Summer Intern Program

We are now announcing our first ever Summer Intern Program for Jr High Students! We are first offering this to our students in leadership and then opening up to all of our students as space allows; we only have enough space for 30 students. This is an opportunity for Jr High Students to connect with AMPED in a way never before possible. We will have times with other pastors here at Gateway, students will have valuable input for the services and our programs in the fall, and get hands on training in areas like media and creative arts. Kam, Brittney and I will be leading it on Wednesdays and Thursdays for 6 weeks this summer starting in July. The students will gather here at the Gateway Church offices starting at 10 am and go until 3 pm. They will need to bring a sack lunch unless we have a special day that we will announce to you beforehand. Each day will be different because of the different ministries the students will be exposed to. If you are interested or have any other questions, please email amped@gatewaypeople.com by June 25th.

Feb Meeting

Hey Guys, just a note to remind you about our next meeting at the McCall's house. It is Wednesday night, Feb 13th at 7:00 pm. remember to bring your Bibles and something to write with. I really enjoyed our last meeting and can't wait to see you all again. Remember that as you study God's word and are in prayer for AMPED, to let God challenge you to get out of your comfort zone and do something great for Him. That might mean befriending someone at AMPED that you don't know, offering to pray for a friend, or sending a note to someone you really appreciate. Whatever it is, let's focus this week on what it truly means to be a servant, and what Jesus meant in Matthew 20:28, when He said He "came here not to be served but to serve others". Read the whole passage there (Matt 20:20-28) and see what he was talking about with this serving thing. I pray you have a blessed week and will see you next Wednesday!

A Few Words for the Week.

Hey Everybody,
I hope you all had an amazing weekend at PLUG-IN 08! I know I had a blast with the 9 guys who were in my house. I find it slightly humorous that 18 6th graders, Matt Nelson and myself all think so much alike....scary.
I told you I would post on some thoughts I have after PLUG-IN, and here I am, true to my word. Last week I mentioned an amazing story in the Bible. In John 13:1-17, Jesus does something that is a little surprising to His disciples. At this point lets drop the disciples part, because I think that we get a little hung up on that word. Let's call them Jesus' friends. These were the guys that Jesus decided to spend a huge chunk of his ministry with. These were the guys He hung out with all the time. Jesus knew this was his last night He would get to spend with His friends. At one point in the evening, Jesus gets down and begins to wash these guys' feet. In these days people wore sandals and they walked around on dusty gravel roads all day. It's not hard to imagine that feet back then were really dirty and gross. As you can imagine, 2000 years ago the position of foot washer was not the most prestigious position. In fact, The servant who washed feet was the lowest of the lowest servants.
Jesus got down and washed His friends dirty feet. There is obviously some humor to be found in this story when Peter says “Jesus, you don't have to wash my feet” and Jesus looks at Peter and says “Unless I wash you, you won’t belong to me.” So Peter says, “Bring it on Lord, I want all of you!” As funny as I think that part is, Jesus was being totally authentic with Peter. He was saying this was something He had to do for His friends, and further on leaves His standard for the 12 men with Him.
Have you ever had someone tell you to do something that they wouldn't do in a million years? Well if Jesus had told these guys to go and serve other people, they would have looked at him like He was crazy. By getting down and doing what He taught, Jesus set an example of rightness. He was authentic in all he said and did. He practiced what He taught.

What can you take away from Jesus' example?

On a that note,I know I keep sharing stuff I get in the email, but I really want to share this with you guys because it is something that has been on my heart for people today. My dad sent me this story, and it went right on with the things I was talking with my guys about during Plug In.

A group of alumni, all highly established in their respective careers, got together for a visit with their old university professor.
The conversation soon turned to complaints about the endless stress of work and life in general...Offering his guests coffee, the professor went into the kitchen and soon returned with a large pot of coffee and an eclectic assortment of cups: porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal - some plain, some expensive, some quite exquisite. Quietly he told them to help themselves to some fresh coffee . . . When each of his former students had a cup of coffee in hand, the old professor quietly cleared his throat and began to patiently address the small gathering . . .
''You may have noticed that all of the nicer looking cups were taken up first, leaving behind the plainer and cheaper ones. While it is only natural for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is actually the source of much of your stress-related problems . . .
''Be assured that the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee. In fact, the cup merely disguises or dresses up what we drink. What each of you really wanted was coffee, not a cup, but you instinctively went for the best cups...then you began eyeing each other's cups . . .
'Now consider this: Life is coffee. Jobs, money, and position in society are merely cups. They are just tools to shape and contain life, and the type of cup we have does not truly define nor change the quality of the Life we live . . .
''Often, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee that God has provided us... God brews the coffee, but he does not supply the cups. Enjoy your coffee!''
The happiest people don't have the best of everything, they just make the best of everything they have...
So please remember: Live simply. Love generously. Care Deeply. Speak Kindly. Leave the Rest to God.

I've noticed how quick we as people are to try and get things. I know when I was younger I always wanted to sit in the front seat or I wanted to be Player 1 when playing Super Nintendo, or I wanted whatever it was that I considered the best. As I got older I started to realize that when I didn't get my way I was upset and angry, and that just wasn't how God wanted me to be. I started to gain greater understanding of a verse that we hear so often, but scoff at because we don't like it's meaning. We can discuss more about it, but this week be thinking about the following verses. Obviously it's important because Jesus said this stuff more than once in more than one way. Once Jesus said it in a parable, and the other time He just said it.

Matthew 20:1-16

Mark 9:33-35

I was thinking on a chilly Wednesday Evening....

I hope you guys and girlies are having a great week! I've gotten to spend some quality time with the Lord this week. I encourage you guys to spend some time with God this week before Plug In. We talk about preparing your heart, but sometimes we don't do a good job of telling you what that means. Really, just spend some time in prayer this week. We expect God to do things. I spend time by asking God what He wants to speak to me. I ask that His Spirit would come and truly impact us. If God isn't going to be there, then we have no real reason to do an event. I'm going to come prepared for God to speak to me and speak specific things for specific people. So spend some time this week praying and worshiping. Put on some good worship music, read a bit from the Bible, and ask the Holy Spirit to speak to you. Ask Him to guide you and to give you specific things to pray about it. Then take some time and wait on Him. Isaiah 40:31 has become a verse that has really defined my life lately. The verse says:
But those who wait on the LORD
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.
God has been taking me to a place where he desires me to really sit and wait on Him. I get in my room, shut the door and just ask Him to come. I ask for his presence, glory, and peace to surround me. As I have spent more time doing this I am slowly seeing huge progress. I am thinking about myself less, and thinking on God and others more. It's an awesome experience. I encourage you all to take some time every day and invite the presence of the Lord into your world. It can be seven minutes or seven hours, but the more you do it, the easier it will get.

I have been thinking about something to share with you guys this week, and suddenly an email popped into my inbox from one of the best college professors I have ever had. It meant a lot coming from her because she has been a huge influence in my life. She was someone that I totally look up to and respect. The coolest thing about her was she was real with her students. She understood that stuff happens. She was honest with us about her life. She had a million things happen at the beginning of her time in Texas, and we worked with her and she worked with us. It was awesome. Anyway, she sent this to me today, and I thought I would share it with all of you.

1. Name the five wealthiest people in the world.
2. Name the last five Heisman trophy winners.
3. Name the last five winners of the Miss America.
4. Name ten people who have won the Nobel or Pulitzer Prize.
5. Name the last half dozen Academy Award winners for best actor and actress.
6. Name the last decade's worth of World Series winners.

How did you do? The point is, none of us remember the headliners of yesterday. These are no second-rate achievers. They are the best in their fields. But the applause dies. Awards tarnish. Achievements are forgotten. Accolades and certificates are buried with their owners . Here's another quiz. See how you do on this one:
1. List a few teachers who aided your journey through school.
2. Name three friends who have helped you through a difficult time.
3. Name five people who have taught you something worthwhile.
4. Think of a few people who have made you feel appreciated and special.
5. Think of five people you enjoy spending time with.

Easier? The lesson: The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with the most credentials, the most money, or the most awards. They are the ones that care.

Here's my question to you. Which list would you rather be on? I spent most of Middle School and my first two years of High School pushing toward being like the people on the first list. But then one day I realized that in my quest to be a state champion swimmer and part of the top marching band in the state, I was neglecting people who were important to me. I want to be on the second list. I want to influence people and I want to be real and authentic. How do you want to be remembered? Do you want to be remembered(or forgotten) as the Quarterback who won the Superbowl 18 years ago, or do you want to be remembered as someone who made another person or many people's lives better? I want to be remembered as the guy who went out of his way to make people better. I want to be the guy who quietly stepped forward to do the things no one else wanted to do because they needed to be done.

In John 13, Jesus shows some examples of being authentic with his disciples. Take some time this week and read John 13. Think about some ways Jesus was authentic here. I'll post some thoughts on this after Plug In.

-Chris

February

Just so you can be in the know, our next time to meet at the McCall's house is Wednesday, February 13 at 7 pm. See you there!

Thursday Morning

Hey Guys, I just want to say thank you to all that were able to come. I'm really excited about this year and really hope you guys look to this blog regularly to stay up with what we are doing.

One thought I want to add to last night, when we were ending I challenged you to think about being authentic with God. Let me show you a few places in the Bible where David was authentic with God.

Ps 6:6-7
6 I am worn out from sobbing.Every night tears drench my bed;my pillow is wet from weeping. 7 My vision is blurred by grief;my eyes are worn out because of all my enemies. NLT

Ps 10:1
O LORD, why do you stand so far away?Why do you hide when I need you the most? NLT

You see, God wants all of us to be able to talk to him as if he were our friend sitting right next to us, through the good and the bad. Likewise, be sure to let Him know how you feel about a good day or some good news you just received. Remember, all good things are from the Lord (Psalm 16:2).

Let me challenge you this week to search the scriptures for people that were authentic with each other and with the Lord. Have a great week and I'll see you Sunday! BTW, you can leave a comment for me and Chris here at the blog, just click on the link below.

Some Thoughts on Authenticity

Hey peeps,
Keith and I had a great time with you guys tonight. We are both really excited about how things went, and we are totally looking forward to what this semester is going to bring with our small group! We had some awesome discussion tonight. This blog is going to be a place where we can recap on what we talked about as well as adding in some more thoughts from Keith and myself. Check back weekly and you'll get updates, Bible verses to memorize, and thoughts that will help you prepare and get thinking about our next meeting. You know more than you think you do, and we want to bring these awesome thoughts inside your cute little heads out!

Tonight, as most of you know, we talked about being authentic and how to live an authentic lifestyle. The major takeaways we wanted you to get(And hopefully you wrote down) were
1. Authentic people lead
2. Authentic people influence
3. Authentic people are trustworthy

I know that I hear people all the time saying things like "I hate fake people." Or more often "I hate posers." How can you be authentic? How can I live my life in an authentic way? I think Paul says some interesting things about being authentic in the book of 1st Timothy. In 1^st Timothy 4:12-14, Paul tells Timothy how to be a strong leader: " set an example... in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity. 13Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. 14Do not neglect your gift..." Paul says to be an example. To live your life as someone who others will want to follow, but also to be real with people. Just live your life being who you are, but also in setting a standard to do well. Use your gifts and help others.

You may think "Chris, I don't have any gifts." or "The gifts I have don't help people be better." I tell you that you're wrong. Everyone has the ability to be authentic. All it takes is a smile or a conversation, or holding the door for someone. And I want to tell you that just because you are young, don't discount your ability! Let's quickly look at what Paul said at the beginning of the verse I just wrote about:
"Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity."

You have the power. All you have to do is take it. Be real with people. Be authentic. Try it out this week and see what happens.

Be sure and memorize this verse, it goes really well with what we have been talking about:
Philippians 4:8(The Message)
Summing it all up, friends, I'd say you'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse.
-Chris