This is going to be a rather short update, as we only had IMPACT this  past week! 

This week was our first ever 6 - 8 IMPACT, and the result was fantastic! We had our regular half hour of fellowship time before the lesson started, and we were able to have a full blown 45 minute lesson! We talked about the "omnis" of God and how they affect us in day to day life. God is always with us (omnipresent), and knows everything about us (omniscient), which is equal parts comforting and terrifying. He is also omnipotent (all powerful) and will some day be our judge. So knowing all of that, its easy to see God as a scary Santa-esque figure, seeing all of our faults when we're sleeping, and holding us to what feels like an unrealistic standard when we are awake.

Luckily, Jesus exists, and now the challenge is not seeing fault in ourselves where God sees none. We have to know that God sees all, is present for all, and chooses not to because of Jesus. That's a whole lot easier said than done. The challenge this week was to try and see yourself the way that God does, and then treat others the way that God sees them too. 

The time change also allowed us to have some spontaneous worship after the lesson too! So we sang "How He Loves" in response. From my perspective, it was a little tough for some kids to feel comfortable singing, but I think that we can get there! I'm very glad we have time to do things like that now. 

We ended the night with a nice round of dodgeball before heading parting ways! 

If you could please keep praying for bravery on the part of the students to be bold in their faith, and for the ZPS school system to keep opening doors for us that would be much appreciated! 

Next week, we will continue the Can I Ask That book series, and have another Deep Discipleship lesson for IMPACT! Thank you again for your continued support and flexibility! 

Happy Thanksgiving week! 

This past Sunday was full of new things! In Sunday school, we began our new curriculum! Our first class was full of flying opinions already, and we're only two pages in. Our topic is "Is it wrong to doubt God?" All of your students have their own copy of the book that they are able to take home with them, so if you want to see what we are going to be learning about, feel free to ask them to bring it home with them! That's a great way for you to join in on the conversation as well! 

IMPACT went well, and we talked about what it looks like to be a church for the broken. Far too often, especially in a place like Zeeland, we tend to think that the church is a place where put together people go. Or rather, it has become a place that people try to look put together in. It isn't often a place where the broken go to find the broken. We are called as Christians to be honest and open, and to share each others burdens. We can't share burdens if we don't share our brokenness, and even though we don't like to admit it, we are scared to share those kinds of things. We watched a video about two high schoolers who were very broken in their own ways; one boy lost his legs, and the other was legally blind. The one without legs would ride on the back of the one who could not see, and together they covered each others weaknesses. We are called to be that way! If your students were late coming out of IMPACT, its because they requested to finish that video. Sorry! 

Speaking of IMPACT we have some (hopefully) great news! Ever since I have been on staff here, we have struggled to get a good, responsive teaching time crunched into 30 minutes. As it stands, we have 30 minutes for fellowship, 30 for teaching, and 30 for a game. Each piece is valuable for different reasons. Fellowship allows students to bond with volunteers and one another. Teaching is obviously important, and games are good for inclusion of new faces and expending energy. I didn't want to give any of that up, but I also wanted to add some worship into the mix. I proposed a time shift back in the summer, and I finally have approval to shift the time a little later, and to make it half an hour longer! 

IMPACT will now happen from 6 p.m. till 8 p.m. on Sunday nights, starting this upcoming Sunday, Nov. 26! 

We hope this new schedule allows for better mealtimes on the home front, and time for things like half an hour of fellowship time, fifteen minutes of worship, 45 minutes for a lesson if need be, and another half hour for a game! If this change is going to be too much of a curveball, please call me! I would love to tell you more about why the discipleship team decided this was the optimal time, and what we think is best for our students. 

Please email me if you have any questions or comments, I'd love to hear your feedback! Thanks for checking in! 

Good morning friends! 

This past week was full of surprises. We had two new faces on Friday, two new faces on Sunday morning, and a mostly empty IMPACT thanks to some great past leaders! 

Just to keep you as parents in the loop about Fridays, we are still going strong. It's continuing to prove itself as the most effective way to introduce new students to a faith based culture. It's happening again this week, from 6-11 at 10260 Fillmore st! We will have pizza, board games, and funny cat videos to share! 

This past Sunday we FINALLY finished Can I Ask that Vol. 1. I'm sad to see it go, but I'm very happy to be welcoming the second iteration next week. We finished our discussion about following a God who lets Christians do bad things with some really great conversations. The students had the opportunity to understand again how we can be the 1%, the people who live as Jesus called us to, even in the face of a world that doesn't always want to hear about him. 

IMPACT was even funnier than I anticipated. I knew that we were going to be losing a few students to Mitch Wagner's ordination service, and I thought that was pretty cool. I guess I didn't realize how much of an impact Mitch had on our students lives, but when I offered going to his service to the students, everybody who knew him went! I expected to have a smaller than usual group, but we were left with 4 students, 2 of whom have never met Mitch! 

So while that didn't go as planned, I think Mitch's impact on the students can't be overstated, and I was really proud of our students for wanting to support him as he steps into a new phase of ministry. I can't imagine how much it would mean to me to have all of our students show up at my ordination service, so I'm glad it all shook out the way it did. 

Next week were diving into can I ask that Vol. 2 and we are going to keep plugging away at Deep Discipleship in IMAPCT! 

​Thanks for stopping by, and have a great Tuesday! 

It's Tuesday again! 

This week in Sunday school, we got to hear a little about the compassionate heart and the ministry that they are doing with students who have special needs! They involve high school students in some pretty neat ways during the year, and it was good to hear about opportunities that our kids have to serve the community there. After that, we jumped into our question of the week "How can I serve a God who lets Christians do such bad things?" This question focused us on the hypocritical stereotype applied to Christians who pay lip service to Christ and deny Him by their lifestyle. 

If we are to be responsible representatives of  Christ, we need to make sure that our walks line up with our talks. We had a unique opportunity to hear from someone who wouldn't consider themselves a believer, and he reaffirmed that the secular god of today is tolerance. He would rather see nobody judged for anything because we all mess up. Unfortunately, Christians can't see tolerance as the most loving stance, as it not very loving to let someone continue sinning. 

The Gather even at Engedi was interesting! I think it was a good dose of perspective for our students, who aren't used to seeing students run around on a segway, or smoke machines in the sanctuary. The speakers were very different, so hopefully every students was able to relate to at least one of them, and the topic was handled well (in my opinion). There was also some positive feedback on the bus, despite some admitting it was a little too showy for their taste. 

Next week we are back to regular programming! Finishing the first volume of Can I Ask That and getting ready for the second! IMPACT will reflect on the topic of boldness, and the unique things that our church has to offer! 

Our schedule is updated, and we will keep you in the loop as best as possible! Thanks for stopping by!