Hi,
everyone,
Fall
is right around the corner and, for me, that means the return to weekly youth
group happenings which I so enjoy. I
want to write you all and keep you up-to-date on all the happenings for
students and their families at Word of Life Lutheran Brethren Church.
We
are very excited for this upcoming year of ministry and we look forward to the
new 6th graders who are moving up to GFJ (Generation for Jesus)
youth. We have had a fun summer with
many of your students and now it’s time to get things back to a deeper level.
I want mention some
different opportunities that you and your students should consider as we
approach the launch of our fall ministry happenings:
1. Confirmation
classes for
grades 7 and 8 begin with a parent/student meeting on September 15th
at 9:40 A.M. at church. Class begins the
following week, September 22. Our heart
for this ministry is that students be strengthened in Christ through these
classes. Our pre-confirmation class, the 6th grade Sunday school
class, is being lead by Bill Bigaouette and Jeff Mootz. Our aim is that these classes serve our
students by strengthening their understanding of God’s Word. Both classes are asked to have a parent
present on Sunday, September 15, to meet together with Bill and me and their
student followed by a meeting of the individual classes.
2. We will resume our deeper
teaching through the Breakfast Club
for those students seeking a comprehensive Bible study. We will continue examining “The Story” which
has been taking us chronologically through a variety of Biblical stories and
how they relate to each of us. Like we
did last year, we will be meeting twice a month on Wednesday mornings at 7:00
A.M. beginning early October at our (Pastor Mark & Wendy Johannesen) home
for breakfast. There will be one change: after we watch the video, we will split into
two student-led small groups.
3. Please consider this new opportunity: Lauren
McGraw will lead a high school Bible
study, at least though the fall season.
4. During the year, our
leadership team will be meeting about every six weeks to evaluate and
strengthen what we do. In addition, we
would welcome the presence of any high school-age student if they would like to
give feedback at those meetings. Please
watch for details regarding the times of these meetings.
Youth
Group Kick-off Party and Teaching Plans for 2013-2014:
On September 18th youth group begins
meeting regularly with Junior High meeting from 6:00 until 7:15 and Senior High
gathering from 7:30 until 9:00 P.M. We
are excited to be starting Generation for Jesus again. Our theme for this year
is the word “BROKEN.”
My hope is that we teach about being broken from three
different angles throughout the year.
-
We live in a broken world.
-
We each have our own brokenness.
-
Jesus was broken for us.
During the year we aim to teach in three (3) to four
(4) week-long series. Here is a sampling
of topics we plan to cover this year: Self-esteem,
money, the lives of five (5) more disciples, spiritual gifts, world religions
and cults, lessons from the Old Testament.
Each
night at youth group I offer a teaching time, followed by a small group
discussion, games, and a snack. Over the
summer our leadership team has been meeting in preparation for this year and I
am excited to work with them.
Missions
Trip to Mexico:
For the third year in a row, we are participating
with Borderless Midwest for the Mexico Mission Trip. Go to www.borderlessmidwest.com
for more details. The trip is April 10
until April 18, 2014. There will be a
parent and student meeting on Wednesday, September 25th at 7:30 P.M.
during Senior High Youth Group to talk
through this year’s trip. Any student in
8th grade and up is welcome to attend. At this meeting we will offer for families to host
the Wednesday night family dinners and fill the fall schedule. Hosting the family dinners has been a great
fundraiser.
Digital Age
Concert at LSH:
“The Digital Age” will be performing
a concert at the Le Sueur-Henderson High School on October 30th at
7:00 P.M. Individual tickets cost $9 and
all group sales purchased after September 15, cost $7. But all orders purchased before September
15, cost just $6 per ticket. We want to invite as many students as possible to
it to hear the gospel and some great music. If you would like to purchase tickets, please
visit the Lighthouse Christian Bookstore in Mankato and Corner Drug in Le Sueur
or here at Word of Life Church. For more
information, go to www.lshchurches.org
Upcoming
Events:
-
Confirmation Orientation – September 15th
-
Youth group Kick-Off Party – September 18th
https://www.facebook.com/events/563068980396081/
-
See You at the Pole – September 25th
-
Mexico Mission trip meeting at September 25th
-
Paintball – October 6th https://www.facebook.com/events/540146949403660/?ref=2
-
Where’s Waldo – October 26th https://www.facebook.com/events/218627831633068/
-
Digital Age Concert – October 30th
-
Volunteer at the Operation Christmas Child
Warehouse – November 27th and November 30th
-
Planet Wisdom
- December 6th and 7th
-
Senior High Winter Weekend - February 14-16
-
Confirmation Camp – March 7-9
Youth
group Accounts and fundraisers:
Every student who has done at least one fundraiser
has an account with us that can be used to fund any event. I am enclosing a copy of the most recent
balances in each account as you consider different events for this upcoming
year. There is a form in the church
office and on the church website that must be completed to access these funds.
During the school year we will offer a number of
fundraisers. Some fundraisers are meant just
for our Mexico mission trip and other fundraisers can used by everyone. Please feel free to pass any ideas along.
If you use gas, I would encourage you to buy gas
cards from us. Here is what you will
earn:
-
5% on Holiday gas cards
-
10% on Kwik Trip gas cards
Maybe that doesn’t sound like much,
but it adds up very fast. We will be
doing these fundraisers, at least for the next year.
2013-14
Release form:
Please complete the enclosed release form for each
student who will be participating in our youth group during the upcoming school
year.
Thanks very much for the opportunity to serve you
and your students.
Pastor Mark
Cell – 952-255-9572
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