Life a Weblog for Young Adults

Today is the official release of the newest Threads study, Sacred Roads: Exploring the Historic Paths of Discipleship. Check out this video message from author Heather Zempel.

There’s probably a reason recession is only a few letters different than depression. The troubled economy has left a lot of folks discouraged and dispirited. But it doesn’t have to be so bad.

One of my greatest desires is to be humble. When people hear the word humble, I want them to immediately think of me. I want to become the national spokesman for an organization that’s about humility. In fact, I’m hoping to get a large statue of myself erected in downtown Nashville, Tenn., with a huge plaque naming me “a model of humility for the ages.” At the end of the day, I’m striving to become the most celebrated humble person in the world.

One of my greatest desires is to be humble. When people hear the word humble, I want them to immediately think of me. I want to become the national spokesman for an organization that’s about humility. In fact, I’m hoping to get a large statue of myself erected in downtown Nashville, Tenn., with a huge plaque naming me “a model of humility for the ages.” At the end of the day, I’m striving to become the most celebrated humble person in the world.

It’s 7:45 a.m., and both you and your travel mug of Folgers have made it safely through the office doors and halfway down the hall. So far, so good. Another 15 yards, and you’ll be seated at your desk, where, thankfully, your headphones await. You glance backwards; the coast is clear. Five yards to go and … ARGH! Once again your path is blocked by none other than Most Annoying Coworker Ever.

It’s 7:45 a.m., and both you and your travel mug of Folgers have made it safely through the office doors and halfway down the hall. So far, so good. Another 15 yards, and you’ll be seated at your desk, where, thankfully, your headphones await. You glance backwards; the coast is clear. Five yards to go and … ARGH! Once again your path is blocked by none other than Most Annoying Coworker Ever.

We might wonder why Jesus cares so much about our money. It seems like it’s all about the Benjamins (or Jacksons, as the case may be), and our relationship to them. Apparently Jesus is incredibly concerned about money, and as this passage concludes you see why: “No household slave can be the slave of two masters, since either he will hate one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You can’t be slaves to both God and money” (Luke 16:13).

It wasn’t until the arrival of my church’s second youth pastor that I discovered the reason our first had left. I suppose there’s wisdom in hiding potentially jarring realities from high school students, but when I heard my brother whisper, “Let’s hope this one’s not gay” under his breath, it struck me like a bus.

Something scares you. It’s not terrorism, economic recession, global warming, or gasoline prices that could hit 10 bucks per gallon by the time you’re done reading this. These things might worry you, but something else makes your palms sweat and your pulse hit triple digits: asking someone out on a date.

DayBreak—an after school program and Saturday outreach ministry—began as all good things begin. A few people saw a need that God had been preparing their hearts to meet. One of those few was Julia Harper.

In 2000, a group of people held a carnival as an outreach to the children of their community. Julia Harper was among those who had been praying and looking for a way they could minister to kids in one of the neediest communities in the city. “God was exposing me to the people He was grooming me to serve—He was preparing my heart to serve.”