Here are the necessary forms to have notarized for GA.
FBC Waiver (Also include copy of both sides of your medical insurance card)
Questions about these forms? Contact Jonathan or Rachel ASAP!
(Chase Bank Customers can get notary services for free at any bank location. Just FYI.)
Sorry for the lack of posting and updating folks – FBC Student Ministries will be moving to a new website over the next month. It will look cooler, work better, and have a whole different URL. We’ll let you all know when it’s up and running! Thank you for your patience!
HA! Who says deep spiritual movement and junior high don’t go together? We had Daniel Fiester and the band Rescue both back to lead our teaching and worship times again (they also led our high school winter retreat sessions), and something different was moving amongst the kids. (Or I should say someOne was moving and prompting amidst the kids.) Anyway, all that to say that it wasn’t just fun and games (though there were lots!), but that some of our kids dealt with deep sin and repentance issues, and some of the kids embraced brother or sister fellowship much more enthusiastically (and healthily), and each of the staff report having great one on ones and small groups with the kids, too. By the way… hopefully by now the bumps and bruises and black eyes from dodgeball and the tubing hill and random cabin accidents have all healed up – and I think if I could put my finger on the one thing missing this weekend – I’d say it was a buncha parents also serving as youthstaff on the retreat with us! (hint hint!) =D -Jonathan
Faith Defined
But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.
—Acts 16:25
The Bible defines faith this way: “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). Another translation puts it this way: “Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see” (nlt).
The very existence of our faith, despite our circumstances, is a proof of God. We have the title deed. God has given us this proof, this confident assurance. It is instilled in us by God himself. And that is a powerful witness to a lost world that doesn’t have faith.
We know from the stories of the early church how many of these courageous men and women, and sometimes even children, were martyred for their faith. Even as they were being executed, suffering horrible deaths, we read of them calling on the Lord and asking God to forgive the people who were doing this to them. And there are many accounts of their executioners coming to faith as a result of the Christians’ faith in God as they went into His presence.
The story of Paul and Silas, who sang praises to God at midnight after being beaten and thrown into prison, is another evidence of faith. It resulted in the conversion of their jailers. Theirs wasn’t a case of mind over matter. It was faith over circumstances. Paul and Silas didn’t have the guaranteed assurance they ever would get out of that prison. But they were able to see things in perspective and have faith in the bleakest of circumstances.
So what does it mean when we say we should have faith? It means that we are hoping. We are trusting in God. In what circumstances do you need to exercise faith today?
By: Greg Laurie
Found via: Harvest Daily Devotionals 3/15/10
Copyright © 2010 by Harvest Ministries. All rights reserved.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked nlt are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
Looking for information about our two summer missions/service opportunities? Click on the Forms Tab above for brochures on both of our weeks of service!
Call Jonathan and Rachel with any other questions!
Hey Parents! There is still time to sign up your Wave-r for the retreat next weekend!
February 19-21, depart Friday at 4pm, be back Sunday by around 4pm.
Jonathan and I are back in IL and back at our desks, with fond memories of a good retreat this past weekend. There was lots of game playing (Bang, SkipBo, chess with that friendly but strange chess-obsessed guy from a different church, Connect4, cards, etc), friendship bracelet-ing, learning from our speaker Daniel about spiritual disciplines from refreshingly new and different passages, listening to loud rock worship music, and telling Jacob to stop singing pop songs in a high pitched voice. Let’s not forget the injuries that occurred on the tubing hill (Sorry Esther and Ellie!) or time we played dodge ball with those crazies from Wheaton E-Free. Thanks for the great weekend!
Hey all! Here is a list of some important upcoming events:
Wednesday, December 9: Youth Group, 7-9pm
Sunday, December 13: Parent Dialogue Lunch, 12-2pm
Wednesday, December 16: Youth Christmas Party, 7-9pm (party still being planned…)
Saturday, December 19: WAVE Progressive Dinner (TBD if we can find enough hosts)
Wednesday, December 23 & 30: No Youth Group either of these nights!!!
Thursday, December 24: FBC Christmas Eve Service, 6pm
Saturday, December 26 – Friday, January 1: Jonathan gone to Urbana
Further out: Cause Winter Retreat, January 15-18. Retreat packets went out last week and early bird signups are due by January 1. Scholarships are available, talk to Jonathan for more information!
See our Curriculum Page for handouts and videos for Wednesday, December 2.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
All are welcome to join us for an all-church outdoor flag football game this Sunday, November 15 at 12:30pm. Meet in the foyer of the church to organize. Bring your best game and your loudest cheers and we will see you there!
