Health Care $$$

We can all agree on at least one thing when it comes to health care in the U.S. It's expensive!
With or without insurance, medicaid or medicare, a full bank account or just barley getting by.

Bottom line - someone - somewhere will have a pretty hefty bill for health care!

So, I ask - how much would you be willing to pay?

Your best friend is in need - what would you pay to save their life?

What would you pay to save all of your friends lives?

What if, all things considered you could save thousands of lives with just a 'drop in the bucket'? Would you do it? Has God called you to save a life? Are you willing to endure the cost?

Whether it's physically, emotionally, mentally, or spiritually - are you prepared to use what God has given you to save the life of your friend? or the life of a complete stranger?

What will you do today - to save lives?

Just askin',
~C

Oh How He Loves Us...

My heart breaks as I watch this video - it's the story, or a version of the story of most of today's teens.



A fellow youth leader posted this video from their youth group last weekend. I know many say "our kid(s) would never do that" - but I know there is pain in a lot of teens lives today.

If you're a youth: know that He loves you and do whatever you can to run back to His arms!

If you're an adult: pray for the youth you know and do everything in your power for them to know they are loved by The God of the universe.

~C

God has given!

I read the story of the Prodigal Son today in my devo. The devotion said maybe it's more the story of the Compassionate Father. I wonder how many of us have ever looked at it from this perspective?

Sometimes we (I know I've been there) think that getting gifts from God is like pulling teeth. Face it, we pray and plead and beg God for a specific blessing or gift, or whatever it is we think we need in that moment.

What happens if we stop trying to pull teeth and look around our lives - God has already given to each of us abundantly! Sure it might not be the best day of our lives, but God's given us another day. My prayer is that I (and I hope you too) can pause today and stop asking God for 'the next thing on my list' and I can just be thankful for what He has already given me.

It's The Father's nature to give - He always has and always will give us what we really need. Thank God!

~C

A note about something...

I've never just posted someones material, at least other than quotes on my blog before. I read this bit from one of my former youth the other day and asked him if I could re-post it on my blog. I hope it makes you think - have a great day - and feel free to comment on it, he's an occasional reader on Chris' Corner and I'm sure would love to hear your thoughts.

~C


I really like to think of God as a romantic. It fits, He loves us so much, and He just wants to be with us. It makes me feel happy inside to know that He loves me enough to leave heaven and go to this earth, and then to hell, just so I could someday come to Him. Amazing grace!

So, here is a thought. Jesus just wants to be close to you. Now just try and tell me that that isn't romantic, and I will disagree with you. Haha I just think that is great. It makes me feel so loved, it brings me joy to think of His love. There are lots of commands in the Bible about walking with God and obeying His commands and not straying away from them. Many seem to think these are rules to live by and make life boring, I admit that I have thought that, and I have thought that I don't need those rules, that I know what I am doing better than God does. But what if we take a different look at those 'rules.' Now, instead of them being rules to live by, they are ways that God can stay close to us. By us daily giving a sacrifice or time of prayer to Him, we are staying connected to the Lord. By giving praise, we are reminding ourselves of how good He is, and how much we need Him. And in turn, He gets to be close to us, which is what God wants. God wants us! How absolutely ridiculous is that?! Suddenly those rules take a different meaning, suddenly, they are ways that this God who actively pursues us, can get closer to us. Maybe even close enough to whisper some bit of Truth to us, so that we may be joyful in Him.

Maybe God is pursuing us each day, trying to get us to see Him. Just imagine being with the person that is that 'significant other' in your life. If you don't have a significant other, like me, just pretend. Haha it will work just fine :) Now don't you think it would just be super rewarding to just whisper some sort of 'I love you' to that person, and have them hear you, understand you, turn to you, and respond? I think that would make my day, and I wonder if God feels the same way. I think God is like the little kid who has a crush on that girl in his math class, and all he wants is to just sit by her and hold her hand. Only, Jesus wants to just walk with His church, His bride, and hold our hands and walk with us.

Detour!!! Seeing the church as a bride may seem weird to us guys, and it probably should. But, we have a different perspective on it. Women may see themselves as the bride of Christ (as the church) and know that they are deeply desired by Him. For us men, we get a glimpse of how Christ feels towards His bride(the church). We get to experience (merely a shadow, or the wisp of smoke, compared to the real thing) the love, sacrifice, determination, and desire to be with the bride. We get to see just a part of how God (may) feel towards us. Please keep in mind these are just my thoughts, so I could be totally wrong, it has happened before and will happen again. Quite often actually.

Back on track...
Jesus is just trying to scoot next to us. He just wants the seat that is next to us in the 'class of life' as it were. He is trying to reach to us with the blessings in our lives: weather, animals, plants, flowers, sunsets, friends, music, running, whatever it may be that touches your heart. God wants to be with you, and He is reaching out towards you. I don't know if you have thought about it before, but God really does pursue us. I never realized it until I thought about all of the things He has had me go through in this life. I think of the church events I didn't want to go to but was forced to, just so He could show me a little bit of His love and mercy and tenderness and grace. Until, one night, I finally understood. Or at least began to finally understand, I do not think I will ever understand how fully God loves us.

My Shoes!

Stephanie tells me I have more shoes than she does - I'm not sure I believe it, maybe I should count and really see -- but if I did that I might have to live with the fact that I might actually have more shoes than my wife. Either way, the only 'shoes' that matter are the ones in which Christ has walked in for me!

"I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself." - John 12:32

There is nothing higher or greater than our Savior!

Jesus came, willingly put Himself in "my shoes" and lived like I live - except for one thing - He was and is perfect, lacking sin - but in lacking sin He gave me the opportunity to look upon Him and have an eternal worship experience with The One who created me.

Jesus came, willingly put Himself in "my shoes" and allowed me to kill Him. I put Him on the Cross, the most cruel way to murder someone. Yes I, murdered Christ - with my disobedience, my lies, my sin! How could I kill The only One who came to save me?

Thankfully, Jesus put Himself in "my shoes" so I could be restored to Him, to The Father. Jesus, thank you for taking such a horrible burden for me so I can be safe in Your arms.

Jesus put Himself in your shoes too - have you stepped aside and let Him walk the walk of death for you? Have you allowed Him and Him alone to be the ruler of your life?

If so, tell someone about it - today!
If not, take some time to get to know Him, let Him walk in your shoes so your life that leads to death will lead to eternity with your Creator! Give Him all of your life!

His,
~C

In Memory...

I received word yesterday that Warren Negley had gone home!

What sad, yet great news. I'm so happy that Warren is now sitting before The Throne of God!

Warren was my boss for a short time while I worked on full-time staff at Calvin Crest. With the transition out of two former staff members Warren and I kind of "arrived on the scene" about the same time. Some thought I was the wrong person for the job....Warren called on me and personally told me he had faith in me and wanted me for the job - pretty humbling experience seeing as how Warren and I had barley met before this.

Over the year or so I would spend working with Warren I was privileged to learn so much from such a wise man. He had such a gentle spirit - but when he spoke you knew he was on the right track. He always had a way of helping you - helping when you needed suggestions or advice, helping you see something from a different perspective, and giving you the nudge in the right direction even when you didn't think you needed or wanted it.

I remember only one instance where I was angry at Warren - he in the way he always did gently suggested I make a change in my life. My anger lasted only about an hour and it was then that God showed me I should take the advice of such a wise man. As it turns out - Warren was giving some of the greatest advice I needed in that time of my life...had I stayed angry I can honestly say I would not be where or who I am today!

Warren taught me about generosity - he gave from his heart - every time! I think he knew deep down that his time, gifts, and even his finances were not his - but his Creators - and he gave like God wanted. He gave so others would experience the God he was deeply in love with.

Warren taught me how to be encouraging - not directly but in the way that someone in ministry should - he modeled it in his daily life. He took a young-punk youth worker and gave me freedom. He not once stepped in my office and told me how to do my job - he let me try new and different things, (I think even when he knew they wouldn't work) he let me try and experience and learn from both my failures and successes.

Warren was a true godly man that we should all be so lucky to have in our lives. I pray all those who have been impacted by the ministry Warren lived on a daily basis will carry on his legacy by giving to others in the way Warren gave to us. Thank you Warren for all that you gave on this side of eternity. I cannot wait to see you again when God calls me home.

~C

Why does the church fail...

Okay, so that could be a very open-ended and general question....but what I'm focused on now is specific to accountability, or mentoring, or adhering to what we're called to do in Christian love when one of our brothers or sisters in Christ is struggling.

Why is it that a healthy youth ministry is building relationships between it's leadership and it's youth (in a mentoring sense) and then they graduate and "big church" doesn't continue to carry the baton? Big church doesn't ask the same questions of them that their youth ministry has.

How is it that we can have conversations with our youth about their struggles with life, their addictions (to drinking, drugs, pornography, sex, cheating, lying, and so much more) but we dare not mention any of those things from the pulpit, or for that matter in close relationships beyond high school and college?

I once heard a Pastor say "if the Bible talks about it we're going to talk about it."

So, why do we encourage and even build relationships to a point with our youth so that they'll be open and hopefully held accountable to living a Christian life and then we don't do the same to their parents, grandparents and other adults in the church?

I know I'm just rambling off questions - but honestly it ticks me off that we're living a double standard in the church. Youth leaders (good ones anyway) hold their teens "feet to the fire" but the Leaders of the church (elders, deacons, pastors, whatever you call them in your denomination) don't do the same for their adults.

If we were honest with each other I think we'd all agree that there are people sharing the pew with us on Sunday mornings that are struggling with the same things (and more) that our kids are - there are people who are cheating on their spouse, shacking up with their significant other (non-married), porn addicts, alcoholics and the list goes on. Why do we do a disservice to our Christian family by not loving them the way Christ has called us to - in accountable relationships???

A good friend and colleague of mine asked me a few months ago how my marriage was. That is the first time in over three and a half years of being married that someone has cared enough to ask. Why is the church not asking me this question? The divorce rate is the same inside the church as outside - so what are we doing about it? The porn industry is a multi-billion dollar a year industry - what are we doing about it? Every day people are moving in with their boy/girl friends, what are we doing about it? Why are my adult counterparts in church not asking and being asked the same questions I ask of the youth?

I say it's time for The Church to be what Christ has called us to be, and let's start setting a better example for our younger generations. After all - their youth leaders expect honesty and accountability from them, shouldn't they expect us to be held to at least the same standards?
Just check out Proverbs 27:5-6, & 17

Just sayin',
~C