Christmas!

Hey all :-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkHNNPM7pJA

Think about it. Times haven't changed that much... except that the shepherds would hear about Jesus' birth through a tagged tweet or Tumblr link ;-)

On average, a baby is born every 3 seconds.... what made this one so special? Why do we still talk about him?
It wasn't his noble birth, (son of a carpenter,)
or his military might, (peaceful teacher,)
or his riches, (lived on the road with his followers,)
... but the healing and love he brought when he came to be in relationship with his people =)

Merry Christmas!
Blessings,Katie

PS: holiday schedule is Christmas Eve service next Friday from 6:30-8, a cookie-baking and carroling party TBA, and the New Year's all-nighter. Hope your break is going well! Feel free to chat or text me anytime if you need something - called2shepherd2@gmail.com

Fall kick-off!

This Friday!
6:30-10:30ish




FB event: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=153423574673074&index=1

(Last year's fall kick-off at the mall-->)

Schedule:


6:30 gather and break into groups at 9076 Hill St in Tigard.

7:00 groups head out to gather as many photo-scavenger hunt pics as possible.

8:00 meet at the mystery destination, (clues will be found along the way.)

8:30 back to Hill st to watch To Save A Life, eat, play games etc....

10:30 or 11:00/over when movie ends.



Let me know if you need a ride, (before-event rides will be just before 6:00 so that I can finish set-up and adult-chaperone meeting.)



What to Bring: comfy shoes, a jacket, a friend, and a phone/camera if you want to take some of the pics for the hunt! The more people that attend, the more fun the hunt/competition tends to be, so feel free to bring someone along!

Decisions

Have you been hiking before? With a map, compass and all of the things you need? You surely came across a cross section in the path and had to decide whether to turn left or right. It’s only a problem if you have taken the wrong turn. That means loss of time, detours and costs energy and at some point you might even ask yourself if you will ever reach the goal.

Life is similar. We arrive at points in life where we must decide on a path to take.Whether it is a decision in your job, for school, for a boyfriend or a girlfriend and lots more besides. You will notice that life is made up of lots and lots of decisions. Sometimes we ask ourselves afterwards why we made such a decision and then we realise years later that we were just wandering around without having any perspective.

Jesus wants to show us a way, we wants us to be able to separate the essential from the inessential so that we make it through life better. If we trust him, lots of things become easier. Try it out.

Proverbs 4:

"10 My child, listen to me and do as I say,and you will have a long, good life.

11 I will teach you wisdom’s waysand lead you in straight paths.

12 When you walk, you won’t be held back;when you run, you won’t stumble.

13 Take hold of my instructions; don’t let them go.Guard them, for they are the key to life."

Airplanes

I'm going to attempt to put out a weekly devo :-) wish me luck! lol


This week's is one I copied from Dare 2 Share soulfuel, but I'll write one of our own for next week....

-----------------------------------------------------



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kn6-c223DUU&feature=av2e





"Can we pretend that airplanes in the night sky are like shooting stars?


I could really use a wish right now (wish right now, wish right now)...


Yeah, I could use a dream or a genie or a wish


To go back to a place much simpler than this.


Cause after all the partyin' and smashin' and crashin'


And all the glitz and the glam and the fashion


And all the pandemonium and all the madness


There comes a time where you fade to the blackness...








I'm pretty sure that these words aren't new to you - right? B.O.B. (ft. Hayley Williams) Airplanes is a hugely popular award winning tune - but did you also know that it was written by a 22 year old college student from Cornell University named Tim Sommers? Oh and Eminem also threw in a verse - so we have this unlikely collaboration of Tim, Eminem, B.O.B., and Hayley that produced a smash hit that gets stuck in your head like the Barney theme song did when you were a kid.





Speaking of when you were a kid, do you ever wish you could go back? Airplanes is mainly about Tim or B.O.B or somebody wanting to go back to a time when things were pure, less complicated, and simpler - so for most of us that would be when we we're children, right? But now you're not. Friends have changed, life has drama and complications that you never saw coming when you were a child playing hide and seek or sardines in the neighborhood on a summer night. Maybe that's why Airplanes has connected so well with so many...we all could use a wish, and we all sometimes wish we could go back to being children.





And why not? When we were little children, we weren't loaded down with the burdens of worry, peer pressure, rejection, and performance expectations. We put all our trust in people who would love us, provide for us, and take care of us.





Guess what? I don't have to pretend that airplanes were shooting stars in the night sky that I could throw up a wish to, because when I start feeling the strain and stress, I remember this event from Jesus' life: One day children were brought to Jesus in the hope that he would lay hands on them and pray over them. The disciples shooed them off. But Jesus intervened: "Let the children alone, don't prevent them from coming to me. God's kingdom is made up of people like these (Matthew 19:13-15, The Message).





Interesting, isn't it? Jesus' disciples thought He was too important or too busy to waste His time with little kids, but in fact Jesus describes His followers as "people like these." What did He mean? Easy...when we trust in Jesus Christ as our only hope of salvation, we bring the faith of a child to God, then we become the children of God! Sure, I have the burdens of worry, peer pressure, rejection, and performance expectations...and when they creep into my soul and darken my life, God reminds me to go back to being His kid. He sits me down like a loving parent and fills my mind with these promises:





"See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are! (1 John 3:1).

Camping Trip!!! =)

Next Sunday at this time our group will be out at Champoeg State Park having a blast on our one-night camping trip!

Let me know ASAP if you plan to attend or have a friend that would like to attend so that I can plan for food/games etc :-) Cost is $10, which covers food and the site reservation.


Here are the packing list, parent letter, and permission slips in jpg form that you can print and bring. If the permission slip or parent letter are hard to read, see the previous post for text you can copy/paste into a Word doc.