harbor-wave

Quick Update

2006-11-21T07:46:00.000-08:00

To the few that are reading this, I'm sorry that I haven't posted in a long time. I have had every intention to do so. Then it dawned on me, "poor FoYA!" I will be re-launching a new blog after Thanksgiving... don't know the new title, but will have something that includes FoYA (can't leave them out).

Hope to see you at merge (Nov. 26), Family First (Dec. 3).
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving everyone!

Grace,
Brian

FoYA 2.0

2006-10-29T23:31:00.000-08:00

The new version of FoYA (FoYA 2.0) is released on Monday, 10.30.06.

After several weeks (and great times with the 3 to 13 that have shown up) we are tweaking a bit. Our hope is to facilitate our needs and their needs. In other words, 9:00 PM is what works best for the Aaby home, but certainly has proven to be pretty late for those driving in. However, earlier in the evening means that we compromise our family time (and bedtime for our girls). So... we're trying to do something on the little-bit-earlier-than-we-think-is-ideal side. FoYA will now begin at 8:15 (with the hope of being done at/before/around 10:00 PM.

Please pray that our girls do well with getting to sleep quickly (around 8:00 PM).
Please pray that we see a few more people try again with the new hour.
Pray for our "Jesus Encounters" series we are beginning.

Thank you to our FoYA folk that helped serve at merge; you did very well!

Grace,
Brian

engage.merge.10.29.06@bppc.org

2006-10-29T23:24:00.000-08:00

Sorry it has been a bit since I last posted. Busy times.

Was quite pleased with the overall feel at merge tonight. The meal was fantastic (chili, cornbread and salad/veggies... and who can forget the applecrisp?). Seemed like people had some good conversations around the tables. Lisa Huget thought there were about 90 people served at the meal. I was happy to see some new faces at merge and it seemed as if some stretched themselves and sat with people a little outside their circle.

The merge service was a lot of fun for me. I love hearing how people read Scripture. Sometimes I wish we could go two hours (or more). However, I am commited to keeping it around 75 minutes. I would have loved to have sung even more, but would have loved to have prayed, shared, and invested more into the passages as well. "Engage" was our subject for the night; we talked about how to engage our culture. The overall gist I was hoping we could walk away with is that we each can/should start with what is familiar. Paul (as seen in Acts) would first go to the Synagogues; this is what was familiar to him. After sharing (or attempting to share) with the Jews and converted Gentiles, he would move to marketplaces and other gathering places.

Where is your Synagogue, market place and gathering location? Let's engage in those places.

Anybody on here have a thought or a stirring from merge?

Grace,
Brian

Apprentice Perspective

2006-10-17T11:31:00.000-07:00

Jr. High Pizza & Game Night

Wave had its first Pizza and Game Night on October 8. Overall, it was a great time where the students were able to eat pizza, play games, and just enjoy fellowship with one another. After initially stuffing our faces with pizza, students listened to a quick talk that followed up on the talk from Family First Night the previous week. Then, we played a group game called Tribe Wars, which is a small field game very similar to Capture the Flag. After this, we allowed the students to be on their own and choose from a number of fun activities that included football in the gym, pool, and playing video games up in the youth room. The night really gave the students a chance to relax and have fun with one another, which will hopefully lead them to feel comfortable and excited about inviting their friends to future Pizza and Game Nights.

Jr. High Adventure Night

The first Adventure Night for Wave was something called an Italian Scavenger Hunt. The students broke up into two teams at the church each led by two adult drivers and one adult captain. The students were then asked to find five different items that would be the essentials that they would need for their dinner that evening, which happened to be spaghetti. Bill and Janette Ravander were very gracious to us by hosting us in their home, which was the final destination for the teams and where they made their meals. The night turned out to be a lot of fun for students, who not only were successful in picking up all their items needed for the meal, but also picked up a few other students who hadn’t originally been at the church but joined us for the rest of the evening. I want to send out a big thanks to the four parents that drove the kids around that evening, the other leaders, and to the Ravanders for opening up their home to us.

Seeking Prayer

2006-10-16T15:15:00.000-07:00

Will you be faithful in praying for these specific requests?
1. FoYA: We have been blessed by 15-18 different faces; pray that it is truly a place for young adults to connect, grow, re-enter and/or serve (we all come for various reasons).
2. Lifeboats: I can't emphasize enough the desire to have these groups prayed for! This ministry (and the leaders) are the heartbeat of our ministry and it is my hope that we get the opportunity to disciple more and more teens through lifeboats.
3. Nathan Schlaud: If you haven't gotten to know this young man, I hope you take the opportunity to (I'm sure he's open to being asked over for dinner!). I am very excited the Lord led him to us, but we'd be missing the point if we weren't praying for his growth, protection, and development--we're already 1/3 of our way through his time here!
4. Counseling: I am personally dealing with 3 counseling situations. Would you pray for wisdom in how to handle these situations (and for God's provision in matching these student(s)/families with the right people to help).
5. Church: Let's pray for our church, we are over half-way done with our 33 Days, people are understanding stewardship has less to do with $ and more to do with a total-life approach to stewardship. Pray that God would give all of us tangible direction and 100% surrender to what's next.

Grace,
Brian

Harbor P&G a Success!

2006-10-16T14:57:00.000-07:00

We're almost done with our first run on our new format of student ministry. Having done merge, and now the alternating (wave/harbor) pizza/game night and adventure nights we are just a Sunday Night Chapel away from completing our first cycle.

Nathan's blog entry should be up by tomorrow (he'll report on both P&G and Adventure for Wave). But as for the P&G for Harbor:

I think at last count there were about 35 sr. high students that made their way through our doors last night. Before serving our pizza (Costco) I quickly explained the goal of a P&G Night. My hope is that it is the ultimate in "hang out" nights for youth. Stealing a philosophy from the movie Field of Dreams "if you build it, people will come;" I am trusting "if we provide it (pizza/facility), people will come." We'll see if it works (before anyone freaks out and thinks that I am literally trying to steal a philosophy from a worldly movie, it's a Biblical principle as well--feeding of the 5000, feasts and festivals, etc.).

Anyway, the overall night is to be laid back, not a lot of organized "stuff" and more an opportunity to hang out and share life. We ate together, played a group game (2 spots right) and then went upstairs for some semi-impromptu worship. Nathan and Joe led, I asked a couple repsonse questions (good comments from students) and my personal highlight came when I prayed for the group with each one laying hands on one-another. Seemed to be a "Holy Spirit" moment. We then concluded with a large group playing floor hockey together!

I'm excited about the missionaries we have on our campuses, in our clubs and on the athletic fields. Let's pray for them to reach out (and maybe even use P&G's to bring some of those youth into the fold).

Grace,
Brian

Prayer Need

2006-10-09T09:33:00.000-07:00

I just received a phone call from Kaitlyn Weber (at Seattle Christian). Some of you may have heard about the helicopter crash yesterday; the pilot is a father of two daughters that attend Seattle Christian (6th grade and Sophomore). Please pray for the family the students at SC and for all the church families (like ours) that will be/are hit by this loss.
Grace,
Brian

The Weirdest Thing...

2006-10-09T07:48:00.000-07:00

I often have to laugh at the movement of God; let me explain...
In 14 years of youth ministry there has been many-an-event that I have poured out blood, sweat and tears (not to mention many, many hours). For the most part those events have turned out nicely, however, a few have been "duds." Most of the time the students let you know if they like the event by voting with their feet (in other words--if they show up).
On the other hand I have had some events that are absolutely the silliest ideas that have turned out to be the best events ever (again, I've had some silly "duds" too).
Of all the "silly" events that make the least amount of sense, but is one of the biggest successes: "The Dick's Roadtrip."
Let me explain the concept/formula:
1. Students arrive and wait in church parking lot for about a half-hour (because we know several will have forgotten a release form).
2. Load up the bus
3. Overflow to the van
4. Second overflow to 2nd van
5. Arrive at Dick's Drive-In on 45th
6. Dick's employees looked shocked, but do a good job of getting us through lines
7. Students enjoy/tolerate the food
8. Everyone gets cold (many from drinking cold drinks/shakes; some from wearing shorts, flip-flops and a t-shirt in mid-October; and yet some--both).
9. Load up vehicles and come back to church
10. Get picked up.

So silly. No time/effort required, Name the date, load the bus, eat, come home. The funniest part-- it is our largest outreach of the year--we had about 8 new students last night! (side-funny note--at least 5-6 people came last night that didn't even eat.)

Praise God for relational ministry. Pray that our senior high students would invite these same friends to the Pizza and Game Night next Sunday at 6:00.

Our Jr. High P&G-N went very well last night too. Perhaps I'll get Nathan to blog an update soon.

We appreciate your prayers!

Grace,
Brian

FF Review

2006-10-02T15:07:00.000-07:00

We had our first "Family First" night last night. Overall I was very pleased with the outcome. Great food, seemed to be good conversation around the tables too. I appreciate the "5 minute clean-up" as well. Everyone pitched in to take tables and chairs down and the transition to upstairs happened so quickly.
After the fun "Identity Crisis" game Joe and Alyssa helped facilitate a good time of worship through song.
The breakout into Jr. High, Sr. High and Parents went well too. I can only speak for the "parent" time, but I heard that the Harbor and Wave talks went really well (Joe Heider and Nathan). I very much appreciate the parents feedback as they described some of the "pits" that are hard about parenting in 2006. I look forward to our next two times together as we complete a "reach up, reach in and reach out" series.
Many thanks to the students and parents for trying Family First, but most of all thanks to the Fabrizio's, Vera and others that helped prep the wonderful meal!

Please pray for:
1. A set of parents that are dealing with a very tough situation with their child (sorry for no details, just pray for grace, understanding and softened hearts).
2. Pray for a meeting I have with a young man tomorrow afternoon. He is a friend of one of our fringe youth. This young man just lost his grandfather and is asking the question "why do good people go to hell?" He is willing to meet with me (and I am going to have Nathan with me) to hear the "Christian" answer. Pray for grace, wisdom and the opportunity to share the good news!
3. Pray for the parents of our youth! Pray that we would get a sense of community together!
4. Pray for our lifeboat leaders--for strength, for endurance and great wisdom in discipling our teens (I will soon list out all our leaders so you can pray individually for them).

Thanks so much!

Grace,
Brian

Family First--First!

2006-09-28T17:36:00.000-07:00

We're just a couple days away from "regular youth group" as we'll soon know it. Actually, we started last week with merge; but merge is a different beast all together (some enjoy an evening at home, some really get in to merge, others are 50-50 on it). Anyway, we're just a couple days from our first meal as a youth program. The first Sunday of the month is entitled "Family First" and we encourage the parents of our youth to come for the evening.
Pray through our evening in advance:
5:00 PM Our meal prep team will be hard at work, the junior class will be serving this week.
6:00 PM Arrival and "hang time" in the MPR/Foyer
6:15 PM Meal served
7:00 PM Upstairs for group interaction and worship (music) set
7:30 PM Parents, Jr. High, Sr. High all go to different areas of the church for the more formal "program" portion
8:15 PM Dismiss

I hope you help get the word out to other students and parents... can't wait to see how we kick-off.

Pray in advance for the next couple weeks as well:
10/8 Pizza and Game night (outreach/evangelistic message at Wave); Adventure Night (lifestyle evangelism, community building) at Harbor (Dick's Road Trip).
10/15 Pizza and Game night at Harbor; Adventure Night (Italian Scavenger Hunt/Dinner) for Wave.

Last, I hope you're doing well with 33 Days, you can keep up with that blog as well: www.33minutes.blogspot.com

Grace,
Brian

merge "free"

2006-09-26T20:38:00.000-07:00

"Best one yet" was what Marc Gronholz said.
"That was powerful" was another comment I heard.
"2 Thumbs up" from Siskel and Ebert... er... ok, not the last one.

merge kicked off on Sunday (9.24) with the theme, "free." We explored, discussed and discovered the wonder of being free because of God's grace.

The Huget's (and FoYA) served a great Taco Salad meal to about 80 people before merge began at 7:00.
I hope that merge is something that you put on your radar; it seems we are beginning to really build a community feel at merge and I hope you can contribute to that community.

One prayer request for merge is that the community meal becomes some-what of an outreach. My hope is that through relationship our folk begin to use merge and the meal as and entry and/or re-entry to the church.

For those that attended, what did you experience on Sunday at merge? What was a highlight, take-home or "spur" you recall?

Grace,
Brian

From the FoYA field...

2006-09-26T20:28:00.000-07:00

I'm excited to report that the first two weeks of FoYA have gone really well!

Last Monday (9.18) we started FoYA and had 6 guests in our house. A few of them are former students of ours from First EPC in Renton and the others are from Boulevard. We took time for each to share a few minutes of our story (including passions, career/school path and what we hope for in young adult fellowship). After sharing I through out the challenge for us to take a few weeks to discuss "church" (perceptions and misperceptions).

Yesterday (9.25) we had 11 young adults attend FoYA (8 brand new). We allowed those that were new to share a bit about their life and then began our discussion about the church (not the local body, but the state of the American church). A nooma video entitled, "Sunday" helped spark the conversation. We now represent 3 different congregations and a few non-church goers (exciting stuff)! Be praying for this initial discussion trail (great time last night).

Thanks for your prayers!

One thing that really excites me is that a couple of the young adults have indicated that they see FoYA as their opportunity to re-enter the church community!

Grace,
Brian

The Ability To Say "No"

2006-09-26T20:10:00.000-07:00

The title of this post is something you can pray that I gain...

I have just completed the craziest time of ministry that I can ever remember. Having come off of the summer (missions, wave campout, bus caravan, discipleship series, summer events, staff training dinners, senior thing and a few family things) I hit the fall full-speed ahead with Boot Camp, leading 33 Days, preaching 3 out of 7 weeks, teaching Sunday School, counseling, starting FoYA and speaking at a church camp for another youth group.

I was privileged to have my buddy Jeramy Clark and friend/former intern (and current associate for Jeramy) Shane Branecky in town for Boot Camp. On Sunday evening (after Boot Camp) both of these guys were able to "speak into my life" and lovingly warn me about how crazy my schedule seemed.
Jeramy: "You aren't even taking a day off after boot camp?"

I appreciate the prayers that have helped sustain me and my family. In no way am I trying to whine, I hope it is more of an encouragement to all of us to (a) have accountability, (b) take the freedom to say "no" to good things (as well as bad), and (c) recruit faithful prayer partners (like you!).

Keep those prayers flowing!

Grace,
Brian

FoYA

2006-09-18T13:44:00.000-07:00

FoYA (Fellowship fo Young Adults, 18-mid 20's) starts tonight!
Pray for some young adults to show up!
Pray for great fellowship and a foundation for some growth to come!
Thanks!

Grace,
Brian

Boot Camp in Review

2006-09-18T13:34:00.000-07:00

Boot Camp 2006 has come and gone... so much to process.

Overall: A wonderful experience; food was great (thank you Heiders and Hugets); Speaking fantastic (Jeramy Clark presented the truth so well); weather held up (only rained at night); boating (thank you Scotts), Ropes and Wall (thank you Boy Scouts) were challenging and fun; students (thank you students) had great attitudes and participated well.

Specific things I am now thinking about.
Outreach: There were 60 students at camp, almost exactly the same number as last year. Last year the students only had a day or two on their campus to reach out, this year nearly 2 weeks. Of the 60, only 46 were students connected to Boulevard. The other 14 students were students that Ryan and Amber Larson (from Boy Scouts) were able to bring. Therefore, I am questioning the timing of the camp and also whether a camp is where we should concentrate our efforts? I am NOT AT ALL down about the camp, God is in control and knew exactly who would be there; however, I want to put our efforts toward the things that are most valuable; perhaps a later in the year camp would be better timing?
Location: The blessing of Camp Pigott is the wall, lake and ropes (dining room is pretty good too). However we had less people using those elements this year. The biggest plus is the cost. We are able to use Pigott for about 50% the cost of a catered camp (i.e. "Lake Retreat," "Black Lake," etc.). However, sleeping facilities are not nice, plus we had a strange encounter with a mouse!

Anyway, just a few of my immediate thoughts.
Can't wait to follow up with these students, there were a good number that made commitments and re-commitments to Christ! Praise the Lord and pray for these students!

Grace,
Brian

Missionaries

2006-09-18T13:27:00.000-07:00

They're back!
Our students are back in school. Clubs are starting back up. New jobs have begun. The family is all-together again.
This means our "at home" mission is in full swing and we need YOUR prayers.
*Pray that those that are on the campus of our public schools would be lovingly bold.
*Pray that those on our Christian/Private school campuses would take a stand for the one that stood (and died) for them in the midst of an oft-calloused commununity.
*Pray that those in homeschool networks would be able to use their walk with the Lord to inspire one another.
*Pray that those involved with sports, dance, karate and other clubs would be able to excel not just at sport, but with witness.
*Pray that those working with non-Christian employees would share the true facts about "wages" (as in "wages of sin") in a Christ-compelling, loving way.
*Pray that those who live with non-Christians in their home would love and respect those non-Believers in such a way that their non-believing relative begins to ask questions.

We're back.
We need prayers.
How can we pray for each other in our at home mission?

Grace,
Brian

Renewed Commitment to Recruitment!

2006-09-02T07:26:00.000-07:00

Calling All Pray-ers!

In this time of silence (between summer and fall) it is my hope that we can recruit (and remind) people for the purpose of harbor-wave (FoYA) prayer. In about one week we kick-off our Sunday School ministry for the year, in less than two weeks we'll be experiencing Boot Camp 2006, the day after Boot Camp we start Fellowship of Young Adults (FoYA), just a few short days later we'll be starting lifeboats; three weeks from now will be our first merge and then just one week later our first "Family First Night!" Lot's to be praying about (this isn't even mentioning all the one-on-ones, leader training times, Adventure Nights, Pizza and Game Nights and other calendar planning--oh wait, I guess I did just mention these things).

Will you do me a favor... remind those that we know have been praying to get back on here and start praying again (perhaps you are on, just not commenting?). Will you also recruit? Send out emails with this link (www.harbor-wave.blogspot.com), call a friend/family member and say "don't forget to pray for our students"

Thanks so much! We covet your prayers and I trust you covet praying--may it increase all of our faith walks!

Grace,
Brian

P.S. Updates are slowly but surely happening at www.bppc.org, check it out.

A Sweet "Thing"

2006-08-28T21:26:00.000-07:00

The Senior Thing is complete, and it was a great retreat (no, I'm not trying to rhyme, at least not all the time).
Seriously, one of the best Senior Things I have had yet. The weekend was titled "on the move."

It was a mystery retreat, the students did not know where they were going. On Friday evening at the church they received a clue that led them to the North Bend Taco Time. Upon arrival they were to look for the next clue. This clue told them to eat a fast food meal and then with the clues they were led to Lake Kachess (just over Snoqualmie Pass). The group arrived at about 7:40.

The retreat was divided by four main "sessions." The first three sessions each had an Initiative Game. These are team building/problem solving games. The games woud conclude with a debriefing/Bible Study session. Friday nights session helped us to understand a sense of what it is like to be alone (the positives and the negatives). We concluded the evening with s'mores, great fireside conversations and falling asleep to the sounds of Gale Creek.

Saturday started with a great breakfast and another session. This session helped us to understand working together (1 Cor. 12). After the morning session we left camp and headed up to a waterfall area (complete with some "safe" cliff jumping areas). We had fun watching each other jump into very cold water. We also had lunch at this location.

To conclude the water area the seniors were given their next clues... Get to I-90, phone a friend with internet, look up a website, get the secret number code and find the address. The address just happened to be my parents home. My mom and dad were gone and gave me the ok to have the second part of the retreat at their house. Upon arrival we split into Guys and Gals lifeboats. The guys played my favorite frisbee golf course (you'll have to ask them who won) and then they headed to Randy Kent's house for cleaning up for the evening. The gals took off for Starbucks and then my house where my girls hosted their clean-up. I secretly stayed at my parents and cooked an Italian dinner for all of us to enjoy on their deck.

The evening was filled with great conversation, sharp looking students and staff (we dressed up) and another initiative in which the group had to work together (and they did). We also had some time around a campfire sharing some very encouraging words for one another!

The final session (Sunday morning) put the exclamation point on the weekend. I broke the group into two groups (mixed genders). They were assigned to go to a different church. Half the group went to Maple Valley Presbyterian and the other half to Lake Sawyer Christian Church. I had two goals in mind:
1. Some of these students will be looking for a church of their own if they leave the area (for college/career) in the years to come. I hoped they would begin to see the differences in styles, doctrine, etc.
2. I wanted them to feel the potential awkwardness of being "new." This would help open their eyes as to what a stranger might feel at Boulevard and/or The Harbor.
The groups arrived and they were then divided into smaller segments, two of our students (Nate and Lynne) even went to church by themselves (they didn't walk in as a group). The others were in pairs or a triplet.

We gathered together to conclude the weekend at lunch. Qdoba served up some great food and the students/staff served up great conversation about the church services. We talked about the differences, how they were/weren't welcomed, what we can do in our settings and a lot more!

We have a great group of seniors. They NEED our prayers! Are you praying?

Grace,
Brian

Senior Thing

2006-08-25T14:12:00.000-07:00

Several years back I had the idea of having a short retreat for the seniors-to-be. This retreat was to be held at the beginning (or just before) the students senior year. I had a hard time coming up with a name... "Senior Trip" seems to be an end-of-the-year celebration; "Retreat" is just used way to often; it isn't necessarily a "camp" so I don't want to use that title, so... "The Senior Thing" was born. Not very descriptive, but it works.

Anyway, that's what's happening this weekend. The weekend is titled "On The Move." For our students it is a mystery retreat. They don't know where they are going, and won't know until they figure out how to get there (they'll receive clues). Should be a lot of fun.

I use this retreat to begin to think through the year and the role a senior will play at our church and in our ministry. Please pray for the class of 2007. I really look forward to seeing how they will be used for the Lord!

**I have posted the Boot Camp flyers on www.bppc.org. Check out the changes to the website, slowly but surely I am trying to bring that site up to speed.

Grace,
Brian

I'm Back!

2006-08-24T08:04:00.000-07:00

Let me start by saying, "sorry." I have wanted to post a number of times, however, it seems I have had other pressing needs (and sometimes wants) that have taken on priority status. I must remember that prayer needs to be one of our biggest priorities and this blog is one way we can help many with that priority. So, will you forgive me?

The last couple of weeks have been a roller-coaster. Great things followed by some tough stuff. All-in-all we're at a good stage in our ministry. Let me share something I shared last night at our first of 3 SMS (student ministry staff) dinners.

John 2:1-11 is where Jesus does his first miracle. In small groups we read over the passage a couple times and talked about what happened, the spiritual significance and what we should do now as a result--good discussions. Then, after the meal we sat down as a larger group and I shared my thoughts as this passage applied to us as a ministry.
Observation #1: At the wedding celebration they discovered that they were out of wine.
Observation #2: They filled the jars with water
Observation #3: They served the master of the wedding banquet.

You might be thinking, "duh, anyone can make those observations." Yes, you are right, but now let me go a little further with our ministry.
#1: Over the last 6-8 months I believe that we too have discovered that we are on empty. We were going through the motions from about December to June as a staff.
#2: We're filling the jars. As we are doing these SMS dinners, preparing for the year we are in the midst of filling our jars with our water. As leaders we need to be in the Word, in fellowship, using accountability and spending time in prayer. These are all the "common" things that we know we ought to be doing (water being the "common" element with which Jesus performed his first miracle).
#3: We need to serve the master. Our master is not only our "Master" (as in God), but our lower-case m, master (students, parents, strangers, each other). In Matthew 25:31 and following Jesus gives us instruction on serving "the least of these." Everything we do as a Christian needs to be done with the Master in mind. Serving the lower-case m, master is serving the Master.
The cool part to me--Jesus took the common element of water and did a miracle. I believe the Lord will do the same with us this year. We saw that the jars were empty, we're faithful in filling up the jars and now we must be faithful to serve the master... Jesus will do the miracle, we must just be faithful.

So, here is where you come in--Prayer! Are you willing, able and ready to ask for the miracle? I hope so.

I would appreciate your thoughts, your meditations and reaction to this post. Where did it cause your mind to go?

I have specific prayer roles that we're looking to fill. Some, I know, will just want to be faithful to reading the blog and responding in prayer--praise the Lord and thank you! However, there might be some that are looking to make this a ministry opportunity for our students. If this is you, will you let me know (email me: brian@workwithyouth.com).

I'm looking for prayer point people for the following areas:
Sunday School
Parent Ministry
Events and Retreats

Hope you have a blessed day!

Grace,
Brian

Ahhhhhh!

2006-08-08T16:20:00.000-07:00

That's the sound I made as I hit the pillow on Sunday night.

After 2 wonderful trips (3 if you include my quick jaunt away with my wife for our 10 year anniversary) it was finally time to rest my head on my own pillow on my own bed!

Your prayers were felt throughout both trips; I only wish I could have updated more often (no and or limited cell or email service at both locations).

There is certainly much follow-up to do and some very hard situations that we have (get) to deal with as a result. Please pray for those situations! I know that the Lord will guide us through some tough and wonderful conversations. Your prayers will continue to be answered.

This morning we had a great beginning to our "Getting Grounded"--A Bible Study/Fellowship time at Olympic Coffee. This discipleship time takes place on Tuesdays from 10:30 to Noon through the month of August. This morning there were 15 teens and 5 leaders. Praise the Lord.

Tomorrow we have a Jr. High Waterfront and M's Game. Jr. Highers are encouraged to come and bring their friends. We'll meet at the church at 10:00 AM and should be back around 5:15 PM. Lunch is included at the game (total cost of $10). We'll hit the waterfront (and Pike Place) and then go to the game.

Next Monday is another Wave Event--6 Flags Wild Waves. Please let us know if you're planning on coming (brian@workwithyouth.com or Sclaud@hotmail.com).

Next Tuesday we have "Getting Grounded" and then a 6:30 PM Worship Night for Harbor folk at John and Lisa Siedenburg's home. All of the info for these events and the summer permission slip can be found at www.bppc.org.

Last, praise God for a quick fix of the bus and a great clean-up day. There were about 10-12 teens and a few leaders that helped clean the vans and the kitchen today after their uses on the WC/BC! Thanks everyone!

Grace,
Brian

2006-08-04T17:19:00.000-07:00

2006-08-01T12:41:00.000-07:00

2006-07-30T14:47:00.000-07:00

Safe and Sound

2006-07-30T07:36:00.000-07:00

I spoke with Brian very briefly last night (from some kind of antiquated device called a pay phone . . . we've forgotten what those are like in the age of cell phones, haven't we?). They had all arrived safely and things were going well. He or I will post more later, after things get settled a bit more there, but he just wanted you to know all was well.

-Elisabeth

Outta Here

2006-07-29T08:58:00.000-07:00

Taking off on the Bus Caravan right now! 51 Students and about 19 leaders and 4 small kids! Pray for us all.
I will update via audio!
Grace,
Brian

2006-07-25T10:26:00.000-07:00

2006-07-23T14:34:00.000-07:00

A Specific Answer!!!

2006-07-18T22:49:00.000-07:00

The Lord provides!
Andy Heider will be able to take the trip with the kitchen on Saturday (the 29th) and then return for picking it up the following weekend! Praise God!

Now let's specifically pray for the students, their hearts, and continued outreach for both the WC and BC!

Grace,
Brian

A Specific...

2006-07-17T23:32:00.000-07:00

Don't know why I have been trying to figure this one out on my own...

Would you please pray that our MIGHTY, ALL KNOWING, ALWAYS PROVIDING GOD would once again provide a wonderful big truck to pull the Camp Kitchen for the Bus Caravan.

We thought we had it lined up, but the truck that was going to pull it was a little small; therefore we are in need. Pray that we would have an answer ASAP. The truck needs to meet specific specs. Please pray that this issue gets resolved quickly.

I'll be out of town Wednesday to Saturday for our 10th Anniversary (YAY!) so my hope is that before we begin the WC on Sunday that we know all the specifics for the BC.

Grace,
Brian

Approaching Quickly...

2006-07-14T11:39:00.000-07:00

Please be in prayer in these final days before the Wave Campout (WC) and Bus Caravan (BC).

Pray for Nathan Schlaud (WC) and Dan Stone (BC) as they prepare the messages for the camps.

Pray for our students to be bold in inviting friends to themselves. The temptation is to say "pray that we get kids to invite their friends to the WC and BC," though I want this, it needs to be out of the context of relationship--a flyer will probably not get a kid to come to camp, a relationship will. But getting the students to camp is not the end-goal, having them hear the Gospel is! Pray that our students will be bold with their faith (ok, you can also pray that our students invite their unchurched friends to the WC and BC).

Pray for safety--last year we experienced some issues with the kitchen; pray for safety in games, water, around camp, and on the road (and anything else).

Pray for endurance, especially for those of us that have just one day off between the WC and BC!

Pray for finances... it seems as if this year about every other student needs financial help. I pray with faith that God will provide. While you're at it, pray for the overall church budget too!

Thanks, I'll post more specific stuff as we approach!

Grace,
Brian

Please Pray With Me!

2006-07-09T21:50:00.000-07:00

I would like for you to pray with me for a good friend. Chris Renzelman (a long-time youth ministry veteran) just lost his daughter in a car accident yesterday. She was 20 years old.
God is faithful, Chris and Paige just had a one week vacation together to DC.
Praise the Lord she is home; bur please pray for Chris and his wife Rebecca and their family.
(Chris works with Tom Horton and RCYM and with me on the area wide Apprenticeship program).
Grace,
Brian

Off to the Races...

2006-07-09T20:52:00.000-07:00

Nathan Schlad, our new Apprentice, is off and running. His first several days have been pretty full. Time with youth at the Heiders; Jr. High Progressive Dinner; hanging with Nathan, Nathan, Nate, Paco and Justin; the welcome home to the missions team followed by a hang out with a bunch of youth at Miki's; Justin and Nathan Fletcher helping him move in; church; fellow-blitz; M's game and supposedly heading to Alki tonight! Wow! Praise the Lord, he seems to be doing well and getting to know a lot of the youth!

We'd appreciate your prayers for all the youth serving at VBS this week. We are doing a separate program for 5th and 6th grade students so I would appreciate your prayers for that (we're sort of developing the curriculum day-by-day).

Here are a couple of specific prayers that I would like to request:
1. Pray for our Jr. High students to reach out to their non-Churched friends. I would love to see a few new students on the Wave Campout.
2. Pray for the outreach of our Sr. High students. Not just for the bus caravan, but that each would really take advantage of reaching their unsaved friends with relationship! I do pray that the BC would be an effective tool they could use, but it is so much more than just the program!
3. Pray for clarity of mind (for me) when it comes to fall programming. Right now I am beginning to lay the foundation of what ministry may look like in the fall.
4. I feel the Lord has answered our prayer in terms of "when" we should start a college-age (young adult) ministry--this fall; however, I would like clarity as to the other stuff--focus, leaders, and other specifics!

Thanks so much for your prayers--let's continue to pray for the youth from the mission; pray for unity among the North and South teams, satan desires to divide them, pray that NOBODY allows jealousy, pride or anything else be something they give in to.

Grace,
Brian

Cool Stuff

2006-07-06T08:27:00.000-07:00

It was very cool to see a group of about 10-12 (students, Stan Noble and Miki) come together to help get the blue house ready for Nathan. At 5:00 PM last night the youth came and under Jan Armstrongs leadership completed Erica's moving out and the prep for Nathan to move in. They cleaned each room, kitchen and the bathroom. Praise the Lord, he'll be able to move in on time. Thanks to all the staff/students that helped and especially to Jan for using her gifts in this way!

Pray for Don Hartley to get the time/resources to complete the shower at the blue house as well.

My family joined me in taking Nathan out for dinner last night, it was a good time getting to know each other. Afterwards we stopped by the Heiders for him to meet the group that had been cleaning. Though he, and the kids were rather quiet with one another, I trust that it helped take any edges off and that the next interaction will be easier for all!

Church Prayer Request:
The last couple of years at BPPC has brought budget cuts (and each year the youth have been effected). I want to throw out a request that we all begin to pray for our church budget. I know that there are some that are "worried." I, for one, am not--but I, for one, am going to commit to pray about it. It would be neat to see our church come to our Father as our resource and ask Him to continue to provide. So... please pray, we're behind on our giving, but I am sure He will provide for our every need!

Grace,
Brian

7.5.06

2006-07-05T09:35:00.000-07:00

Continue to let me know if you are "in" on this prayer blog (for those that have not yet reported).

We're all safe and sound back home! Most of the North team slept all day yesterday and the South team, most likely, had their first real thoughts of reflection (outside of emotional thoughts). Please be in prayer for both teams as they process everything that is happening and as they lay a new foundation for their ministry back home. We NEED prayer behind our efforts here!

We are welcoming in Nathan Schaud as our Apprentice. Though he was scheduled to be here on Friday, he is coming in today (within the next couple hours actually). The bummer part is that he was to move into the blue house when he arrived, but the person we did emergency housing for was not able to move out when she was supposed to. So, MAJOR prayer request is that all those details get taken care of today and that we are able to organize a work/cleaning party for tomorrow or early Friday so that Nathan can move in as scheduled for Friday. Praise the Lord for the Hartley's being willing to put him up for those couple days.

Pray for our Wave Dinner tomorrow night--We'll be meeting at the church at 5:00 and ending at John and Lisa Siedenburg's at about 8:30. Pray for a good connect with the students (especially for Nathan to meet a bunch of the students).

Friday is our "welcome home potluck" at the church at 6:00 PM. Last names A-G bring a Salad; Last names H-L bring a dessert and Last names M-Z bring a Main Dish. Please pray for this event as well. Anyone wanting to help behind the scenes to get it ready please contact me.

Other Prayer Requests:
Wave Campout--that our jr. high students are faithful in inviting their unchurched friends.
Bus Caravan--that we experience ministry momentum from the mission in making our "home mission" a priority!

Grace,
Brian

You In? (July 3, 2006)

2006-07-03T11:06:00.000-07:00

Greetings new prayer team... this will be very brief, but wanted to see who all was going to be on the new prayer blog-site for the Harbor and Wave at BPPC. Can't wait to start posting here in the days to come!
Recruit for us! Let's pray!

Grace,
Brian

2005-09-15T14:19:00.000-07:00

Our Sr. High Ministry is called the "Harbor.' We meet twice on Sundays. Sunday School is at 9:50 and our Outreach is at 7:00 PM.

2005-09-15T14:17:00.000-07:00

Our Jr. High Ministry is called "Wave." We meet on Sunday Mornings from 9:50 to 10:50 for Sunday School and meet Sunday Nights from 7:00 to 8:45 for outreach/fellowship.