His Ways... FVCC Devotion Leading to Easter

FVCC is beginning a 14 day devotion leading up to Easter. It's called "His Ways."

Part of the thinking behind this was building on the success of the 40 days of Community campaign back in the fall and how great it was that the whole church was doing devotions together on the same day and on the same topic. So we thought we'd try it again.

One of our staff members, Michelle Diamond, organized some people in the church to write a devotion. She collected 14 of them and put them in a little booklet that was handed out this past weekend following the services. One of the great things about this effort is that she is the only staff member who wrote a devotion... and only one of our current elders wrote a devotion...

Instead, this devotion was written almost entirely by people and families in our church family. It wasn't dependent on the staff or on the leaders... but instead on the people of FVCC.

I had planned to blog about it previous to today... as today is the first day... but being gone over the weekend with Believe, I forgot to pick up my copy of the devotion before I left. So I thought I would put a little preliminary post and then post about the first day. Since I'm the ONLY staff member who runs an active blog and I do have a considerable amount of traffic of FVCC folks, I thought I would post my thoughts about the devotion for the day.

So... without further adieu... on to the first day.

Jim

Congratulations... I'm "normal"!!!

So...

I visited my doctor a week or so ago. This was the first time that I have visited this particular doctor. So as part of my visit, he asked me to get some bloodwork done. He wanted to see how I was doing and if there was anything wrong in my body that I wasn't aware of. I told him that would be fine but secretly (I guess until I hit "post") I was worried that there was something "wrong" with me that I wasn't aware of... but don't most of us worry that most of the time???

Today, I got an envelope from my doctor. When I opened it, it was a letter from my doctor and the rundown of my test results. At the bottom of the results written by hand were these words: "You are normal... everything looks good."

So... to all of you out there who think that I am weird or that something is wrong with me (see HERE, HERE and HERE), we now have irrefutable proof that there is nothing wrong with me. I am normal!

Jim

Believe was great!!!

I got back from CIY Believe this afternoon. Jackie and I returned the vans and then we both absolutely crashed on the couch and took a nap. We were both absolutely exhausted. In fact, right now, I am still currently exhausted. But we had an incredible trip!!!

Here a few highlights from the trip in my opinion:

• 18 incredible students who made the trip...
• 3 awesome adults... two of which had never been on a trip with me... but gave up their weekends to help our middle schoolers have a great time...
• several times of having conversations with students... maybe not memorable conversations... but "available" conversations...
• several memorable conversations that I will follow up on this week.
• hearing Kurt Johnston speak... Kurt always serves up the good stuff and keeps me wanting more...
• the worship was incredible... especially the painter... more on him later...
• we got through the entire weekend without having any major hotel issues... I always get a bit concerned putting students up overnight in a hotel. when we don't have a choice, it's one thing (like if we broke down), but with this kind of event, I'm always a little bit concerned that someone will sneak out or someone will break something or whatever...
• no major road problems... broken down vans, flat tires, etc, etc...
• great times of relationship building that will be remembered for years to come.
  

One of the best things about an event like this... and it happened several times this weekend... is the next year hearing students saying "Remember when..." this happened... or "Remember what ..." that guy did. That's one of the best parts of doing a trip like this where go do a similiar type thing every year.

I find myself already looking forward to next year... but especially to Summer Conference with our high schoolers in late June. More on that later.

Jim

Back out in the hall tonight...

Well... I'm back out in the hallway again tonight. My laptop... a full battery charge (with the charger nearby)... and catching up my blogging and reading my blogs. This still stinks. Last night, I finally made it to bed about 1:15 am.

Tonight though, I had some hope. I was looking at my watch... 10:45 pm... thinking... "I'm going to get some sleep tonight." Especially since we aren't pulling out of here until 9 am. Sounds like sleep to me.

Then it dawned on me. Tonight's the beginning of Daylight Saving's time. That's means that 10:45 just became 11:45 pm... and my watch just beeped midnight. So much for a good night's rest.

But, that's part of the job and part of the glory. Thanks God for the chance to hang out and have some significant conversations tonight with several students... A... A... K... G... M... It was good to be able to look some students in the face and speak some life into their worlds and also encourage them when they have felt like that their world is about to end. This part of my job might be pretty sucky... see last night's post HERE... but it's still the best job in the world... hands down!

Jim

Kurt Johnston rocked the house tonight!!!

It was a pleasant surprise to walk into Believe tonight and see Kurt Johnston... Saddleback's Junior High guy.

I regularly read Kurt's blog and throughly enjoyed listening to him tonight. He talked about how God wants to "connect" with us... and how God wants to connect with "each of us." I have always enjoyed hearing Kurt teach and knew that he was on the docket to possibly teach, but didn't realize that he was actually going to be here.

It was good. I understand... because he teaches middle schoolers... but in both cases I found myself wanting more. But I guess that's one of the marks of a good speaker...

Jim

Suckiest part of my job...

So... I'm pretty much doing the suckiest part of my job tonight.

I love going on trips with students. There's just nothing like being on the road to have conversations and fun times that you can't have any other way. But one of my biggest concerns with taking students on the road is making sure that they stay where they are supposed to stay overnight.

Which pretty much means that most nights I find myself sitting in the hallway with my computer (blogging as I am tonight) and hoping to get to go to bed soon.

I hate this part. I wish I could go to bed and 'trust' them. But my wisdom says that I shouldn't. And obviously, there is no sure-fire solution (other than duct taping them to their beds... which I have considered in the past) to maintaining security, but they all have their drawbacks. And since this is the direction that our church is going, I find myself sitting in the hallway... blogging...

Ugh!

Jim

a '24' movie...

There are some some rumblings of a '24' movie coming this fall that will bridge the gap between seasons 6 and 7. Here's a small snipet of the story HERE:

"The movie, designed to bridge the two-year gap between Seasons 6 and 7, is targeted to air in the fall, leading to the January return of the real-time drama. On Wednesday, "24" producers began securing the show's core cast members for the film.
"24" was one of the biggest casualties of the writers strike. Three days into the work stoppage, Fox decided against airing a partial season of the serialized drama with the eight episodes produced before and during the first weeks of the strike."

That would be sweet. Plus, it would fix my 24 craving early. I hope it becomes a reality.

Jim

downhere is coming to Batavia in May...

We're bringing in another major concert event to FVCC this spring... We are bringing in downhere. You might be thinking to yourself, "I've never heard of downhere."

But you would be wrong. You have heard of them... Check them out on iTunes HERE or their webpage HERE.

We signed the paperwork today and will begin to promote the concert first of next week.

Here are the details:
When: May 18th (Sunday night) beginning at 6 pm.
Where: FVCC
How much: $5 in advance and $7 the day of the event
Who: Everyone who is interested in good Christian music

Tickets will go on sale in the next 10 days or so. If you have any questions about this event, feel free to call the church office at 630.208.8484.

Jim

First Political Rant... Early voting in Illinois is ???!!!!!

So...

I've never really delved into politics on my blog. But I'm betting that I will at some point over the next 6 months or so leading up to the Presidential election...

But that isn't what this blog is about... yet...

This Saturday is a special election here in Illinois for the 14th Congressional Seat vacated by Dennis Hastert. And in the illustrious state of Illinois, it is possible to vote early if you can't make it to a polling place on election day.

Unless you have a regular job... and then, you're out of luck.

I'm going to be out of town over the weekend.... Middle School Believe see HERE. So I thought I would swing in tonight and do my civil duty at 4:10 pm (before most people get off work). Only to find the doors locked. There is a beautiful RV sitting out there advertising the merits of voting early with the phone number on the side so, having my cell phone, I called.

The voter registration office opens at 8:30 am and closes at 4:30 pm. Which leads me to think... if you have a regular 8 to 5 job and needed to vote early, how would you do it? So I asked the guy... seems you can't. You have to come into the location during regular business hours and vote... and they aren't even open on Saturday!!!

Now you would think that if they thought this was going to be such a great thing and would really help people out, they would have set it up so that you could do it!!!

Most people have jobs that work 8 to 5. I happen to be lucky enough that that isn't the case for me... my hours are more flexible. So in this case, I will have to try to swing in in the morning and vote before going out of town. But how ludicrous is this???!!! Come and vote early... but if you have a job that works 8 to 5... tough luck... Your vote doesn't count.

I just found that insane. And thought I would share.

Illinois really missed the mark on this one.

Jim

CIY Believe this weekend!!!

I'm really excited.

This weekend we're (my wife and two other volunteers) are taking a group of middle schoolers to Believe in St. Charles, MO (outside of St. Louis). I'm really looking forward to this weekend for a couple of reasons.

First, it's always an incredible relational time with the students who go. Of course, in the youth ministry world, it's a trip. Trips are always great opportunities to build relationships. Times in the van... times eating... times hanging out... times having conversations that can't be planned out or scripted, but instead just happen.

Second, the Believe program is always incredible. I always find myself being challenged by the worship, the speakers and the videos. As a 30 year old... almost 31 year old... youth worker, I still need challenged and encouraged and the Believe program always delivers for me.

So... I hope to post some pictures of the weekend here. It should be a blast and a lot of fun. But, now I should get back to getting ready to be gone and not blogging...

Jim

I Am Legend alternate ending...

I loved "I Am Legend" in the theaters and personally can't wait until it comes out on DVD... as I will be picking myself up a copy and watching it again.

I saw THIS tonight. It's an alternate ending to the movie. It's pretty cool. Check it out if you like.

Jim

Marko's blog...

I was catching up on my blogs a little bit this morning. And I saw THIS post from Marko. Maybe it just brings out the middle school boy in me, but I got a good chuckle. Thought you might too...

LCS today...

It feels weird.

I'm back on campus at Lincoln Christian Seminary today. Tuesdays are my usual days. But we didn't have class last week due to "Intensive Week." But it feels like forever since we've been here. I think it's just that so much has happened since the last time I was on campus... NYMC...

But it feels weird to be back on campus. It feels like it's been forever. But it's really only been 13 days. Oh well... Class begins in 40 minutes...

Jim

Rush win...

Rush win... 70-47!!! Go Rush!!

Jim Clark
Student Minister

Sent from my iPhone...

Halftime... Rush 28 - Cats 27

We've got a good game on our hands. A late field goal puts the cats
down by 1...

Chicago Rush kickoff

Steve and I took in a Chicago Rush game tonight... The scored on the
second play of the game!!!

TRL - Stressed Out and Worried...

This weekend we launched a 3 week series called "TRL". We asked our students for some topics that they would like me to teach on... This weekend we talked about stress and anxiety and finding a way to deal with it in a healthy and Biblical way.

Here's this weekend's outline...
--------
TRL (Total Request Live)
Week 1: Stressed Out and Worried!
Live Wire/High Voltage – March 2, 2008 – Jim Clark
Truths about Stress and Anxiety:
-Everyone deals with stress, anxiety and worry.
If you’re alive… it’s part of your life.
-You feel: -Overwhelmed.
-Strapped for time.
-Out-Of-Control.
-We tend to get stressed out about the wrong things.
-Stress can be managed.

Jesus dealt with Stress…
Taught about stress, worry and anxiety.
Matthew 6:25-34 and Luke 12:22-34
Dealt with stress everyday.
When Jesus had again crossed over by boat to the other side of the lake, a large crowd gathered around him while he was by the lake. Then one of the synagogue rulers, named Jairus, came there. Seeing Jesus, he fell at his feet and pleaded earnestly with him, "My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live." So Jesus went with him.

A large crowd followed and pressed around him. And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, because she thought, "If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed." Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.
Mark 5:21-29

-People.
-Healings.
-Expectations.

Jesus’ secret to dealing with stress… Adequate downtime!
Got alone with God.
Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. Mark 1:35
Got alone with friends.
He did not say anything to them without using a parable. But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything. Mark 4:36

Action Steps and a Touch of Hope:
1. Admit your anxiety and stress to God and others.
Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Psalm 139:23
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. Philippians 4:6
Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:6-7

2. Narrow down the things that need attention and those things that don’t.
Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest? Luke 12:25

3. Share an encouraging word with the stressed out ones in your life.
An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up. Proverbs 12:25

The Bottom Line:
Stress is part of life… But for the Christian it shouldn’t be an out of control part of life.

Sunday night... Depressed? Or Pumped???

So... It's Sunday night. Our High School service starts in about 20 minutes. But for some reason, I have some time to blog. But as I stand here... there aren't any teenagers around... yet.

But this is that critical time for my night. Right now, I'm wondering if anyone will show up. And if some don't show up (variety of reasons... school... family... laziness... etc...), how will that affect how I see myself tonight? And how I see the successfulness of tonight's event???

See what usually happens is that if a bunch of kids show up and the night goes off well, then I feel that I succeeded and was successful (which is similar to succeeded). But if only a few show up (and I know that "a few" and "a bunch" are relative to my situation here in the Chicagoland suburbs... what you consider "a few" and what I consider "a few" may be totally different), then I will feel that I failed. But is that true?

As much as I would like to say that numbers aren't important... and in many respects, they aren't. But in the hollow of my mind at 17 minutes before the event begins, it impacts me a bunch. And right now, my heart and mind is hoping that students will begin pouring through the door. Mostly for my sanity... but also for the other students who will arrive later on and wonder "where everyone else is at".

On the outside I seem confident and cool.
But on the inside, my heart is churning and turning.

Why after almost 10 years of youth ministry is my view of my self-worth still wrapped up to some degree in the number of students who will show up tonight for the high school service? Oh well... Gotta go... I hear voices...

Jim

Feels like spring

54 degrees... Feels like spring!!!

Jim Clark
Student Minister

Sent from my iPhone...

Being Out of Town... both a blessing and a curse...

I love being out of town from time to time...

Especially with last weekend. After the National Youth Ministry Conference I felt confident and refreshed. A couple of things that I haven't felt in a while. Which is great. The training was great. It's always great to get to see old friends and catch up on life. Plus, it was an extra blessing being out of town with three of my favorite people in the world.

Good stuff...

But there's always a downside to being gone. Today, instead of working on homework and maybe watching a little college basketball, I'm locked in the "den" in our apartment working on stuff for the weekend. So, it's both a blessing and a curse. It was great to be out for a little while. But then you have to work twice as hard when you get back to get caught up. But I guess that's part of life.

I just know that looking down the barrel of what I have to do today, I would rather watch some basketball.

Jim