Ignite the fire! - Christian Motorcyclists Association

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Sep 4, 2012 ... “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need” (Matthew 6:33 NLT). Life is a series of ...
September 2012

The Freedom to Choose September 2012 OUR VISION: Changing the world, one young heart at a time.

OUR MISSION: To love, support, and connect young people to the Kingdom of God and to the ministry of the Christian Motorcyclists Association.

THE GOODS: YM Evangelists’ Check In

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YM Reports

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LIT INFO

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From the Front

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Lines

jerod mcpherson

“Seek the Kingdom of God above all

else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need” (Matthew 6:33 NLT).

Life is a series of choices.

When you wake up in the morning until you go to sleep at night, you are constantly making choices. Decision after decision, some great and some small. What are you going to do, where are you going to go and even what thoughts are you going to think? In fact, “Everything is a choice. This is life's greatest truth and its hardest lesson.”(Matthew Kelly, The Rhythm of Life). Whatever place you find yourself in at this moment is a result of your choices up until this point. This realization can be both sad and exciting, because if you don’t like where you are, with the Lord’s help, you can change it. The freedom to choose is such a big blessing. Charles Stanley says it this way, “God expresses His love in giving us the freedom to choose.” (Charles Stanley, Handbook for Christian Living). Because of God’s compassion for us, His children, we each have the capacity to choose how we live each day. And we all know how well we make our choices determines how well we live our lives.

As young people who are working to follow Christ, we have every reason to make good use of our freedom to choose by making great decisions. Jesus’ words to us give us a guiding principle to put into use in every situation, “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else” (Matthew 6:33a NLT). When we make this our rule in all choices we begin to live up to the purpose of God for our lives, doing the kinds of things that please Him and become the kind of person He has in mind. Every day, each of us have countless opportunities to decide whether we will obey God and His guides for our lives or please ourselves, living for our own desires and comfort. God has graciously given the freedom to choose to all of us. Let’s make the most of it, by choosing to love Him, and put Him first in every decision we face. Jerod & Jennifer

McPherson National Evangelists CMA Youth Movement

CONTACT US: [email protected] Newsletter Editor:

Jennifer Dawson [email protected] Visit us on the web...

www.cmausa.org Click on CMA Youth Movement

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Ignite the fire! Registration is open! Cmausa.org

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CMA YOUTH MOVEMENT EMAIL UPDATE

Health

sarah stump LIT, CMA Louisiana

We have finally made it to that time in our

“follow God with all your heart and trust in Him …” H. Madden

HELP US Do you want to contribute to the Youth Movement Email Update? Send articles, pictures, testimonies to Jennifer Dawson at [email protected]

lives where there is very little down time. We are always so busy and so stressed. This is the time where we have to choose most of our major paths: college, career, spouse, etc. We have all these things in our lives, but only so many hours in the day. Classes, work, homework, exams, friends, family, church… the list could go on and on. I know as a full-time student who works 30+ hours a week sometimes it’s hard to fit everything into the time we have. When we run low on time, sometimes we forget the things that are really important. One thing that is so important but always ends up at the end of the list is our own health. It is funny that we think everything else is so much more important and yet if we lose our health, then nothing else is really going to matter at all. I know I’ve caught myself thinking it is more important to study or work than to get enough sleep or eat a balanced meal, but this just isn’t the case. Sometimes we don’t even realize what we are doing to ourselves until it is too late. Recently, I began physical therapy for my lower back. On one of my most recent visits, my therapist told me something I may never forget. He said I had regained my “mobility,” but now had to gain “stability.” This really caught my attention, because I didn’t really know how I lost these things to begin with. We tend to forget that physical health is something that can be broken, but it can also be built back up again. If we aren’t careful, we can let life break us down. It takes a lot of effort to get back to where we started and is even more difficult to keep these efforts safe from breaking down again. For anyone who has ever stopped exercising for a period of time and then tried to begin again, you understand how it is easier to keep yourself in shape rather than get back in shape. Our spiritual health is another one of the things that we leave to be forgotten.

Spiritual health, like physical heath, can be broken down and built up as well. When we are not careful, the same things that can break down our physical body can break down our spiritual body. Our busy, stressful lives make us forget sometimes that we have to work to be close to God. What may be surprising to some is that the longer you have been a Christian, the easier it is to let yourself go. People who have read the Bible from cover to cover tend to be more inclined to believe they can go one day without reading their Bible, which turns into two days, then three. The next thing you know it has been two months since you picked up this book that you once couldn’t wait to get home and read. This same pattern follows when you think it is okay to miss one day of church. One day turns into months. Sometimes things are easier to say than to do. I know with my job I can rarely go to church, I don’t always read my Bible how I know I should, and some days just feel like God is so far away. When life begins feeling this way the good thing to remember is even when it feels like God is out of reach, He hasn’t moved and he is simply waiting on us to get back to exercising our faith and come back to Him. Building ourselves back up may be difficult, but once we are to that point, staying in shape will not be so hard. One great thing we should remember is that exercising is easier when done with friends and when you have someone to talk to about problems you are having. Talking to someone who has been through what you are going through can make times much easier. The great thing about CMA’s LIT program is we always have other people when we need them. We have each other to work with, and we have our leaders who are happy to help us along the way. We just have to remember to let them.

September 2012

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LITs=Leaders In Training Charles & Tonya Davis, Area Rep OK Youth The following is from a series of interview questions .

deeper relationship than they ever knew was possible. Helping them to understand that He is always there for the, all they have to do is God’s Squad Chapter # 55 out of McAlester ask. Getting the youth on track with God and Oklahoma. headed down a path of success is what being a I came to know Christ when I was a little boy. I was raised in a Christian home and went LIT is all about. We are here to help the youth better themselves and get closer to God at the to church every time the doors were open, same time. sometimes I was even drug to church but in My favorite motorcycle? Well I don’t exactly the end it was all worth it. I got saved when I was five years old on a Sunday morning and I have a favorite motorcycle or quad. I like just about anything and I just can’t pick one or the have continued serving God ever since. other but if I must pick one I will say the Suzuki My favorite verses in the Bible are found GSXR 650 because it’s super awesome. in Isaiah 40:29-31. The verse says, “He gives What do I want to do with my life? Well power to the weak and to those who have no right now I am going to the University of Tulsa might, He increases their strength. Even the majoring in Chemical Engineering, but if God youths shall faint and grow weary but those has a bigger and better plan for my life than who trust in the lord shall renew their that’s what I will do. So I don’t really know strength. They shall soar with wings like eawhere my life is headed all I know is that Jesus gles. They shall run and not grow weary they will be with me every step of the way and I will shall walk and not faint.” These verses to me mean that when we go through hard times in follow Him wherever He takes me. If I could give one piece of advice to the our lives that God always has our back, like youth it would be to follow God with all your your best friend. Sometimes you feel like you heart and trust in Him because he will never just can’t go any further and you feel like givlead you astray in anything that you do. He will ing up but if you trust in God like the verse says God will always carry you through all the be your best friend and always be there when you call on him. Follow Jesus and he will direct hardships you have to face. My favorite part of working with the youth your path and will give you the desires of your heart. is helping them get to know Christ in a much

My name is Homer Madden and I am part of

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; Proverbs 3:5

Experience a homecoming with all of your CMA Youth Movement friends from around the country! With special worship guests:

&

Morning, Evening and Late Night Activities planned. Come to the Changing of the Colors Rally and make a memory you will never forget!

September 2012

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Facing Fears and Other Creatures Andy Moore, Chaplain Good News Riders of Wyoming Have you ever been afraid? Silly question, I know. We all have fears of one kind or another. There is usually something out of our control that has a tendency to frighten us. While it seems like a silly question, it is one that we need to answer honestly. Psychologists have come up with a list of the top ten fears of people. While not in any order, the top ten fears are: flying, public speaking, heights, the dark, intimacy, death, failure, rejection, spiders, and commitment. Chances are you might have one of those on the list. A new school may be what gives you fear. Meeting new people can do that too. Whatever it is, we must admit that fear is a part of us. More than 100 times in the Bible, we are told not to fear. Fear isn’t the absence of courage, it is the absence of trust. John Wayne was quoted as saying “Courage is being scared to death but saddling up anyway.” So you can be courageous and still be afraid of the situation. The question really is are we trusting God going into a tough situation. In 2 Samuel 23: 20 we are told “Benaiah son of Jehoiada, a valiant fighter from Kabzeel, performed great exploits. He struck down Moab’s two mightiest warriors. He also went down into a pit on a snowy day and killed a lion.” Did you catch that last line? He went down into a pit while it was snowing and did battle with a lion. I don’t know

about you but facing off against 500 lbs of teeth and claws is not my idea of a great day. Benaiah made a choice to do battle with a lion. Some will see that and say that he was a trained warrior and they would be right. He knew how to fight. Was he afraid? The Bible doesn’t tell us but I would imagine that he a little bit of fear about the confrontation. The crazy thing was that he didn’t allow that fear to stop him for moving forward. He still met the challenge head on. You can read more about him in 2 Samuel. He went on to become the chief bodyguard for David and then the general of David’s army. I think we could all admit that you don’t get to be the head of someone’s army by being a coward. Much of our life is uncertain. We get into situations that make us worry and at times fearful. We don’t know what will happen tomorrow but if we don’t step into tomorrow, we will never find out. Fear has won. Moving into situations and trusting that God is with you and knowing He is leading us through it gives us the ability to face our fears with our heads up staring the trouble right in the eyes. Knowing God is with you keeps you from running and hiding. Does that means anything you face with be easily defeated? Nope. It still may be very difficult but you have to try or you’ve already lost. Go with God and take on those lions!

THIS EMAIL UPDATE IS AN OFFICIAL COMMUNICATION OF THE

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