NYLC 2012

These past few days, Husband and I have  been in Atlanta, GA for the National Youth Leaders' Conference put on by Jeanne Mayo. Let me just honestly say...those that think ministry is "the easy way out" or "a job where you just go on fun trips and eat a lot"...you are wrong. There are many days that Husband and I both want to throw in the towel and the majority of days we feel as though our efforts go in one ear and out the other and we sit and say, "are we really making a difference?" But as Husband says, "When you want to be just OKAY in ministry, the devil will do everything to keep you IN ministry but when you want to be the BEST in ministry, the devil will do everything to keep you OUT!!" (he stole that from one of his professors but it's something we both live by!) So we welcome hardships in our lives but of course it doesn't come without pain and tears.

Youth leaders are always taking their ministry somewhere...camp, retreats, mission trips, even Carowinds but they're always doing all the work once they get there. Praise God that there was a conference specifically for youth workers where we could be the ones to go to and re-fill.

There is SO much to be re-told from this conference that I'm going to split it up into a few different posts because if you're anything like me...you don't read long blog posts ;)

JEANNE MAYO

-"If you define your success based on the number of people you have, then Jesus failed miserably because His crowds got SMALLER."

-"You lead people through your strengths but you reach people through your WEAKNESSES"

-"People focus on the stage but God focuses on the altar!"

-"What happens more in your ministry? PERFORMANCE? or SURRENDER?"

-"Some spend more time picking out a car than building their character!!"

-"The ultimate question is not WHAT you want to DO but WHO you want to BE!"

-"Character is not essential to leadership (sadly)"

-"It's super easy in the ministry world to be a "poser"...We talk a big game but don't practice/live what we preach!"

-"There's often very little correlation between ministry success and spiritual success."

-"There is no cramming for tests of character...they usually come in the form of a POP QUIZ!"

-"Character is personal but not private!"

-"You want people to correct you but you make people pay too much for it!!!"


*I'm going to post her last message, "Contender" as a separate entry later on...check back for it...it's good!!

Anxiety & Beth Moore

I was listening to a live-streaming from Beth Moore this morning and she was hitting on anxiety...which is definitely something that a lot of women (especially in the ministry) deal with...as do I on occasion. Here are some of her on-spot points that I hope resonate with you today!

-The area in which we have the most anxiety is where we are having attacks from Satan.

-Whatever you obsess over is exactly where the enemy is fixated on you.

-Be alert and sober from the enemy (who wants to eat you alive) 

-There is a direct link between our cares and our attacks!

-Anxiety is a waving red flag that says “Here am I, hit me”.

-When I am giving way to my anxiety, all the enemy has to look for is “am I (we) driven by anxiety?”

-Anxiety says we are not fully surrendered to God in that area. (We tend to not be too conscious of this.)

-Anything we hang onto (being our anxiety) is outside of God’s umbrella. The devil will not waste a dart on an area that is already covered by God’s umbrella.

-To be able to acknowledge that you’re having an anxiety attack, is an opportunity to be able to cast it, transfer it, or throw it onto Jesus.

-We cannot have our anxiety and act of faith at the same time.

-Keep confessing the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Start in the morning acknowledging that the Lord has full ownership over your lives.

-When the enemy realizes that everytime you face anxiety and you confess the authority of the Lord, he will back off.

-Go to your knees and throw your anziety to the Lord. Kneel and throw.

-God is NOT a nail-biter! Nothing catches Him by surprise! Everything goes according to His plan and you (and it) matters to Him! 

We Raise our White Flag!

I was a rookie at Passion 2012...and it blew me away. Now...aside from the actualy conference, it was pretty miserable I'm not gonna lie. Trying to maneuver 45,000 people to and from the Georgia Dome AND try to get them all fed in the 20 degree weather was a nightmare for people who get anxious around big crowds and can be extremely Type-A (ME!) BUT the bigger picture far outweighed my little bit of uncomfortableness. Here's what happened via pictures!

AND....45,000 18-24 year olds raised over $3,000,000 to end human slavery!!

Lastly, watch this video!!

http://www.cnn.com/video/?/video/world/2012/01/05/cfp-clancy-do-something-now.cnn#/video/world/2012/01/05/cfp-clancy-do-something-now.cnn

Psalm 103

Praise the LORD, my soul;
   all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
² Praise the LORD, my soul,
   and forget not all his benefits—
³ who forgives all your sins
   and heals all your diseases,
⁴ who redeems your life from the pit
   and crowns you with love and compassion,
⁵ who satisfies your desires with good things
   so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
 ⁶ The LORD works righteousness
   and justice for all the oppressed.
 ⁷ He made known his ways to Moses,
   his deeds to the people of Israel:
⁸ The LORD is compassionate and gracious,
   slow to anger, abounding in love.
⁹ He will not always accuse,
   nor will he harbor his anger forever;
¹⁰ he does not treat us as our sins deserve
   or repay us according to our iniquities.
¹¹ For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
   so great is his love for those who fear him;
¹² as far as the east is from the west,
   so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
 ¹³ As a father has compassion on his children,
   so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;
¹⁴ for he knows how we are formed,
   he remembers that we are dust.
¹⁵ The life of mortals is like grass,
   they flourish like a flower of the field;
¹⁶ the wind blows over it and it is gone,
   and its place remembers it no more.
¹⁷ But from everlasting to everlasting
   the LORD’s love is with those who fear him,
   and his righteousness with their children’s children—
¹⁸ with those who keep his covenant
   and remember to obey his precepts.
 ¹⁹ The LORD has established his throne in heaven,
   and his kingdom rules over all.
 ²⁰ Praise the LORD, you his angels,
   you mighty ones who do his bidding,
   who obey his word.
²¹ Praise the LORD, all his heavenly hosts,
   you his servants who do his will.
²² Praise the LORD, all his works
   everywhere in his dominion.
   Praise the LORD, my soul.

Merry Christmas

Merry CHRISTmas from The Huxs!

Here's some pictures from our little apartment!

Faith

"Waiting for God to act is fleshly unbelief. It means that I have no faith in Him. I wait for Him to do something in me so I may trust in that. But God won’t do it, because that is not the basis of the God-and-man relationship. Man must go beyond the physical body and feelings in his covenant with God, just as God goes beyond Himself in reaching out with His covenant to man. It is a question of faith in God–a very rare thing. We only have faith in our feelings. I don’t believe God until He puts something tangible in my hand, so that I know I have it. Then I say, “Now I believe.” There is no faith exhibited in that. God says, “Look to Me, and be saved . . .” (Isaiah 45:22)." -Oswald Chambers 

Merry Thanksgiving!

I hope your thanksgiving left you feeling very thankful for the cross, your family, health, and the other blessings that God has placed in your life. Our Thanksgiving was full of laughs and joy. We don't get to spend too much time with our family so we were thankful for a few days of family lovin'! Thanksgiving has become like that awkward period of time right before fall when it's too hot to wear your boots yet too cold to wear your tanks...I feel as though people aren't sure whether to say "Happy Thanksgiving...or Merry Christmas". However, for the sake of this post we'll celebrate Merry Thanksgiving. Enjoy some pics from our trip to Spartanburg :)