Pass It On

Psalm 78
1 O my people, hear my teaching; listen to the words of my mouth. 2 I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter hidden things, things from of old- 3 what we have heard and known, what our fathers have told us. 4 We will not hide them from their children; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD , his power, and the wonders he has done.

What are we passing on to the next generation? Are we corporately as a church, and personally as individuals, fulfilling the biblical mandate laid before us in this psalm?
These are a few thoughts that have been on my mind of late as I consider what we are about in our youth ministry at Trinity, and how we go about it more to the point.
A few points that i'm contemplating at present

• Is it solely the biblical principles and teachings of our faith that we are passing on to the next generation, or is it a tainted faith infiltrated by the prejudices and flaws of the culture and environment that shaped our lives.
• Do we simply pass on our faith and let them do church (as is hinted at in Andy Hickfords book Essential Youth) or do we insist that they conform to the traditional format and structure of churchlife as we know it.
• Are we adopting a missional outlook as we seek to engage in this cross-cultural presentation of the gospel of Jesus Christ that is the basis of our faith.
• How does this all look in practice

I guess the danger we can fall into here is undermining the bible teaching by adapting too much to the culture that surrounds us, and glossing over its teaching. Another neglection on our part is not giving prayer the priority it should have, seeking Gods guidance in all we seek to do in His strength and to His glory.

Whatever floats your boat

This weekend was the harvest services in our church, and as is normally the case in our rural setting the church was more packed than usual, with many faces making their annual appearance to church, and others visiting from neighbouring churches. Harvest is a very traditional thing, especially in the country, and for the first year I can remember I found it a struggle.
The concept of harvest I am totally OK with, I certainly am all for praising God for his goodness at this time of year. I guess it was just the format I struggled abit with, and maybe thats just down to personal preference, I dunno.
As far as format goes, alot of it was listening to our choir, and in the evening a male voice choir sing praises in beautiful harmony and melody. The evening service especially was for me more like sitting in a concert for this male voice choir, than attending church to praise and thank our God the great creator and provider in this time of harvest.
I guess my main issue was the lack of participation involved, it would feel much more like a community if we joined together in our praises and prayers uplifting our God of the harvest, and crying out to him for a hervest of souls to be surrendered to Him again in our land.
Another thing I couldn't help wondering is what make's God smile : the melodious and harmonious praise of a professional choir, or the genuine heartfelt praise of a redeemed sinner......
I'm not judging those who were singing as not being genuine, and i'm sure there's many people they blessed with their God given voices, but I guess I realised i'm more someone who pelts it out because it means something to me no matter what I sound like, and worship for me is very much participatory.

I guess this all stems to some things that have been on my mind recently about how we present "church" as such. For the teenager who struggles through yet another service they feel they have to go to, where do they possibly fit into the traditional format of how we do "church". Should it be the case that we present a "You fit in with our agenda and how we do it here" attitude, or do we provide a caring atmosphere where they are valued and feel like they bleong, and more than that allow them to express themselves in a way thats meaningful to them.

Quite possible that my thoughts are influenced by my musical innability and illiteracy, and the strong drum and bass influences of my teenage years that dont quite fit in with the choral melodies.