“A few more minutes, Dad!” was the groggy response I heard back as I tried to wake my 2 older boys. With the start of the New Year, I have asked Caleb and Caden to commit to waking up early with me to do bible reading and devotionals before they head off to school (in the past, we had read the bible together before bedtime). With Old Man Winter finally arriving, the lure to stay a little longer in a warm and cozy bed is very inviting. Lately, God has placed on my heart the hope and prayer to see the next generation raised up, a creative and passionate generation who would be willing to take steps of faith and at the same time persevere when the going gets tough!
Working with the younger generation can be very capricious at times (just ask any parent)! There are days when you scratch your head and wonder if any change will come about. But I was reminded of God’s goodness and faithfulness in the midst of our perseverance through a Facebook message I received a few months into our Home Assignment here in the U.S. Over ten years ago when I was still a single man, working as a civil engineer, God had given me the privilege to meet up and disciple a group of students at the University of Maryland.  Week after week for about four years, I would commute to campus right after getting off work, and lead a bible study with this group of young men in their dorm room. After they graduated, we parted ways and I didn’t feel like much really resulted from my efforts.
A couple months ago I received a Facebook message from one of the young men in that group. All he wrote was, “Thanks for making those long commutes out to College Park, Dave!” And right under the message was a link to a testimony he wrote for a Christian website. You have to understand that he was the only non-Christian in the group at that time. In fact, he shared in his testimony that he was furious when confronted with the existence of hell and the exclusivity of Jesus as Savior and Lord in one of our bible studies. He even exclaimed that he would rather be in hell than believe in our kind of God. But along his spiritual journey, he came to believe in Jesus Christ by God’s grace through the Alpha Course in a local church, and is now currently a fourth year graduate student at Westminster Theological Seminary preparing to be a pastor.
So what is the point of sharing this story? Sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ with the younger generation is not always easy. Ministering to and discipling the next generation is not always effortless. Many times we may not see any immediate results or fruit either. Yet, the bible says, “Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain” (1 Cor. 15:58).
With the recent Timothy Retreat, it was quite encouraging to see so many young adults be small group counselors – to listen, to love, to pray, and to pour into the lives of the Timothy students. As a church, may we recognize the need for inter-generational ministry, and learn to cherish and invest in the next generation with perseverance!

From Pastor Dave’s Heart
January 10, 2016

No, I’m not talking about the New York Football Giants. They’re not going anywhere (sorry P. David! I feel you though as a Cowboys fan). I’m talking about the Timothy group. This past week we had our Timothy winter retreat and the theme was “Giants Are Birthed From The Intimate Places.” On the last night, Pastor Chris really challenged all of us to rise up as giants for the Lord. He shared with us his vision and dream that he had 11 years ago. In this dream, he saw a lion roaring and behind the lion were 10,000 youth marching into battle in the DMV area.
It’s no secret that the DMV, along with the rest of America, needs revival. We, as a country, have strayed too far from God. This was a Christian nation, but I don’t think that can be said any more. We are in need of revival and it will come from the next generation. We have a hungry generation who are waiting to rise up for the Lord. They are not just little kids who are up to no good. These are young men and women. They are capable of doing so many things. In fact, I don’t like it when people call the Timothy students kids. They are not kids. If we call them kids and think of them as kids, then that’s what they’ll amount to be.
Let’s think of them as young men and women, and challenge them. We have no idea what they’re capable of when we encourage them and look at them as young men and women. Did you know the youngest person to sail around the world solo was a 16 year old girl named Lauren Dekker in 2012? A sophomore in high school invented a pancreatic cancer detection tool. An 18 year old girl invented a gadget that can fully charge your phone in 20 to 30 seconds. (How many of us would really like one of those?)
The point I’m trying to make is that these teenagers are capable of doing great things and we need to help them discover their potential. If we were to turn to the Bible, David was believed to only be 12 to 14 years old when he killed Goliath. Daniel was 16 when he was taken captive and thrown into the lion’s den. Joseph was also a young man who God used to save His people. We see that God uses young people to do His work.
As we end 2015 and enter 2016, my hope and prayer is that our Timothy students will become giants for their generation. That they will be willing to stand up and fight for their faith. That they would give their lives to the advancement of the gospel. That they would allow God to use them in whatever way He pleases. Our Timothy group is hungry for God. I was so blessed and encouraged by the response on the last day to become giants. I believe almost everyone came forward to give their lives to God.
So the next time you see a Timothy student doing something stupid (we know this happens fairly often), instead of dismissing it as them being kids, please take the time to teach them. Take the time and invest into the lives of these young people. Take the time to challenge them and show them what it means to follow Christ. It’s great that we have so many college and young adults who invest into these teenagers, but older adults (40+) they need you too. You’re not “too old” for these students. You have a ton of wisdom and experience to offer to these young people. Let’s be a church that’s dedicated to turning our young people into giants. Giants who will love the Lord and live for Him. Keep watch. Here come the giants! Amen!

From Pastor Eugene’s Heart
January 3, 2016