CHEER Up!

I’ve mentioned in past blog posts of how I have always enjoyed researching things, and that is exactly how I approached our first ministry position as youth leaders at Piper’s Baptist church.  I had received education and experience at Chico State as a Recreation Administration major with an emphasis in community recreation.  I even spent time assisting at a community center in downtown Chico.  But when it came to the religious education of our students… well… I was a little out of my league!  I was born and raised Catholic and was brand new to the Protestant side of the faith!  On the positive side though, I had an ace up my sleeve with my sweet and mature Christian wife Piper, as well as a Senior pastor that was behind me 100%!

So, what did I do?  I began to pour through all the church’s American Baptist Churches of the West denominational materials that I could get my hands on, looking for youth ministry resources… and organizations, publishers and other youth ministries began to pop up! 

My father-in-law loved junk mail and seemed to sign up for just about any free information he could!  He even had a system to read everything that was stuffed daily in their large mailbox at the foot of the hill where they lived.  His mail was always stacked next to his chair in the living room by the fireplace and as he watched TV, he would go through everything, keeping what was interesting and tossing the rest into the fire! 

At the time I thought it was cool because he always seemed to get free samples like pens or flashlights or pocket knives and the such.  So, I followed suite and started signing up for every and anything that had to do with youth ministry from any denomination whose materials I came across!

Eventually that process got me hooked up with many organizations across the country that we ordered books and study materials from throughout our years of active ministry.  Ironically, one of my favorite small group publications came through a local Catholic resource.  We had discovered early on in our own ministry, that the best way to get youth (and really people in general) to open up, was to get them talking about themselves.  About the things that interested them, the times in their lives when meaningful events took place and/or unique and special places that they had been.  These small group activity books that eventually became a popular series entitled “Serendipity” perfectly fit that bill!

They worked really well in the format of a weekend retreat where various sessions could be held as each new session built upon the last.  The first session had a series of simple and usually funny questions for every member to answer with each succeeding session growing from that level, building confidence and trust in the participants so that by the final session, most participants felt free to share from their hearts, and openly reach out to God and each other.

As Piper loved to share… “It was all about allowing our students to let their guard down and come to know how much Jesus loved each and every one of them in a very personal way.”  In an intensely private moment, the Psalmist in Psalm 23:4 cried out to the Lord and exclaimed,

“The comfort of your love takes away my fear. I’ll never be lonely, for you )O Lord) are near.”    (The Passion Translation)

It is interesting to notate that the word translated “comfort” in pretty much every Bible version I have, also gives the connotation of “cheer bringing” (Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary)  The Oxford Online Dictionary defines “cheer” as “to shout for joy or in praise or encouragement.”  In other words, God’s love toward you and me, is supposed to be a very CHEERFUL force in our lives!

Piper and I always strived to make every retreat we held, every weekly meeting we led at church as well as every youth or children’s activity night to be a very CHEERFUL event.  It is the way that we sought to live our Christian lives everywhere we went.  And when Piper got sick… it didn’t change us and our approach to life.  If there was one thing we knew (and especially Piper) it was how much God loved us… and that personalized knowledge made it difficult for us to get pushed out of shape when situations went south! 

I personally believe that our Christian faith should be the happiest force and source of CHEERFULNESS in our lives.  The CHEERFULNESS of God’s love for you and me has the power to ward off any fear that might try to engulf us!  CHEERFULNESS or joy is God’s secret weapon!  It is His supernatural source for our strength.  In times of distress and or need, Nehemiah 8:10 tells us not to feel sorry for ourselves but instead declares that, “the joy of the LORD is your strength.” (KJV)

It may not always be easy to be CHEERFUL in the face of the negative situations in our lives, but if your trust stays focused on God and the truth of His Word… the worry, the fear and the depression that tries to settle in around you will have to stay away from you… and you’ll find that you have the physical, mental and spiritual strength to make it through the tough times with great victory and a smile upon your face!  You’ll also be a lot more enjoyable to be around! 

So… bring on the CHEER as you celebrate America’s independence on this Fourth of July weekend!  I don’t care what some mis-guided individuals say in the news about our country… She is still the greatest country in the world, was founded on Christian principles and allows every citizen the opportunity to succeed in anything that they desire to accomplish through lots of dedication, hard work and a healthy, happy and loving attitude toward themselves and others!

Have a great, CHEERFUL and safe weekend… and while you’re at it… keep EXPECTING God’s Best in your life!

…And then remember Francis Scott Key’s famous words written in the heat of battle in 1814 that in 1931 came to be sung as the national anthem of the USA:

 ♫ “America the land of the free and home of the brave!” ♪