Youth Group started up again Sept. 19th

So, we hear it's been a very active summer for everyone. Some of you spent your summers involved with, or going to camps, others have been on trips and some of you guys will have made the big jump to high school. We can't wait to see you all agin so we can get caught up on what you've been up to since June!

Friday, September 19th is the day we kick-off MBCYG 2014/15! Please remember to print out, complete and have your parent/guardian sign the permission form - it's mandatory for participation in youth group at MBC. Please bring it on the first night.

Parents are invited to stick around on the first night if they'd like to know what we plan for the year.

Program As in other years our door open at 7pm although the program actually starts at 7:30pm. We have some really fun stuff planned for the year including gym nights, activities at the chapel, outings to other churches, off-site events (like bowling) and Winter Weekend.

Keepin' Up Keep an eye on the calendar for the year to see what's going on, especially gym nights so you know when to bring shoes and stuff. The events page provides more detailed information of events; venue, any costs, etc.

Theme / t-shirts We plan to unveil our theme and t-shirts at the end of September. T-shirts will be available for $20.

Lock-in Prep

Did the shopping for snacks and lock-in last night (R & C introduced me to COSTCO). I'm already hungry!

Gonna be loads of fun. There will be a movie.

Need input.

a) anyone else want to bring a Wii or PS? No CoD or violent games :)

b) board games?

Go to Contact page and e-mail Steve

Encouraged by seeing our youth serve

Yesterday during a visit to the last night of AWANA I came across some familiar faces from Youth Group and was reminded that there are some teens in our group that have been quietly serving in that ministry for a number of years. It was really nice to see Michelle, Emily, Nicole, Ashley, Jeff, Kyle, Isaac, Eleanor and Elizabeth fully engaged and being recognized by the AWANA leadership for their contributions.

Some are in their first year(s) of service while others like Mark, Joseph and Ryan (the Network) have quite a few more years under their belts.

I know that our service here is for Him, but just wanted to say how much it is appreciated when we see young people stepping up and becoming involved. It encourages the rest of the assembly when we see you giving of your time to serve.

(Steve)

The hidden value of going to a conference

Why go to a conference anyway?

It's just another word for all-day-church-service-in-a-school, right?

We can attend because there are back to back messages, we can go because we're looking to be challenged, we can show up simply because it's expected of us or because our family drags us there...

Every year as I sit in an auditorium much larger than my own assembly's space and participate in the singing and listen to the messages, another thing strikes me and has for years.

I AM NOT ALONE IN THIS CHRISTIAN LIFE!

That's a hidden value.

(Steve)

Youth Group brings joy to Bethany residents

Last night our youth Group sung a beautiful selection of songs for the residents of Bethany. Serena did a great job on the piano.  

With Easter right around the corner it was really nice to be able to take the wonderful story of Jesus' resurrection to Bethany in song and word. The reminder of the pivotal importance of that miraculous fact to our faith brought smiles to the faces of many in the audience.

It may seem like a small thing, but it should be a real encouragement to us that a group of teenagers can totally brighten the evening of the folks there and is appreciated more than we may ever know!

The fact the 29 of you came out says a lot for the quality of the kids in our Youth Group.

You also brightened the faces of the leaders last night! Perhaps we don't tell you enough but we really love you guys. You all did a fantastic job and made us extremely proud! 

Charades!!!

The first story for the guys was Jonah and they totally nailed it. Seems some of them were listening to Brian at the Winter Weekend!

Round 2 went to the guys too.

Got to get the CD Set

Jon is mentioning the similarities between idolatry and adultery. One is putting something before God, the other putting someone before your relationship (spouse). A replacement for where our affection should be focused.

This session is being broken into two different conversations, one aimed at the guys, the other to the girls on the audience.

The speaker is now mentioning lust of the eyes -- interesting perspectives, bringing the young women in the audience into the loop of how guys think. "Guys by their Eyes".

"Girls by the Heart". Talking about girls and young women having a need to feel accepted and loved and how that can often be misguided. Great reminder of "accepted in Christ"!!

These topics are so relevant to Christian youth everywhere.

Really wish this stuff was talked about when I was in Youth Group.

Great Seminar Topics Announced

'Sacrificial Surrender', 'Consequences of Sin in the Life of a Believer and the Unbeliever', 'Running/Living a Life for God'. Should be really good. The topics are on target for this audience of 100.

There's a definite build-up to the main topic of the conference: The Pure Bride.

The correlation between human relationships and the fact that Christians are part of the bride of Christ is very interesting to spend some time thinking about.

Sword Drill!

In our continuing live blogging experiment, here's a quick update.

One of our own was recognised for his birthday by everyone.

Also, we held our own in the sword drill.

Be prepared for more fun as the weekend continues, especially thoughts and notes on the messages.

PS. I erred in my last post. The theme is the Pure Bride.

Scottlea Youth Conference night 1

The first night was really amazing. The theme for the conference is the True Bride. The speaker, Jon Benson, is a friend and it was great to hear him. He introduced us to the biblical definition of marriage. It was great.

We will try to keep the updates coming over the weekend. Now, it's time for snacks and then sleep.

Gym nights

Gym nights are so much fun. The games are crazy, the noise level is crazy and it totally makes my week.

They're the perfect nights to bring a friend. Just remember to bring the right shoes.

Something to be thankful for

As I woke this morning I started to think of the things that I'm thankful for and a group of really special teens came immediately to my mind. I speak for the other leaders when I say that we love each of you. Each Friday night you make a decision and the fact that you choose to be at Youth Group is both exciting and humbling, but most of all is something the leaders are extremely thankful for. We realize we're not the only gig happenening on Fridays and that makes your choice to be among friends in an environment where you will be in contact with the Word of God awesome!

We are devoted to making your Friday evenings fun and to bringing you lessons that will encourage and teach you that Christians should be happy about the fact that we're "not from around here"! We hope that if you're attending YG and aren't yet in a relationship with Jesus Christ that this year's theme will make you want to know how you can be.

This Thankgiving know that each of you are on your YG leader's list of people who we are thankful for!

(Steve) 

Great meeting parents last night

Thanks to those parents who came out the the opening night. We really appreciate the support.

If you have any questions about the lessons/devos we invite you to speak with Ryan or Steve. Catherine is the logistics/planning coordinator of our team so, while you can talk to any of us, she's the best person to get you the info you need.

Please remember that we need a Permission Form for your teen(s) signed before they can leave the property and participate in events. Next week is our first gym night so we need the form asap.

We'd love your teen to have a MBCYG t-shirt this year. Your teen can see Catherine with their $10.

As mentioned last night, we have a very limited supply of TobyMac tickets left for the concert on October 7th. Tickets are $30 each. Please see Catherine. We need to know asap if your teen(s) is joining us - a minimum $15 deposit next Friday will reserve their ticket(s).

One last thing. We love having a group of younger kids join us this year and speaking from experience would encourage you to pick them up at 10:15pm. We want them to come but they may feel less inclined if late Friday nights are a drain on their systems! :)

 Thanks again for entrusting your teen(s) to us - we do not take our responsibility to you and them lightly.

Going to miss grade 12s who are moving on

While playing RISK® the other night I started thinking about the grade 12s who are moving on to The Network. I was actually quite sad.

Joe has really become a great guy. There are lots of memories that come to mind when I think about him at Youth Group. I will always remember him for being a very rules-oriented kind of guy. At gym nights (or during any activity) he always wanted to know the details of every rule. We quickly learned, though, that this was so that he'd be able to find loop holes, or shall we call them 'work arounds', so that he could dominate the game/activity! Joe is slightly competitive! Then there was his ability to run like a gazelle/wind mill - not sure which describes his style best. But what really stands out is his absolute domination of RISK® at Winter Weekend(s).

We're going to miss Joe.

Ryan also has really become a cool guy. When he first came to Youth Group he really fell in love with policing the iBoxes. He'd be quick to let us know about any infractions, unless his brother was carrying his iPhone. And then there was the Calendar. Forget a date or misspell a word and he'd never let it go! He got better about that though. His brother never returned from Winter Weekend with a cold. He couldn't. Not with Ryan's constant reminders to, "get your touque Kyle...where's your sweater Kyle?"

We're going to feel Ryan's absense.

The Network is gaining two really good guys. Our loss is Network's gain.

We hope that these two guys go on to become men of integrity for God and that Youth Group has played a role in that.

(Steve)

Rides to and from Events

If you're a parent of a Youth Group participant or a member of Markham Bible Chapel and would be willing to help out with rides to and from outings, we'd really love to hear from you! Please email Catherine.

Snacks

Youth Group kids love to eat -- in fact, it's something we do each night!

Ask your parent/guardian if they'de like to take care of snack some night. We'd really appreciate it!

Have them email Catherine.

YG 2011-2012

At the end of July each year when we sit down to discuss the upcoming year we get really excited about returning to Youth Group after having the summer off. We've all had really busy summer months some of us have worked throughout, gone to camp, worked at camp, etc. and it's time for a change of pace, right?

Back to Youth Group on Friday nights starting September 23rd!

We're super excited about our theme this year which is "I'm Not From Around Here" which simply means that a lot of the stuff we talk about at Youth Group may sound really foreign (strange) to some people because it's stuff that really sets Christians apart.

Christians shouldn't be ashamed or intimidated because we think differently on topics like principles, standards, morals, ethics, values or issues like dating, parents, how we should act in relationships and interact with God...

Christains are and should be different - after all, we're not from around here! 

This year, we'll be exploring what it means to live unahamed lives at school, in our neighbourhoods, in our jobs and with family.