Love INC 2012

Every year our church gets to participate in a really great local ministry called Love INC. This week we are the Church of the Week and we get to partner with Love INC and help them as they deliver much needed furniture, clothing, food and other necessities to local families in need. 

Yesterday morning a big group from our church, including a lot of our Jr. High and High School students and their families, met up at the Love INC warehouse and prepared for our day of service! I was so proud of our students and their families for giving up their holiday off of school and work to spend the day serving others. We have such wonderful people at our church! 

We were split up into different groups and all were given different items to deliver to local families. Our group was given a king sized bed, a twin bed, sheets, pillows, a comforter, a TV and some kitchen and bathroom necessities to deliver to two different homes in Sacramento. The twin bed went to the cutest 7-year-old girl who had been sleeping on the floor and was SO excited to have a very own bed of her own to sleep in that night! What a blessing to be able to be a part of making that happen for her! 

We also got a chance to pray for both of the families that we delivered furniture to and it was so cool to stand hand and hand with them and pray for hope, restoration and God's provision in each of our lives. 

I loved hearing the stories from our other groups (I think we had 11 total that went out just yesterday!). Each one had a cool story to tell about how they were blessed through this experience. Our church will be other there the rest of this week, helping out as well and I look forward to hearing even more great stories from everyone else who serves this week! 

Below are a few of the pictures I took yesterday of our wonderful church family serving together! If you haven't signed up to serve for Love INC yet this week and you are a part of Living Water, it's not too late to sign up! You won't be sorry! 

Season of Giving

I really love the months of November and December because of the focus on being thankful and giving to others. During this season, more than any other time of the year, I feel like our focus is more on others than on ourselves and it is wonderful to look at our calendar and see so many upcoming events that involve giving our time and resources to those in need, spending time with each other and being thankful for what God has given us.

At Living Water we have so many great opportunities to give and to serve in these next two months. I have listed a few below that we are specifically encouraging our youth and families to be a part of and there will be many other opportunities as well. As crazy as this season can become with family meals, shopping for gifts, decorating the house, traveling for the holidays, taking advantage of some of these opportunities to be thankful and to serve others will make these months that much more beautiful and memorable for you and your family. We are looking forward to spending time and serving with you this season.

                                      

Sincerely,

Jessica

Top 10 Reasons to Be Part of a Youth Group

Last Wednesday night we had our Back to School Kick Off for our High School students and our Jr. High Group starts back up in just a few short weeks as well. We are officially back in full-swing youth group season and it feels good!

With everything else starting back up around this time of year as well- school, sports, extracurricular activities etc.- it can sometimes be difficult to fit church or youth group into the mix. I know when I was in high school between homework, competitive soccer, student council, youth group and Bible study, I could barely keep it all straight at times. With everything else our students have going on these days, I'm sure they sometime wonder why they should even bother to come to church or youth group?

While preparing for our Kick Off Last Week,  I came across this great article: "Top Ten Reasons To Be Part of a Youth Group." I liked it so much, I shared those ten reasons with our High School students at the Kick Off last week and wanted to share them with you all as well.

                                       

10.  Forgiveness   In any friendship, we make mistakes. Being part of a Christian group means we believe in forgiveness.

9.  Positivity The negativity of others can easily bring us down. In a Christian group, we believe we are created in God’s image and wants us to live a life of joy and purpose.

8.  Teamwork We look around our world and wish we could make a difference. In a Christian group, we are called to work together to make this a better world to live in.

7.  Direction It sometimes seems like there’s no right or wrong in the world we live in. Being in a Christian group can give us direction and help us to choose what is right and provides friends who will support us.

6.  Corporate Worship By ourselves, we don’t always feel close to God. Jesus promised that where two or three gather in his name – He is with them.

5.  Enthusiasm Many people don’t seem too excited about their faith. In a Christian youth group, most people are there because they want to be there. The enthusiasm is contagious.

4. Support  In a Christian group, we have others with whom we can pray and share our concerns.

3. Role Models  In a Christian group, Jesus is our role model and we have other leaders who strive to live like him.

2.  Friends In a Christian youth group, we can meet and bring friends who have the same needs we all have and who also need a supportive group of friends in their lives.

1. Community  In a Christian youth group, we are connected to the larger church that Jesus established. It is a place where we can know our God, grow in love and faith, and change the world we live in.

Those are just a few of the good reasons we encourage our students to be a part of our youth group and I'm sure you could add your own reasons as well! We are excited for this upcoming school year and everything God has to teach us as a part of his community.

Sincerely,

Jessica

Hume Lake Recap

Our High School Group just got back from a great week up at Hume Lake Christian Camps! We took 21 campers and 3 counselors up for a fun filled week of recreation, swimming, volleyball, zip lining, paint balling, ropes coursing and having a blast together. And in the midst of all of that, we also somehow fit in uplifting times of worship, great seminars. inspiring chapel messages and some awesome cabin talks as well. It was a great week, and I think we all learned a lot. In case you missed it at church on Sunday, or want to see it again, you can view our recap video by clicking HERE.

The theme for the week was The Phantastical Journey of the Wandering Lights and it told the story of the Israelites wandering through the dessert and into the promised land. The story revolved around the theme of God's sufficiency. That idea is easy to say you believe, but can be a constant challenge to put into action. Even when God's sufficiency has been magnificently displayed, we still tend to reject or forget it. At Hume we saw this struggle in the story of the Israelites as they literally followed the visible presence of God out of Egypt, yet still rejected, replaced, and simply forgot His provision and guidance. I think we were all challenged by this story and the teachings to constantly trust that in Christ we truly can find everything we need.

If you want to check out the official Hume Lake recap video, the Phantastical Journey of the Wandering Lights production, or listen to our speaker's nightly messages, you can access all of these by clicking HERE! I highly encourage you to check it out if you haven't already, the videos are great and the speaker's messages are wonderful as well. Enjoy!

Sincerely,

Jessica

Mexico Recap!

As some of you may know, we just got back a few weeks ago from a life-changing mission trip to Mexico! We spend a week in El Porvenir, which is a small town outside of Ensenada where we played a lot of soccer, served warm meals to families, led a VBS for children and saw God work in amazing ways both in and through our team.

One of our mantras during out week in Mexico was "I am 3rd!" This meant that we were intentionally putting God first, others second and then our own needs after that. It is amazing how often we think about our own needs and wants before things God might have for us to do or what needs others may have around us. This mantra also became a fun way to recognize others on our team when we saw them intentionally put the needs of others before their own. When a student would give up the front seat in the car for an adult leader or let a team member go in front of them in the food line, we would say something like, "Way to go, Micah, you are 3rd!"

This little mantra has stuck with me even after we have returned from our trip. I have caught myself many times wanting to put myself and my needs first and then I suddenly remember, "I am 3rd!" The best part about this little saying is that it isn't only applicable on a mission trip, it is something that I can always be better about remembering in every day life.

I can let someone go ahead of me in the grocery store line or offer my coveted window seat to someone at the local Starbucks. These may seem like small ways to bless others, but the important part is not what is being done but my attitude in remembering that I am 3rd, that the needs of others should always be on my radar and not just when I'm in a foreign country.

Some of the coolest memories I have from this trip come from our nightly meetings when we would conclude our devotional time by nominating people for the "3rd Place Award." We'd spend sometime nominating those on our team who we had seen put themselves in 3rd place throughout the day and share how we saw them do this. It was such a cool time to build each other up and encourage the selflessness we saw in each other. It made me think how often I see someone do something selfless but never stop to say thank you. Wouldn't it be a cool tradition for a family at the end of the day or at the dinner table to take a few minutes to nominate family members for the 3rd place award? Not only are we encouraging selflessness but also building each other up at the same time!

Happy Summer!

School is out, the warm weather is here, pools are open; I'd say it's starting to look a lot like summer time. Which is awesome because I love summer! I love the sunshine, the BBQ, the warm summer nights, and most of all, I love that we get to hang out with teenagers all summer without silly school getting in the way. For me, summer is all about taking advantage of this extra time in our schedules, to make new friendships and build stronger relationships! We have so many fun things planned for our youth group this summer: our Mexico trip, Hume Lake, pool parties, ice cream socials, games nights and some quality time over coffee or frozen yogurt. It is so important for our students to build friendships with other Christian friends and adults who can be there for them and encourage them in their faith throughout their lives. This is what our fun events are all about. Yes, we may be eating hot dogs or throwing water balloons at each other and on the surface those things might not seem very important. But solid Christian friendships and relationships are built by spending time together and we are so excited about doing that this summer. We hope your students can join us!

Confirmation 2012

Congratulations to our eleven 8th graders who were confirmed last Sunday, April 22nd! These students have been working towards this momentous occasion for two years and they all did a wonderful job sharing their statements of faith with the congregation. I'm sure I am not the only one who was touched and inspired by these students sharing how God has been working in their lives.

I also want to say a special "Thank You" to Peter and Robin Aranda for helping prepare these students for this momentous occasion. Peter and Robin have been diligently serving this particular group of students for four years now. They began with this class back in Project 315 and have continued on with them until they were all confirmed last Sunday. They have been such an amazing model of commitment and dedication to the youth of our church.

                                 
These students absolutely love Peter and Robin and have come to look up to them as spiritual mentors in their lives. I have had the pleasure of watching them interact with the students as they teach them, encourage them and just simply have fun with them. They have been such a blessing to these students and God has certainly used them to encourage and develop these students over the past few years. Thanks Peter and Robin!

New High School Series Begins: Tough Questions

Through the end of April and into May we are going through a series entitled "Tough Questions." Throughout the duration of this series we will be discussing what to do with our doubts, how to look for answers to some of our more difficult questions about Christianity and how faith plays into all of this. We will be emphasizing that asking questions and expressing our doubts doesn't make us "bad Christians," but instead shows that we are taking our faith seriously and want to grow more and more confident in the hope we profess. As a part of this series student will get a chance to ask some of their tougher questions and at the end we will host a panel to discuss some of these questions further.

Holy Week

It's officially Holy Week and we are nearing the end of the Lenten season, a time of preparing our hearts for the celebration of Easter. I love that Easter falls during the spring, the time of year we can't help but think about new life as the trees are beginning to blossom, flowers are blooming and everyone's allergies are in full swing. Am I right?

But besides the allergy part, spring is such a great reminder of the new life we as Christians have because of what we celebrate this week. Christ's death and resurrection changes everything. It changed history and it changes our lives today. This week I am challenging myself to be grateful for the gift of new life in Christ and to do my best to exhibit the joy this new life brings.

Sticky Faith Video

Parents! Check out this great video all about helping our kids nurture a lifelong faith! It's a little long, but worth it, I promise. I saw Kara Powell at the National Youth Worker's Convention in October talking about a lot of this information and she does a great job of helping explain to and encourage youth workers and especially parents in ways to help our kids develop a faith that lasts. Check it out:

  

Jr. High Winter Retreat

We just got back from a great retreat up at Sierra Pines with our Jr. High students. We spent the weekend playing in the snow, sledding down hills, signing silly songs and learning more about trusting God with our lives. Our speaker for the weekend, John, talked about the importance of trusting God in every area of our lives, a lesson many of us can hear more than once. He spoke from Exodus and used the life of Moses as a great example of the important of trusting God.







We had a fun time and really enjoyed getting to know each other better on this trip. I heard many of the students commenting on how they had gotten to know someone better and built a friendship that wasn't there before this trip. I also heard from many students how much they learned from this weekend's talks and was impressed by how willing they were to ask questions and discuss the toptics further during our cabin time at night. I was especially impressed by a moment on  Saturday evening when all the students came together and prayed with each other. It was awesome to see these students really coming together and seeking God as a group.

 
God certainly did great things on this retreat! Thanks for those of you who contributed to making this trip a success. We had a great time!

Sincerely,

Jessica

New High School Series Begins!

We just began a new series on the season of Lent. During this series we will prepare our hearts for Easter by focusing on Fasting, Praying and Giving. We will also be focusing on the importance of Community in the church during the season of lent. We are not meant to live this Christian life alone. We all need each other in the family of God. As a result, this series will be marked by extended times of small group time and a focus on accountability and encouragement during these times.

We watched this video at youth group last night, which gives a short overview of what the season of Lent is all about! Check it out:

L.O.V.E.

People have mixed feelings about the month of February. Well maybe not the whole month of February, but at least that one day smack in the middle we like to call Valentines Day. Some people love the excuse to spend extra time with their loved ones. Others dread the expectations it creates and the inevitable disappointment for those whose expectations aren't met.

It is interesting to me that this "hallmark-ized" holiday is inspired by St. Valentine, a priest and eventual martyr for his faith. He is remembered for secretly marrying Christian couples in the time when the Roman state did not condone Christianity in any way. He was eventually arrested for this act, but instead of laying low after his arrest, he spent his time in prison trying to convert the emperor himself. That didn't go over too well. He was killed for this soon after.

I don't know about you, but I don't think I would be as brave as St. Valentine and dare try to convert the Emperor of the most powerful government in the world, especially after I had already been arrested for going against them in the first place. Yes, St. Valentine was a supporter of romantic love, secretly marrying Christian couples, but he was mostly concerned with showing his love for God through is actions no matter his circumstances.

While God is the creator of romantic love and knows how much joy these kind of relationships can bring us when they are blessed by him, he also tells us that his love for us far exceeds what we could ever imagine.

"Observe how Christ loved us. His love was not cautious but extravagant. He didn't love in order to get something from us but to give everything of himself to us. Love like that." Ephesians 5:2 (The Message)

And all he asks is that we try to show our love for him in return, by trusting him, following him, seeking after him and showing love to the people he has placed in our lives.

No matter our personal feelings about this February holiday, we can always work towards loving God and loving others better. And based on what little we know about him, this is probably exactly what St. Valentine would want us to do, and not just on February 14th, .

In His love,

Jessica

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

How is it already 2012? Man, time sure does fly when you are having fun. And boy did we have fun in 2011. 2011 was a big year for me and Nick. I graduated from Seminary, we traveled with family, we moved to Elk Grove, joined Living Water, Nick started working at a new school, and we bought our first house! Whew, no wonder it flew by for us right?

In the midst of all of the unknown and changes in 2011, I learned more than anything how much I need to rely on God for everything. I was telling Nick the other day that even though most people are not a fan of the month of January, I think there is something really great about it. There is a sense of a fresh start, new possibilities, setting goals and working towards achieving them. However, there is also a sense of incredible uncertainty; so many unknowns are held in 2012. It is easy to get overwhelmed at the thought.

However, after a year of seeing God provide for us in so many big and small ways, I have no choice but to sit back and anticipate what God might have in store for us in 2012. I know it will not always be easy. I know we will face trials, fears, anxiety, and who knows what else, in the year ahead. But I trust that through it all, God is right there with us and that makes me more and more confident that no matter what happens, 2012 will be a mysterious, wonderful, stretching, challenging, and exciting new year.

Blessing to you and your family this new year,

Jessica