IMAGINE WEEKLY WRAP-UP 02.16.11

2 weeks ago, we summed up the series in one simple statement: You are never more like Jesus than when you are reaching out to the hurting and lonely. You could be reading your Bible every day, spending an hour per day in prayer and never miss church or youth group, and you can STILL miss the point of what it means to be a Christian. The word Christian actually means “to be like Christ.” Ephesians 5:1 says that we are to be imitators of Christ. So, basically, if we are not becoming more and more like this guy we read about in the Gospels, we are fooling ourselves with our faith.

Tonight we read Matthew 1:18-25. Now our goal tonight was not to journey into the birth of Jesus Christ. It was to talk about the life they lived after the birth of Jesus. In first century Jewish culture, it was absolutely shameful to have a baby if you weren’t married. As Mary’s pregnancy began to show, you can just imagine the gossip that transpired in Nazareth. People had no idea that she was carrying the son of God in her womb; they just knew she wasn’t married, and she was having a baby. So Mary was definitely not the most popular person in her village. The same would have been true for Jesus. He would have been known as an illegitimate child. He would be seen as a child born in sin. Now I wasn’t there, so I’m guessing, but I bet He was the kid that was always getting bullied. It’s very likely that Jesus’ childhood was not that great and it could have been downright horrible.

Here’s the whole point: We don’t have a God who only knows what it’s like to be powerful; we have a God who also knows what it’s like to be weak. When you are feeling like you are an outcast or not worth anything, you can pray with certainty that Jesus knows exactly how you feel and will be with you to help you through it.

God has placed us on this earth to be His hands and feet and to do what Jesus did. We get to help bring hope to people’s lives. When we got started,I had the students write a note to a suicidal friend—that’s an incredible example of how we are supposed to live all the time. You may never get the chance to write someone a note before they do something drastic, but you certainly will have many opportunities to speak into the lives of people who are hurting. But the reality is, we usually miss these opportunities. Jesus didn’t miss them. And if we are called to be “imitators of Christ,” then I think we need to learn to see the world through His eyes.

This week I ask that you guys will team up with Imagine Student Ministries and commit to praying for our youth throughout the remainder of this series. I trust that God is going to continue to do awesome things in our youth group.

Live. Love. Reach..

-Pastor Jesse Garcia

Ask, Seek, knock

MATTHEW 7:7-11

“Ask, and you will receive; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you. ⁸For everyone who asks will receive, and anyone who seeks will find, and the door will be opened to those who knock. ⁹Would any of you who are fathers give your son a stone when he asks for bread? ¹⁰Or would you give him a snake when he asks for a fish? ¹¹As bad as you are, you know how to give good things to your children. How much more, then, will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!

I have probably read or heard these verses a thousand times. And each time, I never really sat back and meditated on what the Word is saying. Last Sunday, Pastor Todd spoke on Gods favor and to me this scripture really speaks on how one can obtain his favor. I believe the key is seeking Him out. When we are in tune with what God has in store for us, we tend to have a peace about us and can understand when there are situations that we need to overcome. However, in order for us to understand what He has for our lives, we have to be in his word, in prayer, and trust that God will bless us more than we could ever imagine. I hear people say all the time how much this person has been blessed and how much this person has done for the advancement of the kingdom. Then, I always hear them say I wish I could be in their shoes. The reality is, that all we have to do is seek him out and continue to push through when things are a little rough. I have found in my life, through the good and the bad, the more I seek him out, the more I trust in Him, the less I stress and worry about the day to day struggles of life. God delights in giving good things to His children. It’s when we pray without ceasing, and ask for those things in our life that he will bless us. If we desire to receive, find, and have doors open for us, then we need to keep on asking, keep on seeking, and keep on knocking. We have a father in heaven who is not untouched by the pleas of his children. Just as I go running to my son Manny when he is hurt, so too will He come running to us.

Live out Loud. Love Like Jesus. Reach the Lost

God Bless,

Pastor Jesse

Vision

HABAKUK 2:1-3

²And then God answered: “Write this. Write what you see. Write it out in big block letters so that it can be read on the run. ³This vision-message is a witness pointing to what’s coming. It aches for the coming—it can hardly wait! And it doesn’t lie. If it seems slow in coming, wait. It’s on its way. It will come right on time.

VISION…. Where would I be without God’s vision. Where would I be if I did not trust and accept the plans that God has for me. I remember just about 6 months ago, when I was going through a phenomenal change in my life; God had put me on a brand new path. At the time, I was searching for purpose because I knew that God had something in store for my life; I knew that God had more for me than a life of going through the motions. He took a regular guy who loved the Lord, and put him in a place to teach his word. I remember sitting in my Coke van and God coming into me right where I was and filling me with His Vision for Imagine Student Ministries. He revealed to me a youth that was about Living out Loud, Loving LIKE JESUS, and Reaching the LOST. He showed me a youth room filled with his presence, and a youth that had a genuine LOVE for him. Now, as the months go by, I have to continue to go back to the VISION and re-read it and keep it engrained in me and the youth. I know that if I do not keep the vision God set in me for this youth, then I may go astray. The truth is that the enemy will figure out ways to throw you from the vision God has set out for your life. He will send giants to make you stumble. Your giants could come in the form of drugs, sexual perversion, TIME management, financial issues etc. However, if we continue to stay focused on the Vision and continue to trust in His plan, then we will be able to fight off these giants. For me, this passage is not only about presenting the vision to others and patience; it’s about trusting the plans that God has set for you. And ultimately, if we are patient and keep his vision in plain sight, then we will have peace about the plans that God has in store for us. You will have peace in the Vision that God has set for your Church, your home, your family and your life.

Live out Loud. Love like JESUS. Reach the Lost.

God Bless,

Pastor Jesse

The Good News

ROMANS 10:14-15

⁴But how can people call for help if they don’t know who to trust? And how can they know who to trust if they haven’t heard of the One who can be trusted? And how can they hear if nobody tells them? ¹⁵And how is anyone going to tell them, unless someone is sent to do it? That’s why Scripture exclaims,

A sight to take your breath away! Grand processions of people telling all the good things of God!

When I was in The Marine Corps we used to have all sorts of witty little sayings like “keep it simple stupid” and…. Well maybe I shouldn’t go there. However the one saying that I remember hearing was how would you know if no one ever told you. When I read this scripture that is what I get out of it. The truth is that it each and every one of us believers has been called to share the good news of Jesus Christ. When I think about my salvation I also think about my wife. At the time I knew of Jesus but I didn’t know him. She took a simple concept of showing Christ’s love and used it to impact my life. Because of her love for Christ I began to know Christ. As a result of her faithfulness to him I have the honor of teaching the word of God to our youth. When I look at these youth I see a generation of young Christians that are ready to rise up and spread the good news of Jesus Christ the way my wife did. I see teenagers that are hurting from broken homes, drug addictions and self esteem issues coming together and praising God despite their situations. I see a generation that is unashamed to speak the name of Jesus Christ. I see a generation that is a site to take your breath away because of their willingness to tell the good things of GOD. God has touched us, who are saved, so that we may touch the world.

Live Out Loud. Love Like Jesus. Reach The Lost

God Bless,

Pastor Jesse

We shall OVERCOME

John 16:33

“These things Christ says I have spoken to you, that in Me you might have peace. In the world you will have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”

So when I initially read that verse it made me happy. I became overjoyed. Because I know that since Christ had overcome the world. That I, while walking with him can overcome anything. The beauty of being freed from the chains that keep us bound is the testimony that we are able to share with others. The reality is that we can be of good cheer because HE overcame the world. The bible tells us in Psalms 66:16- Come and listen, all you who fear God, and I will tell you what he did for me. As over comer’s we should never be ashamed of our testimony. The touch that you received from God, that delivered you from your strongholds. Will ultimately be used to advance his kingdom. Lets walk with our heads held high and rejoice! Knowing that through him we can do all things!!

Live out Loud. Love like Jesus. Reach the Lost

God Bless,

Pastor Jesse

Restored….

^{1 Kings 19:3-7}

³Elijah was afraid and fled for his life. He went to Beersheba, a town in Judah, and he left his servant there. ⁴Then he went on alone into the wilderness, traveling all day. He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, LORD,” he said. “Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors who have already died.”

⁵Then he lay down and slept under the broom tree. But as he was sleeping, an angel touched him and told him, “Get up and eat!” ⁶He looked around and there beside his head was some bread baked on hot stones and a jar of water! So he ate and drank and lay down again.

⁷Then the angel of the LORD came again and touched him and said, “Get up and eat some more, or the journey ahead will be too much for you.”

Elijah at this point was a man who had done many awesome things in the name of the Lord. He was a man that jumped when God said jump and really held it down for the Lord. But at this point Elijah is defeated. Here is this awesome man of God sitting under a tree broken. Elijah was thinking that through out all of these awesome things that Revival would come to the land. A revival in which the people of Israel would repent of their sins and turn back to God with all their hearts. When this didn’t happen, and when Elijah was threatened by the wicked queen Jezebel, he felt as though he and his ministry were a failure. Therefore, he ran away from his position, his problem, and his people.

What is so amazing is that even at Elijah’s lowest point. Even when he asked God to take his life. Even when he was walking outside of what the Lord wanted. God still came through.  Like Elijah I believe we get so caught up in ourseleves and so focused on what WE contributed to the ministry that we forget that God is orchestrating it all. The beauty of this story is that God came through and restored a fallen man. In that same way God will restore us for his purpose.

LIVE OUT LOUD. LOVE LIKE JESUS. REACH THE LOST

Never too Young

1 Timothy 4:12

12Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.

As I read this passage I think about our youth. I think about my son Manny and the baby on the way. I think about how my walk with Christ will affect their walk with Christ. For me as a youth pastor I see kids who have a love for Christ. I see kids who understand what it means to have a relationship with Christ. But what I also see is the willingness of parents to start raising their children to Love the Lord. In this verse Paul is focusing on Timothy’s standard for a good minister or Christian leader, who must pursue spiritual priorities and pay attention to their lifestyle and calling. However, These principles not only apply to ministers it applies to all who believe. We as Christians need to be filling ourselves with God’s word, living a lifestyle focused on God’s purpose for our lives, and walking a walk that is pleasing to him. I believe that if we trust in Him and immerse ourselves in his word that the youth of this world will stand tall and be followers of him. So I will close with this; Effective ministry is ministry in which the Word of God is applied to individual lives and to all situations in life.

God Bless,

Pastor Jesse

BEING PUT ON DISPLAY

JOB 1:8-12

God said to Satan, “Have you noticed my friend Job? There’s no one quite like him—honest and true to his word, totally devoted to God and hating evil.”

9Satan retorted, “So do you think Job does all that out of the sheer goodness of his heart? 10Why, no one ever had it so good! You pamper him like a pet, make sure nothing bad ever happens to him or his family or his possessions, bless everything he does—he can’t lose!

11“But what do you think would happen if you reached down and took away everything that is his? He’d curse you right to your face, that’s what.”

12God replied, “We’ll see. Go ahead—do what you want with all that is his. Just don’t hurt him.” Then Satan left the presence of God.

Last night I had the priveledge of hearing Pastor Walt Byrd preach on When God puts you on display. I have to admit this was one of the top ten messages I have heard in my life. The reality is when God put Job on display he knew that he would be faithful he knew that there was nothing the Devil could do to make him curse God. My thought for today is how do we react when we are on display. When times are hard do we stay strong and look to God for guidance and direction or do we look to our own understanding. The Bible tells us that Job shunned evil, He intentionaly kept himself away from the things that would takes his eyes off of God. Today I know that if I keep my eyes on God. If I stay in prayer and trust in Gods plan, I will be able to take whatever is thrown at me. The devil can’t win if we don’t let him in….

live. Love. Reach.

one heart…one mind