OFF ROAD Jr. High Ministry

NEW OFF ROAD WEBSITE

2011-05-17T11:46:00.000-07:00

All OFF ROAD information can now be found at www.westgatechurch.org/ministries/students

This Week

2011-04-20T09:00:00.000-07:00

This week in OFF ROAD we continued our path to the cross series, discussing the crucifixion, and Jesus’ great sacrifice, but ending with the great news and promise that Christ has risen from the grave! Our hope is in the work of the cross through Christ paying the debt for our sin, but it doesn’t stop with the cross. Our hope is made complete because the story doesn’t end on the cross. It ends with Christ conquering death, trampling over death and sin and offering us the same opportunity made available only through Him. What will our response be? Will we celebrate the story the way it should be, by giving our lives to Christ as he sacrificed everything for us? Or will we chalk it up to another holiday that doesn’t transform us. Jesus conquered death because of his great love for us and desires a relationship with us. Let us be changed by the sacrifice Christ made.

This Week

2011-03-22T13:45:00.001-07:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we simply opened up the word of God and read Romans 12. While I read it students had questions that helped them focus on what God was say to them. I encourage you to do the same and then discuss it with your child.

Did you learn something from this passage today that you didn’t know before you came in? What was it that you learned?

What verse stuck out to you? Why?

What do you feel like God is telling you to do?

What questions come up for you after you hear/ read this?

This Week

2011-03-08T18:07:00.001-08:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we began our Letter to Romans series, working through the book of Romans. Kelly spoke this week on the message of the first few chapters of Romans. The basic message if the message of the gospel. We are sinners separated from Christ. God is perfect and we are separated from Him. Christ was sent to die for our sins and bridge the gap. If we accept Christ and give our lives to Him we are made clean and brought into relationship with God. In hearing the gospel we must ask ourselves: Have we chosen to live for God? And if we have are we living for Him because of His great love for us? See our motivation to live for God has to come from His great love for us because of the work of Christ on the cross. When we decided to give our lives to God we aren’t promised it is easy, but we are promised that God will be with us.

Questions:
Have you decided to accept God’s love? What does that mean?
What motivates you to live for God?
What is the toughest part about living for God?

This Week

2011-02-28T17:39:00.001-08:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we concluded our series on apologetics. So far we have looked at the big bang and how that doesn’t disprove the bible, but actually points to greatness of God. The following week we discovered that Jesus is not just a character in the Bible, but is actually a historical figure and the authors of the Gospels have been archeologically and historically accurate in their accounts outside of Christ’s life. If they are accurate with their information outside of Christ, the rest of what they say has weight in being true. This week we looked into Evolution, exploring how the theory of evolution doesn’t contradict the bible in the process, but when added that it all happened by, “random chance,” which is not part of the theory, it does contradict the bible. In exploring evolution many people believe that it was random chance (something which is mathematically impossible) and some people believe that there is an intelligent designer (in our case God) who orchestrated the evolutionary process. The impossibility of this all just randomly happening points to a God who is fully engaged in creation, and who has made each and every one of us as a beautiful, unique, amazing, intricate, detailed, finely tuned, wonderfully designed miracle! In the end, if life is just random our life is purposeless, but with God we find our true value as His creation.

This Week

2011-02-25T11:32:00.001-08:00

Hey Parents,

This week in Off Road we were in our second week in our Apologetics Series. A series designed to give our students some tools to deepen their own understanding of their Christian beliefs and to learn why they are warranted in believing them...as well as giving them some tools to defend their faith! This week we focused on the questions: Did Jesus Exist? How do we know if Jesus was a real person? and Is the Bible True? (Based on the book A Case for Christ student edition, by Lee Strobel)

We talked about the fact that the Bible was written by many different people, many eyewitnesses who saw Jesus, recorded his miracles, heard his teachings, and saw him after he was raised from the dead. We looked into the biography of Christ, the first 4 books of the New Testament written by Matthew, Mark, a historian who interviewed Peter and wrote his first hand report in the book of Mark, Luke, a physician and first century reporter (of types) and John. We also discussed the consistency of the New Testament, the fact that 24,000 copies of ancient manuscripts have been found... 5k in Greek, 8-10k in Latin, 8k more in Ethiopic, Slavic, and Armenian...99.5% of the manuscripts match up!

We discussed the evidence for Jesus outside of the Bible...in an ancient Jewish work called the Talmud, and from other ancient historical writers such as...Josephus, Tacitus and Pliny the Younger. And we learned a little about archaeological evidence that supports the New Testament. We wrapped up our time by chatting about the importance of not just knowing facts about our faith, and having arguments to defend our faith..but allowing Christ to transform our lives! That our greatest tool in sharing our faith is not our defense or our facts...but our very lives and how God is changing our hearts!

Chat with your child...
1. What did you learn this weekend in Off Road that you didn't know before about the Bible, the Christian faith or Jesus?
2. How do you feel like your life and heart are being transformed by God?

This Week

2011-02-17T13:06:00.001-08:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we began a three part series on Apologetics, defending the faith. This is a topic that fascinates me as it has played a big role in my confidence in Christianity. The goal of this series is to address some of the topics that will come into question when discussion their belief in God. The week we dissected the Big bang, a theory that is often used to say that there was no creator, but instead the universe came to be by random chance. When we take this theory and compare it to the Genesis explanation of creation and our belief that there is a God then there is a conflict. In the biblical account we must first understand that Moses’ account of the creation of earth is not a scientific account so to say that is was most definitely a literal 7 days is difficult. We must also know that in another part of the bible it says that a thousand years is like a day to God. This does not mean that God could not have created the earth in 7 day, it just means that the bible and science don’t contradict each other in a time line of the formation of earth, they contradict each other in the cause (random vs. God) of the earth. With God at the helm of creation we have explanations for the literal impossibility of the perfect conditions for the big bang or beginning of time as well as we have explanations for the moral law that exists within us. Without God both of these mathematical and philosophical quandaries are left unexplained and confused. Lastly, if the big bang did happen one must ask how did the sub-atomic particle get there in the first place and what created the explosion to occur? I know this discussion will probably conjure up more questions so if you or your child have any questions please feel free to ask. A good resource is Case for faith student edition.

Advent Conspiracy- LAST WEEK

2010-12-14T15:32:00.001-08:00

We are encouraging each student to bring AT LEAST $20 for advent conspiracy. Please encourage your student to do so, form their own money

This Week

2010-11-30T15:15:00.001-08:00

Dear Parents,
This week in Off Road we introduced our Advent Conspiracy series. The focus of the season that we are in is to Change from me centered to God centered. We also talked about the time of preparation for God’s coming that is found in the Advent season. The first way we focus on this Joyful Preparation is with Hope. Advent is a time to hope for the coming of Christ and to realize that we are not the center. We challenged to students to rethink their giving and receiving of gifts this year and challenged them to raise $1500 of their own money to buy pigs, wells, or other things for needy families in other countries and to take the focus from their own wants and put them on the things that God desires. We asked them to reflect on this with these questions:

What is it like waiting for the best gift you can imagine?
Can you describe what it was like when you finally received that gift?
What can you do to make Advent a time to be excited for the best gift of Jesus?
How can you refocus on the meaning for Christmas?
How can you give the gift of presence and show people you care?

This Week #4-9

2010-11-09T09:00:00.001-08:00

This week in OFF ROAD was our second part of our “Rethink Worship” series, exploring why we worship and how we are to worship. The “why?” was answered last week in that God says that we should and that God is the only one who truly deserves it. This week, in exploring the “how?” we looked into John 4, focusing on Jesus’ statement in verse 24. Here Jesus is talking to the Samaritan woman who doesn’t understand the difference of worship rituals of the Jews and Samaritan. Jesus clarifies that the old rules of worship (through Jewish rituals God commanded prior to Jesus) will soon not be the standard of true worship. Instead, true worship will happen when you engage in worship in spirit and in truth. This idea is one of giving yourself to God, giving Him your full self, not ritualistic acts that don’t have any truth of worship behind them. We must do the same. In worship (which we established last week is not just singing) we must truthfully engage ourselves in giving ourselves to God. Worship is not about us, it is all about God and to truly worship we must come to God at this level, in spirit and in truth.

• Have you ever experienced an amazing time of worship? What made it amazing?
• What does it mean to worship God in spirit? In truth?
• What can you do to help you always worship God in spirit and in truth?
• What are ways you can give yourself completely to God, making your worship all about HIM?

This Week

2010-11-03T08:01:00.000-07:00

This Week we began our three week series titled, “Rethink Worship,” discovering what worship is and why we do it. The goal of this series is to help student really realize the importance that worship plays in our walk with Christ, that worship is so much more than singing, and that our God deserves more worship than we can give Him. In the first lesson we answered the questions, “What is worship?” and “Why worship?” In the bible the word worship actually has very different meanings depend including service sacrifice, submission, reverence, professing faith, praising God, thanking God, and proclaiming truth. When we look at these definitions it becomes clear that worshiping God can happen all the time through the way we live, not just when we sing. We need to understand that worship is physical, mental and spiritual and we need to engage in worship in each of these ways. To answer the question, “Why worship?” we look to Luke 4 and Hebrews 12:26-29. In the former verse Jesus is tempted to worship the devil, but references God’s command to worship Him only. So the first reason we should worship God is because he tells us to. There are a lot of things to worship, but the only thing we should be worshiping is God. In Hebrews it speaks of God’s kingdom that will not be shaken and that our God is a “consuming fire” and because of that we should worship God. God’s great power and authority should give him enough reason to be continually worshiped. He is the only one that DESERVES our worship.

• What is worship?
• What are some ways that you can worship God every day? With your parents? Siblings? Those at school?
• Why is worship so important?
• How might this new view of worship (not just singing) change the way you worship?

This Week #4-8

2010-10-26T11:40:00.000-07:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we ended our DUSTY series with, “Yearning to be covered in the dust of the master.” Yearning is an intense or overpowering longing, desire or need and to be covered in the dust of the master means following Jesus so closely that you look like Him. So in OFF ROAD our desire is that we all have an intense longing to follow Jesus so close that we look like him. Luke 6:40, “Students are not greater than their master, but the student who is fully trained will become like the master.” After reviewing this we gave the students a chance to respond in answering the question: Where are you with God and where do you want to be? Students were able to write their prayers down on the chalkboards and it was really cool to see them process this.

Parents: Ask yourself and your child this question too.
Where are you at with God and where do you want to be?
Do you have a yearning to follow Jesus?
When was the last time you day dreamed about being more like Christ? Why do you think it happens so infrequently if ever?

This Week #4-7

2010-10-20T08:32:00.001-07:00

Dear Parents,

This week in Off-Road we continued our Dusty series with the “T” “Telling the Truth of who He is.” We looked at Mark 16 and Matthew 28 which command us to go, proclaim, make disciples, and baptize. The command is what makes the Telling of the Truth part of our jobs as Christians. Then we endeavored to discover what the truth was and we found that “The Truth was Eternal Life, Because Jesus Christ Died for us, and How we follow is to Believe.” The process of telling others the Gospel or the truth is called evangelism and to truly evangelize we need to show who God is in love. But, it is not enough to just love someone we actually have to tell them the truth, because if we don’t tell them they can never know or say yes. We left with the goal to take a picture with a friend who does not know Jesus who we wanted to tell and bring it to Off-Road so we can put it up and pray for that person and so the leaders can help the students follow through on telling their friends. The questions we discussed with them afterward were:

•What makes it hard for you to talk about God with your friends?
•Can you think of any creative ways to break the ice and share Jesus with your friends?
•If you don’t know very many non-Christians how can you find places to share the truth?
•Why is it important for you to share the truth instead of just showing love?
•What can you do to be more prepared to share the truth of the gospel?

This Week #4-6

2010-10-14T07:51:00.000-07:00

As we continued our D.U.S.T.Y. series we focused on the “S” of DUSTY, Strengthening our desire to imitate Christ. We want to grow closer to God and imitate the example Christ set for us. Ephesians 4:31-5:2 is a great starting point for our imitation of Christ because it is the motivation for why we should imitate Him. We should imitate Christ because He first loved us. Jesus is not some bully that makes us imitate Him, instead He loves us so much and wants the best for us so we should imitate Him. 2 Corinthians 5:14-21 tells us that if we choose to follow Christ imitation should naturally happen AND this is our witness to others. So how do we learn to imitate Him? We need to spend time with Him, get to know Him so we can know what to imitate.

Are you imitating Christ?
What does it mean to imitate Christ?
What do you need to do to imitate God better?
Who is someone you know that really imitates Christ? What is it about them that makes you think they imitate Christ?
How can you be like them?

This Week #4-5

2010-10-06T07:58:00.000-07:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we explored what it means to be unified with other believers. John 13 describes part of the last supper where Jesus gives his disciples a new commandment, that they love others the way the He has loved them. Now we can quickly skim over this passage knowing that we are supposed to love each other but when we take time to think about it the idea of a new commandment is confusing. Hasn’t Jesus told us this before? Well he has told us that we need to love others the way that we want to be loved, but now he is calling us to follow His example. We are no longer the standard, He is the standard. That is a huge calling!!! But how is this possible? It is easy to love those that we get along with and like, but how do we really be unified with all other believers? The answer is in John 17. Jesus’ final prayer before being arrested is for the unity of all believers through a unity with Christ. If we rely on behavior modification and just decide that we are going to be unified without making God the focus of our unity it will be very difficult to be unified and we won’t be unified the way Jesus wants us. So let us all develop our relationship with Christ and grow to love Him more so that we can grow to love each other more and be unified with other believers!

-What does it mean to be unified with other believers?
-Is that really possible? How?
-What do you need to do to make sure you are unified with other believers? (Are there any relationships you need to mend?)

This Week #4-4

2010-09-29T07:24:00.001-07:00

This Week we started our D.U.S.T.Y. series discussing what OFF ROAD is all about. “We exist to have a lifelong DEVOTION to God, UNIFIED with other believers, STRENGTHENING our desires to imitate Christ while telling others the TRUTH of who He is and YEARNING to be covered in the dust of the master.” In order to be devoted to God we must have a desire to be devoted. A true desire results in action. Many of us say we desire to do this or that, but nothing we do looks like we really desire that (i.e. I desire to play the piano, but I haven’t done anything about it.) This is not true desire. Read 1 Corinthians 9:24-27. Paul is saying that he is devoting himself to God and spreading the word by being disciplined, having direction and determination. These are also key factors in being devoted to God. OFF ROAD is all about Jesus and making D.U.S.T.Y. students. In order to be DUSTY we must have a desire that leads to devotion so are you ready to get DUSTY?
• What did Paul mean when he said we should go into strict training?
• How are you “training” for God?
• What are some steps you need to take to head toward being devoted to God?
• What is stopping you from being completely devoted to God?
• Of the 3 “D’s” (Discipline, direction, determination) which is the most difficult for you? Explain why.

This Week #4-3

2010-09-22T08:33:00.000-07:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we concluded our series on community looking in to what small groups are all about. We have an acronym that helps guide what we want to accomplish at each small group: M.A.P.S. the “M” stands for meaningful God-centered conversation. As God is the most important thing in our lives He should be the most important thing we talk about. “A” is for accountability. As believers we need to have people that can speak into our lives and we need to speak into the lives of others. “P” is for prayer. Often times prayer becomes a routine listing of needs and not a conversation with God. We desire to commune with God on weekly basis (at least). “S” is for scripture. Part of communing with God is allowing Him time to speak. We know this is most often done through His word, so scripture is an integral part of small groups. So what can we do about it? JOIN A SMALL GROUP!!!!

What percentage of your talk goes to: Gossip, Sports, the opposite gender, school, God?
What does accountability mean to you?
Who do you have in your life that keeps you accountable to living correctly? Is there anyone that you are keeping accountable?
Why do you pray?
What keeps you from reading the Bible more? Why is it important to read the Bible?
Of the M, A, P, S which is the hardest for you to do. Why?

This Week #4-2

2010-09-14T10:29:00.000-07:00

This week in OFF ROAD we looked at why is it so important to be in community, especially a smaller community than our Saturday night gathering. Jesus shows us by choosing 12 disciples that in order to be really known and loved and really know and love each other we can’t be in huge groups of people. All of us desire more than anything to be known and loved and this should be fulfilled in a small group of Christians that support each other, go through life together and love one another. Small groups is also a great place to have discussion and deeper understanding of God. We see throughout the gospels moments where the disciples are confused about stuff Jesus said. When they don’t understand they ask Jesus questions to gain a better understanding. If disciples were confused about things and they were living with Jesus we can expect to be confused too, so let’s discuss things and come together and help each other figure this thing out.
So what can we do? JOIN A SMALL GROUP!! Starts tonight 6:40-8:15
• What does it mean to “be known”?
• Who knows you the best? Why do THEY know you the best?
• Where or who have you learned the most about the Bible/ God?
• What questions do you have about the Bible and God?
• What are you looking forward most to in Small groups?

This Week #4-1

2010-09-07T09:25:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the school year!!!!! I am extremely excited about the new year here in OFF ROAD, the changes and improvements we have made and the opportunity to love God, love other and love one another this year. Before I describe what we talked about this week I want to remind you parents that there will be a brief meeting after OFF ROAD next week to let you know about all the exciting things happening in OFF ROAD this year. PLEASE DON’T MISS OUT.

This Week in OFF ROAD we began a 3 week series titled, “Community,” to discuss the importance of doing this Jesus thing with a group of people and not alone. We looked at the parable of the farmer scattering seed and the outcome of where the seeds fell (Matthew 13). The students learned that being in the good soil requires GOOD SOIL and good soil usually occurs when we are not alone. Instead we are supported, encouraged, challenged, and held accountable and loved by one another. This all happens in community and is impossible without community. We need each other, and we can’t have all of the benefits of community by just showing up on Saturday. That might be a good time to hang out with friends and get to know each other a little bit, but not a great opportunity for deep authentic community. That is why we have Small groups. Small groups will met every Tuesday from 6:40-8:15 and it will be our chance for authentic community that helps cultivate good soil. SO WILL YOU JOIN?????

• What are your biggest distractions from God (Lack of knowledge, Testing of faith, Worries of life)? Explain how that plays out.

• What do you need to do to be in the good soil?

• Why is being in community so important?

• Will you join a small group this year?

Introducing "Love one Another," and "Love Others"

2010-09-02T14:00:00.001-07:00

This year in OFF ROAD we will have 2 types of events (outside of Small groups and Weekend services). They will be call "Love Others," and "Love One Another." Our "Love Others" events will take place the last Tuesday of every month during our small group time. Students are encourage to come even if they don't have a small group and they are encouraged to bring friends. These events will be our opportunity to serve those around us.

Our "Love One Another" events will occur after services on Saturday nights. These are our more wild and crazy events such as laser quest and comedy sports. These events allow us to hang out and get to know each other better. We also HIGHLY encourage students to invite friends to these events as it is our desire to reach the lost and this is a great opportunity for friends to experience the awesome community in OFF ROAD.

Keep an eye out for these in the blog, on the calendar and in announcements.

This Week

2010-07-30T13:58:00.001-07:00

This week in OFF ROAD rocked! We took a quick break from our “Hessid,” series to look at pictures and hear stories from the group of students that recently went to Belize. For those of you that didn’t know, every year we have a group of 8th graders that join a more in depth small group called “DE,” which stands for the “Discipleship Experiment.” At the end of their time in DE they have the opportunity to go on a week long missions trip to Belize. We spend our time in Belize serving the town or Crooked Tree by repairing and cleaning houses and the church, putting on a VBS and sports ministry and running the Sunday services as well as a youth service. Our time this year was blessed by God as we saw 5 people come to know Christ and the lives of the people of Crooked Tree changed. I look forward to continuing to build a relationship with this community for the sake of Christ.

This Week # 3-29

2010-06-09T09:48:00.000-07:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we started our summer series titled, “Hessid.” This is the Hebrew word for God’s love and really has a deeper, more powerful meaning than the love that we think about. This love can be described as steadfast, graceful, merciful, faithful, loyal, good, devote, unfailing, relentless, pursuing, lavish, extravagant, unrestrained and so much more. We will be spending the entire summer looking at aspects of God’s love because He first loved us. The talk this week focused on the fact that if our motivation for following Christ comes from doing what our parents say or just doing what we think is right and not form a love from God and for God that motivation will disappear. We need to understand God’s love so that we can be continually motivated to follow His call.
(1 John 4:7-19) (John :1-5)
Questions for discussion:
How would you describe God’s love?
What aspect of God’s love in the Hessid statement stuck out the most to you? Why?
How do you think your life would change if you really began to understand God’s love?
Why is it so important to begin to understand God’s love?

THIS WEEK

2010-06-01T08:43:00.001-07:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we sadly said goodbye to the 8th graders as next week they will be moving on to the High School group. They are loved and will be missed.

BUT this coming week we get to welcome up the new, soon to be 6th graders. We will make them feel welcomed and loved. Unfortunately I have a commitment right after church so I can’t meet with all you new parents, but your child will receive a packet with all the OFF ROAD info you need.

This Week #3-26

2010-05-05T12:09:00.001-07:00

This week in OFF ROAD we studied Ephesians 2 and 4, looking at what it means to be part of God’s family tree. As stated in Ephesians 2 we were once outsiders, but because of Christ we have been brought into the family. This is an invitation to everyone to join the family, it is our decision whether we want to or not. Then in Ephesians 4 it states that being part of the family means that e have each been given roles in the family. God has uniquely gifted each and everyone one of us to love each other and welcome others into the family. To be part of God’s family means that we act like Christ, inviting others to join the family and using our gifts to serve the family and others. I asked the kids to start think about Church and OFF ROAD in, “how can I serve this family?” not, “how can this family serve me?” This is so that we can continue to love each other and welcome others into our family, God’s family.
Questions
• Tell us of a time when you felt like an “outsider.”
• Tell us of a time when you were an “outsider” and someone made you feel like an “insider.”
• Why is it so important to understand that we were once “outsiders”?
• How can you be like Christ and welcome “outsiders”, both here and at school?
• What gifts (spiritual) has God given you?
• What role could you play in the OFF ROAD family?
• What steps can you take to be a bigger part of the OFF ROAD family?

This Week # 3-25

2010-04-24T16:50:00.000-07:00

This week in OFF ROAD we finished our Sex/ Dating series with a biblical perspective on dating. As we told the students, dating isn’t. “just something to do,” but dating is a BIG DEAL. Why is it such a big deal? Well that question was answered throughout the lesson.
There are 3 big things in our life that belong to God: our heart, our body, and our relationship with Him. Dating distracts or takes away from each of these areas if we are not ready to date (An guess what… as a Junior higher, or high schooler, you are not ready to date!!!). If we are dating, and our heart belongs to God (Prov. 4:20-23), we are giving part of our heart to another person. Dating is a distraction from God, especially when it serves no purpose in JH and HS. If our body is God’s then we should be treating everyone’s body like it is God’s (1 Cor. 6:9). Is being in a dating relationship going to lead us to giving our bodies over to God? Lastly, our relationship with god should be number one. If we are dating someone we are replacing God with them. We are instead finding our identity (Luke 10:27) in them instead of God. If we want to have a healthy dating relationship we must first have a number one relationship established with God.

This Week # 3-24

2010-04-21T12:52:00.001-07:00

OFF ROAD this week was wild, crazy and a ton of fun as we had our first Saturday night only service!!! We kicked off the 2 part Sex and Dating series and it went really well. I talked to the guys about purity of the mind and body and how giving that away to either a real person or porn is not what God created us for and is extremely detrimental to them. Christina talked to the girls about “priceless purity.” and how important it is to hold onto that for their husband. I hope that you can follow up with your child, talking to them about this sensitive issue. Here are some questions to guide your discussion. Remember, if they don’t have a safe place to talk about this stuff, the will talk about it in an unsafe place.

(Genesis 1:27-28, Hebrews 13:4, 1 Corinthians 7:3-4)

What kind of sexual stuff do you see people around you (on Tv/ in school) getting into?

What temptations are around you?

How do you handle the temptations around you?

Why do you think these temptations are so great?

What is the outcome of giving into these temptations?

Why does God not want you to give into these temptations?

Do you feel comfortable talking to ME about this stuff? Why/ Why not? Or who can you talk to?

This Week #3-23

2010-03-29T12:28:00.001-07:00

This Week in OFFROAD we took a journey through the story of the cross discovering, not only what Jesus went through, but why he did what he did. Many of us have heard the story of the cross over and over and we understand basically what happened, but when we stop to think about it we have a hard time really comprehending why. Why that way? Why death? After looking into more detail about the excruciating pain that Jesus endured the why questions were answered. Why live as a lowly person, being executed with the lowest of criminal? God wants to know that we truly love Him. If he were to come as a great king with power we would all probably love him for his greatness, but he wants us to love Him for Him. Also he was setting the ultimate example of love. It takes little love to have great power and Lord it over others. It takes all the love that exists to go through what Jesus went through for us. But why die? “For the wages of sin is DEATH.” Our God is a just God and what we have all earned is death. Somehow that wage needs to be paid= Death. Jesus takes that on for us, pays the debt and conquers death so that we may live!!!!

Questions for this week:
• Is there anything about Jesus’ death that you don’t get/ still doesn’t make sense?
• What does Jesus’ death mean to you personally?
• In the steps of choosing your fate (Faith, Acceptance, Trust, and Eternity) where would you say you are?
• Have you asked Jesus into your life? If so how has that changed who you are? If not what is keeping you from that?
• What are the benefits (besides eternity) of knowing Christ?
• Who is someone you want to have faith like as you grow. (who do you look to ask an example?) What about them, specifically, do you want to be like in your faith?

This Week #3-22

2010-03-22T12:48:00.000-07:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we started to look into the story of Easter, beginning with the night Jesus is betrayed (Matt 26:36-46). Jesus, who is in complete anguish asks his disciples one little favor, stay up and pray, and His disciples FAIL miserably, 3 times! Even though they totally fail Jesus returns to His prayer time with God and allows God’s love to be poured out through Him. From this story we gleaned 2 important messages. #1) God loves us even when we fail Him. #2) Our love for others should be like Jesus’, not dependent on how they treat us. I’m sure none of us would have blamed Jesus if he walked up to his disciples, slapped them in the face and shouted, “WAKE UP!! I’m about to die for you and you can even stay awake, I’m out of here.” In fact that is what most of us would have probably done. Instead Jesus is patient and loves them through it. We need to be like that. But how? Look at Jesus’ example, he stayed connected to God. We can’t do this on our own, we have to stay connected to God though continual pray, making sure we commit ourselves to, “Not my will, but yours be done God.”

Questions for this week:
What would you have done in Jesus’s situation?
How should Jesus’s reaction to the disciple influence the way we act towards others?
On a scale of 1-10 (1 being none- 10 being totally) how connected would you say you are to God? Why?
What are some steps you can take to be more connected to Him?
How should knowing how much Jesus continues to show us love, even when we wrong him, change your relationships with others.
What is one person you need to better at loving, even if they don’t love you? Pray for connectedness to God to help you with this.

This Week #3-21

2010-03-17T08:38:00.001-07:00

This week in OFF ROAD we dove into chapter 3 of Jonah and learned that: God is looking for people who are lost; he loves the lost and wants them to be found. We shared stories with each other of times that we were lost and scared and compared that to being emotionally lost and far from God. In Jonah 3, we see God’s love for Nineveh and his desire to help them be found, and his great compassion when they turned from their evil ways and towards God. We also looked at Matthew 18:12-14…and talked about the Shepherd’s love for the 1 lost sheep. Students were encouraged to think through areas in their lives where they are lost…and allow God to enter those areas. And challenged to think of one person in their life who they know is lost and far from God and be a Jonah to that person by praying for them and reaching out to them this week.

Questions for Students:
Can you remember a time when you were lost and scared?
How about a time when you felt lost emotionally and needed to call out to get help from someone (maybe a parent, friend, or God)…
Spend some time thinking about the people of Nineveh who went from being ‘Lost to Found’…did they deserve God’s compassion? Now apply this question to us…do we deserve God’s compassion? What does this tell us about God?
Can you think of anyone in your life who you know is lost…share about that person.
What can you do this week…to be obedient like Jonah and share God’s love with this friend or person you know that is lost?
Spend some time in prayer, asking God to help you have courage to help your Lost friend be Found.

This Week #3-20

2010-03-04T11:43:00.000-08:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we realized that we need to make the shift from independence to dependence on God. After Jonah is thrown into the ocean God send a giant fish to swallow him. At this time Jonah realizes that he can do nothing without the help of God. It took Jonah getting thrown into the raging ocean and then getting swallowed by a fish for him to realize that he needs to depend on God. In Jonah 2 we see Jonah’s cry for help, admitting that he needs God. We too need to realize that we need to be more dependent on God, that we shouldn’t wait until we are in the worst of places to call out to God, but we should be doing that on a daily basis. One way of seeing how dependent you are on God is looking at your prayer life. Does your prayer life reflect independence or dependence?

Questions for students:

Would you say that you are dependent of God?
What would your life look like if you were more dependent on God? How would that show?
Who in your life do you see as dependent on God? What makes you think that they are dependent on God?
What is one thing you can do this week to try to depend more on God?
Do you find it easy or hard to pray? Why do you think that is?
A.C.T.S. is an acronym that can help you through your prayer time (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supply) Which of these would you say is most prevalent in your prayers? Which of these is lacking in your prayer? Why do you think that is?

This Week #3-19

2010-03-01T08:48:00.001-08:00

Continuing our “Shift” series we dove further into the book of Jonah, looking a the first 16 verses. In reading this section of the story it is clear that the main idea is that God is trying to get Jonah’s attention. God uses 2 main venues to get Jonah’s attention. The first is the storm, or circumstance he is in. Unfortunately Jonah’s not the smartest of guys and at first the raging storm doesn’t even wake him. The next thing God used is the people around Jonah. This finally gets Jonah’s attention and he then realizes the circumstance he is in and pays attention to God. So how does this relate to the life of a Junior Higher? Well, just as God used Jonah’s circumstance and the people in his life, God is constantly using the people and the circumstances in our life to get our attention and draw us closer to Him. We need to understand that God is doing this all the time, not just at church, or with church people, but that through the tough stuff at school, home, interaction with friends, whatever, God is trying to get you attention and draw you closer to Him. If we take that perspective into every area of our life we will shift to see those things God sees as important.

Questions for discussion with your child:
• What tough stuff do you face being a Junior Higher?
• What circumstances in your life might God be using to get your attention?
• Who are people that God has placed in your life that God might be using to get you attention? How so?
• What can you do to make sure that when God is trying to get your attention you are ready to listen?
• What do you think god wants to tell you right now?

This Week #3-18

2010-02-22T10:34:00.000-08:00

We had an awesome week in OFF ROAD as we took a little bit of a break from the normal schedule and just used our time to pray for each other. Many students were brave enough to share their heartfelt concerns and we were able to just lift each other up in prayer… It was AWESOME!! We also started a new series titled, “Shift.” Over the next few weeks we will be looking through the book of Jonah to see what God has in store for us. The contents of the series will involve shifts that we need to make in our lives. This first week simply looked at Jonah 1:1-3= God tells Jonah to GO and SPREAD HIS MESSAGE and Jonah says, “NO.” We examined how God has called each of us to spread His message and we too have the choice to either do what God sees as important or to be a “Jonah.” The shift that we need to make is: We need to shift to doing what God sees as important.

Questions to ask your child this week:

• What direction are you heading (are you doing what God has asked, running away or standing still)?
• How have you been a messenger of Christ this month?
• What areas of your life do you think you need to turn around and head towards God?
• When is it hardest to obey God? Why?
• How are you like Jonah?
• How are you not like Jonah?
• How can you shift to making what God sees as important, important in your life?

This Week # 3-17

2010-02-08T12:44:00.001-08:00

We finished our “Cheap Talk (A study in James) “Series this week, looking at James 5:7-9. These verse talk about being patient, and the being aware. And the three big applications that can be used here are: be patient with yourself, don’t beat yourself up over failure, but return to God. You won’t walk out of the doors and be perfect, but you need to patiently work on what God is asking you to (In James case- your cheap talk. Secondly you need to understand that our God is a patient God and if you continue to let Him work on you there will be a great harvest. Lastly, and most applicably, we need to live like God is always by our side (cause guess what, He is). I challenged the students that this week, whenever they see a clocks say to yourself , “God is with me.” This will be a continual reminder of God’s presence, helping student’s talk go from cheap to valuable.

This Week #3- 16

2010-02-01T08:59:00.000-08:00

James 2:14-20 was the topic of our “Cheap Talk,” Series this week as we looked at the statement, “Cheap talk is saying you have faith…” Read through these verses and James says loud and clear your claim to faith is worthless, it has no value, if it doesn’t change who you are, producing good deeds. Now he doesn’t say that you are saved by your works, but that once you have claimed your faith in Christ it has to be transformational. So if we all know that right answers, say the right things, but our faith doesn’t truly transform who we are, what purpose does it serve? So the challenge for the students was this question, “Can others tell, by your actions, that you have faith in God or do you come to church, know the right answers, but your faith doesn’t change who you are?” “How can you take steps to show others your faith through your actions?”

Questions to discuss with your kids:
-How has your life reflected your faith this week?
-Tell us of a time in your life when it was the toughest to match your actions with your faith.
-When is it easiest to live out your faith?
-Who are people in your life that encourage you to live out your faith?
-What things in your life do you need to change to match your faith with your actions?

This Week #3-15

2010-01-25T09:03:00.001-08:00

Hey Parents,

After taking a break for winter camp (which was awesome) we returned this week to continue our series, “Cheap Talk.” This week looked into James 2:1-13. The main idea that was extracted from these verses was- Cheap talk is saying we love God, but not loving those God loves. It is clear throughout these verses that we need to change our attitudes about OUR friends, and OUR groups, but instead need to step out in faith to really love everyone we come into contact with. Sure, we can have our set of friends who we are closer to, but we need to be willing and ready to love everyone that crosses our path as if they were a good friend. At the end of the talk we imagined what OFF ROAD and our schools would be like if we really took this principle to heart, and the response from students was that they would be places where students want to come, where they immediately feel welcomed and loved and a place that really reflects God’s love. So let’s do it!!!

Questions to discuss with your child:
Who around you have you turned the cold shoulder to? How can you apply what James is saying to that relationship?
How does this affect your relationship with those who are mean to you or totally annoy you? How do you deal with that?
What is one step you can take to really putting this idea into practice this week?
What might keep you from applying this principle? How can you make sure that your words aren’t cheap?

This Week #3-14

2010-01-11T11:22:00.000-08:00

Welcome back everyone!!!! I hope your vacation went well, that you had a wonderful Christmas and that this year has started of great for you. It was so good to see the students again this weekend, hang out with them and have fun! This week in OFF ROAD we are kicking off the New Year with a 4 week study of the book of James titled, “Cheap Talk.” In this week’s lesson we looked at James 1:19-27. James’ word here a very direct and to the point. He states that we need to be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to anger. Our transformation to becoming this needs to come from within and is guided by the word of God reflecting the truth in our hearts. In the end religious, “right answers,” are worthless if they aren’t followed by action out of love for God. Pretty straight forward if you ask me. So the question we ended with was. Does your WHOLE life reflect your relationship with God?

Questions to discuss:
What areas of your life best reflect your relationship with God?
What areas of your life least reflect your relationship with God? How can you shift this to align with your relationship with God?
If someone looked at your life (minus when you go to church) would they say they you love god? Why or why not?

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
NO OFF ROAD THIS WEEK DUE TO WINTER CAMP

If you are going on winter camp make sure you are at the church at 11:30 a.m. on Friday. Also, I forgot to put this in the what to bring letter, but make sure you bring a pillow. SEE YOU FRIDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-12-23T12:09:00.000-08:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!

OFF ROAD will not be meeting until January 9-10 (WE DO HAVE SMALL GROUPS JANUARY 6th), then off for winter camp (Jan 15-17) and back on the 23rd.

This Week #3-13

2009-12-14T10:53:00.001-08:00

This week #3-13
This week in OFF Road we started our 2 part Christmas series titled, “Better than a Bike,” in which we are discussing the greatest gift ever given, Jesus Christ. In this weeks lesson we looked to the prophetic words spoken before the birth of Christ and the impossibility that 1 person was “lucky” enough to fulfill those prophecies. We discussed a few of the prophesies and noticed how specific they are and how amazing that is. In His birth Christ fulfilled 14 prophesies, in his lifetime 61 prophesies. The mathematic probability of 1 man fulfilling just 8 of the prophecies is 10 to the 17th power. In a word picture that is like filling the entire state of Texas 2 feet deep in silver dollars, marking 1 of those silver dollars, blindfolding someone and telling them to pick up just 1 silver dollar. The likelihood of them picking up the marked coin is the same likelihood of 1 man fulfilling 8 of those prophesies. So what does this mean for us?
-God orchestrated Christ birth well ahead of time
-The probability of Christ just being “lucky” and fulfilling these prophecies is impossible
-Therefore, he is the foretold Son of God, and we should pay attention to his life
-he is the greatest gift ever given

Questions:
What does God’s gift mean to you?
How has and does Jesus change your life?
Spend some time as a family thanking God for Jesus.

This Week #3-12

2009-12-07T09:40:00.000-08:00

This week in OFF ROAD we looked at the application side of finding our identity in Christ. As you know, Last week we talked about the importance of finding our identity in God and now we discussed the steps we can take to make that happen. In the talk I laid out 3 specific steps that twill significantly help in finding a solid foundation in God. #1) Surround yourself with Godly people that lift you up in Christ. This doesn’t mean we aren’t friends with non-believers, but that our core group of friends, the ones we find our identity in, should be those who encourage us towards Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:32-33= Bad company corrupts good character). #2 We must read the bible for our identity. The world is going to tell you a million things you aren’t, but the truth is written in the bible. You want to know how important you are? Read Psalm 139, John 15:18-27 or Ephesians 2:10. #3 Go to God with your struggles. In your times of really struggling with your identity or what others are saying about you, take it to God and let Him comfort you. Psalm 23 is a good reminder that no matter how hard it gets God is there. We should be bringing ourselves to Him more often, and therefore finding our identity in HIM!!!

Questions for this week:
Read the following passages together and discuss what they mean for your identity in Christ:
Psalm 139, John 15:18-27, Ephesians 2:10, Psalm 23, 1 Corinthians 15:32-33, Romans 8:28-39, Philippians 1:6, Acts 2:42-45

This Week #3-11

2009-11-30T08:41:00.000-08:00

This week in OFF ROAD we kicked off our 2 part series on identity theft and the struggle we all face with discovering who we are. This topic is so important for everyone, but is particularly important for middle schoolers as they are all facing an identity crisis. To find out our identity we went back to the very beginning. Genesis 1 talks about the creation of all things, including man. If we want to know where our identity lays it would be a good idea to see what the creator of us says we made for and how we were made. In these verses we discover 3 things: 1. although creation is awesome (and we are so quickly awed by it) the most impressive thing God made is us. Notice how all of creation is made, and then, when man is made, we are made in his image. When is the last time we just were in awe of each other? Maybe if we took this truth to heart our identity struggle wouldn’t be so tough. 2. We were created by God for God. We so often look in other places for our identity, but if we were created by God for God than it is God we should be looking to for our identity. When is the last time you searched the bible for God’s view of you? 3. When God created you it wasn’t, “alright,” or “decent.” When he made us he looked at us and said, “This is very good.” God loves you so much and thinks the world of you (enough to allow his own son to die). If we hold onto our identity in Christ, our identity crisis becomes firmed founded in God’s view of us, and the crisis becomes a clear understanding of who we really are.

This Week #3-10

2009-11-24T09:24:00.000-08:00

OFF ROAD this weekend was an all worship weekend. We spent time singing, reflecting, in silence, and focusing ourselves on God. IT WAS AWESOME!!!! God is good!!! In the end we challenged the students that worship isn‘t something that just happens when we are singing or just at church, but it is a lifestyle. Worship is deciding to live for God and give him praise and it is something that can and should be happening all the time. Like main service I challenge you to sit down, as a family, every night this week and thank God for 5 things (make them different each night). Spend time worshiping God through thanksgiving.

This Week #3-9

2009-11-09T09:29:00.001-08:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we continued our series, “Someone Else’s Shoe’s,” looking at what it means to serve God. We started off asking the question, “What does it mean to serve God?” If God created everything, is all knowing and all powerful, how can we serve Him? We found the answer to these questions in John 12:20-26 and Matthew 25:31-46. Read these verses with your child to see what God says about following Him. The first verse describes what God’s calling is (to serve him is to follow him and god where he goes- vs. 26) and the second verse tells us where God goes (to the least of these). So the answer to, “What does it mean to serve God?” is, “To serve God means to follow Him by going where he goes, by serving those who are difficult to love.”

Questions:
Who are the “least of these,” in your life?
How can you serve them?

This Week #3-8

2009-11-02T10:00:00.000-08:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we kicked off our new series titled, “Someone Else’s Shoes.” In this series we will be looking at what it means to service others the way Christ has called us. In this week’s lesson we focused on humility in service. We looked at Philippians 2: 1-11. I would encourage you to read this verse throughout the week with your child as it talks about the heart of service. You will notice that the verses begin by asking questions, essentially say does your relationship with Christ change anything about who you are? DO you find encouragement from him and the body of Christ? Then it says, if you do then you should be motivated to be humble. In the NIV it actually says, “Do NOTHING out of selfish ambition, but in EVERYTHING you do, do it with humility.” The calling for humility isn’t in certain circumstances, but in every word we speak, every interaction we have we are to do it with humility. This is should be motivated by our love for God and by these actions others will notice something different about us. The last part of the verses is the encouragement for us, that Christ was the ultimate example of humility. If God, who is way above us, can humble himself to below our level, us humans, who are well below Him should be able to humble ourselves to those around us.

Questions for this week:
Who do you have the hardest time humbling yourself to? Why do you thing that is?
Who do you have the easiest time humbling yourself to? Why do you think that is?
What steps can you take to humble yourself to those around you?
Tell of a time in the last couple weeks where you could have humbled yourself to someone, but decided not to? What could you have done different? What do you think the outcome of that would have been if you handled it differently?
Pray together, throughout this week, for strength to be humble.

This Week #3-7

2009-10-27T15:03:00.000-07:00

This week in OFF ROAD we finished our D.U.S.T.Y. with reviewing what it looks like to YEARN after God. The definition of Yearn is to have a deep longing or strong desire, and the question I asked the students is; does that word define your relationship with Christ? Do you have a deep desire to know Him? We looked at Matthew 4: 23-25, a simple story about how the news of Jesus spread, people brought their sick and then followed Him. I used this verse to outline 3 basic steps there are to our faith. The first step is we hear the news. Many people stop there and know about the stuff, but don’t yearn to take the next step into realizing the need. In these verses, after hearing the news, people realized their need and brought the sick to Jesus. See is we are yearning for God we not only know the information, but we take the next step of realizing our need for Him and doing something about it. Then, as we continue our yearning process, we need to seek after God in everything we do. After the people were healed the Bible says that a crowd of follower began following Jesus. They heard the news, realized their need, and then followed him. To yearn after God is to go to the next step, to desire to go deeper, to know Him more.

Questions:
Where are you in the process of yearning after God?
What needs to change in your life to go to the next level?
Who is someone you know that is yearning after God? How do you know they are yearning after Him?
Pray for strength to go to the next level.

This Week #3-6

2009-10-12T13:05:00.001-07:00

In continuing our DUSTY series we focused on the “T” – Telling others the TRUTH of who Christ is. We looked at many verses of that not only showed the calling Christ gives us (Mark 16:15-16/ Romans 1:16-17) but also the concern each of us should have in our hearts over those who don’t know Christ (Romans 9:1-3). In this verse Paul is in agony over those who do not know Christ. The question we need to ask ourselves is, “Are we truly concerned about those who don’t know Christ?” Because we need to be!!! Some of the tangible steps given to the students to start the process of telling others about Christ is: 1. Make a list of 3-4 people you know that don’t yet know Christ, put this list by your bed and pray for them every night. 2. Pray for those on your list AND for yourself to have opportunities, wisdom and boldness to share your faith. 3. Live a life that is an example of Christ to others. Don’t tell others how much Christ loves them and what He is doing in your life and then be a jerk to others-that doesn’t make sense. 4. Invite them to come to church, so that we can, as a community, show them a love they haven’t experience before, Christ’s love. 5. When God tugs on your heart and asks you to share your faith DO IT.

Questions for this week:
Who is on your list for the 3 or 4 people you want to come to know Christ?
How do you plan on telling them about Christ?
How can I/ we pray for you?
Spend time praying for your child with them and for the people on your child’s list.

This Week #3-5

2009-10-07T10:57:00.000-07:00

Continuing our DUSTY series, we focused on the “S”- Strengthening our desire to imitate Christ. I spoke on the importance of the desire to get to know Christ more. Although this is the 3 lesson of the series, it really is the foundation to spiritual growth. We must desire to fall deeper in love with God or else all of our righteousness for the sake of pleasing other is worthless. We can know all the “rules” and the right way to live, but if we aren’t doing it because we love God and desire to please him it is pointless. Are motivations for doing what is right must be fueled by a desire to know Christ more and show him love. Remember God first loved us, His love isn’t the question. The question is do you love God? Do you honestly desire to love Him? Or are you just showing up to church, living a good life, because that’s what is expected of you? God is waiting for you, he desires you; do you desire Christ? Does your life reflect that?

Questions for discussion:
Ask the previously mentioned questions.

What does it look like to desire Christ? How can you tell if someone desires to know Christ?

How can you strengthen your desire to imitate Christ>? (Not how can you better imitate Christ, but how can you strengthen your desire?)

This Week #3-4

2009-10-01T11:49:00.000-07:00

This week Gregg continued out DUSTY series speaking on the importance of Unity with other believers. Here are some questions to discuss with your kids:

What does “unity” mean to you?
Why do Christians need to be united?
How can we encourage unity in Off Road?
How can you share the love of Christ?

This Week #3-3

2009-09-21T13:26:00.000-07:00

This week in OFF ROAD we started our new series discussing what the goal of OFF ROAD is all about. Our purpose statement is, “We exist to have a lifelong Devotion to God, Unified with other believers, Strengthening our desire to imitate Christ, while telling others the Truth of who he is and Yearning to be covered in the dust of the master.” We want to help student s get D.U.S.T.Y. This week we focused on what it means to have a lifelong devotion to God. We looked at 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 where Paul is speaking on running the good race so as not to be disqualified.

I taught the whole lesson while running on a treadmill. Throughout the lesson people would come up and try to distract me from running the good race, but I pressed on, making the points that to run the good race we need discipline (even when it is hard we need to give God the time he deserves to build out relationship with him), direction (we need to know where we are going, in each decision we make we need to ask, “Is this taking me away from God or towards him, and we need determination (no matter how hard life gets, how tough people around you make it to be a Christian we must be determined to continue to run for God.) If we do this the prize that Jesus offers is worth more than anything this life could put us through.

Questions for discussion:

How are you disciplining yourself to follow Christ?
Would you say that you are heading toward Christ, away from Christ, or not moving at all? Why?
What is the toughest part about being a Christian? Why is that tough? Is there anything in this world that could rip you away from your faith (or gradually pull)?
What prize does God offer in this life, if we follow him? What prize does God offer in when we die?
On a scale of 1-10 how would you say you are running the race for God (10= full speed, totally living for him/ 1=walking the other way) Do you want to improve that number? How might you improve?

This Week #3-2

2009-09-14T10:04:00.000-07:00

This week in OFF ROAD was a little bit different as we had our parent meeting/support group ;) on Saturday night. It was a great time . Please try to make it to the next meetings we have as they are important to both know what is going on, build community and share parenting advice/ experience.

On Sunday we continued our series “Loneliness is not a word in God’s dictionary,” looking more specifically at what we can count on in our small groups. It is our goal in OFF ROAD to provide 4 things in every small group- Meaningful-God centered conversations, Accountability, Prayer and Scripture (MAPS) Each one of these aspects is crucial to the Christian journey. As we so often discuss worldly things we tend to put God in the back of our minds, only to be discussed at church. We want that type of discussion happening more often and that is why it is encouraged in small groups. TO be accountable to someone else that can encourage you to do the right thing and help you through the tough times is so needed and we want to model and encourage students to have an active daily conversation with God through prayer and scripture reading.

Please make sure that your child sings up for a small group. The kickoff is this Wednesday (EVERYONE IS MEETING AT THE CHURCH THIS WEEK) from 6:45- 8:15.

Questions to discuss:
Why is it important to have a group of Christian friends?
Why is it important to have you main group of friends be believers?
How can we pray so that it is more of a conversation than a “talking at” God?
How can we help you be more involved in reading the bible?

This Week #3-1

2009-09-08T15:10:00.000-07:00

Welcome back to OFF Road as we kick off our 09-10 school year. I hope the transition to the next grade level has been easy on your family and that you are excited to allow God to work in your and your child’s life this year!!!
This week in OFF ROAD we started a 2 part series title “Loneliness is not a word in God’s dictionary.” This series focuses on the important of small groups and how God has created us for community with other believers. We looked at a few verses that I would encourage you to read with your child this week (1John 3:18-20; Matt 12:46-50; 1Peter 3:8; Galatians3:26-29) Each of these verses give us expectation for each other that give us a good look into what authentic community should look like. We used these verses to contrast what a big group setting can give compared to a small group setting. Here are the contrasts I see:

Big group= know a little, loved surface level, listening, Head knowledge, Independent
Small group= KNOWN, LOVED deeply, discussing, Heart knowledge, Dependence
Please have your child sign up , or sign your child up for small groups so they can be known and loved so that they can know and love God.
Questions for to discuss with your child:

What does it mean to have someone really know you?

Do you have anyone in your life (besides family) who really knows you?

What does it mean to have someone that really loves you?

Do you have someone in your life (besides family) who really knows you?

Where can you find someone who could know and love you truly?

What does it take for someone to really know you and truly love you?

This Week # 2-45

2009-08-24T07:44:00.000-07:00

This Week #2-45

We ended our “Heroes” series and our summer with the focus of what we are all about- Jesus. We looked at the awesome example He set in his life, noting what it looks like to be a true hero, something we are all called to be. Jesus loved and loves us tremendously and that loved showed in two huge ways. First, Jesus was humble. We looked at the verses that describe Jesus being betrayed and I talked about how if it were me I would have never let Judas kiss me (in fact I would have probably punched his lights out) and I would have surely not healed the guys ear that got looped of, BUT Jesus, who was going to be killed for being perfect, humbled himself and, not only accepted Judas’ kiss, healed the guys ears, but ended up dying for both of them- WOW!!! Jesus also showed his love through service. Again, Jesus went to the cross enduring pain we couldn’t even imagine all to serve God and to serve us- WOW!!!! The challenge of all this was to make this part of daily prayers – “God give me your eyes, open my eyes to the things unseen and break my heart for what breaks yours.” In doing this and honestly seeking it we will hopefully start seeing the world the way Jesus does and then it will be easier to love others through humility and service, the way we are called to.

Questions:

Do you desire to love others because Christ first loved you? What does this look like?

How do you think you would treat others different if you saw the world through Jesus’ eyes?

What can you do to make that difference in your life (treating the world the way Jesus would)?

As you return to school, how do you want to love others at school the way Christ loved you?

What is harder for you Humility or Service? Why? How can you get better at both of these? (Hint-practice)

This Week # 2-43

2009-08-09T18:10:00.000-07:00

This week in OFF road we were able to look at a few more heroes of the bible. This time the heroes were a little bit more obscure than the big names of David, Moses and Paul. These three heroes were judges of tribes of Israel, but all ended up delivering Israel from the hands of oppressors. The three heroes and their super powers are listed below. If you have a chance to read about Look up Judges 3 and 4, pretty fascinating.
Ehud
Super power- left- handedness
Shamgar
Superpower- a stick with a needle on the end
Deborah
Super power- trust & an ear

Questions for this week:
What is unique about you? How can you use that as your superpower?
What things, big or small, has God given you that can be used to do great things for His glory?
Do you really trust God? If so, are you listening?

This Week # 2-42

2009-08-05T11:53:00.000-07:00

This week in OFF ROAD we had the privilege of having Paul Slayton speak to us. Paul was one of my Jr. High leaders when I was a young’n and he is an awesome guy. Paul shared so ridiculous stories that were totally crazy and not true about me growing up ;) which is better than sharing the ridiculous stories that are true about me. He then told us a stomach twisting story of an incident that happened to him a few weeks ago. The story involved a little girl who had her finger pulled off, where just the bone was showing. This happened at a mall and he was a witness to it. Now Paul, being a teacher and a formed boy scout is trained in first aid, and when it happened he knew the right thing to do, but stood there and watched. Eventually he stepped forward and helped out. The point was this;

James 1:22- Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says…

See our calling is not to have head knowledge that does nothing, but knowledge that leads to action. In our school many people are in the same situation as that little girl, probably not physically, but emotionally and spiritually. The challenge was- Will you be one that knows what the right thing to do is but stands there, or will you see the people in your school and, with the knowledge gained at church, love like Christ, act like Christ, and reach out like Christ?

Questions for this week:
As you go back to school what are some ways you can take what you have learned at church and put them into practice at school?

Who are some people you know that are made fun of that you know you should stick up for? Will you stick up for them this year?

Are you one who typically stands around not doing anything about the hurting people around you or are you one who sees the needs of others and acts on that? How can you do that better now?

This Week # 2-41

2009-07-26T22:55:00.000-07:00

This week in OFF ROAD we were able to look at more pictures of the missions trip to Belize and have a couple of the 8th (now 9th) graders that went share their stories, highlights and tell how God has changed their life. Two things that the students shared as highlights were playing with the kids and experiencing the Belize culture. The students shared that this was a life changing trip and that they have a bigger appreciation for the blessing they have here and that serving God all out is fun! My encouragement to the students is summarized in 1 Tim 4:12- “Don’t not let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set and example for others.” Missions work isn’t just for adults, it is for everyone. The students that went on this trip never thought that they would go to Belize on a mission’s trip in Junior High. Most of them were pretty scared about going, but they did and God transformed their lives!!!! Each student will have the opportunity to go on a mission’s trip; don’t let it pass you up. And also be very aware that your mission field is all around you, you don’t have to go to Belize to be a missionary, be a missionary in your schools, neighborhood and workplace.

Questions to ask your kids:
If you could go anywhere on a missions trip where would it be and why?
Look up a third world country on the internet and look at some of the health and income facts. Spend time as a family praying for that country.
How can you be a missionary here where you live?
What would it look like to be a missionary here? Did you know that you are called to be one wherever you are?

ANNOUNCMENTS
POOL PARTY TUESDAY 6-8 $5 RSVP TO DREW@WESTGATECHURCH.ORG by TUESDAY AT 1:30
Location:
7/28 - Community Pool-Parquet Ct., 95124. I don't know if it has a #, but once you drive down Parquet ct. you run right into its parking lot!

ALSO, for the next 2 weeks OFF ROAD is partnering up with churches around the south bay to raise food for Second Harvest Food Bank. We want to help the less fortunate, especially in such tough economic times. WE NEED TO FILL 2 Barrels full of food. Please send have your child bring a TON of canned food to the weekend services to help us in our effort.

This Week # 2-40

2009-07-20T16:31:00.000-07:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we spent time looking at pictures from the 8^th grade missions trip. I was able to share with the students a brief overview of what we did, how we served some interesting facts and hopefully in all of this, instill a passion and interest in participating in the 8^th grade trip when their time comes. For those of you that are parents of 8^th graders please start to pray about and consider allowing your child to go on the 8^th grade trip. Things are already in motions to return to the same community and serve them again next year. Mission trips are such an amazing opportunity to open our eyes to the needs of the world around us as well as help inspire us to serve God as missionaries not just overseas but her at home as well. For me the time in Belize was awesome and it was amazing to see the 8^th graders transition from being lead to being leaders!!!! Praise God for what he did and what he continues to do.

This Week # 2-38

2009-06-08T08:00:00.001-07:00

WELCOME 6^th graders!!!! This week in OFF ROAD the former 5^th graders moved up into OFF ROAD so we used this time to really re-focus ourselves, and to establish what OFF ROAD is all about. I talked through Matthew 4:18- 22, the calling of the first disciples. In these verses Jesus walks up to a couple of people who were fishing and says to them, “come follow me,” and immediately they leave everything and follow Jesus. Pretty crazy when you don’t know the background, but when you look deeper you realize that who they say Jesus as. Jesus was a rabbi, someone whom these disciple (who, by the way, were about the age of a jr. higher) wanted to be like. Unfortunately somewhere in the disciple’s Biblical training they were told they were not good enough, that no rabbi would want them to follow Him. Then Jesus comes along, and not only accepts them, but asks them to join Him!!! Jesus is the same way with us. We don’t have to be perfect, or know all the bible. The standard God sets for us is- Are you willing to follow me? We need to be ready to do that, leaving everything behind.

Questions:

What are you going to make OFF ROAD all about? Is it all about friends and hanging out, games, and fun? Or is it all about growing closer to Jesus and following Him?

Are you willing to give God your all? What does that look like? What is keeping you from living every second for God?

How can I help you, as your parent, focus on God and grow closer to Him?

This Week # 2-37

2009-06-01T10:55:00.000-07:00

This week was and emotional week as we bid farewell to our 8^th graders. The talk was geared to them, but was for everyone. As a sending off we looked at the example Jesus set in washing his disciple’s feet. Jesus humbled himself in service to show us how to live for Him. We must realize no matter where we are in life that we and everyone around us come to Jesus with dirty feet. We are no better than anyone else and we all need forgiveness. In washing His disciples feet Jesus also gives us a tangible example of something we can do every day to live for Him- humble ourselves to those around us and serve them. I ended the talk letting the 8^th graders know how much I and the leaders love them and how much we desire for them to continue to follow Christ all their life. We hope that they can look at our lives and say, “I want to live like those leaders, those leaders lived for Christ.” We hope their time in OFF ROAD was fun, enjoyable, enriching, but most of all, above everything else we hope that they have grown more in love with God, and have set a firm foundation in him, a foundation that will not crumble.

Questions for your kids:

What are some ways that you can humble yourself to those around you and serve them?

What group of people do you find it hard to serve? Why?

What group of people do you find easy to serve? Why?

How can you start serving others (both hard and easy) on a more consistent basis?

What qualities do you see in the OFF ROAD leaders that you want to copy?

Do you feel like you are drawing closer to God, further away, or staying the same? Why?

ANNOUNCEMENTS

-OFF ROAD SUMMER KICK OFFFAMILY BBQ- THIS SUNDAY!!!!! 12:30- 3:00 . Please RSVP to drew@westgatechurch.org , and bring a side to share. Cost is only $5/ person. INVITE FRIEND AND FRIEND’S FAMILY. (Giant slip and slide- bring your bathing suit, jousting, and a dunk tank!!!!!!!!!!!)

This Week # 2-36

2009-05-17T15:57:00.000-07:00

God invented sex and it is a GREAT thing… If it is in the context in which He created it to be.
-Genesis 2:21-25
-Sex gets complicated when sin enters the picture
-When not done in the context in which it was meant to be sex becomes like using an 56’’ flat panel tv (awesome thing) for rowing a boat (not what it is meant for, and is going to end up hurting you). It doesn’t make sense.
-Genesis 3:6-11
TRAPS the world tries to get you to buy in on.
-Traps look good, or it wouldn’t be a trap.
1 Peter 5:8-9

Trap 1- To win a guys attention I must use my body.
-Gestalt-> your mind will add unfinished stuff
-Guys brains especially finish the picture with girls.
-Application: Girls-> the clothes you wear/ Guys-> the way you look at girls

Trap 2 - Sometimes we tell ourselves that we can expose ourselves to pornography or R-rated material and it is no big deal
- S.I. swimsuit edition, R rated movies, Pg -13 movies, Maxim, Macys catalogue all are unhealthy to view even though->
-World says it is no big deal, friends will say it too.
-What is that doing to your mind
Mark 12:30
Application- This stuff gets your mind going where it shouldn’t, like a drug, creates dependence-> you want more and more. Is an addiction that ruins relationships. Not real-> unreasonable expectations

Trap 3- Having a loose definition of “sex” so we can push the boundaries
-How close can I put my hand to the fire without really burning it? Stupid questions, but we do the same with intimacy.
-What is your future spouse doing? What would you want someone doing to your future spouse?
1 Corinthians 6:19-20
-What is the safe zone?

-I think the safest zone is group dating/public dating… never be left alone in a room where no one else is!!!!!

-And remember you are not ready to date until you’re ready to get married. Dating is to find your wife/husband. When you date and you are not ready to get married the reason for dating becomes much different, worldly and self satisfying.

This Week # 2-35

2009-05-09T12:17:00.000-07:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we began our 2 part series “G.I. Barbie- guys, girls and relationship” I took the students through God’s design for all relationships. The three main points were:

1.We were all created in God’s image.(Gen. 1:27) So we’re are all unique, special and loved in God’s eyes, and if we want to be like God we must understand the uniqueness and love God has for everyone. This is foundational to our understanding or relationships with everyone, including people of the opposite sex.

2. We were created for relationships. (Gen 2:18-23) God made us to be in relationship with others, and he specifically made men and women to be “just right for each other.” Because God designed relationships we can look to Him for guidance in relationship (i.e. the trinity, unity of believers, Jesus’ disciples) Students need to understand that God’s original design was to be in full relationship with Him, and that needs to be our focus.

3. Our #1 priority should be God. (1 Corin. 7:32-35) God’s designing of a man and a woman might get some Jr. Highers excited with the belief that God wants us to have boyfriends are girlfriends, but as Paul points out in Corinthians, our #1 priority should not be the opposite sex, but God. Until our focus is on Him, we are not ready to focus on getting into a dating relationship.

From my experience and from what the bible says; get right with God, focus on Him and make him relationship priority #1 and if you still desire a more series relationship with the opposite sex then He might just allow that to happen.

***just a side note. I believe that dating is to help find out who you are compatible with for marriage; therefore if you aren’t at a point in your life to get married, you aren’t ready to date. Motivations for dating become very ‘worldly’ if you date when you aren’t seeking a spouse.

I would encourage all parents to set up expectations for dating/ relationships now. It is better to talk things over with your kids and set rules that you can agree upon beforehand rather than trying to deal with it when it comes up.

This Week # 2-34

2009-05-04T08:18:00.000-07:00

This week in OFF ROAD we had Ryan Ingram finish our “Bling” series. He started with some great stories about how foolish he was as a kid and how if we don’t learn how to use our money the way God asks us to then we will end up doing foolish things too. The biggest point that he made was that OUR STUFF IS SPIRITUAL. What we buy and how we spend our money is spiritual. It says in Matt 6:21, “Where your treasure is, there your heart is.” We must look at our stuff and realize that it is spiritual and if we are consumed with our stuff than our treasure is really here on earth. Later on Matthew says, “No one can serve two Masters…You cannot serve both God and money. We have to realize this and we need to know this sooner than later so we don’t do foolish things with our stuff, and so we can glorify God in all aspects of our life.

One suggestion Ryan made was to have 3 jars: Spending, Saving, And Giving. When your child gets any money the first 10% goes to giving, second 10% to savings and 80% to spend. Now, of course they can increase giving and saving, but always at least 10% in each of those. This we start helping them learn money management and good giving habits, as we want Jr. Higher to start using their money in the way God intended them to.

Questions: Are your spending habits modeling good and Godly spending habits for your children?

Are your children part of your giving? If not I would encourage you to let them participate in your giving, explain why you do it and encourage them to add the family giving.

As your child comes to OFF ROAD, we take a offering for 2 needy kids, one in Ghana, one in Colombia, encourage them to start making giving part of their regular act of worship.

This Week # 2-33

2009-04-27T11:52:00.000-07:00

We continued our “Bling” series in OFF ROAD this week as Alan spoke to us on tithing. He shared with us a few awesome stories about his decisions to give what he felt God called him to, leaving his wants and desires behind, and in that, how God has blessed those decisions. He read the verse 2 Corinthians 9:6-9

⁶Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. ⁷Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. ⁸And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

Here is the thing, tithing is not giving God %10 it is getting to keep and steward %90. All of it is God’s and he asks us to give %10 back to him. With the other %90 we are responsible to us it for his glory “Whoever sows sparingly will rep sparingly.” We should give out of love and devotion to God and when we do that God will bless it and we will be storing up our treasures in heaven, treasures so much greater than any money can buy here on earth.

Parents sit down with your kids and make a list of all the things that they have bought in the last 3 months. Ask them how much money have they given back to God, and how much of the stuff that they have bought has been used for God’s glory.

OFF ROAD will be doing a used clothes drive for needy kids in our community. During May please bring in any clothes that your family no longer wears that is still in decent to good condition.(Please no used socks or underwear). You could also go shopping for new clothes for needy kids and donate that too. Let’s start helping our kids have a heart of compassion not consumerism.

ANNOUNCMENTS

1.This Wednesday= Small groups

2.This Thursday 7-9= Parent Recharge $5

3. This Friday= Girls scavenger hunt @ valley Fair Mall. 7-9. Meet in front of Cinnabon in the food court no later than 7:00

4. LMTO (Laugh my tookish off) Comedy sports night= Sat May 16^th After the service. FRIENDS AND FAMILY WELCOME. Only $10. Our goal is to get 200 students + family members. Tickets available now. Please invite friends and be there.

5. 8^th Grade girls getaway= Friday, May 15-16. $30 Last day to sign up is MAY 3^rd. Contact Marilyn Doyle (marilyn@westgatechurch.org )

6. 8^th Grade guys hike= Friday May 22-24. $25 email drew@westgatechurch.org

7. Summer camp spots still available, only $100 sign up today (June 20-23

This Week # 2-33

2009-04-19T13:58:00.000-07:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we started a new series called “Bling.” We will be looking at how to use money the way God asks us. This week we started the series by looking at whether we are consumers or compassionate. We looked at the parable of the rich fool found in Luke 12, where Jesus tells the man that storing up earthly possessions is foolishness. The charge here is that we should be eternal minded in everything we do, especially our use of money. Are we spend money for eternal purposes or just to satisfy our next craving? But what does that really mean. We then looked at 1 John 3:16-18. These verses stat that we should love others the way Jesus loved us (he gave us everything, his all) so giving our money to the needy, and to God is nothing compared to what Christ did for us. Verse 17 is the most convicting part for me, “If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother in need but shows no compassion, how can God’s love be in that person?” I would encourage you to go through your possession with your child and:

-Evaluate what you have- Look at your stuff and ask, “Is this being used for God’s glory/ to further His kingdom?”
-Pray and ask God what he wants you to sell to give those in need the money
-Listen- when he answers don’t plug your ears, but listen.
-Act- Before the draw of more stuff entangles you act on the promptings of God.

Have a heart of compassion to those in need and not a heart of consumerism of what you want.

This Week # 2-32

2009-04-06T10:17:00.000-07:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we finished our series “Under Pressure,” by looking at what the bible says about our self image. We used 1 Samuel 16:7 and 1 Peter 3:3-5 to help us realize that the most important thing about who we are is not what we look like, but about our love for Christ and others. The three steps I encouraged students to take in improving their thoughts about themselves are:

1. Stop judging others. Just as God looks on the inside we need to do the same. We need to stop judging other’s appearance because that is not Godly and the more we judge others the more we care about what others think of us.

2. Surround yourself with good character- with people who care more about you than what you wear, how good you are at sports, what music you listen to etc. I asked students to think of people they know that care about them and people they know that care about these superficial things, and suggested that they spend most of their time with people who really care about them.

3. Most importantly- find your identity in God. God is crazy about each one of us, but we quickly forget about his love for us as we focus on what others think.

At the end of the lesson I had students open up to psalm 139 and write a personal ad about themselves the way God views them. I asked students to put this by their bed so that whenever they would be continually reminded of God’s view of them so they could find their self image in Him.

Questions:

Who do you know that cares more about you than what you wear, how you look etc?

Do you find yourself judging others at school for what they look like? Why?

Who is someone in your life that might not look cool, but is very cool (according to God’s standard)? What makes them cool?

What do you think God thinks of you?

Announcements

Hunt- We need Jr. high volunteers for our HUNT craft table at Bower’s park in Santa Clara THIS SATURDAY. Please be there at 12:30 and stay until 3:00. Let me know if you can make it.

No OFF ROAD next weekend (EASTER)- Jr. high is trying to get a big crew to sit together during the 6:00 service on Saturday try to make it to this service if you can.

Guys Night Out- April 17^th @ the gym ($2), 7-10

Girls chick flick night- April 17 @ the Tomasello’s (Free) 8:30-10:30 (406 Union Ave Unit E Campbell)

This Week # 2-31

2009-03-30T11:30:00.000-07:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we looked at biblical ways of handling Peer Pressure. Last week was a time of small group discussion of what our Junior Highers are going through, what pressures they face so that this week I could address their specific needs. We looked at a number of verses, and broke it down to 3 main ideas, with the hope that whenever they are facing bad peer pressure they can remember the weird acronym, “SLR”

-Surround yourself with good character -1 Corinthians 15:33-34/ Galatians 2:11 PARENT QUESTIONS= (Are your most important friend’s people who positively influence you? People who keep you accountable to what is right? Will call you out when doing something wrong? Where can you find those friends?)

-Look to the future – Luke 12:35-40 PARENT QUESTIONS= (Are you putting yourself in situations that you know aren’t good? What can you do to avoid those situations ahead of time? What people/situations do you need to avoid?)

-Run – Genesis 39:7-12 PARENT QUESTIONS=(When you get in a situation with peer pressure do you stick around and try not to participate, or do you tend to leave? When have you run from a peer pressure situation? Is it easy or hard for you to get out of a situation? Are you ready to run?)

Parents- not just this week, but continually ask your children about the peer pressure situations they face. Talk to them about how to handle it, and pray with them for strength to do what is right.

This Week # 2-30

2009-03-24T08:21:00.000-07:00

This Week we broke the students up into grade and gender and asked them these questions (I would encourage you to look through these questions and spend time talking with your child about them as well):

What is peer pressure?

Can there be good peer pressure?

What kind of negative pressure do you see around you?

What are a few pressures that you see actually influencing people around you?

Why do you think those pressures are so influential?

What kind of negative pressures do you face? (really challenge them beyond the big stuff i.e. drugs and stealing are good to talk about, but most kids face cheating, making fun of others, not sharing their faith, lying, not telling all the truth, not loving others, talking behind others backs etc. on a daily basis)

Which pressures are easy to ignore? Why?

Which pressures are hard to ignore? Why?

How do you respond to those pressures?

Do you know how to handle negative peer pressure? How?

This Week # 2-29

2009-03-16T07:39:00.000-07:00

This Week we started a new series, “Under Pressure.” In this series we will be looking at how we need to react to the pressures of this world, and the precedence that Jesus set. This week I spoke on our mandate from Christ to love and welcome others. We read through the story of the woman who cam and washed Jesus’ feet and how she was on the outside looking in, and Jesus welcomed her, accepted her and loved her (Luke: 36-48). We want to make OFF ROAD a place where people feel that loved and it is up to everyone to help make people feel loved.

Here are a few suggestions I gave to your kids while interacting with newcomers at church, school and their neighborhood.

Don’t be clique-e- Accepting and welcoming others isn’t about leaving your friends behind, it is about bringing them along to welcome others.

Say, “Hello,” and ask questions- “What school do you go to?” “What is your favorite class?” “Least Favorite?” “Why?” and talk back to them.

Remember Jesus say we are the light of the world. Let’s let our light shine with how welcoming and loving we are.

Questions to ask your child:

Do you find it easy or hard to talk to newcomers? Why?

Tell me a story about a time in your life when you felt like you were on the outside looking in.

How did that make you feel?

How do you think people who come to OFF ROAD for the first time or on the “outside “at school feel?

What can you do to help them feel welcomed and loved?

Make a list with your child of people they would like to bring to church and start praying for them.

This Week # 2- 28

2009-03-02T10:46:00.000-08:00

This week in OFF ROAD I spoke on forgiveness, and one of our 8^th graders, Laurel, shared her story, of how forgiveness has allowed her to become a new person!!!

The main verse we read was Matthew 18:21-35

-Peter asks Jesus how many times he should forgive someone. After Jesus responds to Peter with a number much larger than Peter expected, Jesus tell a parable. What Jesus does in the parable is he changes Peter’s perspective. To just give him a number would not change Peters heart, but with the new perspective he can realize the forgiveness he has received and forgive others.

-In the same way our perspective should change. If we believe in Christ we are a new creation, and a new creation equals a new perspective.

- The new perspective is 2 fold, summed up in Colossians 3:31- “Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must for give others.”

First, forgiveness is you’re responsibility. We must choose to forgive others because Christ forgave us. Even when people don’t want forgiveness we must offer it to them as Christ did the same for us.

Second, when we are in conflict with others we must keep in mind the forgiveness that God has granted us, and with that knowledge, realize that any forgiveness we give anyone else is nothing compared to the forgiveness givens us. When we realize that, it changes our perspective and allows us to more quickly and fully forgive others.

QUESTIONS:

What can you do, when you don’t want to forgive others, to remind yourself how God has forgiven you?

Who in your life do you find hard to forgive?

Do you think it is easy for you to forgive others or hard?

What has God done in your life to allow you to forgive?

What does it mean to you that God has forgiven you?

Parent Meeting Notes

2009-02-25T09:40:00.000-08:00

-Vision of OFF ROAD (DUSTY & GROWTH)- Our the drive behind everything we do it to help create DUSTY students- You can find out what this means on the Church website under student ministries- OFF ROAD. We also would like to grow our group to 200 by September of this year. We need your help as parents to get your children inviting friends.

-Need for leaders= please pray and look for- With the growth that has already happened and the growth we trust will happen we desperately need leaders. Please be on the look out fo people you would think would make great Jr. High leaders and personally invite them to check out OFF ROAD and participate in leadership. The personal invitation is much more effective than a blanket statement to the congregation.

-Importance of Drive groups= Please get your kids to small groups. As our group gets bigger individual connection get harder. Small group allows for closer relationships and a deeper look into God’s word. It is very important, so please make it a priority.

-Consistency on weekends= I want to encourage you to have your child be consistent on weekends as often times we do series and to come once a month or here and there makes it harder for them to follow along.

-NO OFF ROAD= Go to service- I didn’t really get to talk about this, but I wanted to let you all know that when we don’t have OFF ROAD, that is not a bad thing. In fact I proposed, and was approved to take one weekend off every month. The goal behind this is for the students to go to main service to feel a larger church integration. I would encourage you to go to the main service with your child at this time, letting them know they are part of Westgate, not just OFF ROAD.

-Move to Saturday- Due to the overwhelming amount of people who attend the 11:00 service the church needs to move people out of the 11:00 main service for guests. One thing that the church is considering is eliminating Jr. High during that time, taking people off that service time as Jr. high will only be offered Sat night. This is an idea, but I want to encourage you to move to Sat night if at all possible so this doesn’t have to happen

- (SURVEY)- We talked over the following things that will also be showing up at your house in the form of a survey for you and your child to fill out. PLEASE take the time to give feedback on the survey and mail it back (postage is already paid for)

-OFF ROAD blog- how’s it working, do you use it, do you like it, is it helpful?

-This Week & Announcements- Now on blog, do you prefer on blog or would you like me to email you them every week?

-Online Calendar- On the blog, does this work for you? Can you make it work for you? If I sent home a calendar once every other month would it make a significant difference?

-Issues you want covered in Junior High

-What about OFF ROAD does your child enjoy?

-What do you think would get your kids more interested… wanting to bring friends?

Logistical Stuff

-Parents willing to Drive/ Parents with Trailers

-Service team/ Events Team

-Summer camp dates (June 20-23)

-Parents of 8^th graders- DE/ Missions trip (June 26- July 2)

**Parents had a strong desire to do this on a quarterly basis, so we will have meetings/ parent get togethers more often.

This Week # 2-27

2009-02-16T11:41:00.000-08:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we finished our series, “Becoming who you are,” by taking a test to try and help us discover our spiritual gifts. The test and information can be found on this website: www.layministry.com . I would highly recommend that you go to this website and take the test as well, if you don’t already know your spiritual gift. I also want you to make sure that your child finishes the test and talk to them about what the test reveals.

A couple of things that need to be covered, which we covered in OFF ROAD are these:

This test is not the final answer to what your spiritual gift is. It is there to help guide you to what your gift might be. Once you have an idea you need to do two very important things (more important than the test). First you need to pray about it. Ask God to reveal himself through the using of those gifts. Ask for affirmation in those gifts. Ask for guidance in you spiritual gifts. The other thing you must do is put your spiritual gifts to work. To find out your spiritual gift and then do nothing with it reveals nothing, and it means you are not doing what God has equipped you to do. If you find that the things that the test said were you spiritual gifts empower you and you found God working through you in those areas then that is a good confirmation of those gifts. SO use your gift.

The other thing that we have to remember with these gifts is that we can only use them when we are empowered by the Holy Spirit. They are gifts, given to us to be used for God’s glory. If we try to use them on our own, without the Holy Spirit and for our own glory God will not reveal himself through them. Your spiritual gift is for God’s glory and when you use it to bring him glory you will find yourself really becoming who you are, living the greatest life available, a life for God.

Please make sure that you and your child have taken the test and then discuss what your spiritual gifts are/ might be with each other. Talk about how you can use those gifts to serve God.

(I told the students to email me with their top 2 spiritual gifts so remind them to do that as well)

This Week # 2-26

2009-02-10T08:04:00.000-08:00

This week in OFF ROAD we had the privilege of having Jon Talbert continue our, “Becoming who you are,” series as he walked us through the story of Gideon. Now if you don’t know this story let me give you a little background because it is pretty crazy (as are a lot of old testament stories). Gideon’s story can be found in the book of Judges.

Gideon was a weakling, he was the weakest of the weak. The Bible says that he came from the weakest tribe from the weakest clan from the weakest family. This guy was the one you wouldn’t want to choose for any kind of fight, but God did. God told Gideon that it was time to bet the bad guys (the Midianites) and that He was going to accomplish this through Gideon. Gideon trusted God even though he only had 32,000 and the Midianites had 135,000. Yet, even though the Israelites were way out numbered God decided, through some really weird ways, to whittle Gideons army down to only 300. Yeah, 300 verses 135,000. Not only that when it came time to battle God equipped them with a horn, a clay jar and a torch- that’s it. In the end the 300 men surrounded the Midianite camp at night, all blew their horns, threw down their jars and help up their torches. This created so much commotion that the Midianites, believing that the Israelites were attacking them and where in their camp, drew their swords and started killing each other (thinking that each other were the others).

Gideon’s story of being way out numbered and still trusting in God and following Him shows us that we need to:

1. Walk in confidence because God is there (Look at Gideon. He had an impossible task, but he walked in confidence because he knew nothing was impossible with God.)
2. We need to walk in humility because God is doing the work. (God whittled down Gideon’s army so that everyone would know that it was God who won the war. When God works through us we need to be humble and give credit where credit is due.) 1 Corinthians 1:27- “God uses the foolish things of this world to shame the wise. God chose the weak things to shame the strong”
3. We need to know we are empowered by God. (Gideon, the weakest of the weak was used to destroy an entire army. If God can empower the weakest of the weak he can empower you too.)

Ask your children these questions this week:
Is it easy or hard for you to put your confidence with God? Why or why not? What does that look like?
Has there ever been a time were you have seen God work through you? What was that like?
When do you feel you need God the most? When do you rely on Him the most?
What would you like God to empower you to do?

This Week # 2-25

2009-02-02T14:00:00.000-08:00

This week in OFF ROAD we continued our series titled, “Becoming Who You Are,” as we looked at the ways the world tries to steal our identity. In order to see the ways the world is trying to accomplish this task we looked into the book of Ecclesiastes. This book is written by Solomon, the wisest and richest of all kings. This guy was no ordinary king, he was basically a genius with an overwhelming amount of money (the Bible says that Solomon received about 25 tons of gold each year, not including money from taxes). During his reign Solomon wrote 3 books (including Ecclesiastes) which are now part of the Bible. The first part of 1st Kings describes Solomon’s ascension to the throne and his rule. We find out in this book that even though he was wise he ended up looking for his identity in the things of this world. Solomon was a man who had everything, I MEAN EVERYTHING, at his beck and call, and he used this power to use all sorts of means to find meaning. After all this we can read his conclusions in the book of Ecclesiastes.

Ecclesiastes 1:1-11 lays out Solomon’s thesis statement for the book. The point he makes in these verses, which continue throughout the book is this- “Everything under the sun is meaningless.” In other words, if we try to find our identity in the things of this world it will be a huge waste of time- Remember this is coming from a guy who basically tried everything under the sun. As he moves on to, and through chapter 2, he mentions three things this world offers.

The first place that many of us find our identity in is pleasure. We live for whatever brings us pleasure. For some of us this is video games, some of us it is books, some sports, and some just the weekend. We are not really present in our lives because we are always looking for something else that gives us our identity. In Ecclesiastes 2:1-3 we see that Solomon was also a pleasure seeker, but found that it was meaningless. Are you a pleasure seeker?

The second thing that many of us find our identity in is stuff or money. We always want something, want more. We are envious of what our friends have and believe that if we could only have whatever is hot or the new thing then we would be happy. If we fall into this trap we seek more out of our stuff and often times don’t realize that it never totally satisfies- our satisfaction only last a short time. Solomon states that he too tried to find his identity in that but that it was meaningless (Ec. 2:4-11). Are you a stuff/ money seeker?

Lastly, many of us try to find our identity in knowledge or wisdom. If you tend to live for the approval of others, are consumed by getting good grades or looking smart, or if you like to show off you are probably a wisdom and knowledge seeker. Again, Solomon, the wisest one states, “Yet I saw the wise and the foolish share the same fate. They both die… Everything under the sun is meaningless” Ec. 2:12-17.

Now if it ended there it would be quite a depressing message, but in the end Solomon says “GET OVER THE SUN, this is where life is hidden.” The truth is that all that other stuff will not give you life, will not complete your identity and will only get you more lost if that is where you look to find yourself because “everything under the sun is meaningless.” Instead we need to get over the sun and focus on God, finding our identity in Him. If we do this, then we will be able to truly become who we were meant to be.

Parents ask yourself and your child these questions this week:
Which type of seeker do you tend to be?
How does that show itself in your life?
Why do you think you tend to be that kind of seeker?
How can you get over the sun, and not focus on what is under the sun?
What can I/we do to help you not be consumed by seeking that?

This Week # 2- 24

2009-01-26T10:51:00.000-08:00

As you know we have been going through a series titled, “Becoming Who You Are.” This week we were going to look into what the world tells us we should be, but I decided to put that off until next week and address the post-camp reality that hits us when we get home. The lesson was titled; “Mountains High Valleys Low” and we looked at what the mountain top experience involves and how we bring that experience home.

Just to give you a little background this past weekend we went to winter camp. On Saturday night the speaker gave a raw description of the sacrifice Jesus made for us and the pouring out of love that he gave us. He walked the students through an experience that lead many to feel the Holy Spirit, recognize God’s love for them and draw closer to God. What I realized after was that both in this circumstance and in many camp experiences that I have had many students feel something, and are drawn to God, which is great, but they don’t really understand what it is they are feeling or why they might be feeling it. I believe that a lot of it has to do with a lack of understanding who the Holy Spirit is. I often talk about God and Jesus, but don’t talk about the Holy Spirit, whom Jesus says is better for us than Him!!! (Jn.16)I think that many students are drawn to decisions, recognition and emotions at camps because it is there that they leave distractions behind and can hear, sense and feel the Holy Spirit’s presence. If the students had a better understanding of the Holy Spirit I think that they would begin to realize that the Holy Spirit is not someone that is only on the mountain, and their feelings of being drawn to God can happen every day.

During the lesson I first review some things that the Holy Spirit is and is not. These include:

Is- God given, Communicator with God, In everyone who believes and has been baptized, Gives us power, Better for us than Jesus (After Jesus’ sacrifice)

Is Not- Someone who forces us to do things, Distant, Only there when we are emotional or feel Him, Only on the mountain.

The second point was that even though I think camps are great and mountain top experiences are wonderful there are some good and some bad to them, including:

Good: We get to feel and experience God in a big way. We can easily focus on His truth. We can use the experience to readjust our walk. We have an easier time hearing God/ the Holy Spirit.

Bad: The high doesn’t last and you wish that you could be at camp all the time. The emotional camp experience becomes our expectation of communication with God. We believe that the Holy Spirit is only there when we are emotional.

In the end the camp experience is great, and the good of them way outweigh the bad. A better understanding of the Holy Spirit, and God’s communication with us will help us take the mountain top experience into the valley. Here are some suggestions for making this happen.

First, we must daily give our lives to God. We often have mountain top experiences where we feel like we need to rededicate our lives to Him. Giving our lives to Christ is a daily activity, more often occurring when we are off the mountain.

Second we need to give ourselves the means to connect with the Holy Spirit. Some ways o doing this are through prayer, observing and appreciating the beauty God created all around us, silence and worship. Spend your day in connect to the Holy Spirit by observing one or more of these principles.

Lastly, when we get away we have an easier time connecting with the Holy Spirit. Just look at Jesus’ life. He got away; he took little time here and there to get away from everything so he could get with God. I challenged the students to do the same. Make a fort in their closet, get under the blankets of your bed, take a walk, climb up a tree, get away to spend time with God.

If we do these things we will have an easier time connecting with the Holy Spirit and realizing that he is there all the time, not just on the mountain.

Parents, encourage your kids to get some time away to hang out with God. (It will give you some piece and quiet to hang out with God as well)

This Week # 2-23

2009-01-11T15:22:00.000-08:00

This Week #2-23
Well welcome to 2009! It was good to be back into swing of things and be able to kick off our new series titled “Becoming Who You Are.” This three part series will be looking at what we were created to be, and who we actually are. We started this series by reading Genesis 1: 26-31 to discover what were are meant to be and Genesis 3:1-9 to discover what we are not meant to be.

Genesis 3:1-9 is the story of the fall of man, and within that story we get a good look at some things established by God to direct us to our meaning. As God creates the world he also creates choices and freedom within the ability to choose. In other words we are not meant to be restricted. We are allowed choices, and if we choice right we are given freedom. Within those choices are boundaries. Boundaries that keep us protected. In other words we are not meant to be disobedient and ashamed. So, God gives us choices and tries to protect us with boundaries. If we are obedient to the boundaries established, which leads us to making the correct choices then we are able to be what we are created to be…

Genesis 1:26-31 gives us a better look at what we were meant to be. These verses show that we were meant to be loving and loved. Many of us know that as Christians we are supposed to be loving towards others and God, be we forget that we are supposed to be love, and God needs to be our main source of that love. We also need to be just and justified. God asks us to rule over the earth wisely, and in that we need to allow God to justify us- this becomes even more important as man fell to sin. Lastly, we need to find our identity in God and when we do that we will feel complete. We are image bearers of God and when we are bearing God’s image then we are who we are supposed to be. The world offers many other answers to finding our identity, but none of that will complete us like imitating God. So as we learn and grow in Christ let’s not think about as a task, but as a chance to grow into what we are supposed to be.

Obedience to God is not about following rules that keep you from really living. It is about really living.
Are you an image bearer of God?
Parents, ask yourself this question and ask your children throughout the week what they have done at school to be an image bearer of God.

*There is NO OFF ROAD next week due to winter camp. We will be leaving for winter camp Friday at 1:00 so arrive at the church at 12:30.

This Week # 2-22

2008-12-23T08:29:00.000-08:00

This week in OFF ROAD we switched things up a bit and looked at the Christmas story through the perspective of Mary and Joseph. I was able to do a monologue, acting the part of Joseph, walking the students through the stress and agony of finding out that Mary was pregnant, and claiming it was from God. The struggle to make the decision to divorce her, and then having the angel speak to me, telling me that the baby in Mary’s womb is the son of God! I was also able to give the perspective of feeling unequipped to father the Son of God, and the excitement of who this child is and what He is going to do- save all people. The King of Kings and Lord of Lords is my son, no way!... How would I raise this child, this sweet little baby that would eventually take the nails, take the beating, and take the pain that I deserve. My sweet little boy, who would die for me, who took my sins, who paid my price.

Christina then spoke as if she were Mary, excited about being chosen to mother the Son of God, but also terrified of disgrace, humiliation, rejection, and lack of skill. Yet, even though these were all real fears, she decided to follow what God asked, laying down her fears, and submitting to being God’s servant. She told us the difficulty of being unwed and pregnant, but that she found her hope and faith in the promise of God. She spoke to the rejection she received, even from some members of her own family, but the hope that she had. She spoke of the humble beginnings of her little baby boy, and the hope that she has in God’s promise- her son.

After Christina’s monologue I was able to share a bit about how my perspective of Christmas has changed since having Makenna just over a month ago. First, I have a better understanding of the truly human nature of Jesus. Makenna is completely helpless- completely. Without Amy and me she would die. When she is hungry she can cry, but if we don’t feed her she doesn’t find her own food, she is totally dependent on us. To me this is a cool reminder of the vulnerability Jesus had for us, being fully human. We often picture Him as this great man, the powerful Son of God, yet he was fully human too, completely dependent, and totally helpless little baby.

Another perspective that has changed about this Christmas, and my very of God in general is how excited he is to see us, spend time with and watch us grow. Every day I look forward to getting home to hold my little girl. I can’t wait to just be with her. She doesn’t even have to do anything, I just love hanging out with her. God is the same way. He is so excited to hang out with us. He looks forward, in eager anticipation, for the time he can just be with us. He just loves spending time with us.

Lastly, and this has been the coolest realization for me: I love Makenna so much. I do, I love my sweet baby girl. I love her so much that I change poopy diapers, I hold her when she is crying, I love to cuddle her, kiss her, take naps with her, hold her, I love her. SHE HAS NO IDEA. NO CLUE HOW MUCH I LOVE HER. If you were to lay her on the floor and line up a bunch of people and ask her which on loves her she wouldn’t be able to tell you. I love her so much and she has no comprehension of that love. In fact there is nothing she can do, or has done, to earn my love or to take my love away. I wrote a lullaby to express this:

Hush little baby don’t you cry

Daddies gonna sing you a lullaby

Sweet little baby I love you

There is nothing you can do

I love you with all my heart

I’ve loved you from the very start

I will hold you in my arm

Keeping you from every harm

You’ve no idea how much you’re loved

By both me and the one above.

It is a sweet realization for me to start to understand that just like Makenna has no idea how much I love her, we have NO CLUE how much God loves us. Our understanding of his love is like Makenna’s understanding of my love- NO IDEA. God loves us so much that he gave His son (whom he also loves unimaginably) to die for us. We really have no idea how much God loves us, and the truth is He says to us all the time, “Hush little baby I love you, There is nothing you can do. I love you with all my heart. I’ve loved you from the very start.”

Parents, families- reflect on this truth

Have a Wonderful Christmas and God bless

This Week # 2- 21

2008-12-15T10:50:00.000-08:00

We ended our OMG! Series this week looking at some myths and truths about who God is. We had the privilege of having Pastor Joel speak to us on this topic, giving insight to some of the most common myths we here about God

Joel started the by telling us about an incident that occurred to him when he was in the 7^th grade. Joel (or Joey as he was known at the time) was very competitive and his team had just lost a flag football game at recess. Because he lost and because he was so competitive he started to cry. His crying lead to a couple of friends asking him why he was crying and if he was okay, which lead him to get more worked up and cry harder. This in-turn lead to more students asking if he was okay which lead him to cry harder and start to hyperventilating. Again, this lead to the entire class crowding around him and the teacher come to his side saying, “Don’t worry Joey, I’ve called the ambulance.” In the end Joel was in the E.R. with his parents by his side and the doctor saying that everything checked out.

Although this story is hilarious the underlying theme of his adventure is fear. Fear of being made fun of, fear of rejection, fear of failure. At each step of his story he had the opportunity to stop what was going on, tell everyone that it was just because he lost, and end it, but he was afraid.

In the same way we often think, hear and believe that we should follow God because of fear, that the driving force behind obedience and our relationship with God is fear. The three major myths that Joel covered were:

God wants us to be afraid- fear of disapproval

God zaps all who disobey to hell- fear of punishment

God is keeping score and you won’t know if you have done enough until the very end- fear of judgment

After addressing each of these fears Joel read Romans 5:1-5, which clearly rock the foundations of each of these myths. He then read a book titled, “You are Special,” by Max Lucado. Check out the video below to see what this story is all about:

In the end these myths were debunked by the fact that God does not want us to be afraid of him, he loves us and wants us to be part of hide family. In fact he wants us to look to Him for approval and love because it is only in Him that we will be fully satisfied. God also doesn’t zap anyone to hell, but instead allows those who don’t want to live with Him to live without Him and lastly, God doesn’t keep score. The price has been paid, and we can find confidence in Him.

Parents:

Read Romans 5:1-5 together a few times this week and see what new things you notice each time you read it, write down what you have found. At the end of the week re-read all the discoveries and truths you have pulled out of these verses. Discuss with each other what God (as described in these verses) wants for us, for others, for friends, for non-believers. Then ask what that means for us.

Check out this video!

2008-12-15T10:02:00.000-08:00

This Week # 2-20

2008-12-09T12:21:00.000-08:00

This Week # 2-20

Well everyone in some ways it is good to be back and in some ways I wish I could just stay home and hold my sweet baby. After this weekend’s services I realized that I missed the Junior Highers and Leaders the 2 weeks I had off, but I had a great time helping Amy and loving Makenna. Thanks for all your support and love.

This week we continued our OMG! Series- Discovering who God really is. We started the series a few weeks ago talking on God’s power and this week had the privilege of hear Lisa Averill (Westgate’s pastor of Children’s ministry) talk on the topic of the Holy Spirit. Lisa started off by addressing the fact that the idea of God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit being three in one is a hard concept to understand, but she demonstrated the idea by showing us an egg. The egg is comprised of the shell, the whites and the yoke, all three different, yet all three make up the egg: God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. After setting a foundation of the idea of the Holy Spirit Lisa went on to discuss the role of the Holy Spirit, what the Holy Spirit wants to do in us and how we can engage and know the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit plays many roles in our lives but a few of the roles discussed were of a counselor and a comforter. The Holy Spirit wants to guides us, sensitize us, and will convict us. These are roles that we often don’t rely on the Holy Spirit to fill. We try to rely on our own knowledge to guide us, we rely on outside sources to sensitize us to the needs around us and we often ignore the convictions we have because we think we know better. The truth is that the Holy Spirit works on our character, wants to mold us to be more like Christ, and makes us aware of the resources that we can’t find anywhere, but in Christ- hope, love, power, purpose, forgiveness, joy. Yet, because of our lack of understanding of this amazing part of the trinity we often don’t engage and embrace the work of the Holy Spirit. We need to rely on Him more, grow our relationship with Him and let Him work through us.

Hopefully by understanding a bit about who the Holy Spirit is and what His role in our life should be we can be more aware of what He is doing in our lives and be more in tune with Him while He is moving and growing us.

John 16:7- “But in fact it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate won’t come”

Questions to discuss this week:

Who is the Holy Spirit?

What does He do?

How do communicate with the Holy Spirit?

How does the Holy Spirit communicate with us?

When have you felt the Holy Spirit?

What can you do to be more in-tune with the Holy Spirit?

Invite your friends to the LEADER MALL HUNT

2008-11-30T11:54:00.000-08:00

Leader Mall Hunt December 19th... Come find us, we dare you!!!
We will meet at the Church at 7:00 and be back at the church at 11:00.
Invite your friends
Bring $5
THIS IS GOING TO BE AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This Week # 2-19

2008-11-18T13:01:00.000-08:00

This week in OFFROAD we started a new series called OMG! We started looking at the qualities of God, trying to better understand who he is and what he is all about.

This week we looked into God's Power. God's power is something that we ofter see as great, and big, but very distant, and we wonder why don't we see God's power the way it was shown in the Bible. We looked at the story of Joshua crossing the Jordan and soon after the Israelites defeating the mighty city of Jericho. When we read these stories we often quickly think, "Where is that mighty power now?" "God just must not reveal himself in those ways anymore... it is a different time." While I ask these questions too, I also asked, "What is it that the Isrealites do to allow God to show His power?

In both circumstances, and in most all examples of God revealing His power, it took people (whoever they were) to act in faith and trust first. When the Israelites had to cross the Jordan God required them to step out into the water first. He didn't say, " I will stop the water and then you can go through." He said, "You miust act first and then you will see my power." This happens again as the Israelites want to destroy the city of Jericho. God could have destroyed the city right then and there, but he requires the Israelites to show their faith by walking around the city for 7 day.

In the same way, if we want to see God's power we need to put our trust in Him. There are things going on around us all the time the people try to explain away with scientific blah blah, but the truth is God is working. The other thing we have to remember is that God's power is just as great as it was back in Bible times, and we are the vessels for God's power. God wants to, and can reveal his power to others through us. Again it takes us trusting Him, and acting in faith to have his power used in and through us.

So may we embrace God's power. May we step out in faith and act in trust so that God's power can be revealed through us and so that we can see His power.

Some questions this week...
Where do you see God's power at work?
Tell of a time in your life you saw God's power?
Have you ever witnessed a miracle? If so discribe it?
How can you act in faith and trust to allow God's power to shine through you?

This Week # 2-18

2008-11-10T16:19:00.000-08:00

We ended our DUSTY series this week by looking at the “Y” in DUSTY- Yearning. Yearning to be covered in the dust of the master. In the end this is what it is all about, being covered in the dust of the master. But what does that mean? Do we need to go hang out in a dirt pit and wait to get dust all over us? This week in OFF ROAD we explored what this saying meant to people in Jesus’ time and what it means to us today.

During Jesus’ time the highest achievement one could attain is become a rabbi. Rabbi’s were the best of the best of the best of the best. Everyone else was just not good enough. In fact education started when children were 6 year old and between the age or 6 and 10 children had to memorize the entire Torah (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy) At the end of this time the students were quizzed, and if they knew it precisely and knew what it meant and could quote it word for word then they were allowed to move to the second stage of learning. If they were not the best of the best they were told that they could not move on and they would have to return to their family trade. For those who got to go on the challenge was then to memorize the entire Old Testament. THE ENTIRE OLD TESTAMENT. By age 14 or 15 they had to memorize and know the whole thing. At this time the students would be quizzed and again, if they were not the best of the best they would be told to leave. If they were the best of the best they could approach a Rabbi and ask to take on his yoke. This meant taking on is religious philosophy, following him around everywhere, knowing everything about him and becoming just like him. If a Rabbi was approached he would grill the student with question after question making sure the student knew his stuff and if the student was the best of the best he would take him as a disciple. This disciple would literally follow him everywhere, to know everything about him, to become just like him, getting covered by his dust as he walked the dirt roads. This is where the saying, “May you be covered in the dust of your master.”

Now the great thing about Jesus is we are not required to be the best of the best. We are just required to come as we are, submit our lives to him and yearn to be covered in His dust.

Parents ask your children this week:

What does it look like to be covered in Jesus’ dust?

What steps are you taking to follow Jesus so close that you are being covered by His dust?

What can we do, as a family, do follow Jesus the way He calls us to?

How can you/we grow our desire to be covered in Jesus’ dust?

Spend some time in pray this week ask God to help you grow closer to Him in the ways you discussed.

This Week # 2-17

2008-11-03T11:59:00.000-08:00

“Strengthening our desire to imitate Christ while telling others the TRUTH of who he is.” Truth, the truth is GOD LOVES YOU. God loves you. No you don’t understand God REALLY loves you. More than you can imagine, more than you can understand, more than is comprehensible. God loves you. He is crazy about you. He looks at you and admires you in a huge way. There is nothing you can do about it, He loves you. It doesn’t matter what you’ve done, what has been done to you, who you are, God loves you. He gave his son up to die a insanely painful death for you. God loves you. I know we have all heard, “God loves you,” a lot, but I think that many of us don’t really understand the depth of God’s love. God loves you.

I started off the talk this week stating over and over again that God loves you. I called students by name, telling them that God loves them, described Christ’s death and really tried to help students understand God’s great love. The reason for doing this is I believe that if we really knew how much God loves us then we couldn’t be silent about our relationship with Him. We all know that we are called to share the gospel with others, but we are often too afraid, nervous, and unsure we don’t. But, if we grasp the immense amount of love God has for us our fears, anxiety, and lack of clarity would not stop us from the excitement of being able to express and share God’s love with others. If we know God’s love we should desire to show God’s love.

After speaking on God’s love, I turned to practical ways to help us share our faith. The acronym used is CPR- which, as you know, is a life saving technique, so I think the acronym is pretty cool. CPR stands for:

Communicate with God- We need to have a relationship with God so we can share with other who God is, what he has done and what he means to us. The only way to have a relationship with someone is by communicating with them.

Pray- When it comes time and you feel the tug in your gut to talk to someone about God, PRAY. Ask God for courage, strength and an open heart of the person you are sharing with.

Rely on God- If you are thinking, “I can’t do this,” YOU ARE RIGHT!! You can’t. You need to rely on God. Let God work in and through you. You are his vessel, don’t think that you can do it, but know that God can. Rely on Him. Guess what. When you do this He will come through.

Parents:

Take a look at this video and then answer these questions with your kids.

How is your relationship with God?

What does it mean to you when I say “God loves you.” (share what it means to you as well)

Who do we know that doesn’t know Christ?

How can we show them God’s love in a radical way?

How can we share God’s love with them?

This Week # 2- 16

2008-10-27T12:38:00.000-07:00

This Week # 2-16

This Week we continued our DUSTY series as we focused on the “S.” “S” stands for strengthening our desire to imitate Christ. We were privileged to have Tim Buchanan, a good friend of mine and one of the junior high pastors at Menlo Park Presbyterian speak to us on what it looks like to strengthen our imitation of Christ.

For a great example of what it looks like to imitate Christ Tim took us through Acts chapter 3. This story shows the actions of Peter and John, two of Jesus’ disciples, who spent the most amount of time with Jesus. Jesus had recently ascended to heaven and left this work in the hands of the disciples. It was now their job to imitate Christ and show the world who Jesus is and what he is all about.

The verses tell us that Peter and John were on their way to prayer when they encountered a beggar. The beggar asks these two guys for money, which they do not have, but instead of turning away they heal the man, and he is able to walk! John and Peter faced the choice of helping someone in need or turning away to do their own thing (They were going to pray). When the choice was to be made they choose to help the cripple. (Says something about priorities, huh) In the same way we need to help those in need. Now, we probably won’t encounter beggars who can’t walk every day, but a day won’t go by when we won’t interact with someone in need. (Whether that be helping Mom with the dishes, giving someone who doesn’t have a lunch yours, etc.) To imitate Christ we need to help those in need.

Just after Peter and John healed this man the people started questioning them about the authority they were using to heal the cripple. You know what they did… Peter and John spoke the truth. They shot them straight, they told the people like it is, they told the people what’s up, and they did all this with a firm knowledge of God’s word. We must also speak the truth and know God’s word. If we have opportunities to share Christ we need to do it. If we are faced with someone doing something inappropriate or wrong (Insulting others, cheating, etc.) we need to speak out against it. To imitate Christ we need to know the truth (God’s word) and speak the truth.

Although this doesn’t cover all aspects of imitating Christ (that lesson would be about a year long) is gives us a great foothold of where to start. So this week let’s look for opportunities to imitate Christ.

Parents ask your child these questions this week:

What does imitating Christ look like?

Why is imitating Him important?

Who do you see that is like the beggar from the acts story? (Really pry them hear, try to get them thinking about the people around them that they could help every day, not just the big issues)

When do you feel like you need to speak the truth? (Be specific, not just “school”)

Are you studying the Bible for yourself?

What do you want to learn from the Bible?

This Week # 2- 15

2008-10-21T15:31:00.000-07:00

This week in OFF ROAD we had an awesome worship night during the Saturday night service. If you didn't make it you really missed out!!!! Rick shared about his time in Laos, and the realization of how blessed we are to be able to live and eat like we do and to even worship like we do. Josiah shared his testimony and how he realizes that God is so much more than anything we can comprehend and we can't put God in a box, we just have to rely on Him. Throughout the night we sang worship to God and had an intimate time of sing, reading scripture and being silent in front of God.... It was good.

Parents, ask your child these questions this week:

What does it mean to worship God?
What are some ways you can worship God besides singing?
Do you pay attention to the words you sing, or do you tend to just sing to God without thinking about it? Why?
How can you continually be in worship?
Why do you worship God?

Also, spend some time worshiping God as a family this week (outside of "church")

This Week # 2-14

2008-10-06T15:29:00.000-07:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we continued our series on DUSTY with a look into what it means to be unified with other believers. We looked at a couple passages out of 1^st and 2^nd Corinthians that showed us how to be unified but we started off with a good example of disunity. As I started talking Will was being a distraction talking to some of the kids so I asked him to stop. After asking him a few times we got into an argument, got really angry and he stormed out of the room. Some of the kids caught onto the act, but a few of the students felt totally awkward and shocked that such a thing was happening. This note only got their attention but kicked of the topic with a great negative example.

From there we turned our attention to 1 Corinthians 1:10-17. Paul is writing to the church of Corinth telling them that they should be of one mind and thought for Christ’s sake, that divisions in their church should be put aside and the focus of what they do should be Christ. Paul also speak to the fact that each of us individually are not anywhere near as great as we are together so we need to work together for Christ. This verse was accompanied by a demonstration where students were able to win a prize and all they had to do was come up and grab the prize to win it. The only catch was they could only use their… shoulder…elbow…wrist…finger. After 4 volunteers unsuccessfully attempted to win the prize the fifth volunteer was able to use all of those together, and of course, won the prize. It is the same way with Christ we must use our gifts collectively for him for the greatest good.

The next passage we looked at was 2 Corinthians 3:1-4. Paul is again writing to the Church of Corinth, but this time he is telling them their role to the world. He states, “We are Christ’s love letter to the world.” We as OFF ROAD, as Westgate, as the Church are God’s love letter to the world. If there is disunity and anger towards each other in the church, what does that say to the world. We need to be unified for Christ’s sake so that others can see and want to be part of God’s family.

We have to remember in all of this; it cannot be done on our own. We must invite God into each one of our relationships and let him be the center. When this happens relationships are healed, relationships are good and relationships are the way God created them to be.

We want to be unified so that OFF ROAD is a place where anyone can walk in and feel totally loved and accepted, a place where students who come every week, or once a year, desire to be part of because they know that at OFF ROAD they can be themselves and they will be family. OFF ROAD should be unified for the glory of God.

Parents ask your child these questions this week:

What is the importance of unity in the church?

Do you feel unified with others at OFF ROAD?

How can you help OFF ROAD be more unified?

When you come to OFF ROAD do you feel part of the family? Why/ Why not?

What can you do to help others who come to OFF ROAD feel like part of the family?

This Week # 2-13

2008-09-29T11:31:00.000-07:00

This Week # 2-13

This Week we had the providing of hearing Rob speak on Devotion. He kicked our DUSTY series off well as we are working through Devotion, Unity, Strength, Truth, Yearning. Rob looked into what it means to be devoted to something and how we can be devoted to God.

He started off by asking the students about the things they are devoted to. Here are some of the answers: family, video games, swimming, the Sharks, the 49ers, school work and friends. Although these are note bad things, Rob challenged that there is a more important things to be devoted to. Devotion means: the fact or state of being extremely dedicated and loyal. This is the way we need to live our lives with Christ, with extreme dedication and loyalty.

Rob shared a story of when he and a couple of friends (Will and I) went down to Anaheim to watch the San Jose Sharks clinch the Western division. When we went down there we could have just worn our Shark’s jersey and cheered quietly for our team since we were in enemy territory. Instead we painted our chest, screamed loud and out cheered the 19,000 Ducks fans. We are devoted Sharks fans. In the same way we need to be devoted fans of God. We need to write his name on our chests (not literally) and not be afraid to stand out even when we are surrounded by the enemy. We need to make noise for Him; we need to be devoted to Him. If we aren’t devoted to God we won’t stand out for Him, and if we don’t stand out for Him are we truly devoted?

So why should we be devoted. Well first of all God calls us to be devoted to Him. He doesn’t ask us to “kinda follow” him, or “give just some of our life” to Him. He asks us to be fully devoted followers of Him. Secondly, when we are devoted to him we show that by loving Him and loving others. This is not only helpful for drawing others to Him, but how great would it be if all Christians were truly devoted to God? Who doesn’t want to feel loved and totally accepted? I know I do, and if we, and those around us become truly devoted to God by loving others we can experience that.

Laslty, the time to start being devoted to God is now. Don’t think that when I get older it will be easier, because the patterns you establish now will be harder to break (if you don’t start showing devotion to God) or easier to keep (if you do) the older you get. Let’s start this school year with a commitment to true devotion to God.

Parents:

Read Matthew 22:34-40 with your child this week and ask them these questions:

What does it mean to be devoted to God?

Do you want to be devoted to God?

Are there things in your life that you are more devoted to than God?

How can you “write God’s name on your chest” (at school, church, home, etc.)?

How can I help you/ encourage you to be more devoted to God?

Pray with and for your child that they will be bold enough to be fully devoted to God.

This Week # 2-12

2008-09-21T15:24:00.000-07:00

This week in OFF ROAD we ended our 2 part series on the importance of small groups. As I stated last week I hope that all of you make sure that your child is signed up for a small group as this is a significant opportunity to grow in Christ and make sure they are planted and growing in the “good soil.”

The talk this week was focused on what the students can expect as they come to small groups. I wanted to prepare the students so that they can come to small groups knowing that there will be four significant things that they engage, four things that are at the heart of our small groups. The four elements come together in the acronym M.A.P.S. So here are our MAPS to small groups:

The first element that students can expect at every small group meeting is Meaningful God-centered conversations. We want to help students feel comfortable talking about God, their relationship with God, things they have read in scripture, things that they are struggling with, and areas they want to grow in their relationship with Him. If we look around our culture and in our lives many of our conversations are taken up by talking about celebrity, sports, politics, school, other people, but we don’t talk very much about God. If He is the most important thing in our life shouldn’t more of our conversations be about Him? I think so and that is one thing that each student can expect to happen at small groups.

The “A stands for accountability. This Christian life is not easy, especially in junior high and it is very very hard to do it on our own. When I was a freshman in High school my brother and I went out for the soccer team and it was one of the most physically grueling things that I have ever done (We didn’t touch the ball for the first month, just run, run, run) If it hadn’t been for my brother being there for me and I for him I would have probably quit. Our life with Christ will be have difficulties and struggles and we need each other to support us and keep us accountable to what God has called us to.

“P” is for pray. Here’s the deal- No conversation= No relationship. If I were to tell Amy that I wanted to continue our relationship, but there is one clause… there will be not talking. Amy would think I am crazy. Our relationship won’t work if we never talk to each other, there won’t be a relationship. We need to be communicating with God. We need to make sure that we converse with God so that we can develop our relationship with Him

Lastly, students can expect Scripture. We will be spending time with God not just by praying but also listening to Him through the reading of His word. The time we spend in the word will be both in the small group, but also encouraged in activities students can do at home as they prepare for small groups. Scripture is at the heart of what we do and it will be at the heart of small groups.

Parents: As you look at the aspects of small groups note that these are things that we don’t want to just encourage at small groups but in each area of you and your student’s life. Are you and your child daily spending time talking about God, checking in with each other, praying and reading scripture? If not how can you integrate these elements into your life? Discuss this with your child.

This Week # 2-11

2008-09-16T13:05:00.000-07:00

This week in OFF ROAD was another great week. We had about 90 students between the two services and I want to continue to encourage those regular attenders to try and make it to the Saturday night service as the 11:00 service is still very full.

This Week we started a 2 part series titled “The SG factor.” SG stands for small group and in the lesson I talked about what it is that Small Groups exist to do. The heart of what small groups are all about can be summed up in the parable that Jesus tells about the 4 soils. We looked at each of the 4 soils and what in the world Jesus was talking about when he said that, “some seed fell on the path… some on the rocky soil… some on the soil surrounded by thorns … and some in the good soil.” (Paraphrased Matt 13) After we read this parable I asked the students what it meant, and while some students got somewhat close, most students were confused (As were the disciples). We are lucky the disciples didn’t get it either because they asked Jesus what this parable meant. Jesus explains it like this, “The paths are those people who hear the word of God but never understand and don’t accept… The rocky soil represents those who hear the word, quickly accept it, but when their faith is challenged they don’t have deep roots and fall away… The thorns represent the people that hear the word, accept it, but then get entangled in the worries of this life and wealth and that overtakes them… But the good soil is those who hear the word, accept it live it out and produce a crop of 30, 60 or even 100 times that which was planted.”

Each area where the seed landed are really a distraction of this world. The distraction of the path is pride and lack of knowledge. The distraction with the rocky soil is testing of the faith and the distractions of the thorns are the worries of this life and wealth. All of these distractions happen because there is not good soil to root in, there is not the nutrients, soil and water that the plants need, that we need. Small groups exist to help student’s roots be planted firmly in Jesus by surrounding them with the relationships that build them up, encouragement that keeps them focused on God and a group of people that will hold them accountable to what God has called them to be so that they can produce a crop of 30, 60 or even 90 times more.

Parents:

Please talk over the importance of small groups with your child. Ask them where their biggest distraction is: pride and lack of knowledge, testing of faith, worries and wealth. Ask them how you can help them in each of those areas. Then I urge you to make sure that your child is signed up for a small group and that he or she comes every time so they can secure their roots in Christ.

This Week # 2-10

2008-09-07T15:26:00.000-07:00

This week in OFF ROAD we had our first 2 service weekend. God is good and both services went great! (If you don’t know we meet at the 6:40 service on Saturday and the 11:00 service on Sunday) Although Saturday was hot we had a decent turnout of about 30 students and I want to encourage as many students that can to go to this service to go to Saturday night as we need to make room for guests during the 11:00 service.

As we kicked off the New Year I decided that we should start with the foundational idea of SOAPing. Yes, junior higher need to be reminded to shower and soap, but this is a more important thing then hygiene, it is SOAPing with the word of God. The idea of SOAP involves four significant elements in spending time with God, something we need to be doing daily.

The first element is Scripture. To spend time with God we need to be in his word. Often times we think that reading the Bible is a chore and because it was written 2,000 years ago it is hard to find relevance to our lives today. The truth is as we spend time in God’s word He reveals Himself in unique, interesting, and relevant ways, but we will never know that if we are not in the Scripture.

The second element is Observation. Observation is important because as we read the scripture we should note what stands out to us, what is interesting, what the main point is and any questions we have. If all we ever do is read the scripture and we never observe it and explore it then it never becomes anything more than words on the page, but if we observe the scripture we the words that are written become alive and relevant.

Next, and most importantly we must Apply what we’ve read to our lives. What is God saying to you? What does he want to you to know? What does he want you to do? What does this scripture mean for you? By answering these questions the Bible becomes a personal letter from God to you. We need to make sure that every time we read the scriptures we ask God to speak to us and when he does we need to listen and act.

Lastly we need to Pray. Just like I can’t have a relationship with anyone without ever talking to them we can’t have a relationship with God and never talk to him. After we have chosen scripture, observed it, and applied it we should spend time praying, asking God to help us apply what we have learned.

Parents,

The greatest example children have of how to SOAP and spend time with God is through observation of their parents. I encourage you to SOAP every day, allow your kids to see you do it and invite you kids to SOAP with you. Here are some questions you can ask your child this week:

What did you learn in OFF ROAD this week?

What did you observe in the reading at OFF ROAD (John 15)

What did God tell you that you need to do through this chapter?

How can I help you do what God has called you to do?

Have you spent any time this week applying what you learned in OFF ROAD?

This Week #2-9

2008-08-24T18:04:00.000-07:00

This Week in OFF ROAD we finished our summer series of "Liquid" by looking at the story where Jesus calls the fishermen to be fishers of men. I started off by playing a ridiculous video from youtube titled- "Fishers of men remix."(see below) I told the students that I found a really cool video that went along with what we are talking about. When the video started they seemed ready to receive it, but after just a few seconds they looked around wondering, "Is Drew serious?" Of course I let it go for a while and then admitted that the song was just silly, but I guarantee that it will be stuck in their head for the rest of the week. Then we dove into the lesson.

As I read this verse I was struck by the simplicity of what was said and the actions taken. Jesus simply walks up to these guys, asks them to drop their nets and follow Him... and they do it. I liked how Jesus related right to these guys and asked the Jr. highers to come up with some ideas of what Jesus would say to people to today. My favorite was to a football player- Drop your pads and football and I'll teach you how to score a touchdown for me (A BIT corny I know, but it got them thinking) When they had finished suggesting a few ideas we got on to the first point of the lesson: To follow Christ we must first drop our nets.

When Jesus saw these guys on the water he didn't say to them, "Hey, hold on to those nets, keep doing what you're doing and then, when you can, follow me." No, these men had to drop their net in order to follow Christ, and the benefit was greater than they could have imagined. I asked the student to give some idea of nets that Jr. high students carry with them that they need to drop to truly follow God. Here are some suggestion: video games, popularity, t.v., homework, anger, and jealousy. It was good to recognize these, but the challenge following these ideas was- DROP THOSE NETS. Parents, I ask you to help your child discover their nets and work with them to help them get rid of them.

Secondly, after we drop or nets we must follow Him, and to follow Him means to become fishers of men, Christians who draw others to Christ. When I read the first word Jesus spoke to the disciples I found it amazingly clear what the calling of a Christ follower is; To show others the way to Christ. When Jesus sees these guys he doesn't say, "Guys, if you follow me I will make you great Christians, or good people," but in a sense, "Follow me and you job is to let others know the greatness of following me." As many of these students have just started the school year God's challenge to them was and is to search out the unbelievers(not hard to do) and them help lead them to the knowledge of God's great love for them. Because the truth is neither we nor they know the deep, deep love God has for us, and the huge desire He has for other to know this love.

Parents, please encourage your and pray with your child, not just this week, but every week to take these three steps to helping others know Christ.

1. Pray- pray for people you know individually who don't know Christ. Pray that you will have the opportunity to show and share God's love with them and that they will be open to hearing it. Pray also for yourself, to have courage when God puts it on your heart to tell others about Him.

2. Love- Love those who don't know Christ. No one is going to want to know the love of Christ if the love you show is no love at all, and no one wants to come to church with someone they hate. So love those around you.

3. Invite- Invite your friends to church. Honestly if it takes telling them, "I've got this really dorky youth pastor that I want you to come to church and help me make fun of," do it!!!! But, take the step to invite them both to church and to a relationship with Christ.

As I looked around the room today I saw about 80 Jr. high students and I was excited, but I I realize that just in our area there are probably 5,000 Jr. highers who don't know the awesome gift we have, but I truly believe that OFF ROAD will play a significant role this year, and in years to come in reaching those who are lost. Please make it a goal to bring others to Christ and to OFF ROAD where they will be loved.