Category Archives: GCC

What I look for in Volunteer Leaders

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(Random photo that I found…wish I had some glasses like this.)

Yesterday I posted about types of leadership we have in GSM and today I just want to post the main thing I look for in volunteer leaders.

Here it is:

  • Do they love Jesus
  • Do they care about students (legitimately care)
  • Do they desire to connect students to Jesus

    • So because of that, I see my job in looking for volunteers as finding these leaders who love Jesus and care about students then connecting them to each other.

    The kicker I learned from watching Mark Beeson and Mark Waltz is finding leaders who can also love the students who don’t yet care about Jesus.  It’s easy to love students who love Jesus but it’s a whole different ballgame to love and care for students who could care less about Jesus.  They’re just showing up because there are cool game, cute girls, a crazy awesome band, some semi-funny speaker, or because it’s just the “thing to do”.

    We’re due up for some new leaders rolling through GSM

    GSM:U kicking off this weekend in GSM High School

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    We’re kicking off a new series in GSM High School this weekend called “GSM:U”.

    Do you know you?  Who are you?  How do you best communicate with others?  Are you introverted or extroverted?  How do you fit into your school, family, GSM, friend circle?  Do you ever clash with people because they’re just “different” than you?  Are we drawn to people who are like us or different than us?  Don’t opposites attract?  How do we accept those who are not like us?  Better yet, how do we love those who are not like us?  Shouldn’t everyone feel included?

    We believe the more you know who YOU are, the better you’ll fit into true community.  We’ll be tackling these questions in this next series at GSM!

    Come ready to have fun, engage, and learn a WHOLE LOT about yourself!

    Same time, same place, Granger Community Church, Granger Campus 6:30-8:30 p.m. Sunday Nights!

    I don't want your sex video

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    Here’s a goofy little video we made for GSM High School instead of doing song special for it.  We didn’t change any of the lyrics so it’s not a true parody…but it totally is a parody by definition, but not.  We played this right before the message.

    This is “I don’t want it” by DC Talk from like 1935…I mean  1992…I was 11.

    “I Don’t Want It” from Jeffrey Myers on Vimeo.

    10 reasons our Dating/Sex series worked

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    Just finished our dating/sex series at GSM High School last night and here’s a few tips that helped make the series a huge success for us.

    1. Do the series. Don’t dodge the topic. Simple.
    2. Do the series for the right reasons. Do the series because you love students enough to want them to know the truth about dating/sex.  Don’t do it just because you want attendance to jump, or to push buttons, or for the shock value.
    3. Be honest. If students sniff that you’re not being real with them, they’ll shut down and assume you don’t believe what you’re teaching.
    4. Don’t beat around the bush. Student gave lots of feedback that they were glad and it was “helpful” that we “went there“.  If you’re going to bring up the topic, give them something of substance. Truth: most of them already know more than you can ever appropriately share from the platform anyway.
    5. Get good research and a variety of resources to bring diversity to the platform. We can only share what we know, so the more we know the more we can share.
    6. Don’t give-in to “humor first”. It’s great to be funny (and you should be, students love it) but if that’s the #1 method for teaching this topic students leave only knowing your jokes, not the Truth that will really help them in this area.
    7. Encourage deeper conversation and processing in small groups. Students need a safe, Godly place to dialog about these things…they’re talking about them already so
    8. Awkwardness. I don’t really know how…but it helped, haha.  (Got lots of these comment, “like, oh my gosh, like, THAT, like, was the most awkward GSM ever, like, wow, but, like, it was, like, a-mazing!”)
    9. Push the envelope. Standard/normal is boring so find ways to change things up.
    10. Think like a high schooler and a shepherd.  Both matter.

    It's Official Wk 3 Video Message

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    We don’t post a lot of our messages for GSM but I was out of town at Simply Youth Ministry Conference this past week so I figured I’d post the message clips from this past week’s services.

    We’re in a Relationships series titled “It’s Official”.

    Week 1: Who are you yoked with

    Week 2: Slow Fade

    Week 3: Restoration

    Week 4: Let’s talk about Sex

    Flow: We broke up the message into 3 Parts and put a song special before the first video and after the second video, then rolled worship after the last video.

    Song Special: “Mess of Me” by Switchfoot

    Restoration Message – Part 1 from Jeffrey Myers on Vimeo.

    Restoration Message – Part 2 from Jeffrey Myers on Vimeo.

    Song Special: “Amazing Grace” – remixed/customized

    Restoration Message – Part 3 from Jeffrey Myers on Vimeo.

    (I took the 3 points in the last video from Doug Fields.)

    God's words were meant for application

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    While teaching this “It’s official” series in GSM, I’ve been thinking nonstop about the reality that God meant his words to be taken and used for application not merely consideration.

    “70% of his words were meant for application” – heard this earlier in the year.  Not sure if it’s completely accurate but it made a great point for me to remember.

    A few post-GSM thoughts

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    (Little photo I snagged during worship)

    Random thoughts I have about GSM today:

    1. Our students rock.
    2. The topic of dating and sex is such an emotionally driven topic to teach on and listen to.  Ask our students.
    3. Every time I said “do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers” tonight I felt the need to hand hold all the non-Christians in the room so they didn’t leave feeling like I as picking on them.
    4. A student needs prayer for a surgery happening next month.  (If you have a second say a prayer)
    5. Funny/not funny story from a student: One student told her younger sister to touch an iron because it wasn’t on…she lied, it was on. Can you say burned!
    6. Axe body spray and bacon together smell like…well lets just say they make me want to vomit!
    7. Our students are excited about us teaching some Apologetics in the fall…REALLY excited.
    8. John White’s a great add to our teaching team! He can bring it!
    9. So glad God can fully restore us when we make mistakes.
    10. I teach on the topic of sex/relationships knowing it might be/seem irrelevant for some students but I believe God gives us a good word from our friends every now and then.
    11. I’m hoping parents are having conversations with their students about these topics because we’re intentionally leaving gaps that they can fill in.
    12. Middle Schoolers are authentic AND passionate.
    13. We need the wisdom of God to help our students takes steps towards Christ…I’m grateful he lets us help.

    Blink Parenting Series Week 1 Notes

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    We kicked off our “Blink” Series here at Granger this weekend and I’m so excited because I need the wisdom.

    Getting ready to have our first child there’s a fun urgency that I feel about being prepared for when she gets here.  Brooke’s due May 16th and it’s FAST approaching.

    Here’s some of the things I jotted down from Pastor Beeson’s message:

    1. ~”How can a young man keep his way pure BY living according to your word” – Psalm 119:9
    2. ~Training your child in the way they should go requires ‘intentionality’  (Referencing Prov 22:6 “train a child in the way he should go and when he’s old he will not turn from it.”)
    3. ~All kids are different (sounds simple but why do we try to treat them all the same)
    4. ~It’s never too early or too late (Col 3:10-21) to start raising/helping your
    5. ~Kids will watch what you do & if it doesn’t line up with what you say, they will assume you don’t mean it.  This is why Jesus said in John 13:15, “I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.”)
    6. ~”Integrity” gives you “moral authority”.
    7. ~We need to set up the “rumble strips”/”guardrails” in our life so we don’t end up “over the edge” (of a cliff or damaging fall)…(Prov. 22:28 Do not move an ancient boundary stone set up by your forefathers.”)
    8. ~ It affects our lives and witnesses if we don’t have guardrails
    9. ~We can’t do this (raising our kids) ourselves, we need God and his wisdom to do this the right way. (James 1:5 “If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God…”)
    10. ~Just because wisdom is given doesn’t mean we get it.  We have to actually listen to the wisdom of God through His Word, His Church, His Followers, etc…SO THAT we can get what God is giving.

    Grateful for the wisdom of Pastor Beeson and thankful I can learn about this parenting thing from him.  You can catch the service online tonight at 6:30 or 8:30 p.m.

    'Land of Hopes and Dreams' by Bruce Springsteen rocked me

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    Don’t know much about this dude at all but man I was watching his concert on Palladia and these lyrics totally rocked me.  It might be because I just finished GSM and writing down some of my deep thoughts of what God was doing today, and I’m overwhelmed by emotion of watching God’s hand at work in the lives of our students.  But regardless why, God used this chorus to speak into my heart about what we’re doing.

    This is the chorus Bruce Springsteens song “Land of Hopes and Dreams“:

    This train
    Carries saints and sinners
    This train
    Carries losers and winners
    This Train
    Carries whores and gamblers
    This Train
    Carries lost souls
    This Train
    Dreams will not be thwarted
    This Train
    Faith will be rewarded
    This Train
    Hear the steel wheels singin’
    This Train
    Bells of freedom ringin’
    This Train
    Carries broken-hearted
    This Train
    Thieves and sweet souls departed
    This Train
    Carries fools and kings
    This Train
    All aboard

    If ‘the train‘ is GSM does it currently carry all of these people?  If not, are we at least making the train accesible for all who want/need to hop on board?

    ‘The train‘ analogy is actually fitting for GSM because WE’RE ROLLIN!  We’re on the move, we’re chasing the coat tails of Jesus, we’re full steam ahead towards the future God has for us…my concern as I listened to this song was how are we helping all God’s children God on-board this train?

    What type of on-ramps do we have?  Who’s holding the doors open? Who’s helping people find their seats?  Who’s clearing the isles? Who’s stepping off the train at every stop to invite people on-board?  Who’s checking in with people to make sure they’re having a good ride and that they’re clear on where we’re going?  And Who’s ultimately conducting?

    I think these are great questions for our GSM leadership to be thinking about and I hope someone finds these a helpful reminders for their ministry.

    NEW GSM Dating Series for High School coming this week!

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    I can’t wait for this series to start in GSM High School this week!  It’s about to rock somebody’s world!  It’s packed with all the stuff that makes the high school environment so awkward that you can cut th

    e tension with a knife.

    In a series like this, somebody always gets a foul or two called on em and that’s sometimes just what we need to get back on track.

    We’re about to cast some serious Jesus Vision and maybe call out some fouls (maybe flagrant fouls) in the Dating, Sex, relationship, courting, homosexuality, game of life.  It’ll be enlighten, helpful, to the point, yet safe!

    High School Parents be warned…

    These topics might come up for discussion in your home as we’re walking through them the next 4 weeks.  Over HERE on the parents blog we will put ALL the main points of each message we teach (THE SUNDAY NIGHT OF THE MESSAGE) so you know what we covered.  (I would do it now but it might ruin some of the surprise for the students, sorry.)

    ALSO PARENTS, DON’T FRET, WE’RE ROCKING THE BLINK SERIES (Click HERE for insight) FOR YOU ON OUR WEEKEND SERVICES COMING UP NEXT WEEK SO YOU MIGHT AS WELL CONSIDER THIS FAMILY MONTH AT GCC!!! We love you guys!