Rick Nier...Woo!

Like so many people, I end each year thinking about the year that was, and perhaps even resolving how I want the new year to go. But I guarantee you, no matter how much time I put into thinking last December, I never could have guessed how 2017 was going to go . For starters, here's a couple of sentences I never thought I would speak. I’m dropping the kids off at youth group.  I’m ok being without a job for a few months.  Both sentences go together, because as many of you know, I told the church I had youth pastored at for 15 years that God was telling me it was time to go. Now I know that when someone invokes the voice of God into a decision, it can sound like they're passing the blame onto the Deity. After all, who's going to argue with the voice of the Lord? I imagine people largely fall into 2 categories on this matter. Group #1 imagines the youth pastor just wants a change, but doesn't want people to dislike him for making the choice to leave. Group ...

Oftentimes it’s the right thing at the right moment that sets us forward on the right path. I’ve detailed for you the many emotions, struggles, and answered prayers as my wife and I stepped out in faith this past year. I have watched God work in personal ways that defy logic, leaving me sharing stories that, admittedly, sound ridiculous . When I ask God, on those long days, how I have come to find myself substitute teaching, it doesn’t take long to recall the moments where I have definitively seen God directing our footsteps. Sometimes the right thing is a right book. Recently I read Whisper: How to Hear the Voice of God , by Mark Batterson. When I read books, I mark up the pages with quotes I want to be able to find again. Then I turn the corner of the page for easy access. I have turned the corner of so many pages in Whisper that I probably should have stopped. Batterson gives us 7 love languages that God uses to speak to us; God's Word, Desires, Doors, Dreams, ...

As I shared last week , the Nier household has been in full-on celebration mode. The Nier children have completed the first week at schools they didn't think they'd be attending. We are not moving from a house we thought for sure we'd be selling. And my wife is happily getting settled in at her new job. Many congratulations were given (thanks, friends!) but several asked me the inevitable question. So what does this mean for you? Believe me, that is a question I have been asking myself since I first announced I was resigning . And since June, the question has loomed like a large cloud over every one of my days. From certain people, I could hear the questions they were perhaps too afraid to ask out loud. Are you trained to do anything besides play with teens and work one day a week? I write that, tongue planted in cheek, but don't be fooled. I've asked it of myself. What does a guy, who has only ever wanted to be a youth pastor, do when he is no longer a yout...

Trust Me. That was the message God gave us. Trust Me. Anything else, God?  *Crickets I mean, God I am trusting you. I took this first step in faith. It wasn't easy. Perhaps you would like to expound further upon what you want me to do, to learn, to experience? Nope. Just. Trust. Me. I'm learning that asking to have more faith or trust in God is akin to asking for more patience. There's only one way to get it, and it's going to take time. So while I am waiting, I have been reading about Moses and the Israelites in the book of Exodus. I knew this would give me both good and bad examples of how to learn to trust in God. The Bad Example: The Israelites In Exodus 19, we learn that their trek from Egypt to Mount Sinai had taken ' exactly two months .' Have you ever considered some of the timeline of the Israelites and their transition from Egypt to the Promised Land? Yeah, we're familiar with the fact that it ended up taking 40 years, due to thei...

One day Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian. He led the flock far into the wilderness and came to Sinai, the mountain of God. ~Exodus 3:1 I have already acknowledged that it is I who must seek out God , no matter His purpose or His timing. Moses is a great example of this. He may not have intended to seek out God, but he found himself at the mountain of God. And that's when God started to move. God appears in the form of a bush that burned but didn't burn up. This intrigued Moses, and why not? But check out what happens next; When the Lord saw Moses coming to take a closer look, God called to him from the middle of the bush, “Moses! Moses!” ~Exodus 3:4 Do you see what's happening here? First, one had to go 'far into the wilderness' to get to the mountain of God. Too often we miss this and assume God can be accessed right around the corner. And while God is everywhere, I believe He wants us to make more effort to be whe...

15 years. In most areas of life, that might not seem like a long time. But in the world of youth ministry, that can seem like a couple of lifetimes. I saw 7th graders become high school graduates and then repeated that cycle. 15 years. That's 780 Sundays, not accounting for vacations and other days missed for any number of reasons. Granted, in a church where many people have lived their whole lives in this community, I was still on the young side, but still, I became a mainstay. It began in July of 2002 and ended just this year, in June of 2017. Now that I'm on the other side of it all, it seems that it was both all too brief while also, at times, felt much longer than it actually was. There is so much that can be said, that I feel should be said, that it seemed appropriate to share in this space. Even if no one were to read this, I find that my thoughts find a way of easily being leaked through my fingers as I write. 15 years. What lessons would I pass along that I hav...

All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for coaxing, relaxing, sharing and making people feel good about themselves.  You don't remember Paul writing that to Timothy? Me neither. But by the way people act in church, one might assume this is what we believe about scripture. We all like using a scripture verse to prove something we already believe. But when one is used against us and our personally held, but not well thought out, convictions, then we begin to squirm. Actually, we do more than squirm. We cry out. We blame. We point fingers. We shoot the messenger. There must be something wrong with the other, because otherwise I might have to look inward. How dare that pastor try to teach me something new? Doesn't he realize that might cause me to change? And when those same scriptures are used to rebuke me? Get off your high horse pastor! We can be friends, but not if you're going to meddle in my personal affairs. If I wanted to be corrected, I'd go see ...

Wouldn't it be nice if, when someone merely mentioned the name of Jesus, people became Christians with no baggage, no past and no consequences from their past? What if, at the very mention of grace, everyone became nice and neat and could simply take their place next to us in our favorite pew? Not our seat, of course. But next to us in a pew that miraculously and suddenly had room for one more. Unfortunately, that is not the way grace, or pews for that matter, works. I recently finished Messy Grace , by Caleb Kaltenbach, a book I believe should be required reading for every Christian. Oh, I suppose the ideas have already been recorded somewhere in a book that is considered required reading for Christians, but somehow many of us have missed the application of truth that the Bible offers. Does it make sense if I say that Messy Grace  is groundbreaking while not actually offering anything new? I don't mean that in merely the sense of 'there is nothing new under the sun...

I am not yet middle-aged. At least, that's what I tell myself. If you double my life, I'll be 20 years from the century mark, which I fully plan on reaching. And while I'd like to think I'll have as much awesome then as I do now, there are probably things I won't be doing. They include, but are not limited to: Exercising. If I make it to 100, I'll treat myself to some days without getting the heart rate up. Eating healthy. All cookies, all the time. You never know when it might be your last. Going to the bathroom just once in the middle of the night. Let's just be realistic here. Working. Except maybe as a Walmart greeter. It could happen. Having more babies. I'm not saying I couldn't. I'm just saying I wouldn't. But there was a guy I read about recently who was having babies at 100, and for him it was a big deal. Reading the story of Abraham and Sarah takes only a relatively few chapters in the book of Genesis. But it stems over 2...

In my youth ministry, we're discussing the last week of Jesus. We started last night by discussing Jesus' entrance into Jerusalem. Unlike other times when Jesus came into the holy city, this time He was announcing His kingdom. He proclaimed Himself King. And, of course, he did this with much pomp and circumstance by riding in on a....baby donkey? Um....yeah. As he came to the towns of Bethphage and Bethany on the Mount of Olives, he sent two disciples ahead. “Go into that village over there,” he told them. “As you enter it, you will see a young donkey tied there that no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks, ‘Why are you untying that colt?’ just say, ‘The Lord needs it.’” (By the way, I had my group take parts and act out this scene. Few things are funnier than seeing one teen on the back of another as they play the parts of Jesus and the donkey. I'd like to see a senior pastor try this in Big Church.) Jesus was unexpected when He came to Earth. ...

I am sitting at camp. It is the end of the week...almost. I have handed out instructions all week. Besides being the speaker, I have also been a counselor. Some of the things I have instructed have been obeyed immediately. Others, not so much. But here is what i have learned. Obedience is easy...until we are asked to do something we do not want to do. It's  time to eat. It's time to play. It's time to sing your fave song. These are easy. I need you to listen to me. It's time to sleep. It's time to not retaliate when some other camper decides to make a bad choice. Now obedience is not so easy.  And here is the thing. The campers all say they want to be good. They day they want to be obedient. But truth is found in action. And the truth is that I am no different than any of these campers. Obedience is easy for me, until I am asked to do something I do not want to do. Obedience often interrupts the fun we are having.  Pranks seem to go ...

Peter. Ah, sweet, innocent, dumb Peter. We turn to Acts 10 to find him hungry and dreaming about food. Sounds reasonable, right? But this dream has a purpose and God shows Peter all sorts of animals that first century Jewish people would have said was unclean. God tells Peter to kill and eat, and in normal fashion for stupid people from the Bible, Peter tells God no and why he can't.  God tells Peter why he can. Check it out...  But the voice spoke again: “Do not call something unclean if God has made it clean.”   The same vision was repeated three times. Then the sheet was suddenly pulled up to heaven. ~Acts 10:15-16 This happens three times!  But the best part is found in the very next verse.  Peter was very perplexed. What could the vision mean? ~Acts 10:17 What could the vision mean?!? Are you kidding me? What are you confused about Peter? I think it means that God doesn't want you to call anything unclean that He has made clean. I d...

You have got to love a guy that has the courage to question God, right? Actually, I think he's a bit of an idiot myself, but maybe that's just me. We meet a guy by the name of Ananias in Acts 9 who gets a visit from God, telling him to go do something. Except the thing he is supposed to do is go and heal the temporarily blind Saul, who has been going around arresting Christians, guarding coats while Christians get killed and generally making a nuisance of himself. But God has other plans. But what I actually love is that God has confidence that Ananaias is going to eventually obey, because God has already given Saul a vision of a guy named Ananias healing him. So unless God had another healing disciple by the name of Ananias who lived in Damascus, it was going to be this guy. I'm not saying Ananias didn't have a choice. I'm saying God knew what that choice would be. More importantly, Ananias was clearly the kind of guy who felt close enough with God to at le...

We worry about a lot of things that we can't know about. I can remember, back in high school, spending countless hours talking with my friends about aliens and space and God's will. It was stuff that was too lofty for us (Job 42:3). But if the conversation turned towards living out our faith, practical living stuff that we could figure out, suddenly I wasn't as interested. Did God allow aliens to abduct the dinosaurs? I don’t know, but let’s discuss that for hours. What practical steps can I take this week to grow in my faith? I don’t know, who wants to watch a movie? My days since high school have changed my interests a bit. Now I worry less about Bigfoot and Loch Ness and more about developing godly habits (both for me and the people I work with). That’s why I instantly liked how Moses concluded things in Deuteronomy. Towards the end, after reviewing the entire Law with the Israelites, Moses offers this; God , our God, will take care of the hidden th...

In a move that has dead pastors rolling in their graves and live pastors shaking their heads, Moses shocked a nation. This is a section in Scripture that your pastor doesn't ever want you to read. In fact, if I suddenly disappear after this post is published, somebody come looking for me. Because I'm going to tell you anyway. There was once a time when Moses decided not to take more offering from the people of Israel. WHAT!?! I know. I hope you were sitting down. It was wrong of me not to ask that ahead of time. (Somebody get that senior pastor an oxygen tank. He doesn't look well.) You can't make stuff like this up. I've heard senior pastors mention in a circle of other pastors that they considered not taking an offering. Then they pause for effect and all the other pastors start laughing. What's next, Pastor? Are you not going to preach a 32-point sermon either? Go ahead, look it up. Exodus 36:1-7. It's all there in black and white. But why? Why would Mose...

Can you please just tell me what I want to hear? Puh-lease?!? I’ve already given at least 5 seconds of thought to this. Clearly I know what I’m doing. So when I ask for your opinion, you are supposed to understand that ‘your opinion’ is code for ‘just sign off on this.’ I do this mostly with my wife, Jennifer. After being married for almost 15 years, I figured she understood the code. (I say ‘almost 15’ even though we just celebrated 14 a month and a half ago. I think 15 sounds more impressive.) Despite our many years together, she doesn’t understand the code. She insists on giving me her true thoughts, much like Brainy Smurf reminding the other Smurfs of what Papa Smurf always said. But, much like the other Smurfs, I do what I want. This inevitably leads to any number of conversations that end with Jennifer saying, ‘I told you so.’ Supposedly she doesn’t find great thrill in that. I’m not so sure. Predictably she’ll remind me of when I originally asked for her opinion. Geesh! Some wom...

'What is going through your head?' That's what my parents said to me while I was growing up. Even without the question, the look on their face said I should have known better. So I probably should have listened when they warned me about possible dangers. The most vivid example I have is when I was 5. My parents were avid bowlers, complete with the checkered plaid and matching shirts. They would take me along. That's right. It has left a mark on my life. Whenever I enter a bowling alley, I instinctively crave Kool-Aid in a sippy cup. They would tell me not to jump on the seats. 'You could crack your head open', my mom would say. Nooooo, that couldn't happen to me. This couldn't possibly be foreshadowing. I wasn't even wearing those slick bowling shoes, but the next thing I knew, my head had met the corner of the scoring table. I saw blood. Lots and lots of blood. I'm sure I ruined my father's handicap that night as a trip to the ER does not he...

I would not call myself a parenting expert. I thought I had a few tricks. One of those tricks involved giving our children options so they had the appearance of control. For example, that could be as simple as picking between two different shirts for school, or as deceptive as choosing between them eating their veggies or me eating their cookies. I didn't say the choices shouldn't be obvious. But we have found that for many instances there is less fighting when we give them options. Then it was used against us. We were walking by the park this past Saturday, when big Bounce Houses were also being set up for 4th of July festivities. Walking by meant walking through, as we weren't planning on staying. This met with disapproval from all our children, but most vocally from our 3-year old. She said, 'Mommy, you can let me play on the swings or let me play in the bounce house.' Ummm....I guess if a 3-year old can pick up on a parenting trick, it's not all that tricky,...

If you enjoy snarky, I have found your role model. If sarcasm is your thing (to deliver or to receive) then Micaiah is your guy. His story is found in 1 Kings 22. The story involves King Ahab, who has to be the poster-child for retarded kings of Israel. (I may devote a whole week to Ahab just to fit in all his shortcomings.) King Ahab is teaming up with King Jehoshaphat to attack the Arameans. They get the 400 whatever-you-say prophets of Israel to give God's blessing on the mission. But King Jehoshaphat sees that they're a bunch of weasels, so he asks for a true prophet. Enter Micaiah. Micaiah is encouraged to go with the flow. It's at this point that I'd love to see the interaction on YouTube. Words do not do this scene justice, but picture this; Micaiah enters the room where both kings are waiting and he repeats the refrain form the other 400 prophets, "Attack and be victorious for the Lord will give it into the king's hand" (1 Kings 22:15b). Ahab's...

Many people will tell you that Proverbs 22:6 is a great verse when it comes to parenting children. Sure, train a child now and hold your breath later. I believe the truth of this verse, but I think Solomon upped the wisdom 2 chapters earlier when he wrote Proverbs 20:30. The Contemporary English version puts a bit more stank on it; "A severe beating will knock all the evil out of you." I like that so much that I had it put on a stick that I carry around with me. I use it with my children (the Bible verse, not the stick). I even use it with the teens I work with (the stick, not the Bible verse). I know some 'experts' will tell you that a gentle answer turns away wrath (Proverbs 15:1). And sure, Teddy Roosevelt said to walk softly and carry a big stick. Then again, Tony Stark (Iron Man) said that the best weapon is the one you only have to fire once. My daughter's second grade teacher, when getting the attention of her class, would softly say, 'If you can hear m...