Does anyone know why basketballs are Orange? And it is not because Syracuse or Tennessee invented it! Before 1950, Basketballs were dark brown, but Tony Hinkle, the coach of Butler University (in Indiana) came up with the idea of making basketballs orange, so they could be more easily seen by both players and spectators.
It is very appropriate for the object of a great team sport to be the color Orange. As we continue our present discussion of the importance of the church and parents working together to have a greater impact in the lives of young people we want to learn more about how parents can team together with others in the church to help impress upon our children and teens to love the LORD with all of their hearts, soul, mind, and strength and to become lifelong followers of Jesus!
In fact today, we are going to be combining yellow (representing the church) and red (representing family) in a practical way this morning as Tony (dressed in red) and myself (dressed in yellow) will be tag team teaching to share the importance of emphasizing the Elevated role of Community in the mission of leading children and students to Christ!
This morning we are going to continue to examine the example of a guy named Nehemiah, who lived 450 years before Christ and led an amazing effort to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. As we shared last week this was a major undertaking (just as raising kids and teens to love God). And even though Nehemiah serves as a great example of spiritual leadership, the successful re-building of the walls of Jerusalem was also a testimony to the collective effort of the Jewish Community. This morning, we want to examine some important Catalysts for Spiritual Growth (in the context of living out our faith in community) …
Our first catalyst this morning is …
Pivotal Circumstances
The pivotal circumstance of Nehemiah’s day was the destruction of the walls around Jerusalem. It was this circumstance that lead Nehemiah to rely on God and to call the Jewish people to work together as a team to rebuild the wall around that great city. Let’s read about this tremendous effort in …
We worked early and late, from sunrise to sunset. And half the men were always on guard. I also told everyone living outside the walls to stay in Jerusalem. That way they and their servants could help with guard duty at night and work during the day. During this time, none of us—not I, nor my relatives, nor my servants, nor the guards who were with me—ever took off our clothes. We carried our weapons with us at all times, even when we went for water. Nehemiah 4:21-23 NLT
We can see it was truly an intense team effort to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. There is a strong parallel between Nehemiah’s leadership of the Jewish People and the combined effort of parents and the church in the lives of children and teens. The parallel is to accomplish this major undertaking it takes tremendous teamwork!! And it took a collective turning to God to see this feat accomplished. In fact this circumstance led a whole nation to turn back to God!!
In the lives of children and teens, there are pivotal life circumstances that can lead our children to either see their need for God or turn away from God. Pivotal Circumstances, such as entering a new phase of life (jr hi, hi school, or college), peer pressure and rejection, life challenges, life disappointments and setbacks. It is a natural temptation for parents to try to soften the blow of these pivotal circumstances and yet it is these pivotal circumstances and the pain that accompanies them which help people of all ages see their need for a relationship with God.
Let’s make sure that both the church and parents are there to lend support when our children and teens go through pivotal circumstances and the challenges of life change. It was in the midst of this challenging time that Nehemiah reminded the people of a very important …
Life Changing Truth
So on October 2 the wall was finished—just fifty-two days after we had begun. When our enemies and the surrounding nations heard about it, they were frightened and humiliated. They realized this work had been done with the help of our God. Nehemiah 6:15-16 NLT
Nehemiah reminded the people when they completed the construction of the wall in only 52 days, that this great feat was the result of God’s intervention in their lives and God’s miraculous help. Let’s make sure that we continue to rely on God’s help and power as we seek to impact children and teens. This is why we have launched a new initiative of seeking prayer sponsors (Show Picture) for each of our jr hi and high school students. If you would like to participate it is not too late to sign up … just put on your communication card that you want to serve as a prayer sponsor!
The greatest life changing truth that we can hold out for our children and students both in the church and in the home is that God loves them and He is the true source of hope for their lives!
Significant Relationships
Nehemiah could not have rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem by himself; he needed others to accomplish this great faith feat!! As we continue our reading, we see that Nehemiah continued to see his need for help from others …
After the wall had been rebuilt and I had set the doors in place, the gatekeepers, singers, and Levites were chosen. I put my brother Hanani, along with Hananiah, the commander of the palace, in charge of Jerusalem. Hananiah was honest and feared God more than most people. Nehemiah 7:1-2 NCV
Nehemiah learned the importance of having some trusted significant relationships in his life to accomplish God’s calling in his life! The same is true for parenting. Christian Parenting is not simply an individual calling but it a responsibility to be lived out in the context of community.
It is important for parents to recognize their need for additional significant relationships in the lives of their children. One such significant relationship is another Christian adult who can serve as a mentor in the lives of your children. Author Reggie Joiner wrote in Think Orange, “As kids grow older and move toward independence, it is critical to establish another clear voice in their lives, especially in a culture that challenges their faith at every level.”
As I think back on my own faith development, as much as I respected my parents and their personal faith, it was another genuine follower of Christ closer to my age who really influenced me to become a follower of Christ. Frankly sometimes as my kids were growing up, I didn’t recognize how important it was to have other important role models in their lives. At times, my personal pride led me to think if I could just be a “super dad” then my kids would all become devoted followers of Christ. Looking back I overestimated my personal example and influence. Now I am not contradicting what we said last week about the importance of parents taking a personal responsibility to do something each and every week to help impress upon our children the importance of love and serving God.
And yet at times, personally I went to the other extreme of thinking that it all depended upon me. The truth is that as our kids get older they will listen to other “voices” and it is crucial that we intentionally welcome, pray for, and seek those positive voices that can point them to Christ.
The truth is that I am far from a perfect parent and my 3 kids that I love dearly are far from perfect as well. And as I look at my own children’s faith development and at times faith struggles, I can see a pattern or direct correlation between when they have done well and when there was a Christian Mentor besides myself or my wife in their lives. And at times when they struggled or continue to struggle with their faith, it is due to them having no other significant “faith voice” in their lives!
Who are the significant faith relationships beside yourself in your children’s lives? Who will come along your children and speak consistently into their lives so that they too will become a follower of Christ!! Let’s recognize our need for help in the area of parenting and let’s pray for and welcome other trusted followers of Christ to speak into our children’s lives, whether it is their small group leader, a youth sponsor, a faith mentor, or an older follower of Christ.
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