I guess I’ve always known this. Heck, I know I’ve been nuts a long time. But this weekend I got a lot of glimpses at just how crazy some youth workers are. In fact the craziest youth workers are volunteers who wil bring 45 kids from Kansas to Los Angeles for an event– by car– is absolutely insane. It’s one thing to do that for money. It’s an entirely new level of nuts to take your own vacation time to do that.
Isn’t it interesting that people who are crazy enough to change the world look absolutely nuts? I suppose that’s a fair assement of an everyday superhero as well? While most sane adults do everything in their power to flee from the presence of sweaty teenagers wondering the streets of Los Angeles, God has created a special group of people who gleefully serve them.
Acts 2 says: (emphasis mine)
That’s when Peter stood up and, backed by the other eleven, spoke out with bold urgency: “Fellow Jews, all of you who are visiting Jerusalem, listen carefully and get this story straight. These people aren’t drunk as some of you suspect. They haven’t had time to get drunk—it’s only nine o’clock in the morning.
People who are faithful, full of the Holy Spirit, and willing to take big risks for the Kingdom of God often look crazy. It’s a good kind of crazy. It’s the kind of nuts that gets me excited.
This past weekend I was able to watch students get a little nuts too. On the first night they were pretty reserved. This is typical of an event as they are excited and into it– but they aren’t quite willing to look nuts just yet. But by Sunday afternoon kids crowd towards the front in order to express their nut-itude. This is the type of memory they can take home with them and memory bank for the next time they feel awkward about their faith.
This weekend was a powerful reminder for me that we need more people who are absolutely out of their mind lunatics for the cause of Christ. Not fired up in a fake way. Not full of nonesense. Just legit willing to do whatever it takes. The world needs people who encounter the Word of God, catch a vision for how God wants them to respond, and are crazy enough to lean into its realities in their everyday life.
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