“7 the LORD God formed the man  from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.”

Genesis 2: 7

rev·o·lu·tion

-noun

a radical and pervasive change in society and the social structure, esp. one made suddenly and often accompanied by violence.

This year has been the most incredible year of my life. So much has happened in the span of 365 days. I spent three years of my life investing in some of the most incredible young people I have ever had the priviledge of ministering too. I became a husband. I developed some incredible relationships. I was called from the young people I served to serve another generation of young people. And I soon will become a father.

And while the theme of this year I believe was a year of regeneration. Of rebuilding. Of renewing. I believe that this could be a year of revival. Vision, specifically new vision has escaped me it seems. But what I have come to understand, is that vision is not in big names, big numbers, or even big dreams. Vision is in Big God.

It takes the spirit of God inside of man to accomplish vision.

I preached a message a while ago out of Ezekiel 37. The story where God shows Ezekiel a valley of dry bones. Totally dead. Totally dry. Totally useless. No hope. No future. God challenges Ezekiel with a question, and asks him if he thinks the bones could live. Ezekiels response is appropriate to anyone in his shoes. We struggle to know where the next check will come from to pay for some new unforseen expense, how would we know the answer to that question? “God only knows,” is his response.

God commands Ezekiel very specifically, to prophesy to the breathe or the “Spirit,” and that the breathe would enter the bones and so forth. But as Ezekiel prophesies the dramatic result is quite the opposite of what God said would happen. The bones come together in a loud shaking and rattling, sinews and flesh cover the bones, and then again God commands, “Prophesy to the breathe!” Ezekiel obeys and prophesies, and the breathe enters.

The point of the message was that God often speaks the end before the beginning when He prophesies to us. God does not tell us the way things will happen, but tells us what will happen, and then puts us in the way! Often times, God’s word to us is not the end but merely the beginning. After the word comes, God has got to mold and form a vessel in which to hold that word or promise.

In other words, God commanded breathe to come into the bones, but the bones themselves could not hold the breathe. God had need to create a vessel.

In the past year I have experienced alot of transition. And what I have relied on has been, what I thought, trying to conjure up vision by throwing out big names and big numbers. Specifically in terms of youth ministry. But I realize now, that what vision really is, is the breathe that God breathes into us.

I propose that as a youth pastor, my passion is not just in seeing our ministry grow and increase in size and number. But specifically in attracting the presence of God. I am not satisfied with living in mediocrity, spouting “vision” that has no breath and no life. My passion needs to be excited not at the prospect of reaching people for Jesus. But reaching people with Jesus.

Charismania has put a bad taste in alot of peoples mouths. But I am not proposing an all out pentecostal “revival.” I want whats genuine. And what is genuine is an encounter with Jesus. An encounter with God that changes from the inside out. An encounter that does away with all formal ideologies and philosophies about ministry and christianity. An encounter that creates revolution, not in the hyped up spiritual sense, but in my heart.

I’m sick of only pursuing forms of relevant ministry, refining and redefining the way church looks for my generation… for this generation. I want God. The God that supercedes dress code, communication style, and doctrinal beliefs. I want the Jesus that I can walk and talk with. The Jesus that isn’t portrayed as a distant historical figure, but Jesus who lives as an ever present reality in my life.

The Jesus that shook my world as a sixteen year old kid, and re-defined who I was, and what I was mean’t to do in the world. The Jesus that has held my hand, and kept me sane and solid for these past few years. The Jesus I believe wants to revive the hearts of highschool students, faculty members, mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, and awaken them to the essence of life: to be with Him.

The Jesus that was crucified on a cross, to redeem all of humanity from the sickness of sin, and the un-ending torture of hell and an eternity without Him. I need a revolution.