Reviewing the May/June 2010 Group Magazine

I've recently re-subscribed to Group Magazine, the current issue came yesterday afternoon.  Here's a brief review of the articles that will be making an impact on how we do things at Eastview:

Q & A with Doug Fields- Doug Fields was at Saddleback Church in SoCal.  
This month, Doug interviews Danette Matty, youth ministry volunteer for life.  She talks about relationships, intimacy with  Jesus and accountability as the big ricks of her involvement with student ministry over the years.  My favorite quote? "You've got to give people something worth committing to, something that's going to be a great use of their time." 

Voices, Mark DeVries- Mark is one of the guys that we've built a ton of our ministry on.  He's all about trying to get families involved. 
This month, his article is called "The Interim Way".  He seeks to make the point that any youth minister (or minister, for that matter), is in fact "interim".  There was someone before us, and someone coming after us.  He states that "Successful interims leave their ministries better than they found them."  We've worked and continue to work to equip those who serve to minister.  To find out how we're doing, why our volunteers serve, check out the sermon from this past Sunday...it was all about them.  Click here and listen to "Thank You".

Teenagers Top Needs, Rick Lawrence- Rick is the editor of Group Magazine.
This is actually part 2 of an article from the previous month.  Basically, they presented a few lists to the students attending Group's Workcamps (short-term service projects) last Summer, and now they're taking a look and the responses; they've also asked youth ministers to comment.  We'll be iusing this list soon, to help us with some curriculum ideas for the coming school year.


Voices-Smaller Church Youth Ministry, Stephanie Caro- Steph is a friend that I've gotten to know over the past view years through the Inside Track Team at Group's Youth Ministry Conference. 
Steph makes the point that an updated church leadership team is a "bought in" church leadership team.  While our weekly meetings are not simply reporting venues, there is a lot to be said about keeping my leaders in tune with my schedule and our activities.

The Maximized Senior Year, Tim Levert- Church Leader, Maryland.
This article really put some practical ideas about ministering to these students and their families.  Final semester weekly Bible study for students and parents, senior/parents only events, great ideas.  I've been thinking about this kind of thing for a year or two, and these were a few "do-able" things.  With several students beginning their senior year in September, this will be a great place to start.


The Magical Mystery Tour, Josh Jones- Youth Pastor, Colorado.
"The story of how one youth leader took nine senior highers, two adult volunteers and an intern on a week-long summer outreach odyssey--they had no schedule, no destination and no plan B."  Over the past few ministry team meetings, I've expressed frustration with our bi-annual conference program.  Josh and his group simply met, and left.  They trusted God.  They changed flat tires on the highway, worked at churches, helped in soup kitchens, and met needs.  Even he did not know where they were headed, they just went.  At the end of the article, he shared some of their planning, meal costs, had camping gear along, car maintenance tools, etc, along with a "What I'd Do Differently Next Time." section.  Great idea.  This will be in the agenda for discussion soon.

Student Ministry Recaps: May 2-8, 2010

Senior High

May 2, 2010

 Over the past few weeks we have been talking about music.  We looked at scripture to see the different forms of music God directs us to use to worship him.  We talked about lyrics in the songs each student listens to and how music is important to God. We also talked about worship and how worship is not just for Sunday mornings, but should be a part of our lifestyle.

We concluded the study this past Sunday using music to discuss believing in the truth and how the truth can set us free.  From John 8 we talked about how Jesus was telling the truth but those listening didn't want to hear or accept what he was saying. The students were challenged to hear the words of Jesus, accept his truth and not be a slave to sin.

We will begin a study on the different denominations and what they believe on May 11th and give the students some fundamental foundation of the Christian Church.  We will not be meeting on Sunday May 9th so students can celebrate Mother's Day.

Middle School

May 5, 2010

Topic: Don't All Good People Go To Heaven?

The Point: Jesus Is My Only Hope.

Takeaways:
   1. We can follow all the rules and be good, but it doesn't necessarily get us into heaven. (story of the rich young ruler from Mark 10:17-27)
   2. Jesus will not chase us if we do not so what He says..we must be obedient to Him.

Next Week : ?

E-Klub

May 5, 2010

  
Wednesday night we had a cadet challenge, we ate like astronauts. Since there isn't any gravity in space food flies through the air when released. So we took marshmallows and tried to get them into the mouth of our partner by throwing them. It was a lot of fun. There were some that even made it into mouths.

We learned that we can not live with out reading the Bible everyday, just as we can not live with out eating everyday. Where the food nourishes our bodies, the Bible nourishes our spirit. We acted out a short story from the Bible. Jesus came to visit sisters, Mary and Martha. Mary sits near Jesus listening, Martha is busy cleaning. She gets angry and tells Jesus to make Mary start helping. Jesus tells her Mary is right where she needs to be. We need to do the same, stop and learn the Bible, love the Bible and live the Bible.

Next Wednesday is our last Wednesday until September. We will find out what happens on the SS Intrepid, make a craft and have a fun snack. The children have been working hard learning all the books of the Bible. Next week we will see how many more have made that goal.

Youth Group Recaps: April 25-May 1, 2010

Senior High
April 25, 2010

Topic: An exploration of the power of music and its role as part of a worshipful lifestyle.

Take Away: Music is intended to be a powerful part of worshiping God.

Next Week: A continued exploration of music and worship.


Middle School
April 28, 2010


Topic: Revelation Happenings - we did an activity where the students had to draw what they thought would happen when the end of the world came. Monna then asked if they thought they would be ready if it happened...at 6am tomorrow. We had different answers to the question (and many interesting pictures).


Take Away: We had a couple of takeaways. We read mainly from Revelation 1:9-18, but referred back to Daniel 7:9-10 for similarities. We talked about prophesy versus vision and what the difference is. Prophesy being a "warning" to people to turn away from sin. Vision is a message that God wants to reveal to us. We related it back to the story we read and how we know that the Lord is coming back, and although we don't know exactly when, we need to be ready when He does.

The second takeaway was from Revelation 3:16. Basically if we are lukewarm in our faith, God will "spit" us out when it is time to go to Him. We need to be "hot" for Him..learn about Him and do what we have to do in order to please Him.

Student Ministry Recaps, April 18-24 2010

Senior High

April 18, 2010

Topic:  An exploration of what it means to "fear the Lord."

Take Away:  Fearing the Lord has to do with being aware of God's ultimate power.  This fear can be a deep respect for that power but can also be a literal fear.  We should use this fear to both honor God and change our lives to grow closer to Him.

Next Week:  A discussion of the role of music as a part of worship.

Middle School

April 21, 2010

Topic:  Eternal Life.  The story was John 20:1-31. Jesus died, and his followers were very sad.  But then the unexpected happened...he rose from the dead and appeared to his followers.


Take Away:  God made the ultimate sacrifice when He gave his son to be crucified.  God is all powerful and can do unbelievable things...we need to believe.  the fact that Jesus rose from the dead gives all of us hope.


Next week:  John is gone..so it is party time.

E-Klub

April 21, 2010

Wednesday night our Operation Space lesson was on the Incredible Impact. We learned how the Bible has an incredible impact on our lives by transforming us. To illustrate the change, we rolled volunteers in toilet paper and watched them burst into a beautiful butterflies. The Bible transforms us as the caterpillar transforms into a butterfly.

We learned that there are 66 books of the Bible. There are 39 books in the Old Testament and 27 books in the New Testament. We are learning a song to help us remember the books of the Bible, in the order they are found. It's helpful to know the order so we can quickly find passages we need.

Next week we will still be talking about the Incredible Impact. Our skit will continue and we will learn more about the intentions of Virus, and what he plans to do to Earth.

Student Ministry Recaps, April 11-17 2010

Dropped the ball over the past few weeks, but we're back!

Senior High
Sunday April 11, 2010

Topic: A wrap up of the "Dateable" book. Discussion touched on risky behaviors, consequences of actions, and the appropriate roles for girls and guys in a dating relationship.

Take Away: Guys are supposed to take the lead in the relationship, even if that's not the way it goes anymore. Relationships are work and come with risks.

Next Week: The kids gave us a topic list, we're currently developing it.

Middle School
Wednesday April 14, 2010

Topic: Wednesday night was a fun night. The theme was God's healing touch. The story was from John 9:1-41, Jesus healing the blind man. For starters we had 6 students blindfolded. The object was for them to find someone with pudding, someone with a spoon, and then feed each other. It was interesting to say the least..and a bit messy. Afterward, we discussed how it felt to be blind, and then to see..and also how the blind man would have felt. Then a student who originally had the pudding said he was "manipulating" some of the "blind" students. So we talked about that for a bit and how it happens not to just blind or handicapped, but to regular people everyday.

Take Away: In the story, Jesus uses mud mixed with spit to put on the man's eyes to heal him. That led us to talk about how Jesus used ordinary things to heal this man. We are ordinary people and god uses us too. I saw some sparks in the eyes of some students who may not have realized that God uses the everyday person..including them..to do His work. What a great night.

Next Week: Jesus walks through walls.

e-Klub
Wednesday April 14, 2010

Topic: Wednesday night was a continuation of last weeks salvation discussion. The kids made glow in the dark crosses with pipe cleaners and beads. In snack we had bomb pops. And we had our skit that went along with our lesson.

Take Away: We met a new character in our skit. His name is Virus and he wants to take over Earth. He will be making further appearances in future skits. We learned the closest star is 4.2 light years away, which is 25 trillion miles. The speed of light is 186,000 miles per second. It would still take 2 million years to get there.

Next week: Our lesson will be on incredible impact. From science to music to changed lives, the Bible has an incredible impact on our world.

High School/Middle School Youth Group Recaps, March 21-27, 2010

High School Youth Group--March 21, 2010

Topic: The second week of discussion of the book, Dateable: Are You? Are They? has been awesome. Our students are learning about relationships, character and recognizing lies that have been told to them, their friends, themselves and even those they may have done to others. We talked about how our actions are important and what our actions say about us and how they make others feel. How if their friends ask them to lie for them, they will lie to them. It's great seeing our students talk honestly, openly and looking at their own relationships and expectations.

Take away: We need to be truth-tellers and truth-hearers in our relationships with others.

Next week: We continue this study next week with talking about their appearances, revealing clothes and physical boundaries.

A quick reminder....we will not be having Youth Group April 4th Easter Sunday. We want the kids to enjoy that celebration time with their families.

Middle School Youth Group--March 24, 2010

Topic: We talked about our need to trust God when He tells us to do things. We talked about the example of Jonah, found in Jonah 1.

Take Away: God wants us to be obedient to Him. As He asks us to do things, and we do them, we learn that He is trustworthy. We cannot simply say that we love Him with words and then not do what He asks.

Next Week: We'll be talking about Jesus' desire to heal us, using several stories of Him casting out demons.

E-Klub/Youth Group Recaps, March 14-20, 2010

High School Youth Group--March 14, 2010

Topic: Chapters 1-3 of "Dateable": discussion of the nature of high school dating relationships and the tactics guys and girls use in these relationships.

Take away: High school dating relationships will always end.

Next week: Chapters 4-6 of "Dateable": the lies teens tell to make high school dating work.

Middle School Youth Group--March 17, 2010

Topic: We talked about the ways that God speaks to us, using Daniel 5:1-30 as our story.

Take Away: god is speaking to us, and will often go to great lengths to get our attention. He wants us to talk about all aspects of our lives with Him.

Next Week: We'll be talking about God's love for us, as shown in the book of Jonah.

E-Klub--March 17, 2010

Topic: Last night we continued Operation Space. Last night was a continuation of things we learned the week before. We will have the same topic for two weeks then move to a new one.

Take Away: Last night, in our skit, we met a young girl names Sydney. She works at the planetarium. She taught us that there are 100 billion stars in the sky. We also learned that God has a name for all of them. Sydney's boss says that working at the planetarium you need to "leave your Bible at home." Over the next few weeks she will learn that her boss is wrong. She fell asleep stargazing and woke up on a space ship. She is starting her cadet training. Our memory verse for this week is still from 2 Timothy 3:16 "All scripture is given by inspiration of God".

Next week: Next week we will talk about the authority of the Bible.