Legacy Youth Ministry Resources

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Yieldedness Plus Years

"Growth is yieldedness plus years." (Heard from Charles Stanley)

Foundation of the Sears Tower

Some people have never been grounded in their faith. They stand in danger of being blown away by peer pressure, or simply by their parents loosing interest in church. But as any architect knows, to build a secure building, you need to build a strong foundation. Take the Sears Tower in Chicago, for example. The world's tallest building, this incredible structure stands 1707 feet tall and is populated by 12,000 people. But we only see what?s on top, and never see the foundation that secures this huge structure. Its base is a full acre and the structure is supported by 114 rock caisons, each sunk as deep as the Statue of Liberty is tall, securely socketed into bedrock. A tall building must have a strong foundation. In the same way if you merely go to church because your friends go, or because your parents go, then your spiritual house is built on a flimsy foundation. Your foundation should be your own personal relationship with Christ, and that relationship needs to be deepened by the disciplines of prayer, bible study, fellowship, and ministry. ? Copyright 2002 Steve Miller - All Rights Reserved

I Wrote That Hymn

The need to keep growing, not getting comfortable where we are: Leroy Eims once told of a lady in the old West, who was traveling from Boston to teach school. "In the stagecoach across from her there was a man, a drunken sot who was sitting there with his hat down over his eyes, spittle running down the front of his vest, unshaven, bleary-eyed and stinking. The lady was humming a hymn. Finally, this man looked up at her and said, 'woman, would you stop humming that hymn?' and she said, 'Why is that? Does it bring back some memory or something that you'd rather forget? His answer was tragic. He said, 'Bring back some memory! #!#!#! woman, I wrote that hymn.'" The hymn was 'Come Thou Fount Of Every Blessing.' One of its phrases is, "Prone to wander, Lord I feel it. Prone to leave the God I love." ? Copyright 2002 Steve Miller - All Rights Reserved

Getting Used to the Christian Life

Especially if you didn't grow up in a Christian family, don't be surprised if living the Christian life and understanding the Bible and the church take some time. You're kind of like a sailor I heard about: "An able-bodied seaman meets a pirate in a bar, and they take turns recounting their adventures at sea. Noting the pirate's peg leg, hook, and eye patch, the seaman asks, "So, how did you end up with the peg-leg?" The pirate replies, "we was caught in a monster storm off the cape and a giant wave swept me overboard. Just as they were pullin' me out, a school of sharks appeared and one of 'em bit my leg off." "Blimey!" said the seaman. "What about the hook?" "Ahhhh...," mused the pirate, "We were boardin' a trader ship, pistols blastin' and swords swingin' this way and that. In the fracas me hand got chopped off." "Zounds!" remarded the seaman. "And how came ye by the eye patch?" "A seagull droppin' fell into me eye," answered the pirate." "You lost your eye to a seagull dropping?" the sailor asked incredulously. "Well..." said the pirate,"...it was me first day with the hook."

More Filled

How can a person be filled with the spirit, but still an immature Christian? How can you get more full than "full?" When you blow a breath of air into a balloon, it is full of air. But now it still has the capacity to hold more air as it is filled. In the same way, as a Christian, I can have all of Christ, be completely in His will, yet as I grow, so grows my capacity.

Firm Roots from Winds and Storms

The most firmly rooted trees are the ones that have consistently endured the worst winds and storms.

A Topsy-Turvy Experiment

On renewing our minds over the years by reading the word, church, etc... In a fascinating experiment, scientists designed some glasses (which resembled binoculars) so that whoever wore them would see everything upside down. In the experiment, they asked several subjects to strap on a pair of the glasses and not take them off during their waking hours. At first, of course, they could hardly walk, or even sit upright. But after a few weeks, their brains adjusted and they were actually able to see things right-side up through the glasses. But when they took the glasses off, they saw everything upside down through their natural eyes. It took several additional weeks to recover. But that's sort of what it's like for people who come out of spiritual darkness into the light. Many things are reversed, such as ?we are weak when we are strong.? ?The first will be last and the last will be first.? So don't expect your vision to change overnight. It takes time: reading the Word, hanging out with other believers, attending church, and meeting with God in prayer, to renew our minds. ? Copyright 2002 Steve Miller - All Rights Reserved

Schwarzenegger's Mentor

At 15 years of age, Arnold Schwarzenegger decided he wanted to be the best body builder in the world. And when he saw a massive bodybuilder named Reg Park in a movie, he knew he had found his hero. In Schwarzenegger?s own words, "From that point on I was utterly dominated by Reg Park. His image was my ideal. I found out everything I could about Reg Park. I bought all the magazines that published his programs. I learned how he started training, what he ate, how he lived, and how he did his workouts. I became obsessed with Reg Park; he was the image in front of me from the time I started training?. I pasted his pictures on all the walls of my bedroom. ? I studied every photograph of him I could get my hands on ? noting the size of his chest, arms, thighs, back and abdominals. This inspired me to work even harder. When I felt my lungs burning as though they would burst and my veins bulging with blood, I loved it. I knew then that I was growing, making one more step toward becoming like Reg Park.." (Arnold: The Education of a Bodybuilder, by Arnold Schwarzenegger and Douglas Kent Hall, A Fireside Book, New York, pp. 18-20. Used by Permission.)

An Acorn that Held its Ground

An oak is an acorn that held its ground.

L'Amour - Victory is Won in Inches

Victory is not won in miles, but in inches. Win a little now, hold your ground, and later win a little more. ? Louis L?Amour

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