We unveiled our new name as a student ministry last night! The students were excited about the meaning and direction of “Refuge!”

Here is a snapshot of our vision!

“On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is in God.” Psalm 62:7

Refuge means…a safe place, act of turning to for assistance or security, a shelter from danger or hardship

The Refuge mission is to…Lead students into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ

Our Strategy:

1. Believe – Students surrendering their lives to Jesus alone for salvation (Love God)

Environment of…

- Gospel – Students learning how to live and share the gospel
- Love – Motivated by God’s love to SHOW love to everyone

Luke 19:10 “For the Son of Man came to seek and save the lost.”

2. Belong – Students finding community and encouragement through Christ-like relationships. (Love Each Other)

Environment of…

- Acceptance – Every student is be accepted
- Hope – Relationships built on hope

“Therefore encourage one another and build one another up.” 1 Thessalonians 5:11

“I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”  Psalm 91:2

3. Become – Students becoming like Christ through serving (Serve the World)

Environment of…

- Leaders – Students leading students to find refuge in God
- Obedience – Students obeying God’s authority

“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:10

Three questions to continually ask:

1. Have you SURRENDERED your life to Christ?
2. Are you building Christ-like RELATIONSHIPS with others?
3. What are you doing to become like Christ through serving?

We finished our 4 week series called “YouPick” this past week with the students. It was a blast! Students submitted questions about life, God, the Bible, relationships and more during the previous month. We jumped into four of the best questions for the month of August.

We answered some of these questions: How do I know the Bible/Christianity is true? Is Christianity a religion or relationship? What about dating and purity?

I learned so much through studying and stretching myself to understand God’s Word and how it applies to everyday life. Students are exciting to be around as they hunger for truth in this postmodern culture.

Here are a few notes from last night’s message:

Christian students experience pressures to trade purity for popularity. God’s plan for relationships is the only way to find lifetime fulfillment and peace.

1. Guard your heart - Proverbs 4:23 “Guard your heart, for out of it flows the wellspring of life”

- I shared an illustration on the “Leeches” of life. One of those are “obsessive love” that is built upon emotion and not on a commitment to life/purity.

• Obsessive love - “perfect for me!”….“We are always happy!”…”I’ll never be happy unless we’re together forever!”
• Pornography: It destroys God’s plan for a pure view of beauty. It destroys lives, marriages, and families. (Matthew 5:27,28,  Mark 7:21-23).
• Emotional Porn (fantasizing for false emotional fulfillment)

There are so many choices that families have to make in today’s culture. With technology moving rapidly and all things becoming more accessible, what should be our response to these choices?

One of the biggest questions that I encourage students to ask in any situation is, “Is this the wise thing to do?”

Many times I get the question, “Josh…so what is wrong with this movie…?” Along with many other questions that arise. I could simply respond with my thoughts, background, preferences, etc. The simple response to this question, should be a question in return…pointed towards the heart. Leading students to make wise decisions must begin with them finding truth through asking the right questions.

Instead of, “What is wrong with it?” We should pursue this question, “What is right with it?”

I’m convinced that God is working in the lives of students. As leaders, we need to encourage them to pursue godly wisdom in life’s decisions.

Here are a few websites that me and Cassidy use often in our decision-making progress:

Plugged-in Online – Christian media reviews (I use this many times per week)

CPYU - Center for Parent and Youth Understanding: Great tool to stay current on youth culture. Parents, you need to sign up for the e-news.

What about you? I’d like to know your thoughts?