Heeding God's Instruction

These people need your prayers as they pursue God's truth in their lives; take a listen...

Our Story

The theme for yesterday was "Your Story". We all have a setting, characters, and a plot. The only problem is that our story is not about us. It is about him. Our Keynote speaker opened our eyes to the fact that we often live two stories, one that involves us as the hero and the other that give Jesus the credit. With that in mind, we are asking the kids today what their story looks like as we listen to our Hero in our story. We hope to find out what Jesus is doing when writing their National Youth Gathering story.

Activity-wise, a solid Bible Study started the morning, followed by three knock-out sessions. My favorite was hosted by Brad Alles, from Milwaukee. He taught about the facets of Jesus' existence and how they provable from historical writings of non-believing teachers and satirists of the first 100 years of the first century AD. In addition to this, he discussed the logical belief in Christ. Believing in God isn't what makes it true. We believe it because it IS true.

I already mentioned the key-note speaker, so I'll tell you about the highlight of our day: The Skit Guys. You have to check them out: Youtube, their website, anything. They had us rolling in the aisles, roaring with laughter. From David and Goliath to Adam and Eve, these guys can make anything funny. I encourage you to get their dvd if you like em...it'll be worth it.

Well, I'm off to the day's events...I'll get a video from the kids as soon as I can...and I think the White's are inducing today!! God's blessings on the delivery:)

18 Hours of Good

6 AM came early yesterday. 1:30 AM came late. Therefore, I'm late. We had a service project in the 9th ward (the heaviest hit area from Katrina). Our job was to clear a city block of shrubs, grass, reeds, vines, and litter. The land owners here are fined if they do not control the vegetation on their properties; most do not have the funds, time, or man power to do so. That is where we came in.

We weren't well equipped, but what we lacked in machine we made up for in numbers. 120 of us used shears, rakes, and our hands to knock down the growth...even when the rain came, we kept moving forward. Actually, the downpour was welcomed. It was much better than 95 degrees and scorching, like the day prior.

Afterward, wet and exhausted, we drove to a park along the Mississippi and had a Bible study over sections of the book of John, correlated with Ephesians. Ephesians 2 points out that our life is to be a part of God's overall plan: To show the immeasurable bounty of his grace and mercy. WE are a part of that grace and mercy being fleshed out in the community here in New Orleans. WE are to be the grace and mercy of God to the people in our own community.

After mandatory showers, the youth scattered to their preferred sessions in the convention center. Concerts, life stories, painting and the like were offered throughout the afternoon. I went to see a gentleman dubbed, "The Jesus Painter". His talent is his ability to splatter and swab paint on a blank canvas, tell a story with only brush strokes, and ultimately generate a picture of Jesus. He has created over 60,000 paintings.

For dinner, a few of us convinced everyone to return to a hole in the wall called "Corporation Bar and Grill". The food is the best we've had, and the price is even better. I think we'll run into them again before we leave :). The small group meeting was moving, as we continue to discuss what we truly believe about God. The Skit Guys, a magician, and finally a mother who lost her 18 year old daughter all shared in different ways about the challenges we have in believing what God says about himself. You would think the day was over, but it wasn't. A riverboat cruise called the Natchez took the Kansas District up and down the Mississippi. The skyline views were spectacular.

Question for the kids: What happened to Ray's place (the corporation bar and grill) after Katrina?

Pics of Days 1-3

http://mclcnyg.shutterfly.com/

This site is easier for me to load pictures to...Just click on the album and check it out.
Enjoy!

Freedom Starters

A day to ourselves was just what the doctor ordered. Our clan of 15 split into fives. One set went shopping, another took a ferry, while the last went learning. Now there are mini-helicopters flying through the halls of our hotel, license plate souvenirs are apparently the in things, and the rest are WWII buffs. I do have to digress and tell you all that if you ever get to NOLA, you have to go to the World War 2 museum and see the movie Beyond All Boundaries.

After we all completed our excursions, we joined 25,000 other Green Back-Packed youths on Poydras street and headed to the Super Dome. The initial event was fantastic. The worship was energetic without trying to be entertaining. The creativity of the music and imagery reached into my soul and awakened my mind to the thirst I hadn't addressed over the days passed by. The prayerfulness of the staff is apparent, as the director prayed over us all again and lead us into a resounding, echoing, and uplifting unanimous shout of, "WE BELIEVE!!!" Finally, our speaker (whom the students know well), Pastor Greg pointed out that truth is something many people can't see. Being legally blind, Pastor Greg stated that he believes seeing 100% truth in Christ is infinitely better than seeing everything with our own eyes.

We digested these experience in our post-meeting. You all would be blessed by the fervor and genuineness our teens possess, I know I am. Though, after we broke, most ran outside and started flying their new mini-remote-controlled helicopters again. Gotta love 'em. :)

Your question for the youth: Why do people in the crowds have sticks with Ernie and other types of stuffed animals on them?

Swampy Travels

Getting up this morning was hard to do after breaking our backs the day before. The downpour that greeted us in the 90 degree humidity was a little overwhelming as well. But once we were on the bus, the fun was all that ran through our minds. We took a tour through the swamp and spotted Herons, Turtles, Frogs, Giant Crickets, and of course...Alligators! None were very big; our cajun tour guide said it was too hot for them to come out...boo. Yet, we were given a chance to pet an albino alligator. That was pretty cool. The Lafitte Swamp Tour Co. also fed us a BBQ Pork and Shrimp picnic. Thankfully only the shrimp still had their feet and eyes..eek!

After our return, we registered the teens for the conference; each person received a neon green backpack, a bible, a schedule, and a water bottle (all of which will come in handy over the next few days.)

With some deliberation, we decided to take a load off and go to a movie in downtown NOLA. Only, there was a catch. All the downtown theaters require one to be 18 or older to enter. We didn't know that until after we arrived, so we had to jump on a cable car and jaunt down St. Charles Place for 3 miles, then jog two block south to an old stage theater that was converted into a movie theater. I thought the journey was half the fun; others might disagree.

Finally, we wondered back to a pizzeria we noted the other night. They didn't disappoint, though they did make some folks wait a while (as our vlog will tell you later). Also, I would like to note that we tried to scare Paul and Andrea into labor with some scary texting. But Paul Jr. obviously hasn't budged : ).

Thanks again for your prayers:
Question of the day? What is so amazing about an alligator's immune system?

Demo then Dancin'

A 45 minute trip north of NOLA, as the common acronym goes, is the small town of Slidell, LA. We arrived there on bus around 9:15 this morning, along with 190 other Kansans to help a small restore their sanctuary and grounds. Some volunteered for drywall duty; others pulled carpet, fixed small engines, trimmed trees, or prayed over us all. Our group was aces when it came to volunteering, working hard, and using teamwork. The church ladies made us great sandwiches for lunch and the pastor brought us all ice cream…I’ve never seen it melt in 2 minutes before! Despite the heat, we labored until about 2:30pm and got on the bus to head home. We were given a unique surprise on the way home as we took a detour and drove through the 9th Ward. There we observed the residue of Katrina and the continual efforts of restoration. We all agreed that the steps forward that we helped the church in Slidell make, strengthened our belief in what we can do as the body of believers serving our fellow man. But the 9th Ward shows us how much more there is to do.
After an hour of cooling off and cleaning up in our hotel, we had our debriefing meeting and set out on the town to experience the night life of New Orleans. We headed to Michaul’s, and as the sign states, it Cajun food and Cajun Fun. A great buffet of Jambalaya, spiced beans, and garlic butter bread (and mac ‘n’ cheese if you needed it) was mixed with live music, lots of energy, and a huge dance floor. Everybody who helped with the service project was there, so it was nice to see them again. All the girls danced, and some of the boys…typical. I told the guys that I’ll have to commit and SNL night to teach them all to dance. They were pretty receptive : ).
Day two was great ya’ll…ahem…sorry…you all. Tomorrow we go on a swamp tour on airboats. Pray for our safety and our continued growth. The bonding through similar experiences is irreplaceable. This group is going to return as a solid core and with your help, an influential one. God bless.
PS: Your question to ask the Youth: Which was harder, the 20 hour bus ride to New Orleans or the 2 hour bus ride back from the service project?

Actually in Nawlins

As we broke down our day with going over our highs, many of our youth stated that getting off of the bus was the best part of their day. 20 hours was plenty; we traded the cramped air conditioning, full of fun and new people, for suffocating heat. But we couldn't be stopped. After a short briefing at the hotel, everyone was excited to see the Mardi Gras museum. There we saw all the floats that storm the streets of New Orleans every February. We even ate "King Cake".

That is the question of the day that you need to ask one of the youth from the trip: What is "King Cake"?

After seeing the making of floats, the group decided to walk 2.5 miles to Bourbon Street and soak in the culture, diversity, and unavoidable debauchery of the French Quarter. The energy pulsing throughout this sector was enthralling, but the response of these teens was very refreshing. The words sad, sorry, and pity were what emerged from their hearts after seeing many things they don’t wish to see again. One senior even said, “I don’t think I’m hungry anymore.” Don’t worry, he was fine. He downed a plate full of jambalaya 20 minutes later at a restaurant called Huck Finn’s.
We walked another 1.5 miles back to our hotel and met for encouragement and prayer. Afterwards, two folks posted a short response to their high points of the day and also what they learned today.

Send Off

Parents were around yesterday to send the kids off to New Orleans. After having Anita send the kids off with a prayer and blessing, we loaded into the van, and threw the luggage into the Adcock mobile to transport the youth to the drop-off location. Once we arrived at St Luke's we saw the kids load the bus and begin their journey after getting them together for a group picture.

Pray for this wonderful and good looking group as they arrive today in New Orleans. Especially pray that they get some rest after the long, long bus trip.

Welcome...It's getting closer!

Don't forget to use your checklist for packing.

Reminder, there will be a multiple choice test on the covenant we all signed.

If you haven't signed it yet, be sure to sign it by this Sunday the 11th at 6pm.