No GAP this week or next!

Just a reminder that we have two weeks off for the holidays.  Merry Christmas!

Last GAP of the year!

Can you believe this is the last Jr. GAP of the 2011??? 

This week we will be looking at Christmas from three different perspectives: the shepherds, the wisemen, and Herod.  How do these perspectives apply to today?  Come find out! 

Questions for Parents to Ask:
1.  How did the shepherds, wisemen, and Herod encounter Jesus? 
2.  How do people have similar encounters with Jesus today?
3.  How does this affect how we talk to people about Jesus?

Christmas Bingo Party!

Get ready to play some Bingo with our older friends from church!  It'll be a night full of games, prizes, good conversation, and delicious snacks.  Come to the gym at 6:30 pm!  See you there!

Getting in the Christmas Spirit!

Decorating the Christmas tree, making a Christmas craft and more!  We are getting in the Christmas spirit tomorrow night at Jr. GAP - 6:30 pm in the Bus Barn.  See you there!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!  Just a reminder, no Jr. GAP this week...  See you next week!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!  Just a reminder, no Jr. GAP this week...  See you next week!

Encounter Through Prayer

Encountering God through prayer is intimate.  It's a privilege and holds tremendous power!  Come here Jill Schouten's testimony of how prayer saved her little girl's life!

Questions for Parents to ask:
1.  What was Jill's story about how prayer saved her little girl?
2.  What was the main thing you learned from her story?  How does it affect your view of prayer and God?
3.  Have you ever had a time where you've seen God answer your prayers?

Clay

The Bible says that we are like clay...  But what does that mean?  We'll find out what it takes to be clay in youth group this Wednesday night! 

Questions for Parents to ask Students:
1.  Who is your small group leader?  What other students are in  your group?
2.  What two things does it take to be like clay?
3.  Do you have a hard or soft heart right now?

Heaven and Hell...

Tonight will be a heavy night.  Many students have been asking me questions about heaven, hell, and where they will be when they die.  I want to set the record straight and know that each student has heard the TRUTH.  We will talk about these six questions:

1.  What is hell like?
2.  What is heaven like?
3.  How do I know this is true?
4.  Why can't God make it so that we all just go to heaven?
5.  Can't I wait until my dying moment to decide?
6.  How can I know for sure that I'll go to heaven?

Heavy questions with heavy answers.  Eternal consequences and joys.  Please make sure your student comes to Jr. GAP tomorrow night at 6:30 pm!

PAL Party!

This Wednesday night will be the annual PAL Party.  Many of our students will be participating in that, trunk-or-treating and carving pumpkins with their PAL.  If you are a PAL, you can go directly to their classroom.  If you are not, come to the Bus Barn to help hand out candy!

Encounter God through Worship & Fellowship

This week in Jr. GAP, we are thrilled to have the Northwestern College praise and worship team to lead us.  We will talk about questions like "What is worship?" and "How do we encounter God through worship?"  We will sing some fun, awesome, and meaningful worship songs together and have a great time encountering God through the music!

Next week we will be traveling to Sioux Center for a night of fellowship at the All Season's Center.  Bring your swimsuit and towel and get ready to make a splash!  We're going to enjoy each others' company and encounter God through our conversations and time together.  (NOTE: Girls, please wear a one piece, tankini, or shirt over your swimsuit.  Thanks!)

Encounter through Service

One way to encounter the Living God is through service.  When you help others in His name, you will be blessed and encounter His presence.  That's exactly what we're going to do this week in Jr. GAP: serve others in the name of Christ.  We'll be making meals, baking cookies, raking lawns, and more!  Bring a rake, warm clothes, and a servant's heart!

Questions to ask your student afterwards:
1.  What service project did you work on tonight?
2.  Who were the people you were serving? 
3.  Why is it important to serve others in Christ's name?

Flyswatter, Gumball Machine and a Scale...

What do these three things have in common?  We're going to talk about that at Jr. GAP on Wednesday, September 28!  We all view God in different ways, with many misconceptions.  Our theme for the year is "Encounter" and we'll be introducing the God who we plan on encountering this year. 

Questions to ask your student after youth group:
1.  What do a flyswatter, gumball machine and scale have in common?
2.  How do they represent different ways to view God?
3.  Tell me the alligator story.
4.  Who was in your small group tonight?

Welcome back to Kindergarten!

Jr. GAP is going back to Kindergarten on Wednesday night!  We're going to have craft time, story time, a game that will remind us of our tiny tot years...  We're going to look at some lessons we learned as kids and see if they hold true today and if they match up to what the Bible says.

Questions to Ask Your Student:
1.  What are some of your favorite memories from kindergarten?
2.  What lessons did you look at during youth group?  Do you think they're still true for you today as a teenager?
3.  Who was your adult small group leader tonight?  What students were in your group?

FALL MINISTRY KICK OFF- Sept 7

by Justin

 Wednesday September 7th from 6:30pm until 8:30pm is a chance for the entire family to swing by church!  We will be gearing up for the Fall Ministries with: a chance to register your student for the year (a get a FREE prize!), discover or rediscover various ministries of the church, meet some cool people, have fun, and grab a snack or two.  This come and go night will be one you do not want to miss!  Oh, we also are planning on a bounce house, coloring station, and snacks for the kiddos!

Our final Jr. GAP...

This is it!  Can you believe it?  Our final Jr. GAP of the year...

We will be honoring our 8th graders as we say good-bye to them.  Come hungry!  We will be serving a full meal and dessert, and then we'll play a game and give a special gift to those leaving us...  It will be a memorable night!  See you at 6:30 pm in the Bus Barn!

The Amazing Race!

Get ready to get messy!  We will be racing as teams to complete a series of challenges.  The first team to successfully finish every station wins the prize!

It's a fun night at Jr. GAP - you won't want to miss it!  Dress in old clothes and bring a towel!

Special Easter Lesson with Sarah Lupkes!

Our college intern, Sarah, will be leading this week's Easter lesson!  Come for a special night to see how the Easter story fits into the rest of the Bible.  See you in the Bus Barn at 6:30 pm!

Tempting, but No...

This week is our last study of Guy Talk / Girl Talk, and we'll be discussing temptation.  There are three things we'll be hitting:

1.  You will face temptation in life.
2.  There are consequences for when you give in to temptation.
3.  You can overcome temptation.

We will discuss practical steps to take when tempting, and small groups will meet to talk about specific temptations students face.  It should be a great night that is applicable to everyone!

Jr. GAP - Busy, Busy, Busy!

We are entering a busy few weeks with Jr. GAP!  It's time to kick it into gear and be called to action!

This week (the 16th) is our Dad's Belgian Waffle Fundraiser.  There will be no regular youth group.  The first shift of help starts at 4 pm and goes until 6:30 pm.  The second shift goes from 6 pm until 8 pm.  And if you haven't brought your milk or orange juice yet, please bring it!  We're excited for a good night of serving others and raising some funds for our summer events.

Next week (the 23rd) will be a Small Group Night.  Each leader is planning something special for their group to do together, so come to the Bus Barn at the regular time (6:30 pm) and get ready for a fun night of fellowship!

The following two weeks (March 30 and April 6) will be dedicated to preparing our Youth Sunday Service.  Come ready to participate and practice, practice, practice!  Youth Sunday will be held on Sunday, April 10 at 6:30 pm. 

Jr. GAP - The Opposite Sex!

Jr. GAP could be interesting on Wednesday night!  We're going to open up the floor for some honest questions about dating and the opposite sex.  The youth leaders will form a panel and allow students to anonymously ask questions, and the adults will give honest, insightful answers.  We hope that this allows students the freedom to find answers to questions they've always wondered and hear advice from people who have been there, done that.

We will also have small groups to conclude the night and dig into the Word.  God has important things to say about how to treat the opposite sex, and we hope that the night will be meaningful, fun, and a learning opportunity!

Guy Talk / Girl Talk: Fear

We had a wonderful weekend at Dare 2 Share!  If your student went along on the trip, be sure to ask them about the drama.  It challenged many students and we had 3 give their lives to Christ for the first time!  I won't say much about it - I'd rather you ask your student.  :)

Jr. GAP is on Wednesday night - regular time, regular place.  I will be sharing about fear, talking about Jesus calming the storm and how instead of being fearful, we need to trust.  We'll spend time in our small groups talking about specific fears we have, no matter how little or big they may be.

Just a heads up - our final fundraiser of the year is coming in a few weeks!  On Wednesday, March 16 from 5 - 7 pm, we will be serving Dad's Belgian Waffles in the Family Life Center.  We need your student's help!  We're asking for the guys to bring a gallon of milk and the girls to bring a gallon of orange juice.  Also, there are two shifts your student can sign up to help at.  The first shift is from 4 - 6:30 pm and the second shift is from 6 - 8 pm.  They can sign-up in the Bus Barn.

Thanks for your role in teaching your child about Christ!  We have had some tremendous growth taking place in Jr. GAP and God is doing some amazing things!!!  Please keep our students in your prayers!

Jr. GAP - Putting the Fun in Dysfunction

Wednesday night is a regular youth group night for Jr. GAP.  We'll be talking about the topic of "family".

Terry Baartman will be sharing, and we'll have some good small group discussions.  During small groups, we'll look at how the Bible commands us to respect, obey, and honor our parents.  But how do we do this when our parents aren't Christians or we don't agree with their parenting?  This will lead to some raw, honest questions from the students and challenging conversation. 

The topic is broad but applies to everyone!  We hope the students see how God has placed parents into our lives for a reason and that their instructions to us are full of wisdom. 

No tubing this Wednesday for Jr. GAP!

Jr. GAP

I've got some good news and some bad news...

Good News:  We've got beautiful weather coming this week!

Bad News:  Because the snow is melting so fast, we won't be able to go tubing on Wednesday night for Jr. GAP.

I'm so sorry about that - I know everyone was excited.  But we will still have Jr. GAP at the regular time and the regular place.  We plan on having a "Leftover Super Bowl Party" night, using the leftover prizes and supplies to play some intense Bingo, eat snocones, and watch the Super Bowl commercials we made for those who couldn't be there.

See you Wednesday for a great night at Jr. GAP!

Jr. GAP - Guy Talk/ Girl Talk: Expectations

Wednesday night in youth group will be dedicated to talking about expectations.

Expectations come from everyone: parents, teachers, friends, classmates, teammates, the church, society...  We're going to talk about these and how they can be a heavy burden to carry.  Sometimes these expectations can lead to serious problems, like depression, eating disorders, or even suicide.

So how should we handle these?  We'll look at a bunch of verses and what God says to do with expectations.  We talk about BEING our best instead of always ACHIEVING more and more.  We'll talk about focusing on the heart instead of the body.

Expectations is such a broad topic for today's teens.  We'll be touching on a few different aspects of this, but as parents, feel free to ask your student what expectations they have placed on them at home, at school, at church...  Some may surprise you!  Use this conversation as a way to talk about spoken vs. unspoken expectations and how to handle the pressures.

Update

From Jill -

Hello Everyone, I hope that you find this blog useful to keep in touch will the busy happenings here with the kids at maurice. I want to redirect you to another page specifically for Children's Ministry. We now have our own blog: to get to the blog go to http://www.mauricefirstchildren.blogspot.com/.

Jr. GAP - Commercial Night!

From Tracy:

Thanks for checking back with the weekly blog for Jr. GAP!  This week, we're going to be making our very own Super Bowl commercials to be shown at the Super Bowl party on February 6.  It'll just be a fun night of hanging out in our small groups, building relationships, laughing, and spending time together.  Be sure to ask your student what commercial their small group decided to make!

Also, just a reminder that THIS Friday is Friday Night Flicks!  We're watching the movie "To Save a Life", and $5 will get you all-you-can-eat pizza, a fantastic movie, and great conversation afterward.  Come to the bus barn at 6 pm for a good night!  We will wrap things up around 9:30 pm.

Jr. GAP - Guy Talk / Girl Talk

Welcome to the Youth and Children's Ministries Blog!  We hope to post valuable information for parents so you can be better informed in what your kids are learning.  It'll be brief and updated regularly - or at least that's our goal!  Hopefully this will equip you to ask your children great questions about youth group or Sunday School, because we know kids don't always fully share what's on their minds or what they've experienced.

From Tracy (Jr. GAP Youth Pastor) - 

We're just starting a new series called "Guy Talk/Girl Talk."  We are looking at different topics that are relevant to a teen's life.  Topics include: decisions, emotions, expectations, fear, family, the opposite sex, the internet, love & romance, using your talents, and temptation.

We start each night as a large group, talking about the subject and listening to an adult's testimony.  Then we spend the majority of our time in small groups, discussing the topic in depth and from a guys' or girls' perspective. 

Last week we started talking about decisions, and our college intern Hannah shared about some decisions she's had to make in life.  The students had great questions and thoughts during the small groups and we talked about the importance of seeking advice and gaining wisdom from others.

This week we're tackling the issue of emotions.  We'll be looking at the wide range of emotions teens face, as well as a look at depression.  It's a huge topic for many students, and we hope it'll be a time of encouragement and understanding.

In Him,
Tracy