Student weekend was great. Here’s the quick update.
I spent most of the weekend with a gaggle of 7th/8th grade boys. We worshipped together, heard teaching, talked about middle school life, dreamed about what the future holds, played Fortnite, pointed each other to Jesus, served at a local charity, went on a WILD scavenger hunt around the city, and stayed up later than anyone had an business doing. I’m not sure the aroma from my van will ever leave, but it was worth it. I’m psyched to see what the Lord might do in the lives of these young men as they grow up in this church and ministry.
While Holy Week kicks off on Sunday, another special week got rolling yesterday afternoon. March Madness is here! I hear what you’re asking. Trey, you’re a Kentucky fan. Why would you even mention the tournament after your team just lost to a bunch of kids and one 9th year senior (you know Gohlke looks like he’s 35) from Oakland? Not even the real Oakland. These Golden Grizzlies are from Oakland, Michigan! I didn’t even know there was an Oakland, Michigan until late in the second half.
You’re right. It’s slightly depressing to have your team lose early in the tournament AGAIN, after a season of high expectations and the possibility of a deep run. But, like most of life, there’s gold to be dug out of our heartache, frustration, and suffering (not that being a fan produces real, meaningful suffering).
As the game rolled on, and it was clear that Oakland wasn’t going away, the announcers kept adding color to the Oakland squad, their long suffering program, and their coach that’s seen them through it all. Greg Kampe became the head coach at Oakland in 1984. That was 40 years ago for those of you who’re bad at math. It’s hard to do anything for forty years, and the way coaches get shuffled around in college hoops, it’s hard to imagine anyone being in one spot that long.
Coach Kampe has been there long enough to have an old player go on to have kids of his own, find his way onto the same team his dad played on, and be a part of the team that beat Kentucky last night. Not only that, but last night was the school’s first NCAA tournament win in program history. It only took forty years of faithfulness to the cause to get there. These stories are what make March Madness great.
Most of us are unlikely to get forty years of ministry in the same place, and we’ll be lucky to get forty years serving kids, students, and families at all. I’ll be thankful to get to forty years of marriage, nevermind that many years of ministry. The picture of Coach Kampe’s perseverance is one we believers can find comfort in. Not all of his years were good years. There were plenty of seasons with losing records. Oakland remained faithful to their commitment to him, and he remained faithful to persevere through joy and sorrow. Does that kind of relationship sound familiar?
Eugene Peterson writes, “There is a great market for religious experience in our world; there is little enthusiasm for the patient acquisition of virtue, little inclination to sign up for a long apprenticeship in what earlier generations of Christians called holiness.” It’s not a perfect picture, but just as Coach Kampe has spent decades patiently pouring into the lives of these young men, Jesus is faithful to grow our faith as we follow him.
The growth is sometimes slower than we’d like, and the results don’t look like the success that we’d hoped for. But there’s no doubt he’s working in us and through us. While we can’t see the changes day to day, we can look back on longer stretches and see how he’s shaped and molded us into his likeness. Sometimes he lops off big pieces of our sinful heart, like a machete clearing a path through thick vines. Later, it’s a gentle sanding of rough edges to round us into the parents, spouses, leaders, and coaches he’s called us to be. We can trust that, as Paul writes in II Thessalonians, “the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one.”
Holy Week (Parenting, Kids/Student Min)
Holy Week is right around the corner, and it’s always good to have resources to use in classrooms, share with parents, and use at home. The Bible Project has a video series on the book of Luke, with individual episodes covering both Jesus’s crucifixion and resurrection. They’re pulled from Luke’s narrative of these events, easy to digest (both around 5 minutes long), beautifully animated, and plenty of opportunities for teachers and parents to pause and press in with questions. File these away to use or reference as you’re planning your Holy Week lessons at church, or to use with your kids at home.
Teaching Teenagers (Student Ministry)
“We should always commend students to learn from others and rely on their brothers and sisters in Christ. But beholding wonderful things in God’s Word from their own insight will strengthen their faith, soothe their weariness, loosen their tongue to praise, and quicken their lips to teach others.” Over at Rooted, Skyler Flowers highlights the value of teaching teenagers how to teach themselves from the Bible. While teenagers need instruction and help from both their parents and outside voices pointing them toward Christ, it’s important for them to learn that they can read their own Bibles and have their faith strengthened as they dive into God’s word themselves. Skyler offers some practical wisdom that he’s developed in his own student ministry context, highlighting a clear path for personal discipleship along with some common potholes to look out for as they go.
Summer Camp (Parenting, Kids/Student Min)
“In this article, I will argue that summer camps have the exact kinds of features needed to help reverse the two trends that have driven much of the mental health crisis: overprotection in the real world and underprotection online.” I spent plenty of my childhood summers off at overnight church camps, 4H camps, and boy scout camps. Obviously, I didn’t have a cell phone in my pocket back in those days. Times have changed and the challenges our kids face have changed as well. Steve Baskin isn’t writing from a Christian perspective necessarily, but much of what he identifies here is helpful for parents and kids/student leaders to consider. There’s tremendous value to kids striking out on their own, jumping into adventures they wouldn’t/couldn’t at home, making new friends, and solving problems without the constant pings coming from whatever devices they’re attached to. Lots to consider here as you look ahead to summer plans in your church and at home.
Dad Jokes
Here’s a pretty solid dad joke that you can work into a Sunday School lesson, or use at the dinner table. Almost guaranteed to make your kids laugh, and other adults groan. You’re welcome. Enjoy the weekend!