516 Youth

“Move Up” Sunday

On Sunday, June 17, students entering 6th or 9th grade in the fall will move up and start attending the Jr. & Sr. High Sunday school classes respectively. The rising 6th graders can also start coming to youth group that night.

Youth Snack Volunteers

If you are the parent of one of the rising 6th graders who will be joining youth group on June 17th, please consider signing up to contribute snacks on a rotating basis. Current volunteers are responsible for bringing snacks and drinks once every 6-8 weeks. You’ll receive a schedule for a few months at a time and a reminder from the church when your week comes up. Let me know if you are able to help.

Graduating Seniors

If you know of any students who attend CBC and are graduating high school this spring, please let me know who they are.

Next Youth Group is Sunday, January 8

There will be no youth group this week due to the continued holiday break. Also, based on the responses to the survey about possibly moving youth group to mid-week, we will keeping it on Sunday nights. This means that our next meeting will be Sunday, January 8. A new snack list for January-April will also be distributed soon.

New Sunday School Class Starting January 15

The Jr. & Sr. High Sunday school classes will be cancelled on January 8 so that students can attend the pancake breakfast and informational session for our children’s ministry.

On Sunday, January 15, we will be starting a new series in the High School class based loosely on the book Vintage Jesus: Timely Answers to Timeless Questions by Mark Driscoll and Gerry Breshears. We will not be reading the book together (although you are of course welcome to pick it up and read it on your own!), but we will be using the chapters as the outline for the class. The chapter titles are:

1. Is Jesus the Only God?
2. How Human Was Jesus?
3. How Did People Know Jesus Was Coming?
4. Why Did Jesus Come to Earth?
5. Why Did Jesus’ Mom Need to Be a Virgin?
6. What Did Jesus Accomplish on the Cross?
7. Did Jesus Rise from Death?
8. Where is Jesus Today?
9. Why Should We Worship Jesus?
10. What Makes Jesus Superior to Other Saviors?
11. What Difference Has Jesus Made in History?
12. What Will Jesus Do upon His Return?

College students and young adults are again welcome to join us as we study the person and work of Jesus Christ.

Youth Christmas Party

Our youth group Christmas party will be next Sunday, December 11th, at the Fosters’ house during our regular youth group time (6:00-7:30). We’ll play some games and have dessert together. Each student should bring a $5 grab-bag-type gift.

Setting an example in purity…

At youth group this Sunday, we’ll conclude our series on 1 Timothy 4:12 as we talk about setting an example in purity. The word for “purity” has 2 main meanings, to be morally blameless or clean (more general) and to be chaste (more specific). Because of how young most of our youth group is, I’ll be sticking mainly to the more general meaning of being morally blameless or clean. I encourage parents, however, to take the opportunity provided by this verse in 1 Timothy as well as Pastor Steve’s messages on marriage (last week) and singleness (this week) to have conversations with your children about sex and sexual purity. The average American male sees pornography for the first time at age 12, usually on the internet or through a friend. If your child goes online or watches TV and movies, chances are they are exposed to some level of sexuality or sexual themes. It’s important that their view on this subject be molded by parents rather than media or friends. If you’ve already had the “birds and bees” talk with them, this might be a good time to revisit the issue and ask if they have any questions since your last talk or to extend the issue to the importance of purity (especially if they’ve hit puberty since you last talked and hormones are starting to kick in). If you haven’t had “the talk” with them yet, this might be a good time to address that.

Youth Game Time

For any youth-group-aged kids (6th-12th grade) who have off from school today, we’ll be hanging out at the church from 1:00-4:00 pm. I’ll have the Wii, ping-pong table, and air hockey table set up, and we might do some games outside too. There’s no need to bring anything (except maybe Wii remotes if you have them), but if you would want drinks or snacks during that time, you should plan on bringing them with you.

No Youth Group Next Week

There will be no youth group next Sunday, November 27th due to it being Thanksgiving weekend. We’ll pick back up on Sunday, December 4th.

Flag Football

Don’t forget that this Friday we’ll be having a Flag Football game followed up by pizza and the LSU-Arkansas game. The flag football game will start at 11:30 so arrive before then to warm up and so we can form teams. This isn’t limited to just youth so all ages are welcome to come out, even if you just want to cheer us (and LSU) on instead of playing.

One of the things I miss most about childhood is the seemingly daily pickup football games we played in backyards around the neighborhood. There is something about Thanksgiving football in particular that brings back all kinds of good memories.

Because of that, and the fact that the church has a pretty expansive backyard, I thought it would be cool if we started a Turkey Bowl at Community. I was thinking we could organize a flag football game for the day after Thanksgiving (Friday, November 25th). I see it not only being a great time of fellowship for those of us who already attend Community, but also something that might be a fun way to introduce neighbors, friends, and family to the church through a “safe,” non-threatening event.

If you’d be interested in playing (or know someone who would be), let me know, and if we have enough people who want to play, I’ll start organizing the game.

1 Timothy 4:12 Series

We are currently doing a series on 1 Timothy 4:12 at youth group on Sunday nights. The first week we talked about being looked down on and setting an example. We are now looking at each of the 5 things Paul commanded Timothy to set an example in, starting with “speech” last week and continuing with “conduct” this week. I’m putting brief summaries of each lesson on the youth website and the church’s Facebook page. Please follow along so that you can exhort and encourage our youth as they seek to set the believers an example.

Student Information Form

As we continue with regular youth group meetings and start to have some special events, like the pizza party or canoe trip, I’d like to be able to keep our youth as safe as possible. I’ve realized, however, that if we had an accident while playing a game on a Sunday night, I wouldn’t even know how to contact some parents. In light of that, I’ll be sending him a form that I’m asking parents to fill out for each of their children that comes to youth group. This will ensure that I have the information I need to prevent and respond to potential problems, whether that is being able to contact parents, or keep a student from eating something he is allergic to, or call their cell phone if they get separated from the group. Please look over the form and let me know if you have any questions (or if you think something should be added). For the allergy section, I’m interested in any and all that could be applicable in a youth setting (food, medicine, bee stings, etc.). All the information will be kept confidential, and the forms themselves will be kept locked up. Thanks in advance for your cooperation.

Extracurricular Schedules

I’d like to be able to support the youth in the various activities they are involved in so if they have a sports event or music concert or any other type of activity, I’d like to try and attend and cheer them on when I can. If you can forward me sports schedules or give me advanced notice of special events so I can check my own schedule and plan to attend some of them, I’d appreciate it.

New Sunday School Class for Sr. High & Young Adults

On October 16th, we will start a Sunday school series for high schoolers, college students, and young adults based on Francis Chan’s book Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God:

God is love. Crazy, relentless, all-powerful love. Have you ever wondered if we’re missing it? It’s crazy, if you think about it. The God of the universe—the Creator of nitrogen and pine needles, galaxies and E-minor—loves us with a radical, unconditional, self-sacrificing love. And what is our typical response? We go to church, sing songs, and try not to cuss. Whether you’ve verbalized it yet or not…we all know something’s wrong. Does something deep inside your heart long to break free from the status quo? Are you hungry for an authentic faith that addresses the problems of our world with tangible, even radical, solutions? God is calling you to a passionate love relationship with Himself. Because the answer to religious complacency isn’t working harder at a list of do’s and don’ts—it’s falling in love with God. And once you encounter His love, as Francis Chan describes it, you will never be the same. Because when you’re wildly in love with someone, it changes everything.

This small group curriculum is designed to help foster a community that seeks to live out the principles in the book together. The book costs $9. If you would like to order the workbook (optional; is helpful but not necessary for the class), it is an additional $9. Each class will include a 5-10 minute video by Francis Chan and discussion of the video and corresponding chapter in the book. If you are interested, let me know so we have an idea of how many books to order.

Attention Jr. & Sr. High Girls

Olya invites all Jr. & Sr. High girls over from 10 a.m.-noon on Saturday, October 2nd for a time of fellowship and getting to know each other. Let her know if you plan on attending or have any questions.

Video mentioned at Youth Group

Last night I mentioned a video illustration in connection with our lesson on Matthew 16:21-28 but didn’t have it set up for us to watch. If any of the students or parents are interested in viewing it, I’ve posted it on the youth website and the church’s Facebook page.

Youth Group
There will be no Youth Group this week due to the Labor Day weekend. Enjoy the time with your family. Our next meeting will be September 11th (at 6 PM).

Youth Conference
The Do Hard Things Tour, which encourages teens to not waste their youth on things that don’t matter, will be at Istrouma Baptist Church on Saturday, October 15th. The cost is $30/person ($27 if we have 10 or more people sign up), and at least one parent is encouraged to attend with their teen. You can find more information about the conference and speakers at www.therebelution.com/conference. If you plan on attending, please let Noah Lang know, along with the total number from your family (teens + parents) by September 15th.

Youth Website
Parents, don’t forget you can download each week’s Youth Group lesson at http://516youth.org to stay up-to-date with what we’re discussing or to initiate conversations with your children at home.