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Welcome to the January edition of N.E.T.M.A. News where you’ll
never have to say, “Nobody Ever Tells Me Anything!”
From the Youth Pastor
Happy New Year! Welcome to 2010 and the completion of the first decade of the twenty-first century. Do you remember all the hype surrounding the year 2000 and trying to frantically get everything Y2K ready? I remember people in high places warning us that the world could possibly shut down and come to a screeching halt because the computers that ran important systems were not capable of recognizing the year code. I remember wondering what might happen at our home if the power went off for days because there was no way that we could afford a home generator that so many people were purchasing and having installed as a backup power source. I think back to the anticipation and the media coverage as the first part of the world began to experience the New Year and all eyes were on that area to see if everything was going to shut down. Can you imagine the chaos that would have ensued all over the globe if all of a sudden everything went black and fuzzy on the media coverage at the stroke of midnight in those parts of the world? Here we are ten years later.
Now consider all the changes that have taken place over the last ten years. The computer that I purchased at a “black Friday” sale in 1999 so that we would be Y2K ready in case the power did stay on, had a huge 36 megabyte hard drive. Now ten years later just think about the size of memory cards for digital cameras, and all of a sudden that computer wasn’t such a great buy. Remember when it was in vogue to have a Palm Pilot, how much people paid for that PDA, and when cell phones were actually phones? Now the cell phone is your PDA, it’s your home answering machine (remember those?), your camera, camcorder, family calendar, mini-cassette recorder, alarm clock, watch, portable computer to check email on the go, access the web to check how your stocks are doing and keep up with who just “tweeted” you when they sat down with a cup of coffee. Remember when you couldn’t wait to “get away” from the office?
I wonder what kind of changes this year, or even the next ten years, will bring. Better yet, I wonder how I will change over the next ten years. January 1 begins my fifteenth year as the Youth Minister at Bonsack, and when I consider the changes that have taken place in my life over the last fourteen years, in the life of this church, and in the lives of the teens who were in this ministry when I arrived, as well as in our community and in the areas of technology, I am amazed and I can’t even begin to fathom what all God has in store for the next decade in these areas. But I can tell you that I am grateful to be serving in this church with families like yours.
Thank You!
I was overwhelmed by the outpouring of love that you all showed to Debbie and me with your expressions of love at Christmas. We were blessed beyond measure by the gifts, gift cards and monetary gift that you all gave so generously to provide. These kinds of things always come at just the right time, and we look forward to using a couple of them to unwind following Scott and Caleigh’s wedding on January 2. Since I have no idea who all gave to this, please know that I am very thankful to each person who sent in money to go toward the purchase of these things.
5 Things You Should NEVER Say to Your Teen (taken from the January Living With Teenagers magazine):
1) You remind me of your…(uncle, grandfather, etc)
2) 2) We have invested so much in your… (education, piano lessons, sports, etc.)
3) 3) Every male/female in our family has…
4) 4) Your… (father, mother, grandfather, Pastor) will be disappointed…
5) 5) I know that God is leading you to…
True Love Waits for the Entire Family
Every other year we have a purity discipleship study for our teens during the month of February. This year we are expanding it to include a parent study. Beginning Sunday, February 14, Danny will lead Pure Parenting, from 5 to 6:15 p.m. for parents. This study is designed to aid parents in helping their teens with issues of purity. When you stop to think about it, society has made a god of sex and we, along with our teens, are bombarded with messages to worship at its altar. It is there that parents often feel like their cry to wait and remain pure is a lot like being the piccolo player in a marching band of trombones. As loud as culture may be at times, remember that it is the parent who is consistently the number one influence in a teenager’s life. So while teens may be surrounded by the blaring sounds of trombones, it is the piccolo that they desire to listen to. Make plans to come and participate in this study that will help to equip you on parenting for purity.
R U Cnnctng thru txtng?
Do you realize that more than 80 percent of high school students and 50 percent of middle school students are now carrying cell phones and spending exorbitant amounts of time using them? The average teen sends/receives 1,800 texts each month. As with most things, this can be good and it can be dangerous. Many teens who are left without appropriate boundaries in cell phone use and are losing sleep and hurting academically because of over use. But cell phones also give parents an immediate line into their teenager’s lives because of text messaging. As a youth minister, I need to tell you that for most older teens who have a full keypad shorthand, abbreviated texting is no longer the thing to do and they are laughing at adults who attempt it. Just an FYI to help you with your parent/teen relationship.
January Dates to Remember
***Please be aware that because of the New Year, there will be no regular youth activities during the evening on January 3 or 6.
02 – Scott and Caleigh’s Wedding – We obviously could not send out invitations to every family, especially since we didn’t personally pay for them or the postage. We would like you to know that all youth and their families are invited to attend the wedding at 2:00 p.m. on January 2 at Bonsack.
10 – Youth Choir & the Winter Bible Study – Youth Choir will resume from 5-6 p.m. Don’t forget that youth need to attend choir in order to go on the summer trip. We will also have a Winter Bible study for youth from 6-7 p.m. on Sunday evenings in the Power House. Youth will be focusing on four of Jesus’ parables from a modern perspective to help these parables come to life for them. Each night they will spend time watching a parable video, talking about the parable from a biblical perspective and then discussing how to apply it in their own life. Winter Bible study will take place on four consecutive Sunday evenings…weather permitting.
13 – Resume Regular Wednesday Schedule – After an extended winter break we will return to our normal schedule on Wednesday, January 13. Acteens and Baptist Young Men from 6:00 to 6:50 p.m. and Power Hour youth worship from 7 to 8 p.m. We are still looking for some adult leadership for our Baptist Young Men. If you would like more information on what that entails, please contact Danny ASAP.
17 – Superhero S.N.A.C. – We will be celebrating the end of exams with a winter Superhero S.N.A.C. following the Winter Bible study from 7:07 to 9:29 p.m. Youth are being encouraged to dress as their favorite Superhero or to make one up and come prepared to have some fun. Don’t forget that in order to attend the S.N.A.C., youth must first attend the evening Bible study. Put on your X-ray vision and “super sensitive” hearing for late breaking details.
29 – New Members’ Banquet Servers – Each year we have youth who volunteer to help serve our new members at the New Members’ banquet. There is a sign-up sheet in the Power House and youth who sign up to help will need to be available from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Youth who have joined the church this year do not need to sign up because they will be our guests. Contact Danny if you have any questions.
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