My first Sermon at Northstar

Well I'm not sure some people would consider it my first sermon, but as far as on Sunday morning I would. So this past Sunday I spoke because the pastor was gone on vacation.

To be honest I was scared to death all week. I shared my passion for youth and what we needed to do to save this generation. People who preach will often tell you that when they preach the hardest it's often because they are speaking to themselves. Well I know this is the case and hopefully I'll be rectifying the situation soon. I told the people some thing's gotta change and I know that starts with me.

At youth a youth called me on it and I realized I've gotta change. It's funny when you realize that what you believe in and know that people must change are the exact same things that you must change yourself. It's even worse when someone who heard you talk about it calls you on it. It's a great lesson and I'm gonna learn from it.

As for Sunday...it was wicked awesome. I had a blast talking to the adults and youth of Northstar. It's gonna be fun next time when I have to also.

What would happen?

I heard a unique question today. I saw it on the video for the "One Prayer" series. This is the Question...

What would happen if WE the church across the world UNITED and took all the resources that God has given us?

Wow it's a question that should make you go...huh! I hear questions like this a lot. I hear and often ask question that are meant to inspire and make you wonder why you're not doing something.

Craig Groeschel suggest in this video that All those that are hungry could have food, all those without medical care could get some, everyone on earth could hear about God, and by Sunday Worship would be extraordinary.

If this is the case let's do it. If this is the only thing lacking right now from everyone on earth at this moment to hear about Christ, then let's do it. Why haven't we thought of this before? It's to simple not to work. How in thousands of years since Jesus' death did someone, somewhere not think that maybe we should all get together and change this world?

I know the answer to this question. We're to busy bickering and being mad at each other over denominations and MY beliefs that the world all around us is going to hell. I love Lifechurch.tv. They definitely have some creative people there. Their last video about an interview with the devil is great. It shows what the devil thinks of the church...it's right on. Go see it and be amazed.

What if...it's my favorite sort of Questions because they are the answers. So what if we put aside what we believe that divides us and just decide that it's about God and people knowing about God, and just decide as a world wide church to go tell help the world and tell the world? I know exactly what would happen. World Changed!

God Rocks, Josh

Something's Coming

Anyone else feel it... There's something coming. It's weird it's in the air like right before a huge summer storm. That feeling of overwhelming pressure as you see the explosive action on the horizon. I don't know what it is...but it's coming. Have you ever been so excited you couldn't sleep? Ever been so excited about something you really couldn't function well? Well it's sort of like that. I feel this feeling inside building. It gets stronger and stronger as the days go on. It especially gets stronger as I pray and learn more about God. I believe they're connected.

It's building and there's something coming. I can feel it, like an overwhelming moment that you're not prepared for but instead become so happy it's here that you scream. It's building and I can feel it right now. Is it God preparing in my something, maybe something to stretch and pull me. It's hard to think about anything else. All I want to do it quit my job and pursue this overwhelming urge. My passion is students. Is this feeling that's building connected to students as well?

If this is true then this building feeling, God, and students are connected. It's been building for a while. I've tried to ignore it, but at times it's so overwhelming that it wakes me up at night and even keeps me from doing things I really want to do at times. It's coming! I have no idea what it is, but I have no doubt that it'll change my life forever and change those around me as well. Will I be prepared? Will be able to handle it? I have no answers. If these three things are connected then it's going to be awesome. We've done a piss poor job of sharing God's life changing message with students in the past decade or so anyways. After all right now we're at 11% of youth are Christians....that sucks! It's building...I can feel it right now! I wonder if other people feel this or just me.

There's something coming. Will I be unbreakable or will it just completely overwhelm me and turn me into a non functioning vegetable. I don't know.

It's building right now...there's something coming!

Anything But Silent

Today I came upon this video. The video recounts the life of a normal person and their prayer life with God. He tries to use intellect to figure out why he doesn't hear from God but others around him seem to. He ask questions like...What do we do when God seems distant? How do we have faith when we can't prove our beliefs with reason? How do we trust God when we can't see him?

He makes a good point and I'm sure it's something we've all wrestled with as Christians. We've all wrestled with things like if we can't hear God, see God, or touch God, then how do we still have faith? So, what do we do?

This is a question we must individually deal with. For some it means we can look around and realize that all this can't be an accident. For others it takes hitting the bottom of life and when we look up God is the only thing we have left. Yet others find God by experiencing Him physically. Of course the last one was much more prevalent in Bible times.

Just gives us a lot to think about, and more importantly an insight into most student's lives and the lives of our generation of people.
God Rocks, Jtw

Everything Skit

I've seen lots of skits and dramas in my time. On top of that, I've been in many more. Here I've added a video from youtube that hits me everytime I've seen it. It's an awesome skit that I totally want to do one day. Tell me whatcha think.



Here's the Video Link on youtube... Everything Skit

You Ever been Anxious and overly Excited?

This week has been a week of prayer, dialogue with mentors and friends, and searching. For the past few months I've been talking to this guy named Tim Jernigan. He's the pastor at Northstar Fellowship church in Concord, North Carolina. I've learned from my bad experiences in churches that I need to be cautious. I've learned that I can't ignore the red flags and I can't settle for something that God doesn't want me to have anyways. So as I've met with people from the church, Tim, and his family, I've looked for those issues that I'm not gonna settle for.

This past week was leading up to yesterday (Sunday). My wonderful wife and I went then to teach the students, meet parents, and have our final meeting to help us decide if we want to go there. All I can say is Wow.

For months I've been searching for the place God wants me. I know how God's made me and what he wants me to do. I also know what I need to fulfill that plan. After numerous discussions on ministry, church politics, and just our lives in general, I've got nothing but Great things from God about this church. This seems like just what God had in mind. I believe God is doing great things here and the future is only going to be filled with greater things.

I can't wait to see where this goes after we move there and really get into these awesome people's lives. I can't wait. Can you see why I was so anxious and overly excited? I appreciate your prayers and will continue with it as you pray for me.

God Rocks, Jtw

Do u watch?

Today was reading in Matthew 27. I was reading all about what Jesus went through for me. It occurred to me something that I've never thought of before. God is an all seeing God. He knows everything, he sees everything, and without a shadow of a doubt knows what's best. In thinking that Jesus in Matthew 26 and 27 is murdered, what occurred to me is this...God watched this. I know what you're thinking, heartless right. I mean really, I don't think I could sit there while my child is beaten, stripped naked, humiliated, ripped open with sharp objects, nailed to wood, cursed at, and eventually killed. So, in continuing with that thought, why didn't God do something? Honestly I couldn't have stopped myself from doing something.

The priest even comes to Jesus right before death and says if he's really God he should come down and prove it. At that moment you can imagine thousands and thousands of angels swarming the spot and right before they strike Jesus says stop. They all stop and the priest knows nothing of the power and mercy he just escaped from.

To get back to God watching, God watched as his son was murdered by the people he was sent to save. This was the point though. People forget that God's watching, and he never stopped for a minute. He watched because he loved us. He allowed this to happen because he loved us. I can't imagine loving someone so much that you'd let your son die to save them. Well that's us.

I get asked a lot and it's a subject that people love to debate. Why do things happen like people burning up in fires or drowning in tsunamis. This happens because God loves us to much that he gave us free will. With that free will we've sinned and messed up royally. God watches all this and waits. If he stops it the gift of free will is gone. So, just like with his son, he watches and awaits the day when his love can be complete. That day will come and it's coming soon.
God Rocks, Jtw

4% -- HOLY CRAP

Today I was online. I came across Battle Cry's site and remembered all the excitement I had for going in March. I still may go, but I was going to take the youth group. I was watching some videos about how in only a few years there will only be 4% of people who call themselves Christians when the next generation gets here. That's staggering. It reminded me of a commercial that I saw once about drugs. In this commercial there was a girl in a pond and she couldn't swim. Her friend stood quietly on the dock, merely feet from her friend, watching her drown. The commercial ends with, the statement, "you would do something wouldn't you?"

I write this because it seems to me that many Christians would have to answer that question with a loud "NO." The odds of reaching a person for Christ after they turn 20 is 10 to 1. That scares the crap out of me. This is one of the reasons why I'm a Student Pastor. I want to reach the students with Christ no matter what it takes. Why doesn't every Christian have this point of view? It's a command of God isn't it? How did we go from a society where Christian morals are taught and most everyone was a Christian, to a place where only 4% do?

We as Christians have DROPPED THE BALL. Do you get it? 4% scares the crap out of me. Does it scare you? Battle Cry is a event where students, parents, and all Christians are called to stand up for our generation. They're called to defy what culture has said to us; that we can't be Christians. If you don't believe me just to go YouTube. Type in any Christian video and look at all the hate comments they've received. Go out to the mall and ask someone if you can pray for them or tell them about Christ and see if they don't curse you and spit at you.

How did we come to the point where 4% will be responsible for the spiritual direction of a generation? All I know is that we're called to stand up. Let's do it! God Rocks! Jtw

Prayer over Interview

Tonight I have a sort of interview with a man named Tim Jernigan. He's the pastor at a church called Northstar Fellowship (www.northstarfellowship.com). It seems like a very cool church that's reaching people. I'm very excited about what this could be. God's awesome and a lot of us have been praying for something like this for some time.

Pray over tonight. Pray that I don't let my excitement blur what God is telling me. Pray that God will give me a very clear answer. Tim seems like a great guy and seems like God is definitely with him. I want what God wants.

I appreciate your prayers, and Thank you God for the chance to be your Servant. Pray with me as I pray please...

Lord, Thank You for this opportunity. Thank you for all you've given me and for helping me to be patient as you send me what you have for me. Lord, tonight might be it, and might not. Either way God praise You. God tonight if this is the place you want me to serve you in, then God let me know. I want to serve you in your place. God, bless this ministry either way, Tim wants to reach people for you. Help him! Thank you again and Praise you Lord. In Jesus name..AMEN. JTW

Feminist and Christians

Today I was watching a TV show that made me laugh a little. On this show, this guy had a company being boycotted by a feminist group. So this guy made the decision to take the leading woman out to dinner. She spent the meal with the guy telling him how his company just uses women and causes a poor outlook on women. The funny thing came at the end of their meal. When the check came, the guy began to only pay for his part. The woman watched and was perplexed. She asked, why aren't you paying for all of it. She went on to say that "I thought we were on a date and I assumed you'd pay for it." The guy then turned to this woman and said the greatest statement I've heard in while. He said "Welcome to equality, this is what you wanted."

This woman was a feminist because she thought that women are being treated like second class citizens. The problem is that she wanted all the respect, money, and what she feels is rights that men are not giving men, but she didn't look at it from all sides. She didn't want to give stuff up like men paying for dates, or basically the gentlemen mentality.

So, how does this apply to Christians. A lot of Christians are just like this. They want to be Christians because they think they'll get something out of it; a.k.a. get out o hell free card. Again the problem with Christians is the same problem as the with the feminist. They don't look at it from all sides. Being a Christian is being a follower of Christ. This means doing what the Bible says to do, and not just doing what parts you want or do not want to do. Why do Christians and other people's ethics seem to waiver when they are put into a situation where their personal comfort is compromised.

So, what can we learn from this feminist that can be applied to our spiritual lives? I've learned that if we believe and especially if we label ourselves something that we shouldn't do anything to compromise that. When did situation ethics apply to Jesus and His calling on our lives? It doesn't! No matter the situation, no matter the comfort ability, no matter the issue, if you're a Christian act like it.

Don't we have enough hypocrites in our society? I don't want to spend one more second making my Savior look bad. If you're a feminist, then act like on no matter what. If you're a Christian, then act like one no matter what. God Rocks, Jtw