I don’t know about you, but I don’t believe everything I read.
Dare 2 Share - I don’t know about you, but I don’t believe everything I read (except what I write, of course). The mainstream manipulative media machine would have you believe that this generation of students is doing nothing but idolizing American idols and expending energy on X-box games.
I beg to differ…
In 1990, a small group of students in Texas decided to gather for a simple prayer meeting on behalf of this great nation. It was determined that the best place to meet would be around a flagpole…so it was appropriately entitled: see you at the pole. Over the last decade, we have seen this movement grow exponentially at an amazing rate. Last year, SYATP included over 3 million students gathering together to seek God’s face and beg Him to heal this land. This week the number will be (or was) even higher.
What this demonstrates to me is that teenagers really do care, and they want to make a difference. The media takes a small percentage of the student culture and touts it as the norm, but I’m here to tell you that the greatest potential in America lies in this generation of young people.
So what?
Well, if you are a student- ask yourself how you can make a difference in changing the world around you. Get involved in starting a prayer movement at your school that meets more than once a year. Initiate an evangelism strategy in your youth group that will reach your unsaved friends. If your youth group doesn’t care about evangelism, then find one that does…life is too short! There are hundreds of ways you can be used by God to leave an eternal legacy…the question is: are you willing to leave one!
If you are an adult- ask yourself how you can make a difference in the teenagers around you. If your church has a youth group, pray for them or volunteer your time. If your church doesn’t believe in youth ministry, then find one that does…life is too short! If you are an adult and you are not using your time and gifts to advance the Kingdom, you’re wasting your time.
Remember that God most often appears not in huge and dramatic ways, but where we often least expect Him. Perhaps you’ve been afraid to serve God in the past because you don’t think He’s spoken to you.
Again, I beg to differ…
"Go out and stand before me on the mountain," the LORD told him. And as Elijah stood there, the LORD passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. (I Kings 19:11-12)
Let this week’s See You at the Pole be an incredible visual reminder that we all should daily be ‘seeking God at the throne’ and listening for the ‘gentle whisper’ on behalf of ourselves and our sphere of influence…especially for the young people of this nation.
Questions:
1) Do I believe the media in regards to an accurate picture of our culture? Why or why not?
2) How am I making a difference in the world around me?
3) Am I open to starting something new in my school/youth group/workplace this week? Why or why not?
