Good Friday – What does it mean to you?

Posted on April 10, 2009 by Jesse Jervis

Good Friday is the day that we come together to “celebrate” the pain and suffering that our Christ Jesus went through. It is truly amazing how important this day really is. During the Easter season, we find ourselves focusing on the the excitment of Jesus’ resurection. Without the death of Christ on this Friday, we wouldn’t be able to have the even greater celebration of his resurection.

In reading the scripture this morning and recounting the events around His death, a couple of things stood out to me. The death of Christ really was of God and His love / hate emotions. Seeing how fast the thousands of people went from the celebration of God’s goodness during the passover to such an angry mob looking for Christ’s death. The death really wasn’t just that of a regular death, but one of the most painful deaths a person could suffer. It was of God’s hate for sin and His absolute love for us that brought about this event.
Sin is so ugly in God’s eyes that He needed to do something drastic to save us. The song East to West by Casting Crowns shows what Christ’s death does for us. Take a couple of minutes and watch the video below and listen to the words.
Take some time today and remember the cross and God’s Love / Hate relationship with you and sin.
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YC Alberta – Live It Loud!

Posted on March 23, 2009 by Jesse Jervis

It’s been a while since I updated my blog. The past month has been crazy. Between work, church and the various other activities, getting a few minutes to write has been difficult.

Anyways….gotta get back into the swing of things.

It’s about this time each year that meetings start for involvment in the YC event here in Edmonton. YC (Youth Conference) is an event that I have had the opportunity to attend since I was in Jr High. Its grown from a small gathering in a Red Deer church to filling Red Deer’s hockey stadium to now selling out Rexall in Edmonton. That’s over 14,000 youth in one place!!!

I can remember the great speakers, concerts and times spent with friends and meeting new people. A truly awesome experience in deepening my relationship with Christ.

Over the past several years, I have begun working with the staff at Extreme Dream Productions and volunteering at the YC event. Not only are there thousands of attendees, there are hundreds of volunteers. We have worked to develop a system to track the volunteers, their assignments, manage equipment sign outs and various other items. It’s been a great experience getting to know the people involved in planning this event and the great people that volunteer.

This time of year, a group of us start meeting to discuss and plan the volunteer training event and the setup for the actualy event in May. Tonight is the kick off so we can get things rolling and refine the process and make it better than last year.

The opportunity to be involved in an event that has such an impact on the youth of our generation is so important. Some of the speakers and musicians have such amazing messages and speak right to the heart. Some of the featured artists and speakers that I am looking forward to this year are Reggie Dabbs, Grits, David Crowder, Toby Mac, and the heavy rockers – Pillar.

If you or someone you know wants to volunteer for this great event, check out www.ycgeneration.com and click on the volunteer button. I am really looking forward to the event this year and working with a great group of people.

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Caring About Your Community

Posted on February 18, 2009 by Jesse Jervis
I had been asked a while back to run the A/V equipment at our church for a rental tonight. It was a forum for our community to have an open dialog with the RCMP, their involvement in the community and assist them in setting goals for the next year. The event had been advertised in the Beaumont newspaper, on billboards here in town and in several of the churches. I was there early to help setup chairs and the a/v equipment and got to talk with the RCMP chief for our area and several other members of their advisory committee.

The turnout was very disappointing. I know the meeting was well know in the community as I talked to several people this week who all asked me to bring up issues, but they themselves didn’t have time. I don’t really understand how we can’t make time to have an impact in our community. If we aren’t happy with the way things are and have the opportunity to direct what happens, why wouldn’t we show up?

We had about 20 or so people including the committee that organized the event.
I found it interesting that the only people that showed up were those who had something to complain about. Many people weren’t willing to do something to resolve the issue, just complain. The officers requested the attendees to call in when they spot possible drug deals in progress, but many of the people just laughed and said that they have stopped calling as they felt that it didn’t help.
I’m blown away by what people think is important. The amount of “fuss” made about publishing stats on what tickets were issued and how many each week in the local paper. Even though these stats are published on the the RCMP local website, that wasn’t enough for some people – they wanted it published in the paper. They weren’t willing to help – just wanted to complain.
I was impressed however, but our local Corporal in town handled the attendees very well. I learned a lot about what is happening in town and the many initiatives the RCMP is working on even at the local level.
When we have the opportunity to help make a difference in our community, don’t miss it!
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Legacies I want to Leave

Posted on February 1, 2009 by Jesse Jervis
Everyone leaves a legacy.  The only question is what kind.  Developing a legacy starts early in life.  Often we hear about leaving a legacy when attending some one’s funeral, but what are we doing now to build that legacy?  What are you doing today that will influence your predecessors?  
As much as it is important to pass on and have others miss you and have good things to say about you, what principles are being passed on?  If we just go through life and not purposefully work to leave important principles to the next generation, do you know what they will actually get?  
I had seen the video from Carnegie Melon’s series “Last Lecture” of Randy Pausch some time ago, but after receiving his book at Christmas, I rewatched it as I read the book.  Pausch found out that he only had 6 months to live as he had been diagnosed with terminal cancer.  If you haven’t seen this video, it is worth the time.  He realized that he would never be able to  leave a true legacy to his young children.  In an effort he attempted to document his life and the important items that he wanted to leave to his family.
I find myself in a very fortunate position – I am in good health and have the opportunity to leave a legacy to my family.  The real question is what I am doing today to develop this?  Do my actions on a daily basis truly represent the values that I want to pass on to my son?
Pastor spoke on Sunday about some of the important principles that we’d want to leave to the children of the next generation.  Whether its our own children or those around us in the community.
Legacies worth of passing down:
  • Integrity & Consistency in how we live
  • Compassion & Generosity
  • Servanthood 
  • Love for God’s Word
Think about this today as you decide what you want your legacy to look like.  We all have great room for improvement – Are we doing what’s necessary?
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It Isn’t Appreciation Until…

Posted on January 26, 2009 by Jesse Jervis

I heard it said this weekend that appreciation isn’t really appreciation until it is expressed.  I’ve spent the last couple of days thinking about what this means to me and where I’ve missed the mark on so many occasions.  I couldn’t attempt to count the number of times that I’ve come home to my wife and said, “So and So did such a great job today and it was nice to see him or her go out of their way to do…”  I always feel appreciative when people do things for me or others around me, but how do I express it?  If I just keep it to myself or just mention it to my wife, it really doesn’t express the whole emotion of how I feel, nor does it encourage others.

What are you doing to encourage others around you and show appreciation for the things that are done for you?  
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