“I lift up my eyes to the hills.
From where does my help come?
My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.
”
“If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities,
O Lord, who could stand?
But with you there is forgiveness,
that you may be feared.”
“Come, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord,
who stand by night in the house of the Lord!
Lift up your hands to the holy place
and bless the Lord!”
Midweek greetings, Centennial Family! I missed y’all this last Sunday, and I wanted to fill y’all in on where I was. As a minister in this denomination, I am afforded many opportunities to serve God—locally at Centennial as well as in the larger denominational context. Currently, I am helping to lead the Catawba Presbytery’s Middle School Retreat. In our little piece of our “little” denomination, we had around 220 middle schoolers gathering together to enjoy one another’s company and hear from God’s Word! I praise God for such a large amount of students!
As the director for the last several years, I have tried to do a couple things. First, I have maintained what this retreat is designed to do—stay true to God’s Word in teaching and singing. The speakers for these retreats are not just encouraged to allow God’s Word to be the focus but required to do so. The same goes for the music leaders and seminar session leaders.
Second, we remind our middle schoolers that joy and laughter and fun can be had in the context of a believing community. Sometimes our students have a concept that the “church” is boring and the “world” is fun, but we remind them that serving and worshiping God carries with it the deepest joy one can ever find!
Third, I try to help our middle schoolers to see that they matter to God and his church. One thing I’ve found in my time spent with the middle schoolers on these retreats is an assumption that they don’t matter to God and his church as much as, say, their parents. Over and over, I remind them of God’s deep love for all his people. I remind them of the reality of their unique and varied gifts that really contribute to the local churches they find themselves in. I remind them that they have the same Holy Spirit indwelling them that I (or any other believer) have. I treat them like fellow brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ!
Above, you’ll find a couple verses from three Psalms. These were the Bible selections used by the Reverend Dean Franklin of Shiloh ARP Church, who was also the speaker this last weekend. This is what he told our students from God’s True Word:
Psalm 121: God is the Creator-God, who is also your Protector-God.
Psalm 130: God is the Judge-God, who is also your Redeemer-God.
Psalm 134: God is the Redeemer-God, who is also your Praiseworthy-God.
Think on these things with our students. Pray these things. And may our Creator-Protector-Judge-Redeemer-Praiseworthy God bless us this week.
Blessings,
Jeremiah