FAMILY PLUS High School - August 11

Hello HS Parents!

This past Wednesday night we had our first midweek meeting in Annex 2 for the 2012-2013 school year. Instead of focusing on school, teachers, incoming freshmen, school logos, or anything else you can think of - we chose to spend the night doing one thing: focusing on God.

We worshipped with each other, read Scripture, took communion together, and had a dedicated prayer time. It was an incredible way to begin the year…allowing nothing else to take the place of how we wanted to start our time together in 2012: totally focused on adoring God.

This coming Sunday we will continue our study on "How Can I Know." If you'll remember from last week, this is a study focusing on the "why's" of what we believe. Our content will be directed at how we can know that we truly have salvation in Christ. If your student struggles with doubt, these next 3 Sunday morning Bible studies will be extremely beneficial to them.

Let me know if there's anything I can pray about for you or your family.

-Michael

FAMILY PLUS High School - August 3

I hope your students had a GREAT time with us at Bryant Grove this past Wednesday night. It looked like we might get rained out (or even stormed out) before we could get through the night, but the rain pushed right up to the edge of us then moved away quickly . I was SO thankful!

This coming Sunday we will be starting a new series called, "How Can I Know?" For the next four weeks we will be discussing an issue relevant to high schoolers, middle schoolers, and many adults: Doubt. This focus will help students answer critical questions regarding their faith, and explore truths that will help affirm students' beliefs and the "why's" of those beliefs.

We are excited to be welcoming incoming freshmen on Sunday, and I'm particularly excited that we're launching their high school career with a subject that will bring confidence to their belief system and worldview. These are some of the most critical days of their lives, and we want to do our part to help them chase after God's purpose for them right from the start.

Next Wednesday night will be our first time back on campus for the 2012-2013 school year. If you have questions about our meeting times, what's available for you and your students, or something I can pray about for you - please email me or give me a call.

Michael

FAMILY PLUS High School - July 27

Oh my gosh - where DID the summer go!!!  I know that it must have zipped past for you and your family just like it has for me and mine. It seems like it was just last week that we were attending graduation for so many of our students. And now, here we are, ready for a new group to come in and join us.

Our son, Carver, starts school this fall and brings with it a different feel to the school year for me. I want to make sure that I'm praying for him and talking to him to find out what is going on even in this beginning year of his academic journey. I want to encourage you to do the same with your student AND to hold me accountable to this. If you pass me in the hallways at church, please know that I want you to ask me things like, "Michael, are you praying for Carver every day?" Or, "Michael, who are some of Carver's friends at school?" I need to be able to have clear and affirmative answers to those kinds of questions - and so do you!

This coming Sunday is "Illuminate." In both Sunday morning worship services we will be telling the story of a New Generation. We're hoping that you will join us to hear about what God is doing in the lives of Preschoolers, Children, and Middle and High School Students.

In Bible study this Sunday your students will be wrapping up a four week session that we have been tackling called "Beginnings." We have been looking closely at our origin and God's creation in the book of Genesis. This week we will be closing the study by looking at God's covenants with His people and how those covenants demonstrate His love for us.

Don't forget that next Wednesday, August 1, is the "Taste and See Banquet" for adults from 6:00 to 7:30 PM. You can make your reservation online by following this link. You can drop your high school students off at Bryant Grove for our "Back To School Splash" at 5:30 PM before heading over to the banquet. Then pick them up by 8:00 after you've finished eating and looking at the Group offerings for next year. Here's a link to the address at Bryant Grove via Google Maps.

Please let me know what I can pray about for your family.

-Michael

Transporting Groups - It's Easier Than It Used To Be

Working with students for nearly 20 years has allowed me to see some new frontiers surface as uncharted territories. For example, I watched the dot-com boom change the way we think about communicating with students. I watched cell phones creep their way into the lives of my students AND into my youth group meetings/trips. I have watched social media create a new era of communication that reminds me of the excitement and the "newness" of the dot-com boom. I'm sure other youth ministry veterans could keep this list going far beyond anyone's desire to read it. But there's another area, typically unseen by "the masses," that has also evolved and is worth mentioning: how we transport children and students.

I think one would be hard-pressed to find an individual even marginally connected to a church who hasn't crammed his or her body into a white 15 passenger van at some point. Or how many times have you seen that rolling-death-trap-of-a-bus transporting your kids away from the church parking lot on its way to what may as well be a little village in South America - knowing that the closet prayers of you, your friends, and Sister Betty on the prayer committee will be the only thing that gets them there safely? And although these descriptions do not fit "every" church in America, they are familiar enough to most of us to know that they are at least , in some part, true for many, many churches. Church transportation, indeed, has needed some overhaul.  

If you are experiencing issues like I've mentioned here or your church has grown beyond your current transportation needs, here are some things I considered as a concerned minister at the Glade Church to fit our quickly changing needs for transporting groups of children and students.

1 - Vans or Buses? - 15 passenger vans get a LOT of bad press about how dangerous they are and how churches and universities should not use them. And although my countless trips on one of these has never ended badly - I can certainly understand the position based on some tragic occurrences involving these vans. But that's not the primary reason I don't use them. The biggest reason for me to use buses is because I want as few vehicles on the road as possible. There is less danger of my group getting separated, and I can be more selective about who drives. Fewer vehicles in my convoy increases safety.

2 - Purchase or Rent? - We rent. By renting, we always take a brand new bus right off the lot. It's clean. It's dependable. And most importantly for long trips - it's COMFORTABLE!! We don't have to worry about maintaining a bus or paying for repairs should it break down. Renting offers us a quality product EVERY time we take a trip. "Our" bus NEVER ages - because we always get a new one from the rental company.

3 - What About Charters? - They are certainly less headache in some ways as you don't have to drive, pay for fuel, or worry about insurance. What you do have, though, is an increased cost to pay someone else for those things. What's more than that, though, is you also have to add the cost of a hotel room for your bus driver(s). And about the driver…you don't get to choose who you get. By having drivers from my church, I'm able to select who gets to spend LONG periods of time in front of our children and students. This is a BIG deal to us.

4 - What About Insurance? - Our church already has policies in place to cover most of our rentals…in other words - we are already paying for it for other vehicles/trailers we have in our "rolling stock." But sometimes we rent three buses at a time. Adding a rider to our policy to cover those extra buses for a week or two at a time is MUCH cheaper than paying for insurance year round on a bus that's only used a peak ministry times.

5 - Who Rents These Things, Anyway? - I guess you could say that Carpenter Bus is one of our vendors, but that wouldn't be a complete statement. Carpenter Bus is a partner in ministry with us. Without them, trip costs for our children and students would increase significantly. Yes, it's true that Carpenter Bus is a for-profit business, but they are a Christian business. Since they are believers in Christ, they share our vision of seeing men, women, boys, girls, students, individuals, and families transformed by the power of Jesus Christ. Sure - we pay them money to rent buses. But the fact that they rent buses to us helps us share the gospel with children and students. We are thankful for their partnership and ministry to our church.

If you are looking to make a change in your transportation needs, I would suggest giving the guys at Carpenter Bus a call. We have found it to be dependable, economical, and again - COMFORTABLE!

FAMILY PLUS High School - June 30

Hello HS Parents!

It's great to be back with you - we had an AMAZING time with our HS trip to Peru. For those of you with juniors and seniors this coming school year, I would encourage you to prayerfully consider your student's participation in this trip. It is an incredible experience to see God at work in other parts of the world.

This past week we wrapped up our Wednesday nights for the year. I led students in a 30 minute prayer time where we focused on several things including praying for lost friends, confessing our sin, and praying for our enemies. I challenged your students to spend similar time with Christ throughout the summer and allow Him to be someone they talk to daily.

This coming Sunday we will finish a four week series called "Pardon Me." This week we will close by looking closely at unlimited forgiveness. Students will discuss questions like:

1. What does Jesus say about forgiveness?
2. Is there a limit to the number of times you can ask God to forgive you?
3. What is the principle for dealing with someone who has wronged you?

Don't forget to register your student for our summer mission trip to New Orleans. We will be leaving on July 14th, and our transportation is EXTREMELY limited for this trip.

Let me know what I can pray about for your family.

-Michael

FAMILY PLUS High School - June 15

Hello HS Parents! I hope you are adjusting to the weirdness of summer schedules and well managing having students at home (or somewhere other than school) during the day. It seems that right about the time I get a handle on summer - it's over and we jump back into the regular swing of things. That might actually hit me harder this year as my boy starts kindergarten at Gladeville Elementary this fall! This past Wednesday night I mixed it up a little with students on Wed. night. Several of our worship leaders were out for vacation, so we pulled out a couple of guitars and sang a few worship songs sitting in a fairly intimate circle with our high schoolers. I led them in a Bible study from 1 Corinthians and discussed the freedom we have thanks to the resurrection of Christ. This coming Sunday students will discuss what it means to serve others. They will talk about worshiping God openly and demonstrating His love for others. They will talk about worshiping God outside the walls of the Church and when/where that can (and should) happen. I will be in Peru this week with Rachel Moore, Seth Wofford, Seth Guiler, Casey Webb, Lauren Browning, Keanna Illgen, Alecia Martin, Camon Soileau, Lauren Sharpe, and Tracy Bullard. Would you pray for our safety and that the Light of Christ would shine brightly through us this week. Pray that the Holy Spirit would do something special in the lives of these students and the parents/children who will be ministered to by them. Don't forget that our summer mission trip deadline has been extended. Transportation for this trip is REALLY limited - if you haven't signed up yet please do so Sunday. -Michael

FAMILY PLUS High School - June 1

Hello HS Parents!

I want you to know that I'm praying for you as you begin the summer. I know this season can be as busy and challenging as when your kids are in school. I'm praying for chaos to be at a minimum for you and that your kids will make wise decisions with their time this summer!

This coming Sunday we will wrap up our SHAPE series in our High School Connect Groups. Although the focus "officially" ended this past Sunday, your students are going to have the opportunity to complete a SHAPE profile to help them put into practice the things we have talked about the past 6 weeks. It should be very informative for them and provide some clarity for decisions they'll need to be making at this particular time in their lives.

This past Wednesday night we started a new focus on looking at "The Invisibles." We looked at the passage where Jesus heals the crippled man at the Pool of Bethesda. Although the man had been there for 38 years and was likely "invisible" to most who were at the pool - Jesus "saw" him and changed his life. I asked students to think about times that they feel "invisible" (at school, at home, in other social settings). I asked them to think about times they wished they were invisible. We closed by discussing Christ's willingness to die for us even though our actions, thoughts, and decisions are CLEARLY visible to Him - even before they happen. Knowing what He knows about our past, present, and future - He was still willing to die for us.

Here are some things coming up on the calendar:

Summer Nights Cookout - Sunday, June 10, 6:30-8:30
HS Mission Trip to Peru - June 16 - 23
Summer Nights Movie Night - Sunday, July 8
HS Mission Trip to New Orleans - July July 14 - 21

Please let me know if there's anything I can pray about for you or your family.

-Michael