PBYM. (What does the "M" stand for again?)

Ok, guys. I know that PBYM has been lying in somewhat of a dormant state over the past few months. I know that we have seen a decrease in activities and attendance, and I know that some of you may actually be curious as to why. Well, here's the reason: I intentionally "cut back" on the amount of time and energy put into it. While there have been pretty substantial changes in the lives of the other adult leader families, mine has been pretty much unchanged and nothing has really happened to hinder my involvement. So what's the deal then?

Glad you asked. During the past few months, I have been "evaluating" PBYM. Yeah, just sitting down, watching, studying and praying. Why? Because I didn't like the direction we were headed. Huh? Let me explain...What does PBYM stand for? No, I don't mean what do WE stand for, but what does each letter in the acronym for our name stand for? P- Pathway, B- Baptist, Y- Youth, M...Ministry?Interesting. Ministry. What does the word "Ministry" mean anyway?

God has really been dealing with me a great deal about the "M" of PBYM. Deep in my heart, I feel that we need to change direction. You see, we talk about being the hands and feet of Christ, but our hands and feet still seem to have perfect manicures and pedicures, with no blisters from hard work, or even dirt under the nails from diggin' in and gettin' it done! That's gonna change. Right here, right now.

If faith without works is dead, then how many people can actually testify that PBYM is alive? We are no longer going to be self-serving, we are going to be self-less servers. We're not going to be entertained by God's love, we're going to be informers of His love instead. No more being only takers, we're going to be givers. Givers of His grace, givers of His mercy.

Why? Because it matters that much. People are lost, people are hurting, and people are afraid. The light of Christ's love that should shine through us can help them find the way to Him. It can soothe their pain, and cast away the darkness of fear. It can and it will, but they have got to see it. It's not for somebody else to do, it's for us to do. It's not to do some other time. There is no other time- there is only right now!

I hope you're ready, because we're getting ready to dive off into the deep end. It's not always going to be comfortable, but it will bring comfort. It's not always going to be easy, but you'll grow stronger. It's not always going to be fun, but I guarantee you'll love every minute of it!

So, back to the original question presented at the beginning of this post: What does the "M" stand for again?Take a few minutes to research the meaning of the "M" and contrast it with the PBYM you presently know. Then tell me what you believe we can do to justify the right to have the "M" in our name. Be creative, be honest and be thorough. I'm serious about this, guys. As a matter of fact, to show how serious, I've got a small token of appreciation for the first 5 of you who hit me back by Wednesday March 31, 2010 with your ideas and suggestions.

The only stipulations to this is that you have to be a fairly regular youth member of PBYM, and I will only accept email or handwritten/ typed entries with detailed information (not just a "what", but a "how" and a "why", too).

My email address is guyhamilton09@vzw.blackberry.net


Love,Guy
Matthew 5:16