the BLOPE

In our last post we talked about the power of symbols.  I challenged you to consider how you could use symbols as a tool to help you pass down faith to your teenager. The reason I believe this is an appropriate method is that God used it. In Genesis 9:13-17 God used a rainbow as a symbol of His promise In Genesis 28:18-22 Jacob established a monument to remind himself of God’s promise to bless his descendants In Genesis 7:8-13 Aaron’s staff became a symbol to Pharaoh of God’s presence with the Israelites and His power  In Exodus 12 the Passover feast is rich with symbolism none more important than the use of the Lamb to represent coming salvation and it goes on and on…. the monument of 12 stones when the tribes of Israel crossed the Jordan river the 10 commandments given on stone tablets the ark of the covenant the Temple on an on… It’s not just in the Old Testament either.  In the New Testament we see symbols: the gifts of the Magi to Jesus in Luke 2 Jesus washing His di...

I want to talk to you today about symbols.  A symbol is an object that has meaning attached to it, but it is also a great tool in the parent’s tool belt. Here are some examples of important symbols you may have in your life that carry important meaning: a wedding ring refrigerator art from when your teenager was a child a family heirloom that was passed down to you a moment in time that was captured in a photograph an item from your childhood home that takes you back in time when you look at it Symbols are powerful.  Today I would like to suggest that you harness the power of symbols to help pass down faith to your teenager. I will never forget when I visited Washington D.C. when I was in college.  We walked from monument to monument trying to understand something about the importance of America’s history. Washington D.C. is filled with symbols.  Each monument, each museum, and each statue tells the story of our nation. The power of symbols is evident today. Look how...

I would like to begin by handing you a  machete . A  machete  is a long knife used in the jungle to cut through thick brush and create a path. It does not remove all the obstacles, but it does make the path easier to follow. I want to hand you a figurative  machete  and inspire you to start beating down a path through life for your teenager to follow. There is no greater spiritual influence in the life of your teenager than you.  As your teenager’s youth minister, the smartest thing I can do is to set you up to blaze a trail of spiritual heritage for your teenager to follow. That is why I want to encourage you to live out Psalm 145:4 with your teenager. “One generation commends your works to another; they tell of your mighty acts.” Here are 3 ways you can blaze a spiritual path for your teenager: Close the old trails- You might have had a trail marked out for you by your parents that led to lots of pain. You don’t have to continue that path. You can close t...

Deuteronomy 6:4-9 gives us our mission from God as parents: “Hear O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.” I want to quickly unpack this job description for parents into 3 action steps that you can do today to begin passing down faith in your home: 1) Put it in your Heart First - “these commands…are to be on your hearts” You can’t give away what you don’t have. You can’t inspire someone else to do something unless it inspires you first. If you want your teenager to be fueled by their faith than make sure that is what is fueling you. ACTION STEP: ...

unsplash-logo Helloquence Do you have a will? You know, the paper that they pull out when you die to see who gets your stuff. The process of preparing a will is not fun. The lawyer asks you, “If you die who will you give your stuff to?” You say, “Give it to my spouse.” The lawyer quickly responds, “and if your spouse dies who will you give your stuff to?” This goes on and on until it seems like everyone is dead and you realize the lawyer is just trying to get you to add him into the will! “What if Aunt Bertha dies? And your cranky neighbor? And the postman, then will you finally give me your stuff? When you write a will you figure out how you are going to leave behind your stuff, but you are more than the sum of your stuff, right? So let’s write a different kind of will. What values are you going to leave your teenager? What will you teach them about what is right and wrong in this world? What will your teenager know about faith? bcsm wants ...