If My People Pray...

This weekend, Aim Right is hosting a 24/7 Weekend of Prayer.

38 hours of praying.

Friday afternoon through Sunday morning.

Other local ministries will be joining us to intercede on behalf of this community and its people.

You are invited to come.

(Click on the image to enlarge)

Some thoughts on prayer:

The prayer of the feeblest saint who lives in the Spirit and keeps right with God is a terror to Satan. The very powers of darkness are paralyzed by prayer; no spiritualistic seance can succeed in the presence of a humble praying saint. No wonder Satan tries to keep our minds fussy in active work till we cannot think in prayer. - Oswald Chambers

Every work of God can be traced to some kneeling form. - Dwight L. Moody

Faith in a prayer-hearing God will make a prayer-loving Christian.- Andrew Murray

All that true prayer seeks is God Himself, for with Him we get all we need. - The Kneeling Christian

If we pray little, it is probably because we do not really believe that prayer accomplishes much at all. - Wayne A. Grudem

The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work and prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but trembles when we pray. - Samuel Chadwick

Real prayer comes not from gritting our teeth but from falling in love. - Richard Foster

The devil is not terribly frightened of our human efforts and credentials. But he knows his kingdom will be damaged when we begin to lift up our hearts to God. - Jim Cymbala

Assets: Not Just a Feature on a Balance Sheet

Have you ever heard of the 40 developmental assets?

Through years of study and research of more than 2.2 million young people, researchers at the Search Institute have compiled a list of 40 assets. The higher the number of assets that "Teenager A" possesses, the less likely it is that Teenager A will engage in high-risk behaviors, and the more likely it is that Teenager A will thrive.

I've attended a few seminars on asset mapping and development in the past, so the concept isn't new to me. When I recently heard a brief discussion on Focus on the Family's Weekend magazine concerning this topic, my ears perked up. You can listen to the 6-minute segment here (the portion regarding developmental assets begins around 47:30). Mark Holmen of Faith at Home explains the significance of developmental assets and then relates how researchers have uncovered the correlation of faith to many of the assets. The asset that researchers chose to label as "religious community" is directly linked to 30 other assets! In other words, if a youth possesses the asset of religious community, that youth is very likely to also have 30 additional assets. Research has revealed that at-risk behaviors (such as drugs, alcohol, sexual activity, and violence) are lowest if a youth has 31 or more assets.

I would wholeheartedly agree with Mark Holmen's suggestion that "religious community" would be better labeled as "faith relationship," and specifically a faith relationship with Jesus Christ. And does it not blow you away that researchers have "uncovered" factual evidence that relates to the enormous impact of faith upon the development of children or youth?

In the words of Jesus: "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they might have life and have it abundantly." (John 10:10) Certainly, that Scripture speaks of eternal life, but what about abundant living in the here and now, a life not devoid of assets but filled with them? Perhaps I am taking extreme liberties with this text in relating it to the study of developmental assets, but Scripture is replete with example after example of the blessings that follow the one who chooses to follow Christ.

As I write this, many in our community and extended Aim Right "family" are praying for a 16-year-old young man who is currently in the local hospital in intensive care, battling numerous complications related to a still-high blood sugar level from his recently diagnosed diabetes. This is a young man who would sometimes drop by my office in the afternoons to read the Bible, who sacrificially gave of his time on numerous occasions to clean the church (without complaining!), who has asked me this heart-wrenching question, "Why didn't someone introduce me to Jesus earlier?"

Many entities (such as schools, churches, YMCA's or Boys and Girls Clubs) take a structured, intentional approach to asset development. At Aim Right, we don't have a distinct program labeled "Asset Development." At the end of the day, however, we are about asset building, within the framework of "religious community" or a "faith relationship."

The young man I mentioned above is living proof of that fact. By God's grace, many more youth like him are also being impacted to live a life for Jesus.

And that, in the terms of research, is asset development. The fullness of life that comes from the influence of the asset that matters most -- Jesus.

Introducing: Amy Yoder

Crazy kiddos don't phase our newest intern. From Grantsville, Maryland, Amy Yoder is right at home in the middle of these energetic youngsters!

Here are a few Q & A's with Amy:

• Favorite ice cream flavor: Can't pick just one (I love all ice cream)
• Least favorite job you've had: Cleaning 20-some bathrooms a day
• Something your mom & dad taught you: Respect for those in authority
• A good book you've read recently: Skin by Ted Dekker (read it in about 7 hours on my way home from Florida)
• Favorite season: Summer!!
• Why you decided to become an intern: I felt God was leading me here, and I love kids and the sun.
• A Bible character you want to be like: Joseph, because no matter what situation he was in, he made the best of it
• Your favorite store to buy clothes: Aeropostale
• You can choose 4 toppings for a pizza. What are they? Sweet peppers, mushrooms, pepperoni, ham

If you want to bless Amy as she begins her internship, I am sure she would be delighted with gift cards for pizza or ice cream or Aeropostale. Just make sure the ice cream one is a hefty sum so she can sample all the flavors!

Tutoring

Tutoring began yesterday evening. Here are a few snapshots:

James Miller serves on Aim Right's board and graciously gives of his time to tutor.

Hmm...sure am glad God gave us fingers so we can figure out those hard math problems!

Our most newly arrived intern is Amy Yoder, from Grantsville, Maryland. She has jumped right into a busy intern schedule, and we're so glad to have her here!

More on the action around here later....I'm off to pick up children for Kids Klub!

He Brought Him to Jesus

The first chapter of John covers quite a bit of territory. I have to say that I love John's conciseness as he lays out some core truths right at the outset of his gospel. Those initial verses are probably the ones of which I'm most familiar and could distinctly label them as "John 1," but as I read through the chapter yesterday evening, it wasn't those verses that necessarily grabbed my attention.

In the latter part of John 1, you see glimpses of Team Jesus emerging. It's recruitment time, but Jesus wasn't looking for the best throwing arm or the most impressive resumé or the prettiest face. John 1:40-41 records, "One of the two who...followed Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, 'We have found the Messiah' (which means the Christ)."

Then, verse 42 outlines Andrew's next action: "He brought him to Jesus."

If you keep reading in the chapter, you see another member of Team Jesus engaged in recruitment. Verse 45 states, "Philip found Nathanael and said to him, ' We have found Him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.' " Nathanael was immediately skeptical that anything good could come from a place such as Nazareth, but Philip's enthusiasm won him over. Nathanael accepted Philip's challenge to "come and see," and soon he, too, joined Team Jesus.

If you're a believer, you can probably identify yourself as a Simon or a Nathanael. A family member, friend, Sunday School teacher, missionary, or pastor likely "led" you to Jesus or told you about the plan of salvation. Simply put, that person recruited you to Team Jesus.

But have you ever embraced the opportunity of recruiting and become an Andrew or a Philip -- someone who is bringing others to Jesus? I believe that is the challenge that I come away with when I meditate on these verses in John 1.

This evening, I am headed out of town with a small group of teen girls. We'll be going north to where the cool breezes blow to pitch a tent and eat too many S'more's and make a few memories. One of the girls (for the sake of this post, I'll refer to her as Maria, although that's not her real name) is likely moving away soon, and she really wanted to go camping before she leaves. Since this trip is for Maria, I told her she could choose two other girls to join us. While both of her choices were a bit of a surprise to me, one of the girls Maria chose I barely know, having only briefly met her once. Her reasoning for her decision was this, and I am paraphrasing: "Well, I kind of want to take someone who doesn't already go to church, and then maybe she will start coming."

Wow.

Forget Maria. Let's just call her Andrew or Philip!

Teen Night 9.11.09

Teen Night kicked off Friday evening with a brief group session and then an evening of snacks and games. This year, Caleb Reed (former intern '04-'05) is the man-in-charge. Despite his lingering affection for...ahem... another state's sports team, we're blessed to have Caleb and his wife Stephanie volunteering at Aim Right. They moved to Phoenix from Ohio last fall and have been serving in various capacities ever since....loving youth, teaching youth, and building relationships with youth.

Caleb

About 35 teens attended the first Teen Night.

After the group session, there was an exciting game of Uno goin' down in the Rec room. I'm not sure if "exciting" and "Uno" belong together, but I'll let you make that call.

And, some horsing around going on outside. Those young guys always think they can get by with picking on the director. Not for long...

A community worker recently told me that there are two incentives he uses to entice parents to attend school meetings. He either (1) gives something away or (2) offers free food. Well, at Teen Night, it's all about free food, and the hotter the better! Maybe they don't make Flamin' Hot Cheetos or Lay's in your neck of the woods, but they've become one of the four food groups here.

Good friends make for happy times!

This cute little guy didn't get the memo that this event is called Teen Night, but he was so well-behaved that we made an age exception and let him participate in the teen activities anyway. He made sure those Uno players followed the rules.

Effective Today....Rec is Open!

The usual early-afternoon quietness has been replaced by clanging, banging, and children's voices. Elementary students in this area typically have early dismissal on Wednesdays, and several of them are spending time in our Recreation Center this afternoon. We were recently blessed with the donation of a new-to-us air hockey table.

Meet Matt & Emily

On August 24th, they arrived, laden with luggage and ready to serve! Meet our new interns -- Matt Yoder from Sugarcreek, OH, and Emily Chupp, from Milford, IN.

Matt Yoder

What sports did you play in high school? Football

What food disgusts you? Sushi

What do you already love about Phoenix? The sun shines all the time!

What is your favorite Bible verse? James 1:2-4

What is the biggest challenge facing today's teens? Being able to deal with everything they're exposed to in the media, etc.

What is the best present you've ever received? My cell phone!

Emily Chupp

Why did you decide to become an intern? To serve God and hang out with kids

What is the coolest place you've ever visited? Costa Rica

What is your idea of a perfect day? Shop in the morning, eat at Olive Garden for lunch, play volleyball in the afternoon, and hang out with Jacob, too!

What do you already love about Phoenix? The people and awesome weather!

What food disgusts you? Lima beans & melted cheese with onion

What is the biggest challenge facing today's teens? Saying "yes" to the right thing

A Beginning-of-Sept. Update

Unless you’ve been living in a cave and foraging off the land for the last year, you don’t need me to report to you the significantly rising unemployment percentages or the record number of persons in the U.S. now receiving food assistance. With Arizona’s unemployed workforce over 9%, many of the families in our community are among that number. Compounding the problem for some are naturalization and language-barrier issues, as well as a declining demand for work in the construction or manufacturing sectors.

I could share some very specific, disheartening scenarios with you, but I hesitate to do that in a public online format. Let me just say that the children entangled in these situations are scared, worried, and not sure what lies around the corner for them or their families. I have been praying that God would protect their fragile faith in Him and have been heartened at some of the ways I’ve observed God at work even in these difficult times.

Yesterday evening at Bible study, two sisters were elated that their 3-week report cards reflected “straight A’s.” One of them relayed to me her surprise that she was able to maintain that kind of grade average despite the mounting pressure she feels at home. Perhaps her Heavenly Father is gently sustaining her and giving her the strength to concentrate. She is on track to graduate in December, a semester earlier than planned, and has an unusually tough class schedule for a high school senior.

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In other news, we have recently been blessed with two new interns – Matt Yoder, from Ohio, and Emily Chupp, from Indiana. Unfortunately, I dropped the picture-taking ball, but effective immediately, I hereby pledge to get some photos of them posted later this week. Aim Right is hosting a large yard sale this weekend; in lieu of torturous initiation activities, we simply give our new interns the task of conducting a two-day yard sale in 100-plus degree heat! That’s how nice we are.