20:20 & Fusion

Just got back from a weeks camping at the Kings Hall which could be described in 3 words - wet, tiring and wet! Yes the weather was pretty miserable at times but our guys are a lot of fun and no-one really let the rain get them down. We had to move our tents on Tuesday which seemed like a chore at the time but we got the opportunity to move them indoors which meant all our gear was dry for the rest of the week which was a blessing!

All in all the whole experience was fantastic! The theme this year was SBSUSM07 - 'Stand By, Stand Up, Summer Madness 07'. The challenge being posed throughout was whether we were going to be people who 'stand by' and be a spectator or 'STAND UP' for God and what He is calling each of us to do. The key speakers this year were Bart Campolo and Pete Greig. Bart works in an inner city neighbourhood of Philadelphia with the Walnut Hills Fellowship:

The Walnut Hills Fellowship is just a small group of inner-city neighbors learning to love each other and the rest of the world according to the teachings of Jesus.

Organized in January of 2007, our primary program is a large weekly dinner party which provides both physical nourishment and spiritual encouragement to a growing assortment of neighborhood families and individuals.

Future plans include local service projects, life skills training, academic support, personal counseling, group-building exercises, field trips, and other activities which will improve the lives of those families and individuals and help us grow together into a genuine faith community.

Pete is the founder of the 24-7 prayer movement that has swept across the world in the last 8 years:

24-7 Prayer exists to transform the world through movements and communities of Christ-centred, Mission-minded Prayer.

Bart and Pete both love Jesus and shared practical teaching on how we can all live that love out and affect the communities we are a part of.

This teaching was a great lead in to Streetreach as 2000 young people were scattered in teams around 31 locations around Belfast. Our group of 30 young people were sent to the Willowfield area of inner east Belfast. During the 4 days there we were involved in running a Kids Club, street clean-ups, gardening, visiting the elderly and detached youth work.

This was the first experience of practical mission for most of our young people and they were amazing as they carried on loving and serving people through tiredness and rain even when they didn't feel like it!

Streetreach finished on Saturday when all 2000 people gathered at the City Hall and marched 3.5 miles to the Kings Hall - this was an amazing experience and a privilege to be a part of. In a country where 'marches' have been such a devisive issue it was wonderful to be part of a march declaring God's love for EVERYONE. Of course it was no surprise that the rain came on for a while during the march but when the rain stopped there was a beautiful rainbow across Belfast (you can see it in the picture to the left) to remind us all of God's love and His promises.

So that's it over for another year, or is it? The challenge for us all really is that Streetreach is never meant to be 4 days per year but a lifestyle of showing God's love to others that we seek to live out EVERY DAY in the communities in which we live - with our families, friends, schools, jobs, neighbours etc.

So what are you going to do? STAND BY, or STAND UP?

Birthday greetings go out today to the one and only Beau of the Ball...

Last night was the Annual Posh Dinner for Fusion & 20:20 held in Edenmore. We had 60 people in attendence with a great mix of both age groups and leaders. Everyone looked fantastically well as I'm sure you will agree from the photos, and I think everyone had a great night.

After the meal the leaders gave out awards to various young people for a variety of things. There was a Beau & Belle for Fusion & 20:20 voted for on the night by the young people. This year these were awarded to Simon Hutchinson and Natasha Moffett (Fusion) and Callum McCandless and Rhea Lyttle (20:20). Other funny awards including 'leader obsession awards' and 'we talk too much but don't know it awards' (have a guess at who won these!) were also given out as well as some awards for leaders.

A great night was topped off by live music provided by Kris, Jamie and Tom and it was good to see everyone showing off their moves on the dance floor!

So that's the end of Fusion & 20:20 for this academic year which is very sad but we look forward to picking the programmes up again in September!

Next Friday we will be heading up to the Kings Hall for Summer Madness & Streetreach! This year we have 50 young people attending Summer Madness and 35 are staying on for Streetreach! Last year there were 3 from the 20:20 age group who did Streetreach and it had an amazing impact on their lives and faith so I'm very excited to have so many doing the programme this year because the impact on them will be awesome!

So apart from the logistical nightmare involved in being responsible for 35-50 young people for 9 days with little sleep and poor hygiene, I am extremely excited about the next fortnight and very thankful to God for all he is doing in the lives of young people in our church.

Please pray for all of us - leaders and young people - over the Summer Madness & Streetreach experience.

All that remains to be said is to wish a

This Friday night is the last night for Fusion & 20:20 this academic year. Don't forget 20:20 are splitting into boys (meet in Youth mobile at 8.45pm) and girls (meet at Rigmarole upper room at 8.30pm) for the first half of the evening. We will come together for worship and some food at 10pm. Please try and make it as it should be a special night!

Also don't forget about the Posh Dinner for Fusion and 20:20 at Edenmore on Friday 22nd June. There are still about 15 tickets left so bring your money this Friday night to secure your place! If you haven't paid the full ticket amount yet then please do that this Friday too!

Finally i just want to draw your attention to the new website for Waringstown Presbyterian that was launched last week. Click on the logo to the left to access the site and check it out!

See you all on Friday night!
Neil

I think after Christ, my biggest passion is travelling and thankfully Ive been able to do plenty of that over the years. On Saturday night my friend and I were sitting looking up at the Eiffel Tower (as you do on a Saturday night) and surrounded my thousands of people from all over the world who had clearly travelled to see this sight. She turned to me and asked 'What do you think?'. The typical response would have been 'this is class' but yes even though I tought the Tower was big, it was well constructed, it looked amazing at night when it lit up and sparkled, I wasn't WOWed!

You can argue but I believe that being WOWed is when your heart skips a beat, when you think 'is this real?' and then realise it is, when all around is blaaahhh and all of a sudden out of no where God blesses you.

God WOW's me through His people and His world. I've realised as I've travelled that God chooses to speak to me through the folk I meet and the natural beauty I've seen in mountains and sunsets.I dont have to travel to the other side of the world for this to happen! I hear kids in my class talk about God and I sit back, smile and think 'wow, thank you God for letting me hear that today', I lived with a lady who was blind and going through chemo for the 4th time and never once did I hear her complain and I always thought 'wow, God you blessed me by putting me in her family', I stand in the middle of you guys at 2020 during worship and think 'wow, God these kids love you', and I get texts, notes and emails from you girls and again think 'wow, thats exactly what I needed to hear right now, thank you God.'

One of the most memorable times in my life when God WOWed me was the Winter Retreat. I was WOWed by your attitude, your maturity, your fun, your openness, your faith and your witness. You guys blow me away, and God has such BIG plans for every single one of you. God WOW's each one of us differently, in His own wee way!

How does God WOW you?

Ok folks, I've just made a similar post in my own blog but i felt it was appropriate enough to post here too! I have just finished reading 'Sex God' by Rob Bell wich according to the subtitle 'explores the endless connections between sexuality and spirituality'. It's an excellent read with Rob Bell's unique and creative style of writing, and ability to draw so much context and depth from Scripture.

One thing he writes about is singleness which resonated a lot with a conversation i had recently with a friend. Have you ever been chatting with someone who you maybe haven't seen in a while and they say to you 'well any girlfriends?' (or boyfriends, if that's your preference!). I have no problem with that question, and more often than not over the last 5 years my answer is 'No'! It's what sometimes happens next that i find frustrating. Their facial expression will change and their head will tilt a little to the side and they will say something like 'Ach well, sure it'll happen sometime!' Words of pity, as if my life is in some way incomplete or unfulfilled - it kinda makes me mad!

Rob Bell talks about this:

'It's possible for destructive messages to be sent to people who are single. That they are second class, less than, that they don't fit, that they should find someone, get married, and join the rest of us who are "normal."

If you are single, and you've been sent messages or it's been hinted at or even said to your face that you are somehow missing something, that you aren't good enough, that you don't fit in - that is not true. It's not just that you're fine single. The premise of the Scriptures is that you are able to connect with God and serve God in ways that those who are married can't. The tilt is for being single, not away from it.'

I meet people and their life revolves around finding a man/woman. They feel incomplete and believe their life will only really begin when they meet someone and get married. The sad thing is that God has a plan for their life NOW and they are completely missing out on it. I'm not saying relationships are wrong, on the contrary i think relationships are good, but being single is good too. I can't accept the view that one status is better than the other, they are just different. What do you think???

By the way, Rob Bell is speaking at Spires Conference Centre in Belfast on 12th June as part of his 'Calling all Peacemakers' tour. Click here for further info. Note that tickets can be purchased from Wesley Owen bookstore without having to pay the online £2 booking fee.

Birthday greetings for today go out to:

This is also a good opportunity to send greetings to:
whose Birthday is tomorrow!!!

Hope you both have great Birthdays!

Don't forget Fusion and 20:20 are as normal this week in the youth mobile. See ya there!