NO CHRISTMAS PARTY!! POSTPONED til JAN 9

Calling all youth!!

Due to a death in the family, we will be traveling out of town on Wednesday, so we’ll not be having youth group this week. We’ll be postponing our holiday party til JANUARY 9th. Please call your friends as I don’t have very many emails…

Thanks.

Mark

Movie Night (The Nativity Story)

Hello and Merry Christmas! (May Christ be born in you!!)

We had our first official "Movie Night" at JOURNEY this week. We viewed "The Nativity Story" on the big screen. Hopefully, everyone had a good time and enjoyed the movie and the popcorn.

The movie taught the youth several things about the Christmas story - a few were that Zechariah (John the Baptist's preacher dad) who got struck mute for not believing a word from God. That Mary could have legally been stoned to death for getting pregnant without being married (like, so not fair!!) and the terror of the Bethlehem baby massacre by Herod in an attempt to kill the new Messiah.

Mary and Joe were a couple of special people that God chose specifically for one special purpose. To care for Jesus. God in the flesh. God with us. Immanuel.

We also mentioned that Kate's grandma (Abbey & Rachel's great-grandma) is probably not going to live much longer. She's 96 years old and has lived a long and good life. But what is most special about her is that she has been totally faithful to God and has been a shining example to our family of how to prepare and present yourself to be used by God for his special purposes. Her name, fittingly, is Mary. (We love you Grandma!)

Mark

If you don't have something nice to say...

It's Christmas time! Snow is on the ground, the tree is up. looking forward to Christmas break! This week, in the spirit of Christmas we had a dramatic reading of;

A Soldier's Silent Night (Silent Night playing in the background)

TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS, HE LIVED ALL ALONE,
IN A ONE BEDROOM HOUSE MADE OF PLASTER AND STONE.
I HAD COME DOWN THE CHIMNEY WITH PRESENTS TO GIVE,
AND TO SEE JUST WHO IN THIS HOME DID LIVE.
I LOOKED ALL ABOUT, A STRANGE SIGHT I DID SEE,
NO TINSEL, NO PRESENTS, NOT EVEN A TREE.
NO STOCKING BY MANTLE, JUST BOOTS FILLED WITH SAND,
ON THE WALL HUNG PICTURES OF FAR DISTANT LANDS.
WITH MEDALS AND BADGES, AWARDS OF ALL KINDS,
A SOBER THOUGHT CAME THROUGH MY MIND.
FOR THIS HOUSE WAS DIFFERENT, IT WAS DARK AND DREARY,
I FOUND THE HOME OF A SOLDIER, ONCE I COULD SEE CLEARLY.
THE SOLDIER LAY SLEEPING, SILENT, ALONE,
CURLED UP ON THE FLOOR IN THIS ONE BEDROOM HOME.
THE FACE WAS SO GENTLE, THE ROOM IN SUCH DISORDER,
NOT HOW I PICTURED A UNITED STATES SOLDIER.
WAS THIS THE HERO OF WHOM I'D JUST READ?
CURLED UP ON A PONCHO, THE FLOOR FOR A BED?
I REALIZED THE FAMILIES THAT I SAW THIS NIGHT,
OWED THEIR LIVES TO THESE SOLDIERS WHO WERE WILLING TO FIGHT.
SOON ROUND THE WORLD, THE CHILDREN WOULD PLAY,
AND GROWNUPS WOULD CELEBRATE A BRIGHT CHRISTMAS DAY.
THEY ALL ENJOYED FREEDOM EACH MONTH OF THE YEAR,
BECAUSE OF THE SOLDIERS, LIKE THE ONE LYING HERE.
I COULDN'T HELP WONDER HOW MANY LAY ALONE,
ON A COLD CHRISTMAS EVE IN A LAND FAR FROM HOME.
THE VERY THOUGHT BROUGHT A TEAR TO MY EYE,
I DROPPED TO MY KNEES AND STARTED TO CRY;
THE SOLDIER AWAKENED AND I HEARD A ROUGH VOICE,
"SANTA DON'T CRY, THIS LIFE IS MY CHOICE;
I FIGHT FOR FREEDOM, I DON'T ASK FOR MORE,
MY LIFE IS MY GOD, MY COUNTRY, MY CORPS."
THE SOLDIER ROLLED OVER AND DRIFTED TO SLEEP,
I COULDN'T CONTROL IT, I CONTINUED TO WEEP.
I KEPT WATCH FOR HOURS, SO SILENT AND STILL
AND WE BOTH SHIVERED FROM THE COLD NIGHT'S CHILL.
I DIDN'T WANT TO LEAVE ON THAT COLD, DARK, NIGHT,
THIS GUARDIAN OF HONOR SO WILLING TO FIGHT.
THEN THE SOLDIER ROLLED OVER, WITH A VOICE SOFT AND PURE,
WHISPERED, "CARRY ON SANTA, IT'S CHRISTMAS DAY, ALL IS SECURE."
ONE LOOK AT MY WATCH, AND I KNEW HE WAS RIGHT.
"MERRY CHRISTMAS MY FRIEND, AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT."

We took a moment to remember the soldiers who will be spending this Christmas season away from home and to remember all the families who will be without their loved one. We are blessed to have our family together this Christmas.

Next we shared a short reading about a monk who, instead of "Merry Christmas" would say "May Christ be born in you". We challenged the youth to try that with a few people this season.

Finally, we discussed the issue of gossip and how dangerous and damaging it is for everyone involved and how to prevent it, avoid it, deal with it and even turn it around for good. We've all heard the saying "if you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all." That's some good advice. I would add to that. Before you say something about someone else, think to yourself, is what I am going to say going to build up that person, or tear them down? If it will build them up, then say it. Tear down? then don't.

We played the "telephone" game to demonstrate the point.

Next week 12 Dec; MOVIE NIGHT!
Dec 19th, CHRISTMAS PARTY! Bring an item from home, don't purchase anything. wrap it up and we'll pick numbers. it'll be fun. We'll go caroling if the weather's not too bad.

Merry Christmas! May Christ be born in you!!

Bible Millionaire

What fun! Everyone had a great time with our first game show night. We had 10 contestants, but nobody made it all the way through. Apparently the questions were a bit more advanced than we figured. So, either we make the questions easier...or we start hitting the books. The books of the Bible, that is.




NO JOURNEYOUTH GROUP ON 21 NOVEMBER DUE TO THANKSGIVING.

See you on November 28th for our special game show, Bible Millionaire.

Don't Miss It!

Thanks

Thanksgiving is next week, so we thought it fitting to reflect on the importance of giving thanks.

First we revisited our Compliment Challenge from last week. Everyone mentioned one compliment that they gave during the week and how they reacted. Amy complimented...everyone...and their clothes... Good job everyone. And Amy...nice shoes.

Kate handed out slips of paper to everyone with specific instructions. a Grand Prize winner was announced. Matt! (and the people rejoiced! hurray.) He was given a treasure box filled with candy. Others had instructions to go ask for a piece, one at a time, until all the "treasure" was taken. Only one person said "thanks".

We discussed the situation. How everyone felt.

There is a story in the Bible in Luke (who was a doctor) that described how, as Jesus was traveling from Samaria to Galilee, ten lepers called out to Jesus for mercy and healing. Jesus heard their desperate cries, had compassion, and told them to go show themselves to the priest. All headed for the temple, and on the way realized they had been completely healed. Only one man turned around to thank Jesus. Jesus asked rhetorically, "Where are the other nine?"

We discussed the situation. How everyone felt.

We are all lepers needing the healing of God. Christ has the power to save us from certain death. We just have to ask. Cry out to Jesus for mercy and healing. And He will.

We now can live life completely, not isolated but fully restored. How grateful we should be to the God of the universe for saving us from death. Thankfulness should flow from us like a fountain. Every moment in every situation.

Here's our verse;

"In every thing give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus" 1 Thessalonians 5:18.

We then created a "WE ARE THANKFUL" banner upon which everyone jotted down some things we are thankful for. Hung it up in the sanctuary.

Then Kate had everyone write a thank you note to someone. Then she handed out a personalized thank you note to everyone. And then there were hugs...and it was good.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Alicia! And THANKS to Alicia for bringing in cupcakes, cookies and pop for everyone. You are truly a joy, young lady.

We had three guests tonight, Alicia invited Stephanie. The DeBoer's invited Rebecca, and Ashley.

we ended the night with some games; Egg, Chicken, Dino... and leave the room scenarios.

that's all folks. Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

Self-Esteem

Tonight we discussed an issue lots of our youth have to deal with - self esteem. Most of us have been blessed with great families and friends that support and encourage us, but sometimes we still struggle with people and situations that really tear us down and make it hard to see ourselves as the precious treasure God has created us to be. All of us deal with criticism and sometimes even ridicule. If we don't have a healthy self image, then it's easy to internalize this negative input and start to think that we are ugly, stupid, worthless - you name it.

We all know the saying "sticks and stones...", but words do hurt. a lot.

We need to realize that God passionately loves us, just like we are, and has created us for a wonderful beautiful purpose...and through Christ we can do anything. (Phillipians 4:13)

Everyone wrote one thing that they are good at on the board - what a variety of talents!!

For fun, we had three individuals role-play a scenario and were, well, let's just say they were misunderstood....just ask them if you'd like to hear the details.

Also, we crowned a new stare down contest champion - Alicia!!

Everyone got a purple Spirit bracelet to remind us not to complain~ cause nobody likes to be around a complainer... plus, the Bible explains how some complainers ended up...1 Corinthians 10: 10 And do not grumble, as some of them did—and were killed by the destroying angel.

you don't want to mess with the destroying angel. just not a good idea.

Compliment Challenge~everyone is to attempt to compliment at least one person this week and share with the group next week how it goes.

Flame (continued)

A beautiful crisp fall evening and brilliant orange sunset greeted us as we built a fire out behind the church. The youth roasted (burned) marshmallows and some made smores, and we had hot chocolate. For the entire time Kathleen simply asked questions about some issues that the kids are facing. As usual, the discussion was lively and diverse, to say the least.

I want to say a special thanks to Rachel for inviting a friend a couple months back who invited a couple more friends, and another and another. In all, eight kids have visited in the past couple months. Way to go Rachel.

Last Friday night we had our first Activity Nite. What a blast! Lots of snacks and games and music was had by all. The messy games involved whipped cream, gummi worms, balloons and shaving cream, and spam. Nothing says fun like a can of Spam. Stay tuned for pictures from the event.

Don't Forget~ NO GROUP NEXT WEEK, it's Halloween. See you on November 7th.

Flame

Ironically, the night's theme was "Flame" and we were planning to have a fire outside, but we were greeted by a downpour. So, we'll do the fire next week (weather permitting).

But inside (on the big screen) things heated up with a lesson on love. We viewed a short video (NOOMA Flame 002, by Rob Bell) which described three Hebrew words for love;

Raya - Friendship

Ahava - Commitment (Marriage)

Dod - Physical (Sex)

Here's a synopsis of the lesson;

'We love our jobs, we love our kids, we love a good burrito.

When love is defined so broadly, it loses its significance. We may confuse friendship, commitment with lust with love, but God intended us to experience something far deeper.

We shared that unless we have all three - and in the right order, we really miss out on all the wonderful things God has planned for us on our Journey.

Next week; we'll give the fire another shot. S'mores anyone??

Baby Food, YUM!!!

A Journey: toward spiritual maturity

Luke 2:39-40When they finished everything required by God in the Law, they returned to Galilee and their own town, Nazareth. There the child grew strong in body and wise in spirit. And the grace of God was on him.

First of all, spiritual maturity has no correlation to age. Jesus was twelve when he was teaching in the temple. And I find it quite interesting that the only record of Jesus between his birth and the beginning of his ministry, when he was thirty, was when he was twelve years old (and causing his parent's much grief!!).

in 1 Timothy 4:12, it says, "Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young. Set an example for the believers in what you say and in how you live. Also set an example in how you love and in what you believe. Show the believers how to be pure. "

In short, if your reading this, you are certainly old enough to start growing deeper in your faith. Move quickly from baby food to the the wonderful "Old Country Buffet" God has waiting for you! Or would you rather eat Gerber's pureed peas for the rest of your life! (please say no).

So, to emphasize the point we had a Baby Food Taste Test!! The youth had ten different baby food varieties with the labels removed and a spoon.

Ten jars of Gerber baby food; $5.00

The look of a middle school youth tasting "Ham" baby food; Priceless.

did you know...

that in Africa, since most people can't read, most food packaging has a picture of what the food's made from on the outside of the packaging. That's why when Gerber baby food was introduced in Africa, people were - to borrow the words of Bob the Tomato - "shocked, and slightly embarrassed" why there was a picture of a baby on the food jar. I guess they wouldn't like "Girl Scout cookies" either??

New this week! Our first installment of the Q&A show; "Question Mark & Kate!"
Here's how it works. Mark and Kate on barstools. Ask anything. We'll be completely open and honest. Here are a few of the questions from episode 1;

Q: Do women in Germany shave their armpits?

Q: What was your scariest moment? most embarrassing?

Q: Where do babies come from? (inside joke)

and many others...

Getting to know you, Part II. Kate had the kids change seats and get with others who they didn't know very well and spend a few minutes learning about each other.

COMING UP...

Plan for next week (Fire! Fire!) Weenie / Marshmallow Roast!! bring a chair, bug spray and a jacket. (Lesson on Love)

Activity Night - OCTOBER 19th!!

Other scriptures to think about:

Hebrews 5:11-14
have a lot more to say about this, but it is hard to get it across to you since you've picked up this bad habit of not listening. By this time you ought to be teachers yourselves, yet here I find you need someone to sit down with you and go over the basics on God again, starting from square one—baby's milk, when you should have been on solid food long ago! Milk is for beginners, inexperienced in God's ways; solid food is for the mature, who have some practice in telling right from wrong.

2 Timothy 3:14-17 (The Message)But don't let it faze you. Stick with what you learned and believed, sure of the integrity of your teachers—why, you took in the sacred Scriptures with your mother's milk! There's nothing like the written Word of God for showing you the way to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. Every part of Scripture is God-breathed and useful one way or another—showing us truth, exposing our rebellion, correcting our mistakes, training us to live God's way. Through the Word we are put together and shaped up for the tasks God has for us.

What's in your suitcase?

As we continue with the theme "Journey", this week we talked about how as we travel this road of life, sometimes we carry with us baggage that can slow us down. our scripture verse was in Hebrews 12.

To illustrate, we had a relay race with two suitcases. One large and one small. the small suitcase, however, was loaded down with real heavy stuff like a concrete block, a dumbell, an old license plate, a broken brick, and metal clamp, etc. to symbolize things in our life that weigh us down and keep us from enjoying our journey with others and with God.

We played "Freeze" again, and had snacks / drinks and sang happy birthday for the October birthdays.

Hebrews 12: 1

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. 2Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith,

October / November Events!!

Let the Joyous News be spread...Activity Night has arrived.

Friday Night October 19th. 6:30 - 9:00pm. We will hold our very first "Activity Night"

Activity Night is a free for all Fun Night. Messy Games, Snacks, Video Games, Music and did I mention Messy Games?? Don't miss it.

Bring a 2-Liter drink and a favorite snack/chips to share, old clothes and a friend.

Other news;

Wednesday, Oct 31st (Halloween) We will not have JourneYouth Group.
Friday, November 16th - ACTIVITY NIGHT 6:30-9:00pm
Wednesday, November 21st - NO JOURNEYOUTH group! (Happy Thanksgiving)
Wednesday, December 19th - JOURNEYOUTH Christmas Party!!!
Wednesday, December 26th - NO JOURNEYOUTH group! (Merry Christmas)
Date to be announced; LOCK-IN!!!!!! (Volunteers Needed)

Touch the Mezuzah!

Last night we dedicated our Youth Room with a symbolic MEZUZAH.

To put it simply, it is a Jewish tradition of hanging a container with a scripture inside on your doorpost as you come and go - you touch it to remind yourself of the commandments of God.

for more info on what a mezuzah is, go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mezuzah

We simply posted a paper with this scripture on the inside and outside of the room;
Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.
You shall love the LORD your God

with all your heart

and with all your soul

and with all your might.

The full scripture references are from
Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and 11:13-21. Here's part of it that gives some specific instructions;

11: 18 Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 19 Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 20 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates, 21 so that your days and the days of your children may be many in the land that the LORD swore to give your forefathers, as many as the days that the heavens are above the earth.

We then played a mixer game called "Find Someone Who..." A chaotic game where you had to find people in the group who could sign off your items (e.g. left handed, blue-eyed, been to Colorado, make an ugly face, sing happy birthday)

Then we brainstormed about how to redecorate the youth room and came up with a "wish list".

We then played another improv game called "Freeze!" where two people start acting out a situation, then someone yells "Freeze!", that person taps one person and takes their frozen position and changes the story into something completely different. An exercise in creative thinking and drama.

This sunday, sunDAY, SUNDAY!!! SEPTEMBER 30th. NOON. Meet us at the local soccer game at the field next to Subway to root on a few of our own, Brent, Matt and Tony. bring your own chair and soccer jersey.

UPDATE! the Manhattan Fire won the game 4-2. thanks to all who showed up to root on the team!

You have chosen...wisely.

Back by popular demand; the Egg game!

This is a variation of Rock, Paper, Scissors. Everyone starts as an egg waddling around and challenging another egg. The winner becomes a chicken! Two chickens busily flapping their arms then challenge each other, the winner becomes a prince or princess and begins to prance around. The loser turns back into a chicken. And so goes the mayhem until the princes become kings, the princesses become queens. At the end there remains a prince or princesss, a chicken and an egg.

The lessons we can learn from this game is that we can't remain as we are when we face the challenges in our lives, we either move forward or fall back. Also, the winner last week was the egg. The first shall be last, and the last shall...recieve a prize! The other lesson is that we learned definitively that the egg comes before the chicken. All this time...

This week we reviewed the ground rules;

1. Respect God (anytime God's name is used e.g. "oh, my god!", we will stop and pray together.)

2. Respect Others

3. Respect Yourself

4. Have Fun!

5. Don't interru.. I forget the rest.

We had a few new first time guests at Journey!!! Waaaay Cooool!

We had a short lesson about CHOICES that we make in life. Everyday we are faced with choices and they affect how the rest of our day and life goes. Someone mentioned that their Mom tells them on the way out the door to school to 'make good choices'. Way to go, Ma!!

We talked about the bible verse that explains there's a narrow gate and path that we should take that leads toward Jesus, and another path that most everyone takes that leads to destruction. And we talked about the story of the Rich Young Ruler. Jesus told him how to gain eternal life and invited him to "Follow Me". But he chose not to. Because he loved his stuff more than Jesus. To drive home the idea, the kids had to choose to sit on the hard chairs or the soft chairs and then their 'fate' was revealed...

And finally we watched a clip from "Indiana Jones; The Last Crusade" when someone 'chose poorly' and Indy 'chose wisely'.

We then went outside and played kickball and ultimate football.

then, as if that weren't enough, back inside for drinks, chips and "SPONTANEOUS MELODRAMAS". always a good time.

whew...

oh, almost forgot, we referenced the famous poem by Robert Frost, enjoy. see you all next week!
The Road Not Taken

A poem by Robert Frost
Two roads diverged in a yellow woodAnd sorry I could not travel bothAnd be one traveler, long I stoodAnd looked down one as far as I couldTo where it bent in the undergrowth Then took the other as just as fair And having perhaps the better claim Because it was grassy and wanted wear Though as for that, the passing there Had worn them really about the same And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet, knowing how way leads onto way I doubted if I should ever come back I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence Two roads diverged in a wood And I took the one less traveled by And that has made all the difference.

Matthew 7:13 (Contemporary English Version)
Go in through the narrow gate. The gate to destruction is wide, and the road that leads there is easy to follow. A lot of people go through that gate.

Welcome to the Journey!

Welcome! Last night was our first official youth group gathering at the Manhattan United Methodist Church (MUMC). My wife Kate and I have decided to start a weekly program on Wednesday evenings (6-8pm) for any youth interested in attending. Our focus is Jr. High youth currently.

We introduced the name of the youth ministry as "Journey". We will be exploring the journey that the youth will be taking in the next few years of their lives, and how critically important it is that God be the center of their lives.

After some fun games, we watched a clip from the movie "Lord of the Rings; Fellowship..." to introduce that each of us are given a mission. We can't stay where we are. We must move to grow. And, there is an enemy that we must be aware of (like the dark riders in the movie).

A particularly profound quote from the movie was from Bilbo Baggins, a hobbit.
"It's a dangerous business, going out your door.
You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet
There's no knowing where you might be swept off to."

We are all stepping onto the road, no matter what age. We need to know where we're heading. Our heading should be toward Jesus. He has traveled this road and will lead us in the right paths.

Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don't try to figure out everything on your own.Listen for God's voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he's the one who will keep you on track. Proverbs 3:5-6 (The Message)