West Cocoa Chat

Good morning family. For us here in beautiful downtown West Cocoa we're at 3 days and counting before our week of Camp begins. It will be no doubt a week that will involve the subject of "change." Many of our campers are returnees (including my son) so they will no doubt compare our new camp with the one we used to attend.

I guess I was doing that last night. As I watched and engaged in the “festivities” of Steven’s 17th birthday I was in the comparison mode. Here are some things I noticed:

1. Not one time did any of these high school age boys go into our pool. This could have been due to “water saturation” having just had a weekend of pulling on tubes and knee boards across Moss Lake.
2. The boys sat at their own table and thoroughly entertained themselves. If fact, these boys are old enough now that they were engaging in a bit of nostalgia, story-telling about things they had done in the past. Our youth minister Chad came by and he was helping the boys engage in this because he has been the planner and inspiration for many of their pranks.
3. I-pods dominated their time. From downloading music to discussing who had the best one and their many nuances.
4. O.K. ladies, (I say “Ladies” but I know Greg will love this too.) you’re going to love this one. At 10pm the boys told me they were bored and they wanted to go to our local Super (Yes, we here in beautiful downtown West Cocoa have our very own Super Wal-Mart) Wal-Mart!” I told them to be back by 11:15pm, anointed them with a spending (Steven wanted to take all of his birthday money.) limit, and sent them on their way with the admonition to behave themselves.
5. The final difference – When kids are young they can run you ragged but in the end, most of them get tired and you can put them to bed. At 11:45pm they were putting Barb and me to bed. As Greg would say, “Geezer time” is in the morning, not the evening when the world belongs to teens.

I think my experience can apply to church. In my years of “church leadership” most people are like me when it comes to “change” of any kind. They remember the way it is or was and it gives them security. They might even (like me) ask “why” do we need to change? The number one obstacle to “change” (as my fellow elder Javier once coined in one of our meetings) is “fear.” Pure and simple it is fear of the unknown. It is fear of ________ (blank) happening if we do ___________. (blank)

In Matthew 25 the only slave that is punished by his master is the “One Talent guy (OTG).” In the text Mr. OTG clearly states according to Jesus, he was “afraid.” Family, when it comes to us as individuals or as a church we shouldn’t allow “fear” from stopping us to being relevant to a lost and dying world. So today’s admonition is go out and be fearless. Have a good day family.

Matthew 25:14 "For it is just like a man about to go on a journey, who called his own slaves, and entrusted his possessions to them.
:15 "And to one he gave five talents, to another, two, and to another, one, each according to his own ability; and he went on his journey.
25:16 "Immediately the one who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and gained five more talents.
25:17 "In the same manner the one who had received the two talents gained two more.
25:18 "But he who received the one talent went away and dug in the ground, and hid his master's money.
25:19 "Now after a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them.
25:20 "And the one who had received the five talents came up and brought five more talents, saying, 'Master, you entrusted five talents to me; see, I have gained five more talents.'
25:21 "His master said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful slave; you were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things, enter into the joy of your master.'
25:22 "The one also who had received the two talents came up and said, 'Master, you entrusted to me two talents; see, I have gained two more talents.'
25:23 "His master said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful slave; you were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.'
25:24 "And the one also who had received the one talent came up and said, 'Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed.
25:25 'And I was afraid, and went away and hid your talent in the ground; see, you have what is yours.'
25:26 "But his master answered and said to him, 'You wicked, lazy slave, you knew that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I scattered no seed.
25:27 'Then you ought to have put my money in the bank, and on my arrival I would have received my money back with interest.
25:28 'Therefore take away the talent from him, and give it to the one who has the ten talents.'
25:29 "For to everyone who has shall more be given, and he shall have an abundance; but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away.
25:30 "And cast out the worthless slave into the outer darkness; in that place there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.