Finding Jesus in the Shift Between Generations

Every other time Jesus was with the crowd, but God's business can shift. Jesus moved with the shift. His parents didn't. When we assume Jesus is where he has been, we've always done it this way, becomes our compass. Faith becomes nostalgia instead of progress and act of discernment. This is a hard hit. Buckle up. When God shifts his business, changes happen and tradition evolves. [00:29:06] (32 seconds)  #TrustTheShift

But Jesus moves to unfamiliar places. They search for him with family, but he wasn't there. They searched with him for him in familiar spaces. But guess what? He wasn't there. They retraced their steps. They went back to Jerusalem, but he wasn't there. Here is the problem. We have been lulled into a false sense of security because of our history. [00:28:44] (23 seconds)  #SearchBeyondHistory

My emotional vocabulary is still developing. I feel deeply but struggle to articulate it. Silence is often confusion, but you interpret it as defiance. Because I'm not talking, you think I'm being disrespectful. Wow. When really I just don't have the words to say. I want to be trusted, but your constant monitoring and control makes me feel like you don't believe me, that you don't trust me. [00:24:29] (33 seconds)  #ListenBeyondSilence

Sometimes we want youth to fall in love with our traditions instead of our God. We want them to mimic how we sing, how we dress, mimic how we say it. We want our children to look more like us instead of like Jesus sometimes. But the dances are different. Their saying slang and colloquialisms are different. And in some ways, their worship may even be different. [00:09:56] (45 seconds)  #LetYouthWorshipDiffer

Changing uniforms, titles, or structures can feel like losing reverence when in actuality, God is shifting what we're to be doing to give him the glory. The modern church in many ways looks just like Mary and Joseph. We are a bunch of gospel grown ups frantically wandering through the world retracing our past trying to figure out where the children at. But we haven't stopped long enough to discern where's Jesus. [00:30:20] (36 seconds)  #DiscernOverTradition

The children are saying you don't always listen. You react. And based on your reaction, that's why I stopped talking. Because I test to see whether it's safe or not. And if what I'm going to feel is rejection and abandonment, then I rather stay silent. If there's going to be immediate correction, a lecture, or dismissal, then I'd rather stay silent. [00:21:36] (32 seconds)  #RespondDontReact

Even faithful, loving, trying my hardest good people can misinterpret where Jesus is. Especially when we operate on assumptions rather than spiritual discernment. Anyone, if Mary and Joseph, anyone can misinterpret where Jesus is when we operate on assumptions rather than spiritual discernment, we are likely to miss Jesus. We have become so engrossed in what we've been doing over the years that we haven't noticed that Jesus isn't even in the camp anymore. [00:27:03] (45 seconds)  #DiscernDontAssume

Parents are looking for them in compliance. Do what I tell you to do While they are trying to be understood in terms of purpose and identity, help me to discover who I am and how to be true and live out that authentically. Many of our children aren't trying to disconnect. They're just searching for what is real. They are trying to find what the father's business really is for their lives. [00:26:04] (31 seconds)  #PurposeOverCompliance