August 30, 2010
Last night I offered a fairly straight forward lesson for our high school youth. It seemed to have a significant impact on many of them. I didn’t just want to leave the issue and walk away, but my hope is that in talking about questions, fears and challenges, that we can all move forward.
As we embark together on a new school year, there are lots of things to look forward to. The year is full of a lot of unknown elements but also lots of exciting possibility. As I asked kids to offer one word that describes their sense of the upcoming year, I heard “busy - stressful - scary” and more. When I asked them about goals they had for the coming year, I heard “graduating - being valedictorian - get A’s or B’s in my math classes” and more. There’s a lot of pressure and there are a lot of expectations surrounding a new year of school and classes.
We have a ton of concerns, goals and expectations regarding our academic course work, but we don’t really seem to put as much thought into our spiritual lives. “What are your spiritual goals for yourself for the coming year?” I asked this question and it seemed clear that most hadn’t considered it. Why should they have considered it? I’m a Pastor and I’m not sure if I’ve ever heard the question asked before. The problem is, when we don’t have a goal and we don’t have expectations - it’s really easy for our time to get used up. Some things in life are important and some aren’t and some things in life seem to be urgent and some don’t. When we don’t plan ahead and set goals regarding what we want to do with our time (regarding what our priorities are), we get sucked into allowing things that seem urgent but aren’t actually important - to take up our time.
The fact of the matter is - GOD IS IMPORTANT! To put it more directly, GOD IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN GETTING INTO “THE RIGHT” COLLEGE. I know that I’m taking a risk when I say this, because many people put a lot of time, effort and attention into making sure they have all the proper credentials to get accepted into all the most prestigious colleges and universities.
This is my response, “I know how it is. I was there. I remember the stress of August, September and October of my senior year. ‘Where are you going to apply? Do you think you’ll get in? What’s your back up plan? Where have you visited? Are you taking the SATs again? If you get in can you afford it? Do you think you’re smart enough to get a scholarship?’ The questions were relentless and I heard them from friends, family, classmates and from myself. The decision regarding what College/University to attend can easily feel like the first (and perhaps the most important) decision a young person has to make.”
I believe that confronted with all of this stress and pressure, many young people see high school as a chance to either get it “right” or “wrong.” They need to get everything right, so they can be successful and here’s what is at stake:
Kids need to get “the right” grades (A’s), in “the right” classes (AP/Honors) so they can get accepted to “the right” (most prestigious, famous, important) colleges and universities, so that they can earn “the right” degree (and hopefully meet the person of their dreams), so that they can get “the right” job with “the right company,” so that they can earn “the right” amount of money so that they can buy “the right” house in “the right” neighborhood so that their children can go to “the right” school and get “the right” grades in “the right” classes…
Unfortunately, in the scenario above, a mistake at the wrong time (or anytime) could result in a catastrophic collapse of all possibility of achieving “the right” life. Which would leave you as a FAILURE.
I believe, however, that there is viable alternative. Instead of having to get everything right all the time, what if we were able to trust that God was in control, that God has a plan for our lives. The Bible teaches that when we put our relationship with God at the top of our priorities, then God will help us to make sure everything else falls into place. I know it feels like a risky proposition and that you have a lot to lose, but at the end of the day, “Do you want to be in charge of whether your life is a success or failure? Or would you like God to handle that one?”
Delivering this type of message to an unsuspecting group of teenagers felt a bit cruel, but I don’t think I would be doing them any favors if I ignored the topic. Then, when I sat down to read my Bible I turned to a lectionary passage for the coming week and read Deuteronomy 30:15-20 which says that this decision regarding the top priority in your life, is a matter of life and death. It’s up to you, “now, choose life!”
What do you think about this topic? Is any of this helpful? Do you think I’m way off base?
Pastor Adam
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August 30, 2010
Are you a youth or a parent of a youth involved in our programs for youth and family at Hope? If so, I’d like to thank you for taking the time to visit this website. As we continue to find ways to get information and materials in your hands in the fastest, most convenient and most economical ways, it is my hope that you will make use of this site as a “first step” in seeking out WHAT YOU WANT TO KNOW. If you can’t find what you’re looking for here, please feel free to call me or (even better) email me.
At this point I’d like to call your attention to the calendar here on this site as it is a great source of information. It’s even color coded by group. Events for “the Way” (4th-6th graders) are Orange. Events for “the Truth” (7th & 8th graders) are Blue. Events for “the Life” (9th-12th graders) are Purple. Events for more than one or all of these groups are Green.
As you’re getting your calendar up to speed and organized for the coming year, here are a few documents that you might find useful.
It’s really exciting to see all that God is doing in the lives of the youth and families of this congregation and I hope that you will make these ministry opportunities a regular part of your schedule and your life. Please don’t hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns.
Pastor Adam Knudson
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August 20, 2010
As many of you know, our youth ministry has a leadership team made up of high school Sophmores, Juniors and Seniors who are interested in growing in their faith and who want a chance to help others in the youth ministry to grow and mature in their faith. If this sounds interesting to you, or if you’d like to learn more. You can check out the application here and you should talk to Pastor Adam if you have any questions. Applications are due this Sunday (8/22) so don’t wait. Consider this opportunity today.
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August 10, 2010
ATTENTION ALL CAMPERS,
It’s been a couple of weeks since you returned home from camp. How many times did you hear the question, “So, how was camp?” Did you have a good time? Do you miss it? Do you want to go back? What was the best part? What was the worst part? Is it nice to be back sleeping in your own bed? How was the camp food; it wasn’t too disgusting was it? What did you learn?
As your Pastor, I would just like to say that I’m thrilled that you decided to take a week out of your summer to go to “Church camp.” Whether you went to Shalom Camp at Mt. Cross or you attended Outpost, Sherwood Forest or High School Camps at Calvin Crest, I sincerely hope that your camp experience was memorable and perhaps even “life-changing.” In my own life, some of my most significant spiritual experiences happened during weeks of summer camp. Was this the case for you too? I’m writing this letter because I honestly want to know what your camp experience was like. I was with everyone at camp (at least for part of the time), but I wasn’t there for every minute of your experience and I haven’t necessarily heard what you thought about it.
I would like to invite you to SHARE YOUR STORY. It may be that you don’t have a super-serious moment to describe or maybe you do. What was something memorable that happened at camp? Maybe you could answer some of these questions: What was the best part of camp? What was something you learned at camp? What was something that happened at camp that you didn’t expect? How did your week at camp change your life? Did you make any commitments during your week at camp?
I feel so blessed to get to work with all of you amazing kids and talk to you and hang out with you, but there are many people in our church who don’t have these same opportunities. Did you know that there are dozens and dozens of adults in this church, who don’t even know your name, who love you and pray for you? The adults in this church are passionate about young people and it encourages them when they get to hear about what God is doing in your life. Did you know that it cost nearly $19,000 to send all 50 of our kids to summer camp? While you and your family paid a portion of this, more than $9,500 came from scholarships that were made possible through our fundraising efforts and the generosity of all the people in our congregation who supported this experience. God is definitely good!
What I would like you to do is to SHARE YOUR STORY by writing it down and sending it to me. You can write it with pencil and paper and mail it to me at the church, but I would prefer that you type it out and email it to adam@hopelutheranfresno.org or you can leave a comment right here on this Blog. Write a letter, share a story, answer some of the questions above, write a poem or talk about a meaningful Bible verse you learned. Do whatever you want; just send me something. J If you have some pictures that capture your experience you can send those to me as well. My plan is to use YOUR STORIES to share with our congregation. What you send may be used in any of the following: Blogs on our website right here, in church newsletters or in a flyer/brochure that we plan to publish as a special gift for our congregation for all of their love, support and encouragement. I recommend that you take a few minutes in the next day or two (before you get busy with school) and write down your thoughts and send them to me. I would really appreciate it. Please don’t hesitate to call me if you or your parents have any questions. Thanks for your help.
Very Truly, Pastor Adam Knudson
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July 14, 2010
Greetings to you from SHALOM Camp at Mt. Cross where Pastor Roger, Mrs. Pastor (Cheryl), and I have been having a great week here at Mt. Cross in Felton, CA. It’s been a wonderful time to be away from the heat and on retreat, to listen to God, enjoy the fellowship of other Christians, and reflect on our lives of discipleship. As is (usually) the case, it’s been a pleasure to be with our youth. Here’s a photo of the whole group of us, just to prove that we’re having a great time. Please keep our kids in your prayers: James, Miranda, Kristen, Alli, Rebecca, Alyssa and Jessica. Please pray that they will hear God’s voice during this week and return to the “real world” refreshed and invigorated to pursue Christ with their whole hearts and lives.
(Click on image to enlarge)
Thanks for all your support. <><Pr. Adam
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July 8, 2010
As many of you know, several members of our youth group are currently in Rwanda as members of the Sierra Pacific Synod Youth Committee’s trip “Faith Acting in Love.” Kristina Garabedian and Alison Quinn travled as leaders along with Jennifer Little, Kyle Teague and Emma Wheeler (youth from Hope). Those of you who have been remembering our young people and keeping them in your prayers can (if you’re a Facebook person), check out their “page” HERE and see more messages, photos, etc. They are almost done with their time in Rwanda and Alison wrote, “we are preparing for the return flight home …and we definitely feel the love from people’s prayers at home and our trip has been unbelievable!!!!”
They have been having an amazing trip, but you don’t have to take my word for it, here’s what our youth had to say, in responses to some questions.
KYLE TEAGUE
Why do you think God had you travel all the way around the world to Rwanda? ou don’t have to go very far from home to see God’s presence, but why did God have us travel all the way around the world to Rwanda?
My response to this question would be that God sent me on this journey to rekindle our connection. Be
fore I left for Rwanda I had a feeling of being disconnected from God and feeling lost. However, my experience in Africa has sparked a new connection that I feel as close to God as I ever have. I can see his presence every day from the people we meet and the places we see, and everywhere we go. The most important thing i can take from this experience is that I am blessed. Blesed not because I have more wealth or material items than others, but because I have a God that loves me and will always be with me. The Bible quote that has been spinning around in my head for the last couple days is Deuteronomy 31:8 “The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid, do not be discouraged.” This quote means more to me than it ever has, for it is as if God is speaking directly to me and telling me he is right by my side.
Photo of Kyle listening to Robin, principal of the Rwamagana Lutheran School.
JENNIFER LITTLE
What does it mean to be the “Body of Christ” ?
I think it means looking past our differences to see how much we have in common. While in Rwand
a we had a chance to worship with youth from the Rwamagana Lutheran School, we sang together in English and Swahili which was really powerful for me and an awesome example of the body of Christ. We should be one body due to the love our God gives us, not to keep to ourselves, but to share with our brothers and sisters in Christ. The Rwandan culture really emphasizes the meaning of hospitality which I believe is necessary to live a Christian life. They have been so welcoming and loving here in the way everyone welcomed us like we were family. I feel that God is so alive and well here, it’s amazing. The people of Rwanda are working to grow the church here in the same way we are striving for that in America. This shows that God is bigger than the distance from America to Africa and I feel that by coming here I have re-experienced the meaning of “one body in Christ” and I am so grateful for it. During the church service Pastor Prince shared a though that I found very powerful when he said, “once you become a Christian you become a citizen of the world, anywhere you go you will have a home and a family in God’s house.” I think this sums up the meaning of being the body of Christ.
EMMA WHEELER
What is the “good news” that God has placed in your heart?
God has placed so much good news in my heart through the people here in Rwanda. The people here are amazingly hospitable and welcoming!
Every time we visit somewhere - Jean Chaffee’s school, Vincent’s house, Rwamaga Lutheran School (RLS), and our host families, we were welcomed like we were family! We were told to greet our families for them back at home and a girl named Esther at RLS declared us to be sisters and that I should tell my sisters back home that she is their new sister. This compassion has shown me the light of God and I want to bring their hospitality as God’s good news to the world.
It’s amazing what God has to teach us - through people half-way around the world and through our own children. Let’s continue to pray for their safe return, that God will give them the courage to share what they have learned, and God will give us the humility to learn from their stories and be led by the voice of God.
<><Pastor Adam Knudson
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June 2, 2010
Although the weather seems to be a bit confused, the fact of the matter is that SUMMER IS ALMOST HERE! As we look forward to the end of the school year and the opportunity for travel and vacations, it’s also “high time” that we started to get ready for summer camp. If you are reading this article and you aren’t a participant in our youth ministry program and you don’t have a child in our program - GOD BLESS YOU! If that’s you, I would ask that you pray for the more than 50 children from this congregation who will spend a week at camp this summer. We are praying that God will grab a hold of their lives and they will return to the friends and family with a new sense of purpose and a new passion for their faith and for “extending hope in Jesus.”
If you are going to camp with us this summer or if you’re a parent of a child who will be going to camp with us this summer, then please keep reading. We have a lot of paperwork and information that you need to receive. You can access some of it through the links below, but we would also request that every camper and/or their parent attend a meeting this Sunday, June 6 between services (1015-1045AM) in the Conference Room here at Hope. At that time, we will have all of the forms, paperwork, billing info, etc. If you’d like to get a head start on some of the paperwork or get information now, you can click the links below. We have kids going to various camps, so make sure you get the right info for the right camp:
High School Camp at Calvin Crest
Sherwood Forest Camp at Calvin Crest
Shalom Camp at Mt. Cross
Outpost Camp at Calvin Crest
Thanks for taking the time to check out the relevant paperwork here. We do have one more Fundraiser planned as the amount of scholarship money needed to send help send our youth to camp is more than $9,000. If you are going to camp, please plan to help with a Bake Sale on Father’s Day (June 20). Plan to bake several items and plan to help us sell baked goods between services (10-11AM). Contact Alison Quinn for details on the Bake Sale.
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May 18, 2010
This past Sunday was our final lesson in our “True Love Waits” series. The purpose of this series has been to discuss the subject of sexuality and sexual purity in a way that is relevant, realistic and yet biblical. The mainstream media and our culture get to express their views and give recommendations regarding how we should treat our sexuality and the church is often hesitant to enter into this conversation. During the past month we have discussed the possibility of living life to the full.
Now many people might suggest that living life to the full involves doing whatever you want, with whoever you want, whenever you want. While this lifestyle may be stylish it seems to be far from fulfilling. Broken hearts, broken dreams, broken homes and broken marriages are some of the obvious products of this way of living. In our conversations, I’ve suggested that perhaps God (the almighty creator of the universe) really does know what kinds of choices and decisions are best for us. Perhaps when we adopt God’s standards and priorities as our own, we are far closer to freedom and fulfillment than if we chose any other path.
Our conversations haven’t centered on a detailed understanding of “right” and “wrong.” We have avoided the temptation to focus on the line between good and bad, acceptable and unacceptable, because this line normally leaves us with two kinds of people: the sinner and the self-righteous. As Christians desiring to live by God’s grace, we have tried to set Christ in the center of the conversation and focus our attention on Christ alone.
In our final conversation this past Sunday we discussed the reality of dating. While it’s flattering to have someone who likes you and exciting to have a boyfriend or girlfriend to share with, I wonder if it has much value. Unless you are ready to consider marriage, I’m convinced that your time and energy will be best spent focusing on who God has called you to be. Are you looking for someone who is self-confident, intelligent, has a plan for their life, is emotionally stable, considers their faith to be a priority in their life? If you found such a person would they be interested in you? If you aren’t confident with who you are, if you aren’t clear about what your plan is for your life and if you don’t like yourself very much, then a romantic relationship is (at best) a risk. If, on the other hand, you spend your time getting yourself straight and strengthening your relationship with God, I’m confident that you will attract the kind of person that you’re looking for and you can avoid the drama and the heartache of most adolescent romance.
If you’re interested in embracing a commitment to make sexual purity a priority in your life, check out THIS. It gives you an idea of what will happen during a service of worship when you will have a chance to make this kind of declaration publicly. Read the document and let me know if you’re interested in participating either at the 9am service on May 30 or the 11am service on June 6.
So, what do you think about all of this? Does this make sense? Is it practical/relevant? Is this too idealistic? Could this work?
<><Adam
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May 11, 2010
Early morning at the Hope parking lot
Costco Muffins + Orange Juice = Breakfast of Champions
We got our day started right on schedule
Our van started on scheduled but decided to take a nap
Turning around, tow trucks and shuffling our seats
We got to Great America about an hour late
Enjoyed some cool rides
Heard some awesome bands: Manic Drive, tenth avenue north, Brandon Heath, David Crowder Band, Thirday Day!
Acquired a GIANT blue frog/avatar
Some late night challenges
Late nights meals…always satisfying
12:15 AM back to Hope to meet the parents
Good day…long day…great people…great fun!
What did you think? What was your favorite part of the day?
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May 4, 2010
Our series on “sexual purity” continues and this past Sunday night (May 2) we had some great conversations on what it takes to be someone’s ULTIMATE MATE.
The truth of the matter is that none of us can do anything about what we’ve already done in our life, but we do have complete freedom to choose what decisions to make from this moment forward. Our sexuality is an incredible gift from God, and it is our privilege and responsibility to guard it wisely.
Much of our discussion time was spent thinking about the ideal person that we would like to have in our life. What is your ideal man or woman like? What is important to you? Physical attributes? Personality? Beliefs? Intelligence? Family Background? Of course we all have lots of things that we’re looking for in our ideal person. While it’s easy to imagine what our ideal person might be like, it’s important to consider whether or not we are doing all we can to become someone else’s ideal person.
In high school (and at other times in life) it’s easy to spend time trying to figure out who to like, who likes you, who do you want to like you, etc. My suggestion, however, would be to spend this time becoming comfortable with yourself. If you aren’t happy with who you are by yourself, you’re not likely to have success in a relationship with somebody else. It’s just too much stress and strain if the other person is constantly having to provide you with encouragement and self-confidence because you lack it on your own. Spend these years becoming the mature, happy, confident, intelligent, mentally and emotionally well-balanced person that you are hoping to find and you will do well at attracting the type of person you’re looking for.
Here are a few scripture verses that touch on this topic. Are they helpful?
1 Corinthians 15:33 / 1 Timothy 4:12 / Matthew 7:12 / 1 Corinthians 10:13 / 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 / Philippians 4:8
What do you think? Is there value in serious high school relationships? What’s the point in dating if you aren’t ready to think about marriage?
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