Inspired by BIG Losers

Did you happen to catch the season finale of The Biggest Loser last night? 

I love that show!  The transformation that takes place, on both the inside and the outside of the contestants, is always so inspiring to me. 

Their stories are also very compelling.  It’s heart-wrenching to hear about some of the decisions they’ve made that got them to their tragic weight, as well as some of the triggers of loss or pain that served as a turning point in their lives… and then to hear about the emotional and psychological ‘weight’ they have carried with them, that only serves to compound the hurt and damage… I would imagine that the decision to apply to be a contestant on this show has got to be one of their low points in life.

Then they arrive at the ranch, their context for change.  They’re met by people who genuinely care about them, and will grow to love them, but who are ultimately there to see them change their lives.  Some contestants will not last long.  Those who make it to the end, however, will have been trained for seven months. 

Little, if any of it, will be easy.  But the reward, the end result, is SO worth it. 

It's All A Gift

:: [Guest post by Ian Clark] ::

According to the American Heart Association website, "approximately 95% of sudden cardiac arrest victims die before reaching the hospital."

Sometime between 12:10pm and 12:20 pm on April 14th my world was turned upside down.  During a run over my lunch hour, I went into full cardiac arrest and collapsed.  At 32 years of age I had a heart attack...at 32!  This was completely unexpected and the circumstances surrounding my survival are nothing short of miraculous.  

For starters,  I've been a runner all of my adult life and I had completed a 4.2 mile run just two days earlier.  I have never ran over the lunch hour before, but on this day, I thought I would run home during lunch.  I happened to collapse in front of someone's house who just happened to be coming home for lunch, which I'm told this person, Carlos, didn't do on a regular basis.  When he found me, I was not breathing, I had no pulse, and my flesh was blue.  Carlos called for help.  A woman named Gayla was just one block away at a park eating lunch with her husband.  When she heard Carlos yell, the two came as quickly as they could.  Gayla was an administrator and former director of nursing at the local hospital and immediately sprang into action.  Gayla began performing CPR, and ultimately saved my life.  She later told me that I had been without air for at least six to eight minutes.  Experts say brain death starts to occur four to six minutes after someone experiences cardiac arrest.  There were several others involved in my rescue including the local ambulance and hospital staff.  Everyday I learn more about these events that make my survival seem more like a miracle.

College Students, Discipleship & Creation Care

Happy Earth Day!


Today is the 40 year anniversary of Earth Day.  Are you taking advantage of this global focus?  Students LOVE things that take a 'global focus' stage!


While there are a number of reasons to challenge college students to be an active part of Earth Day, I wonder if we're helping them to make the important connections between creation care and their discipleship.


Consumerism is dominant in so much of our culture.  It's how we've been trained to view the world we live in... as those who have been made to consume it.  But as Christians I believe we've been given a different charge!

God created us to love Him, to love others and to be stewards of all that He has created.

The [R]'s of fall bReak

Fall break is nearly upon us!

This is a critical juncture in the fall semester for students, yes, but for campus ministers as well.

As students leave campus for a few days, we have the [R]esponsibility of tending to the [R]'s of fall bReak.

[R]est - for too many of us, this will be the first time we let up on the gas pedal that has been pressed to the floor since mid-August as students and student leaders returned to campus. For you, fall break might be a time when you literally need to break away from the crazy pace you have been keeping and simply rest in the presence of the Father.

[R]eflection - for some of us, we've been so busy doing ministry, that we have not created enough space to simply be and hear from God about what we're doing... or maybe more importantly, what He is doing in our midst. The fall break can be a great opportunity to slow down and examine what has taken place in your ministry, and on your campus, over the past two months. There is a lot that God wants to teach us from our recent experiences, but it does require that we create space for Him.

[R]econnect - for some of us, we've spent so much time involved in our own ministry silos that we've neglected some important relationships and partnerships on campus and in the local community. Fall break can be a great time to reconnect with colleagues and co-laborers in the work of reaching college students with the Gospel of Jesus Christ and raising up the next generation of faithful leaders.

[R]edirect - for some of us, this will be the critical point in the semester/year when we recognize that our ministry needs to move in a new direction. It will likely take some of the aforementioned rest, reflection and reconnecting in order to fully realize our need for change, as well as the specific direction/s we need to now move.

So where do you find yourself as fall bReak approaches? What are you (and your ministry) most in need of this season?

Grace and peace to you co-laborer in Christ!

re-creation

Saturday's posts will be about recreation...

Re-creating ourself - away from the office...

Workaholism is a terrible disease that plagues our country, our families, our health, and yes, even our ministers.

In my first year of ministry i received two of the best pieces of advice regarding my work, and longevity, as a minister...

1. You should NEVER work more than 2 0f the 3 time periods of the day.  If you know you're going to be out in the evening, than arrange to come in late... or be out in the afternoon.  Plan your calendar accordingly!
   
2. There is ALWAYS more ministry to be done... if you plan to stay "at the office" until it's all done then you'll never end up going home.

As ministers we NEED to have a life outside of the work that we do on campus!  

• We need to spend time with family and/or friends.
• We need to engage in the delight of a hobby.
• We need to take care of non-work related tasks that often get pushed to the side when we're in the midst of "doing ministry."
• We need to be with people who fill us up... as most of our work on campus involves us pouring ourselves out into the lives of others.

At the end of a week packed full of ministry, we NEED to be willing to spend some time caring for ourselves... so that when "Monday" rolls around (I recognize that "Mondays" and "weekends" happen at different times of the week depending on where and how we do ministry) we'll be ready for a new week of investing in the lives of students!

So how do you re-create?

What are the life-giving, non-ministry related, activities that you spend time doing on the weekends?

Do you struggle to disconnect yourself from campus?  If so, why?

I love what I do on campus, just like you... but over the course of time I have come to realize that without the proper attention to certain areas of my life as a minister... like intentionally stepping away from campus on Saturdays to care for myself in some significant ways, the recipe for burnout and/or moral failure is much less likely to present itself.

We have to remember that God won't leave campus just because we do... 

In fact, He's a lot more likely to use us if we are refreshed and ready after we've joined Him in re-creating ourselves!