A Prayer for Capernaum

My Lord and my God! Like Thomas we fall on our knees before you. We touch your wounds – you the wounded One who is a friend of the wounded in body, soul, mind, and spirit. You, Jesus, have brought Capernaum into existence because you love the least of these. You, Jesus, are the host of the Banquet to be held in your home. You, Jesus, call the Mephibosheths of the world to dine at your table with you, the King.

You sent me your servant and all my fellow servants named Pam, Amira, Suzanne, Lyn, John, and hundreds of other servants around the world. You have sent us into the streets, the alley ways, the country lanes, and far away places to get the “crippled, the lame, the blind, and the poor” in order to give names to the nameless, voices to the voiceless, and a place at your table.

We are in awe at what you have done in 25 years. We worship you and are in wonder, like Mary, turning these things in our hearts, that by your mercy you would give us this ministry. Because of this we will not lose heart. We will continue to be among your little ones treating them gently like a mother with her nursing babies and like a father urging, encouraging, and exhorting his own children.

Good Shepherd we tend your flock. We feed your lambs and lead your sheep as you have led us. Jesus, Good Shepherd, please send your Holy Spirit to us and lead us for the next 25 years to go into the far country even if only for one lamb. Let us always seek the statistically meaningless one lamb. We lay our lives down in worship at your feet, Good Shepherd of Capernaum.

Wild, Crazy and "Stupid" Ideas

“Without a vision the people perish” (Proverbs 29:18)

“Some men see things as they are and say why; I dream things that never were and say why not?”
~Bobby Kennedy

“I have a dream” ~ Martin Luther King

“The best Young Life work is yet to be done.” ~ Jim Rayburn

This morning I was reading the newspaper over a strong cup of Peet's coffee when an article grabbed my attention. It was about Israeli scientist, Dan Shechtman, who won this year's Nobel Peace prize in chemistry. The award was for his discovery of a new crystalline chemical structure that seemed to violate the laws of nature. His colleagues mocked him, insulted him, and exiled him from his research group. Shechtman said he never doubted his findings and considered himself merely the latest in a long line of scientists who advanced their fields by challenging the conventional wisdom and were shunned by the establishment because of it. The article goes on to say that the discovery fundamentally altered how chemists conceive solid matter. Since the discovery, quasi crystals have been produced in laboratories and a Swedish company found them in one of the most durable kinds of steel; now used in products such as razor blades and think needles made specifically for eye surgery.

This all got me thinking. We can learn so much from the scientific community regarding their fever pitch curiosity and relentless pursuit of the endless wonders of the created world. I find that we as Christians rarely possess a spiritual curiosity like this and that we in ministry can settle into a routine that rarely changes.

Jim Rayburn said, “The best Young Life work is yet to be done.” What if that is true? What if there are things that God is longing to show us about reaching kids and how we do ministry? He is an infinite God; the Creator of a vast universe that literally explodes our imagination to wonder and drops us on our knees in worship. What if God has so much more for us? What if we could put our agendas aside and open our minds and hearts wide to what God wants to show us in our lives and ministries?

What blocks us from a Nobel Prize type of discovery? I believe the answer lies in two primary places; in us and in others. There reside the voices of negativity. Nothing throws water on a fire faster than the “we can’t do that; it’s not possible” mentality. Some of the greatest discoveries in history were met with ridicule and even assassination. God forbid that we assassinate each other when someone brings up a wild, crazy, “stupid”, never done before idea.

I want to encourage us to listen to God for wild, crazy, stupid, never done before ideas with YL Capernaum. I want to encourage you to color outside the lines. I want to exhort all of us on how we respond to a new idea. It is so easy for us to react immediately in a negative way!

Instead, let’s listen and not respond. You know...”be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger,” as James tells us. Listen and pray. Maybe even take a few days to seek the Holy Spirit asking is this from you. Let’s continue to be pioneering. I believe this is in our DNA in YL Capernaum.

Has something been stirring in you that seems impossible? Don’t shut it down. Pray. Share it. Maybe even step out and try it. What’s the worst that could happen? Mocking, ridicule, exile, and failure? Or maybe God’s Nobel Prize for ministry. I’ve got to go now because I have this “stupid” idea I am working on!

Nick

God Disciplines Those Whom He Loves

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: "My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son."

Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” (Hebrews 12:1-11)


Dear Brothers and Sisters!

The heading to Hebrews 12:1-11 in my bible reads, “God Disciplines Those Whom He Loves”. And in those eleven verses the word discipline is used 10 times. It is striking to see the word so often in so few verses.

The passage begins with an exhortation to run the race before us and never give up. The writer encourages us with the fact that we are surrounded with a great cloud of witnesses cheering us on. The race is obviously a marathon fraught with challenge and difficulty so great that we are tempted to give up. How true to life and ministry! Over my past 28 years on staff and my 39 years in ministry I have been at the end of my rope so often. “Can I keep going?” has been a question I have asked often.

Then the writer gives us an even greater motivation to faithfully run our race. It is the way Jesus ran His race. A grueling, suffering race like no human being will ever experience. It is a race that cost Him His life and so much more. The writer encourages us to fix our eyes on Jesus. We are encouraged to follow His example. To watch the way he did it. To imitate Him not only in carrying our cross but to do it for the joy set before us. The joy is that we faithfully complete our assignments and hear the Father say well done good and faithful servant.

Then the writer reminds us that we are under the Father’s discipline. We are told earlier in Hebrews that Jesus learned obedience through suffering. Jesus experienced the Father’s discipline in His ministry. Do we think for a minute if He did that we won’t?

As we faithfully engage in our ministries, God is using our ministries to discipline us, shape us, and grow us into the likeness of His Son. Mother Teresa stated that our troubles are signs that God trusts us. Then she declared, “I wish He wouldn’t trust me so much.” I relate to that. Sometimes don’t you just want to say, “Okay God, stop. Enough.” But the truth is God is a watchful, attentive, loving Father with a plan for us.

In Amos God states to Israel, “I chose you out of all the nations of the earth to be intimate but you went after idols. That is why I must punish you.” We are His special possessions: sons and daughters. We can’t get away with anything. So, 10 times the writer talks of God’s discipline that is painful and not pleasant but will also lead to our holiness and fruitfulness.

Trust that the Father loves you when it gets hard in ministry. When there is suffering. It is an active sign of the Father’s activity. Our ministries are being used by God to shape us. Take a few moments and think on that. How has God shaped you in the last year through your ministry? Then fix your eyes on Jesus and keep running the race.

Under His Discipline,
Nick

Should We Expect Someone Else?

“John’s disciples told him about all these things. Calling two of them, he sent them to the Lord to ask, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?”

When the men came to Jesus, they said, “John the Baptist sent us to you to ask, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?’”

At that very time Jesus cured many who had diseases, sicknesses and evil spirits, and gave sight to many who were blind. So He replied to the messengers, “Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor. Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.”” (Luke 7:18-23)

Dear Team!

As Jesus’ ministry gains momentum, John the Baptizer’s prayer in John 3:30 is taking place: “He must increase; I must decrease.” Another translation says: “He must become greater; I must become less.”

John has faithfully fulfilled his ministry but it has resulted in a dark jail cell on a bogus charge. It is in this dark place that John begins to doubt what his whole ministry was about. Two of his disciples come to him telling him the news of Jesus’ ministry.

His fermenting doubt rises to the surface. Did it go something like this? “I was faithful. I was sure my cousin was the One. The Messiah. I proclaimed Him loudly, relentlessly, and faithfully…and I ended up here. I know I was meant to decrease but to this point? I am sure this will be the end of my life. I’ve not only become less, I’ve been forgotten. Did I miss it? Was I wrong? And what is Jesus doing? My disciples tell me all the wonderful stories but He has not taken power. I am so confused. God did I miss your plan? Was it all for naught?”

John turned to his disciples saying, “Would you please go to Jesus personally on my behalf and ask him, “Is He the One to come or should we expect someone else?” And so they left to find Jesus.

As they finished teaching, John’s disciples approached him. “Master, we have a message from your cousin John. He asks, are you the One or should we expect someone else?” Jesus looked deep into their eyes on John’s behalf with empathy and compassion.

Then Jesus called his disciples and a handful of other followers. John’s disciples recognized some of these men and women as people who had been blind, lame, or deaf. Even one had been a leper but he stood there whole and happy.

Jesus smiled and then laughed with His friends. Turning to John’s disciples he said,
“Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard with your eyes and your own ears. The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised and the Good News is preached to the poor. Blessed is the man; blessed are you my cousin, John, who does not fall away on account of me.”

John’s disciples hurried back to John where they are allowed to meet him in his cell. The sound of John’s chains rattle in his dark putrid cell. In this darkness he is given news of light. John listens intently. He hears between the lines the familiar voice of his cousin he has always so deeply loved.

John hears through a transformed mind what this Messiah is doing. He can hear Jesus say, “John my dear cousin, do not doubt in the dark what you saw in the light. You were right. The Son of Man has come announcing the Kingdom of God. And this kingdom comes unexpected amongst the least and forgotten. It will topple the kingdom of this world by what the world sees as foolish and weak. What is foolish to man is God’s wisdom. What is weak to man is God’s power. No longer doubt John. The wisdom of God and the power of God rest upon you even in your cell. Blessed are you for believing in me when there is no reason to do so.”

John sits with this in meditation. He knows now the Messiah is the One who is great and has become less in order to invade and change this world from the inside out. It is the heart that He is out to conquer rather than nations. John knows now it is a matter of time before Rome crumbles.

As I think of this, it is so true to our experience in ministry. We answer Jesus’ call. We serve like John, relentlessly and faithfully. We are ever so confident of Jesus and all that He is. Then we run into a season of the dark cell. A season that can be triggered by loss, tragedy, abandonment, plans disappointed, and we are thrust into this cell of doubt. Like John, we wonder if our ministry is a mistake. We wonder in confusion about something we were so sure about. We doubt Jesus and ourselves. We cry out to Jesus.

He turns our attention not to what we have done but what He has done. He turns our attention to the little ones in our ministries. He compassionately speaks to us and turns our attention to our own ministries. As if to say, do you not see these little ones I have brought to you? Look with new eyes on the wonder of God’s work in your own ministry. Go there and be encouraged in your doubt and darkness that the Messiah has come and you have rightly proclaimed him. Blessed are you YL Capernaum Teammate that you don’t fall away on account of Jesus not doing it the way you wish.

This year when doubt assails us and in the darkness of the cell let us return to our video highlight reel of what our Savior has done in our midst. When we gather let’s bring stories to each other as John’s disciples did to John. And let us find renewal, strength, and a renewed focus on Jesus right in the midst of our cells.

May you be encouraged by Jesus who has called you,
Nick

Eyes on Jesus

“Since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” (Colossians 3:24)

“And the things you’ve heard me say in the presence of many witnesses these things pass on to faithful women and men who will be able to teach others also.” (2 Timothy 2:2)

“Therefore I urge you to imitate me” (I Corinthians 4:16)

As the new school year begins and the ‘to do’ list grows, I find it really helpful to ask, "Why am I doing all this? What is the central focus of all this?" The true answer easily escapes us. Our first impulse is to say our friends. If we start here we are doomed to frustration and disappointment.

The reason we do this is first and foremost Christ. Ministry is about Christ, before who we serve. The call is from Jesus. Our choosing is from Jesus. Ministry done is unto Jesus. The power is from Jesus. The glory is to Jesus. The motive is Jesus.

The great news about this is that I will never fail when my ministry is “the ministry of the costly extravagant gift.” Meaning that ministry is the alabaster jar of costly perfume poured out on Jesus from an overflowing heart of gratitude and passionate love. When I start here I always succeed because I have blessed Jesus.

Now my numbers might not look good. I might not have enough money or leaders. I might see little fruit. I might be criticized and abandoned. Kids, leaders, committee, parents may frustrate me. But I am not doing this for them. I am living for an Audience of One.

Paul said, “I care very little if I am judged by you or any human court; indeed I do not even judge myself…it is the Lord who judges me.” (I Corinthians 4:3-4) My feelings and self esteem are not based on someone else’s opinion or my own (which is the least reliable) but on what God thinks of me, on how God evaluates and sees me. As a result we hear our heavenly Father say, “You are my beloved son/daughter in whom I am well pleased and take great delight.” (Mark 1:11)

This frees us to be unconditional in our relationships and especially with our friends. When I focus on Jesus I can focus on kids, and in my overwhelming ‘to do’ list it helps to think of one kid. Yes, just one kid. I can’t make a difference in dozens or hundreds of kids but I can go deep with one. I can pour myself out on one. I can spend a lot of time with one. I can impart Jesus in an abundant way to one.

So, as we travel on in this year remind yourself this is all about Jesus. He is our starting point, our middle point, and our finishing point. Then listen to Jesus intently tell who the one kid is. My kid’s name is Big D. Who is yours?!

With Eyes on Jesus,
Nick

Giving God The Glory

“But when Nebuchadnezzar’s heart became arrogant and hardened with pride he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory.” (Daniel 5:20)

“But you Belshazzar, his son, have not humbled yourself though you knew all this.”
(Daniel 5:22)

“They shouted, "This is the voice of a god, not a man!" Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down and he was eaten by worms and died.” (Acts 12:22-23)

God will simply not share His glory. Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, and Herod learned this the hard way. This is very sobering to me because I think there is no greater place than in ministry for the temptation of arrogance. In YL Capernaum we see wonders weekly. We get praised for what we do with our friends.

It becomes a temptation to believe our own press. It is tempting to get drunk on the accolades of success. It is tempting to believe we pulled off a successful venture. It is easy to get our self-esteem from our ministry rather than from Jesus. But how do we know when we are doing this? Here are a few tell-tale signs we are keeping the glory from God.

Being territorial or possessive of the ministry God gave us and showing anger when someone is perceived as infringing.
Possessiveness about the donors God gives us.
Jealousy when someone else gets the credit I believe I deserve.
When I can only receive praise but not criticism.
Controlling others. My way is the only way.


There are many other symptoms but these really grab me. So does this mean we cannot have joy in our labor?

Absolutely we can! 2 Corinthians 4:1 says, “We’ve been given this ministry by God’s mercy.” It is a gift and that is the key. When I know this is all a gift it is easy to give glory and credit to the gift giver. But when I feel I earned it and am entitled then I am in trouble. I am listening to the counsel of Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, and Herod rather than Paul.

The Lord wants us to enjoy our ministry and simply recognize it is all from Him. We will get many affirmations and those too are gifts from God. I find it so helpful to receive those graciously and in my spirit return this as a bouquet of praise and thanksgiving to God.

O God, show us your glory in Capernaum that we may glorify you back.
His and your servant,
Nick

Devotional By Nick - Recap Summer 2011

As I write it is September 1st. A new school year has begun with all the wonder of what God will do this year and the frantic preparations and pace as we invest ourselves into our friends for another year. Before it gets too crazy let’s do a “Selah” like that of the Psalms. Let’s pause, catch our breath and look back over a sacred summer filled with the wonders of God.

I know we all have amazing stories to share and I have heard some that take my breath away. I would like to share a couple with you as a means of offering thanks to God collectively.

I had the honor of being part of four different camp weeks this summer. I want to describe two of these experiences. The first was our camping experience with our YL Capernaum team in Kauai. YL Capernaum in Kauai is getting ready to celebrate their one-year anniversary on September 11th, so everything is new to this fabulous team of people led by Ana Nunoz.

We had a truly holy week with 17 friends, around 20 buddies, and a group of leaders. All of us whether kid, buddy, leader, or staff felt like we encountered Jesus in a profound way.

The moment that brought this into crystal clarity was the last night at a dessert with all of our participants, including their parents. A 21 year-old young man named Josh, who has cerebral palsy, spoke using his voice box from his wheelchair. He gave what I consider the most profound and elegant testimony of how emotionally painful his disability has been for him and his family. He then described how Capernaum is the first thing in his life to bring him hope and belief that his dreams could come true. He had us play a song that communicated what he felt.

As the song played, his parents arose from their seats and approached their son and wrapped him in their arms while weeping. Then slowly each kid that had been at day camp surrounded Josh, hugged, and held him throughout the song.

Have you ever felt like Moses encountering God in the burning bush? That is the only way I know how to describe the scene. As I watched in silent wonder, I couldn’t get over the feeling that each kid had responded to Josh in this way because he had become their voice; an articulate eloquent voice that stated clearly their struggles and beautifully their hope in Christ that they had received through Capernaum.

Glory to God!

The second experience was this past week at Oakbridge, near San Diego. Our amazing staff couple, John and Nancy Pantellas, serve in the Greater Los Angeles Region under my dear and Capernaum-loving friend Alan Smyth who is their Regional Director. They created and organized our first all YL Beyond Capernaum camp. One hundred and forty campers and leaders attended from California and Arizona. I had the privilege to speak.
What really stood out to me is our ability to go deeper with our friends and challenge them. Their response was dramatic. You could tangibly sense their hunger for Jesus and their response to Him. I have never experienced a YL Capernaum crowd listen as intently as they did, and no they were not asleep. It was a smashing success. We are going to do two four-day camps next summer and seek Pastors and church youth groups to be with us as a way of reaching our goal to more effectively move our friends towards the church.

Glory to God again!

Friends, I know this is only two stories among many. So I have this idea. I would love for each of you to send your most meaningful summer camp story and a picture with it. I would like to compile this into a small book we could use to share YL Capernaum with those around us who know little about our friends with disabilities and Capernaum. If you want to do this, just email it to me at your convenience.

There. We took a breath. We praised God! Now!

Ready!.....Set!....Let’s go!

Into a new year of wonder!
In Christ,
Nick