Random Randomness

Got up early to go riding on Monday and didn't have time to post, and yesterday was a full day and I simply forgot! So, some basic catching up here:

THE WEEKEND:
I twittered that last weekend was like the titanic....big, elaborate etc. that somehow hit an iceberg. It really wasn't any one single thing that went wrong, but more like several little ice bergs that slowly sank us!
- We forgot several things for the program and had to scramble to get them in place.
- The crowd was bigger than normal combined with fewer than normal adult leaders.
- The crowd was rowdier than normal.
- We had a 'guest' speaker who was GREAT, but was new to our stage.
- The fire alarm went off in the middle of the lesson causing a ton of confusion (false alarm).
- All in all, one of the tougher weekends....specifically our Saturday night service.

JR. HIGH BELIEVE:
I am super excited about this weekend's Believe event! For the first time, we are taking a group of students to this incredible conference. If you haven't heard of Believe, you really do need to consider taking your students when it comes to your area, which it will because they have something like 14 different tour stops. Believe is a 24-hour event designed specifically for junior highers.

SCOTT RUBIN:
On a selfish note, I may be most excited about Believe because my buddy, Scott Rubin is the speaker (I typically speak at a few Believe events each year and it would make sense for me to speak at the So. Cal event but since I'm bringing my own youth group the good folks at Believe agreed that it would be a drag for me to charge my students to hear me speak when they have to suffer through me for free every weekend!). Scott is the junior high Pastor at Willow Creek and what started out as a professional "iron sharpening iron" relationship has, over the past several years, developed into a great friendship. We even wrote a book together, which apparently nobody has purchased (want to be one of the few and the proud?). Scott is flying in a day early and we're going to do some "California" stuff which won't involve snow, ear muffs, or ice.

SMALL GROUPS:
For the past three weeks, our small groups have mixed it up a bit. Instead of meeting in homes as usual, we are all combined in The Refinery for a large group teaching time followed by some small group discussion. The purpose was twofold: first, to give our leaders and host homes a little bit of a break and second, to allow us to teach a few deeper topics that we normally don't cover in our small groups.
- Week One: Sex and Dating
- Week Two: Foundations of Faith (Christian doctrine 101, basically)
- Week Three: How to Grow On Your Own
Overall, things have gone fairly well but I REALLY miss being in the host home with my group of guys.