Ignite was awesome last night! It was the last night for our 8th graders, as they will be rising up into FUSE. We did not focus a lot on them leaving because it is not a sad thing. I am excited that they are moving on because it represents the growing process. They need to continue to move on and grow into the person that God made them. They need to experience new things and learn new things…that is exactly what they will do in FUSE. They will have the opportunity to grow in some awesome ways within our high school ministry and that is AWESOME!
Here is the breakdown from the night:
Topic: PLAY-IT – Scrabble: The Power of Words
Link to Main Graphic: 
Outline: James 3:1-12
My Words Will:
1. Hurt People – My words can be a like a fire…you can neither control them once it is set in motion nor reverse the damage done. I burned some paper on stage to illustrate the point and showed pics of a house burning and remains left.
2. Help People – We need to encourage one another and that can be done in many different ways (spoken and non-spoken: texting, email, note card, written letter, smile, hug, etc.). I used this time to encourage a couple of our 8th Graders. I called them out individually and told them some qualities/straights that I have been impressed by that I have seen in them. It was pretty cool!
3. Reflect My Heart – I explained the difference of a salt water spring (bitter tasting, burns on a wound) & a fresh water spring (quenches thirst, brings relief, cleans a wound). I also pulled out a mirror and told the students that mirrors give a true representation of what we look like. Not only does a mirror do that, but our words give a true reflection of our hearts.
I closed with challenging them to ask these three questions before saying something:
- Are my words true?
- Are my words necessary?
- Are my words kind?
Overall, it was a great night! Attendance was up, energy was high, band was great, students had fun, although pickup was a little quirky! I love hanging out with our middle schoolers!
IGNITE went really well lasy night! I was looking forward to last night in an unusual expectant sort of way. Yesterday was a busy day…we held our final Parent Meeting before our summer youth camp, The GAUNTLET. I left there and went directly to the 2Seven to prepare for IGNITE.
Band has some minor issues to overcome, but nothing major. I was impressed with the way Daniel Harper, our Student Ministry Worship leader, handled the adversity before the service. He was very calm and took it all in stride. Daniel, you did a great job tonight with handling and leading the band through that adversity. Keep up the great work! I look forward to all the many services we will have to work together in to prepare.
We did a decent job added some additional elements of a new game and a different way to do announcements.
The message was decent in length. We concluded our NEXT series, discussing the vision by ending with ENDURE and ENABLE. My main point was that “We all need each other to: live, survive, and thrive.” I discussed this from 1 Corinthians 12. Also used the statement: “You were created on purpose, with a purpose, and for a purpose.” The thesis of the message was that we need each other as a part of the body of Christ. Each part of the body has a specific role (a.k.a talent, passion, gifting) and we must use that for the body to function properly. When we do that is it beautiful and we can do so much more through Christ than we could ever imagine. To close, I used the illustration of me and my calling. I displayed my ability (or inability) to play the drums…then our drummer, Ryan Siders, came out and looked at me like I was crazy. Of course, the students were begging him to play and well…he is a whole lot better than me. I then picked up the guitar…tried to play and I told Ryan to follow my lead while I played and it was bad. Then Daniel came out and took over the guitar. They played together and is sounded awesome. I then closed by saying that if we stay in our giftedness, then we can do some awesome things for Jesus.
So…overall I thought that the night went really well. Something to improve on and continue to build.
Coming July 16-20…The Uprising. This is for all our rising 6th Graders here at NewSpring Church. The Uprising is a week of nightly activities that will give them a chance to dive into the IGNITE Middle School Ministry. Here is the schedule of events for the week:
We started this event last year, with a huge amount of success. We have high expectations this year. This proved to be a GREAT way for us to connect with rising 6th Graders and for them to connect with our leaders. Our leaders did an outstanding job getting to know the students and getting them excited about joining our ministry.
This Sunday is the day to signup. Registration cards will be available, so get one at the info kiosk or the 5th Grade room before you leave. Peace!
Last night was our last IGNITE service at the Fusebox at the Anderson Mall. We are moving to a new facility called The 2Seven. We also finished up our series called Prison Break. We spent the time discussing issues that keep us locked in prison and away from what God has called us to do. Shame, Guilt, Anger, and Jealousy were the main discussion topics, but last night we also threw in some others such as: pornography, cutting, suicidal thoughts, and cheating.
One of the highlights of the night, was when Andrew Sentell, Meagan Gregory, and Tiffany Sellers came out and sang an acoustic version of I Need You to Love Me by Barlow Girl. Take some time to go and read the lyrics to the song, even go to I-Tunes and buy the darn thing and listen to it.
The night was geared towards presenting the gospel in a clear understandable way. Well, the best part of the whole night was when we we had 5 students accept Christ as their Lord and Savior. It was awesome. We also had numerous students say they are tired of playing games and they want to take their relationship to the next level with Jesus.
After IGNITE, the volunteers all went to Chili’s for our First Sunday Meeting. I always love hanging out with our volunteer leaders. During this time we always hand out our Phenomenal Awards. These awards go to volunteers who have done something PHENOMENAL throughout the month.
Here are the Phenomenal Award Winners for this month:
- Meagan Gregory: Phenomenal Witness in the Workplace
- David Fisher: Phenomenal Ability to Plan and Execute a Small Group Activity
- Ali Henson: Phenomenal Ability to Assist and take care of our leaders and observers
- Sean Gaffney: Phenomenal Service In and Outside of IGNITE.
I think I got all those right but, if I didn’t they are really close!
Also tonight is stay-at-home date night. Deanna and I are ordering a pizza and renting a movie. We are having a time to just hang out together. I can’t wait to just chill with the most awesome woman in the world! Peace!
Topic: “PRISON BREAK: Shame & Guilt”
Student Attendance: Above Average
Volunteer Attendance: Above Average
Observer Attendance: Average
Message Length: 21 Minutes
Music: Above Average
We started a new series called PRISON BREAK. In this four week series, we are going to be exploring Shame & Guilt, Jealousy & Envy, Anger, and how Jesus sets us free.
Last night we discussed SHAME & GUILT. Lindsay Owens did the teaching and did an AMAZING job. She rocked out and slammed home the points. She had the students bought into the lesson and the response was amazing from the students. It was also great for our female students to see a female lead and teach everyone. I think that made a HUGE impact on our ladies!
This Sunday we are beginning a new series called PRISON BREAK. We are going to be exploring some topics that keep us behind bars and from the freedom that Christ gave us through His death.
Here is the breakdown of our new series:
- April 15th – SHAME & GUILT: Lindsay Owens will be teaching and it is going be awesome. I have seen the outline and she is going to rock it out!
- April 22th – JEALOUSY & ENVY: I am teaching.
- April 29th – ANGER: David Hall will be teaching this, he has some great ideas that we are going to creativity with this Thursday. Should be awesome!
- May 6th – CHAINS THAT HOLD US: I will be teaching again to close out the series.
The whole Ignite Staff really believes that God is going to move in this series. I cannot wait to see what God is going to do in the lives of students, when they realize that the shame, guilt, jealousy, and anger that they are holding onto is NOT the way God intended for them to live!
We finished the first of two or five Easter Services at NewSpring Church. I did not sit in on a service today, but look forward to doing so tomorrow. From what I heard though….the music was jamming and Perry was hitting it out of the park.
The most exciting part of the night was that I got to spend a lot of time in the Theater 2 Room, the room for our 3rd, 4th, and 5th Graders! All I have to say is that NewSpring Church’s Children’s Ministry Staff is rocking it out! Today, the IGNITE staff made a guest appearance in this room to introduce ourselves to the rising 6th Graders! We gave a way a bunch of t-shirts, stickers, and gift certificates to the students. They were jacked up!
We wanted to get in front of the 5th Graders EARLY before they move up to IGNITE. We truly desire for them to stay connected and involved in the Children’s Ministry right up to the point they move up to our ministry. This will not only help the Children’s Ministry, but help us as well, so that we can stay connected to the students in a more effective way, instead of a “Welcome Letter” from someone they have never met.
I look forward to having all of them join our ministry…but, I really need to thank Pudge and Howard for giving us the opportunity to come in there and get in front of the students. So many churches and their ministries are territorial. They compete for resources, staff, attention, and so much more, but we don’t have to worry about that at NewSpring. Pudge and I consider ourselves a team! We take time out of our busy schedules to talk strategy, to listen to each other’s frustrations, hang out, and just chill. I consider it a part of my job to help Pudge and his team succeed. If Pudge is not doing his job of training up the students and getting them excited about coming to IGNITE then I am…well…screwed! I need Pudge, just like he needs Cherie Duffey, Preschool Director and just like Brad Cooper, High School Pastor needs me. We all need each other, we all need to work together to make it happen!
I hope that your church functions this way. I hope your ministries can rely on each other to help each other, encourage each other, and support each other!
Yesterday was the First Sunday of April, that means we always go out to eat as a youth volunteer staff. We always eat at the Chili’s in Anderson They always give us great service, they never mind that we take up half the restaurant and create ALL the noise.
The awesome volunteers that were given a Phenomenal were:
- Dale Sellers: Phenomenal Ability and Dedication. Dale is ALWAYS there at IGNITE. He has been running our lights for a while and does a GREAT job. Dale has a PASTOR’S heart! He loves people and loves students. I am so thankful to have him apart of the IGNITE team!
- Keri Holder: Phenomenal Encouragement. Keri has the unbelievable gift of encouragement. She has encouraged so many of our leaders since she has joined the IGNITE team. **I get the awesome privilege to be able to officiate her wedding to Mr. Jonathan Unsworth on June 2, 2007! I am really excited about being a part of their special day!**
- Mike Smith: Phenomenal Husband, Dad, and Leader. Mike has been “that” guy in my life since coming to NewSpring. I will never forget sitting on his front porch along with his family and talking about ministry and them welcoming us to NewSpring. since that time our friendship has grown tremendously! I have the utmost respect for Mike, because he loves his family, his Lord, and his church.
- Ryan Sutherland: Phenomenal Creativity. Ryan is the reason for our MADE Videos that we did a couple of weeks back. He came up with the idea, took the pics for each shot, made the set, and then assisted in putting them in video form. I referenced all of the videos in a post back on March 5, 2007. Be sure to check them out here. Dude, you rock! Keep using your talents for Jesus!
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