform to raise up a generation of servants for Christ's Kingdom! (I have been guilty of this myself) More and more youth groups are becoming more entertaining rather than equipping their youth groups with the Word. It's no wonder that this generation seems to be at a loss when it comes to soul-winning, missions, or surrender. I fear most youth groups today are like the 10 spies that came back to camp and said that "It can't be done!" God help me to raise up more Joshuas and Calebs!!!
YOUTH PASTOR: What are you showing your youth group to make them want to serve God?
Joshua made it a Public Choice:
Joshua addresses the Children of Israel and tells them publicly his choice. It is always good to tell others the decisions made for the Lord. Making decisions and making them public helps keep you accountable. We need to see more young people on fire for God and make some decisions for Him! It truly makes me cringe to see some young people's social media pages. There is not one ounce of Jesus on their pages and yet they come in to church, sit in Sunday School, sing in the choir, and their friends outside of church never get told of the love of Christ by them. Public decisions help in this area because once people hear of your decision, they will be watching. Sometimes leading by example is better than saying a single word. (Matthew 5:16)
Joshua made it a Purposeful Choice:
I want you to notice something Joshua says, "Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt"
Joshua made it a point to call out the "gods" that their fathers worshipped on the other side while they were in captivity. He wanted them to put them away for good.
One of the biggest challenges I have faced over the years in youth ministry is the apathy by the teenagers. The more it frustrated me, I finally went to talk to my pastor about it. I told him that the teens are so careless about being faithful to church or activities, it was driving me CRAZY!!! He told me, "You and me both buddy!" That got me to thinking: How can I expect the younger generation to be faithful when the adults aren't even faithful themselves?!? I fear that the "god" being served by a lot of adults today, isn't the same God of the Bible. There has been a sense of apathy throughout the church for decades now and I fear it will get worse. If we want this generation to make a difference, then they need to get the "Modern Christianity" that many adults today have been feeding them and destroy it and return to the God of the Bible!
I know that there are a lot of adults who are great servants of Christ. In fact, I am blessed to go to church with some of them! :) However, the proof is there that there is a growing sense of apathy in the local church. More churches are closing doors to have "Bigger" concert halls, I mean churches, with less Gospel centered preaching being erected.
Joshua posed this question: "choose you this day whom ye will serve." My challenge to myself while reading was this:
1.) Am I doing my part in equipping the youth to make the right decisions?
2.) Is my service a reflection of Christ that would make them want to serve Him themselves?
I hope these "ramblings" have been somewhat of an encouragment to you as you read this. If you like it feel free to share!
In Christ,
Bro Chris Paradise
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