Hey everybody!  Below is your weekly student newsletter, but first… a few updates!

Last night’s concert was wonderful!  Nine youth attended and we had a great time.  It really was fun to have the chance to attend a Christian music concert, see all the people there, and even meet some of the band members.  (Yup, I met Jason Gray… he has twins!!!)  I will definitely keep my eye out for more great concerts like last night!  If you attended, post a comment sharing the best part of the concert with everyone.

Wednesday October 15th we continue with our Festival of Faith program.  See you there; dinner at 6:00, program at 6:30.

Saturday October 18th is St. Paul’s Cleanup Day!  I would love to see some of the youth come help with this event, especially some strong youth prepared to help carry things to the dumpster!  Let me know if you have any questions, I hope to see you there!

Sunday October 19th we are holding a bake sale to raise money for Church World Service’s CROP Hunger Walk.  Please bring goodies to sell and be prepared to help out at the table.  Then, that afternoon we will be walking (or running) the 5K CROP Hunger Walk.  Please meet at 2:45 at Bledsoe-Miller Park.  Also, if you know you are going to walk, please let me know so I can know who to expect.

Okay, here is your newsletter…

1. SOMETHING FOR YOUR HEART

WHAT IS IDENTITY?

Identity, to make it short and sweet, is your understanding of who you are. It’s not what you can do, or what you look like, or even who someone else says you are. It’s who you really are; and, more specifically, it’s who you understand yourself to be.

The term ID is short for “identification.” Your parents probably have driver’s licenses, which are considered ID. You might carry a school ID or some other kind of ID card. That little card says stuff about you–stuff that is uniquely you. It usually includes a picture of you, as well as some other information.

But whatever information is listed on that ID isn’t your real identity.

We (Marko and Scott) remember when we were middle schoolers; we were just starting to think about who we were, what made us unique, how we were different from and the same as our parents, how we were different from and the same as our best friends. Those thoughts are the beginning work of figuring out your identity.

Today, we could say all these things about ourselves:

- I’m a dad

- I’m a son

- I’m a husband

- I’m a follower of Jesus

- I’m a youth worker

- I’m an author (Hey, you’re reading a book we wrote!)

- I’m a movie lover

But that’s just a start. What kind of dad am I, and what kind of dad do I want to be? Because there are lots of different ways to be a dad, right?

One of the reasons our culture started making space for the teenage years (remember, the teenage years weren’t even recognized in our culture as an age group until a little more than 100 years ago) was to allow people your age to figure out their identities. It’s a long and challenging process. And you’ll probably think of yourself in lots of different ways over the next several years–that’s okay.

Ask yourself: Who am I, really? Who do I want to become? And, most importantly, who did God make me to be?

**

Taken from “My Changes” by Mark Oestreicher and Scott Rubin, copyright 2008 Youth Specialties/Zondervan. Used by permission. Order the book here:
http://www.youthspecialties.com/shop/product_info.php?products_id=421

 2. SURF REPORT

~ Teen Read Week — The Third Week of October
http://www.readwritethink.org/calendar/calendar_day.asp?id=121

~ Hero Copter Game
http://www.tweegee.com/Games/Play/69/hero_copter.aspx

 3. FORGETTABLE FACT

The average housefly weighs 10 to 15 millionths of a pound.

 4. POTENT QUOTABLES

“If you judge people, you have no time to love them.”
~ Mother Theresa

“Infinite patience brings immediate results.”
~ Wayne Dyer

 5. UH, THAT’S FUNNY?

Q: Which is correct? Yolks of eggs are white, or yolks of eggs is white?

A: Neither, because yolks of eggs are yellow!

So, did you learn anything about yourself?  Who you are, who you want to be?  I’m curious.  Let me know your thoughts on the newsletter.

You are all in  my prayers… peace,

erin