Back to School Kick Off Video 2013

Merry Christmas!

Happy December! It is that magical time of Christmas music, egg nog, nativity sets and family gatherings. This Christmas is extra special for Nick and I as it is our first Christmas as parents. Growing up, my family had many Christmas traditions. I look forward both to continuing those traditions with Kacie as well as starting some new traditions of our own.

One tradition we are continuing this year, is getting a new Christmas movie each year and watching it as a family the weekend before Christmas. And a new tradition we are starting this year is going through an advent devotional as a family. I would love to continue this tradition as Kacie grows older as a way of remembering what this time of year is really about. If you would like to also go through an advent devotional as a family there are many free devotionals to choose from that you can download online. HERE is a link to the one that Nick and I are going to try this year. It is actually an Advent devotional that came out last year, but it comes highly recommended, especially for families with teenagers.

In all the hustle and bustle this season, I encourage you to take time for your family and to remember the real reason we celebrate this holiday season.

"For to us a child is born,
    to us a son is given,
    and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
    Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."
Isaiah 9:6
 

In Him,

Jessica

November Thanks GIVING Opportunities

We have a lot of great opportunities to serve other in our community and around the world during the month of October! Below you will find more information about how to sign up and get involved with each of these opportunities. We are encouraging each Living Water family to get involved with at least TWO of these opportunities!   

  

                    

Youth and Families Service Day

Monday, November 11th 10:00am-2:00pm
Love INC Sacramento

8661 Morrison Creek Drive, Sacramento, 95828

            Click HERE to go the the Love Inc Website and then click on "COTW Sign Up" to register your family to serve with us on Monday, Novemebr 11th in the 10:00-2:00 time slot.

Elk Grove Turkey Trot

Thursday, November 28, 2013

Cosumnes Oaks High School 

8350 Lotz Parkway Elk Grove, CA

8:45AM ¼ Mile Dash Kids’ Fun Run [Ages 12 & under]

9:00AM 5/10K Run/Walk

100% of proceeds from the Courage Run will benefit Courage House, a home for girls rescued from sex-trafficking. 

Click  HERE to register your whole family!

Courage Worldwide Work Day

November 2nd 9:00am-4:00pm

Courage House, Rocklin, Ca  

BBQ Lunch Included Bring a Side Dish to Share

Sign Up on Clip Board at Church 

Or Call the Church Office (916)685-6161

Operation Christmas Child 

Gift Box Packing

November 20th 7:00pm-9:00pm

Living Water Youth Room  

We will need shoe boxes and small gifts and toiletries for children of all ages. If you cannot attend the packing event, please deliver items to Jessica beforehand.

If you have any questions about any of these events call us at (916)685-6161 or email jessica@lwceg.org

Happy Fall!

Dear Living Water Families, The last few weeks it has been starting to actually feel like fall is upon us and I absolutely love it. Fall is such a beautiful time of year! I love that the weather is cool but not too cold and the leaves are changing into those beautiful majestic colors. For me, the season of fall represents change; both changes in our schedules, as the freedom and flexibility of summer fades into the more structures routines of the school year, and changes in our landscape as the old leaves begin to fall off the trees in order to prepare for the winter months ahead. However change is not always easy because like the falling leaves this time of year, part of changing often involves leaving some things behind. In 2 Corinthians 5:17 Paul writes, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!" In the spring we are reminded of the new life we have in Christ, but in the fall we reflect upon leaving aspects of our old selves behind us. I have been thinking about this a lot as we are going through the new series, Grace for Shame  on Sunday mornings this fall. We have been discussing what a huge blessing it is that we don't have to carry around our past baggage and mistakes. What a huge relief that we can leave those unpleasant choices and their consequences behind, let them fall to the ground and wither and blow away with the wind. I encourage any of you who haven't been able to join us on Sunday mornings for this new series to come and check it out. You can even listen to the first few sermons in this series by clicking HERE. It has been a great series so far and something I think we can all benefit from learning more about and applying in our lives. In our youth ministry this fall, we are excited for the changes that a new school year brings and have enjoyed getting back into the routines of Confirmation and High School Youth group at the church. It has been a great start so far and we are looking forward to the ways God is going to teach us more about his his grace as we seek him alongside our students this season. In Him, Jessica

Summer 2013 Recap

I hope you all have had a great summer so far and have had a lot of quality time with your families! Nick and I were blessed to spend some great family time with our new daughter this summer while Sara was running things for the youth group. It was such a blessing to have that time to bond as a new family of three. We missed everyone here as well and are happy to be back in the swing of things as we gear up for the new school year!

We were happy to be able to join our group up at Hume Lake for the last half of the week and had an awesome time hanging out with our students and leaders and hearing about all of the great things that God was teaching them up there. The theme this year was based on Matthew 16:15- "'But what about you?'" He asked. 'Who do you say I am?'" Our students were challenge to spend the week asking that question of themselves, "Who is Jesus to me?" It is a great question and prompted some awesome conversations and life-changing decisions. I am excited to journey with our students through the year as they continue to ask this question and live out what they are learning about Christ in the process. Check out our Hume Lake recap video HERE!

We also had a team of students and leaders head out to San Francisco for a short term mission trip this summer. They spent three days ministering with San Francisco City Impact, an organization that has been working in the tenderloin district for almost 30 years. I was so excited to hear from the students when they returned about the different people they talked with and the ways they were stretched in their faith by this opportunity to serve.


It has been a great summer and I have so enjoyed seeing God work in and through our students and leaders these past few months. I know God has used this time to shape our students in so many ways and we are looking forward to this coming school year and seeing what God has in store for us next!

-Jessica 

Living Water Hume Lake Video 2013

Meet our Summer Intern- Sara Hickenbottom!

We are SO excited to introduce to you our Summer Youth Intern, Sara Hickenbottom! Here is a little introduction letter from Sara!

Hello! My name is Sara Hickenbottom and I am so excited to have the opportunity to be hanging out with the Youth this summer!  I am currently a junior at Azusa Pacific University with a major in Philosophy, and minors in Humanities and Religion. Just two weeks ago I returned from studying in England for the semester at Oxford University, which was an unbelievable experience and I am so blessed that I had the incredible opportunity to see more of this remarkable world that God has created!

I have been attending Living Water for four years, and my senior year of high school spent with the Living Water Youth Group is one of the most memorable of my life.  I first accepted Christ when I was 13 years old at Hume Lake, and I can vividly remember the triumphs and difficulties of living a life with Christ throughout my High School years. My youth leaders and peers in my church family were incredibly influential in my life, and I look forward to having the opportunity to spend time with your students this summer as they face some of the same challenges and partake in the awesome opportunities that the High School years have to offer!  If you have any questions, concerns, or would just like to chat throughout the summer months, feel free to email me at shickenbottom09@apu.edu, or give me a call or text at (916) 897-4113.

In Christ,

Sara

The Lenten Season Has Begun!

We find ourselves in the midst of another Lenten season and as we prepare our hearts and mind for Holy Week and Easter, I have been reminded of how important it is to slow down and notice God in every area of our lives. At youth group we are doing a series called "Every Day: Eight Weeks of Noticing God More." I have realized just how easily I tend to rush to start my day, even throwing in a time of prayer and Bible study and yet I spend the rest of the day on my own terms, checking off my to-do lists and forgetting to invite God in EVERY area of my life, including the seemingly mundane and boring things like grocery shopping and paying bills.

It is during this season of Lent that we practice giving things up in our lives to help us remember to rely on and to acknowledge what God has done for us and is continuing to do in our lives. We have been asking our High School students each week at youth group where they have noticed God in their everyday lives throughout the past week. I love hearing their answers, everything from Him giving them strength during an athletic competition, to noticing Him in his beautiful nature in their yard. Their answers have inspired me to notice God more as I drive by the beautiful pink trees on Elk Grove Blvd on the way to church, or watch him answer little unspoken prayers. He is everywhere and in everything;  all we need to do is take the time to look for him. He always reveals himself to us when we ask.

                                   

"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened." Matthew 7:7-8 (NIV)

Family Lent Ideas!

Hello Living Water Families!

The season of Lent is fast approaching and we are excited to kick off this season with a new series at youth group called "Every Day: 8 Weeks of Noticing God More." The purpose of this new series is to help our students and families to notice and connect with God more in our everyday lives and to work towards seeing and communicating with God EVERY DAY, not just on Sundays and Wednesdays. This is something that all of us need to work on, not just our high school students, and I am excited to grow with you all as we dive into this study.

A cool aspect of this study is that it includes "Daily Guides" to continue the study on our own throughout the week and in between Wednesday nights. These "Daily Guides" will be sent home with your students each week and they will be encouraged to use them as a guide for their time with God in the coming week.

Another cool aspect is that it also includes a packet of "Family Ideas." This packet is for the families to have a resource to walk through the series with their student. It includes many ideas for different ways to talk about our every day faith with our families and specifically ideas for how to experience Lent as a family in creative new ways. I have posted this file on our facebook page, which you can get to by clicking HERE. You can also email me at jessica@lwceg.org and I will email you the file as well.

In addition, I will also be printing out a few packets each week and leaving them on the Youth table in the lobby so you can pick one up while you are at church as well.

I hope this is a great resource and is helpful for you as you experience Lent with your families this year!

Jessica

Happy 2013!

Happy New Year! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season and were able to spend time making special memories with your families and friends.

As much as I love the holidays, I always look forward to the month of January and the fresh start of a new year that it brings. One of my favorite verses about this is Isaiah 43:18-19:

“Forget the former things;
    do not dwell on the past.
See, I am doing a new thing!
    Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness
    and streams in the wasteland."

I love that our God is a God of fresh starts and new life. No matter what we have had to face in this past year, there is always hope for God to do something new in our lives. This verse is a great reminder this time of year. Reading Isaiah 43:18-19 always brings me to a place of hope and excitement, waiting to see what God is going to do in our lives this year, how His path will unfold in the wilderness and what streams he will use to water the areas of our life that may have feel a little dry right now.

We have a lot of great events and plans for our youth ministry this year and we are so excited to see what God is going to do in the lives of our students in 2013. It was a blessing to spend the whole past year with your students and you as their families and I know God will continue to bless us as we get to spend another great year seeing God work in all of our lives together.

On a personal note, Nick and I are are also thrilled to be expecting our first child, a daughter, this year and we are so looking forward to learning the ropes as new parents. We are so blessed that our church family has been so supportive and encouraging through our pregnancy so far and look forward to all of you being a part of our growing family in 2013!