James 1:19 - "My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry,"" (NIV)

I know that I can sometimes be quick to say something before I really think things through. Either I end up embarrassing myself or hurting someone's feelings. In the end, my quick response can sometimes hurt us both. God asks each of us to do more listening than responding, to think before we speak, and to not allow anger to take us over.

Yet making that change isn't always easy. We develop habits that take root. We need to put effort in through prayer and persistence in order to break those habits. Change doesn't come quickly, but it can come. Whether we are stressed, tired, or just have a tendency to say the first thing that comes in our heads, we sometimes need to take a break and be aware of how our words affect those around us.

Courtesy of Sony Pictures

Until the year 2012 passes, there will still be plenty of debate on the Mayan prediction of an apocalypse. While just about every religion has some sort of "end of the world" scenario, it seems that Hollywood likes to add plenty of their own stories to the mix. Tomorrow director Roland Emmerich and Sony Studios rolls out another disaster/end of the world movie to thrill and excite you. Except this time, the movie might make you think a bit.

2012 does wallow in a number of disaster movie cliches, which seem to be bothersome at first. Yet, if you can get over the stereotypical situations and characters, there are some great life lessons about human nature. How would you react if you found out the world as you knew it was going to disappear? What if you knew resources would become scarce or that someone around you was in danger? These are the questions that come up, and ones that make us keep going to these disaster movies.

Still, from a Christian point of view, the Bible tells us that the end will come like a thief in the night. While the scientists in the movie make the predictions, the Bible tells us the end is on God's time. While Hollywood threw wrenches in the scientists' plans by speeding up the apocalypse for dramatic value, Christians may walk away with a sneaky feeling that we can make all the predictions we want based on science, but God's still going to do it His way.

Read the review of 2012

One of the wonderful blessings God provides us is creativity. Each of us has a creative side that shows itself in some way shape or form, so why not find a way to harness that into youth leadership events?

There are so many things youth leaders and pastors can do to help foster God's creative gifts to us. From battle of the band events to craft shows to poetry readings, using events to show off the talents of creative youth group members is a way to get people involved.

Whether you're a participant showing off your creative side or a spectator enjoying what talents God has provided, these types of events allow youth groups to grow together in celebration of one another.

Proverbs 24:5 - "The wise are mightier than the strong, and those with knowledge grow stronger and stronger."" (NLT)

I am not really sure when we started down this path of believing that intelligence wasn't important, but it seems like we reward ignorance far too much. People become rich and famous for nothing more than being pretty or unintelligent. It makes it seem like there is no reason to grow in our knowledge of things.

Yet God tells us something different. Wisdom and knowledge make us far more powerful than the world tells us about. Wisdom that comes from God makes us truly strong, because there is an assurance and strength that God provides to us in understanding. We should never shy away from wanting to be smarter. There is nothing wrong with being the smartest or wisest, in fact, God tells us that there is a strength in wisdom that we should strive toward.