I turn 30 years old today......A Comparison of Perspectives of when I turned 10, 20, and 30 years old!

Today I am three decades old!

First off, I always find it odd that we celebrate the person who was born INSTEAD OF the mother who carried and delivered that baby after 9 months! Therefore, thank you and congratulations Mom! You deserve more honor than I do today!

On a different note I took some time to think about the difference in perspective of each birthday  namely my 10 year, 20 year, and 30 year birthdays.

Here's the difference (not at all an exhaustive list) on perspective of each decade changing birthday.

 

A Decade can make a HUGE difference!

Taco Bell

10 Year Old - What's Taco Bell? Mom says it's unhealthy!
20 Year Old - Taco Bell is my late night filling food of choice!
30 Year Old - Why does Taco Bell use caulk guns in preparing food? It tastes good, but only in small portions and not late at night!

Staying Up Late

10 Year Old - I got to stay up past 9 PM tonight....it was awesome!

20 Year Old - I start feeling alive at 9 PM and can't wait to do things with my dorm mates all night!

30 Year Old - I'm thinking about bed at 9 PM and in bed not soon after!

 

Working with Teenagers

10 Year Old - Teens are intimidating!

20 Year Old - I can do anything a teenager does and "top it"

30 Year Old - These teenagers look like "little kids"
 



What's In a Birthday

10 Year Old - Cake and Ice Cream, Chuck E Cheese's, and MONEY!

20 Year Old - MONEY!

30 Year Old - Just another day

 

Thoughts on People of the Opposite Sex

10 Year Old - Glad I got MY cootie shot! Gross.

20 Year Old - Single and ready to mingle!

30 Year Old - Happily married and glad all the drama is over with!

 

Driving

10 Year Old - It will be forever until I get my license!

20 Year Old - I got a need for speed!

30 Year Old - I set my cruise control for 5-10 mph over. Max.

 

Hope you enjoyed some truth with a little bit of humor OR maybe a little bit of truth with a lot of humor :)

While life and perspective change I pray that I will never lose a heart for God and His people. May that be a constant variable throughout my years.

 

Psalm 71:18

"Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, my God, till I declare your power to the next generation, your mighty acts to all who are to come."

 

The older I get the more responsible I am to declare God's power to the next generation! My role and responsibility only increase in the years to come. I don't know what God will do in the next decade and how my perspective on life will change.....I just know I'm excited about enjoying each individual day of the next 3,650 days (that's how many until my 40th birthday)! Who knows where I will be at in life by the age of 40!?!?



 



Wait, You are telling me that teenagers CAN be SERIOUS?!?

I will never understand why many youth ministries ONLY capitalize on the fact that teenagers want to have fun. While it is true that teenagers want to have fun they also want to go deeper in their walk with Jesus. Teenagers want to BOTH have fun and GROW in their Christian faith.

Youth ministry, therefore, should be thrilling because if done effectively the youth pastor/youth workers can enjoy fun AND build deep discipleship relationships with the teenagers in their group.

Why then do many youth ministries simply have fun as a priority and then try to add a smidgeon of Jesus?

Answer: It's easier. (Seriously, it's not hard to throw a party every youth group). Digging down into teenagers' lives is hard and messy.

It may be subtle, but it is noticeable. Is your youth ministry more about introducing teenagers to Jesus in a fun way OR about having fun and hoping the teenagers involved get something about Jesus?

This past Wednesday we broke from our normal youth group routine. After a fun opening activity I simply gave the teenagers an open forum to ask any spiritual questions they wanted of me. It was nothing more than a Q & A time. Teenagers were told they could ask any question as long as it was appropriate and had to deal with a spiritual matter.

I was flooded with questions about:
1. God's stance on war
2. Best witnessing techniques
3. How to properly confront a friend
4. God's view on homosexuality
5. What God thinks about tattoos

I even had a young girl openly confess that her friend was cutting and that she wanted help in knowing what to do!

Do you know what is most surprising about these questions? They were asked by Jr. Highers!

That's right. The same Jr. Highers that are picking their nose and flinging boogers one minute are asking deep theological questions that many adults ponder the next minute!

You see, a youth ministry must gives teenagers a forum to ask pertinent questions about life otherwise those same teenagers will think the church is irrelevant and leave it upon graduating!

Students really WANT to get deeper. Encourage this and don't remain on the surface with EVERY youth group meeting!

What we can learn from MONKEY BRAINS!

When I think of monkey brains the first image that comes to my mind is from the video: Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. During the movie the people get served a delicacy for dessert: MONKEY BRAINS! 

 

(As a child this part of the movie grossed me out. As a teenager this part went from being gross to being grossly awesome!)

 

This past week I focused on my PhD work and attended a conference in Washington D.C. The conference's theme was on Neuroscience.

 

During one of the presentations it became evident that we can learn a lot from monkey brains!

 

Curious, here's how

 

1. Researchers discovered that a specific part of a monkey's brain becomes active when they participate in activities where motion and doing happen (i.e. grabbing a stick and scratching their head).

2. Researchers also discovered that the same identical part of a monkey's brain that becomes active when they do certain activities also becomes active when they watch someone else model the same activity (i.e. a trainer grabbing a stick and scratching their head). In other words, they have mirror neurons that are embedded within their brains!

3. Researchers startlingly found out though that when the monkey would watch someone else do something similar to the action, but not necessarily do that same action, that the identical part of the monkey's brain would not be active as in previous scenarios. (i.e. a trainer grabbing a stick and instead of scratching his head he would wave it).  In other words, mirror neurons could also perceive intent ion of actions!

 

Simply put, neuroscience has proven that belief is learned through mirroring and imitating other's beliefs AND that belief is in doing something!

 

No one believes something simply by hearing a bunch of knowledge. Believing is tied to our mirror neurons which become active when we see and do what we have observed.

 

It is crazy, but neurologically proven, that God has embedded within our brain, mirror neurons, that help us to be active participants and 'doers' who embody our beliefs instead of learning through content dumps.

 

We truly are - "fearfully and wonderfully made."

 

 God has designed us to imitate others and we are wired to be active participators of our faith! Why else would he order people to repent AND then be baptized!

 

One must see and then do to fully believe!

 

Why I am proud to be a C.O.S.E.N.T.I.N.O. - A tribute to Papa

My grandfather, Papa, passed away early this past Thursday morning. Instead of a perpetual feeling of sadness, (although I am sad), the primary emotion and feeling of being blessed and grateful over flooded my heart before, during, and after the funeral service. Seriously, how many people get to know all four of their biological grandparents for the first 30 years of their lives? Seriously, hundreds of people were praying for my grandfather and for my family! I am a blessed man!

While I am saddened over the loss of Papa I had the opportunity to learn from and build off of many of his admirable traits. He allowed future generations to stand on his shoulders so that they would reach heights that he could only dream of.

I am proud to be a Cosentino. Here are just a few reasons why:

1. Cosentino's are courageous. My papa moved from Italy as a teenager to the United States. He went to school for 3 years to learn English. Many people would have let their fear keep them in their homeland. Papa was courageous as he stepped through the unknown. His story is truly an American Dream story.
2. Cosentino's value service. Papa served in the military as a cook. He was proud to serve and be a citizen of the United States.
3. Cosentino's not only work hard, but they give their best. The phrase, he was a hard worker, is fairly cliché because it gets overused. Papa was more than a hard worker, he gave his best. He made sure that his family received the best when it came to where they lived, what they ate, and where they went to school.
4. Cosentino's are part of a tight-knit family. We easily had 75 family members at the funeral. All extended family showed up. When you have nothing left we always have each other.
5. Cosentino's are short. When your last name means "Little One from Cosenza" you will be short. Just a newsflash too - we like being short as well!
6. Cosentino's are providers. Papa provided for his family and his future inheritance will help provide for future generations. Even though Papa's father left his family, Papa stayed and provided for his.
7. Cosentino's are direct. One never had to guess what Papa was thinking, he would always tell you. Cosentino's are not afraid to be truthful and vocal when necessary (sometimes unnecessarily ;)
8. Cosentino's have a stubborn resolve. Papa was hard to sway or deter when his mind was made up. We know how to push forward.
9. Cosentino's are hungry for knowledge. Papa made sure that his sons went to the best colleges. All of his sons and eligible grandkids have college degrees. Some are working towards and have a Master's Degree. Currently, I am working towards a Ph.D. He would constantly tell me to "expand my mind" and to gain knowledge.
10. Cosentino's are true to themselves. Some of my fondest memories of Papa was when I lived with my grandparents during the summer of my junior year of high-school. I had the opportunity to drive with Papa into downtown Pittsburgh, work as an intern with my uncle, and then drive home. Every ride home we would be stuck in rush hour traffic. Papa would blast classic Italian music, roll down his windows, and sing out loud. He'd even wear a piece of cloth on his left ear (the side that was more exposed to the sun) in order to not get sunburn. People driving by would see a 70 year old man dressed in a suit driving a black Lexus belting out Italian music at the top of his lungs while driving with one hand so as to hold up his ear piece. Let's just say a lot of people chuckled and laughed as they drove by. (I tried to squirm lower in the passenger seat so as not to be seen). This never bothered Papa because he was true to himself and knew how to enjoy life. This is what mattered.

Proud to carry the Cosentino name! Proud to be a grandson of Joseph Cosentino.

 

May I build off of this legacy!