Winter Youth Reflections

I just got home from Winter Youth. What a fantastic time! I am very tired, yet very excited about what God accomplished in our lives this week. Thank you to those that prayed for us.

Our main speaker was Freddy T. Wyatt. Freddy is a very gifted speaker from Louisville, Kentucky, and really challenged us and the way we view worship. The theme of the week was We Shall Behold Him - Life As Worship. He addressed it very well!

Craig & Jake LIVE emceed the week and as well as spoke individually. Craig Gross is the co-founder of xxxchurch.com, a ministry dedicated to helping people break free from the grip of pornography. He shared some amazing things that God is doing in the lives of people that have been sucked into that lifestyle. He spoke on how loving people, including porn stars and producers, the very ones that the church wants to shy away from, is one of the greatest ways we can worhsip God. Excellent!

Both Shawn McDonald and Sara Groves played in concert. Both of them were great examples of people seeking, finding, and serving God.

Paul Ramey led us in worship through song, each session. The biggest hit of the week was definitely the David Crowder song, You Are My Joy! The students couldn't get enough of it!

By far the highlight of the week for me was the many youth group debrief times we had. Several times a day we would meet as a group to discuss the things heard and what God was doing in our hearts. It was very exciting to see our students come to grasp the full meaning of what worship is, that it is far more than singing, or a worship service or gathering. It is the way we live our lives. It is a daily lifestyle. One of our students realized and shared that we find our greatest joy when we find our satisfaction in God alone. True worship!

I was encouraged personally as I continue to discover myself what real and true worship is. May we as the church realize that what we do outside the walls of our church buildings is where real worship takes place.

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship.
- Romans 12:1