[reallifenewsletter] FCC - YS Student E-mail Newsletter #185

Howdy all!

Hopefully you've seen the New Summer Trip info (sent last week as Summer Trip Remix).  If not, you can read it on the blog at http://fconline.blogspot.com.  All the newsletters and emails (including this one) are posted there.

 

One of the pre-trip assignments is to work on the "Personal Growth in Christian Character" worksheet and review it with me.  In order to help the completion and review, we are setting up some themed review dinners.  This Friday it's gonna be Bar-B-Que at the L'Heureux's where we'll eat and work together on as many of the topics from the worksheet as we can.  Next week we may have a Mexican or Chinese theme.  These dinners are not specifically mandatory for the summer trip, however it is mandatory that you do the entire worksheet and review the material with me.  Since there is quite a bit of material, it is highly recommended that you attend these if possible since our time is short.

 

Let me know if you'd like to attend but you have schedule conflicts with this Friday night (or other days in the following week).  We'll try to make the meetings available to as many as possible.

 

Also, for the pre-trip evangelistic outreach events, we are going to be doing at least one in downtown Cleveland and possibly another in Macedonia, Cleveland or another high-foot-traffic area.  We'll need people doing different things in the outreach events.  We'll need approx. 3 persons to do a drama (at least 1 guy + 1 girl),

one person to video tape the event, others will be praying, helping the startup, talking to people who are watching etc.  We'll have business cards made up with contact info to give out to people at the event.  More details will follow.

 

All for now.

-Nathanael

 

YS STUDENT E-MAIL NEWSLETTER #185
May 16, 2005

Contents
1. Something for Your Heart
2. Surf Report
3. Forgettable Fact
4. Potent Quotables
5. Parting Shot

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=================================

1. SOMETHING FOR YOUR HEART

Vacation time is almost upon us. If you haven't made plans yet, you might want to consider a trip to Elkmont, Tennessee. It's in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and is known primarily for a campground there.

What's the attraction, you ask? Bugs. Lightning bugs, to be specific.

Park rangers have identified 14 different species of fireflies in the Smokies. But at the top of their list is the synchronous beetle (Photinus carolinus), a firefly whose individuals blink in unison with one another. During the breeding season (approximately the first three weeks of June), people travel great distances to go to Elkmont, plunk down a lawn chair just before sunset, and then watch the synchronized light show for about an hour and a half as night sets in. If you don't want to go to Tennessee, the next best place to see such a sight is southeast Asia.

In addition to the synchronized fireflies, Elkmont has another variation called "blue ghosts" that blink on and then keep their light on for several seconds at a time as they fly just above the ground.

Jesus called his followers "the light of the world" and told us to let our lights shine so other people would see our good deeds and glorify God (Matthew 5:14-16). But most of us, at best, are like lightning bugs. We occasionally let our lights flicker on for a while, but then go dark for long periods. Few of us are successful at sustaining a shining light for very long.

Every bit of light we project is a blink in the right direction. But perhaps we can learn something from the Elkmont lightning bugs. Just think what would happen if we combined our light with that of dozens or hundreds or thousands of other believers. What if we joined forces with other Christians in a united demonstration of God's love? What if some of us learned to sustain a light for far longer than "normal"?

If that were to happen, we would go from being overlooked little bugs out in the world to becoming a real phenomenon. People would start to notice. They might go out of their way to watch and wonder what makes us so special. And some of them might even decide that the light we carry is something they would like to possess as well.

Being a regular old lightning-bug Christian is an okay start. Anytime we let our lights shine is good. But if we dare to coordinate our efforts with others, and to let our lights stay on for longer and longer periods, THEN we've got people's attention.

Are you up to the challenge? If so, blink twice.

On your own ...

Read Ephesians 4:4-16.
http://biblegateway.com/cgi-bin/bible?language=english&version=NLT&passage=Ephesians+4%3A4-16

Instead of remaining on your own, your challenge this week is to get with another friend or group of friends to discuss how you can work together to positively demonstrate Christianity in your school or neighborhood. Brainstorm a number of ideas, and then come up with a specific plan to put one (or more) of them into action.

2. SURF REPORT

~ Christian Athletes and Positive Values
Despite some of the things you see on SportsCenter, it is possible to find Christian role models among professional athletes.
http://www.crosswalk.com/news/religiontoday/1301521.html

~ American Life Histories Manuscripts 1936-1940
This is history, as written by regular people. Check out these personal stories to find out what life was like during the Depression.
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/wpaintro/wpahome.html

3. FORGETTABLE FACT

A pound of houseflies contains more protein than a pound of beef does.

4. POTENT QUOTABLES

All your strength is in your union, all your danger is in discord.
- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

It brings comfort to have companions in whatever happens.
- Saint John Chrysostom

Unless we give part of ourselves away, unless we can live with other people and understand them and help them, we are missing the most essential part of our own lives.
- Harold Taylor

5. PARTING SHOT

Why do we sing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" when we're already there?

Summer Trip Remix

Hold the presses!!!
Forget everything we've said about the summer trip because it is all changed! :)
The Bahamas ended up being _way_ too expensive ($600/night per person) because of the number of people we have.
So Debbie started at ground zero and started to pray with Pastor Gordon about where, when and what. So here's
what it's gonna be. We are going to the coast of Georgia to Tybee Island, along with some initial and ending time in
North Carolina for some meetings of preparation, prayer, and asking for God's work in our lives.

Some of the following info is based on being from Ohio. Obviously travel and people involved are different if you are not from the Ohio group.

Where: North Carolina/ Tybee Island GA (near Savanna) http://www.desotobeachhotel.com/
When: June 11-19
Cost: $180 per person for hotel in GA plus $40 gas = $220 base per person. Each person will pay for their own food and activities.
Food estimate 7days x $20 = $140. Activities estimate $120. (The food and activities are obviously variable depending on the person,
what they eat and what they do. So you can go more or less depending on budget etc)

Itinerary:
Fri Eve June 10 /Sat Am June 11 leave for North Carolina (8.5 hr drive)
Sat June 11 PM Meeting
Sun June 12 Church / meeting reviewing Personal Growth in Christian Character / prayer
Mon June 13 Depart for Tybee Island - GA (7 hr Drive)
Fri June 17 Return NC
Sun June 19 Return NC



Required Preparation:
1) Personal Growth in Christian Character - read, review scriptures, determine where you are at
- There will then be a meeting coming up soon to review this information
2) Outreach - We will be doing some evangelistic outreach and meetings locally

At the end of this is the Personal Growth in Christian Character that Pastor Gordon put together.
If you are going on the trip, print it out, look up the scriptures and see where you are at personally and what you need to grow in.
We are going to be having a meeting to review this before May 23 (step 1 of preparation) and then we'll meet once or twice for outreach preparation and then have at least two days with outreach activities before the trip. The trip is of course not mandatory. It will involve some hard work of preparation. The purpose and focus of the trip is to grow personally in Christ, pray for the Holy Spirit, be ignited with His fire and be changed and anointed with the Spirit of Elijah that turns us back to the Father. We will also have a terrific time while we are in Georgia, relaxing by the beach, having fun, touring plantations etc.

All for now.
-Nathanael


Personal Growth in Christian Character

At a Glance

(2 Peter 1:5-8)

A. Faith

Sowing in righteousness – Hos. 10:12; Mt. 6:33
Righteousness based on faith – Rom. 1:17; Php. 3:9
Wages of righteousness brings life – Pro. 11:6; Is. 32:17; Rom. 8:10
Faith based on promise – Rom. 4:21; Heb. 11:1
B. Goodness

There is only one who is good – Mk. 10:18

2. Heart after God – Ac. 13:22; Ep. 6:6

3. Pursuing justice – Dt. 27:19; Ps. 11:7; Is.

4. Pursuing righteousness – Pro. 15:9; Mt. 5:6

5. Showing mercy – 2 Cor. 7:9; Mt. 23:23

C. Knowledge

1. Adding to knowledge – Pro. 10:14; Col. 1:10

2. Able to teach others – Rom. 15:14

3. Teaching that brings life – Mt. 13:11; Lk. 1:77

4. Knowledge taught through wisdom – Pro. 15:7

D. Self-Control

1. Tongue as evidence – Pro. 10:19; Jas. 1:26

2. Passions of body – Rom. 7:5; 6:12

3. Temperate in appetite – 1 Cor. 6:13; 1 Tim. 3:3

4. Longsuffering in patience – 2 Cor. 6:6; Gal. 1:11

5. Anger management – Eph. 4:26; Jas. 1:20

6. Taking the long view – 1 Pet. 4:12; 2 Pet. 3:11

E. Perseverance

1. Waiting for rewards – 1 Tim. 4:16; Heb. 10:36

2. Improving over time – Rom. 5:4; Jas. 1:3

3. Maintaining progress – Rev. 2:2; 1 Cor. 13:7

4. Learning to wait – Jas. 5:11; Lk. 8:15

F. Godliness

1. Fruit of the Spirit – Gal. 5:22

2. Separation from the world – 2 Cor. 6:17; 2 Tim. 3:12

3. Prepares salvation – 1 Tim. 4:8; 2 Pet. 2:9

4. Sanctified thinking – Rom. 12:2; Col. 3:10

G. Brotherly Kindness

1. Respectful treatment – 1 Tim. 5:1; 1 Pet. 3:7

2. Justice for the poor – Zec. 7:9; Mt. 12:20

3. Cautious in friendship – Pro. 12:26; 22:24

4. Hospitality – Rom. 12:13; 1 Pet. 4:9

5. Mercy triumphing over judgment – Hos. 6:6; Mt. 12:7

6. Esteeming each other better – Pro. 22:1

7. Correcting in kindness – 2 Cor. 10:1, 1 Pet. 3:15

H. Love

1. God’s love defines God’s wrath – Heb. 10:26,27; Rom. 2:4

2. Love one another as God loves us – 1 Pet. 1:22

3. Love hates falsehood – Ps. 119:163; Rom. 22:15

4. Desires of the righteous will be granted – Ps. 37:4; Pro. 13:4

5. Loving God is obeying his commands – Jn. 14:15; 1 Jn. 5:3

6. God’s love is shed abroad in our hearts – Rom. 5:5

7. God’s love is safe – Pro.28:18; 1 Jn. 5:18

8. God’s love defines the purpose of life and death – Rev. 12:11

9. Love keeps no lists of wrongs – Pro. 10:12; 1 Cor. 13:5

10. Love keeps working for good – 1 Cor. 13:6

11. Love prays for its enemies – Mt. 5:44

12. Love comes before our material possessions – 1 Jn. 3:16,17

13. Love does not defraud one another – Rom. 13:10

14. Love provides life – Jn. 3:16; 10:10

15. Perfect love drives out fear – 1 Jn. 4:18



“For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 2 Pet. 2:8 ESV

[reallifenewsletter] Trip Dates typo

Chris pointed out to me that I had listed the dates as:

 June26-April 3.

 

instead of June26-July3.  The second date should indeed be July 3.

-Nathanael

[reallifenewsletter] FCC - YS Student E-mail Newsletter #183

Howdy all!

Ok I still haven't heard from everyone but here's what I've heard so far:

Potential Attendees:

Chris, Jen, Becky, Jon, Tessa, Chad, L'Heureuxs (And others from CA such as Justin etc)

Location:

People seem to be wanting to go to Bahamas

When:

Looking at dates of June26-April 3.  Let me know ASAP (by this weekend at the latest) if these dates are a problem.

If you are going, you MUST have a valid passport since this is out of the country.  If you don't have one, start the process moving since it takes a while.  You need to get an application at the Post Office or other federal building (or online) and get the pictures that are required then send the packet in.  In addition, minors (Chad and Jon) must have notorized permission slips with permission granted by BOTH parents with Nathanael, Emmy and Debby listed under permissions (I'll send samples later).

All for now...

-Nathanael

P.S.  If you've missed back email's you can view them online at http://fconline.blogspot.com

 

 YS STUDENT E-MAIL NEWSLETTER #183
May 2, 2005

Contents
1. Something for Your Heart
2. Surf Report
3. Forgettable Fact
4. Potent Quotables
5. Parting Shot

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=================================

1. SOMETHING FOR YOUR HEART

If your mom has a peculiar look on her face this week, don't worry too much. After all, Mother's Day is fast approaching and she's probably having trouble believing how quickly you've grown. It may seem like yesterday to her that she was rushed to the hospital to have you. (Or nervously entered the adoption agency to sign the papers to adopt you.) And now you're almost an adult. She may be wondering where that cute toddler went. Or that pert preschooler. She may be marveling at your astoundingly rapid transformation into the person you are today.

That look on her face means she's probably pondering. That's what moms do. They think. They mull over their fond memories, current feelings and deepest desires for you.

Mary, the mother of Jesus, was a ponderer. As her oldest boy grew, she did a lot of thinking about him. After a bunch of shepherds rushed to the manger explaining that angels had told them about the birth of Jesus, Mary “quietly treasured these things in her heart and thought about them often” (Luke 2:19). Twelve years later when Jesus got separated from the family caravan returning from Jerusalem and was found in the temple debating the top religious teachers, again Mary “stored all these things in her heart” (Luke 2:51). And who knows how much more pondering she did that we aren't told about?

What was the result of all that pondering? Well, it was Jesus' mom who prompted him to perform his first miracle. Apparently she had come to realize that he was capable of much more than an ordinary person (John 2:1-12).
http://biblegateway.com/cgi-bin/bible?language=english&version=NLT&passage=John+2%3A1-12

And even during the last moments of Jesus' life on earth, his mom was there. Most of his followers had deserted him. Yet Mary was there at the cross, suffering along with her son (John 19:25-27).
http://biblegateway.com/cgi-bin/bible?language=english&version=NLT&passage=John+19%3A25-27

A mother's love is something special. Clearly, you're no Jesus. (The word's out!) But your mom loves you every bit as much as Jesus' mom loved him. She worries about you because this world is a dangerous place. And regardless of the strength or shakiness of your current relationship with her, she wants what's best for you.

When you see her pondering this week, surprise her with a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Let her know you appreciate all her efforts. Give her something new to treasure in her heart. Remember that she's not going to quit pondering about you just because Mother's Day comes and goes.

Your mom deserves the best of your love and consideration every day throughout the year. And if you find it difficult to let that thought sink into your head, maybe it's something YOU should ponder.

On your own ...

Consider an alternative to a store-bought Mother's Day card this year. Why not write a heartfelt letter to your mother--and to other strong female influences in your life (grandmothers, aunts, teachers)? Let the words flow from your heart and express the things you love about your mom that you rarely say out loud. If you have trouble putting your feelings into words, read Proverbs 31:10-31 and write your own paraphrase, substituting “mother” for “wife.”
http://biblegateway.com/cgi-bin/bible?language=english&version=NLT&passage=Proverbs+31%3A10-31

2. SURF REPORT

~ One Person's Story
Sandtown's Jasmine Macklin explains how God used her involvement in a youth choir to change her heart for eternity.
http://passageway.org/go.asp?initial_page=32

~ Buy Joel Dessert
The guy likes his desserts. Who are we to deny him such simple pleasure?
http://www.buyjoeldessert.com

3. FORGETTABLE FACT

The stirrup, the tiniest bone in your body (it's in your ear), is smaller than an ant.

4. POTENT QUOTABLES

Mother is the name for God in the lips and hearts of little children.
- William Thackeray

Compassion for our parents is the true sign of maturity.
- Anais Nin

5. PARTING SHOT

Why isn't there mouse-flavored cat food?

© 2005 :: Youth Specialties