New Location!

Hello! I haven't posted anything in a while, because we've been very close to launching our new website, and from now on, our blog will be part of the church website.

So if you want to keep up with OHYG!, head on over to our blog's new location.

Thanks for checking in...

Mark

Kidnap Breakfast!

It was lots of fun!

Holiday World Hightlights

This is from our May 28th trip to Holiday World. Lots of fun!

Goodpasture Christian School - Graduation 2009

Congrats to Cody Partlow, and many of our other friends for finishing strong!

FCS Graduation Highlights

Congratulations to Kassie, Kelsi, and Elliott!

Spring Retreat at Camp Meribah

(Click on any of the pictures here for a larger version of them)

We all had a wonderful time on the Spring Retreat at Camp Meribah.

Our Bible classes all centered around being peacemakers. We talked about envisioning God's dream of peace. We looked at what NOT to do, and some of the "stones" that we all need to lay down, as well as what we SHOULD be doing, to be like Christ who brought peace between us and God. On Sunday, Nathan Miller pointed out to us how that what might have formerly been a weakness for us, God can make into a "stepping stone," to help us grow into stronger Christians than we were before.



Meribah itself is really nice. It has a great playground, a super cool A-frame chapel building where the singing is as good as it gets, and an indoor gym. It was never too hot, cold, or dark to shoot some hoops! We also learned that they have a tremendous set of cooks. The kids all signed "thank you" cards for them. They were very touched and appreciated the cards...apparently they don't get "thank you" cards very often for what they do. I was proud of the kids for their attitudes, and also for their willingness to pitch in and help us get the camp cleaned up on Sunday so we could check out.











We also discovered a mutually shared passion for Bocce Ball, which was a popular sport for the weekend. (Hey, if overweight, aging Italian men can play it, why can't we?) Ultimate Frisbee also got pretty intense!

At one point, we had a competition for the teens to come up with "Gumpisms."

Here were the top 6 entries, of the many quality entires we received:

6. Johnston - "Life is like remote controls. You determine if you chose your own path, or if you let someone do it for you.

5. Savannah W. - "Life is like boxing. You keep fighting, even when you get knocked down."

4. Slater - "Life is like a diamond. The shinier you shine with God, people notice."

3. Savannah R. - "The church is like a sunrise. There is light in every direction."

2. Micah - "Life is like x-rays, because you never know what's going on inside of people."

1. Gunter - "Life is like a dirty diaper. It stinks, but you can change it."

James 1:12-18

Last night at our SNAC devo, we worked on memorizing James 1:12-18. As we broke down the verse into different parts, Jake helped us by creating illustrations to remind us of the content of the passage.

James 1:12-18

Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial,
because when he has stood the test,
he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.

When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me."
For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone;

but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin;
and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

Don't be deceived, my dear brothers.
Every good and perfect gift is from above,
coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights,
who does not change like shifting shadows.

He chose to give us birth through the word of truth,
that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.

Challenge Youth Conference 2009

Thanks to everyone who came along to CYC this year. It was a great youth rally centered around the story of Nehemiah. We talked about putting walls in place to guard our minds and hearts against things that would cause us spiritual harm.

We'll definitely be going back again next year!

The Facebook album is here.

Youth Group Graffiti

Johnston made a drawing, putting a cool twist on the OHYG letters. Not bad!

What do you want to read?

Hey, kiddos!

Do you realize that we have a teen library? At least, we're trying to get one started. We want to keep some books available to you guys that you will find helpful, interesting, entertaining, and uplifting.

Mallie Fletcher is our church librarian, and she handles purchasing and labeling the books that we add. People donate money in memory of other people to pay for the books. I'm working on making a list of books that we want her to purchase for us to use.

So my question to you is: What do you want to read?

Self-Help?
Christian Fiction?
Christian Graphic Novels?
Doctrine Studies?
Poetry?
History?
Biography?
Christian Evidences?

If you know of any books you've really been wanting to read, but don't have, post a comment here and let me know what you'd like us to get!

Ski Trip 2009

We had a terrific group of 34 go along with us to Paoli Peaks, Indiana. It was our first time to take a ski trip, and the whole thing was a big hit. We'll definitely be going back next year!

I have a book printed up with some of the pictures people gave to me, which is now up in the youth room. Be sure to check it out...

Challenge Youth Conference is Coming Up!

Challenge Youth Conference sign ups are underway! So far, we've already got 25 people on the roster!

This will be the first year we've gone, so it will be something new and different for us. The dates are February 27 to March 1 (Fri-Sun). The cost per person is $40, out of which a $10 deposit is due this coming Sunday. The rest of the money is due Feb. 22nd. They will not let me reserve additional tickets after February 9, so it is crucial that you let me know of your intentions to go by this week.

Also, if you have not yet turned in a medical release form for 2009, you can download one using the link on the left of this screen.

We'll be hearing a series of excellent speakers, and enjoying some great entertainment. For more details about CYC, click here.

Devo @ The Adams' House: Soul Bossa Nova

If you didn't make it to the devo, you missed out! After we were done eating and devo-ing, we whipped out Raving Rabbids TV Party, and the guys showed off some dance moves. It was classic!

Romans 12:9-14

Thanks to everyone who stuck around for SNAC yesterday evening. It was a really positive time, and I appreciated the nice things everyone had to share. I think we'll have to find some more opportunities to play "Assassins", it was fun..especially since so many of us are wink-challenged. :-)

Class upstairs was also a lot of fun! I'm just curious...how many of you can still recite this passage?

At the beginning of class, I told them we would be memorizing Romans 12:9-14, and they doubted it was possible. But by the end of the night, we all had it down! It's a good passage to keep on your mind and in your heart:

9Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality. 14Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.

We worked together to come up with visual devices to help us memorize the content. It's a good technique for learning, whether it's the Bible or your school work. Don't be afraid to be silly and think up some memorable images! It really helps your memory.

Mighty God

So as we were talking about Jesus as the "Mighty God" described by Isaiah, we began with some thoughts about super heroes. Here were our three artists, each of whom had a different opinion about which super hero is the greatest. Graham's was probably the most original.