January 2010 PresbyNotes

January 2010 Youth PresbyNOtes
Epiphany Poem
By Adam R. Quine

It was a journey,
Those 12 days.
We went to visit,
To sing and to sit.
Up hills and down valleys,
Seeing shepherds and their flocks,
While walking on sand and unsteady rocks
The paths weren’t smooth
Especially the ones we choose
No matter though the way we took,
It’s a part of our own book.
We hoped the stories were true,
That a child was born for me and for you
Or as we heard it, “The king of the Jews.”
People seemed frightened and sure what to do,
I guess we didn’t know, too
Yet we went,
Exhausted and spent
To the one from above
Coming to us in love
Even with plans to deceive,
We promised to do nothing but receive
Continuing in our adventure
We went unsure
Looking we saw the star still rising
With no compromising
Our hearts kept beating
Hands, once stable, began to tremble
No longer pondering, our minds wandering
Suddenly the star sopped and nothing was stirring
Standing still with our thoughts swirling
Could this be it? Could this really be?
Where we were met with reality?
Is this the boy?
Where our world would meet its great joy?
Moving slowly
To
The door
We lifted our hand
Cleared our throat
And we began to knock
With our tongues in a knot
Waiting, Listening, Remembering and Hoping
Then the door creaked
And we heard a baby shriek
Our eyes filled with tears
As we entered with cheer
Falling to our knees we opened our bags
Giving our gifts to the king in rags
It may have been cold, but we brought our gold
We may have been tense, but offered our frankincense
No longer unsure, we gave him our myrrh
A miracle is here
The great mystery has come near
God with you, god with me, on this the Epiphany.

Indeed Christ has died, Christ has risen, and Christ will come again. This Christmas season and this New Year, take time to look at where we have been, where we saw God, how we encountered Jesus, and look forward to what lies ahead. 12 days it took the Wise Men to get to Jesus and to be met there by the reality that God the Creator had entered into human history, the Great Light of the World had come, and they paid homage to him, Jesus. Christ came and offered new life and still does, Christ came to love and still does, Christ came to offer hope and still does. May you, your family and we as our youth group, embrace what is to come, looking with hopeful eyes for the coming 2010 and be ready bare witness to the light with our lives.

Grace and peace to you all in the year of 2010. Shalom.

Youth Director,

Adam R. Quine

January 2010 Youth Schedule of Events
• 3rd—Kirk Night Fundraiser 4-7 pm
• 7th—No Bible Study
• 10th—5-7:30 Movie Night
• 14th—Bible Study Sanctus 6:30-8pm
• 17th—1-4pm Kids For Christ Ice Skating at the Edge
• 17th—Youth Group 5-7:30 pm
• 21st—Bible Study Sanctus 6:30-8:00pm
• 24th—Destination Unknown—4:30-7:30 pm (Bring $10)
• 28th—Bible Study Sanctus 6:30-8pm
• 31st—Youth Group 5-7:30 pm

Things to Look Forward To
A Few Minutes for Mission—January 3rd, 2010 we the youth group will host the January Kirk Night. This will act as a fundraiser for our 2010 mission trip and all youth are required to be there. Our night will begin at 4pm as we set up the Fellowship Hall for the evening festivities and also, learn our roles for the night’s events. We will be showing pictures and videos from our trip to South Dakota, so all students who are a part of that trip must attend. Again, all youth are asked to come and help serve and volunteer this evening. Those of you who do come will have money go into your ‘account’ for 2010 trips. Parents, we will need your help with the prep work for that night
February 7th—Senior High and Middle High Super Bowl Party at the Lashbrook 5-9pm
February 7th—After the 8:15 and before and after the 10:30 am services we will be raising money for the Souper Bowl of Caring. The winner (middle high versus senior high) will get to choose where the money gets donated to.
February 12th-13th—Youth Council Meeting in Henderson, Ky—Leave Friday @ 5:30 and we will be home around 12pm on Saturday the 13th. (Senior High only & $5)

Attention Kids for Christ
January 17th—All Kids for Christ are invited to join us at the Edge Ice Skating rink for an afternoon of figure eights and frozen water. We will be skating from 1-4pm on that day. All you need to do is bring a friend and be ready to have a great time!

January Birthdays
9th—Shelby Taylor
12th—Sarah Bowley

Happy birthday girls!

Reminder!
Remember parents and students to frequently check our church’s website and the blog site for updated calendar events and news!

Attention All Students in Grades 8-12
Sandy beaches, quaint shops, historical landmarks are the things that we associate with the Outer Banks of North Carolina. In Hyde County, though, hurricanes and unemployment have led to poverty. Here is an opportunity to serve and restore hurting areas of that community!

Who: High School Students (including rising freshmen)

What: Travel to the Outer Banks; 4 days serving on work projects and with a Kid’s Club; nightly activities in the outer banks; worship and devotional time; Whitewater Rafting in the New River Gorge after our mission week is complete,

Cost: $400 per person Deposit Required by January 4: $60
Please note the following balance deadlines:
$170 due by March 1 2010; $170 due by May 1, 2010.

Congratulations!

Congratulations to Meredith Zengel for making all A’s! Keep up the good work.

A reminder to all parents and students to please let us know of your accomplishments so we can celebrate them with you! Congrats to all of you.

1st Sunday Advent--Darkest Just Before th Dawn

Press Conference - The Dark Knight

(To aid us in our discussion of Advent, we used a quick scene from the movie Batman: The Dark Night. Focusing mainly on the lines, "It is darkest just before the dawn, and the dawn is coming.)


Darkest Before the Dawn

It is always difficult this time of year to not get excited. We look around and there are all sorts of shiny, flashy, noisy, and distracting things everywhere. From stores, to radio stations, and even on people’s front yards, we have already begun to be consumed, swallowed up by the materialism that is the Christmas season.

Get ready for Christmas we often say and we do this by putting up trees, decorating our houses, shopping, and more shopping. We begin to play Christmas songs and we watch our favorite Christmas movies: How the Grinch Stole Christmas, A Charlie Brown Christmas, Elf, and A Christmas Story. We look forward to so much this time of year and again, often times ending up getting too distracted.

We lose sight of the “reason for the season” and we buy into culture and society, spending, spending, and spending. This time of the year also can be a difficult season for people who don’t have family, don’t have anywhere to go, and can be difficult for those who may have lost loved ones. It can be difficult for anybody who may find themselves wandering around in large stores looking and searching for the right gift and having just found it, they get trampled on by inconsiderate shoppers and just like that, the joyful spirit goes out the door with a few mumbled words we cannot say and a look which speaks louder than thoe words.

How much do we really get it? How much do we really understand what is going on in the world, our communities, and our lives? We participate in it and not that this is bad but it can be. It can be a distracting and controlling matter which prevents us from being who we are to be and seeing others for who they are too. We prepare for the Christmas season by consuming all sorts of things and often times, because of this consumption, we become over-stressed and tired. I remember growing up and hoping and hoping to get the things I put on my Christmas list, which I worked so hard on. I would spend hours working on the list, searching through magazines and newspapers looking and writing down the toys that I NEEDED. I needed these things or I would not survive. Then when I didn’t get it, I complained, I mumbled, I would try to understand, but in the heart of my heart, I was quite ticked off I didn’t get that N64 or the latest gadget.

I wasn’t grateful for what was there, right in front of me. I longed for more and I wanted more. Yet now, that N64 I so badly NEEDED, sits in the bottom of T and I’s closet, collecting dust and being used maybe 1 time a year.

Yet there is good hope which lies in this time of the year. We get to practice the discipline of waiting. How anxious we grow during this time of the year. When we are little we get excited as we see the gifts pile up under the tree. We get excited as we count down the days to when we have no school. We get excited for the first snow fall. We get excited to see family we haven’t seen in a long time. We get excited for that feeling we get during this time of the year. We have to wait….for a month….for a while.

Waiting is tough especially if we find ourselves in a season of darkness, confusion, uncertainty, frustration, and worry. At some point in 2009 all of us have been in one of these situations. Where we have felt alone, where we have felt lost, where we have felt uncertain, and maybe even, we have felt unloved. How good it was though when those things went a way. When those feelings of despair and deep sadness were lifted. How great it was and how much easier it was for us to breathe when we saw the light appearing in the distance in our lives when darkness was all too present. These seasons may have lasted a good while, maybe a month, a week, or they may have only lasted a day, an hour, or a minute. Yet even in our most frustrating of moments we knew, light would come and darkness would dissipate. We knew these seasons would end and a new one would come to us. Our trust was in the Light, we knew it would appear, because if there is one thing we know that is certain in this world, it is that in the morning, in the dawning hours of the day, light will appear.

What is going on around us? Deep sadness. Deep hurts. Deep confusion. Deep misunderstanding. Quite like a period in time so many years ago. When God seemed to have been absent and people were longing for a Messiah, one to come and heal them. One to come and rescue them. One to come and free them. For so long they waited. They cried out to God and then their crying stopped. They no longer seem to want it. Their hope for the dawn was lost and they were fine being in the darkest parts of their days. Yet even in their hopes for the Messiah, the season they waited for, their thoughts were misguided too. They wanted someone attractive, they wanted someone rich, they wanted someone smart, they wanted someone who was a purebred, they wanted a King, and they wanted a mighty military and political ruler.

And guess what?

They didn’t get it. Instead, they got a baby, born to some peasant mother and father in some house where animals fed out of the same place where he laid his tired head. Jesus the Messiah, the King, the Prince of Peace came in an unlikely way, yet he did more than what any earthly ruler has ever done.

And he will do more than any earthly ruler will ever be able to do.
Christ is coming again and we, during this season of Advent, begin to prepare ourselves for his coming. What will his coming look like? How are we preparing? How should we be preparing? Where will Christ be coming? Who’s coming? What will he be like?

Latin word for Advent is adventus—which means “the approach” or “the arrival”. The verb advenio means—“I arrive. I come. I am coming.”

Christ is coming again and again to us. We must find ourselves ready and alert, attentive to where God has been, where God is now, and where God will be. We must be on guard and not let our hearts get tangled up in a mess of consumerism, greed, and selfish expectation. We must begin to prepare ourselves for the light, realizing that when we have been in darkness for a while and when we finally enter into the light, it often times is overwhelming and can be quite painful. Yet we continue to pray for strength, praying God’s direction and for God to make known God’s ways to us, like the psalmist did. We want to be ready so we may respond with obedience, responsive period, and to be ready to pick up the light and carry it with thus. The great Light of the World is coming, in an unlikely way, to us, an unlikely group of people who although may be sinful, we are redeemable, and God wants us to experience and lavish in God’s love.

It is a dark season, as the Christ candle is not lit. But we come to the table, bringing our own experiences and our own lights of God is with the hope that our candles will be bright enough to get us through the darkest part of the seasons, which is right before the dawn, which is right before the Christ child comes.

Is This What They Expected?

It is almost Advent. Just a few days away from our first Sunday, where we light first candle as we wait for the coming of Christ. This time of the year always fascinates me really. It is not even Thanksgiving yet but it is Christmas apparently and Santa and his reindeer are already at the mall waiting for you to go and sit on his lap, so we can rattle off all the things we 'need'. Its not Christmas though.

It is time for the season of Advent.

A time of holy waiting.

Waiting for the Messiah to come.

Waiting for a Prince to come.

Waiting for a new Hope to come.

Waiting for a new Humanity to come.

Waiting for someone not LIKE King Ababwa.

Although this is what they thought their Hero would be.
Handsome. Wealthy. Powerful. Thoroughbred.

What did they get?

A baby, born in a small house, with animals around him, with hay, and to parents who were, well they weren't of any prestige.

Yet this child, changed the world. This child taught teachers things as a twelve year old. This child turn the world upside down with his 'backwards' way of thinking. This child, was, is, and will be the Messiah, the one who would deliver, is delivering, and will deliver us from those things which oppress us.

God made a promise and in the birth of Christ, God remember God's promise. In this promise comes a final covenant of grace is made and love in its purest form joined us in history. Entering the story is Christ, the one who saves us.

This is why people were upset. Jesus wasn't like Prince Ali Ababwa. He was quite different. He loved the lowest. Served the weakest. Helped the poorest. Stood up against the status quot of culture and because of this, he was killed.

What are you doing as you wait for the Prince of Peace to come?

How are you preparing yourself for Advent?

What King have you, are you, and will you serve?

Love the face of Christ in everyone you see.

When you see it, is this what you expected Christ to be?

December 2009 Youth PresbyNotes

December 2009 Youth PresbyNotes

Many Things A’Coming

Mark 13.32-37

The Necessity for Watchfulness

32 ‘But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33Beware, keep alert;* for you do not know when the time will come. 34It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch. 35Therefore, keep awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn, 36or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly. 37And what I say to you I say to all: Keep awake.’

If you take a minute to stop and think, there are many things coming. Many exciting days to spend with family, many days to spend with friends while there is no school, many days to eat good food, and many days to be at church.

Yet there aren’t many days left for some things. For instance, there aren’t many days left for nice, warm weather. Or, there aren’t many days left your first semester of the school year and we’re running out of time to get our grades up if need be. Better yet, we’re running out of days before we lose the single digit to the end of our years and 2009 will soon become 2010. Which to be honest, will be weird to write and get used to.

We’re running out of time, it seems like. This time of year means things pick up, right? More homework comes, more chores come as we prepare, as our parents, prepare for family members and friends to come over for the Holidays, more stress, it seems like. Lots of people everywhere, running around franticly, and even at times it seems like they don’t care about others. People act as if they are running out of time and so they live irresponsibly, carelessly, and maybe even inconsiderately. To me this is funny because people can become quite rude and self-absorbed when they are out “doing” things for “others”, like shopping and what not.

Many thins are coming, like a time for us to stop and think about the things we are thankful for. If you remember right, we have a practice in our group we often do before we eat and give thanks for things we are grateful for:

Family…
Friends…
Food…
Sports…
Pets…
Life…
Laughter…
Water…

When we actually do stop and no longer go about living like we have to constantly be doing something, we can realize there are lot of things in our lives we are grateful for. A hug from a friend when we are in need of one, comforting words from our family when we need them, a stranger accidentally making us laugh when we least expected it, or other little blessings which come to us when we least expect them.

Many things are coming. One thing especially: the coming of Christ our Lord. Yea, that is right, Christ is coming…again. A great celebration is coming, soon. Before we can celebrate though, we must do a little waiting, remembering, hoping, and expecting.

Waiting—It is calm. It is dark. It is quiet. We wait for the movement of a pregnant mother and father to break the calmness of the night. We wait for the Light of the World to begin shining. We wait for the cry of a baby to drown out the quietness of the night.

Remembering—Where have you been? What are those things which shape you? Remember those who have loved you? Remember those promises which make you hopeful? We remember our story to help us see where this Christ child has already come to us!

Hoping—We hope for laughter. We hope for happiness. We hope for the day when there will be no more pain or sadness. We hope for enough to be made available for everyone. Hoping for a better year.

Expecting—We go into a new year expecting a fresh start. We go into a new year expecting new things. Expecting the best. After all, a newness comes to us when a new year comes, right?

For a nation, a chosen people, they too found themselves waiting some time ago. Now, we join in the waiting, remembering, hoping and expecting. God reached into our lives and began to put into action God’s redemption of the world. Through a small child. He was to be, is, and will be the Messiah. We, as followers of this King, this time of the year prepare for his coming, preparing ourselves by examining our lives. As we wait to greet this Son of God, we clean up our lives, interior and exterior, and we make ourselves ready to meet this hero, the one who has, is and will save us. In our expectation of what is to come, we become joyful for the good news we will soon receive.

Many things are coming. Like the hero, a baby. Not like what we think, like King Ali Ababwa in Aladdin, with horses, elephants, fancy dressing, and trumpet players. Actually it’s quite the opposite, really. Christ came as, you ready for this, Christ came exactly like we did: weak and needy as an infant, totally dependent on his parents. People saw the time was running out and then in the story entered the Hope, Peace, Joy and Love of God for the world, in a completely human birth.

Many things are coming and because of this, we are hopeful, expectant, mindful and excited! It is because of that event which happened, is happening, and is going to happen, we rejoice!

Friends, take time and give thanks for what is soon to happen. Be patient. Be mindful. Be optimistic. Be anticipative.

For he is coming.

Keep awake.

With hope, peace, joy, and love, He is coming again and again and again and again….

Peace
Adam

December 2009 Calendar

Sunday the 29th (Nov.)—Pitino Shelter with Debbie Bowley, all youth are encouraged to go and make crafts with the folks there. 11am
Thursday the 3rd—6:30-8pm Sanctus Bible Study
Sunday the 6th—5-7pm Christmas Program and Kirk Night: ALL YOUTH EVENT
Thursday the 10th—6:30-8pm Sanctus Bible Study
Sunday the 13th—5-7:30 pm: A Night of Love: Waiting in the City
Thursday the 17th—6:30-8pm Sanctus Bible Study
Saturday the 19th—Senior High Christmas Party: A trip to Evansville where we will eat out, visit Ritzy’s Fantasy of Lights and hang out in Evansville
Sunday the 20th—Christmas Concert and Reading Night 6pm—Church Wide Event
Monday the 21st—All Youth Christmas Party and Caroling 5-8pm
Thursday the 24th—Christmas Eve Service 6pm
Friday the 25th—Christmas Day! Celebration of the Nativity of Christ
Sunday the 27th—No Youth Group
Thursday the 31st—New Years Eve Lock-in 6pm-8am
Sunday the 3rd (January)—Youth Kirk Night and 2010 Summer Mission Trip Fundraiser 5-7:30 pm

Happy Birthday
1st—Anthony Free
7th—Maggie Triplett
18th—Ben Duncan
19th—Weston Hayden
Happy birthday to you all!

Calendar Break Down

Sanctus Bible Study—We continue to meet in our upper youth room to share our stories, to laugh, to sing on the occasion, to pray, and to worship as we share life together. Gathering time begins around 6:30 pm and the evening usually concludes around 8 pm. Friends are invited, too.

“On Christmas Day” Christmas Program and Kirk Night—Lore North is gearing up for what will be an exciting evening of our youth demonstrating their unique gifts through readings, songs, and music with a variety of instruments. This night will also be our church Kirk Night so come hungry and enjoy a great program put on by our youth! Please note that we’ll be practicing during the hanging of the greens (Sunday, December 6th @ 1pm!). All children and youth are invited even if they have not attended a rehearsal to date. They need to bring their music and instruments. We’ll put the whole show together for the first time that day. If there is anyone who does not want to sing or play an instrument, tell them to come on! We need people to help with lights, sound, etc.

A Night of Love: Waiting and Seeing IT in the City—We are coming closer to an end of our schedule on love and this night we will engage in looking for love in our city. We will break up in teams and like a scavenger hunt, we will go out into the city and find God’s love at work in our city. This will be on Sunday, December 13th from 4-7:30 pm!

Sr. High Trip to Evansville—For our Senior High Christmas party we, along with your friends, will load up in the bus and head to Evansville where we will dine out together (bring money for this), maybe do a little shopping in the mall, and then conclude the evening together by visiting the Ritzy’s Fantasy of Lights. Come dressed warm, with some money for food and hot chocolate, and be ready to have a good time with each other!

Annual Christmas Concert—Sunday the 20th the church will have its yearly Christmas Carol and lesson song night. The evening begins at 6pm.

FPC Youth Christmas Party and Caroling Night—On Monday the 21st we will have our annual Christmas party and caroling night, along with some good food as well. We will make trips to different places where we will sing our hearts out and spread the Christmas joy for all to hear! Kids for Christ you too have a party this night with more information to come!

Christmas Eve Service—6pm First Presbyterian Church Christmas Eve Service

3rd Annual New Year’s Eve Lock-in—This night is for all youth as we celebrate bringing in the new year, 2010! Registration is required and more details are soon to come. Doors open at 6pm. Friends are more than welcome to come!

A Few Minutes for Mission—January 3rd, 2010 we the youth group will host the January Kirk Night. This will act as a fundraiser for our 2010 mission trip and all youth are required to be there. Our night will begin at 4pm as we set up the Fellowship Hall for the evening festivities and also, learn our roles for the night’s events. We will be showing pictures and videos from our trip to South Dakota, so all students who are a part of that trip must attend. Again, all youth are asked to come and help serve and volunteer this evening. Those of you who do come will have money go into your ‘account’ for 2010 trips. Parents, we will need your help with the prep work for that night.

Websites to Visit when you get a Chance:
http://www.adventconspiracy.org/
http://www.d365.org/todaysdevotion/
http://fpcowensboroyouth.blogspot.com/

Reminder!
Remember parents and students to frequently check our church’s website and the blog site for updated calendar events and news!

Attention All Students in Grades 8-12
Sandy beaches, quaint shops, historical landmarks are the things that we associate with the Outer Banks of North Carolina. In Hyde County, though, hurricanes and unemployment have led to poverty. Here is an opportunity to serve and restore hurting areas of that community!

Who: High School Students (including rising freshmen)

What: Travel to the Outer Banks; 4 days serving on work projects and with a Kid’s Club; nightly activities in the outer banks; worship and devotional time; Whitewater Rafting in the New River Gorge after our mission week is complete,

Cost: $400 per person Deposit Required by January 4: $60
Please note the following balance deadlines:
$170 due by March 1 2010; $170 due by May 1, 2010.

Congratulations!
A reminder to all parents and students to please let us know of your accomplishments so we can celebrate them with you! Congrats to all of you.

Operation Christmas Child 2009

Operation Christmas Child Night 2009
Youth Director Adam R. Quine
November 15th, 2009
Upper Youth Room of FPC Owensboro
“Love Waiting in a Box”

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.

It is that time of year again, isn’t it?
All the stores are playing holiday music.
Starbucks is using the red holiday cups to serve their warm beverages.
Frosty, reindeer, the elves, and Santa Claus are starting to make their ways into the stores, too.
It seems to be here again, the Holiday season.

With the return of these holiday seasons, comes the opportunity for us to begin to spread good news, the same good news that came to us 2000 years ago. What good news am I talking about?
(Jesus. Yea, Jesus.)

We have the opportunity again guys and gals to put together a box of hope and love for some children all across the world. This year we are doing the shoebox ministry again, and this is why we have gathered here tonight with you all. We have gathered together up here in our upper youth room to sing, worship, pray, and then put the good news we know of and put it into action.

This morning in worship you guys heard some pretty amazing stories from some of the older kids, didn’t you, about their experiences with mission work. They talked about their experiences with poverty, they mentioned how they could not believe some of the things they saw, and then they talked about what they did about it. Tonight friends, we have the same opportunity as they, to take a stand against poverty and send God’s love to the world in a shoebox!

Activity:
450,000,000,000Have 2 kids make the numbers 4 & 5.

Every year we find ourselves this time of year getting excited for many different things. If you are your parent’s age, they perhaps, get excited about spending time with you guys, making dinners and what not. If you are your grandparent’s age, they are excited they get to spend time with you guys, their grandchildren, great grandchildren, and that they have another year with their children. If you were my age, you get excited because it means a time of year when I get to go home to Peoria to spend time with all my family and friends. We are all excited about our families, friends, food, and the spirit of being together.

Now if we are you guys, we are excited for a few different things as well, huh? What are some things we are excited about?
Late nights and sleepovers!
No school!
Food!
Cold weather!
Christmas trees and decorations!
Presents!

Presents are fun, huh? I always got excited seeing the presents build up and trying to guess what was wrapped up and what not. I also, now that I am older, enjoy giving presents to Teresa, my family, and to my new nieces and nephews. Christmas can be lots and lots of fun and is, but sometimes we miss the point about it, huh?

All around us if we look we see lots and lots and lots and lots of Christmas stuff, huh? We hear Christmas stuff? We smell Christmas stuff? Christmas stuff has come and Christmas is still a whole month away. How many of you before school starts, start pretending as if you are in school? You know, getting up early, sitting at a desk, reading, writing, doing your homework, and studying? Not too many of you do or would do it.

We spend money, lots and lots of money on Christmas. Guess how much?
(This then is when we line the kids up to explain we spend $450 billion on Christmas.)

How incredible is that? We spend $450,000,000,000 on Christmas in America alone!

Now how would you guys like to do something about that? How would you all like to get back to what Christmas was all about?

(Show Advent Conspiracy Video)

Give more presence.
Love like Jesus.
How would Jesus spend Christmas?
Worship fully. Spend Less. Give More. Love All.

Tonight we enter the story. We enter the advent story by worshiping fully, spending less on us, giving more to others and loving all of God’s children. Tonight we have gathered here to send God’s love, our love, and Christ’s love to Children all across the globe in the form of a shoebox. Usually though, we have our worship time. We sing. We pray. We laugh a bit. We have a good time. Then we make our way down to the shoe box stations and we fill our boxes and we do it again and this all take about 5 minutes. Then we are done, until next year. When we gather and do the same thing over and over and over!

What can we do then to make this more personal, a little more incarnational, and a little more real for us and for the children who may receive our boxes? We are going to take some time, sit down, pray, and write cards to put in these boxes. We are going to write them messages of love, hope, peace, and joy. After all, this is what Jesus came for. We will send them the message of love by saying, we give you this gift because we love you. We will send the message of peace by sending them a box which will give them time to play, to worry less for only a moment, and to give them an opportunity to be a kid, like you all. We are sending a box of hope by letting them know somewhere all around the world there are people who care for them and wanted to let them know so. Our messages in a box will bring a smile and laughter to their faces, and let’s be honest; there is nothing as joyful as those things!

We may not have many toys this year to stuff in the boxes. In fact, many of these toys may not have cost nearly as much as the stuff we will get. Our boxes may be filled with things we don’t appreciate such as toothbrushes, pencils, and toys in general. Yet what this box means to these children goes beyond our understanding. Imagine if what you put in these boxes is all you got for the whole year. All of 2010 and all you got was a box full of these toys. This is what they get, this is what they hope for, this is what they wait for.

You see, these children wait for this little box of toys to come to them, they wait for a long time. Much like the people in the bible did. These children wait for the good news which comes in the form of some small toys and miscellaneous items in a small, cardboard box. Much like the people did when they were waiting for someone to come, rescue them, and in doing so, bring them good news of a new way of life! God’s love comes to these children through a box full of joys. Much like how God’s love came in a feeding trough in the form of a small child some 2000 years ago.

This year, it isn’t going to be like the other years is it? We’re going to slow down this year. We are going to be pray more and prepare more. Together, we’ll intentionally put our boxes together, thinking carefully about what we are doing, and being thoughtful of those who will receive our gifts. Together, we will take a stand against poverty by using our resources to provide for others. Together we will show people that there is still good in the world.

Together, in a shoebox, we will proclaim good news that will impact a child’s life. We will be sending over God’s love to a place where love is needed.

Together we will bring heaven to earth for a bunch of children like you! You will make a difference; much like that infant did so many years ago, in the life of the world.

You ready?

Let us pray.
God of life and the giver of the best gift, our lives, we give you thanks a praise for your love and the way this love comes to us. Tonight as we continue in our worship, we pray you will give us eyes to see you, ears to hear you, and a readiness to receive you, so that we may continue in the spreading of the good news of Jesus Christ to everyone we meet, especially to those who may receive our shoe boxes full of toys.

We pray for them now, wherever they may be and whoever they are. Hold them in your parental love and guidance, pouring your compassion and mercy out upon them the way you do for us here. Provide peace for them where peace is not present. Provide hope for them where hope no longer seems to reside. We pray for the children who may have no families or homes and we pray you will give them courage to endure their days. Come to them and shine light onto their paths and let them not walk aimlessly but with a confidence and courage which can only come from you.

We are grateful for your love O God and how you have met us where we are. Be with us wherever we go and remind us to look for you in all we meet and see. Help us to love one another and to care for one another the way you call us to, God of community, Holy in One. Let us never neglect any of your children or turn our eyes from those being hurt or close our ears off to the cries of those who need our help. Never let us older people be so set in our ways that we refuse to hear the voices of our young brothers and sisters or prevent them from contributing. For all your children O God, keep them dreaming dreams you approve and living in the spirit of the young man Jesus, for it is through Jesus we pray and pray the prayer he taught us to pray saying together:

Hour of Nones--Noonday Prayer

Psalm 121

Assurance of God’s Protection

A Song of Ascents.
1I lift up my eyes to the hills—
from where will my help come?
2My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.

3He will not let your foot be moved;
he who keeps you will not slumber.
4He who keeps Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.

5The Lord is your keeper;
the Lord is your shade at your right hand.
6The sun shall not strike you by day,
nor the moon by night.

7The Lord will keep you from all evil;
he will keep your life.
8The Lord will keep
your going out and your coming in
from this time on and for evermore.

November 2009 NewsLetter

First Presbyterian Church
Youth Group PresbyNotes
November 1st, 2009

God’s Attention in a Shoe Box Form

We’ve all seen the videos.
Nothing has changed really.
We know there is a problem in the world.
We know the statistics.
We see the pictures.
We see the old guy on the movie asking us to do something about it, to help out those who are less fortunate than us.

We come. We ‘listen’ to the homily before. We get excited. We run to the fellowship hall. We gather with our friends and stuff boxes. Picking up toys we like and putting them in boxes to some boy or girl we’ll never meet. Once one is done, we run get another one and do it all over again until, until there is nothing left.

Until there is nothing left…

Perhaps this is how God must have felt when God tried and tried to get the people’s attention about what it means to be a Holy Nation, or to live as the people of God. God created something beautiful, God created things good. Along the way though, we missed it, dropped the ball if you will and have forgotten just how good we are. Prophets would come along and boldly ask and tell and hope for people to turn from their ways and to really think about whom they are and if they are living into their identity as God’s people.

Isaiah and other prophets came along, all hoping for the day when their pains of being an oppressed people, being a people in exile would be over and someone would step up and take them, lead them out of their exile. Someone who would demonstrate and fulfill God’s love and remind them of just how good they are. Great leaders would rise up and help lead them, get along the journey just a little bit farther and then, they too would have nothing left to give. They tried but it all was to daunting and the people, they complained. They were satisfied with having what they have, living under an oppressive ruler and not really raising a concern about how things were going, being slaves and not taking on the responsibility to be God’s chosen people. These people, God’s people, had forgotten what good news was like and the way good news never left you feeling empty…or as if there was nothing left.

Then it happened. God entered into the world, becoming for the Israelites and for us, good news in the form of an infant, a child, Jesus. Finally a fulfillment to the hope the prophets spoke of and a sign of God’s faithfulness comes in a child, one who would lead them out of another exile, who would lead US out of an exile. Now this, this is good news! Jesus came, is here and is coming with God’s love for all people, especially those who find themselves to be poor, homeless, ill and alone. Jesus came and showed there is another way of doing things; another way of caring for each other, Jesus came to show God’s love in its purest form. This Jesus guy, the one who heals the sick, gives sight to the blind and helps the lame walk, is the person Isaiah talked about when he wrote about someone coming who will use power in its purest way, leading a people out of the slavery they found themselves to be in and into a new kingdom, a kingdom which is here, there, near and now. No longer are they empty feeling, no longer are they hopeless, no longer are they in exile. They are filled with hope, they are filled with joy and full of God’s love as this new kingdom has arrived.

This year we have the opportunity again to bring good news to people all across the world with the shoe box ministry. Our time together will be gathered around tables, kind of like communion, putting together a package for someone we may never meet, but we will send them one anyway because we want them to experience God’s love the way we have. Advent is here almost and we will again celebrate the good news of Christ coming as Savior and redeemer of the world and there is no better way to prepare ourselves for this than to send a package of love to children in all lands and places proclaiming good news to them in the form of a shoebox.

May we see our shoebox ministry night not as just another year of watching the same video, packing the same shoe boxes with the same toys and doing it all the same way again. Let us do it intentionally, prayerfully and hopeful, as we think about what we are sending and how it’ll be received. Perhaps all year these kids wait for their packages. Perhaps to these kids, this is all they have to look forward to. Perhaps to these kids, they are in need of good news…good news in a box…a box that isn’t full of nothing…but a box full of something…a box full of good news.

Above all, may we see this ministry opportunity as God’s way of getting our attention and reminding us to take care of each other, all of God’s children and to do it with grateful and loving hearts. This November, we will worship with each other, we will give thanks with our families, we will proclaim Christ the king and together we will hope for God’s love to transform us again and again and again.

Peace to you this month.


November 2009 Schedule of Events
1st—Youth Sunday Preparation 4:30-7:30 pm
5th—Sanctus Bible Study 6:30-8pm
6th, 7th & 8th—Camp Loucon, 4:30 pm Friday-3pm Sunday
12th— Sanctus Bible Study 6:30-8pm
15th—Youth Sunday 7:30 am for the 8:15 & 10:30 services
**Operation Christmas Child 5-7:30 pm**
All youth: KFC-Sr. High
19th— Sanctus Bible Study 6:30-8pm
22nd—Youth Group 5-7:30pm
Jr. High 5-6:30 pm
Sr. High 6:00-7:30pm
29th—Destination Unknown 5-8pm

Events and Going On’s

October 31st—AIDS Walk
All youth interested walking in the AIDS walk need to be at the church at 1:30 pm on Saturday, October 31st. We will then go to KWC where starting at 2 pm we will walk down Frederica Street to Brescia in support of AIDS research. All those who participate will receive a $10 discount on their mission trip deposit.

1st—Youth Sunday Preparation
Yes, it is time for our youth Sunday guys and gals! It may be a few months late but we are nonetheless planned to lead worship for our church November 15th, 2009 for both the 8:15 and 10:30 services. We are in charge of all of the components of the worship for this particular Sunday and we need to begin to shape our time together.

This Sunday from 4:30-7:30 pm we will gather in the Sanctuary and assign roles for Youth Sunday. Also those of you, who are in the youth choir, plan on rehearsing with Patti at some point during this time. I encourage you to come and participate both on Nov. 1st but more importantly on Nov. 15th. If you desire a particular piece of the service, make sure you are there Sunday night!

Preachers for this Sunday are as follows:
-Wade Zengel
-Katie Duncan
-Sarah Bowley
-Reid Thomas (?)

6th, 7th & 8th—Camp Loucon
Our annual Western Kentucky Presbytery Fall Retreat will be at Camp Loucon in Leitchfield, Kentucky. We will leave at 4:30 pm on Friday the 6th (if you need a ride to the bus, please contact me the week of and we can/will arrange for something) and be back @ 3:30pm on the 8th. If you have not turned in your release forms, please bring them with you. Remember to pack warmly. Each student must bring 1 snack to share with their cabin mates.

15th—Youth Sunday at First Presbyterian Church
We the youth group of First Presbyterian Church will be leading the worship services for both the 8:15 and 10:30 am services on this particular Sunday. I ask you get here no earlier than 7:30 and no later than 7:45 so we can double check our assigned roles. Our worship will be shaped around our experience this past summer with City Sights/City Lights and the trip to South Dakota, along with our discussion on LOVE! Make sure you invite your family and friends to come and worship with us on this youthful Sunday!

15th—Operation Christmas Child & Shoebox Night
An all youth event, we will gather again this November to bring toys, pack toys and celebrate the goodness of God’s love which comes to us and we then give it to others via the Shoebox Ministry. We are still in need of toys and other supplies for our boxes so please bring what you are able to. The evening will be for Kids for Christ, Junior high and Senior high and we will participate in this great ministry opportunity to serving those who find themselves in difficult situations all across the world! Please come and we can begin to bring Christ’s love by simply stuffing some shoe boxes with toys!

Thursday Evenings Together
We continue to meet on Thursday evenings in the upper youth room where we share stories, break bread on the occasion, worship and pray together. Please come and enjoy an hours worth of contemplative life sharing! 6:30-8:00 pm every Thursday night.

Attention All Students in Grades 8-12
Sandy beaches, quaint shops, historical landmarks are the things that we associate with the Outer Banks of North Carolina. In Hyde County, though, hurricanes and unemployment have led to poverty. Here is an opportunity to serve and restore hurting areas of that community!

Who: High School Students (including rising freshmen)

What: Travel to the Outer Banks; 4 days serving on work projects and with a Kid’s Club; nightly activities in the outer banks; worship and devotional time; Whitewater Rafting in the New River Gorge after our mission week is complete,

Cost: $400 per person Deposit Required by January 4: $60
Please note the following balance deadlines:
$170 due by March 1 2010; $170 due by May 1, 2010.

!!!Congratulations!!!
Caroline Lashbrook placed first place in the elementary run of the Marshall County Invitational Cross Country meet on October 10. Caroline runs for the Owensboro Middle School Red Devil team.

A reminder to all parents and students to please let us know of your accomplishments so we can celebrate them with you! Congrats to all of you.

Attention Parents
Operation Christmas Child is just around the corner, November 15th, 2009. We are in need of a volunteer or two to prepare for the evening by laying out the toys on the tables, purchasing (with donated money) any other supplies we may need and to finally drop them off to the Shoebox Ministry drop off location (OCC) during the week to follow. Please let Adam know ASAP. Remember this is for all youth in the church!

~New T-Shirts will be available by youth Sunday. I ask that you either wear the 2009 mission trip shirt, the old red one or/but the new one if it is ready for youth Sunday.~

Lock-In 2009 of the Fall

It is a tradition of ours to decorate the hallways of First Presbyterian Church for our annual Freaky Fun Fabulous Fall Festival one week before the actual event. This year was no different and due to fall break and the week if fell on, we took good advantage of this tradition and turned it into an all night event. From the decorating, to supper, carving pumpkins, dancing in Kroger and stories around a fire, our evening was well spent and nothing can beat a lock-in.

These pictures are just a few moments we captured during this 16 hour extravaganza! Enjoy.