My name is Josh, and I am a part of a broken generation, a generation hungry to see healing and a generation hungry to be healed. That's why I do this--that the lives of my generation, along with those we encounter, might be moved towards healing through the life God has for us.
A life soaked in intimacy with Jesus and free of a suffocating moral system. A life lived outside of safety and comfort, walking where the dangerous and wild ones are and where the Wild One is. A life spent pursuing people, rather than things made of plastic. A life where we allow God's fierce grace to tightly hug us, and channel through us into a world beaten with judgment. A life of sacrificial love rather than kindness and charity. A life of kneeling and serving. A life of persistent truth and persistent change.
That life is beautiful because it brings healing, and as I said, that's why I do this, or at least that's why I want to do this. At times I find myself caught in the hollow motivations of self and success, but God continues to evolve me there, and as He does, I see more lives changed along with my own.
Since 2000, this has been my purpose, and the means to that has taken many forms along the way, including working in churches in the Chicago-land area and the brilliantly weird city of Austin, where Kristen and I now call home.
Currently, I write and speak full time, primarily to my generation and its leaders, which means anyone who is, or is leading, people 15-35 years old, or so. That means that I spend a lot of my time at conferences, colleges, churches, camps, and high schools around the country and it's such a blessing, because every time I do I feel like God does more in me than He could possibly do through me, and to be honest, if that ever changes I should probably stop doing it. As far as writing goes, I'm excited to partner with Baker Publishing Group on my first book, which will be released in 2009.
But I don't want to be a guy who seeks to bring change through speaking and writing, and doesn't seek to bring it in my everyday life. Actually, that's where I want to seek it most. So if you think about it, pray for Kristen and I, that we wouldn't be the selfish people our hearts so easily lead us to be, and that broken people might get a glimpse of our loving God through us.
"Josh Riebock is one of the most relevant and anointed young men with a message for this generation that I have encountered. Josh has been captured by the heart of God for this generation and has been raised up as a voice for them. His pertinent message coupled with a life that reflects the character and nature of Jesus Christ makes Josh a speaker worthy of your attention."
"Josh was perhaps the most effective communicator we have had in my twelve years at Wheaton Academy. He has a unique ability to make Scripture come alive for this generation. Josh spoke to them in a relevant way that caused many students to refocus their relationship with Jesus. I don't know anyone more ready to help spur on this generation of Christ-followers to become authentic and passionate believers who can and will change the world."
