Videos For Wednesday, May 27th

Spiritual Tots

Whack-A-Kitty

Amazing Race #4 -- Pit Stop -- May 27th

Tonight we completed our series called: The Amazing Race. At the end of the race there is the final pit stop, a place of reward and rest. We continued our story of the Israelites this week. When we left them last they had been sentenced to wander in the desert for 40 years, until all the past generation (save 2) would pass away. We read in Joshua 3:14-17 and 4:18 as the Israelites, lead now by Joshua, enter the promised land. In order to do this they must cross through a flooded river, the Jordan. God causes the water to stop, so Israel can walk through it on dry ground (just like the Red Sea!). So Israel, when they put their trust in God and acted were able to enter the promised land because God opened up for them a way in.

The application for you is this. We all have a promised land, we call it heaven. It is a place where anyone that puts their faith in Jesus will go after death. god is there and it will be a place that is fileld iwth joy, complete peace and contement will be had, and it will last forever. It will be more than you coul ever hop eand imagine. God has made a way for us to enter this promised land. We can earn it by living a perfect life, but since we all have sinned that isn't a possiblity for us. Or we can go through Jesus' death for us. He took our place. So all we have to do is trust and act to make it to the promised land. Romans 10:9 says, "That if you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead you will be saved." You have to make him your lord (do what he tells you and listen to his leading) and you must believe in his death and resurrection. When we do those two things we are allowed in to the promised land when we die. Won't you join me and others before who have put their trust in God?

I give tonight: D-
Favorite moment: Whack-A-Kitty

Get A Life -- May 24th

This morning we continued our study of 1st Thessalonians. We read verses 1-12. In these verses Paul's letter takes a turn, from talking about missing the church and how they long to see them again, to practical advice. He starts this secition by telling them that they know that they are supposed to be lving a holy lifestyle and to do it more and more.

Then he gives some direct commands: be sanctified (set apart for special use), avoid sexual immorality (not just not do it but avoid the situations where you will be tempted to do it), learn to control yoru body, not wronging your brother or sister in Christ, not taking advantage of them either, not living an impure life but instead a holy life.

He then tells us that if we live a bad lifestyle we will be punished because we are rejecting God not man. He then tells them again to love more and more.

Following this he gives them some more ways to live: making it an ambition to live a quiet life, minding our won buseness, and working with our hands (not lazy). Why do we live this kind of life? So taht we can win the respect of non-believers and not be dependant on anybody (we can provide for ourselves).

Paul calls us to live a lifestyle not just talk a talk of Christianity. It is hard to live that lifestyle. Sometimes it is because we don't want to be looked at as different or weird, sometimes because we don't want to make changes, sometimes it is because we don't know that is what we are supposed to do. So the question for you is: Are you living the life? If you are, are you living it at school? At work? At home? In front of all your friends? In front of your enemies? How can you live the life better? It is time to make a change.

I give this morning: C-
Favorite moment: Learning the difference between sexual immortality and sexual immorality

Wednesday Night Videos

Fear Vs. Faith

One Person Can Make A Difference When They Obey God

You Can Make A Difference If You Have Faith

The Amazing Race -- Detour -- May 20th

Tonight we continued our series called the Amazing Race, focusing on the detour. This is the point in the race when we are faced with a choice, one direction or another, one right, one not. Israel faced a similar time on their journey from Egypt. They had escaped from Egypt through God's plagues, escaped an army through God parting a sea, they had encountered God at Mt. Sinai, they had been supplied with food from God while they travelled, and they arrived at the promised land. They decided to send in some spies to scope out the land. Numbers 13:26-14:4, 20-15, 35 tell us about what happened when they reported. 10 of the spies wanted to go back to egypt because they saw some really large people their. 2 spies wanted to take the country, because they knew God was behind them. God had called them to complete their journey and it wasn't going to be asy, but he promised he would be with them if they obeyd. Isreal let fear stop them from doing what God called them to do and because of their disobedience they were forced to wander for 40 years in the desert.

So what does this mean for you?
1. God has called you to walk your journey. This means that he has called you to get saved, to obey his commands, and to listen to what he wants you to do with your life.
2. Following God's plan won't be easy. you will have opposition, past tempting you, people tempting you, even your enemy attacking you.
3. God will look after you if you follow him. That doesn't guarantee ease, but it will be better and more satisfying than the other path.
4. Don't let fear stop you from believing God. What fears keep you from following the journey God has called you to? Maybe it is popular opinions, looking weird, having to stop something you enjoy, having to start doing something that you think you won't like, having others find out what you have done, giving up yoru dreams, the unknown, or even losing your friends.
5. If you disobey, there will be consequences. It can bring about discontent for you. It can change other people's lives negativily. It can cause more and worse problems in your life. And it means you will have a long journey to get back.

So what will you do? Today is the day to make a choice to follow God whereever he might lead you!

I give tonight: A+
Favorite Moment: Austin Jones' speech, "Give God a chance"

Heart Enlargement -- May 17th

This morning we continued our study of 1st Thessalonians. We read from chapter 2:17 to 3:13. It starts with Paul giving some more history of what has happened since they were forced to leave the city. They have thought of them and made every effort to see them but Satan and continually stopped them. They looked at the Thessalonicans as their hope, joy, crown, and glory. So they sent Timothy in order to strengthen and encourage their faith and see if they were withstanding the persecution. He reported back that they still had faith and love and remembered them, longing to see them. They responded by being encourged, thanking God, having joy, praying to see them and that when they do they will be able to supply anything they are lacking in their faith. Paul then prays for them some things. He asks that God would clear the way so they couldvist, that God would strengthen their hearts, that God would help them to be blameless and holy, and that God would make their love increase and overflow.

When he says that he wants their love to increase it means for them to do acts of love more and more. When he says overflow he is saying doing above and beyond what they think is asked of them to do. God wants us to love other Christians but also love everyone else (friends and enemies). But he also desires for us to love increasingly, we are to do many acts of love and for it to be increasing in our lives. He also wants us to do more than what we are asked to do. We should love people abundantly. So it is time to actually apply that in your life. Make a goal this week to show someone love and show it in a specific way.

I give this morning: B+
Favorite moment: Watching as the teams overflowed their seahorses

The Amazing Race -- Roadblock -- May 13th

Tonight we continued our series called The Amazing Race. This week we discussed roadblocks. What is a roadblock? In life, a roadblock is anything that stands in our way as we are going through life. It is a hard time we go through, maybe parents getting a divorce, someone dying, getting into an accident, etc... There are things that we just run into and have to overcome in order to continue our journey. We read from Exodus 13:20-14:31 in order to illustrate this. Israel had been freed from slavery in Egypt and was now travelling to the promised land. On their way God told them to act like they were lost so that Egpyt would come out and attack them. They were attacked as they were trapped at the Red Sea, there was no way they could escape on their own. They panicked and blamed God and Moses for this. But Israel was told to stand firm and trust in God. After a long night they were able to cross the Red Sea, which had been parted by God' power. Israel still had to act in order to get out of the roadblock, by walking through the water. After God had saved them and destroyed the Egpytian army, Israel responded by putting their trust and in God. This was by no means the final roadblock that they went through.

So what does that all mean for us?
1. God has a plan for your life, no matter what is going on, no matter who you are.
2. You can come to a roadblock even if you are doing all the right things and following God. Sometimes other people's actions cause roadblocks, sometimes God gives a roadblock to stretch our or other people's faith, and sometimes we get in roadblocks because we are doing the wrong things.
3. You can't solve your roadblock on your own strength.
4. You might panick and blame God, someone else, or even yourself. But placing blame will not help.
5. God wants to tell you what he told Israel. "Do not be afriad, stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today...The Lord will fight for you, you need only to be still." Stand firm and trust in God.
6. Sometimes it will take some time for God to work.
7. God will provide a way
8. You will need to act and follow him in order to get out.
9. When he does, you should trust God more because you will encounter roadblocks throughout your life, but you should learn to trust him more and more.

Maybe you are at a roadblock in your life and want to get through, it is a good time to start putting your trust in God and let him guide you through it.

I give this evening: A-
Favorite Moment: The roadblock video

A Worthy Life

This morning we continued our read through the letter of 1st Thessalonians. We read from chapter 2, verses 1 through 16. it starts by telling us about Paul, Timothy, and Silas' last journey to Thessalonica and how it failed. They go on to talk about how they preached the gospel while they were there. They didn't do it from error, impure motives, trying to trick them, trying to please men, flattery, greed, or trying to get their praise. But instead they did presented it as men approved by God, entrusted with it, and trying to please God instead fo men. They delighted in the church there, seeing them as their children, loving them and gentle to them.

Paul then talks about how they taught them the things they taught. He uses three words to describe it: Encouraging, Comforting,a nd Urging. The word for encourage has to do with walkign beside the person so that they can see how it is done. The word for comforting has to do with giving help and love when things have gone bad. It is as if they were leading them from in front, pulling them forward when they were ready to give up. Finally he uses the word Urge, which means telling them what they have done good or bad, basically pusing them from behind in the right direction.

The church responded to this message and how it was taught by accepting the gospel, imitating God, and even going through suffering, but not giving up.

They had lived a life worthy to God. You too can live a life worthy to God. I need to encourage, comfort, and urge you better. So what thing sare you going to do to live your life worthy of God.

I give this morning: B-
Favorite moment: Josh Justman blindfolded and throwing chairs

The Amazing Race -- The Journey Begins -- May 6th

Tonight we started our four week series called: The Amazing Race. The Amazing Race is a tv show in which contestants race across the world. The start the journey, along the way they encounter Road Blocks and Detours before reaching their ultimate end of the journey called the Pit Stop. Tonight we discussed starting the journey. We did this by looking at the story of Israel from the book of Exodus. In Exodus we see a group, called Israel, that has been living in Egypt for 430 years under slavery. God sends a man named Moses to free them from slavery. In order to do this, God sends 10 plagues on the Egyptians. The final plauge was one which killed all the first born sons of Egypt. After the plague the Pharoah agreed to let Israel go, effectivly freeing them from slavery from Egypt, but they had become slaves to God, following his leading from that point on. At least that was the idea.

We too are enslaved by things. Some of us are slaves to sin, some to our addictions, some of us are slaves to our own passions and desires. We struggle under this slavery, groaning for freedom. God has heard our cries for freedom and desires to set us free. How do we gain this freedom? We allow him to become our new master, a master that loves and cares for us rather than abusing us. We ask him to forgive us for serving our old master and start to serve him instead. You can have freedom, you can start your Amazing Race, this journey with God, by allowing him to become your king.

I give tonight: A-
Favorite Moment: Cole asking if dough meant money or bread

Becoming a Model

Today we started a six week series on the book of 1st Thessalonians. Today we covered the first ten verses which say:

"Paul, Silas and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the
Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace and peace to you. We always
thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers. We continually
remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor
prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus
Christ.
For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen
you, because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with
power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction. You know how we lived
among you for your sake. You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in
spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the
Holy Spirit. And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia
and Achaia. The Lord's message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and
Achaia—your faith in God has become known everywhere. Therefore we do not need
to say anything about it, for they themselves report what kind of reception you
gave us. They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true
God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus,
who rescues us from the coming wrath." (NIV)

This letter was written by Paul, Silas, and Timothy (two missionaries and a pastor) to a church int he capital of the province of Macedonia called Thessalonica. The population of that city was near 200,000 at that point because of being an important junciton of a hightway and also had a thriving seaport. After they address the fact they are always thinking and praying for those in that church they move on to describe the gospel.

In verse six we transition into our main idea for the day. In it Paul tells them that they were imitating them. They saw how they acted and spoke and started to do the same things. Then he tells them that not only were they imitating them but the Lord as well and that others are starting to see that model of God and mimicing it, in the local region as well as the rest of the world. We too mimic or imitate the things that we see or hear. But we should be imitating God. Whatever we imitate other people will see and model their lives after us. They will start to mimic you! Both those nearby as well as at school and in your family, even to the ends of the earth. It is important that we learn to imitate good things so that we don't give a false impression of what God is like to others, and thus they imitate that example. Be thinking about how you can imitate God as an example to others!





I give this morning: B


Favorite moment of the morning: Jason Hale taking a fall

Video and Review For April 26th, 2009

Well tonight was our first group night for the year. It was also the last night we were with our current group. Since we were all seperated and experienced something different I thought I would instead just post the video and if you want to make a comment about what you experienced then go for it.

He's Back!!!

Today we finished off our study of the book of Mark. We read from Mark 16:1-20. In it we find out what happend to Jesus after he died on Friday. The frist eight verses tell us the story of what Mary, Mary, and Salome find early on Sunday morning. When they approach the tomb, wondernig how they were going to get in with the stone being in front of it. But then they would it that it had already been rolled away and that there was someone inside. The man in white told them that Jesus had risen from the dead and to go and tell the disciples. Verse 8 tells u that they left trembling, bewildered, and afraid.

The next 12 verses give us a quick overview of Jesus appearing to his followers. At first the disciples wouldn't believe that he was alive.

But after seeing him they started to actaully believe he was back. Becasue of their belief they started to go and preach this good news, accompanied by signs, wherever they went.

Our application for the day was about how we should respond if we truly believe their is a resurrection. Are we really acting like one who believes that Jesus rose from the dead? If we truly believe what should our actions be like?

I give this morning: A
Favorite moment: JESUS ROSE FROM THE DEAD!!!