Global Youth Camp Takeaways

Here are a few takeaway ideas that I got last week at Global Youth Camp:

1) The reason why God doesn't show up in many of our churches is because we don't expect Him to.

When you come together with your church, what do you expect to happen? Do you come with great expectations of what God is about to do? Do you expect something life-changing to happen, or do you expect church?

2) God can use your adversity as a stepping stone to your destiny.

We studied the life of Joseph during camp, & if anyone experienced adversity, it was him. Set up by his dad's favoritism, hated by his brothers, thrown in a pit, sold into slavery, abused, falsely imprisoned, forgotten by those he helped in prison, he knew what it meant to face suffering & adversity. But God was at work behind the scenes using every bit of it to position Joseph in the right place at the right time.

3) Distracted passion will drag you away, but devoted passion will draw you near.

Joseph devoted his passion back to the one who gave it to him to begin with. He channeled his passion into serving God. His brothers on the other hand allowed their passion to simply run wild. Take a look at Joseph's brother, Judah, & everything that goes down in Genesis 38, & you'll see what happens when you're passionate about yourself & what you want.

4) Our ministries are not "for us"; they should be "by us" for a lost world.

We all fight the tension & temptation to not develop ministries that simply cater to our people. We know we're supposed be reaching the world, but it's awfully easy to turn inward. When we do that, all we are doing is robbing the world of the hope that they desperately need & that we have in Christ.

5) Prayer really does work.

Prayer is the real deal; it's not just some ritualistic activity we do to look holy. The problem is that we rarely pray bold prayers. Instead we pray weak, shallow prayers that really don't ask God to show up & do what only He can do. Bold prayer isn't about pride, like some people think; it's actually the complete opposite. Bold prayers are born out of a humility that recognizes that we can't make it happen. It's a result of a dependence on Him & His power.