Welcome Home Ben

This Mama is  in awe of what God has done in the short time that Ben has been away at the Honor Academy!  Ben landed and got off the plan and I could visibly see the changes in him.   While he has given God this year as an offering to Him God has taken the reins.  He has made him into a softer, gentler version of himself.  He has removed character flaws and changed his entire demeanor.  I believe that because Ben is honoring God by giving him the year of his life that God is just blessing his socks off.  Thank you Honor Academy staff and leaders for pouring into our son.  It does not go unnoticed.  We are a thankful bunch!!!  I stand amazed at what God has done and will continue to do in our son and the others at the Honor Academy who continue to submit to His will!

Invited In, Part 2

Part of the Teen Mania's Outdoor Exercise Course for Interns

When I was in grade school and high school sports, I remember two coaches which pushed me and my teammates far beyond what we thought we were capable of. We endured double and triple session  practices under hot, humid Michigan August skies. I remember the first time I ran 10 miles, keeping pace with my cross country coach. (Looking back, I'm sure he let me keep up with him) I felt genuine pride when I completed those milestones, even though my muscles hurt, and I fell into bed early and  exhausted. I saw the same pride on my son's face that afternoon, and on the face of the nameless, jogging intern as they talked about ESOAL, and inviting us into their accomplishments.

I think there are times in life when you have to go through something to understand it. If my mom would have been standing on the side of the field while I endured calisthenics and grueling football drills, I don't think she would have understood. She may have yelled at the coach, demanding that he back off. But then, if he had, we may not have earned the city championship football title that year. A recent MSNBC 'expose' on Teen Mania's Honor Academy certainly falls into the "doesn't understand" camp.

Good coaches know that their players have to be pushed, not only so they can learn the sport, but so they can discover the potential that God put deep inside them. Th leaders at Teen Mania's Honor Academy also know how to push the interns, and help them find and develop their spiritual, emotional and physical abilities. Is it hard work for the interns? Yes. Can it be misunderstood by the outside world, who only looks on? Yes, it can be. Is it the perfect environment for all young Christians? Probably not. A physically, emotionally and spiritually demanding environment isn't the right Petri dish for every Christian's growth. Looking back at my high school, out of a class of more than two hundred, less than 25 were on the football team. That doesn't make the non-players any less important. It just means that God created them for another purpose.

Invited In, part 1

One of Teen Mania's Campus Dorms

In the spring of 2010, I visited my son while he was an intern at Teen Mania's Honor Academy. He wanted to show me around the ranch's property, and on Saturday afternoon, we took a casual walk under the bright blue Texas sky. He showed me the physical training area, and the obstacle course designed to challenge the interns' physical maturity. We walked through the camping area that would be filled with missionaries during the summer, the high ropes course and paintball fields that are part of the summer Extreme Camps. He pointed out the hilly terrain spotted with prairie grass, turf and tufts of scraggly trees growing out of the red East Texas clay soil. He described with pride the year's LTE's (Life Transforming Events) that HA interns experience, including ESAOL, which has been remade into the PEARL.

Some of the camping quarters, ready for summer missionaries.

The road back to the main training and office building held special significance for me. Over 25 years ago, a Christian musician named Keith Green used that road as a runway for his ministry's small plane, and took off for the last time. His plane crashed, unexpectedly taking Keith and two of his young children to Heaven. As a young Christian, I remember hearing the news on the radio, and I felt a personal loss of a voice that spoke deeply into my heart.

As we headed back toward the main campus, another intern passed us. She was jogging, and as she passed, she and my son Ben shared a few words that created another indelible impression of how this ranch in East Texas is still transforming young lives or Christ. I don't know her name, but she wasn't particularly athletic and worked hard as she jogged up the road toward us.

“Is that your dad?” she asked Ben as she approached.

“Yes, I wanted to show him where we did ESOAL.” Ben beamed as he replied.

“Yes, I brought my mom back here too.” Her face flashed a smile that welled up from deep within. Her face showed no fear, or angst as she remembered ESOAL, only pride, and a joy that she shared with her mom earlier in the day.  With those few words, she passed us and the encounter was over.

It's not often that a dad gets invited into their teen's world. I felt blessed to have spent the afternoon walking and talking about Ben's months on campus, and to be invited into the memory of an LTE event that had meant so much to both of them.

(To be continued . . .)

conflict

My heart is so torn.  Before we would have ever sent our son to the Honor Academy we of course did much research.  I talked to many people who have students there.  I talked to many students who are there.  I talked to leadership at the Honor Academy and I did many many online searches and read the good and the bad about the Honor Academy.  The students and parents of students that I spoke with had nothing but good to tell me about the Honor Academy.  Some of what I read online was another story.  This terrified me. So as a family we relied on the speaker of truth.  The Holy Spirit.  God made it very very clear to us as a family that The Honor Academy was where Ben was to be.   We prayed for clarity and it was given.  We prayed for financial provision and it was and is continuing to be given.  We now as a family pray for healing of wounded hearts, forgiveness, healing, and reconciliation.  It truly grieves my heart that young people have been hurt and it truly grieves my heart that a ministry is being so caught up in the mess of people's mistakes of the past.  So as my mother-in-law used to say..."I go back to the corner to pray".

Equal time?

The Duncans, whom I mentioned in my previous posts, have been in contact with me, asking me to publish their point of view here.  Wendy Duncan wrote me, and commented that, "All truth is God's truth." I believe her words were meant to motivate, and maybe challenge me to post her views on this blog.

My response is simple: That's not what this blog is for.

There are apparently many venues created by the RA bloggers in their zeal to pursue and denigrate the Honor Academy that accept hostile opinions about Teen Mania and the Honor Academy internship.  This blog is a place to publish good news, and for parents to talk about how God has worked in our kids' lives. Through the ministry's commitment to connecting the dots between today's ever-changing young generation's world and God's timeless call to holiness and salvation in Christ, our kids are learning the gospel in a way that is real, and builds character and the kingdom in their hearts and lives.

So What is a Cult?

Image from www.freefoto.com

A cult is identified as a religious group that distorts biblical truth in one or more of the following points. While twisting any one of these is enough for a group to legitimately earn the title of Cult, you will find that if a religious leader or group distorts one, they usually stray on all four.

1. The deity of Jesus: God's word teaches that Jesus is the only Son of God, fully man and fully God. Universally, cults deny this biblical truth. They insist he is a good man, or “a god”as in one of many, of a great teacher. Cults deny that Jesus Christ is God in the flesh.

2. The deity and person hood of the Holy Spirit: God's word teaches that the Holy Spirit is a person. He can be grieved, and offended. The Holy Spirit is referred to with all the power and authority of God. Peter, in Acts 5, tells Ananias that he didn't lie to man, but to God when he says that the deceptive disciple lied about the money he gave to the church. Cults universally deny this truth. Cults describe the Holy spirit as the force of god, the presence of god, or the influence of god in believers lives. Other, more eastern cults describe the Holy Spirit as the universal force that is shared by all living beings. “May the force be with you, Luke.”