House Fire....

I have been really encouraged by the level of participation and involvement in our new classes this quarter. One of the classes that I am really pumped about is our Wednesday night class that includes 7th-12th graders. The class is called "Field Trips of Faith." This is not an original idea of mine, I must admit, but a friend of mine who is a YM came up with it. Each month and sometimes twice we are taking a "field trip" to a location here in our community that will bring a real live aspect to our Christianity. So far we have taken one field trip and it was awesome! We went to Fire Department.... I thought this would be a great place to start out for many reasons, but I will have to admit one of them was that I have always been intrigued by the role of a Fireman.

On location last week, at the Fire Department, we had one of our members who happens to be a veteran fireman give us a tour and explain the role and duty of firemen. I will have to say, there is no better way to learn than a hands-on experience and this night was just that. We were able to see their set-up at the station, tour the bunk rooms, look at the trucks, listen to a great explanation of what the job and duty of a fireman is, and most importantly ask questions. Our teens took full advantage of this opportunity....which is just what I wanted! After our tour and discussion we were able to join together in a devo were we spent the rest of our time comparing our lives as Christians to the Fireman's life.

Here's what we talked about.....

The number 1 goal of a fireman is to RESCUE LIVES, did you hear that, RESCUE LIVES! Its not to save the house, the car, or other valuables caught inside, but it is to RESCUE LIVES. You know that is our duty as a Christian as well, to help RESCUE LIVES. The house fire we pull people from is a burning house of sin, and let me tell you (as most of you know) it is MORE dangerous than a typical house fire. It can determine where we spend eternity. We also talked about being prepared and having a plan. There were several things the teens noticed at the fire station....1) a set of boots were left right beside the fire trucks door...this automatically caught our eye, they were not tucked away in a closet or even stuffed under their bed, but they were out and ready to be put on in a moments notice, 2) The trucks were backed in with the doors up...each truck was ready to respond in a moments notice, they were not pulled into the station, but backed in and gassed up ready to respond...3) The firemen each morning took inventory...every morning at 7am each man on duty had a responsibility of checking all equipment needed in case of a fire, they did this EACH morning, never skipping one, they wanted to make sure they were always ready...4) Someone was always on-call....there is never a moment when the fire station is empty, so you can rest assured if your house catches on fire someone will respond, this proves that they are always ready for action and available to help RESCUE LIVES.

Rescuing is Our Business....

As Christians we are called to help lead others to Christ, therefore RESCUING them from sin. In Matthew 28, when Jesus sends out his disciples he says, "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit..." Then and there we were called to help RESCUE LIVES!! Do you need rescuing? Is your life surrounded by sin so much that your life is burning up around you? Do you need someone to come and help you find how to get out? Rescuing is our business, and I want to take this seriously everyday, but I never want to forget that I too may need rescuing sometime, and I hope I can count on you to pull me out!!

Rescued by Jesus-Nick