Last week  I had the joy of being in Nick’s presence. He stopped at our church for a little while… thanks to Fred Gonglach. Nick’s message is good for all ages. It would benefit your youth group if you purchased one of Nick’s DVD’s and showed it to them during their weekly meeting.

For those of you that love to follow certain blogs, make sure you bookmark Nick Vujcic blog.

Finally, during his meeting with us Nick mentioned a video on youtube… watch it below (this video has 2 parts):

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Since I work with both high school and college age students, I am always looking for relevant materials. The transition from HS to college can be very hard. The challenges that come with being in college take many christian students by surprise. This book is an excellent gift for any HS student. You can get it very cheap at: www.christianbook.com

Product Description

We all have choices, and the choices made in college shape the rest of our lives. So how can students prepare for the academic, social, emotional and spiritual challenges they face? Knowing the struggles that come from peers and professors, Alex McFarland will help students prepare by asking and thinking through the big questions that, if defined, make wise decision-making a way of life.

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Young men and women need to here the words of  Psalm 119: 9-11 and take them to heart:

⁹ How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word.

¹⁰ I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands.

¹¹ I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.

Following are some fast facts from “Church Leaders Intelligence Report.” (Subscribe to the free Church Leaders Intelligence Report by clicking here.)

1. In the next hour, 46 teenage girls will have abortions.

2. In the next hour, 1,370 of our youth will take an illegal drug.

3. 57% of all illegal drugs are sold on school campuses.

4. The stress of school keeps 68% of students awake at night, with 20% of them at least once a week.

5. In the next 30 minutes, 29 kids under age 18 will make a serious attempt at suicide.

6. 100,000 ten-year-olds get drunk at least once a week.

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My past is more than a reminder,
it is the very thing that haunts me,
it traps my mind in cage from which I can’t find an escape.
my past feeds my shame until I can no longer breathe,
I weighs down on me until….
it feels no movement.
My past infects my soul,
leaving nothing left but hole,
a hole that I willing feed until there is nothing left of me.
then I reach a point where I weigh my life to see what its worth
trying to decide whether to take my own breathe or not,
its my darkest hour….I hide myself from everything. Wanting to disappear
it’s like being lost in a forest, blind and completely helpless.
Not know what to do or where to go…..
Only because I have run from Him to pursue a life not worth living
finally at rock bottom I call out to my very creator
my lord, my God
I remember David and his psalms.
I begin to say them aloud to myself, “even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil.”
I quote it louder and louder until iam screaming it.
It is then I remember why I don’t have to fear.
and at that moment God takes a hold of me and becomes….
my eyes
my light
my path
God I have nothing left of me, take me and make me into whatever you want
god you were there when I was lost and helpless
you gave me the strength to go on
no matter the trials or hardships or evils that my exist
god gave me a way out…..
Even in my darkest hour!

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Christians, when they have lived up to the highest ideals of their faith, have defended the weak and vulnerable and worked tirelessly to protect and strengthen vital institutions of civil society, beginning with the family. We are Orthodox, Catholic, and evangelical Christians who have united at this hour to reaffirm fundamental truths about justice and the common good, and to call upon our fellow citizens, believers and non-believers alike, to join us in defending them. These truths are (1) the sanctity of human life, (2) the dignity of marriage as the conjugal union of husband and wife, and (3) the rights of conscience and religious liberty. Inasmuch as these truths are foundational to human dignity and the well-being of society, they are inviolable and non-negotiable. Because they are increasingly under assault from powerful forces in our culture, we are compelled today to speak out forcefully in their defense, and to commit ourselves to honoring them fully no matter what pressures are brought upon us and our institutions to abandon or compromise them. We make this commitment not as partisans of any political group but as followers of Jesus Christ, the crucified and risen Lord, who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

Human Life

The lives of the unborn, the disabled, and the elderly are ever more threatened. While public opinion has moved in a pro-life direction, powerful and determined forces are working to expand abortion, embryo-destructive research, assisted suicide, and euthanasia. Although the protection of the weak and vulnerable is the first obligation of government, the power of government is today often enlisted in the cause of promoting what Pope John Paul II called “the culture of death.” We pledge to work unceasingly for the equal protection of every innocent human being at every stage of development and in every condition. We will refuse to permit ourselves or our institutions to be implicated in the taking of human life and we will support in every possible way those who, in conscience, take the same stand.

Marriage

The institution of marriage, already wounded by promiscuity, infidelity and divorce, is at risk of being redefined and thus subverted. Marriage is the original and most important institution for sustaining the health, education, and welfare of all. Where marriage erodes, social pathologies rise. The impulse to redefine marriage is a symptom, rather than the cause, of the erosion of the marriage culture. It reflects a loss of understanding of the meaning of marriage as embodied in our civil law as well as our religious traditions. Yet it is critical that the impulse be resisted, for yielding to it would mean abandoning the possibility of restoring a sound understanding of marriage and, with it, the hope of rebuilding a healthy marriage culture. It would lock into place the false and destructive belief that marriage is all about romance and other adult satisfactions, and not, in any intrinsic way, about the unique character and value of acts and relationships whose meaning is shaped by their aptness for the generation, promotion and protection of life. Marriage is not a “social construction,” but is rather an objective reality—the covenantal union of husband and wife—that it is the duty of the law to recognize, honor, and protect.

Religious Liberty

Freedom of religion and the rights of conscience are gravely jeopardized. The threat to these fundamental principles of justice is evident in efforts to weaken or eliminate conscience protections for healthcare institutions and professionals, and in antidiscrimination statutes that are used as weapons to force religious institutions, charities, businesses, and service providers either to accept (and even facilitate) activities and relationships they judge to be immoral, or go out of business. Attacks on religious liberty are dire threats not only to individuals, but also to the institutions of civil society including families, charities, and religious communities. The health and well-being of such institutions provide an indispensable buffer against the overweening power of government and is essential to the flourishing of every other institution—including government itself—on which society depends.

Unjust Laws

As Christians, we believe in law and we respect the authority of earthly rulers. We count it as a special privilege to live in a democratic society where the moral claims of the law on us are even stronger in virtue of the rights of all citizens to participate in the political process. Yet even in a democratic regime, laws can be unjust. And from the beginning, our faith has taught that civil disobedience is required in the face of gravely unjust laws or laws that purport to require us to do what is unjust or otherwise immoral. Such laws lack the power to bind in conscience because they can claim no authority beyond that of sheer human will.

Therefore, let it be known that we will not comply with any edict that compels us or the institutions we lead to participate in or facilitate abortions, embryo-destructive research, assisted suicide, euthanasia, or any other act that violates the principle of the profound, inherent, and equal dignity of every member of the human family.

Further, let it be known that we will not bend to any rule forcing us to bless immoral sexual partnerships, treat them as marriages or the equivalent, or refrain from proclaiming the truth, as we know it, about morality, marriage, and the family.

Further, let it be known that we will not be intimidated into silence or acquiescence or the violation of our consciences by any power on earth, be it cultural or political, regardless of the consequences to ourselves. We will fully and ungrudgingly render to Caesar what is Caesar’s. But under no circumstances will we render to Caesar what is God’s.

TO SIGN THIS DECLARATION GO TO www.manhattandeclaration.org/sign-the-declaration

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The following funny video proves that some men have a hard time changing a diaper. Enjoy!!!

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I have told you about *May who has breast cancer and her days left on this earth are few.  Each day I go and sit by her, talk with her, care for her and try to help her to be as comfortable as possible.  She lives under a grass mat shelter held up by four wooden posts and the walls of her shelter are made of an old blackboard and some sheets of fabric that used to be their clothes.  Her bed is a rotting grass mat that the ants have eaten holes in and she lays on an old wool blanket.  Her constant companion are the flies which gather from the smell of her rotting flesh as she lays waiting and watching her family working to survive each day.  She is the first wife of her husband who lives 100 kilometers away in the village with her “sister wife” and her four other children.  She came to Ati with her three year old son, her mother and father, looking for hope.
The Father usually speaks to me in the still of the night.  So, over the years of listening, I have learned to obey and not question the thoughts and Words He speaks in the wee hours of the morning.  Last week He woke me up with great conviction about laying His entire plan for life out before May and giving her an opportunity to choose Jesus.  I will admit, at first I started to think how would all of those arabic words come to make His story so clear from beginning to end.  The next morning, between patients God gave me the words to tell May and through His Spirit all the words came as I began to write.  After changing her dressing and getting her settled I asked May if God had told her something important to share with another should she obey God.  Her eyes got big and she said “of course”!  For the next 20 minutes there was silence as May, her son, her mother and father, her brother, an aunt, sister-in-law and several nephews and a stranger sat listening to God’s plan of salvation through Jesus Christ.  May has now heard the Road of Jesus and now she is asking God to show her which road is the right road, that of Mohammed or that of Jesus.
Now to the feet…..I don’t know if you know what feet look like after living in the desert, but they are quite gross!  Dirty, leathery, cracked bleeding hells and not very pretty!  When I returned to care for May the day after I shared the Gospel, I felt such a sweet soft touch on my feet as I was working.  I looked up and sitting at my feet was her three year old son gently rubbing and masaging my feet!  His grandfather tried to shoo him away, but he insisted and continued to wipe my feet with his hands.  Each day as I arrive he waits for me to get settled next to his mom and then he comes through those gathered around and takes his place, at my feet, wiping and rubbing as I work on his momma.  As those sweet tender hands minister to me the difficulty of cleaning rotting, tumor ridden flesh, agonizing over which pain medicine will take some of the pain and the anxiety of where she will spend eternity fades as the Father speaks that He is rubbing and masaging May’s heart, just as her son is washing my feet with his hands.

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For a long time I have been telling our students that their relationship with God is the most important thing in life. The second most important thing in life is who they will marry. After finishing high school, every young person dreams about becoming  independent, making money, and establishing themselves as productive adults. These are good things. However, there is the danger of focusing on these dreams and desires so much that we can very easily forget God. My prayer for our nine graduating seniors is that they will be successful (by God’s definition) in what they choose to do, and that they will continue to treasure and grow in their relationship with God.

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On the other hand I believe it is wise to be caution.

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In order to make their graduation special our church set aside a time in the morning service to recognize each one of them. During that time we shared with the congregation few things about each high school senior – what they have accomplished, some memories and where they plan to go from here.

At the end of the service we invited everyone to eat some cake and congratulate the seniors. It has been a blessing to see church members hug and share words of affirmation and encouragement with our HS graduates.

Several months ago while talking to one of the seniors, he suggested that he would like to have as a gift some photos (old and new) from different events he participated in while in youth group. So, I decided to put together a slide show with all of the seniors and show it to the congregation. It was such a great idea!

The following presentation was created with animoto.com

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