Good times with good friends.  That’s the power of collaboration!

Keep memorizing our 5 verses! Proverbs 11:22, 1 Timothy 4:12, Romans 12:2, 2 Timothy 1:7 AND the new one from this week is 2 Timothy 2:22.

“Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.”

This verse sums it up perfectly!  Rebelling against low expectations (flee the evil desires of youth), do hard things (pursue righteousness, etc.), and the power of collaboration (along with those…).

Attend our collaboration yard sale planning session o’ fun.

Read the yard sale post (here) and the GFA post (here).  Brainstorm ways that you can help with this project!

Read this AWESOME blog post about a girl who did a hard thing!  She was talented in a lot of areas, but CHOSE to push herself in an area that didn’t come naturally to her – and it totally paid off!  (read it here.)

Read chapter 8 of Do Hard Things – and catch up if you’re behind!  Journal (make notes of) the things you find interesting or meaningful.  Remember to bring your book and notes next week.

Practice our 4 Youth Sunday songs.  (Find them here.)

Pray for Youth Sunday.

That God would teach us, reveal Himself to us, and prepare our hearts for leading worship.
That the Holy Spirit would draw many, many, many people to attend!
That we would be faithful in inviting, preparing, and praying.
That God would bless the service, and use it to draw many people into a closer relationship with Himself.
That God would use it to strengthen relationships between you and other church members.

Pray for your own spiritual growth.

That God would reveal Himself to you.
That He would help you understand the Bible.
That He would guide you through your day.
That He would show you how much He loves you in real, every-day ways.
That He would give you a great Christian friend to encourage you and challenge you.
That He would give you strength and courage to do the right things.
That He would give you new desires – to do great things for His glory.

Start writing down a running list of hard things you can do/want to do, if you haven’t already.

Watch this (very cool) video – just to remind yourself of what God can do with your life RIGHT NOW!

We were inspired to take on this project because of chapter 7 in Do Hard Things.  The chapter is about the power of collaboration – not being too intimidated (or too apathetic) to tackle things that are too big to do alone.

The idea for the yard sale was inspired by this little boy’s birthday party:  (Watch the video here!)

Q: “Why did you decide to do a GFA gift, instead of having your friends buy him toys?”

A: “We feel so blessed that we are in need of nothing…we wanted to teach our children that the desire for things is insatiable.  You’ll always WANT things, but what do you really need?  And really, we lack nothing.  So we decided to have a party where we could give, and teach the children about people in other parts of the world…”

THIS THURSDAY (April 7), we’re having our first planning meeting for the yard sale!  We are meeting at 6:30pm at Kate and Dan’s house.  The girls are really pumped about this project – they’ve eagerly volunteered to jump in with both feet in the planing, promoting, donating, cleaning, and organizing!

So girls – here are some things you can do between now and Thursday evening:

1. Read the Gospel for Asia post (here) and visit their website (here).  Familiarize yourself with who we’re giving to – it’s important to know WHY we’re doing this!
2. Start collecting items from this list to donate to the yard sale.  Reminder: if it’s not yours – ASK YOUR PARENTS before you bring it!!!
3. Pray!  For:

• God to give you the motivation and self-discipline required to make this project a success.
• God to give you a passion for our cause.
• God to bless our yard sale.
• God to show you creative ideas about how you can help.
• God to give you boldness and courage and excitement to share this project with your friends and family – and ask for their support, too.

4. Bring the following things to the planning meeting:  a calendar (to choose a date), a notebook (to make lists), a computer (to make flyers/brochures/etc.), a snack (because that would be awesome), a cheerful servant’s attitude (because that’s what it’s all about).

See you Thursday!  

This information is taken directly from GFA’s website.  Please, take some time to browse the site for yourself!

www.gfa.org

“The primary aim of Gospel for Asia’s ministry is to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with those who have never before heard His name.

National Missionaries

Gospel for Asia trains and sends national missionaries because they have proven extremely effective. They are already familiar with the language and culture, and they live at the level of the people they serve, thus removing many social barriers.

100 Percent

Gospel for Asia sends 100 percent of the money you donate for work on the mission field to the field. Nothing is taken out for administrative expenses.

Eternal Perspective

In our busy lives, it is easy to be so preoccupied with our own dreams and pursuits that we lose our eternal perspective. Both the joys of heaven and the crying needs of a lost world can seem unreal and far away.

2.7 billion people

But the harsh reality is that 2.7 billion people of our generation are still unreached with the Gospel. What answers are we prepared to give to the living God when He asks about the blood of these multitudes on our hands?

Commit to live for what is eternal

Today, we have the great privilege of helping them come to know Jesus. If we will commit to live for what is eternal, this generation can be reached with the Gospel.

See the perishing multitudes through the eyes of Jesus

I pray that Gospel for Asia will become like a bridge, giving you the opportunity to walk away from your own preoccupations to the harvest fields of Asia—and see the perishing multitudes through the eyes of Jesus.

May you allow God to use your life to change the destiny of millions through your prayers and partnership with our national brothers and sisters.

97 percent of the world’s unreached

Although 97 percent of the world’s unreached lives in the 10/40 Window … Less than 0.05% of our total resources as the Church in the West are being sent to help share the Good News.

Truly there is a staggering amount of work to do.

Within the 10/40 Window:

Read chapter 6 of Do Hard Things – it’s one of the best ones so far, I think!  Here’s a quote:

“Think about it. This common phrase, ‘Just do your best,’ actually encourages the opposite.  When someone says, ‘Just do your best,’ are you inspired to reach for more?  Or does it feel like permission to just get by?  We say ‘Hey I did my best.’  But did we really?  More likely what we mean is, ‘Hey, I gave it a shot, and that’ll have to be good enough.‘”

We’ll talk about the questions on pages 102-103, so be thinking about your answers!  The more you guys talk and share the better our night will be!!  Here are the questions for those of you who don’t have a book yet:

• What areas of my life do I not care about that I know I should care about?
• In what areas have I fallen short of God’s standards and my own potential?
• In what areas have I settled for just getting by when I know I could do better if I really tried?
• In what areas have I decided that things “will always be this way” without ever putting in the kind of effort that really changes things?

Okay – so that’s chapter 6!

Keep working on memorizing our verses! (These are the 4 we’ve mentioned so far)

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.” [2 Timothy 1:7]

“Like a gold ring in a pig’s snout is a beautiful woman who shows no discretion.” [Proverbs 11:22]

“Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.” [1 Timothy 4:12]

“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” [Romans 12:2]

Make a list and BRING IT of hard things you think God is challenging you to do. This week I’ll announce a project that we’re starting together  - it’s super-exciting and goes along with the next chapter you’ll read!!  (Things that are too hard to do alone:  the power of collaboration.)   It’s gonna be good.  :)  Go team!

Pray! For yourself, for your spiritual growth, that God would help you understand the Bible, and that He would teach you things this week!  (Hint:  The more you pray at home/by yourself, the more comfortable you’ll feel praying out loud – because you just say the words that are already in your head.)

Aaaaand – that’s all!

Snacks will be chips and queso (yummmm), and dump cake.  If you’ve never had dump cake before, don’t worry – you’ll love it!!  (If you’re super-curious you can see the recipe here.  We’re using strawberry instead of cherry.  Get excited.)

Love you all (to bits)!
kate

(Bright Idea: you could print this page so you have the verses AND the questions all in one place!  :)  AND you could use it to invite someone – or remind someone that hasn’t been in a while!)

UPRISING!!  :)

• Read chapter 4 of Do Hard Things.   Journal (make notes of) the things you find interesting or meaningful.  Remember to bring your book and notes next week.
• Practice our 4 Youth Sunday songs.  (Find them here.)
• Pray for Youth Sunday.

That God would teach us, reveal Himself to us, and prepare our hearts for leading worship.
That the Holy Spirit would draw many, many, many people to attend!
That we would be faithful in inviting, preparing, and praying.
That God would bless the service, and use it to draw many people into a closer relationship with Himself.
That God would use it to strengthen relationships between you and other church members.

• Pray for your own spiritual growth.

That God would reveal Himself to you.
That He would help you understand the Bible.
That He would guide you through your day.
That He would show you how much He loves you in real, every-day ways.
That He would give you a great Christian friend to encourage you and challenge you.
That He would give you strength and courage to do the right things.
That He would give you new desires – to do great things for His glory!

• Memorize Proverbs 11:22, 1 Timothy 4:12, and Romans 12:2.
• Start writing down a running list of hard things you can do/want to do.
• Ask yourself every day – Do I take more than I give?  Or give more than I take?  Practice GIVING.

These are small things, not difficult at all.  BUT they are likely above and beyond what you do in an average week.  Let’s change “average.”  Reverse the stereotype.  Do these above-and-beyond things – and watch how the Lord moves in your life!

In Christ Alone

How Marvelous (I Stand Amazed)

Blessed Be Your Name

Our God

We know that it’s much easier to focus on the LORD during worship when you’re not also concerned about forgetting the words or what you sound like.  Practice, practice.  It’s not a performance for people, but we ARE leading them into worship – and we don’t take that lightly!  I pray that these words become close to your heart – that they become the cries of your soul – that they become prayers from your heart straight to the heart of Jesus.  Come ready to worship with us on April 3!

Mark your calendars and invite your friends!

Wednesday, March 2:  Girls Night goes out!  We’re joining the guys this Wednesday and attending the D-Now kick-off rally/worship concert.  We leave at SIX (not 6:30 like usual), so don’t miss out!  Bring yo’ friends!

Friday, March 4-Sunday, March 6:  D-Now Weekend (The Way)!  We have two fabulously fun guests coming from Tennessee to lead the sessions this year, along with our stellar youth workers, Justin and Christina.   We’ll be going on a late-night GPS scavenger hunt, doing a service project, having an indoor pool party, attending a worship concert, and having a blast in our host homes.  See you there!

Sunday, April 3: Youth Sunday!  On this Sunday morning, our teenagers will be teaching all the Sunday School classes, leading the worship, and helping with the message!  We’re working hard on our songs and other surprises on Sunday evenings at 5 (and on some Girls Nights, too), so come be a part!

All the Wednesdays:  We have moved Girls Night from every other Thursday to every single Wednesday night @6:30.  Yay!  The guys meet in the Youth Room and the girls still meet at Kate’s house.  We still have food every week.  We still have music and games and fun lessons.  In fact, we’ve started a new series called “Do Hard Things.”  We just got our books and we’ll be discussing our chapters for the first time next Wednesday (March 9th).  Mind-blowing, culture-changing, life-altering stuff.  Bring your friends and join the rebelution!

And things to be looking for:

• A post about our “Do Hard Things” series.
• A post with videos of all our songs for Youth Sunday.
• A post about our Sports Camp mission trip to Georgia this summer.  (And what you can do to go for FREE!)
• And of course, recaps, photos, lessons, and verses from our Girls Nights as they happen.

Long live Girls Night!

And everybody loved snuggling baby Sadie!  :)

This is how I spend every other Thursday preparing my home/lesson/activity for Girls Night.  Join me in praying for the girls this week!  We meet on Thursday!

I worked so hard on my house today that when I finished, all I could do was stand around and look at it.

I thought I would be cutting it to the wire trying to finish everything before the girls got here for Girls Night, but at 4:00 I put away the mop, put the chairs back, and I stood in my dining room all sweaty and flustered and realized – “That’s it!  That was the last thing!”

I was so sure that it would take all day, that for about 20 minutes after I finished I walked around aimlessly creating things to do.  I rearranged candles and picture frames; I found a new resting place for our trunk of books – silly things like that.  And after there was no more puttering to be done – I leaned against a door frame and looked at it.

My home.  It really is beautiful.  I put a big bouquet of purple and yellow flowers on the coffee table this morning and they are positively welcoming and cheery.

As I laid my eyes on every square inch of the house, I remembered what I did to each particular space just hours before.  I admired the carpet and remembered vacuuming it; I admired my coffee tables, and I remember dusting and polishing.  I admired my shiny floor and remembered the furious mopping.  (Trying to finish while Madeline napped, and still, 2 ½ hours later – she snoozes.)

And suddenly a prayer formed in my heart.  “God, bless the work of my hands and multiply it.”

I worked hard, but let’s be real I didn’t clean the house for us – I cleaned it because we have a bunch of girls coming over.  (Company is absolutely the best (only?) motivation to tidy up.)  All day today I viewed my housework as ministry.  I fluffed throw pillows, knowing girls would hold them in their laps while sitting on the couch.  I scrubbed my counters knowing that girls would serve themselves brownies in the kitchen.  All this work was for them – even if they never know it.

So I prayed over and over again,

“Lord, bless the work of my hands and multiply it.

“However much work it was to clean this home, multiply it a zillion times and make this a place where RELATIONSHIP happens.  However much work it was to put together letters and take-home packets for the girls – multiply that a zillion times and use this humble little offering of my time to pierce their hearts – to draw them closer to You.

“I can only do so much, and when I think about You, I realize ‘so much’ is really nothing at all.   So God please, please multiply my work.  Bless it.  Take it all and do whatever You will with it, because it’s what YOU DO that matters.  I love you.”