Good morning parents! 

Just like that we are at the end of another year. It's crazy to think about all the things that have happened over the past year and all the progress we have made as a church. We have a new pastor, and our youth group is growing consistently. I have had the opportunity to stay connected with our college students and hear about the things they are involved in. The overall "feel" of the congregation is healthy and vibrant, and our trajectory is so hopeful. I'm so thankful for the ways that God has blessed us this year! 

This past week we joined the rest of the congregation in celebrating where we have been over the past year and where we hope to be going in our annual vision/budget meeting, and had our end of the year celebration in youth group! I don't have tons to report except that I am so grateful for the support that you guys provide for us as parents. Christy and I are planning our annual parent meeting for the beginning of January, and I would love to see you all there! 

Say some thank you prayers and hold on for another great year in 2020!

Good morning parents! 

This past week we continued in our Gospel Project Sunday school in Isaiah and talked about the nature of his prophecy in regards to setting up for Jesus. We are going to finish out this curriculum just after the new year! Ask your students for more details to keep the conversation going at home!

In Youth group we talked about the difference between joy and happiness. There are many examples of people who worship in the midst of struggle in the Bible, but we focused on Paul and Silas being throw into prison. Often when we hear that we should be "worshipful" in times of struggle, we write of the idea as idealist, and fail to see how that can be possible. We discussed the conditional nature of happiness and how our circumstance can shift our mood, but it need not shape our worldview. The joy that the Bible points us to is predetermined and unchanging, so we can be confident in the hope of salvation at all times. When times are hard we are encouraged to set our mind on things above and place our current struggles in the light of the Gospel. Paul goes as far as saying that he counts all earthly things as loss for the sake of the Gospel! Its overwhelming goodness pierces the darkness we face in this life. It's a daily choice to keep our eyes fixed above, but its well worth it! 

Next week we will have our last programs of the 2019 year! I cant believe how fast this year has gone! Have a wonderful week!