Inscribed

I grew up in a pretty conservative Christian home. I spent 16 years in the Covenant Church which is also pretty conservative! When I was a Junior in high school my family switched churches to a baptist church, and I now serve as youth pastor in a baptist church.

I often joke about how I don't make a very good baptist! Thank goodness for God's Grace! ;) Even though I cannot dance, I do. I have tried beer, but not till I was 21! I also have a tattoo! No need to quote Leviticus to me. I know what it says. I know that a lot of Christians have a hard time with tattoos. My mother included.

I really wanted a tattoo when I turned 18, but some factors played into me not getting it until I was 21. Money, that was a pretty big one. I wanted to make sure that what I got meant something! I also wanted to respect my mom and so I waited until I moved out.

But I was reading in Isaiah today! It says this!!

Isaiah 49:16a

¹⁶ See, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands;

Now look at that word inscribed! This word is used six other times in the Old Testament! Each time it is used it talks about inscribing or writing something into stone or metal! It is permanent!

In Isaiah the Israelites are complaining that God has forgotten them. God tells them that he has "tattooed" them on the palm of his hand! It is hard to forget something that is on your hand!

No matter what you are going through know that if you have surrendered your life to Christ your name is on the palm of his hand!

If you feel like God is distant, or has forgotten about you, remember you are inscribed on his hand!

This means that you are important to him! When I was deciding what to get for a tattoo I asked myself over and over what do I want to remember that my life is most about!

My tattoo is Greek for Love! The word is Agape. This is what I want to remember most! God loved (Agape) me so much that he sent his son Jesus to die for me! When I surrendered my life to him he wrote my name on his palm! My goal, or purpose in life is to share that LOVE with everyone I come in contact with!

1st John 4:19

We love because HE first loved us!

This is my life verse! I want to Agape because God first loved me! His love is what makes my heart beat! I never want to forget it so I inked myself! Every time I raise my arm, for worship, or work, or yawning, or saying hello to anyone, reaching for a hand shake or hug. If I am frustrated with life and I throw up my arms wanting to give up, I have it there to remind me that...

GOD IS LOVE!!

Defying the Odds!

As some of you may know I am the Youth Pastor at a Church in Ramsey MN. The School that most of my students attend is Anoka High School. Two of the Seniors in my Church play for the Anoka High School Girls Basketball Team! This season for them has been a season to remember! They finished the regular season with a record of...

2 and 24!

They also have not won a postseason game since 1999! I was 11 years old! Most of the players on the team were in diapers!!

Now you might be thinking to yourself, "wow Tyler way to encourage the team." But this story is not over! These girls defied the odds!

In Minnesota State High School League every team is entered in the Sectional Tournament. This is where the story gets cool! These girls won the section tournament! So today My pastor and I are going to the game at the Target Center where they play the number one seed!! This is the first time EVER that Anoka has been to state for Girls Basketball!

Talk about defying the odds!

I love the story of David and Goliath! This is a story about defying the odds! Goliath was a huge scary man, and David was believed to be in his teens! I don't know about you but when I was a teenager I was a scrawny little dude!

But David had faith! David believed that HIS God! Yahweh was greater then anything or anyone! He believed that God could and would defy the odds!

1st Samuel 17:45-47

⁴⁵ David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. ⁴⁶ This day the LORD will deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. ⁴⁷ All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.”

And you know what...He did!

What about you? What is your giant in your life? Job Loss? Marriage Problems? Drugs? Porn? Lack of Purpose? Just life overwhelming you? What ever is your Giant do you believe that God can defy those odds?

I know that in the heat of the moment it is hard to say God is in control! But I tell you what it is so freeing! To know that it does not all rest on your shoulders! God is in control! Cry out to God! God please defy the odds in my life! God I know you are bigger then the Giants in my life! God you are in control!!

Way to Go Anoka Girls Hoops!!! Good Luck at State!!

Tsunamis and Slivers

One of the biggest things I have been challenged with as of late is my prayer life. I want to be one who is devoted to God in prayer. But at times I find myself just trusting in my own strength to try and get things done.

1st Thessalonians 5:17

Pray Continually

If I had to paraphrase this I would say PRAY ALL THE TIME!

Now at time I think we as Christians today, myself included, think of prayer as a programed thing.

Before a meal

Before a message

Before a meeting

Before bed

After a meal

After a message

After a meeting

After bed

We even have designated prayer meetings.

Now I am not saying this is bad, but for me I want to pray a totally dependent prayer! God I need you so much, and I want to talk to you so bad, I would even stop in the middle of eating! GASP!!

I have been challenged to pray when I am driving in the car. Turn the radio off and just talk out loud what I am thinking about to God.

I wonder if the people driving by me think I am nuts??

This world is in need of prayer warriors. People who are not just about praying at the right time, or when it is convenient or programmed.

There was a Tsunami that hit Japan today, as well as 18 other countries! PEOPLE ARE DYING! Did we take time to stop what we were doing and pray for these people. Sure we posted on Facebook that our prayers go out to Japan. But did we...really...PRAY!

I don't mean to say this to condemn anyone, because I am just a guilty as the next person. Sure I will pray for you and then I don't. How hypocritical can I be! God help me change!

Some of these people are our brothers and sisters in Christ! Please take time today to pray for them!

Romans 12:12

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, and faithful in prayer.

I want to be faithful in prayer, and I think that is more then just our programed prayer! Pray continually! When I am in the car I want to talk with God! When I am walking from classroom to classroom, while I am at work, I want to pray for the students. We have the opportunity to communicate with God through prayer!

So whether life throws us tsunamis or slivers I wanna be a dependent on prayer. I want to be dependent on God. I want to pray continually, and be faithful in prayer!

How bout you? Will you join me? Through Tsunamis and Slivers let us Pray Continually!

The Ultimate Transformer!

Alright! So if you are reading this you are in for a sneak peak! Starting March 23rd at Hope Fellowship's Sr. High Student Ministries we are kicking off a series called The Ultimate Transformer!

Pretty Sweet huh? I left this picture pretty vague to make it more suspenseful!

But I am actually gonna talk a little about what it is!

Here we go...

Jesus is the Ultimate Transformer!

How awesome is that! Now if you are being transformed by Jesus you know what I am talking about! Our life will never be the same!

If you don't know what that is like, or you want to know more I am talking about that starting Wednesday the 23rd of March!

Jesus Transforms our lives! He does this first by the example he sets! More importantly he Transformed our lives by dying on the cross, and rising from the DEAD!!

2nd Corinthians 3:17-19

17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

Based on the example that Jesus gave us through his life we are being transformed! The Ultimate Transformer is transforming us! It the words of Crush from Finding Nemo...

That Was Totally Wicked Man!!

What Examples do we have??

Jesus Valued People! Acts 1:8

Jesus Was Balanced! Matthew 15:39

Jesus Was Selfless! John 13:1-17

Jesus Prayed! Matthew 9:37-38

Jesus Felt Peoples Needs and Pains! John 11:35

Jesus is the Ultimate Transformer! Are you being transformed?

Hearers and Doers

So think about this! Those of you who grew up watching Charlie Brown, you know the way that the adults talk! Wah-Wah-Wah-Wa!

Sometimes in the Church I wonder if that is all we hear? Wah-Wah-Wah-Jesus-Wah-God-Wah-Friendship-Wah. We hear what the pastor is saying. We tell the pastor how moving his message was. But then we forget to move!

²² Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. ²³ Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror ²⁴ and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.

People wonder why people in the Church sometimes don't have a purpose. Sometimes I think it is like Christian Comatose!

Sunday morning rolls around and the people file into church. They sit down and
'hear' the pastor. After an hour they start getting restless, looking at their watches, adjusting their butts in the seat. The pastor says those words that most people are waiting for, "let's pray!"

What happened to the days that the word of God changed us! Not only did it change us, but we did something with that change in our life.

Let's not just hear the things that the Bible is saying! Do it!

Don't just be a hearer, be a doer!

Blending Into The Crowd

So at youth group we had a sweet event. This is actually an event that I did when I was in youth group. It is called Wheres Shmeckpepper! Now I know what you are thinking...What in the world is a Shmeckpepper? Well I am glad you asked!

----- These are Shmeckpeppers!-----

At Hope Fellowship I am blessed with some awesome adults who are willing to dress up in crazy outfits!!

Thanks Joe, Tanya, Bob, Christine and Ed!!

These awesome people dressed up in crazy outfits and walked around the mall. The object of the event was for the kids to walk around and try and find the Shmeckpeppers.

As we were out at Rosedale Mall in Roseville, MN I was reminded of something. As I was walking by the crowds of people they all just blended in with the next person. Then with a glimpse of hope...a Shmeckpepper! They looked semi-normal, yet there was something about them that made them seem different!

I think as Christians we should be like this. It is not our job to blend into the crowd and just get by!

1st Peter 2:11-12

¹¹ Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. ¹² Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.

I urge you. Paul urges us to, as aliens of this world, abstain from sinful desires. The Devil wages war against us! We are at war. Do you just wanna blend in with the world so that you can get by, or enter the battle field?

Now I don't want you guys to think you have to live a good life to earn your salvation. The reason we should live a good is so that the people who don't know Christ can see our life and be attracted to God! We are to be Christ to the world. We cannot be Christ to the world if we, first, do not act like Christ, and second if we are just okay blending into the world!!

So let me ask you are you a Shmeckpepper??

Civics and Civility!

Those of you that know me, or if you don't know me you would find out that people who drive slow drive me nuts. I don't mind if you drive the speed limit. To be honest even 1 or 2 miles under doesn't even bother me. But when it is 65 MPH, 55 MPH is not okay!

I was driving home from work today and I was stuck behind a Honda Civic! Yep you guessed it. They were going 45 in a 60. That was not even the worst part they were fluctuating between 45 and 55. So not only are we going slow but I can't even put my cruise control on and ride it out.

AHHH!!!!

Then when I finally had the chance to pass this person I kicked my little 4 cylinder Toyota into gear and VROOM! But as I passed I looked over and saw that the young girl was crying.

I felt like a JERK!

All I could think about was how mad I was that this person was driving like blind wombat! Now I don't know why she was crying, but frankly it doesn't really matter. The fact was she was hurting!

Then it hit me...

How often do we just fly by people on the highway of life and all we can think about is why are they slowing me down?!?!?!

Why was I in such a hurry? I didn't have anywhere to be!

As I went by I started to pray...God give me your eyes! Let me see what breaks your heart and let me act on it when I can!

I don't wanna be so caught up in the highway of life that I miss chances to help people who are hurting! This world is hurting, and we have the opportunity to help!

I wanna love on people because Jesus loved on people! I can't love on people if I am to worried about passing the slow Civic.

1st John 4:11-12

¹¹ Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. ¹² No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

I want God's love complete in me. So I want to love! I want to love those who love me. I want to love those who are nice to me. I want to love those who are easy to love...

...I also want to love those who are hard to love. I want to love those who are not nice to me. I want to love those who are hard to love. I want to love those who drive slow on the highway, because we are called to love like Christ loved!

1st John 4:19

We love because He first loved us.

How's your driving? God is working on Mine!