Article Editorial

This is my article editorial for Lads to Leaders this year.

How were you feeling when you heard about the events in Connecticut? Twenty year old Adam Lanza walked into an elementary school in Connecticut and slaughtered twenty-six people. Twenty of these victims were children. After this heart-breaking incident there were numerous people on the case investigating why Lanza did what he did.

In Genesis 22:1-18 it describes how God tested Abraham. Gold told Abraham to take up his son Isaac whom he loves and go to the land of Moriah God commanded him to offer his son as a burnt offering on one of the mountains. This amazing story shows us not to question what happens and to follow the path God has set for us. Proverbs 3:5-6 also reminds us this by saying “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not unto thine understanding in all ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct your paths.” Hebrews 11:6 says “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”

If scriptures reminds us so many times not to question God then why do we? Lanza didn’t let God direct his paths, but that doesn’t mean that the rest of us can’t. Always do what God commands and in the way in which he commands. Do you let God direct your paths?

Mass Media

Recently I recorded my mass media audio. This is an event that I participate in every year. I love doing mass media audio because it gives me the opportunity to teach people with a short recording. This year my audio related to my first year and the direction that I had to take. I really hope that everyone enjoys listening to it as much as I enjoyed doing it. Here is mine if you would like to listen to it. "https://www.box.com/s/1s9imv7v1pzjk9sm7s1s"

Friendships

As you go through life you will make tons of friends. As a Chrisitan you want to make the right kind of friends. How do we know what kind of friends to make? To be able to find out how to chose your friends you need to turn to the Bible. God tells us in the Bible how to be a good friend.

Giving Advice

Well as a teenager I have tons of best friends. All of my friends come to me for advice. They come to me for advice about everything and as a friend it is my responsibility to be there for them and give them advice. As a Chrisitian when people come to us for advice we should be very careful with what we tell them. We might want to tell them what they want to hear but we need to tell them what they need to hear and what God would want us to tell them. So the next time someone comes to you for advice we should be really careful with what we tell them.

Decisions

Have you ever thought about the decisions you make? When you make a decision it influences you and the people around you. As a Christian people are constantly watching you so every decision you make is seen. Before you make a decision you should stop and think about if God would be happy with what you are doing or about to do.

Priorities

Why is that we can go to parties on Saturday nights but we can't make it to church Sunday morning? Why can we go to a ball game on Wednesday night instead of church? To be a Christian you need to have your priorities in order. You can't call yourself a Christian but put other things before God. God doesn't like coming second! God should come first in your life and should be your top priority!

Resolutions

Have you ever thought about what resolutions are? A resolution is the determination to do or not do something. Tomorrow is New Years Eve, the time when we will all be thinking of resolutions for the new year. Most of the time these resolutions won't even last a week. Why are we so worried about making resolutions to make sure we change our lives in the world but yet we don't try to fix our lives with God. When you become a Christian you have to change your life. These changes can't be taken loosely and have to be permanent!

Light the Fire

Well Friday I will be heading to Indian Creek Youth Camp to attend Light the Fire. This will be my second year attending Light the Fire. I love going to camp so I am really excited. This year my bestfriend is going to be going with me. At Light the Fire you make lots of new friends, learn more about God, and grow as a Christian. It is not too late to sign up. If you don't get to make it this year try to come next year. You won't regret it!

Influence

Have you ever heard of the word influence? We all have an influence on someone no matter how old we are. At the congregation that I attend I am the oldest in the youth group. Sometimes I feel like I'm not being a good influence. There are ten little kids at church and they are constantly watching me. This made me think about if I use this opportunity that I have to influence people. You might think nobody cares what you do but people actually do. There is someone in your life that you influence every time you are around them. It can be a little kid or an adult. The other night I taught the cradle roll class at church. This was my first time teaching a class and I was pretty nervous. When I got in there we started off with a prayer and then sung some songs. The whole time they were watching me wanting everything I had. One song we sang that made me think of this topic it went like this: Oh be careful little feet where you go, Oh be careful little eyes what you see, Oh be careful little mouth what you say, Oh be careful little ears what you hear, Oh be careful little hands what you do. All of these things in this precious song warn us to be careful what we allow ourselves to participate in. So why is it that we get mad at people when they do something that we are doing too? We need to step back and examine ourselves so that the next time we are around someone we will hopefully be in the Godly way instead of the worldly way.

Trying Something New

Recently I started marching band for the first time. I was really scared, worried that I was going to mess up, and i almost quit. It turned out that I'm pretty good at marching considering it's my first year. Most people are scared to try to do something new but when we are trying to teach others about the Bible not everything we do the first time is going to work. Some people might go to church with you the first time. Maybe when you ask if they want to sit down and have a Bible study with you they will! But sometimes you are going to have to think outside of your comfort zone to get somebody to listen to you about the Bible. I am not saying to do something that's wrong or sinful. What I am saying is that everybody should try something new. Who knows you might end up liking it!

Baptisim

Recently my best friend was baptised. When she was baptised it occurred to me how many people skip some of the steps of salvation. Many people just think that all you have to do is say you believe Jesus is the son of God. Some people even think that you should just take the Lord's Supper once a month. None of these things are what the Bible tells us to do. The Bible tells us we are supposed to Hear,Believe,Repent,Confess,be Baptised,and Remain Faithful. We are also supposed to take the Lord's Supper every Sunday. So please if you are not baptised  talk to somebody about the Bible today! We would love to have you as a brother or sister in Christ!

Camp

Camp is my favorite part of summer. I attend Indian Creek Youth Camp. Going to church camp you are around tons of other Christians. While you are there you grow spiritually and emotionally stronger to God. I think going to camp is something that everybody should try.

Summer Time

Summer is the time when many of us go on vacations, sleep late, and hang out with friends. But Summer is also the time when we should try to grow closer to people that need to be taught the word of God. During the summer I understand it might get hot but seriously dress modestly! We cant expect to be a good example to other people if we barely have clothes on and act like everybody else in the world does. If non-Christians see us dressing and acting of the world then people are going to think its okay to act like that when it is really not.

Friendships

Friendships are important in our lives. But the thing is taking advantage of opportunities in those friendships. When we have friends they listen to us and come to us for advice. But when they come to us for those things what do we tell them? When we have conversations with our friends we should tell them about God and invite them to come to church with us.

Love One Another

The Bible says to love one another. Some people might say they love somebody but do they actually show it? As Christians we have the responsibility of working hard to show our love for our fellow man. There is several different ways we can show this no matter how old you are. You can clean someones house,send them a card, or just make a phone call. There is always someone you can love in your life and you should never think that you are not loved. Besides for God so loved the world that he sent his only begotten son.

Have A Safe Trip

Well Thursday is the day we are all going to pack up our cars and got to Tennessee. I hope everybody has a safe trip up there and back. It is going to be a great experience I know nobody will forget. I want to wish everybody good luck in all of their events and to those who might not be participating in anything. Hope to see everybody soon!