A Chocolate Cross?

My wife received this as an Easter gift from a very sweet student at the Mother's Day Out program she directs. The problem is, I just think it's kind of weird to eat the cross as if you were eating a chocolate bar. I know it is real milk chocolate and all, but still, something just doesn't sit right...

The HABITS Shack

We just finished up a series called "Developing HABITS That Can Change Your Life". It was a three-week series over spiritual disciplines we call HABITS. I stole these from Doug Fields' book Purpose Driven Youth Ministry. We did a longer version of this series last year, and after it was over I wanted to create a place where we could store the HABITS resources. I asked a retired man in our church if he would be interested in creating a "HABITS Shack". I gave him a rough sketch of what I was looking for and a few months later he called to say it was finished. Below is a picture of our HABITS Shack:

Good Day at the Office

Since we didn't have any programs tonight due to Holy Week activities I decided to clean off my desk. Now everything is neatly placed in the appropriate folder. This will probably last about two days!

"Shattered Dreams" at SMBA

Last week I had the privilege of being a part of the "Shattered Dreams" program at San Marcos Baptist Academy. Shattered Dreams is a drunk driving prevention program conducted at High Schools across Texas. It involves staging a crash scene somewhere on campus and allowing the students to see the events that take place immediately after an alcohol-related accident. There is the drunk driver, injured students and casualties of the wreck. The purpose of Shattered Dreams is to present students with the real consequences of making the poor choice to drink and drive. I believe this is an outstanding program and I am happy to have been asked to help.

The following is a very well-made video of the crash scene. WARNING: It is graphic. All the events are fake, but they can still be disturbing to younger viewers.



This next video is a recording of events that took place inside the ambulance and hospital. WARNING: It's graphic as well.



This is the final video of Shattered Dreams. It depicts what happened to the student who was arrested for drunk driving.

Shattered Dreams 3of3

Rock Star Youth Pastor

I emailed this video to all my coworkers here at church. I asked them to punch me in the face if I ever act like this guy. So far, no punches!


Ignatius from travis hawkins on Vimeo.

The Ninety and Nine

This is a picture of a sheep I have on my desk. I received this as a gift from a student several years ago. I can't remember exactly why she gave it to me, but I do know the meaning I attach to it. This little sheep reminds me of the parable Jesus told in Luke 15.

I woke up this morning thinking about The Parable of the Lost Sheep. In it Jesus says, "Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.' I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent." Luke 15: 4-7

This little sheep is a constant reminder of the students who have drifted away from our church or their faith. It helps me to be sensitive to the fact there will always be students who need a call, a letter, or a visit. There will always be the one lost student who needs a shephard to go find them and make an attempt to bring them back into the fold.