Glimmers of Faith and Hope!!

Young people seek answers to 'Who am I?'. Explore identity, purpose, and belonging in this insightful discussion. Understand your place and calling in the world.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:02

There are always glitters.

SPEAKER_01 0:26

Well, welcome to another uh broadcast of Glimmers of Faith and Hope. I'm pleased to uh be here with uh George, my co-host, and also introducing you to uh Pastor Colton. And uh we're really pleased to have you here, Colton. And it it's okay if I call you Colton.

SPEAKER_04 0:43

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 0:44

All right. I mean I'm old, you know, I just want to respect my my younger side. Anyway, uh just wanted to you know say hey and uh you know maybe you can tell a little bit about you and uh your journey and sure you know just something to help out the the young men and and women and uh let us know how you you know what you got to say.

SPEAKER_04 1:09

Cool. Um so I'm uh 30 years old, almost 31, and Shaley and I, my wife, we um actually met in high school in Colorado. I'm from Colorado. Okay, and so we um we dated for a long time, and then I went to school in Nampa, Idaho, which is just a few minutes from Boise. Okay. And so grew up in Colorado, then went to Idaho, and then we got connected down here at Montrose Church, and um they were looking for a high school pastor, and so we came and checked it out, felt really good about it, felt like that's where God was leading, and loved Pastor Dave, and the rest is history. It's been six and a half years, almost seven.

SPEAKER_01 1:46

So that's him. That's that's your story. That's that's it. That's it.

SPEAKER_04 1:52

So yeah, I um I grew I grew up a big sports guy and was really just loved basketball, baseball, football, and all kinds of sports, but those are the main three. And then um kind of at the end of my junior year, I grew up a Christian kid, but was kind of your classic just go through the motions kid of faith. And um at the end of my junior year, I had kind of this moment of conviction where God was just like, Hey, what are you doing? Like you're you're squandering the gifts, the platform that I've given you. And it was just a gut punch, just boo, right? And I was like, oh my goodness. And I'm like, I remember seeing like the the faces of students in my classes just flashing in my mind and thinking about all the missed opportunities for loving these kids, reaching out to them, telling them about Jesus, all that stuff. And so my senior year in high school looked way different than my other three years, and it wasn't perfect by any means, but just was really committed to following Christ and what does it look like to really take this seriously and be bold? So um, out of that kind of came this call to youth ministry to just help young people realize hey, you don't have to wait to follow Christ. Um, the time is now, like God has really good things for you right now to accomplish, to do. So that's kind of that's kind of how I became a pastor.

SPEAKER_01 3:10

And uh it really seems that you have a you can make a really good connection with young people because you're so young.

SPEAKER_04 3:18

Yeah, I mean it every year it seems like I'm getting further away from that. Like when I first started youth ministry, I was like 22. Yeah, yeah, and so I was like in the thick of it. Yeah, and now I especially I hear the Gen Z language now, Gen Alpha language, and I'm like, what are we saying? We're always saying the craziest stuff.

SPEAKER_03 3:34

So it's interesting that you said that you were 22 when you started youth ministry because I just turned 22. Really, bro? That's cool. Yeah, so um, I think like in my journey, it's all about opening up to people at this point in time. So I was curious, like, how did that start for you when you decided like you want to start opening up, sharing with more people, connecting with them? Because you said you feel like you missed a lot of friendships and stuff like that.

SPEAKER_04 4:04

Yeah, yeah, that's a good question, George. I I was always pretty outgoing, like I was I wasn't um afraid to talk to people and stuff, but I would say, and I think this is true for most young Christians, is you are a little bit scared to talk to people about your religion, like your spirituality. Yeah. Because there is kind of this taboo. It's like, it's like it used to be kind of this with politics, but now like spirituality, it's like we don't talk about that stuff, like it's just a you thing. Um, and so yeah, I think there was that switch of like, no, no, like sports and all these kind of things, they matter, but they matter a lot less than your walk with Jesus. And so I was like, man, I actually need to start talking to people about things that really matter, and that's Christ. Um, but that took time, man. Like, so I had the outgoings, I had the outgoingness, but then the boldness kind of came as I really like spent time with Jesus, like the intimacy with Christ um sparked that. And then I went to school for for ministry, so that all those tools that I added to my tool belt helped with that.

SPEAKER_03 5:05

Yeah. Um you said would you say that you like found purpose in and just being one of his disciples, like following him, like telling people the good news about how he basically gave you purpose in life? 100%, dude. 100%, absolutely. Because that's how it worked for me. Like I was not knowing what I was gonna do, and the and it took me a while, but once I got into the word, I realized I don't have to know what I'm doing, but I know that God knows what I'm gonna be doing. Yeah, and so just moving in his steps, moving in his word and the way living a good life by Christ's example, and then I think the foundation of like wanting to help people and serve like Christ was what like led me to my passion and connecting the two things to find physical therapy. But I really admire what you do, and like in a way, I think we all should have that absolutely drive in us, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 6:13

Yeah, yeah, we're all called to be ministers of the gospel, all of us, in whatever assignment God has placed on our lives, right? Like we all have, I mean, we talk about purpose, like you'll hear it with young people is like, I don't know my purpose in life, which is a it's a very real question, but you your purpose is to follow God and love others, like that's your purpose, and then your assignment is where God has you specifically, physical therapy, you know, other other things, that's your assignment at the given time, right? But your purpose, your calling in Christ shouldn't change, right? So your assignment can change, exactly. Oh yeah, and God will change it all the time, you know? He'll remove, he'll remove things, he'll open doors, he'll close doors, sure. But the purpose, the calling on your life to love God with our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and then love everybody else radically, that should not change. 100%. Like that's hard to get. You said that's hard to remember, you know.

SPEAKER_01 7:08

Yeah, no, you know, I mean, and everybody has a gift, and you want to make sure that you're you're you're using your gift in the right place. I just remember a story from years ago how there was a woman that uh they needed somebody in teaching Sunday school, and they plugged her in. And she wasn't very good at it, but she did it for years and nobody had the you know, nobody goes like, yeah, you know, you know, maybe you could use a different gift, you know. But it's just you know, it's always good to really know what God's gift is and uh special your talents and everything.

SPEAKER_03 7:49

Yeah, absolutely. Your strengths and it's like he invests in you and we can therefore invest in the in others. Yes. But I mean that is what you're saying, but uh when you say doors open and close, I think like personally in the past, before I was close with God, I mean we're always close with God, but before I was you woke up, yeah, yeah, basically. I would see like doors closing as a terrible thing. They would worry me, they'd give me anxiety. I would think this is the worst thing ever, and now when I see doors close, I know about the the other one, the new ones opening, and I know that this is what like his will is gonna be done either way. So I just pray on it and I try and silence that little fear, that fear voice in my head that's saying, What's gonna happen? Is it gonna be the worst thing that I can imagine, or why not just like let God let God handle that?

SPEAKER_04 8:59

That's good, dude. Yeah, that's really good.

SPEAKER_03 9:01

Because a lot of times it is better than it was before. Right, right.

SPEAKER_01 9:04

I always I have an example of one of my daughters who who's a teacher, and she loved her school, but she kept getting pink because when she was just new at uh being a teacher, that that's what they do. And so she lost her job and then she got reassigned to a different school, and she's like, Oh my gosh. Well, short story is she met her husband there, wow, and he's a great guy, and they have a young my you know, young uh son, my grandson, and it's just it's just a great example of uh, you know, God closes the door and he opens, and you just never know, you know, what's gonna happen. But I always go with it's all God is good, so yeah, all the time.

SPEAKER_04 9:52

Yeah, yeah, it's it's hard in the moment to realize that God is still working, you know? He's like still, he's got you, you know. But maturity in Christ, kind of like you guys are talking about, maturity in Christ is being able to be like, hey, no matter what doors we end up going through, like God it has us, right? And that's that's when you're walking close with Jesus, right? It's like it's like the story when Peter walks out on the water, right? It's like you have to keep your eyes fixed on Christ because the waves will change. Yeah, you know.

SPEAKER_01 10:24

You know, and it's like you know, some people get mixed up with oh, God's gonna make everything good. Sure. Yeah. Which is not quite the you know, the way it goes. He works everything for you know for good. Right. And you know, that that's a little that's an important difference. That's an important difference, yeah. Because it's like he's not a slot machine and sure and uh you know cosmic Santa Claus. Yeah, and so you know, I mean you might think, oh, this is what I want, but God, you know, he's pretty good, he's he knows what's going on. So Amen.

SPEAKER_03 11:02

Yeah, yeah. The Bible says when you pray, leading to like we all need to pray, right? And we all should make it a part of our daily lives. So I just want to ask you, Pastor Colton, how does that how can we pray better in in a way that aligns with God and and just you know using it as like gratitude, you know?

SPEAKER_04 11:27

Um that's a great question, man. I I think the first step to to praying is you actually have to pray. That's a good start. You have to make time for it because in the church and in our walks, like we talk about prayer all the time. We know it's something we should do, but it's it's something so often that just falls falls to the back burner, and we just don't do it, you know.

SPEAKER_03 11:51

We'd rather listen to our own inner dialogue, yeah, telling us all the bad things that happen, yeah. Instead of why, why not just like open up to like what what does a child do when he's scared? He runs to the father.

SPEAKER_04 12:04

Yeah, amen, dude. That's good. Yeah, prayer can't be learned, it has to be discovered, and it's only discovered through praying, right? That's that's what happens, and so um, yeah, and I think I think the more you pray, the more by the power of the Holy Spirit you're refined, and so you deal with stuff with God and like conviction, um, all that kind of stuff, he refines you, but then also then you are you're lifted up, he gives you the self-worth, he's like, Hey, I called you to so much more than this, right? So it's always kind of a mixture of you're convicted of the sin in our lives, but then you are built up because God is like, but you are my child, and I have so many good things for you.

SPEAKER_03 12:48

Yeah, what would you say if you to if if you feel convicted about something, but someone else doesn't? Like, why don't they feel that conviction?

SPEAKER_04 12:59

Yeah, I mean, I'm and are we talking like two Christians or are we talking about maybe not? Okay, yeah. I mean, I think the the closer you are to Christ, the more you're gonna feel the healthy conviction of the whole of the spirit, for sure. Yeah, I mean, I think it's a dangerous place, and I talk about this to young people with young people all the time. It's like if you are not feeling conviction for a certain sin, that's a problem, right? Like it's it's healthy, like we're gonna sin, we're gonna fall short. But if you don't feel any conviction, that means you might be a little too far from God, right? Like you have these headphones, you have the noise-canceling headphones on, and like the Holy Spirit wants to take those off so you can hear the voice of God. Right, right. Because sin begins to block the voice of God, yeah, right? And he can still break through. Like sometimes he'll shake you and stuff will happen in your life, and you'll be like, oh my gosh, like I've been I've been missing this. You know, something something drastic could happen. But hopefully he doesn't have to do that, you know.

SPEAKER_01 13:59

Is there anything that uh shook you when you were in high school? Or have you been shaken lately?

SPEAKER_04 14:07

That's that's yeah, yeah. Um I think I think that moment in high school um that I talked about just briefly um at the end of my high school journey was a shaking moment. Um because like I I can't remember how much I said about it, but it was just I was so consumed with sports, and then the spirit was kind of shook me and was like, hey, sports don't actually matter that much. Like they they they matter some, but like stop putting them on the throne of your life. And that was a big thing. I mean, like that was all that was my identity, and so that was a shaking moment that really changed my trajectory, you know. Um, yeah, I I have there was um, I think COVID was a big shaking of of the culture and probably all of us in some way. Not always good, no, no, definitely not. And so for me too, I during COVID, I had some man, I don't, I don't know, some spiritual warfare stuff, some some different things that I was fighting, and it was a shaking. It was a it was a shaking time for sure. Felt the ground shifting. Um, and and this is what I tell people now on the other side of it, is like when you when you face like earthquakes in your life, kind of like we're talking about, like the COVID, different things. Uh a family member dies, it can be all kinds of stuff, but when you face that, you have to run towards Jesus, not away from him. Like I think of Genesis, right? When when Jacob is wrestling God, like you have to hold on as tight as you can and say, I'm not leaving until things change. You bless me. I see what you're doing in this. Um, you have to just hang on. And that's what I did through this, it was maybe like a month in my life. Um, like, like I was just like thinking about death all the time. And I remember like, like I would, I would, I couldn't fall asleep, and I'd be looking at Shayle and I'd be thinking about just being apart from her, and like like how like death would like like take us apart forever. It was just awful, man. It was you're dark, man. It was it was like dark night of the soul, is kind of like what you hear, and it was that for me. It was a rough month, and but but I made this decision in the midst of it. I'm like, I'm gonna run towards Jesus, I'm gonna hold on, I'm gonna keep seeking him until this changes, until he takes it away. And he did. Yeah, but it took a lot of time, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 16:31

Um I can relate to that. So yeah, you can, dude. Yeah, I mean, I had to take a semester off from Pepperdine just to just to like hold on, like you said, because you feel like you've fallen off, but it's you're still riding, you know? Yeah, yeah. But it's you can't give up, you can't lose heart, you know. What is the you probably know the verse, like keep heart that you know take heart, I've overcome the world. Well, yeah. Is that what you're talking about? Well, that that's a good one. That's a good one. That is it, but you know what I mean is you feel like you're not going anywhere or nothing's happening, you're just in this dark place, all these bad things, nothing good, you can't see the good, but you can see the good if you try hard enough, and good things will come if to those who wait. Yeah, you just gotta keep like I can to so totally relate to that because I was like, is this ever gonna end? Am I always gonna be like this? Is this who I am now? I used to look back at like I was so much happier in my past. Like, looking back to your past isn't what is gonna get you to your future. If I I mean it's just staying staying in it, staying staying in the mess until you eventually figure it out. And you just gotta have hope that you will figure it out because you will. Amen, dude.

SPEAKER_04 18:02

Yeah, yeah, that's good.

SPEAKER_03 18:04

Totally relate.

SPEAKER_01 18:08

So I wanted to I wanted to such a such a sad conference uh when you were in high school and you obviously you were a jock, and you probably had a persona as the jock, and then God became a big part of your life. How did that change um your relationship with your peers? Or, you know, I mean for hopefully good, but sure.

SPEAKER_04 18:39

Yeah, that's a good question, Rob. I think it um sure, like I I definitely did like wouldn't engage with certain things that some of my friends were doing, especially after that kind of transformation with God. Um but no, I feel like I I and this is how young people are nowadays. I think there's a a respect level for people who are taking faith seriously. I think that shifted some too, because I don't think it's always been like that. I think there was more peer pressure and more like just like why would you ever like do that? Like, why would you be different? Why would you go to church? Like it was kind of demeaning and just but now I think there's a little bit more of a shift of yeah, cool. Like I respect that. Yeah, you know, I'm not necessarily on board with it, but I respect that. And that's how my friends were too. Um, and I had I had some Christian friends too, and so that helped obviously, but even my sports buddies, I remember, like I wasn't going out and partying with them or anything, um, and they knew that, but they didn't treat me weird or different because of that.

SPEAKER_01 19:36

So I find is just being a boomer guy, no, just growing up and you know, dealing with men of any age, and you know, like it it goes with most subjects that if you're willing to talk about, yeah, I do you know, I do this or I do that. Like there's a big subject about when I was a young father about a bunch of older guys saying, Oh, you change diapers? I go, Yes, I do. And then it just changed like, oh yeah, I change diapers too. You know, I mean it takes it takes someone to be willing to stand, you know, and state, yes I do, and not be afraid or embarrassed. Um that strong and courageous, you know what that's that's what you're doing. And and people I think then they in a way they go like, oh okay, you know? Because you know, sometimes people want to be bullies, I think. And they think they can oh yeah, make fun of you, but if you stand strong, then I think it's uh it can turn someone the other way. That's good. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 20:47

Where does that confidence come from for you to get up on stage and for you to just talk to people about your faith?

SPEAKER_04 20:56

It comes from um for me, I I I have these I have this little three like step part thing. Intimate intimacy with Christ drives passion, and passion drives preaching. Right? So I spend time with Jesus, He stirs the fire in my heart that we all have. And then that overflows into talking about it. And so for me, yeah, it's it's preaching and to young people to the church. It for that's kind of my assignment, right? Um, but for everybody else, it's just it's just proclaiming the gospel wherever you are, the message, the goodness, wherever, and PT and you know, Robin, this podcast, like all kinds of stuff, you know, like so, but for I think it's intimacy with Christ drives passion, drives preaching. And if we're and the the foundation is intimacy with Jesus, like spending time with him, and he will stoke the flame of your heart. Yes. You know, that passion will come up, and then you will you'll overflow with it, you know.

SPEAKER_01 21:55

Yeah. Well, the the cool thing is is I, for one with my my wife.

SPEAKER_03 22:01

We've been able to watch you grow and mature and and you're uh you know preaching the word and it's been a real pleasure to you know see your growth and confidence grow and everything so uh because you know people do talk yeah no but it's good things but it but it's good you know yeah you know we just we just you know as as friends of ours we just go like you know when you first started and you know it's like okay and you know and it every time just steadily everybody wow Colton did a great job so I just want to pass that on that's cool thanks Rob yeah thanks man I think one thing I've noticed about you is you have the mindset of a listener and you you believe you believe in anybody that you can take something that you can like learn something and like appreciate something that they have to tell you and that that's given helped me gain a lot of wisdom by like being humble listening to the story listening to how they feel and I've always kind of looked at like differently for that looked at like kind of quiet not all not like quick to like boast really really just sit back especially on the sports teams like I can really relate and I I wish like obviously this is not how it went but if I could tell my younger self I would say be bold in your faith and let others see you as you really are and if that helps them it helps them and just be there for them to lean on you.

SPEAKER_04 23:54

That's good dude yeah the more the more time you spend with Jesus the more you begin to realize hey I should only fear God and I shouldn't fear man. Like why am I so concerned with what the people around me think why am I not just giving my life my all to Christ right and that's the call for young people it's like stop worrying like in our social media world and our comparison culture all this stuff it's crazy and it's like stop fearing man and what they think like start fearing God.

SPEAKER_01 24:27

And that's a that's a that's convicting you know I know for myself uh I don't go through life worrying about making everybody my friend you know it's like hey I'm not everybody's cup of tea and I'm okay with that.

SPEAKER_04 24:42

Yeah unfortunately no I'm I go but you know it's like if you try to conform your personality to you know to fit in somebody else's life that maybe you don't really agree with or you don't like and you don't be you're not your yourself right you're gonna be miserable and so I prefer to make other people not miserable no just you know but it you you just gotta be yourself and not try to uh be something that you're not sure and that doesn't mean don't work on yourself right no no I mean we're not all perfect you know yeah definitely yeah I hope not perfect people don't get into heaven I know man praise god for that yes we're all gonna get in real easy yeah man yeah that's you've worked in in youth ministry and you you're a pastor how how have you been able to help these these young this generation what's something you've seen like a lot come up a lot doubts or fears concerns so the Fuller Youth Institute who Fuller's in our I mean literally in your backyard yeah pretty much I've I've seen that I've seen that name right yeah so Fuller Youth Institute which is a great organization they did this huge study a few years back and then they wrote a book about it and it's I think it's called the three big questions that young people are asking and it's um who am I um what's my purpose and where do I belong and so it's about identity belonging and and purpose and so um I think that's what young people are asking who am I what am I supposed to do who's my group right and really all people are asking that to some level like it never stops those three questions but extremely prevalent in young people's lives and so all the questions the doubts the fears all come out of those three questions right and so maybe some kid has a little more identity in themselves like they're maybe rooted in Christ but then they're wrestling with the purpose side of it. It's like what am I supposed to do? What is my assignment? Um and and then maybe it's for some people it's like I just don't have a place to belong right I am the kid who's trying to follow Jesus at my school but I have no Christian friends. And that's impossible. Right? You can't follow Jesus alone. We weren't called to do that. Right. So it's all kind of around those three questions and so we think about that as a youth ministry team you know how can we address those three questions? How can we teach on identity help the kids realize their foundation is in Christ they're a child of God. And then your purpose love God love others let's keep it simple at first and then let's dig into the assignment like you were talking about the gifts Rob absolutely like God's giving you those things for a purpose let's figure out those things too and then let's build a community that looks so much different from what the world has like let's build a unique community that can that you can belong to and find a home and that's hard. It's hard but that's what we're trying to do.

SPEAKER_01 27:56

And that's the the purpose of doing this podcast is you know to be positive and talk about good things let people young people know that um you know the world you know it's a tough place to navigate but you know to hear from people like you and and George that uh can share you know being young and uh going you know I'm at the other end of the spectrum but you know I think it's just a way to um give people something more positive than what a lot of the uh noise is out there.

SPEAKER_03 28:33

So yeah I mean a buddy of mine said following Christ isn't easy it's one of the hardest he lived one of the hardest lives so that's that's how it should be for us as well if we if we're to follow him correctly and so in all of our challenges like take heart for I have overcome the world is what Jesus said so we're gonna have all these challenges but we can still come back to Christ every time for that knowledge for that wisdom on how to handle the times when we don't know what our assignment is right that's right and so for the question of our assignment it's had in my head but it probably oh I remember now so one thing that came to me was how has God invested in you where where has what gifts do you feel believe that you have and how can you reinvest in others with those gifts so for me I looked I said I've always loved sports I've always loved um performance athletic performance and research and so physical therapy was in line with that that's cool and what what you said about your passion it will like if you if you if you research your passions then they'll overflow into your life so that that's what my advice that I give people because I didn't learn it instantly I learned it over time and time where I didn't know that and didn't know what I was supposed to be doing to figure it out. So I I just think like looking at what you have being grateful for what you have is a is a huge part of being able to realize how you can then help others with that.

SPEAKER_04 30:27

That's great dude I I had this conversation with this guy yesterday over lunch and he blew my mind a little bit and I think it aligns with what we're talking about and he was talking about too often in life we just do the next right thing which is good but it's he was he was kind of pressing me he's like but did God did God ask you to do that like is that actually where God is calling you and I was kind of like taken back by that and I think the spirit was kind of kind of pressing on me because it is just easy to get caught doing the next right thing and there's good to that like that's important but like have we have we brought God into the conversation at all? Like am I just doing things and saying hey God would you would you bless this it's like actually I'm not even calling you to that right it's like it's like Moses like in the wilderness like having a family you know he's left Egypt and he's doing pretty well but God has so much more for him you know and then God has to use a burning bush to get his attention you know it's like it probably could have happened 30 years earlier if he was listening to God and asking him hey what do you want me to do? In some ways he was like an kind of like a not a really super like oh yeah you know that kind of stuff God's keep going like he's like hey dude you know yeah but uh I will equip you like right he's like I will help you yeah I will I will bring your brother Aaron like we'll figure this out because you're right Moses like I can't talk well I have all these doubts yeah and that's the same thing for us and young people yeah it's like you God you already have what you need just go God will provide the rest yeah but we're always like I don't you know I'm I feel like this like that's why the conversation spoke so much to me it's like he's like you already this guy yesterday he's like you have what you need Colton like you have it like God will do the rest like stop thinking you don't have the knowledge the whatever yeah yeah that's good that's why we we pray that that he'll speak through us because we don't have to worry about what we're gonna say when we when we don't fear man we we just fear him because the the foundation of knowledge is fear of the Lord.

SPEAKER_01 32:39

Amen yeah well on that note it seems like a good time to wrap up the show for the day I want to thank you Colton for thank you for coming and sharing thank you George thank you for having me it's been real and uh we'll see you next time please reach out to us info at limit to hope dot me