Scott

thought I would post some pics from last nights Hurricane Party!  But before we get started, I just want to be clear - this event was in no way celebrating any hurricane that has recently or currently hit the U.S.A.  It is called a hurricane party because things are flying around, everyone gets wet, and everyone gets messy!  Enjoy…

Shaving Cream Hair-Do Contest:

Shaving Cream Filled Balloon Relay:

Oatmeal Clothespin Relay:

And then this happened:

what a great night.  hope you all have a good day!  peace out!

scott

if you’re just tuning in, this is my second post since my crazy summer and i am compiling a list of my top five favorite moments from the summer.

NUMBER TWO:

79ers Camp!  Halfway through July, I had the opportunity to head to Butler Springs Christian Camp for the week long camp for our Jr. High Students.  It was one of the most exhausting weeks of my life, but was totally worth it.  We had such a great group of kids.  There were 200 middle school students at camp that week, and 35 of them were from MCC.

We had an obstacle course one night where students had to perform a number of tasks in relay fashion, including bobbing for fish (whole fish - gills, eyes, fins, everything), a three legged race, eating watermelon, and crawling through the mud pit.  Of course, everyone ended up in the mud pit.

We had great worship, awesome speakers (wink), concerts, games, and so much more.  But most of all, it was such a growing experience for our students.   It was so fun to watch them as a group.  I spent most of the week with the guys, and at the beginning of the week they were not working too well together as a group.  There were numerous tasks they had to complete together throughout the week - team building competitions and the like - and there was a lot of bickering and poor attitudes at first.  But as the week progressed, you could see such a change in the boys.  They became more encouraging, more supportive, and they became very successful.  At the end of the week, there was such a sense of unity in the group, and I was so proud of them.

We had belly smacker competitions, a carnival night - with inflatables, games, and a live band.  We had a flour war, went on the zip-line, the giant swing, the high ropes course, the climbing wall, and the low ropes course.  And of course there was the American Idol night - but you’ll have to ask our middle school boys and girls about that yourself.

The week peaked on Thursday when several students committed their lives to Christ.  A few shared with me that they would maybe like to go into ministry when they grow up, and Robert Eyre decided to be baptized that Sunday when we got home.  Robert also won the bravest camper award when he downed a glass full of the most disgusting mixture of left-over lasagna, mashed potatoes, sweet tea, mountain dew, ranch dressing, mustard, and so much more.  It was awesome.

In the end, I was very sad to see the week come to an end.  Everyone had such a fabulous time, and it was so cool to see a group of young men and women praising God together all week long.  I am already looking forward to next year.

check back soon for number THREE on my list of favorite summer activities.

well hello again.  it has been a long time since my last post.  i would like to apologize first to all my avid fans who have been checking my blog all summer to no avail.  i know i let so many of you down, and for that i am sorry.  so in order to make up for my recent lack of blogging, i have compiled a list (in no particular order) of my top 5 favorite student ministry moments from this summer.  enjoy.

NUMBER ONE: Dayton 2008

For the past several years, our High School students have gone to the 5 day CIY Summer Conference early in June.  But this year, we decided to try something a little different.  CIY is a great opportunity for our students to hang out, meet new friends, and grow in their faith, but we wanted to truly challenge our students this year.  We wanted to give back to our church and our community through service.  Thus, Dayton 2008 was born - the mission trip to where we already are.  It was a blast.  Students spent 4 days camped out in tents - inside the gym.  We did various work projects around the church, providing some much needed maintenance on the building and the grounds.  We painted, we scraped, we cleaned, we landscaped, we served. It was so neat to watch these High School students give up time out of their busy summer schedules to come and serve our church.

We also had the opportunity to go to the Dayton Christian Center (a.k.a. the DXC) which has a Christian daycare center for inner city kids in Downtown Dayton.  We hung out with infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and elementry age kids all day!  It was so much fun just sharing the love of Christ with these kids.  We also went to their East Campus Donations Center and helped clean a garage that was completely (and I mean completely) jam packed with donations (floor to ceiling, wall to wall).  We hauled everything outside, organized it, cleaned the garage, and put things back nice and neat.  It was really hard work, but was very rewarding.

We finished each night with a bonfire at MCC, where we roasted marshmallows, played games, sang songs, and debreifed from our hard day’s work.  And finally, we finished the weekend off with a canoe trip.  All-in-all, it was one of the most fun, most rewarding, and most productive retreats I have ever been a part of.  I can’t wait to plan the next one, and I hope you will join me in congratulating our students and the adults that helped on a job well done.

May God bless you this week, and may you be a blessing upon others.  May the light of Christ shine brightly in your life, and may you lead others to the King.  Have a great week and look back soon with my NUMBER TWO.

Scott

in the third Harry Potter book, Hermione has this device that she wears around her neck that is shaped like an hourglass, and it has the ability to turn back time so she can go to 3 different classes that are all happening at the same time.  i need one of those….

it has been one full month since my last post.  with summer coming up and our sex and relationships series “LABELED” cranking along at full speed, it has been rather busy.  to top it all off, katie and I are moving downtown Miamisburg next week, katie’s parents are coming down this weekend, and my parents are coming down the following!  oh, and we also have a parents forum coming up this sunday evening and PROMISE 2008 on Wednesday, May 28th.   wowza.

all this to say, that I am sorry that my blog hasn’t seen much action lately.  but I think that it is okay.  it means my priorities have been somewhat in order, that we are getting things accomplished that need to be accomplished.  this parenting forum is going to be very very cool.  if you are a parent or grandparent or you just happen to know kids (you don’t even have to be related to them), I highly encourage you to come.  you will have a chance to look at the most current data and trends regarding your kids, and an opportunity to find ways to help them through this difficult time in their lives.

when it comes to sex and kids, many parents want to bury their heads in the sand.  but the kids need you.  they are immersed in a culture that celebrates premarital sex.  every add they see on the internet, every show on television, every movie in the theater is just loaded with glamorized, artificial, careless, superficial sex and they need your help to navigate through this maze that is modern adolescence.

for those students who want to commit to sexual purity, we encourage you to join us as we celebrate them at PROMISE 2008.  tickets are $5 per person, $20 max per family.  come enjoy a night of desert, music, fellowship, and celebration.

i hope to update this again before june, but no promises.  just kidding.  i promise.

later on

here is a short video that I found (actually Dave D. sent it to me) which does a good job explaining exactly what the Course In Miracles teaches and how far in Oprah has gotten herself.  I especially enjoyed the clip from the Oprah Winfrey Show where she is saying “there has to be millions of ways to God.”  and someone from the audience yells out, “why?  because YOU say so?”  check it out….

 and just to address one point:  the idea that God is JEALOUS should be flattering.  It is the single highest compliment that has ever been given.  The idea that the Creator of the universe does not wish to share you with anyone or anything, but wants you all to himself should do wonders for your self-confidence… but it does not stop there - the all-powerful, all-knowing Creator loves you enough to let you go, to choose for yourself if you will give yourself only to him, or if you will force him to share you, or reject him outright.  The idea that God is a jealous God is rooted in his qualities of love and justice.  It is only in our society that the word jealous has become twisted to evoke images of abusive husbands or stalker ex-boyfriends.  Oprah, let me know if you have any other questions that I can help with…;)

for now, its off to Chipotle for lunch!