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WELCOME TO OFF ROAD

OFF ROAD is the Jr. High place to be! We are the Jr. High ministry here at Westgate Church in San Jose, Ca. This blog is the place to find out what is going on in OFF ROAD, what we are learning about and how to get connected. I ask that you look around, click on some links and if you have any questions contact me (drew@westgatechurch.org)
-Drew Froese (Director of Jr. High Ministries)
OFF ROAD SERVICE!!!!!!!!!!
Saturday @ 6:40

OFF ROAD EVENTS

All OFF ROAD information can now be found at www.westgatechurch.org/ministries/students

SUMMER CAMP DATES- MARK YOUR CALENDAR= June 17-20

Parents: OFF ROAD is in desperate need of leaders. We are looking for people who are interested in working with a great group of adults to impact the lives of Junior Highers. If you or someone you knows would be interested in serving in this way then please email drew@westgatechurch.org.

NO OFF ROAD this Saturday

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!

OFF ROAD will not be meeting until January 9-10 (WE DO HAVE SMALL GROUPS JANUARY 6th), then off for winter camp (Jan 15-17) and back on the 23rd.

Monday, December 14, 2009

This Week #3-13

This week #3-13
This week in OFF Road we started our 2 part Christmas series titled, “Better than a Bike,” in which we are discussing the greatest gift ever given, Jesus Christ. In this weeks lesson we looked to the prophetic words spoken before the birth of Christ and the impossibility that 1 person was “lucky” enough to fulfill those prophecies. We discussed a few of the prophesies and noticed how specific they are and how amazing that is. In His birth Christ fulfilled 14 prophesies, in his lifetime 61 prophesies. The mathematic probability of 1 man fulfilling just 8 of the prophecies is 10 to the 17th power. In a word picture that is like filling the entire state of Texas 2 feet deep in silver dollars, marking 1 of those silver dollars, blindfolding someone and telling them to pick up just 1 silver dollar. The likelihood of them picking up the marked coin is the same likelihood of 1 man fulfilling 8 of those prophesies. So what does this mean for us?
-God orchestrated Christ birth well ahead of time
-The probability of Christ just being “lucky” and fulfilling these prophecies is impossible
-Therefore, he is the foretold Son of God, and we should pay attention to his life
-he is the greatest gift ever given

Questions:
What does God’s gift mean to you?
How has and does Jesus change your life?
Spend some time as a family thanking God for Jesus.

Monday, December 7, 2009

This Week #3-12

This week in OFF ROAD we looked at the application side of finding our identity in Christ. As you know, Last week we talked about the importance of finding our identity in God and now we discussed the steps we can take to make that happen. In the talk I laid out 3 specific steps that twill significantly help in finding a solid foundation in God. #1) Surround yourself with Godly people that lift you up in Christ. This doesn’t mean we aren’t friends with non-believers, but that our core group of friends, the ones we find our identity in, should be those who encourage us towards Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:32-33= Bad company corrupts good character). #2 We must read the bible for our identity. The world is going to tell you a million things you aren’t, but the truth is written in the bible. You want to know how important you are? Read Psalm 139, John 15:18-27 or Ephesians 2:10. #3 Go to God with your struggles. In your times of really struggling with your identity or what others are saying about you, take it to God and let Him comfort you. Psalm 23 is a good reminder that no matter how hard it gets God is there. We should be bringing ourselves to Him more often, and therefore finding our identity in HIM!!!

Questions for this week:
Read the following passages together and discuss what they mean for your identity in Christ:
Psalm 139, John 15:18-27, Ephesians 2:10, Psalm 23, 1 Corinthians 15:32-33, Romans 8:28-39, Philippians 1:6, Acts 2:42-45

Monday, November 30, 2009

This Week #3-11

This week in OFF ROAD we kicked off our 2 part series on identity theft and the struggle we all face with discovering who we are. This topic is so important for everyone, but is particularly important for middle schoolers as they are all facing an identity crisis. To find out our identity we went back to the very beginning. Genesis 1 talks about the creation of all things, including man. If we want to know where our identity lays it would be a good idea to see what the creator of us says we made for and how we were made. In these verses we discover 3 things: 1. although creation is awesome (and we are so quickly awed by it) the most impressive thing God made is us. Notice how all of creation is made, and then, when man is made, we are made in his image. When is the last time we just were in awe of each other? Maybe if we took this truth to heart our identity struggle wouldn’t be so tough. 2. We were created by God for God. We so often look in other places for our identity, but if we were created by God for God than it is God we should be looking to for our identity. When is the last time you searched the bible for God’s view of you? 3. When God created you it wasn’t, “alright,” or “decent.” When he made us he looked at us and said, “This is very good.” God loves you so much and thinks the world of you (enough to allow his own son to die). If we hold onto our identity in Christ, our identity crisis becomes firmed founded in God’s view of us, and the crisis becomes a clear understanding of who we really are.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

This Week #3-10

OFF ROAD this weekend was an all worship weekend. We spent time singing, reflecting, in silence, and focusing ourselves on God. IT WAS AWESOME!!!! God is good!!! In the end we challenged the students that worship isn‘t something that just happens when we are singing or just at church, but it is a lifestyle. Worship is deciding to live for God and give him praise and it is something that can and should be happening all the time. Like main service I challenge you to sit down, as a family, every night this week and thank God for 5 things (make them different each night). Spend time worshiping God through thanksgiving.

Monday, November 9, 2009

This Week #3-9

This Week in OFF ROAD we continued our series, “Someone Else’s Shoe’s,” looking at what it means to serve God. We started off asking the question, “What does it mean to serve God?” If God created everything, is all knowing and all powerful, how can we serve Him? We found the answer to these questions in John 12:20-26 and Matthew 25:31-46. Read these verses with your child to see what God says about following Him. The first verse describes what God’s calling is (to serve him is to follow him and god where he goes- vs. 26) and the second verse tells us where God goes (to the least of these). So the answer to, “What does it mean to serve God?” is, “To serve God means to follow Him by going where he goes, by serving those who are difficult to love.”

Questions:
Who are the “least of these,” in your life?
How can you serve them?

Monday, November 2, 2009

This Week #3-8

This Week in OFF ROAD we kicked off our new series titled, “Someone Else’s Shoes.” In this series we will be looking at what it means to service others the way Christ has called us. In this week’s lesson we focused on humility in service. We looked at Philippians 2: 1-11. I would encourage you to read this verse throughout the week with your child as it talks about the heart of service. You will notice that the verses begin by asking questions, essentially say does your relationship with Christ change anything about who you are? DO you find encouragement from him and the body of Christ? Then it says, if you do then you should be motivated to be humble. In the NIV it actually says, “Do NOTHING out of selfish ambition, but in EVERYTHING you do, do it with humility.” The calling for humility isn’t in certain circumstances, but in every word we speak, every interaction we have we are to do it with humility. This is should be motivated by our love for God and by these actions others will notice something different about us. The last part of the verses is the encouragement for us, that Christ was the ultimate example of humility. If God, who is way above us, can humble himself to below our level, us humans, who are well below Him should be able to humble ourselves to those around us.

Questions for this week:
Who do you have the hardest time humbling yourself to? Why do you thing that is?
Who do you have the easiest time humbling yourself to? Why do you think that is?
What steps can you take to humble yourself to those around you?
Tell of a time in the last couple weeks where you could have humbled yourself to someone, but decided not to? What could you have done different? What do you think the outcome of that would have been if you handled it differently?
Pray together, throughout this week, for strength to be humble.

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

This Week #3-7

This week in OFF ROAD we finished our D.U.S.T.Y. with reviewing what it looks like to YEARN after God. The definition of Yearn is to have a deep longing or strong desire, and the question I asked the students is; does that word define your relationship with Christ? Do you have a deep desire to know Him? We looked at Matthew 4: 23-25, a simple story about how the news of Jesus spread, people brought their sick and then followed Him. I used this verse to outline 3 basic steps there are to our faith. The first step is we hear the news. Many people stop there and know about the stuff, but don’t yearn to take the next step into realizing the need. In these verses, after hearing the news, people realized their need and brought the sick to Jesus. See is we are yearning for God we not only know the information, but we take the next step of realizing our need for Him and doing something about it. Then, as we continue our yearning process, we need to seek after God in everything we do. After the people were healed the Bible says that a crowd of follower began following Jesus. They heard the news, realized their need, and then followed him. To yearn after God is to go to the next step, to desire to go deeper, to know Him more.

Questions:
Where are you in the process of yearning after God?
What needs to change in your life to go to the next level?
Who is someone you know that is yearning after God? How do you know they are yearning after Him?
Pray for strength to go to the next level.

Monday, October 12, 2009

This Week #3-6

In continuing our DUSTY series we focused on the “T” – Telling others the TRUTH of who Christ is. We looked at many verses of that not only showed the calling Christ gives us (Mark 16:15-16/ Romans 1:16-17) but also the concern each of us should have in our hearts over those who don’t know Christ (Romans 9:1-3). In this verse Paul is in agony over those who do not know Christ. The question we need to ask ourselves is, “Are we truly concerned about those who don’t know Christ?” Because we need to be!!! Some of the tangible steps given to the students to start the process of telling others about Christ is: 1. Make a list of 3-4 people you know that don’t yet know Christ, put this list by your bed and pray for them every night. 2. Pray for those on your list AND for yourself to have opportunities, wisdom and boldness to share your faith. 3. Live a life that is an example of Christ to others. Don’t tell others how much Christ loves them and what He is doing in your life and then be a jerk to others-that doesn’t make sense. 4. Invite them to come to church, so that we can, as a community, show them a love they haven’t experience before, Christ’s love. 5. When God tugs on your heart and asks you to share your faith DO IT.

Questions for this week:
Who is on your list for the 3 or 4 people you want to come to know Christ?
How do you plan on telling them about Christ?
How can I/ we pray for you?
Spend time praying for your child with them and for the people on your child’s list.

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

This Week #3-5

Continuing our DUSTY series, we focused on the “S”- Strengthening our desire to imitate Christ. I spoke on the importance of the desire to get to know Christ more. Although this is the 3 lesson of the series, it really is the foundation to spiritual growth. We must desire to fall deeper in love with God or else all of our righteousness for the sake of pleasing other is worthless. We can know all the “rules” and the right way to live, but if we aren’t doing it because we love God and desire to please him it is pointless. Are motivations for doing what is right must be fueled by a desire to know Christ more and show him love. Remember God first loved us, His love isn’t the question. The question is do you love God? Do you honestly desire to love Him? Or are you just showing up to church, living a good life, because that’s what is expected of you? God is waiting for you, he desires you; do you desire Christ? Does your life reflect that?

Questions for discussion:
Ask the previously mentioned questions.

What does it look like to desire Christ? How can you tell if someone desires to know Christ?

How can you strengthen your desire to imitate Christ>? (Not how can you better imitate Christ, but how can you strengthen your desire?)

Thursday, October 1, 2009

This Week #3-4

This week Gregg continued out DUSTY series speaking on the importance of Unity with other believers. Here are some questions to discuss with your kids:

What does “unity” mean to you?
Why do Christians need to be united?
How can we encourage unity in Off Road?
How can you share the love of Christ?

Monday, September 21, 2009

This Week #3-3

This week in OFF ROAD we started our new series discussing what the goal of OFF ROAD is all about. Our purpose statement is, “We exist to have a lifelong Devotion to God, Unified with other believers, Strengthening our desire to imitate Christ, while telling others the Truth of who he is and Yearning to be covered in the dust of the master.” We want to help student s get D.U.S.T.Y. This week we focused on what it means to have a lifelong devotion to God. We looked at 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 where Paul is speaking on running the good race so as not to be disqualified.

I taught the whole lesson while running on a treadmill. Throughout the lesson people would come up and try to distract me from running the good race, but I pressed on, making the points that to run the good race we need discipline (even when it is hard we need to give God the time he deserves to build out relationship with him), direction (we need to know where we are going, in each decision we make we need to ask, “Is this taking me away from God or towards him, and we need determination (no matter how hard life gets, how tough people around you make it to be a Christian we must be determined to continue to run for God.) If we do this the prize that Jesus offers is worth more than anything this life could put us through.

Questions for discussion:

How are you disciplining yourself to follow Christ?
Would you say that you are heading toward Christ, away from Christ, or not moving at all? Why?
What is the toughest part about being a Christian? Why is that tough? Is there anything in this world that could rip you away from your faith (or gradually pull)?
What prize does God offer in this life, if we follow him? What prize does God offer in when we die?
On a scale of 1-10 how would you say you are running the race for God (10= full speed, totally living for him/ 1=walking the other way) Do you want to improve that number? How might you improve?

Monday, September 14, 2009

This Week #3-2

This week in OFF ROAD was a little bit different as we had our parent meeting/support group ;) on Saturday night. It was a great time . Please try to make it to the next meetings we have as they are important to both know what is going on, build community and share parenting advice/ experience.

On Sunday we continued our series “Loneliness is not a word in God’s dictionary,” looking more specifically at what we can count on in our small groups. It is our goal in OFF ROAD to provide 4 things in every small group- Meaningful-God centered conversations, Accountability, Prayer and Scripture (MAPS) Each one of these aspects is crucial to the Christian journey. As we so often discuss worldly things we tend to put God in the back of our minds, only to be discussed at church. We want that type of discussion happening more often and that is why it is encouraged in small groups. TO be accountable to someone else that can encourage you to do the right thing and help you through the tough times is so needed and we want to model and encourage students to have an active daily conversation with God through prayer and scripture reading.

Please make sure that your child sings up for a small group. The kickoff is this Wednesday (EVERYONE IS MEETING AT THE CHURCH THIS WEEK) from 6:45- 8:15.

Questions to discuss:
Why is it important to have a group of Christian friends?
Why is it important to have you main group of friends be believers?
How can we pray so that it is more of a conversation than a “talking at” God?
How can we help you be more involved in reading the bible?

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

This Week #3-1

Welcome back to OFF Road as we kick off our 09-10 school year. I hope the transition to the next grade level has been easy on your family and that you are excited to allow God to work in your and your child’s life this year!!!
This week in OFF ROAD we started a 2 part series title “Loneliness is not a word in God’s dictionary.” This series focuses on the important of small groups and how God has created us for community with other believers. We looked at a few verses that I would encourage you to read with your child this week (1John 3:18-20; Matt 12:46-50; 1Peter 3:8; Galatians3:26-29) Each of these verses give us expectation for each other that give us a good look into what authentic community should look like. We used these verses to contrast what a big group setting can give compared to a small group setting. Here are the contrasts I see:

Big group= know a little, loved surface level, listening, Head knowledge, Independent
Small group= KNOWN, LOVED deeply, discussing, Heart knowledge, Dependence
Please have your child sign up , or sign your child up for small groups so they can be known and loved so that they can know and love God.
Questions for to discuss with your child:

What does it mean to have someone really know you?

Do you have anyone in your life (besides family) who really knows you?

What does it mean to have someone that really loves you?

Do you have someone in your life (besides family) who really knows you?

Where can you find someone who could know and love you truly?

What does it take for someone to really know you and truly love you?

Monday, August 24, 2009

This Week # 2-45

This Week #2-45

We ended our “Heroes” series and our summer with the focus of what we are all about- Jesus. We looked at the awesome example He set in his life, noting what it looks like to be a true hero, something we are all called to be. Jesus loved and loves us tremendously and that loved showed in two huge ways. First, Jesus was humble. We looked at the verses that describe Jesus being betrayed and I talked about how if it were me I would have never let Judas kiss me (in fact I would have probably punched his lights out) and I would have surely not healed the guys ear that got looped of, BUT Jesus, who was going to be killed for being perfect, humbled himself and, not only accepted Judas’ kiss, healed the guys ears, but ended up dying for both of them- WOW!!! Jesus also showed his love through service. Again, Jesus went to the cross enduring pain we couldn’t even imagine all to serve God and to serve us- WOW!!!! The challenge of all this was to make this part of daily prayers – “God give me your eyes, open my eyes to the things unseen and break my heart for what breaks yours.” In doing this and honestly seeking it we will hopefully start seeing the world the way Jesus does and then it will be easier to love others through humility and service, the way we are called to.

Questions:

Do you desire to love others because Christ first loved you? What does this look like?

How do you think you would treat others different if you saw the world through Jesus’ eyes?

What can you do to make that difference in your life (treating the world the way Jesus would)?

As you return to school, how do you want to love others at school the way Christ loved you?

What is harder for you Humility or Service? Why? How can you get better at both of these? (Hint-practice)

Sunday, August 9, 2009

This Week # 2-43

This week in OFF road we were able to look at a few more heroes of the bible. This time the heroes were a little bit more obscure than the big names of David, Moses and Paul. These three heroes were judges of tribes of Israel, but all ended up delivering Israel from the hands of oppressors. The three heroes and their super powers are listed below. If you have a chance to read about Look up Judges 3 and 4, pretty fascinating.
Ehud
Super power- left- handedness
Shamgar
Superpower- a stick with a needle on the end
Deborah
Super power- trust & an ear

Questions for this week:
What is unique about you? How can you use that as your superpower?
What things, big or small, has God given you that can be used to do great things for His glory?
Do you really trust God? If so, are you listening?

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

This Week # 2-42

This week in OFF ROAD we had the privilege of having Paul Slayton speak to us. Paul was one of my Jr. High leaders when I was a young’n and he is an awesome guy. Paul shared so ridiculous stories that were totally crazy and not true about me growing up ;) which is better than sharing the ridiculous stories that are true about me. He then told us a stomach twisting story of an incident that happened to him a few weeks ago. The story involved a little girl who had her finger pulled off, where just the bone was showing. This happened at a mall and he was a witness to it. Now Paul, being a teacher and a formed boy scout is trained in first aid, and when it happened he knew the right thing to do, but stood there and watched. Eventually he stepped forward and helped out. The point was this;

James 1:22- Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says…

See our calling is not to have head knowledge that does nothing, but knowledge that leads to action. In our school many people are in the same situation as that little girl, probably not physically, but emotionally and spiritually. The challenge was- Will you be one that knows what the right thing to do is but stands there, or will you see the people in your school and, with the knowledge gained at church, love like Christ, act like Christ, and reach out like Christ?

Questions for this week:
As you go back to school what are some ways you can take what you have learned at church and put them into practice at school?

Who are some people you know that are made fun of that you know you should stick up for? Will you stick up for them this year?

Are you one who typically stands around not doing anything about the hurting people around you or are you one who sees the needs of others and acts on that? How can you do that better now?

Sunday, July 26, 2009

This Week # 2-41

This week in OFF ROAD we were able to look at more pictures of the missions trip to Belize and have a couple of the 8th (now 9th) graders that went share their stories, highlights and tell how God has changed their life. Two things that the students shared as highlights were playing with the kids and experiencing the Belize culture. The students shared that this was a life changing trip and that they have a bigger appreciation for the blessing they have here and that serving God all out is fun! My encouragement to the students is summarized in 1 Tim 4:12- “Don’t not let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set and example for others.” Missions work isn’t just for adults, it is for everyone. The students that went on this trip never thought that they would go to Belize on a mission’s trip in Junior High. Most of them were pretty scared about going, but they did and God transformed their lives!!!! Each student will have the opportunity to go on a mission’s trip; don’t let it pass you up. And also be very aware that your mission field is all around you, you don’t have to go to Belize to be a missionary, be a missionary in your schools, neighborhood and workplace.

Questions to ask your kids:
If you could go anywhere on a missions trip where would it be and why?
Look up a third world country on the internet and look at some of the health and income facts. Spend time as a family praying for that country.
How can you be a missionary here where you live?
What would it look like to be a missionary here? Did you know that you are called to be one wherever you are?

ANNOUNCMENTS
POOL PARTY TUESDAY 6-8 $5 RSVP TO DREW@WESTGATECHURCH.ORG by TUESDAY AT 1:30
Location:
7/28 - Community Pool-Parquet Ct., 95124. I don't know if it has a #, but once you drive down Parquet ct. you run right into its parking lot!


ALSO, for the next 2 weeks OFF ROAD is partnering up with churches around the south bay to raise food for Second Harvest Food Bank. We want to help the less fortunate, especially in such tough economic times. WE NEED TO FILL 2 Barrels full of food. Please send have your child bring a TON of canned food to the weekend services to help us in our effort.

Monday, July 20, 2009

This Week # 2-40

This Week in OFF ROAD we spent time looking at pictures from the 8th grade missions trip. I was able to share with the students a brief overview of what we did, how we served some interesting facts and hopefully in all of this, instill a passion and interest in participating in the 8th grade trip when their time comes. For those of you that are parents of 8th graders please start to pray about and consider allowing your child to go on the 8th grade trip. Things are already in motions to return to the same community and serve them again next year. Mission trips are such an amazing opportunity to open our eyes to the needs of the world around us as well as help inspire us to serve God as missionaries not just overseas but her at home as well. For me the time in Belize was awesome and it was amazing to see the 8th graders transition from being lead to being leaders!!!! Praise God for what he did and what he continues to do.


Monday, June 8, 2009

This Week # 2-38

WELCOME 6th graders!!!! This week in OFF ROAD the former 5th graders moved up into OFF ROAD so we used this time to really re-focus ourselves, and to establish what OFF ROAD is all about. I talked through Matthew 4:18- 22, the calling of the first disciples. In these verses Jesus walks up to a couple of people who were fishing and says to them, “come follow me,” and immediately they leave everything and follow Jesus. Pretty crazy when you don’t know the background, but when you look deeper you realize that who they say Jesus as. Jesus was a rabbi, someone whom these disciple (who, by the way, were about the age of a jr. higher) wanted to be like. Unfortunately somewhere in the disciple’s Biblical training they were told they were not good enough, that no rabbi would want them to follow Him. Then Jesus comes along, and not only accepts them, but asks them to join Him!!! Jesus is the same way with us. We don’t have to be perfect, or know all the bible. The standard God sets for us is- Are you willing to follow me? We need to be ready to do that, leaving everything behind.

Questions:

What are you going to make OFF ROAD all about? Is it all about friends and hanging out, games, and fun? Or is it all about growing closer to Jesus and following Him?

Are you willing to give God your all? What does that look like? What is keeping you from living every second for God?

How can I help you, as your parent, focus on God and grow closer to Him?

Monday, June 1, 2009

This Week # 2-37

This week was and emotional week as we bid farewell to our 8th graders. The talk was geared to them, but was for everyone. As a sending off we looked at the example Jesus set in washing his disciple’s feet. Jesus humbled himself in service to show us how to live for Him. We must realize no matter where we are in life that we and everyone around us come to Jesus with dirty feet. We are no better than anyone else and we all need forgiveness. In washing His disciples feet Jesus also gives us a tangible example of something we can do every day to live for Him- humble ourselves to those around us and serve them. I ended the talk letting the 8th graders know how much I and the leaders love them and how much we desire for them to continue to follow Christ all their life. We hope that they can look at our lives and say, “I want to live like those leaders, those leaders lived for Christ.” We hope their time in OFF ROAD was fun, enjoyable, enriching, but most of all, above everything else we hope that they have grown more in love with God, and have set a firm foundation in him, a foundation that will not crumble.

Questions for your kids:

What are some ways that you can humble yourself to those around you and serve them?

What group of people do you find it hard to serve? Why?

What group of people do you find easy to serve? Why?

How can you start serving others (both hard and easy) on a more consistent basis?

What qualities do you see in the OFF ROAD leaders that you want to copy?

Do you feel like you are drawing closer to God, further away, or staying the same? Why?

ANNOUNCEMENTS

-OFF ROAD SUMMER KICK OFFFAMILY BBQ- THIS SUNDAY!!!!! 12:30- 3:00 . Please RSVP to drew@westgatechurch.org , and bring a side to share. Cost is only $5/ person. INVITE FRIEND AND FRIEND’S FAMILY. (Giant slip and slide- bring your bathing suit, jousting, and a dunk tank!!!!!!!!!!!)

Sunday, May 17, 2009

This Week # 2-36

God invented sex and it is a GREAT thing… If it is in the context in which He created it to be.
-Genesis 2:21-25
-Sex gets complicated when sin enters the picture
-When not done in the context in which it was meant to be sex becomes like using an 56’’ flat panel tv (awesome thing) for rowing a boat (not what it is meant for, and is going to end up hurting you). It doesn’t make sense.
-Genesis 3:6-11
TRAPS the world tries to get you to buy in on.
-Traps look good, or it wouldn’t be a trap.
1 Peter 5:8-9

Trap 1- To win a guys attention I must use my body.
-Gestalt-> your mind will add unfinished stuff
-Guys brains especially finish the picture with girls.
-Application: Girls-> the clothes you wear/ Guys-> the way you look at girls

Trap 2 - Sometimes we tell ourselves that we can expose ourselves to pornography or R-rated material and it is no big deal
- S.I. swimsuit edition, R rated movies, Pg -13 movies, Maxim, Macys catalogue all are unhealthy to view even though->
-World says it is no big deal, friends will say it too.
-What is that doing to your mind
Mark 12:30
Application- This stuff gets your mind going where it shouldn’t, like a drug, creates dependence-> you want more and more. Is an addiction that ruins relationships. Not real-> unreasonable expectations

Trap 3- Having a loose definition of “sex” so we can push the boundaries
-How close can I put my hand to the fire without really burning it? Stupid questions, but we do the same with intimacy.
-What is your future spouse doing? What would you want someone doing to your future spouse?
1 Corinthians 6:19-20
-What is the safe zone?

-I think the safest zone is group dating/public dating… never be left alone in a room where no one else is!!!!!

-And remember you are not ready to date until you’re ready to get married. Dating is to find your wife/husband. When you date and you are not ready to get married the reason for dating becomes much different, worldly and self satisfying.

Saturday, May 9, 2009

This Week # 2-35

This Week in OFF ROAD we began our 2 part series “G.I. Barbie- guys, girls and relationship” I took the students through God’s design for all relationships. The three main points were:


1.We were all created in God’s image.(Gen. 1:27) So we’re are all unique, special and loved in God’s eyes, and if we want to be like God we must understand the uniqueness and love God has for everyone. This is foundational to our understanding or relationships with everyone, including people of the opposite sex.


2. We were created for relationships. (Gen 2:18-23) God made us to be in relationship with others, and he specifically made men and women to be “just right for each other.” Because God designed relationships we can look to Him for guidance in relationship (i.e. the trinity, unity of believers, Jesus’ disciples) Students need to understand that God’s original design was to be in full relationship with Him, and that needs to be our focus.


3. Our #1 priority should be God. (1 Corin. 7:32-35) God’s designing of a man and a woman might get some Jr. Highers excited with the belief that God wants us to have boyfriends are girlfriends, but as Paul points out in Corinthians, our #1 priority should not be the opposite sex, but God. Until our focus is on Him, we are not ready to focus on getting into a dating relationship.


From my experience and from what the bible says; get right with God, focus on Him and make him relationship priority #1 and if you still desire a more series relationship with the opposite sex then He might just allow that to happen.


***just a side note. I believe that dating is to help find out who you are compatible with for marriage; therefore if you aren’t at a point in your life to get married, you aren’t ready to date. Motivations for dating become very ‘worldly’ if you date when you aren’t seeking a spouse.


I would encourage all parents to set up expectations for dating/ relationships now. It is better to talk things over with your kids and set rules that you can agree upon beforehand rather than trying to deal with it when it comes up.

Monday, May 4, 2009

This Week # 2-34

This week in OFF ROAD we had Ryan Ingram finish our “Bling” series. He started with some great stories about how foolish he was as a kid and how if we don’t learn how to use our money the way God asks us to then we will end up doing foolish things too. The biggest point that he made was that OUR STUFF IS SPIRITUAL. What we buy and how we spend our money is spiritual. It says in Matt 6:21, “Where your treasure is, there your heart is.” We must look at our stuff and realize that it is spiritual and if we are consumed with our stuff than our treasure is really here on earth. Later on Matthew says, “No one can serve two Masters…You cannot serve both God and money. We have to realize this and we need to know this sooner than later so we don’t do foolish things with our stuff, and so we can glorify God in all aspects of our life.

One suggestion Ryan made was to have 3 jars: Spending, Saving, And Giving. When your child gets any money the first 10% goes to giving, second 10% to savings and 80% to spend. Now, of course they can increase giving and saving, but always at least 10% in each of those. This we start helping them learn money management and good giving habits, as we want Jr. Higher to start using their money in the way God intended them to.

Questions: Are your spending habits modeling good and Godly spending habits for your children?

Are your children part of your giving? If not I would encourage you to let them participate in your giving, explain why you do it and encourage them to add the family giving.

As your child comes to OFF ROAD, we take a offering for 2 needy kids, one in Ghana, one in Colombia, encourage them to start making giving part of their regular act of worship.

Monday, April 27, 2009

This Week # 2-33

We continued our “Bling” series in OFF ROAD this week as Alan spoke to us on tithing. He shared with us a few awesome stories about his decisions to give what he felt God called him to, leaving his wants and desires behind, and in that, how God has blessed those decisions. He read the verse 2 Corinthians 9:6-9

6Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. 7Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

Here is the thing, tithing is not giving God %10 it is getting to keep and steward %90. All of it is God’s and he asks us to give %10 back to him. With the other %90 we are responsible to us it for his glory “Whoever sows sparingly will rep sparingly.” We should give out of love and devotion to God and when we do that God will bless it and we will be storing up our treasures in heaven, treasures so much greater than any money can buy here on earth.

Parents sit down with your kids and make a list of all the things that they have bought in the last 3 months. Ask them how much money have they given back to God, and how much of the stuff that they have bought has been used for God’s glory.

OFF ROAD will be doing a used clothes drive for needy kids in our community. During May please bring in any clothes that your family no longer wears that is still in decent to good condition.(Please no used socks or underwear). You could also go shopping for new clothes for needy kids and donate that too. Let’s start helping our kids have a heart of compassion not consumerism.

ANNOUNCMENTS

1.This Wednesday= Small groups

2.This Thursday 7-9= Parent Recharge $5

3. This Friday= Girls scavenger hunt @ valley Fair Mall. 7-9. Meet in front of Cinnabon in the food court no later than 7:00

4. LMTO (Laugh my tookish off) Comedy sports night= Sat May 16th After the service. FRIENDS AND FAMILY WELCOME. Only $10. Our goal is to get 200 students + family members. Tickets available now. Please invite friends and be there.

5. 8th Grade girls getaway= Friday, May 15-16. $30 Last day to sign up is MAY 3rd. Contact Marilyn Doyle (marilyn@westgatechurch.org )

6. 8th Grade guys hike= Friday May 22-24. $25 email drew@westgatechurch.org

7. Summer camp spots still available, only $100 sign up today (June 20-23

Sunday, April 19, 2009

This Week # 2-33

This Week in OFF ROAD we started a new series called “Bling.” We will be looking at how to use money the way God asks us. This week we started the series by looking at whether we are consumers or compassionate. We looked at the parable of the rich fool found in Luke 12, where Jesus tells the man that storing up earthly possessions is foolishness. The charge here is that we should be eternal minded in everything we do, especially our use of money. Are we spend money for eternal purposes or just to satisfy our next craving? But what does that really mean. We then looked at 1 John 3:16-18. These verses stat that we should love others the way Jesus loved us (he gave us everything, his all) so giving our money to the needy, and to God is nothing compared to what Christ did for us. Verse 17 is the most convicting part for me, “If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother in need but shows no compassion, how can God’s love be in that person?” I would encourage you to go through your possession with your child and:

-Evaluate what you have- Look at your stuff and ask, “Is this being used for God’s glory/ to further His kingdom?”
-Pray and ask God what he wants you to sell to give those in need the money
-Listen- when he answers don’t plug your ears, but listen.
-Act- Before the draw of more stuff entangles you act on the promptings of God.

Have a heart of compassion to those in need and not a heart of consumerism of what you want.

Monday, April 6, 2009

This Week # 2-32

This Week in OFF ROAD we finished our series “Under Pressure,” by looking at what the bible says about our self image. We used 1 Samuel 16:7 and 1 Peter 3:3-5 to help us realize that the most important thing about who we are is not what we look like, but about our love for Christ and others. The three steps I encouraged students to take in improving their thoughts about themselves are:

1. Stop judging others. Just as God looks on the inside we need to do the same. We need to stop judging other’s appearance because that is not Godly and the more we judge others the more we care about what others think of us.

2. Surround yourself with good character- with people who care more about you than what you wear, how good you are at sports, what music you listen to etc. I asked students to think of people they know that care about them and people they know that care about these superficial things, and suggested that they spend most of their time with people who really care about them.

3. Most importantly- find your identity in God. God is crazy about each one of us, but we quickly forget about his love for us as we focus on what others think.

At the end of the lesson I had students open up to psalm 139 and write a personal ad about themselves the way God views them. I asked students to put this by their bed so that whenever they would be continually reminded of God’s view of them so they could find their self image in Him.

Questions:

Who do you know that cares more about you than what you wear, how you look etc?

Do you find yourself judging others at school for what they look like? Why?

Who is someone in your life that might not look cool, but is very cool (according to God’s standard)? What makes them cool?

What do you think God thinks of you?

Announcements

Hunt- We need Jr. high volunteers for our HUNT craft table at Bower’s park in Santa Clara THIS SATURDAY. Please be there at 12:30 and stay until 3:00. Let me know if you can make it.

No OFF ROAD next weekend (EASTER)- Jr. high is trying to get a big crew to sit together during the 6:00 service on Saturday try to make it to this service if you can.

Guys Night Out- April 17th @ the gym ($2), 7-10

Girls chick flick night- April 17 @ the Tomasello’s (Free) 8:30-10:30 (406 Union Ave Unit E Campbell)

Monday, March 30, 2009

This Week # 2-31

This Week in OFF ROAD we looked at biblical ways of handling Peer Pressure. Last week was a time of small group discussion of what our Junior Highers are going through, what pressures they face so that this week I could address their specific needs. We looked at a number of verses, and broke it down to 3 main ideas, with the hope that whenever they are facing bad peer pressure they can remember the weird acronym, “SLR”

-Surround yourself with good character -1 Corinthians 15:33-34/ Galatians 2:11 PARENT QUESTIONS= (Are your most important friend’s people who positively influence you? People who keep you accountable to what is right? Will call you out when doing something wrong? Where can you find those friends?)

-Look to the future – Luke 12:35-40 PARENT QUESTIONS= (Are you putting yourself in situations that you know aren’t good? What can you do to avoid those situations ahead of time? What people/situations do you need to avoid?)

-Run – Genesis 39:7-12 PARENT QUESTIONS=(When you get in a situation with peer pressure do you stick around and try not to participate, or do you tend to leave? When have you run from a peer pressure situation? Is it easy or hard for you to get out of a situation? Are you ready to run?)

Parents- not just this week, but continually ask your children about the peer pressure situations they face. Talk to them about how to handle it, and pray with them for strength to do what is right.

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

This Week # 2-30

This Week we broke the students up into grade and gender and asked them these questions (I would encourage you to look through these questions and spend time talking with your child about them as well):

What is peer pressure?

Can there be good peer pressure?

What kind of negative pressure do you see around you?

What are a few pressures that you see actually influencing people around you?

Why do you think those pressures are so influential?

What kind of negative pressures do you face? (really challenge them beyond the big stuff i.e. drugs and stealing are good to talk about, but most kids face cheating, making fun of others, not sharing their faith, lying, not telling all the truth, not loving others, talking behind others backs etc. on a daily basis)

Which pressures are easy to ignore? Why?

Which pressures are hard to ignore? Why?

How do you respond to those pressures?

Do you know how to handle negative peer pressure? How?

Monday, March 16, 2009

This Week # 2-29

This Week we started a new series, “Under Pressure.” In this series we will be looking at how we need to react to the pressures of this world, and the precedence that Jesus set. This week I spoke on our mandate from Christ to love and welcome others. We read through the story of the woman who cam and washed Jesus’ feet and how she was on the outside looking in, and Jesus welcomed her, accepted her and loved her (Luke: 36-48). We want to make OFF ROAD a place where people feel that loved and it is up to everyone to help make people feel loved.

Here are a few suggestions I gave to your kids while interacting with newcomers at church, school and their neighborhood.

Don’t be clique-e- Accepting and welcoming others isn’t about leaving your friends behind, it is about bringing them along to welcome others.

Say, “Hello,” and ask questions- “What school do you go to?” “What is your favorite class?” “Least Favorite?” “Why?” and talk back to them.

Remember Jesus say we are the light of the world. Let’s let our light shine with how welcoming and loving we are.

Questions to ask your child:

Do you find it easy or hard to talk to newcomers? Why?

Tell me a story about a time in your life when you felt like you were on the outside looking in.

How did that make you feel?

How do you think people who come to OFF ROAD for the first time or on the “outside “at school feel?

What can you do to help them feel welcomed and loved?

Make a list with your child of people they would like to bring to church and start praying for them.

Monday, March 2, 2009

This Week # 2- 28

This week in OFF ROAD I spoke on forgiveness, and one of our 8th graders, Laurel, shared her story, of how forgiveness has allowed her to become a new person!!!

The main verse we read was Matthew 18:21-35

-Peter asks Jesus how many times he should forgive someone. After Jesus responds to Peter with a number much larger than Peter expected, Jesus tell a parable. What Jesus does in the parable is he changes Peter’s perspective. To just give him a number would not change Peters heart, but with the new perspective he can realize the forgiveness he has received and forgive others.

-In the same way our perspective should change. If we believe in Christ we are a new creation, and a new creation equals a new perspective.

- The new perspective is 2 fold, summed up in Colossians 3:31- “Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must for give others.”

First, forgiveness is you’re responsibility. We must choose to forgive others because Christ forgave us. Even when people don’t want forgiveness we must offer it to them as Christ did the same for us.

Second, when we are in conflict with others we must keep in mind the forgiveness that God has granted us, and with that knowledge, realize that any forgiveness we give anyone else is nothing compared to the forgiveness givens us. When we realize that, it changes our perspective and allows us to more quickly and fully forgive others.

QUESTIONS:

What can you do, when you don’t want to forgive others, to remind yourself how God has forgiven you?

Who in your life do you find hard to forgive?

Do you think it is easy for you to forgive others or hard?

What has God done in your life to allow you to forgive?

What does it mean to you that God has forgiven you?

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Parent Meeting Notes

-Vision of OFF ROAD (DUSTY & GROWTH)- Our the drive behind everything we do it to help create DUSTY students- You can find out what this means on the Church website under student ministries- OFF ROAD. We also would like to grow our group to 200 by September of this year. We need your help as parents to get your children inviting friends.

-Need for leaders= please pray and look for- With the growth that has already happened and the growth we trust will happen we desperately need leaders. Please be on the look out fo people you would think would make great Jr. High leaders and personally invite them to check out OFF ROAD and participate in leadership. The personal invitation is much more effective than a blanket statement to the congregation.

-Importance of Drive groups= Please get your kids to small groups. As our group gets bigger individual connection get harder. Small group allows for closer relationships and a deeper look into God’s word. It is very important, so please make it a priority.

-Consistency on weekends= I want to encourage you to have your child be consistent on weekends as often times we do series and to come once a month or here and there makes it harder for them to follow along.

-NO OFF ROAD= Go to service- I didn’t really get to talk about this, but I wanted to let you all know that when we don’t have OFF ROAD, that is not a bad thing. In fact I proposed, and was approved to take one weekend off every month. The goal behind this is for the students to go to main service to feel a larger church integration. I would encourage you to go to the main service with your child at this time, letting them know they are part of Westgate, not just OFF ROAD.

-Move to Saturday- Due to the overwhelming amount of people who attend the 11:00 service the church needs to move people out of the 11:00 main service for guests. One thing that the church is considering is eliminating Jr. High during that time, taking people off that service time as Jr. high will only be offered Sat night. This is an idea, but I want to encourage you to move to Sat night if at all possible so this doesn’t have to happen

- (SURVEY)- We talked over the following things that will also be showing up at your house in the form of a survey for you and your child to fill out. PLEASE take the time to give feedback on the survey and mail it back (postage is already paid for)

-OFF ROAD blog- how’s it working, do you use it, do you like it, is it helpful?

-This Week & Announcements- Now on blog, do you prefer on blog or would you like me to email you them every week?

-Online Calendar- On the blog, does this work for you? Can you make it work for you? If I sent home a calendar once every other month would it make a significant difference?

-Issues you want covered in Junior High

-What about OFF ROAD does your child enjoy?

-What do you think would get your kids more interested… wanting to bring friends?

Logistical Stuff

-Parents willing to Drive/ Parents with Trailers

-Service team/ Events Team

-Summer camp dates (June 20-23)

-Parents of 8th graders- DE/ Missions trip (June 26- July 2)

**Parents had a strong desire to do this on a quarterly basis, so we will have meetings/ parent get togethers more often.

Monday, February 16, 2009

This Week # 2-27

This Week in OFF ROAD we finished our series, “Becoming who you are,” by taking a test to try and help us discover our spiritual gifts. The test and information can be found on this website: www.layministry.com . I would highly recommend that you go to this website and take the test as well, if you don’t already know your spiritual gift. I also want you to make sure that your child finishes the test and talk to them about what the test reveals.

A couple of things that need to be covered, which we covered in OFF ROAD are these:

This test is not the final answer to what your spiritual gift is. It is there to help guide you to what your gift might be. Once you have an idea you need to do two very important things (more important than the test). First you need to pray about it. Ask God to reveal himself through the using of those gifts. Ask for affirmation in those gifts. Ask for guidance in you spiritual gifts. The other thing you must do is put your spiritual gifts to work. To find out your spiritual gift and then do nothing with it reveals nothing, and it means you are not doing what God has equipped you to do. If you find that the things that the test said were you spiritual gifts empower you and you found God working through you in those areas then that is a good confirmation of those gifts. SO use your gift.

The other thing that we have to remember with these gifts is that we can only use them when we are empowered by the Holy Spirit. They are gifts, given to us to be used for God’s glory. If we try to use them on our own, without the Holy Spirit and for our own glory God will not reveal himself through them. Your spiritual gift is for God’s glory and when you use it to bring him glory you will find yourself really becoming who you are, living the greatest life available, a life for God.

Please make sure that you and your child have taken the test and then discuss what your spiritual gifts are/ might be with each other. Talk about how you can use those gifts to serve God.

(I told the students to email me with their top 2 spiritual gifts so remind them to do that as well)

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

This Week # 2-26

This week in OFF ROAD we had the privilege of having Jon Talbert continue our, “Becoming who you are,” series as he walked us through the story of Gideon. Now if you don’t know this story let me give you a little background because it is pretty crazy (as are a lot of old testament stories). Gideon’s story can be found in the book of Judges.

Gideon was a weakling, he was the weakest of the weak. The Bible says that he came from the weakest tribe from the weakest clan from the weakest family. This guy was the one you wouldn’t want to choose for any kind of fight, but God did. God told Gideon that it was time to bet the bad guys (the Midianites) and that He was going to accomplish this through Gideon. Gideon trusted God even though he only had 32,000 and the Midianites had 135,000. Yet, even though the Israelites were way out numbered God decided, through some really weird ways, to whittle Gideons army down to only 300. Yeah, 300 verses 135,000. Not only that when it came time to battle God equipped them with a horn, a clay jar and a torch- that’s it. In the end the 300 men surrounded the Midianite camp at night, all blew their horns, threw down their jars and help up their torches. This created so much commotion that the Midianites, believing that the Israelites were attacking them and where in their camp, drew their swords and started killing each other (thinking that each other were the others).

Gideon’s story of being way out numbered and still trusting in God and following Him shows us that we need to:

1. Walk in confidence because God is there (Look at Gideon. He had an impossible task, but he walked in confidence because he knew nothing was impossible with God.)
2. We need to walk in humility because God is doing the work. (God whittled down Gideon’s army so that everyone would know that it was God who won the war. When God works through us we need to be humble and give credit where credit is due.) 1 Corinthians 1:27- “God uses the foolish things of this world to shame the wise. God chose the weak things to shame the strong”
3. We need to know we are empowered by God. (Gideon, the weakest of the weak was used to destroy an entire army. If God can empower the weakest of the weak he can empower you too.)

Ask your children these questions this week:
Is it easy or hard for you to put your confidence with God? Why or why not? What does that look like?
Has there ever been a time were you have seen God work through you? What was that like?
When do you feel you need God the most? When do you rely on Him the most?
What would you like God to empower you to do?

Monday, February 2, 2009

This Week # 2-25


This week in OFF ROAD we continued our series titled, “Becoming Who You Are,” as we looked at the ways the world tries to steal our identity. In order to see the ways the world is trying to accomplish this task we looked into the book of Ecclesiastes. This book is written by Solomon, the wisest and richest of all kings. This guy was no ordinary king, he was basically a genius with an overwhelming amount of money (the Bible says that Solomon received about 25 tons of gold each year, not including money from taxes). During his reign Solomon wrote 3 books (including Ecclesiastes) which are now part of the Bible. The first part of 1st Kings describes Solomon’s ascension to the throne and his rule. We find out in this book that even though he was wise he ended up looking for his identity in the things of this world. Solomon was a man who had everything, I MEAN EVERYTHING, at his beck and call, and he used this power to use all sorts of means to find meaning. After all this we can read his conclusions in the book of Ecclesiastes.

Ecclesiastes 1:1-11 lays out Solomon’s thesis statement for the book. The point he makes in these verses, which continue throughout the book is this- “Everything under the sun is meaningless.” In other words, if we try to find our identity in the things of this world it will be a huge waste of time- Remember this is coming from a guy who basically tried everything under the sun. As he moves on to, and through chapter 2, he mentions three things this world offers.

The first place that many of us find our identity in is pleasure. We live for whatever brings us pleasure. For some of us this is video games, some of us it is books, some sports, and some just the weekend. We are not really present in our lives because we are always looking for something else that gives us our identity. In Ecclesiastes 2:1-3 we see that Solomon was also a pleasure seeker, but found that it was meaningless. Are you a pleasure seeker?

The second thing that many of us find our identity in is stuff or money. We always want something, want more. We are envious of what our friends have and believe that if we could only have whatever is hot or the new thing then we would be happy. If we fall into this trap we seek more out of our stuff and often times don’t realize that it never totally satisfies- our satisfaction only last a short time. Solomon states that he too tried to find his identity in that but that it was meaningless (Ec. 2:4-11). Are you a stuff/ money seeker?

Lastly, many of us try to find our identity in knowledge or wisdom. If you tend to live for the approval of others, are consumed by getting good grades or looking smart, or if you like to show off you are probably a wisdom and knowledge seeker. Again, Solomon, the wisest one states, “Yet I saw the wise and the foolish share the same fate. They both die… Everything under the sun is meaningless” Ec. 2:12-17.

Now if it ended there it would be quite a depressing message, but in the end Solomon says “GET OVER THE SUN, this is where life is hidden.” The truth is that all that other stuff will not give you life, will not complete your identity and will only get you more lost if that is where you look to find yourself because “everything under the sun is meaningless.” Instead we need to get over the sun and focus on God, finding our identity in Him. If we do this, then we will be able to truly become who we were meant to be.

Parents ask yourself and your child these questions this week:
Which type of seeker do you tend to be?
How does that show itself in your life?
Why do you think you tend to be that kind of seeker?
How can you get over the sun, and not focus on what is under the sun?
What can I/we do to help you not be consumed by seeking that?

Monday, January 26, 2009

This Week # 2- 24

As you know we have been going through a series titled, “Becoming Who You Are.” This week we were going to look into what the world tells us we should be, but I decided to put that off until next week and address the post-camp reality that hits us when we get home. The lesson was titled; “Mountains High Valleys Low” and we looked at what the mountain top experience involves and how we bring that experience home.

Just to give you a little background this past weekend we went to winter camp. On Saturday night the speaker gave a raw description of the sacrifice Jesus made for us and the pouring out of love that he gave us. He walked the students through an experience that lead many to feel the Holy Spirit, recognize God’s love for them and draw closer to God. What I realized after was that both in this circumstance and in many camp experiences that I have had many students feel something, and are drawn to God, which is great, but they don’t really understand what it is they are feeling or why they might be feeling it. I believe that a lot of it has to do with a lack of understanding who the Holy Spirit is. I often talk about God and Jesus, but don’t talk about the Holy Spirit, whom Jesus says is better for us than Him!!! (Jn.16)I think that many students are drawn to decisions, recognition and emotions at camps because it is there that they leave distractions behind and can hear, sense and feel the Holy Spirit’s presence. If the students had a better understanding of the Holy Spirit I think that they would begin to realize that the Holy Spirit is not someone that is only on the mountain, and their feelings of being drawn to God can happen every day.

During the lesson I first review some things that the Holy Spirit is and is not. These include:

Is- God given, Communicator with God, In everyone who believes and has been baptized, Gives us power, Better for us than Jesus (After Jesus’ sacrifice)

Is Not- Someone who forces us to do things, Distant, Only there when we are emotional or feel Him, Only on the mountain.

The second point was that even though I think camps are great and mountain top experiences are wonderful there are some good and some bad to them, including:

Good: We get to feel and experience God in a big way. We can easily focus on His truth. We can use the experience to readjust our walk. We have an easier time hearing God/ the Holy Spirit.

Bad: The high doesn’t last and you wish that you could be at camp all the time. The emotional camp experience becomes our expectation of communication with God. We believe that the Holy Spirit is only there when we are emotional.

In the end the camp experience is great, and the good of them way outweigh the bad. A better understanding of the Holy Spirit, and God’s communication with us will help us take the mountain top experience into the valley. Here are some suggestions for making this happen.

First, we must daily give our lives to God. We often have mountain top experiences where we feel like we need to rededicate our lives to Him. Giving our lives to Christ is a daily activity, more often occurring when we are off the mountain.

Second we need to give ourselves the means to connect with the Holy Spirit. Some ways o doing this are through prayer, observing and appreciating the beauty God created all around us, silence and worship. Spend your day in connect to the Holy Spirit by observing one or more of these principles.

Lastly, when we get away we have an easier time connecting with the Holy Spirit. Just look at Jesus’ life. He got away; he took little time here and there to get away from everything so he could get with God. I challenged the students to do the same. Make a fort in their closet, get under the blankets of your bed, take a walk, climb up a tree, get away to spend time with God.

If we do these things we will have an easier time connecting with the Holy Spirit and realizing that he is there all the time, not just on the mountain.

Parents, encourage your kids to get some time away to hang out with God. (It will give you some piece and quiet to hang out with God as well)

Sunday, January 11, 2009

This Week # 2-23

This Week #2-23
Well welcome to 2009! It was good to be back into swing of things and be able to kick off our new series titled “Becoming Who You Are.” This three part series will be looking at what we were created to be, and who we actually are. We started this series by reading Genesis 1: 26-31 to discover what were are meant to be and Genesis 3:1-9 to discover what we are not meant to be.

Genesis 3:1-9 is the story of the fall of man, and within that story we get a good look at some things established by God to direct us to our meaning. As God creates the world he also creates choices and freedom within the ability to choose. In other words we are not meant to be restricted. We are allowed choices, and if we choice right we are given freedom. Within those choices are boundaries. Boundaries that keep us protected. In other words we are not meant to be disobedient and ashamed. So, God gives us choices and tries to protect us with boundaries. If we are obedient to the boundaries established, which leads us to making the correct choices then we are able to be what we are created to be…

Genesis 1:26-31 gives us a better look at what we were meant to be. These verses show that we were meant to be loving and loved. Many of us know that as Christians we are supposed to be loving towards others and God, be we forget that we are supposed to be love, and God needs to be our main source of that love. We also need to be just and justified. God asks us to rule over the earth wisely, and in that we need to allow God to justify us- this becomes even more important as man fell to sin. Lastly, we need to find our identity in God and when we do that we will feel complete. We are image bearers of God and when we are bearing God’s image then we are who we are supposed to be. The world offers many other answers to finding our identity, but none of that will complete us like imitating God. So as we learn and grow in Christ let’s not think about as a task, but as a chance to grow into what we are supposed to be.

Obedience to God is not about following rules that keep you from really living. It is about really living.
Are you an image bearer of God?
Parents, ask yourself this question and ask your children throughout the week what they have done at school to be an image bearer of God.

*There is NO OFF ROAD next week due to winter camp. We will be leaving for winter camp Friday at 1:00 so arrive at the church at 12:30.

OFF ROAD Calendar

Saturday Night Kickoff