Crossroads

A couple weeks ago I mentioned having this sense of God really being at work doing something in my life, in the lives of people around me, and in the ministry of First Trinity.  One of the many places I see amazing things happen is in our high school ministry called Crossroads.  I realized this again this week as I prepared an e-mail to send to the parents of high school students updating them on what’s happening on the ministry.

Whether it’s a conversation over coffee (tea for me, please) at Panera or someone sharing their heart on a Thursday night, I see God is at work all over the place right now!  I’ve posted parts of that parent update e-mail (with some slight adaptations) below in hopes that you will all join me in continuing to pray for this ministry and what God is doing in the lives of these high schoolers each and everyday.

 
CROSSROADS CONNECT (Thursday Nights):

Thursday nights continue to be a great time for students to connect with each other, connect with God, and connect with the greater First Trinity community.  I have been amazed in this last month the ways I’ve seen God work through that more relaxed time to gather each week.  In our devotional times we’ve been taking turns sharing simple stories of where we’ve seen God at work at some point in our lives.   What amazes me is how often the stories shared have connected with things the high schoolers are facing that week as they stated in their “highs and lows” just moments before.  Two weeks ago we teamed up with Transformation Ministries, specifically Kingdom Quest to help prepare some journals that will be used in a service project with the younger kids.  This Sunday we will take a break from our normal Sunday School class to join the younger students as we personalize the journals and place them with games and other fun things in care bags for kids who find themselves at an area women’s and children’s shelter.

SUNDAY SCHOOL:

We recently wrapped up a series that followed along with the MOVE sermon series.  Each week we dug into what Scripture has to say about each of the spiritual habits and brainstormed specific ways high schoolers could put those habits into practice in thier lives.  At the end of the series, each student was challenged to create a plan that would help them spend time with God each day along with some options for accountability from peers and/or leaders.

We’re now two weeks into our series called “CLASH!” which is focused on when we clash with other people in relationships and/or when our beliefs clash with culture.  We started the series looking at places where Jesus clashed with the people around him and discussed how, at times as Christians, we may be called upon to clash with culture as well.  Now we’ve started discussing what to do when we find ourselves in conflict with family or friends.  Whether it’s disagreeing with their parents about a curfew time or dealing with a friend who may be acting more like an enemy, the prayer is that we’d be able to put on the clothes Paul talks about in Colossians 3 (things like compassion, humility, patience, love, etc.) and seek to shine Jesus in the midst of conflicts.  A few weeks from now we’ll start really looking at some difficult or controversial topics (homosexuality, abortion, creation/evolution, etc.) and how to interact with people who may have different views that we do on these topics especially in light of God’s Word.

WORKCAMP:

We have 24 youth and 6 adults signed up for Workcamp this year and I couldn’t be more excited.  This year’s theme is based on Revelation 21:5 where Jesus says, “Look! I am making everything new!”  Last month First Trinity was invited to send two representatives from our adult leadership team to what is called Workcamp ReGroup at Group Publishing Headquarters in Loveland, CO.  Stephanie Mongielo and I had the opportunity to gather with 40 other youth leaders from across the country to field test this year’s spiritual programming elements with 35 Loveland high school students.  It was a blessing to hear ideas of how to make Workcamp an even more effective part of our ministry while connecting and being encouraged by other youth leaders.

THINGS TO PRAY ABOUT RELATED TO HIGH SCHOOL MINISTRY:

• The seniors that are busy figuring out scholarship, college choices, etc.  Pray that the last few months of high school is a fun filled, encouraging time for them and that God gives them wisdom in all the decisions they’re making.
• Workcamp – It’s never too early to start praying about what God is going to do in and through our team in July in Wilmington, NC!
• Ongoing programs – Pray for the programs mentioned above and that every time we gather Jesus is present and his love is crystal clear.
• Volunteers – We couldn’t do this with out amazing volunteers.  Pray for them, encourage them, thank them.
• ASK THE YOUTH! – Ask youth you see what things go on in youth group or at their schools that you can be praying about.  You might be amazed at what’s on their hearts and minds.