Empowering Youth: Choices, Hope, and Faith in Action
Devotional
Sermon Summary
Bible Study Guide
Sermon Clips
"It is an honor to be with you at Saanich. Just, this place is so near and dear to our hearts. Our choices matter. Anybody agree with that? God, for whatever crazy reason, has given us free will. Our choices matter. And where we are today is a result of our choices, maybe yesterday's choices and decisions. And where we will be tomorrow is a result of today's choices. So today, I want us to stand with teenagers. After all, we work for Youth for Christ." [00:40:16] (34 seconds)
"Indecisiveness about caring for teenagers, about praying for teenagers, about loving teenagers can lead to the loss of a generation." [00:40:49] (9 seconds)
"This kind of hope that we're talking about is, I hope the guy who tied my bungee cord knots is good at knots and math. I hope the guy who packed my parachute knows what he's doing." [00:42:41] (16 seconds)
"That's the kind of hope we're talking about, because our God knows what he's doing. He floats arcs. He shuts the mouths of lions in dens, and he empties tombs. He walks into a cemetery and says, Lazarus, come forth." [00:42:56] (17 seconds)
"Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, and in purity. Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching, and to teaching. Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through prophecy, when the body of elders laid their hands, on you. Be diligent in these matters. Give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers." [00:43:58] (33 seconds)
"Our role as the church is to be a greenhouse for growing the witness of our young people. Let me say that again. Our role as the church is to be a greenhouse for growing the witness of our young people." [00:47:31] (14 seconds)
"Young people are extraordinary witnesses when set free, when released, because they're not tainted by naysayers or troubled by budgetary restraints or we've never done that before. They just go and do what God has called them to do." [00:47:46] (13 seconds)
"But my message here today is, what's the best strategy for reaching this generation? It's teen-to-teen evangelism. I speak at youth gatherings all over the world. I was just in Eastern Europe two weeks ago speaking to 500 teenagers in four cities in a war zone, and we had dozens and dozens of kids come to the Lord. And I can be effective at that, but the most powerful, statistically proven method of reaching teens is in one teen, reaching another." [00:49:20] (28 seconds)
"And in front of all those pastors, I knelt and I said, this is where it starts. And let me ask Saanich Baptist a question. How often are we praying for our kids? Sometimes we say, well, I don't know what to do. It can start with prayer, that's simply." [00:51:18] (16 seconds)
"But we turn those anxious thoughts into prayers. Why do I tell you this? Because when we are anxious or stressed about this generation, we can pray. We raised our four teenagers prayerfully. And though each of them is still working through their own challenges, they know that mom and dad are praying." [00:52:16] (17 seconds)
"Are we raising up a generation of Christian young people who are willing to sacrifice for their Savior? My experience with teenagers is that they will often rise to wherever we put the bar of our expectations. If our youth ministry expectations are, I hope they do their homework and make their bed, that's where they're going to rise to. But we're setting the bar way too low. We as a church and God himself is calling them to be salt and light in their schools, through their social media accounts, to be kingdom influencers, to stop taking gospel selfies and instead take time to get out of their own comfort zones and get into their sphere of influence." [01:00:53] (36 seconds)
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"Indecisiveness about caring for teenagers, about praying for teenagers, about loving teenagers can lead to the loss of a generation." [00:40:49] (9 seconds)
"This kind of hope that we're talking about is, I hope the guy who tied my bungee cord knots is good at knots and math. I hope the guy who packed my parachute knows what he's doing." [00:42:41] (16 seconds)
"That's the kind of hope we're talking about, because our God knows what he's doing. He floats arcs. He shuts the mouths of lions in dens, and he empties tombs. He walks into a cemetery and says, Lazarus, come forth." [00:42:56] (17 seconds)
"Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, and in purity. Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching, and to teaching. Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through prophecy, when the body of elders laid their hands, on you. Be diligent in these matters. Give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers." [00:43:58] (33 seconds)
"Our role as the church is to be a greenhouse for growing the witness of our young people. Let me say that again. Our role as the church is to be a greenhouse for growing the witness of our young people." [00:47:31] (14 seconds)
"Young people are extraordinary witnesses when set free, when released, because they're not tainted by naysayers or troubled by budgetary restraints or we've never done that before. They just go and do what God has called them to do." [00:47:46] (13 seconds)
"But my message here today is, what's the best strategy for reaching this generation? It's teen-to-teen evangelism. I speak at youth gatherings all over the world. I was just in Eastern Europe two weeks ago speaking to 500 teenagers in four cities in a war zone, and we had dozens and dozens of kids come to the Lord. And I can be effective at that, but the most powerful, statistically proven method of reaching teens is in one teen, reaching another." [00:49:20] (28 seconds)
"And in front of all those pastors, I knelt and I said, this is where it starts. And let me ask Saanich Baptist a question. How often are we praying for our kids? Sometimes we say, well, I don't know what to do. It can start with prayer, that's simply." [00:51:18] (16 seconds)
"But we turn those anxious thoughts into prayers. Why do I tell you this? Because when we are anxious or stressed about this generation, we can pray. We raised our four teenagers prayerfully. And though each of them is still working through their own challenges, they know that mom and dad are praying." [00:52:16] (17 seconds)
"Are we raising up a generation of Christian young people who are willing to sacrifice for their Savior? My experience with teenagers is that they will often rise to wherever we put the bar of our expectations. If our youth ministry expectations are, I hope they do their homework and make their bed, that's where they're going to rise to. But we're setting the bar way too low. We as a church and God himself is calling them to be salt and light in their schools, through their social media accounts, to be kingdom influencers, to stop taking gospel selfies and instead take time to get out of their own comfort zones and get into their sphere of influence." [01:00:53] (36 seconds)
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