Monthly Archives: September 2011

09.30.11
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Create a custom facebook page for free

I came across a site that you can create a custom facebook page for free. I personally did not believe it at first, but it is legit. It is very easy to use as well. It is user friendly, and you have quite a few options which is nice.

Facebook is where our students are at. I would venture to say that over 90% of all of my students are on facebook regularly. You must keep them up to date, and a facebook page is a great way to do this. I have a facebook page that I monitor for our student ministry as well as our church. You can check out the Grove student ministry facebook page here. You can check out Union Grove’s facebook page here.

The site is pagemodo, and we highly recommend this resource. I look forward to implementing their stuff even more in the future.

Make sure your student ministry facebook page look LEGIT!!!

09.30.11
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Salem Pregnancy Care Center Testimony Vid- Harris Family

Pastor Ken Harris serves as the senior pastor at Union Grove Baptist Church. This is the church where I have the privilege of serving at as their student pastor. Pastor and Mrs. Kim struggled with infertility, and Salem Pregnancy Care Center chose them to give their testimony for their banquet. The Lord blessed them greatly, and He gave them Claire, and this is their story. Check this powerful testimony video out:

09.29.11
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How to communicate effectively to your students

Have you ever been teaching or speaking and you can tell that the students or the people listening just DO NOT GET IT? This has happened to me several times. Sometimes, I leave the Grove, and I feel that I totally connected to the students during my teaching, and then there are times that I feel they do not even have a clue what is going on. We are called by God to try to teach in the most effective ways that we can. You can check out my recent post on becoming a better speaker here. Here are some helpful ways in communicating to students when teaching them a lesson. Notice, this is a bit different in a small group setting, but I am referring to teaching to the entire student ministry.

  1. Be yourself- Sometimes when I get up to speak, I try to be this “Big, Bad, and amazing” youth speaker. There is nothing wrong with being ambitious or trying to be the most effective as possible, but that does not mean try to be someone who you are not. I struggle after listening to some amazing speakers, I try to get up and duplicate what they did, and that is not what God called me to do. He called me to be myself and teach what He has given me!
  2. Use humor in the right way- I listen to some student pastors, and they try to make the students laugh the entire time. Now, this makes you a comedian, but not necessarily an effective youth speaker. Occasionally, I use humor, but this should not be your goal in speaking to students, to make them laugh! Make sure you use humor in the right way and effectively. I think humor is good, and I love a good story or joke, but these illustrations need to back up the point that you are trying to get across.
  3. Look students in the eye- Students love this, and it is the most effective way to communicate to a student.
  4. Be real- Model what you are teaching. They do not need to see you teaching one thing and then living another! We must be applying the truths of the Word of God just like we expect our hearers too.
  5. Be practical- I love doctrine, and I think doctrine is extremely important! I love theology, and I believe that this is important. We must not leave out the importance of practicality in our speaking as well. If I am teaching on a heavy subject that requires a great deal of theology and doctrine, I always spend the last few minutes applying the truth to the students’ life. Practicality is where they can take a point or principle, and apply it to a situation that they are going through.
I appreciate feedback so if you have any other helpful ways to communicate with students, please let me know!
09.29.11
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Get Connected

Greetings,

I trust that this newsletter finds you doing well. I have been slack sending out editions of “Get Connected,” and I do apologize. Hopefully, not I can experience some consistency again. The reason that I am sending this out today is because my wife, Abby, will be having her gallbladder removed tomorrow morning. We would ask that you would please pray for the procedure if you would. We would greatly appreciate it.

I really appreciate you having your students at the Grove each week. We appreciate the faithfulness of the parents as much as the students, because we recognize what a difficult task it is to have them there each week, and to keep them involved in so many different events.

This Saturday, we will be going to “The Miracle League.” This is the handicap kids baseball league. We served there last year, and it was terrific. Our students and leaders showed up big and had a fantastic time serving. This Saturday, our 10th-12th grades will be going to the Miracle league. Our 7th-9th graders will attend the Miracle League on Saturday, October 15. We leave the church at 8:45 am and we will return to the church at 1:30 pm. Please bring money for CiCi’s pizza for lunch. We look forward to serving with you.

Here is a listing of the Grove’s upcoming events:

  • October 1 – Volunteering at the Miracle League in High Point – This is the handicap kids baseball league. 10th-12th grades. Bring $6 for Cici’s. We will leave the church at 8:45 am and return at 1:30 pm. We are in need of leaders to attend!
  • October 5 – Invite a friend Night @ The Grove. Mark Etheridge will be our guest (kind of) speaker.
  • October 8 – Photo Scavenger Hunt (Cost is $5 per person for food and prizes, and the times are from 6-9 pm). If you have a digital camera, please bring it. Also, you need to be signed up no later than this Wednesday, October 5th.
  • October 12 – Guest speaker at the Grove- missionary Cletis Titus. Bro. Cletis is the missionary that we will be ministering along side of in Jamaica. He will be speaking, and after the service, all of Team Jamaica will go out to eat with he and his wife, Tammy. We will take care of the cost for the meal.
  • October 13 – Serving North Davidson JV football team – The JV football team from North will come to our church at 3:45 pm, and we will serve them a pre game meal. We will need adult, parent, and student volunteers. If you could sign up by Sunday, October 9th to volunteer, that would be helpful.
  • October 14 – Serving North Davidson V football team – The V football team from North will come to our church at 3:45 pm, and we will serve them a pre game meal. We will need adult, parent, and student volunteers. If you could sign up by Sunday, October 9th to volunteer, that would be helpful.
  • October 15 – Volunteering at the Miracle League in High Point – 7th – 9th grades. Bring $6 for Cici’s. We will leave the church at 8:45 am and return at 1:30 pm. If your student is not signed up, they need to do so asap! Also, we are in need of leaders to attend with us as well.
  • October 22 – Liberty Scaremare (Cost is $7 per person). We will leave the church at 4:00 pm and return at 12:00 am. Please bring money for fast food. Be prepared to be scared!
  • October 26 – Church Wide Fellowship Meal. This will be to raise money for Team Jamaica to go on their mission trip.
  • November 12 – Ice Skating (More info coming soon)
  • November 14 – Chick Fil A Night (For Team Jamaica)
  • January 27-28 – Ski Retreat (registration form with prices listed here). We have some killer deals this year for you! You need to take advantage of these deals and be a part of our ski retreat!
  • July 6-13 – WOL Camp

I appreciate your consistency in everything that you do. We understand that the Grove and everything else that is going on can be overwhelming, but we praise the Lord for your faithfulness! You can also check out our website for a more exhaustive listing of our events. If you ever have questions or want quick information regarding the Grove, check out our facebook page. You can also follow us on twitter (@ugbcgrove) for instant information regarding the Grove. We count it a privilege to serve alongside of you this year! God bless you!

- Pastor Josh

09.29.11
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Today only….50% off!!

Ever looking for more training tools and material? I certainly am. I seem to always be looking at material for the next leader’s training seminar, etc. Well, I saw this resource today, and I thought that I would pass this along to you. I just purchased it, and have previewed some of the material, and this is great! It is a real good deal as well, and the discount is for today only. So, enjoy….

09.28.11
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A study on the 7 churches in Revelation

A Study on the 7 Churches

Revelation 2:1-29

The book of Revelation is an interesting book. It is often rarely preached out of it, because of the severity of the judgment and tribulation. For many, it is not that happy of a book. For believers, it should be an encouraging book. It should be a book of hope to them who believe. The church was going through some major times of severe persecution during this day, and the Holy Spirit led John to write the book of Revelation. John is responsible for writing the Gospel of John, the 3 epistles, and the book of Revelation. The book of Revelation is a book of prophecy about what is to come. It is a book that discusses eschatology in detail. However, the theme of the book is still the exaltation of Jesus. After all, this is the theme of the entire Word of God. John received the vision of Jesus and the instruction to write this book while he was on the isle of Patmos. He writes to 7 churches. When the Bible speaks to churches, we take it as Him speaking to the believers. So, this is for us today, the church of Jesus Christ.

Church: A local assembly of believers who worship together.

        I.            The Church at Ephesus

  1. The church at Ephesus was a great church. It was founded by the Apostle Paul during his third missionary journey in Acts 19. The word, Ephesus comes from the Greek word meaning, desirable. If an identification with the history of of the church is to be made, Ephesus would represent the apostolic era of the first century church.
  2. What it was doing right: The church at Ephesus was a great church. It was a hard working, patient, and would weed out false prophets.
  3. What it was doing wrong: They left their first love. They had left their reason and motivation for doing what they were doing. It flowed out of their deep love for God, but now, they had lost that love.
  4. What is next: They need to repent and turn back to where they were.
  5. Matthew 22:37-38 says, “Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment.” Let me just say hear, if you love God, you will not have to be forced to serve Him! It is a byproduct of serving Him. Your motivation should be a love for Jesus!
  6. Are you serving God out of duty or out of love?
  7. When you love Him with all of your heart, you will want to serve Him with your hands!
  8. Ephesus lost their first love. They lost their motivation for ministry!

      II.            The Church at Smyrna

  1. The word Smyrna comes from the Greek word, myrrh. It is an aromatic substance that comes from a thorny tree that must be crushed in order to release its aroma and fragrance. The Word implies and intense time of persecution and tribulation that this church endured! This city was rich, but Christians were very poor!
  2. What it is doing right: They were praised for their works, enduring persecution (tribulation), and their enduring poverty. They were poor, and were being persecuted from many people, even those who seem to be religious. They had nothing in the eyes of men, but in the eyes of God, they were rich, because they had Jesus in them.
  3. What the church was doing wrong: Jesus does not mention anything that the church was doing wrong. They were staying faithful in the midst of the persecution.
  4. What is next: They are challenged to remain faithful and endure and not to fear even to the point of death. Suffering is coming, but do not fear, endure until the end. The phrase, do not fear literally means stop being afraid! Jesus has promises a crown of life if they endure. God’s best comes to those who wait.
  5. Smyrna stayed faithful during the persecutions that came their way. Are you staying faithful, or bowing out because of popularity, etc?

    III.            The Church at Pergamos

  1. The church at Pergamos. This word means marriage. It signifies the spiritual adultery in which this local church engaged.
  2. What it was doing right: They stayed true to God. One member of their church, Antipas was even martyred in front of the church.
  3. What it was doing wrong: This was a typical church that compromised. They allowed the doctrine of Balaam to come into the church. This doctrine was found first in Numbers 22. We see that Balaam tried to destroy Israel using King Balak. They desired that Israel would marry people who did not worship God so that they would begin worshipping idols. They also followed the doctrines of the Nicolaitanes which God says that he hates. This was a doctrine of leadership. It literally means to conquer the people. We have little to no record of exactly where this originated from. Some believe that it originated with Nicolas who was ordained as one of the first deacons. Some think this is an hierachial type of leadership, some think this implies immorality. Although, it could be all of these things, God hates it.
  4. What is next: Repent. This is the turning away from. Repent or they would be judged according to the Word of God!
  5. Pergamos allowed the philosophies of this world to influence their behavior.

   IV.            The Church at Thyatira

  1. The church at Thyatira.
  2. What it was doing right: Love, service, faith, patience, works, and humility.
  3. What it was doing wrong: They were an apostate church. This word means going away from their original position. They allowed this through a woman named Jezebel. She would seduce servants in the church and commit immorality with them. She was granted the option of repenting, and she repented not.
  4. What is next: Some believers were exercising their faith and obedience to God in these days. They did not partake of this doctrine. They are encouraged to stay faithful and endure during these difficult days. Judgment is coming to those who go into an apostate.
  5. Thyatira allowed sin to creep into the church that was not being dealt with.

These letters are an opportunity for us to see where we are falling short of God’s expectations for our daily walk. They also are a promise to us that if we repent of our sin, He will bless and reward us. If you are not saved, the blessing and hope is not for you, all you have right now is the judgment of God. You can change that today by placing your faith in Jesus!

We will look at the remaining 3 churches mentioned in Revelation chapter 3 soon!

09.27.11
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How to keep students in church after high school

It is no secret that in today’s contemporary church, we are losing a mass exodus of students. Most statistics say that 80% or higher of students who grew up in church are leaving the church within two years after they graduate high school. When I first heard this statistic, I did not believe it. Then I started looking at our own church, and boy, is it true! It is so sad. Now, my goal is to beat this statistic for the glory of God. Just because most churches are losing their students does not mean, we must surrender to this statistic. We must try and beat it. Here are a few of my thoughts on how do we beat these statistics in fighting for the next generation:

  1. Encourage a Family Oriented Ministry – When I look at the age range of 18-25 year olds in the local church, I see a strong family backing. This is God’s first institution. The family must be teaching and modeling the Christian life basics! Too often parents have put this off to the student pastor, and this is not the Biblical model. It is the parent’s responsibility, and the student pastor is called to come alongside of. Try and encourage a family oriented student ministry where you encourage the Biblical model for the family.
  2. Develop a local church focus – God’s institution for reaching our community is the local church. You must cultivate a level of community within the local church that the student desires. They need to see the family atmosphere. We have about 80 students in our student ministry, but only a small percentage attend the church faithfully. One thing that we are trying to do is to change that. We want more involved in our local church. If the student is not tied to the local church (not just the student ministry), do not expect them to stick around after high school. If they are already tied into the local church before graduation, they will just keep on going into the “big church.”
  3. Connect the student ministry to the church – Now, you might be saying, what does this mean? You need to connect the student ministry and the local church. In our case, sometimes, we are seen as a separate entity, and we are just a ministry of the local church. We are trying some new things to connect the two together. On the 5th Sunday night, we are trying to do a student takeover service. The students will completely run the show. It connects the adults to the students, the student ministry to the church, and the students to the church! They will get the chance to serve in the church and this could be a step in getting them plugged into the local church.
  4. Implement a Small Group Ministry - This is where the small group philosophy comes into play. This is where an adult comes and spends time investing in the student’s lives about their future and their walk with the Lord. The parent’s are the primary teacher, but there is nothing wrong with a small group leader coming alongside of a student to help and guide them in their personal growth!
  5. Teach your students to serve in the local church – If the students are already serving in the local church while as a student, they will more than likely continue when they get out of high school. Encourage your students to serve in the media ministry, children’s church, and nursery. I love seeing our students involved and serving in the local church while at a young age.
  6. Create a Thriving Single’s Ministry – You must have something for the students to go too. They come from a thriving, energetic, and hyped up student ministry to the church, and they will get lost in the crowd. You must have a ministry that they can jump into. I think the major decisions of life are made between the ages of 17-26 years of age. Therefore, this ministry must be thriving, practical, and relevant to their needs.
  7. Create a Doctrine driven student ministry – Do not be afraid to teach doctrine. Too many student pastors are afraid of this word. Students need it! They need the in depth Biblical preaching. They do not need a bunch of fluff from google or a sermon website. They need some doctrine from the Word of God that God has given you to deliver to them. Now, I was ranting and raving here, but I hope you get the point. Teach your student’s doctrine, and not just programs. If your students graduate loving and knowing the primary doctrines of the Bible, they will have little trouble adjusting to adult church life. The problem is that they are so used to programs that if there are not constant programs, they stop coming. Remember what you catch people with is what you keep people with. 
Now, these are just a few of the things that you could do in your church and student ministry to help limit the number of students who are dropping out of church. Now, you can do all of these things pretty good, and still have some fall away. This is just the way of the world and the strength of the devil. This could save you from losing some though. Also, if you have any thoughts or want to share what you are doing in your church that helps, please share a comment below. I would love to hear what you guys are doing. You can also feel free to send me a direct email at joshhevans@gmail.com.
09.26.11
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5 ways you can become a better speaker

We communicate to students through many different methods. The one way that we communicate the most is probably the most obvious. It is through teaching. I go to youth conferences/rally’s/etc, and I see many men gifted in this area, and so often I examine my own teaching, and feel that I have a long way to go.

I do not consider myself to be a great speaker. I am not having to turn down camps and conferences, because I am speaking other places. You should have seen me speak when I first started. It was horrific, and I made everyone in the room nervous. Now, I have embraced God’s call on my life. Therefore, I am trying to become the speaker that He wants me to be. I always feel that I can improve my preaching style. Here are some ways that I have learned, and that you can use in your speaking style:

  1. Pray over your message – We must pray so much when speaking. It is a great honor and privilege to get up and speak. Therefore, we must make sure that it is from Jesus. There are some really good speakers who are not being effective, because they leave Jesus out of the equation. If He is at the center of your message, it will be effective, because He is the one speaking.
  2. Speak expositionally – We live in a day where students are quite advanced. They can tell when you have thrown something together from google or another site. They desire some doctrine and teaching in the passage. So, try not to find topics, then, find a Scripture to go along with the topic. Find Scripture and dig deep to find your topics.
  3. Keep it simple – Sometimes, we try and over complicate things. I think we are moving into a more simplistic culture. Therefore, I try and keep my main thoughts simple as well as my main points. Also, keep your power point simple as well. We encourage note taking, and when a speaker gets on up into the 20s for slides, it makes it extremely difficult for them to keep up. I heard one speaker say, “if you can’t say your message without notes, then don’t use powerpoint.” This challenges me every time that I speak.
  4. Focus on one main idea – What are you trying to drive home in your message? Some speakers speak about 10 different messages in one, and it complicates things for the hearers. Focus on one main idea. Andy Stanley speaks of this in his books. He is great at keeping the main thing the main thing.
  5. Use illustrations effectively – Some speakers use illustrations just for the sake of using illustrations. I think that when someone pulls out an illustration, they need to have a purpose behind using the illustration. Do not just use stories to be funny. Make sure that they have a point behind them. I do believe that they are good and effective. I think that they are needed, but they should drive your main points home.
If you have any thoughts that you have learned over the years to make you a better and more effective speaker, please comment below. We would love to hear from you!
09.24.11
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Lynlee- 3 month video

Lynlee Jewel Evans is now a little over 3 months old now. It seems like yesterday, Abby called me from work and told me that she was not feeling well. I picked her up, and we went home, and she took three pregnancy tests. They all said one thing, that she was pregnant! Now, the baby is already here, and 3 months old. It is amazing how fast they grow up. Lynlee changes every day. I honestly go home from work, and feel like she has grown since I left that same morning. She is beginning to have a personality. She smiles all of the time now which makes my heart melt! She is definitely a daddy’s girl, but I can already tell she is somewhat of a mommy’s girl as well. We both love her sooooo much and are so thankful to be her parents. Here is a video that my wife put together for her 3 months:

09.22.11
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The Rapture and You

We will be answering some major questions about the rapture in this post. I hope that this helps you understand the Rapture of the church a bit better.

        I.            What is the Rapture?

  1.   I Corinthians 15:51-58; I Thessalonians 4:15-18
  2. The word, Rapture is not mentioned in the Bible specifically, but it is clearly taught. The word comes from the Latin word, “rapturo” and it means to be caught up. It is mentioned in I Thessalonians 4:17. It is that event in which God removes all believers from the earth in order to make way for His righteous judgment to be poured out on the earth.
  3. Word of Life gives the simple definition “To snatch up or take away believers, both living and dead, to meet the Lord Jesus in the air and return with Him to Heaven.”
  4. It is the event in which God will resurrect ALL believers to be with Him in Heaven. Some believe that only the ones living right will go to Heaven, but nowhere in Scripture, is this accurate. All believers will be Raptured.
  5. Here are some thoughts about the Rapture:
    1. It will happen instantly. No man knows the hour in which the rapture will take place. It will happen suddenly and in the blink of an eye.
    2. Christ will come and we will meet Him in the air
    3. The dead in Christ shall rise first. They will go up together with Him in Heaven and receive their glorified bodies.
    4. The remaining believers will rise. They will then receive their glorified bodies. There will not be a partial rapture. The Bible never speaks of this. Some believe that the ones who are living right will go to Heaven during the rapture, but those who are, will not go during the rapture. I believe that every person who has believed on Jesus up until the point of the rapture will go to Heaven during the rapture.
    5. This should comfort us. If not, examine your Salvation.

      II.            When will the Rapture take place?

  1. Now, most theologians believe that there will be a rapture, but when do these events take place. This is where there are differing views on the subject. We are not going to spend a great deal on each of them except for the pre-trib view. Here are some of the different views on when the rapture will take place:
  2. Pre-trib- The belief that the rapture will occur before the tribulation period. This is the view that I believe to be the most accurate according to the Bible. Although, there are good and smart people who believe otherwise. This belief shows that the rapture will take place before the tribulation. When the rapture takes place, the antichrist will then come onto the scene and the tribulation immediately begins. The church will be completely exempt from the wrath poured out by God during the tribulation. Here are some reasons why I believe this way:

- The church is not appointed to suffer wrath- I Thessalonians 1:10; 5:9.

- The church will not be overtaken by the day of the Lord- I Thessalonians 5:1-9. In this passage, Paul speaks about the day of the Lord. This is speaking of the judgment period. In verse 4, Paul says, “But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.” This is saying, but the believers have nothing to worry about, because we have been saved out of darkness.

- No Condemnation- Romans 8:1. If you are saved, there is no condemnation, judgment, damnation, or wrath.

- The absence of church in Revelation. During the first 3 chapters of the book of Revelation, the word church is used 19 times. Significantly, the word is not used again until chapter 22. In the chapters between the two mentions, the tribulation is explained.

           3. Mid-trib- The belief that the rapture will occur in the middle of the tribulation period. The tribulation could be divided into 3 ½ year segments with the last 3 ½ being the Great tribulation. The Mid trib view believes that the rapture will happen sometime between these segments.

          4. Post-trib- The belief that the rapture will occur after the tribulation.

    III.            Will there be a second chance of Salvation after the Rapture?

  1. There are many different beliefs referring to this question. Here are some thoughts on the subject:
    1. The antichrist will deceive many- Matthew 24:5; II Thessalonians 2:11. The antichrist will influence many people and deceive many. Therefore, if you are not saved, and you are waiting, there is a chance you will be completely deceived during the tribulation period.
    2. There will be tons coming to Christ during the tribulation- Revelation 7:14. Revelation speaks of many coming to know Christ during the tribulation. In Revelation 20:4, we see people who were beheaded because they would not take the mark of the beast, and they were saved during the tribulation.
    3. Those who rejected the Gospel before the rapture mind’s will receive “strong delusion.” II Thessalonians 2:10-12. The lies of the antichrist will be so powerful and alluring that they are almost impossible for someone to resist.
    4. People who accept Jesus during the tribulation will still suffer through the tribulation, but still have their eternal destiny sealed- Revelation 13:7
    5. Infants who die go to Heaven- II Samuel 12:21-23. I tend to believe this view, while others do not. We all have heard of the phrase, “the age of accountability.” We all reach that age at a certain time in our life where we can accept or reject the simple message of Jesus. Therefore, if an infant has not reached an age where he can accept or reject Jesus, I believe he will go to Heaven. This is what David was implying about his child to his servants.

   IV.            How should this impact me today?

  1. Know Jesus as Savior- I john 5:13 says, “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.”
  2. Grow in the Lord- I John 2:28 says, “And now, little children, abide in Him; that, when He shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before Him at His coming.”
  3. C.      Share the Gospel with others

Conclusion: Make sure you know Jesus as Savior today. If you are reading this now, and you have been rejecting Jesus, you are not promised another breath. You are not promised another chance. Accept Him today. Then, when you do, tell others about Him so that they do not have to suffer through the tribulation. If you accept Jesus after reading this post, please send me an email, joshhevans@gmail.com. I would love to hear from you!