Get Vision

The value we place on something is shown by what punishment or pain we are willing to go through for it.

 That’s a beautiful quote.....

What are those things in your life that you would fight tooth and nail for?

What is it that you so passionately believe in that as soon as it gets mentioned – your mind and your body jump alive?

We should have those things in our lives that we love so much that we would climb through glass to get them.
There are so many people just going through life, coasting on autopilot and they are thrown around every which way and are at the mercy of all the people who surround them.

But every now and then you meet someone different; when they speak to you about what it is that they love and are passionate about – it makes you homesick for the same emotions. You even find yourself getting excited about the thing that they love even if you haven’t been personally invested in it up to that point. But their words and passion excites you. There is something so amazing about a person who is sold out; driven, unmovable and unstoppable in their pursuits.

What do you love like that?

Me personally I feel that way for my family and I also feel that way for the young people that I minister to today. In leading CYM; there have been some choices and decisions that we have made that others didn’t understand - but we made a choice early on that the thing that we believe most in; the message of Jesus Christ will not stop. Our message of loving Jesus and others around us with our entire hearts will never be snuffed out. It may be hard to take if you don’t feel the same way but truthfully we really don’t give it much thought. There’s much more work to be done than worrying if we are offending people with the message that offended people for generations. Time is short and only getting shorter.  If you are new to CYM we welcome you. Our hope is that you would see that this isn’t about church as much as it is about being part of a bigger thing; a group that truly loves and cares for each other and loves and cares about Jesus.
On June 3^rd of this year it will be 7 years of leading CYM. It came from humble beginnings in a small room with white walls and a drop ceiling. We had about 12 chairs in a circle that we hoped against hope we would fill on a night. Over time we grew; we’re still not a mega ministry but those who come are here because they share the same mindset and they work hard for what we do and what we stand for.

I have two huge binders of visitors who have come into CYM. Some have walked in and turned around and walked right out, others have walked in and stuck around for a short time and then left, and still others who have come in and stayed for years and have gone on to become leaders and helpers here and then of course over time some have moved on to different things. Sadly, I know of at least one who came in and walked out and a few short years later died at the young age of 16 in a car crash. Over the years I’ve had people walk into my office and they see the stack of visitors who’ve came and they act like we’ve really done something. Me, all I see is that they didn’t stay… they didn’t change their lives, and they might not EVER come to being a true follower of Christ.

To some of you; we might just look like another youth group but what I see on a daily basis and what I know is that this is a family that is led by a group of followers of Jesus Christ who give up their time, their money and their own comforts, so that others might have lives that change.

I say all that to give you vision. Of what we are right now; but also what we will always be if I have anything to say about it. What we are doing has a great affect on the world around us. There is nothing more amazing than to watch a young person come into this ministry with a disconnected view of the God who created them and watch them as they begin to see that they personally mattered to the Creator of the Heaven and Earth and that He died for them.

If people can't see what God is doing, they stumble all over themselves; but when they attend to what He reveals, they are most blessed. Proverbs 29:18 The Message.

I have been so privileged to see people get direction and determination where there used to be stumbling.

What’s your vision? Do you have anything like that? Do you feel as if you matter to this world? That people actually care about you? I hope so.

CYM stands for Chosen Youth Ministries.

A long time ago this ministry was perfectly named from a scripture reference in 1 Peter 2:9 by a woman named Jen who felt as if it captured the people who belonged to it. The day I walked in I had the opportunity to change it if I wanted. There was absolutely no way that I could. My vision was the same as hers and it fit with what God was saying to me.

But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God's instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you—from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted. 1 Peter 2:9 The Message.

Over and over again; throughout the years I’ve been told by people who were around me that God wanted me to know that this group was filled with people who would change this world; and I believe it with all of my heart.

Some have already moved on, some are still here today and some haven’t yet walked through our doors.

But when they do they will be welcomed with open arms and cared for up close. They will be spoken to and told that they matter to us and to the most beautiful man who ever walked this earth.