Posters for Our Advent Series in Awakening

I have been really trying to improve my Photoshop skills as of late. While I don't have a full version of Photoshop, my copy of Photoshop Elements 10 seems to be able to handle what I have been wanting to do. Here are some examples of the promo pieces I made for each lesson, beginning on Wednesday, November 29. I would love to know your thoughts.

Here's What You Missed - Awakening, September 12, 2012

If you weren't in Awakening last night, here is your quick recap of the night's events.

• Announcements: Money for Awakening Fest ($30) is due THIS SUNDAY! Please give the money to Miss Cheryl. See You At the Pole is two weeks away. I hope you are making plans to be there. Don't forget that Youth Alive is this Sunday at 5 p.m.
• Missions Trip: We are taking a missions trip to Pittsburgh in June 2013. Applications were distributed. Please take some time (a lot of time) to pray over the application and talk/pray with your parents about the trip. The cost is $350, but do not let money be the reason you don't go on the trip. Applications are due October 14. If you did not get an application, see Pastor Jonathan. We also watched a video of the trip in Pittsburgh last year.
• Bible Study: We continued our study "Life in 6 Words" with Our. This was a discussion of our role in the mutiny called sin and how all of us are responsible for sinning. Greg and Prop did an excellent job of explaining the concept of "federal headship."
• Next Week: We will continue to study "Life in 6 Words" with Sins. Our memory verse is Romans 3:23.

Can't wait to see you next week in Awakening!

My Ministry-related Prayers

I was cleaning the carpets last night. It is pretty monotonous work, so I had a lot of time to think. I began to think about the things that I would like to see happen in my ministry, be it youth group, children's ministry, or just the ministry in general. I understand that some of these things that I am praying for are pretty far out there, things that may never come to fruition. No harming in asking, right?

So, without any further jibber-jabber on my part, here are my ministry prayers.

• I am praying that my youth group would grow to at least 30 students by May 2013.
• I am praying that I would have the opportunity to lead at least 5 students to Christ by May 2013.
• I am praying that we would have a minimum of 30 children in Children's Church by May 2013.
• I am praying that there will be at least 200 people in the church service each week.
• I am praying that our weekly offerings will go over $10,000 in tithes and gifts.
• I am praying that we will have the volunteers to start a Wednesday evening children's program in September 2013.
• I am praying that more people in the church would develop a servant's heart and become involved in the ministry of the church.
• I am praying that the youth department will one day have its own facility. Not just a room or a basement, but its own building.
• I am praying that the opportunity for me to go on staff in a full-time capacity occurs in the very near future.
• I am praying that my students in the youth group will be sold out for Christ and will begin telling their friends about Jesus.

As you can tell, I have a lot of things that I am praying for and, actually, this doesn't even begin to scratch the surface. Youth ministry is a job that rises and falls on prayer. I just pray that I am doing enough.

The Greatest Story Ever Told, That's Hardly Ever Told

In our youth group service, we recently started going through Life in 6 Words from Dare2Share Ministries. This is a series on the Gospel in which Greg Stier and Propaganda take the letters of GOSPEL and use it to explain the Gospel. I have been praying about this series for some time and am looking forward to the awesome things that God is going to do through this study.

Here is the introductory video that is basis for the study. I recommend you watch it multiple times because it will shake you to the core every time you watch it.

I will be posting a review of the series shortly.

A Celebration - The Ten-Foot Ice Cream Sundae

I read somewhere that every youth pastor should keep a journal of how their activities went. I have yet to do it, but here is a recap of our activity from August 25, 2012. We built a Ten-Foot Ice Cream Sundae and the students had a blast.

We began the activity with some social time. After getting everyone settled, we watched two videos. The first was for a new series we will be doing in Awakening (our youth group service) called "Life in 6 Words." This series is a break down of the gospel and is designed to help students learn to share their faith. The second video was a promo for See You At The Pole. My prayer is that we will have a large number of students from our church participate and I am pushing it as much as I can.

After watching the videos, I spoke for a few minutes, using Acts 17:26 as my text. It is my desire for my students to see school as a mission field and I urged them to understand that, based on that verse, God chose this time and this place for them to live because of the awesome plan He has for them.

While we were watching and talking, the adult leaders were putting out the ice cream. I purchased a rain gutter from Home Depot and five gallons of ice cream from Wal-Mart. The leaders filled the gutter with the ice cream and the students then put toppings on the ice cream. Everyone then grabbed a spoon and dug in. Some students used chocolate syrup, sprinkles, and lots of cherries. One student brought bacon bits, but we gave him his own bowl.

Overall, I think the event was a success. We had about 20 students participate, including 11 of our students, 7 visitors (some unchurched, some from other churches), and 2 graduates saying goodbye to the student ministry program. I shared the gospel and will continue to pray that hearts are changed. I am looking forward to doing this event again in the future.

Here is a picture of the aftermath of the ice cream when all of the students were finished eating.