Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Youth Ministry Overhaul

The next two Sunday nights will be pretty big when it comes to our youth ministry.

We will be having meetings to discuss our youth ministry as a whole.  Everything... and I mean EVERYTHING is on the table.  We'll be discussing all of our ministries, events, Bible studies, outreach, and communications.

This Sunday we'll focus on our Fall and Winter activities and ministries.

We want to do our best in growing our ministry to glorify God.  We may be changing certain aspects of our ministry so make sure you come out and share your opinion.  If you don't come out you may lose a ministry or event that you really want!

Here are just some things we will be talking about THIS Sunday...

1.  Afterschool Program
2.  Middle School/High School Ministries
3.  The Point
4.  Halloween events
5.  Reveal - Youth Revival
6.  Thanksgiving/Christmas events
7.  SHARP Groups
8.  New Year's Lock-In
9.  Outreach events

10.  Lighthouse Ministries

Saturday, July 28, 2012

Sunday's gameplan - July 29th

Everything is normal for Sunday except for our 6pm time.  Sunday School and DirtyFridge practice will be the same!

At 6pm we will be planning our outreach event for Southside Baptist Church and their VBS.  Even if you aren't able to attend the VBS event please help us with the planning.

Future Sunday night plans
August 5th - Youth Meeting about fall and winter
August 12th - Youth Meeting about Spring, Summer, Camps, and Mission Trips
August 19th - Orange Training
August 26th - Orange Training

Friday, July 27, 2012

Hillsong Concert Question

Here is a video of Hillsong's "Search My Heart".  This group is one of the biggest names in worship music today.  They have written hundreds of songs throughout spanning many decades.  Other songs you may know...
-  Take it all
-  None but Jesus
-  From the inside out
-  Mighty to save
-  Hosanna

They have a concert September 14th.  Tickets are $30 unless we order more than 10 and it drops to $25.

Please let me know if you are interested in attending this concert by clicking on the survey located to the right.
Only click if you are interested and ABLE to go.  We want to reserve tickets soon, and if we know if more than 10 are attending than we can lower the price!

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Outreach Next Week!

I wanted to let you all know that we have an awesome opportunity to reach the city of Covington next week.  We were recently invited to help Southside Baptist Church with their Vacation Bible School.  This church is in the heart of downtown Covington.  It has a place called the MAC which is a lot like our Lighthouse.

We know its short notice but if you are able to help out some of the days that would be awesome.

We will be leading Recreation Time with the kids.  We will be playing games with 3yr olds all the way to 6th graders.

The VBS is NEXT WEEK (July 30-August 3rd).  It goes from 6-8:30pm everyday.  We will provide transportation to Southside each day.

Our regular Wednesday service, The Point, will be replaced with helping Southside with their VBS.

We need to know how many people will be helping so please respond to this e-mail with your name, and which days you will be available to help work with this ministry.


If you need more info please don't hesitate to call/text - 8598668812, or e-mail me - Oakridge.youth@hotmail.com

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

3rd Attempt!

We are trying again tomorrow! (July 25th)

Field Day Ministry at Hartland Subdivision
5-8pm.

Meet at the park around 5pm.

See you there!

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Field Day Postponed

We've checked the various weather services and it doesn't look good for this evening.  We will go ahead and postpone the field day to next week.

The storms are supposed to roll in around 5pm, and on top of the storms there is also a heat advisory until close 8pm.

We will have a worship service in the Lighthouse at 7pm.  There is also a meal meeting at 6pm.

Field Day Rain Plans

Right now the forecast says that we are at risk for severe storms for tonight.

Be on the lookout for text messages and website posts for further info.

If it is storming severely we will have a worship service at the Lighthouse at 7pm.

Final word will be sent out by 3:30pm.

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Youth Camp Service

We will be having a youth camp service this Sunday morning.  We will be taking over the entire service and one of the things we'll be doing is special music.  Start thinking of the stories of when God was moving in your life.  We will be singing this song.

We will need everyone to meet during Sunday School in the Sanctuary this Sunday to go over everything.  I'll let your Sunday School teachers know what is going on.

Wear your camp shirts and nice pants.  Please try and wear khaki's but if you have none to wear then you can wear NICE jeans.  Do NOT wear pants with holes or are too tight.  Nobody should be wearing shorts.  If you wear something inappropriate you will have to stay out in the congregation.

Monday, July 16, 2012

Field Day Ministry - July 18th!

This Wednesday, July 18th, we will be having our field day ministry.

We will be meeting up in that park at the Hartland Subdivision (where the Brown's live).  Hartland is located next to the Independence Cemetery. It is near St. Cecilia Church, and down the road from the Independence Courthouse.

We'll be spending our time playing with neighborhood kids and then sharing a Bible study near the end.

We have 2 goals.
1.  Spread the gospel to a local neighborhood
2.  Invite them to church and let them know about our children's ministry.

The event will be from 6-8pmStudents working and helping out need to be here at 5pm.

Monday, July 9, 2012

I am Jonah

The kids are now at POI's (Point of Impact).  We have some icing cakes, doing crafts, tubing, kayaking, playing basketball, and zip lining.  We are about to have lake time where kids can climb inflatable icebergs, jump on water trampolines, slide down water ziplines, and fly off of the infamous blob. 

We have good news about the blob this year.  In years past the weight difference between the blobber and blobbee had to be 50 lbs or less.  This year they bumped up the weight difference to 100lbs.  If you have no idea what I'm talking about, it basically means that someone my size gets to jump onto an inflatable pillow with someone who weighs 100 lbs less than me on the other end.  This will catapult them off into the water and simply put, it... is...awesome!

Pray for our kids as they continue their study through Jonah.  We our blessed to have Rob Turner as our speaker.  He was our camp pastor last year, and as most of you know, spoke out our youth revival service last fall (REVEAL).  He is doing a great job at getting out of the way, and letting God move.

We will be presenting the gospel at each church group time.  It may sound like we are overdoing it, but when it comes to the Gospel, as Christians we should never get tired of hearing it.  The gospel is what keeps us going.  It's our lifeblood and without we would be nothing.

We're here!

We made it to Jonathan Creek safe and sound!   Thanks to Bro. Byron for driving the bus.

It started raining last night which was a WONDERFUL blessing!  The forecast is much cooler for the rest of the week.

We'll have photos soon! 

If you would like to see our worship service this evening, get on facebook, and look up the Crossings Camp page.  They will be streaming the worship service live.  Our worship starts at 7pm CENTRAL TIME.

Here are some things you could pray for:
-  Most of our students have never been to camp.  Pray that they adjust quickly and comfortably
-  We have a lot of students who do have Jesus as their Savior and Lord.  Pray for life changing decisions this week.
-  We have a lot of students going through a lot of junk.  Pray that they can surrender everything to God.
-  Pray that we stay safe and injury free!

We'll have a post later on today. 

Saturday, July 7, 2012

What are we called to do as Christians?

He has told you, O man, what is good;
    and what does the Lord require of you
but to do justice, and to love kindness,
    and to walk humbly with your God?
                                                Micah 6:8

Do justice

Love kindness
Walk humbly

This past Sunday we talked about each of these things God requires.

The thing that stands out to me first is how it always starts with a verb.  DO justice.  We know God's way, we know how God intended things to be.  It's now time to DO things that are fair, right, and on God's standard.  There is a group that God repeats over and over and over again in His word.  God instructs us that they be treated with love, kindness, fairness, and justice.  That group is the widow, the fatherless, and the foreigner/sojourner.  How would you live this out?

The Hebrew word for kindness, can also be translated as the New Testament Greek word for mercy or grace.  Think of that phrase again.  LOVE mercy.  LOVE grace.  How do we LOVE those things?  I can appreciate when I see a kind deed being done.  When I see someone hold the door open for me and wife, but I don't know if I love them for doing it.  Do you appreciate that God sent His Son to die on a cross for your sins?  Or do you LOVE God for giving you grace and mercy?  Do you LOVE the grace and mercy that you don't deserve that has saved you from God's wrath?  How would you live this out?

We sometimes confuse humility with low self-esteem, or low self-image.  Humility is more about perspective than anything.  Being humble is seeing God as this infinitely powerful, infinitely all-knowing, and infinitely infinite, and realizing we are not.  God is perfect.  We are not.  God overcame sin.  We have not.  Do you start to see the pattern?  WALK humbly shows that we are to be moving.  A common lie is that you are incapable of doing things because you are not good enough.  God is good, you are bad, so you shouldn't get in the way of His work.  Just sit back and watch someone better do it.  Watch Billy Graham, or a pastor talk to people about Jesus because you aren't good enough.  We WALK with God.  We move with God.  We realize God is powerful and so we stay with Him.  We realize we can't do things on our own, so we stay with Him.  We WALK.  We don't stay.  How would you live this out?


Your assignment is to take these three phrases and translate them for our youth culture.  Do not change the meanings, but find ways that we can remember these points and talk about them easily.  


These three phrases will be our theme that this youth group will have forever.  This isn't a month theme, or even a yearly theme.  This is what God expects from EVERY believer.


How would you live this out?

Thursday, July 5, 2012

Middle School Departure

If you are attending Jonathan Creek Camp - meet up at the church at 8:30am.  Our goal is to leave the church parking lot at 9:00am.  The sooner we leave, the more time we have at camp!

A Guide to Great Camping!

I asked our veteran high school students if they could make a list on "how to get the most out of camp".  I must say that I agree with this list.  Even though it may seem a little long, if you follow this list your next week will be absolutely awesome!

Here is their guide to great camping at Jonathan Creek:
1.  Participate in as much group activities as possible.
2.  Don't spend free time in your dorm room (go out and do stuff)
3.  Don't look for camp boyfriend/girlfriends
4.  Don't take your phone anywhere.  Leave it in your dorm!
5.  Eliminate distractions - Focus on God!
6.  Do your quiet time - don't just sleep
7.  Do something you wouldn't normally do
8.  Be serious in worship, have fun in morning celebration
9.  Be active in small groups
10.  Listen to your small group/Bible study leader
11.  Try to learn something from your leader
12.  Sleep!!!  You need your rest!
13.  Don't prevent others from sleeping - They need their rest too!
14.  Keep up with your hygiene!
15.  Don't overdo it on the food - don't waste it
16.  DO EAT - Make sure you eat enough!
17.  Stay hydrated - Drink plenty of WATER
18.  Listen to sermon at night - take notes, look for one big thing each night.
19.  Bring your Bible - to camp, and worship
20.  Listen to your chaperones
21.  Bring tennis shoes and extra socks
22.  Stay in groups of 3 or more
23.  Don't annoy other rooms or groups
24.  Don't spend time "fixing yourself up".  It will be hot and sweaty and your makeup will run!
25.  Start praying not that God prepares your heart!

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Attention Middle School Campers

If you would like a list of what to bring to camp click on this link...

http://www.gocrossings.org/camps/students/what-to-bring/

Remember that shoes and sturdy shorts (denim or khaki) need to be worn if you plan on climbing the tower or doing the ziplines.

Girls must wear a one piece, and water shorts if they plan on swimming.

An OAK RIDGE RULE - Please bring t-shirts with sleeves.  You may bring tank tops but you may only wear them in your dorm room.  If you plan on going outside, you must wear a t-shirt.


Monday, July 2, 2012

Short Video of Street Evangelism at New Orleans

Sorry about the shaky camera work.  Here is a small portion of the camp video we will be sharing at the end of the month.


Field Days Postponed!

On the calendar it says that we will be having a field day outreach.  When making the calendar we tried to schedule around many things.  We avoided two camps, vbs, and other summer activities.  For some reason we forgot to plan around the 4th of July.  Whoops!

We will postpone the field day until after the middle school camp - June 18th.  We will still do two separate field day ministries at two separate neighborhoods.

Some of you have asked what we will be doing at this field day outreach.

It will last from 5-8pm.  Our goal is to invite every kid in the neighborhood for a time of games and fun.  
We'll have everything from face painting, kickball games, hotdogs, and other fun stuff for the kids to do.  We are trying to reach students grade 1-8th grade.  We will be telling them about the Orange Kid's Ministry coming to Oak Ridge in September.

We will also have a worship service at 7pm.

For the next few weeks we will brainstorming ideas on how to invite kids and parents to this event.  We will also be planning on how to connect them to our church, and more importantly connecting them to the Gospel.

Sunday, July 1, 2012

Check this band out

Check out this band.  They are called All the Sons and Daughters.  They have a pretty unique sound, but their songs are pretty amazing.  Here is one of my favorites.