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--Matt

"Where's God?"

For two days now, this question has been rocking me at my core… “Where’s God?”. I was sitting in church yesterday morning, and the lady behind me was trying to quiet her grandson as the service was starting. However, said grandson was having none of this. He was visibly upset and adamantly inquiring, “Where’s God?”. He had come to see God and refused to be silenced or satisfied until his question was answered. “Where’s God?”

This question has been playing over and over again in my head, and I’ve begun to ask the same question not only about Sunday morning church but about the rest of my life as well. This triggers a whole slew of questions- When did I get to a point where I stopped looking desperately for God in the place where His people gather? Have we as a Church stopped expecting God to show up in our midst, and instead settled for a weekly gathering for the sake of tradition? Why is it so easy for me to forget to watch for God to appear in my life on a daily basis? Have I become numb to the patterns of life, sedated by accepting the invisible, and lost the ability to look and expect a visible meeting with Creator God? Tragic, really is what I would call it if “Yes” is the answer to any of these questions.

God has proved Himself to be faithful and sovereign in recent days. He is at work in my life and I am expectant that this will culminate in January while I spend a week in Atlanta attending the Passion Conference and spend two weeks in Gabon, Central Africa immediately after. I am convinced that God wants to show Himself to me in a clear and powerful way during these three weeks. For now, I will be obedient and wait and prepare myself for this divine appointment. As Christmastime passes by and 2011 begins, I intend to passionately ask the question… “Where’s God?”

This is why I do what I do...

Let me start off my saying that I LOVE my job! Are there days where I want nothing less than a double-shot of whiskey and a bullet to the forehead? For sure! And yet there are moments of reward that make it all worth it, much like tonight...

This past week we (Summit Grove Camp) hosted the 10th Anniversary week of "Camp Connect". This special program is run by the Baltimore County (MD) Department of Social Services, and is geared to bring children who have been separated into different foster homes back together for a week of camp! Such a great opportunity to express love and care to those who often go without!

Although a great group of kids, the majority of the population of this camp is from urban/metro-center backgrounds, often underprivileged and low-income. This creates the potential for them to be a somewhat high-maintenance group. Every year during Camp Connect my role consists of constant motion to make sure that everything is running smoothly and they are having a great week of camp. Lodging facilities, food service and meal times, excursions and transportation (days at the lake, trips to amusement parks, horseback riding, inner tubing, go-karting, etc), bonfires, swim times at the pool, icebreaker games, and a whole bunch more- all part of my week. I'm on the go just shy of 24/7 (little to no exaggeration).

Tonight, one of the campers came up to me, and our conversation went something like this:

Camper- "What's your name?"

Me- "I'm Matt"

Camper- "Matt come over here some people want to talk to you"

Me- "Ok" (thinking: what do they want now?)

We walk over and he introduces me

Camper- "His name is Matt"

Camper- "Matt we've been coming here alot of years, and every time we see you and you make everything happen. We realized that we never say thank you, so..."

Other Campers- "THANK YOU!"

I'll be honest, this made my night! These kids who typically don't think much past themselves thanked me for their week of camp and their past couple years of great camp experiences! Now, I cannot take the full credit for all of this, it is a team effort. And yet I've observed and experienced that the life of a camp director is truly a thankless job. Everyone has a need or a demand, and yet not too many say "thanks" other than right after they've paid for their week of camp (I'm not complaining, just letting you in on my life).

I'm thankful for what these campers have seen in me- consistency, faithfulness, and a servant's attitude. Consistency is huge to a child who comes from an unstable background, and I'm glad that they've noticed that I am here year after year when they come to camp. Faithfulness comes from following through with the things that I promise on behalf of the camp/host facility. And a servant's heart, I can honestly say that I love these kids and would do anything to make their week amazing. This is by far my favorite week of camp!

Thanks for letting me share with you, may someone in your life notice the good things God is doing through you! And may they have the boldness to say so, as Proverbs 16:24 says "Kind words are like honey-- they cheer you up and make you feel strong" (CEV).

Living it UP!

-Matt

Memoirs of a Graduate...

Graduation Eve, a night to look backwards and reminisce all that has taken place in the past four years. All that I've learned, all that I've experienced, all that I've accomplished, all that I've failed, all that I've yet to learn.

Tonight I find myself tasting the bittersweet flavor of the past and the future colliding, I'm truly standing on the seam of two critically formative portions of life. One in which you are molded and formed, and the next in which you do likewise to the world.

I will miss all that I tomorrow say goodbye to, and yet there is peace and comfort, passion and joy, hope and expectation of that which is yet to come. The knowledge that I carry a mission and a purpose within me fuels my core as I continue forward in this adventure called life.

I am thankful for my time at Nyack College- my peers, my classmates, my teachers, my mentors, my friends... all part of who I am today and who I will continue to be tomorrow. May God richly bless the Class of 2010 and all who have contributed to our success... Let's go change the world.

Live it UP!

Earlier this month I shared this list of New Year’s resolutions with the students in my middle school ministry. We looked at the top resolutions for 2010, some funny ones, a resolution from the Bible, and my personal “resolution” for this year….

Top New Year’s Resolutions for 2010
-I will eat healthier and exercise more often… maybe I’ll even lose a couple of pounds
-I will reduce stress in my life and maybe take a vacation
-I will save more money and pay down my debt
-I will quit smoking and drink less alcohol
-I will get a better education
-I will find a better job
-I will be more considerate of others and maybe volunteer somewhere in the community

Funny New Year’s Resolutions
-I will not sit in the living room all day in my pajamas… I’ll move the computer into the bedroom!
-I will not bore my boss or teacher with the same excuses for being late… I’ll come up with new ones!
-I will do less laundry and use more deodorant
-I will conserve water and avoid taking a bath or shower whenever possible
-I will think of a password other than “password”
-I will not ring the stewardess button on the airplane just to ask for her number!

Joshua’s Resolution
“But as for me and my household… we will serve the LORD!” (Joshua 24)

My Resolution
In 2010, my resolution, my motto, my motivation, will be to “Live it UP!”

Living it UP!
What does this mean? Well there are two foundational elements to “Living it UP!”. The first is experiencing every moment to the fullest, not letting anything pass you by. In John chapter 10, Jesus claims that “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full”(NIV), or “I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.”(The Message). The second is making sure every action, word, and thought points upwards towards the One in Heaven. The Apostle Paul puts it this way “And whatever you do, whether in word or in deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him… Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving… So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” (Colossians 3:17,23-24, 1 Corinthians 10:31).

“Living it UP!” requires us to live life to the full in a way that brings attention to the God of the Universe who sits enthroned in Heaven. Over the next 11 months, I intend to experience some pretty awesome things (if you have some good ideas let me know!) while at the same time intentionally pointing towards Christ. This year, in 2010, I’m going to “Live it UP!”… what about you?

Bottom of the Target receipt... "Today you saved $700+" !!!

So I've been searching for, struggling with, and swimming through what "church" is, and what it is intended to be. I've had conversations with a few people about this, and especially how this relates to my college education and career path. However, I am proud to say, that within the last 24 hours I have seen the "church" in action... here's how it goes...

The church that I work at as an intern (Pascack Bible Church) was motivated to reach out to our local community during the holiday season, and so we got in touch with the town nurse and social worker. With their help, and the generous donations of our congregants, we were able to provide complete Thanksgiving dinner baskets to over twenty low-income families in the two towns bordering our church property! So cool!

This was great, but only an opener for the main event.... let me tell you about it...

For Christmas, we were clued in to over 60 teenagers in the immediate area, who again are from low-income background. These teens are facing the reality that Christmas is coming and yet their parents have no money to buy them presents. This is a huge downer for any American teenager, but on top of this is a whole social dynamic that weighs heavy on their hearts and minds. Living in the affluent communities of northern New Jersey (suburban New York), getting no presents for Christmas equates to having the plague, in the context of teen culture. So PBC took a Thanksgiving offering, and pooled together a LARGE portion of money with the specific intention of giving Christmas gifts to these 60-some teenagers in our community.

Last night, our high school youth group went on a shopping spree to Target, literally buying Christmas for 60 anonymous teens who they potentially pass in the hallway at school every day. Our students set out with note cards telling them the age and sizes of 64 of their peers. Shirts, pants, scarves, hoodies, hats, notebooks, pencils, footballs, make up, board games... all listed on the purchase slip (the receipt printed out to be about 5 feet long!). We filled the entire enclosed bed of a pickup truck with Target bags full of gift items!

At the same time, our middle school students were hard at work in our student center stuffing 64 bags with tootsie roll canisters, giant boxes of nerds, candy canes, other assorted candies, chap sticks, pencils, erasers, and other stocking stuffers. The idea behind this was that each of the teens that our gifts were going to would get a stocking as well!!

In total, I think we spent well over $5,000 last night... all of which was donated by families in our church congregation. The bottom of the Target receipt says "today you saved $700+"... how awesome is that?!

This is one example of what happens when students and adults partner together to bless those around them! Our prayer is that as each of these 64 teens receives a gift bundle from our church, including a English/Spanish Bible, that they will want to know why people who don't even know them would care enough to spend thousands of dollars on making sure they had a great Christmas. I think for once, the "church" got it right! Wahooo!

After a long hiatus from writing (probably about a year and half), I have determined to begin webposting my happenings, ponderings, and learings. I typically write notes on Facebook, but will hopefully find this blogspot to be a better venue. Please leave comments on blog posts, as well as give me suggestions for things to write about. Looking forward to journeying with you...

^Live it UP!^

Matt