Meinate - The High School Ministry of Grace Bible Church

Mexico 2006

2006-07-18T14:49:00.000-07:00

Have you ever been with a group of friends who were all talking about something amazing that JUST happened; something that was so sweet that,“everyone will be talking about it for days"? Everyone stands around in a circle and roars with laughter as things are said like, “and then the keys floated to the top!” And they all start laughing again…except that one friend of yours, the one that wasn’t there. I hate being the one outside of the circle. One thing that makes us feel alienated from the group is when we are left out of the conversation, trying to put together the story by ourselves one piece at a time. Last week our high school group went to Mexico for a mission’s trip, and it was really special. We had a terrific time and we shared many special experiences. This Wednesday night we will show a video, look at pictures and share about our trip; and though many of you were not with us, we want you to be a part of the conversation.

Colossians 3:16-17 says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

God wants us as His people to build one another up. Our community does not come from sharing fun experiences and inside jokes, it comes from our shared life in Christ. Our purpose on Wednesday night will not be to hold on to our trip as something that is exclusively for those who were there; rather we hope that you will celebrate with us how we experienced God work on our trip.

See ya,
Ben

Mexico pictures

2006-07-18T14:20:00.000-07:00

Liz cutting tile. She did a great job.
Our cafeteria

Nikko decided he had had enough of my leadership and destroyed me with a super double leg drop kick.

Mexico pictures

2006-07-18T14:06:00.000-07:00

Parents, It was so awesome...Joey was going 90mph while we took this picture.
Ashley woke up with some weird fungus on her face... we realized it was frosting after we rushed her to the ER.
Jordan did an amazing job giving her testimony

Mexico pictures

2006-07-18T13:54:00.000-07:00

Joey or Nikko?
diggin ditches

Mexico pictures

2006-07-18T13:28:00.000-07:00

Putting in water lines. Mikee would normally use his bare hands to cut this pipe, but he did not want to scare the locals.
Dan and Suzanne got engaged! She is way out of his league!

Hume Lake 2006

2006-06-27T14:38:00.000-07:00

Ninja intermission

2006-06-27T14:31:00.000-07:00

We thought we were just going to have a peaceful lunch..we were wrong. As we went to consume delicious sloppy Joe's, ninjas's attacked. They came from everywhere, yet nowhere, Nija's are way scary.

Hume Lake 2006

2006-06-27T14:22:00.000-07:00

Hume Lake 2006

2006-06-27T14:12:00.000-07:00

Bella Rulez

2006-06-12T17:19:00.000-07:00

Bella went swimming. We had a great water fight. I won because I'm way bigger.

Bella- Put her hands over her face, she was trying not to laugh as we watched veggie tales.

Bella wearing a grogeous lu-lu shirt.

New Bella Photos: She's awesome

2006-06-12T17:13:00.000-07:00

Bella Chillin, wearing an awesome hat.

Bella-lookin like her old man.

Kevin's ankle

2006-06-12T17:08:00.000-07:00

So, Kevin fell off his sketborad,. He's o.k. now, but ankles are NOT supposed to be 90 degrees to the right. Good night! Doesen't that look que horrible'? Taylor, who took the picture said, "I believe Kevin's actual words were, 'Don't touch it, call the ambulance...might as well take a picture.' "

Reaching "the top"

2006-06-12T16:54:00.000-07:00

We start our High school careers as meager freshman, freshman that just want to fit in and find a groups of friends who will accept us, freshman who long to be upperclassmen. Freshman become sophomores, then juniors and finally become seniors, eventually rising to “the top”. The top (as the world sees it) is a weird place; we live our lives trying to reach the top but once we are there we feel cheated. You wait you whole life to be seniors but once you get there, all you want is to be done with high school and to be in college, as freshman. Ecclesiastes 1:9 says, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.”
So, for all the seniors- you are now entering your freshman year AGAIN, whether in school or in the work place, it’s back to the bottom of the food chain. We live our whole lives trying to reach the next level of success, not realizing that “the top” is fleeting. The sooner we come to grips that “the top” is just fool’s gold the quicker we can stop chasing the wrong things and enjoy what God has given us today. God and people are the only things that last, and as Christians we pursue what will last.So, Wednesday night we will celebrate what God has done in the lives of our graduating seniors not because they have earned our love by making it to the “top” but because we have forged meaningful relationships with them over the years. We really care about you all. Thanks to all the seniors who have invested in our lives.

Coolest pictures EVER

2006-05-25T16:23:00.000-07:00

I had to hop a fence to get to this billboard. There was poison oak everywhere. You might even say that I was standing ,"ON DEADLY GROUND."

Being nice is overrated

2006-05-23T21:00:00.000-07:00

Christians should be nice and polite whenever possible. However, being “nice” often gets way too much credit. It is a mistake to believe that maintaining a pleasant demeanor at all times is the highest form of demonstrating Christ’s love. Let me illustrate….
This weekend I went to my sister in laws college graduation at a major state university; this institution has rightfully earned a reputation as being a major “party school.” It was my first time at this university and since I attended a “Christian” college, got married, had a baby and work in a church; I felt that I was quite out of place. The longer I was in this environment the more I felt unnerved at some of the students’ behavior and began to insult these people in my mind, although I remained pleasant and friendly on the outside. I am glad that my thoughts remain in my head because it is so much easier to be nice when people can’t hear what I am thinking. Later in the day I was at the graduation ceremony and sat back and watched the people around me, and came to realize the nastiness of my heart at that moment. God ruthlessly loves these people, so much that he died for them, and here I believe my own hype that I am better off because I am more polite. I was better behaved than most of the students around me, but God brought to my attention that I am no different than any other human. It is a humbling reminder to know that I have done nothing of my own merit to earn good standing with the God of the universe. Being well behaved is a good thing, but this will not save me! Though I felt guilty for being so unloving, I am thankful that God was not at all surprised at the depth of sin creeping around in my heart (I need to stop being surprised myself). I am even more thankful that through Christ, God doesn’t see the crud in my life, rather, He sees me clothed in Christ, and this pleases Him. We’ll talk about this tomorrow night as we look at Romans chapter 3 and discuss the richness of the gospel.

Miyagi Know Karate

2006-05-15T12:32:00.000-07:00

I don’t know about you but I miss those old classic movies like Casablanca, Gone with the wind and the Karate Kid. The karate Kid was about a 17-year-old guy named Daniel Laruso who moved from New Jersey to L.A. with his mother. Daniel got in trouble with the local bullies (most appropriately named ‘Cobra Kai’), who beat him up daily. Daniel was outnumbered, was too small and was too weak to fight Cobra Kai. What could he do? This is where I believe the crux of the movie takes place, Mr. Miyagi, the local handyman, steps into Daniel’s world and defends him.
Miyagi takes Daniel under his wings, teaches him how to listen, how to work hard and how to believe in himself. Miyagi teaches Daniel how to fight and eventually beat the Cobra Kai, but most importantly, Miyagi teaches Daniel about life, friendship, honor and Love. I am still outraged that the Karate Kids did not win any Oscar’s or Academy awards…
Two things I have learned in life are that, first; there aren’t many guys in this world like Mr. Miyagi, wise men willing to share their life with a young kid. The second thing that I have learned is that when a guy like Miyagi does come along, it’s time for me to listen.
Proverbs 13:14 states, “The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life, turning a man from the snares of death.”
Wednesday night we have an awesome treat. Dr. Paul Toms, who is an 80-year-old man of God, who is a tremendous man of character, will be sharing his wisdom with us.
I am really excited; I’ll see you at Church

Ben Youngkin

Announcements
Hume Lake- June 18-24. We have a few spots left.

Mexico- June 9-16

"VMA" night

2006-05-08T18:13:00.000-07:00

It’s time for the 1st annual Grace Bible V.M.A’s (Video music awards)!
Come experience the thrill, the joy, the laughter and the tears as we watch the final edited, ready to go awesome videos that we have been making these past few weeks. We will have some sweet games, some killer prizes, and healthy movie food like popcorn, sour patch kids and milk duds. The goal of the night is simple; we expect to have a great time together. So, invite a friend, wear some nice threads and expect the unexpected.
*During a screening of these videos over the weekend in Los Angeles we’ve accumulated some rave reviews. Here are what some celebrities said about the Grace Bible Student Videos…

Tom Cruise said, “ I thought Mission impossible three was action packed, but after seeing these videos; man alive, they made MI3 look like an Anne of Green Gables flick.”

George Lucas stated, “Superb. I haven’t seen special effects of this magnitude in my life. I thought we hit the ceiling of what mankind could do with computer graphics when we made Yoda’s last fight scene, but whew…. This is unbelievable. I’m just mesmerized right now, I think I need to sit down.”

Jim Carrey said, “ These videos were so funny and original. I believe these videos will revolutionize the world of humor in the same way the ‘three stooges’ did.”

See you all Wednesday night!

Ben Youngkin

Announcements
Hume lake- June 18th-24th

Mexico missions’ trip- July 9th-15th

Why I am so extremely cool

2006-05-03T15:58:00.000-07:00

When I was a child I was labeled as an "extremely gifted and talented" child, and was enrolled in very prestigious schools. I was never sure why everyone was so enamored with my skills; maybe it was because I wrote the musical score for Cats, or maybe it's because I invented cotton candy. Personally, I think my fame is due to the fact that I have created really good music videos for the likes of U2, the backstreet boys, Pat Benatar, Metallica, Queen, 50 cent, Barbara Streisand and so on. whatever the case, it's my life and I just gotta live it.
Tomorrow night we will be in our Home groups making music videos.
Bring costumes, accessories, and whatever else you need to make your video great.
Next week we'll be back at the church watching these videos.
Make your videos great! It's like the time I told Justin Timberlake, "Yo, J. It is very important that your videos are top- quality. Shoot for the stars and if you miss, chances are you'll land on the moon. Go big or go home J.T.!" And now look at him..

Ben Youngkin

Honoring God with our eyes

2006-04-25T14:00:00.000-07:00

Job said, "I made a covenant with my eyes not to look with lust upon a young woman.” (Job 31:1). I wonder why Job would look at a female Lustfully in his time. Didn’t the women in Job’s time and location wear bedding around their bodies and heads? I think they dressed like ninjas. So, why would Job even be tempted to look at women lustfully? The Bible says in Jeremiah that, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” Lust is ultimately a problem of the heart and Job knew this. Since the beginning of time, men and women have gazed upon one another with self-serving, perverted intentions. We can ruin anything that was intended to be good. Give a little boy a stick and he’ll turn it into a weapon.
What about us? Do we even have a chance for Holiness in the day and age we live in today? We are bombarded with Pornographic images on the computer, television, camera cell phones, friends, family etc. If Job knew that he must guard his eyes in the time where women dressed like Ninjas; as Christians today, how much more must we be aware of what we are looking at? Let’s be like Job, who was aware of the sinfulness of his heart. And let’s make the covenant to honor God with our eyes and hearts.
We’ll talk more about this tomorrow night. See you there.

In Christ,
Ben Youngkin

Baby Bella

2006-04-18T13:46:00.000-07:00

Do you love me more than these?

2006-04-12T11:12:00.000-07:00

What are you most passionate about? What is it that you live to do? What defines who you are? We are gripped inwardly by lofty goals and dreams, these passions are what guide the way we think and live. We all possess unique gifts; maybe its’ a specific gift that you have that sets you apart from all your peers, or maybe you excel in some sport or musical talent, perhaps you feel your personality or smarts are what define you. Ultimately, all of our gifts and talents are God given; but what if God walked into your room, sat on your floor and asked you flat out to leave your greatest passion at the door and never look back? What if God asked you to trust Him completely, leaving all your dreams behind to follow His lead without even knowing where you're headed?
Peter was a fisherman, born and raised. Peter’s skills weren’t exactly transferable to other career fields, first century Jewish fisherman couldn’t just wake up one day and decide to be a lawyer or a florist. Peter knew fish, boats, lures, nets and water. In God’s master plan though, Peter wasn’t just a fisherman, in fact, Peter’s fishing skills were precisely what stood in the way of being fully used for God’s ultimate purpose. Tomorrow night we’ll look at how Jesus walked into Peter’s work, sat down and had a heart to heart with Peter about fishing. See you at Church.

Fresh Bread

2006-03-28T12:30:00.000-08:00

There is a new show on ABC called, “The American inventor.” It’s a good show, even though some people have the worst inventions ever and are in total denial about it. I have had some amazing ideas for inventions in my lifetime; one that I really think would be awesome would be to make Cologne that smells like freshly baked bread. People love the smell of fresh bread… its genius!
In John chapter 6, Jesus feeds 5000 people a meal of fish and fresh bread. The people loved it (see, people have always liked bread). Later in the chapter Jesus tells all these people that HE is bread and that if they eat Him they will not die. What the heck is that all about? Tomorrow night we will be together at the Church studying John 6 and Jesus’ crazy ideas about bread. See you there

What our teachers teach us..

2006-03-14T11:33:00.000-08:00

In school, who was your favorite teacher ever? Why? I remember my 6th grade teacher Mrs. Strommer. Mrs. Strommer was the first teacher that ever sat me down and told me that she believed I was smarter than I gave myself credit for. I think she even used the word “Mature” and said it very sophisticatedly Muh-Tour. Boy was she wrong. Actually, Mrs. Strommers encouragement changed my perception about myself, which in turn, motivated me to work harder and do better. I thank her for believing in me. We would all agree that teachers have great influence in our lives, for good and bad.
Tomorrow night will be awesome. We have four local High school Christian teachers (who are all excellent teachers) coming to share their lives with us. We will see a side of these teachers that we have not seen before. We will be playing games, eating, hanging out, worshipping our God, and hearing about our teachers’ lives and faith. They will teach us in a different way tomorrow night.

These are the teachers:
ARROYO GRANDE HIGH SCHOOL: Mr. Jason Schmidt and Mr. Sam Vonderheide
NIPOMO HIGH SCHOOL: Mr. Blake Bristol and Mr. Rob Scherrei

See you tomorrow night!
Ben

Are you ready for some soccer?

2006-03-07T11:46:00.000-08:00

Did you ever play on a soccer team as a little kid? Soccer usually is the first team sport that children play. You are responsible for three things in little kid’s soccer; don’t touch the ball with your hands, kick the ball in the green teams net, and finish your game with some Capri suns and fresh cut orange slices. MMMM oranges…. Youth soccer is great because it is simple as long as you understand your role.

It’s simple math: Kick ball in goal + do not use hands +delicious oranges= Fun for everyone

Don’t you wish life were so simple? I wish I knew exactly what God wanted me to do today, tomorrow, and ten years from now. Dana Ostby, who is our Pastor for Global Outreach, will be sharing tomorrow night about God’s basic plan for reaching our world, and what our role is in the game. We might even bring oranges and Capri suns!

Fighting the consumer mentality

2006-02-20T16:38:00.000-08:00

When I go grocery shopping, I find that one of the most difficult things for me do is to choose a cereal. Do I go for a whole grain, bark tasting, awkward named cereal that is healthy? Do I go for a tasty cereal such as ‘Reese’s Puffs’ and sacrifice nutrition? How much should I spend on cereal? As the customer I get to choose, I have options, I am the boss. Because we live in an age in which we have so many options and decision to make about anything and everything, many of us Americans have adopted a consumer mentality. We have a mindset, which is constantly asking the question, “what do I get out of this?” This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but one of the scariest things about this mentality is when we start asking the question, “what do I get out of this?” when it pertains to our relationship with God. Do I obey him when it works for me or do I obey even when it is difficult? Do I let the world tell me who He is, or do I let His word?
Wednesday night we will look at some passages in the Bible that describes God’s view of consumer Christianity.

How do you respond to those who have hurt you?

2006-02-14T13:35:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentines Day to you all! Tomorrow night we will be talking about the story of Joseph and his brothers. We will see how badly Joseph was rejected by his own family, where God was during this dark time, and how the conflict ended. My hope is that we will be able to focus on dealing with those who have hurt us in our own lives. Often times when we have been wronged we are told to “get over it”, “move on” or “give it to God”, but how do we do this when we are hurting?
Honestly, I didn’t mean to schedule the topic of rejection the day after Valentines Day, but… some of you may need some encouragement on Wednesday night anyway. See you there.

In Christ,
Ben Youngkin

Worship

2006-02-07T09:47:00.000-08:00

I heard someone say, "worshipping God is the only thing that God does not do for Himself that we can do". I don't know about you, but when I think about that my first reaction is, "why me?" Does God NEED me?
It's like when I was 5 years old and my dad would ask me to "help" him fix the car. I am not sure, but I think he would have been just fine without all my auto skills. The car still would have been fixed with or without me. So why ask me to help? My guess is that it brings our parents great joy when we help them because they love seeing us participate in what they are doing. They value seeing us enjoy the things that they enjoy, teaching us, being with us, and showing us good things. I think worship is like this.
Wednesday night we will be praising God through music, prayer, drama and fellowship.

Making the team

2006-01-31T15:20:00.000-08:00

In junior high school I tried out for the 7th grade boys basketball team. I never played organized basketball before, but I had a hoop in front of my house that I practiced on every day, honing my mad hoop skillz. Then there were try-outs, for a full week I went to early morning try-outs and worked my tail off, and on that last day I was cut. There is nothing worse than being rejected.
The next year I worked harder, grew a little bit, and played better. I made the team.
I think I averaged about three minutes of playing time each game and I averaged about 4 fouls during that time period, I was probably the worst player on the team. I didn’t care though because I was ON THE TEAM! I was part of something noble and valiant, I mattered, I had a role.
I am sure that each of you have felt like outsiders, but I hope that in the body of Christ you feel that you are valued.
Tomorrow night we will be back in our home groups, please join us, we aren’t the whole team without you.

In Christ,
Ben Youngkin

Please pray
Gayle Miller, one of our leaders and the mother of Benjamin and Matthew have undergone Chemotherapy for her cancer. Pray that God would be their joy and comfort during these tough times. We will have access to a website that will allow us to sign up to serve the Miller family. For now, call us at 489-4200. Ask for Lyn

Home groups
Directions:
JUNIORS AND SENIORS
Lee and Nancy Beckstrom’s home
1531 Hillcrest, Arroyo Grande 481-7812
Driving on Oak Park Blvd from Church toward Grand Avenue,
Turn Left on Newport (just like you were going to the Miller's house)
Turn Left at the first stop sign you come to (that will put you onto Hillcrest Drive)
We are at 1531 Hillcrest -- which is the house in the back
Park in the street, not in the driveway

FRESHMEN
Brent and Jane Kostiw’s home
401 La Canada, Arroyo Grade
481-1042
Directions:
Leaving from the church, go left on
Rodeo Drive.
Left on James Way.
Turn right on La Canada.

SOPHOMORES
Ron and Gayle Miller’s home
1904 Newport, Grover Beach
481-4806
Oak Park Drive towards Burger King (Home of the flame broiled whopper)Left on Newport

The "B sharps" - Album Title: Luv Songs

2006-01-31T15:01:00.000-08:00

Hear the hit singles: You so crazy Deale with it
and I would cross the ocean, I would leap over a Giant to get to you

Boy Band- " The B sharps"

2006-01-31T14:48:00.000-08:00

Bonus track: My woman is like a slurpee: cold to the core and givin me brain freeze

Hume Lake

2006-01-24T15:38:00.000-08:00

As you can see, we had a good time at Hume lake. Tomorrow night we will have a sweet slide show accompanied by some sort of Nostalgic music that will make even the toughest guys cry.
Here are some pictures from our weekend. There will be more pictures posted in the coming days.
The theme was "Go", we focused on what it means for us as Christians to live as Christ in our communities and families. God is always good!

Tommorrow night Summer will teach on what it means to be a Godly son/daughter/ brother/ or sister. See you tomorrow, Ben

What's that smell?

2006-01-17T11:14:00.000-08:00

During my college years my friends and I played lots of “jokes” on each other. One night I was in the local grocery store and I walked through the “delicacies” area and stumbled upon a curdled goldmine called Limburger cheese. I don’t know how to describe the smell of Limburger, but it is probably a cross between a porta-potty and a warm, humid, jungle. Anyways, it smells much worse than that when you put it in your friends heating vents and blast the heater on a cold Chicago night while they are at a movie.
One of the most fascinating things to me in this entire world is that some people love the taste and smell of that cheese. That cheese is considered a “treat” to some and it’s aroma is pleasant.
Second Corinthians says that because of Christ we give off a sweet fragrance to God. And to those who are open, the message of God smells great, but too much of the world the message smells like death. It’s amazing that the same smell can create such opposite responses. See you tomorrow night.

Hume Lake High School Trip

If you are going to Hume, we will be meeting at 8:30am on Thursday morning! Pack as light as you possibly can.
We will be returning between 5 and 6pm Sunday night.

Magic mountain

2006-01-13T09:39:00.000-08:00

We had great time at Magic mountain.
Arianna (Middle picture on the left) raved, "Magic mountain was truly....dare I say ...MAGICAL. It was a fusion of excitement and poetic splendor. I believe the engineers of these gargantuan, modern marvels deserve all the monetary benefits that accompany them in this lucrative business. "
Ryan Deal(Below with the headphones on) added, "I like rides! They are awesome! They go upside down."

magic mountain photos

2006-01-12T11:06:00.000-08:00

Gravitrons rule!!

We Love Rob. He is way awesome!

2006-01-02T11:11:00.000-08:00

Rob will be leading the worship team for the last time on Wednesday night. Thanks for everything Rob! Come celebrate with us tomorrow night as Rob leads us in a new years worship celebartion. Details below.

Next year at this time I will be in GREAT shape. I hope

2006-01-02T10:39:00.000-08:00

I have a neat little wager with my Dad and brothers for the new year. First one to lose 30lbs wins respect, honor, and more imporatantly an IPOD. I like the new year because it allows us to sit back, evaluate our lives and set new goals.
I think the best thing we can possibly do is to start our new year in prayer and praise as we contemplate the awesome Holiness of our mighty God.

Psalm 24
1 The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it;
2 for he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters.
3 Who may ascend the hill of the LORD ? Who may stand in his holy place?
4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false.
5 He will receive blessing from the LORD and vindication from God his Savior.
6 Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek your face, O God of Jacob. Selah

Dinner and a movie

2005-12-29T12:15:00.000-08:00

To all of you who joined us last week, I hope that you enjoyed yourself. I had agreat time. It was a great blessing to have your families hanging out, eating and relaxing with us.

We are truly a blessed people to be part of a Church that enjoys being with one another. Our God is good!

Check out the calendar- For January events and schedules

He really does exist!

2005-12-20T09:22:00.000-08:00

Proof that Santa is real, and that He does enjoy Mocha-Chai latte's.

Practice makes permanent

2005-12-19T18:14:00.000-08:00

I had a football coach that used to say, "practice makes permanent". He usually said it when we weren't practicing well.
What we continually do is what we will become.
As you visit with family, play lot's of video games, hang out with friends and eat lots of figgy pudding, remember that God is with you. Enjoy this time with him, thank him for it every chance you get. This is great practice for becoming a thankful person.

Remember wednesday night is dinner and a movie. 5:00pm dinner, 7:00 Narnia.

Ally, Heather, Mikee, Jordan and Evan seving at VBS. (Mikee was eating the paste)

The pictures tell the story....last wednesday's "fun" event

2005-12-19T18:04:00.000-08:00

Last week

2005-12-19T17:51:00.000-08:00

I am not sure what to say Daniel...

Dennis Royer-
Right before he smashed his guitar at the end of a rockin worship session. Rock on D-Roy!!

wednesday night pictures

2005-12-13T14:23:00.000-08:00

Meet Gregory Delacroix. Greg is a new leader in our youth ministries, he brings a wealth of knowlege and says" I have a real passion for helping boys grow into young men of character". He will be working with the freshman guys.

Next week's dinner and a movie

2005-12-13T13:52:00.000-08:00

Students and families,
Next week we will be meeting at the Church at 5:00pm for a well balanced, nutritiuos yet deliciuos chili dog dinner. Afterwards we will be headed to the 7:00 showing of "The lion the witch and the wardrobe", transportaion will be provided.

$10 will get you dinner and into the movie theater. There will be no alternative youth group that night.

We need to know by this friday if you and your family are coming. We will only buy as many tickets as are requested in advance.

Hurting my brother C.J.

2005-12-13T13:45:00.000-08:00

Wouldn’t you think that when our parents told us to love our brothers and sisters we would know exactly what to do, or maybe even better, what not to do? Growing up I always knew that I should love my brothers, but I somehow still broke my younger brothers arm on two separate occasions and sent him down a hill on a bike with no brakes which caused a nasty spill and a bunch of stitches in his head. 75% of the first half of my life was dominated by my parents siting me down and looking me in the eyes and saying "you need to be nice to C.J."
Why do people hurt each other? Shouldn’t we just know how to Love people properly? God knows us, He knows how we are consumed by our own selfishness, and He knows that we are clueless and careless when it comes to other people. The first four of the Ten Commandments (which we looked at last week) have to do with our relationship with God and the last six have to do with how we are to live in relation to others. On Wednesday night we will study these last six commandments, what they meant for Israel as a community and what their implications are for us in our lives today.

The ten commandments

2005-12-08T12:08:00.000-08:00

When Caitie and I were dating I was always on my best behavior. I would write her little love notes, when we were on dates I would use my napkin instead of my sleeve, and I would always try to act like a gentlemen. I did what I could to let here know that I cared about her, that I wanted to impress her and that I wanted to win her heart. On our wedding day we traded vows, we made strong promises to each other, we set up guidelines that would allow our marriage to stay strong through the good times and the bad. God does this with us. In the Old Testament God did the same thing with the Israelites. He brought them out of Egypt, showed them his love and protection and then made a covenant with them. This covenant if kept would ensure that their relationship would flourish.

Sunday morning and wednesday night

2005-12-08T11:34:00.000-08:00

Left-Jacquie leads upperclassmen in a Bible study, Mikee is angry that there are no pictures.

Above- Kenny and Rob fight over Ben.

Ben is awesome

2005-12-08T10:50:00.000-08:00

I am the best. I rule.