Have I mentioned lately how much I love my job? If I haven’t, well it’s A LOT! Sometimes I even hate using the words “job” or “work” to describe my internship here at First Trinity because I just simply love what I get to do each day.
Anyway, I’ve decided that a lot of my friends/family back home (and even some of you here at First Trinity that are not directly connected with High School or College Ministries) never really hear about what I’m actually doing on this internship. To fix that I’ve decided that every once in a while I’d give an update about one specific area of ministry I’m focused on. While there are many I could start with, I’m really excited about Crossroads right now, specifically Crossroads CONNECT and thought I’d share about that first.
Crossroads (for those that don’t know) is the name of the high school minsitry here at First Trinity. This ministry makes up about half of my job description this year and deals with everything related to high school ministry… activities, events, Sunday school, summer trips etc. The idea behind the name “Crossroads” is that high schoolers often find themselves at a crossroads in the decisions they are making and Crossroads programs are aimed at connecting the ancient truth of God’s Word with real life issues of high school students. It comes from Jeremiah 6:16 which says:
“This is what the Lord says: ‘Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is and walk in it and you will find rest for your souls.”
A new Crossroads program started just four weeks ago and is called Crossroads CONNECT. This weekly gathering specifically for high school students meets on Thursday nights with three main goals:
- to connect high school students with Jesus (to connect “real life” and “faith” in high school students’ lives)
- to connect high school students with each other
- to connect high school students with the First Trinity Family as a whole.
Throughout the year we hope to reach these broad goals through many means including devotions, Bible studies, games, activities, service projects, and more.
What we do specifically each night kind of rotates. Once a month we will have a service project around church. This not only was a request of the students (to have more opportunties to do service projects) but will also help connect them to First Trinity as a whole as they explore opportunities to serve and see others who serve in the church. Once a month will be more games and activities. While we hope to create an environment every week where students would feel comfortable to invite their friends, this game night each month will be specifically geared toward inviting friends to check out Crossroads. The other weeks of each month are spent doing activities, Bible studies, etc. which dig deep into the issues high school students face and what God’s Word says about them.
So there’s kind of an overview of Crossroads CONNECT!
Want to pray for this new program? Here are some specific things to pray for:
– that God would continue to be present each week as we discuss real life issues and His Word
– for opportunities through this for students to connect with other congregation members and that God would provide adult volunteers passionate about these goals
– for the relationships that are being formed through this weekly gathering
– for students to be challenged to know God more and to show Him to their friends
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