GSM

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3 Reasons Student Ministry will ALWAYS have a place in the local church

(GSM Worship)

I feel like I could write a book on this because there are so many more reasons (outside of these 3) that Student Ministry will always have a place. Just decided to pick 3 as they are on my mind as I'm doing final prep for some workshops I'm teaching down at National Youth Workers Convention this coming weekend.

1. Student Ministry done right, has a relational dynamic that can't be matched anywhere else in the church.

When student ministries are helping students connect with each other and other Godly leaders, the bond/camaraderie cannot be touched with a 10 foot pole. Not going to go into the psychology of it right now but it's been proven for decades. THEN it's the student ministries job to connect those same students/leaders BACK to the larger local church body.

Being blunt, the biggest mistake a student ministry can make is NOT using their relational equity to connect students to the larger church body. Sure there are other REALLY big mistakes student ministry can make, but assuming the basics are covered, this one is a big/common miss.

2. Families will always need outside voices to reinforce their Godly wisdom/parenting.

If you've interfaced with a lot of parents you will hear time and time again, "I've said that for years" or "I say that ALLLLLLLLLLL the time" "....but since you said it, they actually believe/trust it". It's true, sometimes parents can talk until their blue in the face but sometimes until at least one other person they love/respect affirms it, their kids don't fully believe/get it.

3. Students like hanging out with each other and gathering together around content that interests them in their present form.

Not to say that non-student ministry service are irrelevant to students because that's the furthest thing from the truth in our church context here at Granger. We actually have made a staff vow (within our GSM Staff Team) to NEVER try to 'compete' with the weekend service....frankly because we can't, haha they're amazing! BUT we do have a unique space where we can drill down deep on exactly what's going on in the demographics of teens in our area and adopt a missionary mindset to specifically target how to reach them with the Gospel.

So there's just a few, hope the ebook that I just wrote (here in this post) wasn't too long for you to wade through.

Rock on and Keep it real!

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GSM After Hours 9-26-11

Our parent panel yesterday was incredible?!! So blessed by their wisdom!

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Note from a former student

Note from a former student... Read more

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What I prayed for our senior class last year

      Thinking back over what I prayed the night we launched our seniors into their next phase of life and wondering if I missed anything. Here's what I remember praying:

• That God would be with them
• That God would guide them and that they would follow His guiding
• That they wouldn't graduate from "Being the Church" simply because they graduated high school
• That they would seek the foot of the cross when they make mistakes
• That they would live authentically before each other and Christ
• That their life would be a witness for the Kingdom of God
• and that they would continue to "take steps towards Christ"

Looking back, I missed lots in this simple prayer that REALLY mattes to me but I'm not too worried about it...here's why! What you pray over your seniors the 'last night' they're in your ministry is only a SMAAAAAALLLL fraction of what really will have made an impact on their life.  Not trying to diminsh that prayer, but it's all the years before that 'last' night that matter 'the most'. So what if we looked at every moment we have with our students and make them count rather than wait until the 'end' of their time with us to say the things we really want to say. In what ways can you carve out some time this week to be intentional about what you say to your students so that you don't want until the last minute to say the things that you hope God does in their life.

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GSM After Hours 9-4-11

GSM After Hours 9-4-11 Read more

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Missing this right about now

  Missing me some GSMCamp right about now...good thing every day is camp!             

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GSM After Hours

Photo By Jeff Myers

8-28-11 Last night was our KickOff for this school year and it was off the chain. The day of "lots":

• Lots of students,
• lots of old faces,
• lots of new faces,
• lots of new leaders checking it out.
• lots of fun
• lots of community
• Lots of love
• lots of energy
• lots of students HANGIN....OUT!!! (Man I love watching our students kick-it before and after GSM!)

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Post-GSM Camp Trama SERIES Part 1

Post-Camp Trama is hard to deal with sometimes.  BUT it's possible to use that holy-discontent we feel with the world around us as an OPPORTUNITY to be a Kingdom Catalyst! In this series I will  post some ways you can continue your journey without having the post-camp letdown that some feel.

1. Know that Camp is easiest following Christ will ever be.

• It's a week of living amongst tons of people who all are trying to live  with the same values of loving God and loving others.
• Services are provided daily to teach you new fresh ways to live for Christ.
• You have committed leaders who's hearts desire is to help you grow closer to Christ each and every moment of the day.
• From the time you wake up to the time you sleep every minute is planned and accounted for.  All you have to do is get up, get in the flow, and enjoy the ride.
• It's crazy amounts of fun, we do adventure style Camp so all of the adventure elements not only challenge some of your limits but they are just tons of fun.  It's not every day you can just go down a gadillion feet zipline over a lake or climb a giant light pole (solo-challenge) and then  just jump off with people to catch you, etc.)
• We help you know what parts of the Bible to read daily...and quiz you on it.

Do you see what I mean.  These are just a few ways this first point is true but I wanted to start this series off with saying that GSM Camp IS one of the easiest places to follow Christ, which also means that when you get home the work is more on your own! As a ministry we help you on that journey but the cross is yours to carry!  Over the next 10-15 post I will help give you super practical ways you can keep your journey going strong. But the point today is..."Yes, it's tough when we come home....BECAUSE CAMP IS AMAZING!"

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Post-Camp Trama - Students Perspective

One of our Students Megan Stevens (Pictured above) wrote about her "Post-Camp Trama" Read an excerpt from her post below or go HERE to read the full post! Ever had that experience that was just too good to be true? You go on a mission trip and realize God is calling you to be a missionary or work with the homeless. Or you go to camp and meet Jesus and realize your life has been incomplete up until that point and you suddenly have huge dreams for your life and you can't wait to share them with the world. And then you get home... and suddenly you don't know if you imagined the whole thing. You still feel whatever that goodness was inside of you, but it seems to lose its power as the environment around it changes. It happens to me every time! I get in a mood where I am irritated at everything, and I try so hard to keep that camp-high but it so quickly becomes a post-camp-low. It's like you're at camp and it's so easy to believe that everything is right with the world and then you leave and suddenly there's pain and sin and evil again, and it can be seriously... GO HERE TO READ THE REST OF HER AMAZING POST!

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GSM Camp Aftermath

  Been talking to a handful students (8 and counting) who are having a hard time adjusting back to "real life" post GSM Camp.  This is one of the blessings and curses of the way we do camp.  Things are SO great when we're at camp that it's hard to come back home and realize there is stuff still wrong with the world. This is terrible and awesome.  Terrible because it's culture shock, and awesome because we can instantly see how God needs His people to be Light into this world! Camp is a glimpse of what could be and should be for this world so it's hard sometimes to come back to the reality which we live in BUT (AND A BIG OLE BUT) I hope that the way we live at GSM Camp becomes the way that we live at home! Here are a couple of things that make "GSM Camp Living" so great:

1. Everything is so awesome! 2. The values of how we live are so clear that it's easy to jump on board. Everyone is clear on HOW we are to love, support, & encourage each other.  There isn't any hidden code that people have to figure out.  At Camp, this is how we do it! (Easy way for everyone to know what's expected) 3. The way we treat each other is unlike the world we live in. EVERYONE is uplifting and encouraging.  Very few places in a students life do they get CONSTANT encouragement...camp is one of those few places. 4. Everything that happens is the "greatest thing ever"! No matter what happens at camp we see it as the greatest thing ever.  At camp, the glass is half-full ALL THE TIME! 5. It's fun! 'nough said! 6. Students can be themselves. No strings attached.  We don't try to make "mini-me's" we try to help students discover who they are and then call them to live in that! 7. It's like a week long party/sleep-over where all your friends are the best they will ever be! Ever want to get all your friends together and have the greatest time of your life while living in a way where at the end you have NO REGRETS?  Get to camp, that's how we do it!

I'm taking some time today to pray for all the GSM camp students who are having trouble acclimating to being back at home in their normal environment.

Praying that God will be with them, that He will lead them, and help them to Kingdom Catalyst in this world!  CARRY YOUR CROSS!!!