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{Heart4Teens.com} *And Then Some* 2/20/03 ______________________________________ If you enjoy this free email service, I encourage you to spread the word to family and friends that we may bring inspiration into the lives of teenagers everywhere! If you are not on the list and this has been passed along to you, you can join Heart4Teen.com readers around the world by sending a blank e-mail to: Heart4Teens-subscribe@myinjesus.com Visit our inspirational web site and read all the past articles in our archives, and view the tons of resources we have there for teens! http://www.Heart4Teens.com/Teen_Stories ____________________________________________ Be sure to check out our other inspirational email list and web site! http://www.HeartTouchers.com To subscribe send a blank email to: HeartTouchers-subscribe@myinjesus.com _________________________________________ Reading Books, Changing Lives! For those of you who love to read or love to give out books as gifts... You can now order a number of different autographed best-selling inspirational books for the same price you would get them in the store, the shipping to you is paid for, and you are helping change the lives of teenagers and those they come in contact with! And best of all, every penny from the book sales are going to youth ministry to help pay for a life-changing winter retreat and a missions trip to Guatemala this summer! If you love to read inspirational stories, these books are most likely those you will eventually buy anyway. And how cool would it be to be able to buy books like those in the Chicken Soup series for your friends and family with a personalized autographed message by one of the contributing authors! How's that for a unique gift! Not only are you changing lives through supporting a youth ministry, but every book included on our website has the power to make a difference in the lives of those you give the books to. Check out this link to find out more! http://www.HeartTouchers.com/books _________________________________________ "Teenagers today!" How many times have we heard someone say this in exasperation lately? Well, I would like to share a story with you about a teenager who came into our life and is a shining example of what is right with, "Teenagers Today!" Today is a very special day, which calls for a very special story, about a very special young lady: Brittnia Brandl. Brittnia turns 21 today and to celebrate her birthday we wanted to honor her with a story from our book. Be sure to take the time to email Brittnia at her email address listed at the end of the story and wish her a happy birthday! From my family to yours, Michael P.S. We love ya Brittnia!! P.S.S. We are also running this story on our HeartTouchers.com list, so if you belong to both you will get this story twice today... _______________________________________ And Then Some By Michael T. Powers "Brittnia's here!!" shouted Caleb and Connor in stereo sound as they saw our baby-sitter get out of her car and walk up the sidewalk to our house. Joyful dancing and a good test of our sofa's warranty followed as my two young boys jumped up and down, acting like Christmas morning was here once again. Caleb then ran to the door to let her in, while Connor continued to act as if he had just won a lifetime supply of candy. Kristi and I smiled as we watched the scene unfold before us -- a scene that is repeated no matter how often Brittnia comes to our house. It also made us both realize how incredibly blessed we are to have her in our life. I first met Brittnia Brandl when she walked into basketball practice during her freshman year of high school, and we got to know her a little better as each month went by. She soon took up permanent residency in our family's heart, and Kristi and I began to pray for Brittnia whenever we thought of her -- which was often. I permanently bonded with her one particular afternoon during her sophomore year. Jamie Rusch, another basketball player at the time and I had gone to visit Brittnia in the hospital to cheer her up after her knee surgery. She was fresh out of the operating room and when we walked into the room, we were rewarded with a big smile, followed by a wave of vomiting. Yes, nothing shows your gratitude like stomach bile! She was very embarrassed but I reassured her that once a person throws up in front of another, they become friends for life! As our lives became more entwined, I came to realize the quality that made Brittnia so special. Professor Richard Weaver once stated that what often sets a successful person apart from others are three simple words: "and then some." Brittnia figured this out a long time ago. When she was playing basketball for me, she worked hard, had a great attitude, loved and respected her teammates and then some. When she helps me videotape weddings for my video production business, she puts in a full day's work and then some. She shows up earlier than expected, stays later than she needs to, and complains that we pay her too much money. She is the model employee. However, nothing compares to how she is as a baby-sitter! She is trustworthy, dependable, responsible, goes out of her way to accommodate us and then some! The very first time Brittnia baby-sat for us, we knew we had someone special. From the time she walked in the door until the time she left our house, she gave our boys 100% of her time and attention. While some teenagers might be calling their boyfriends, watching TV, or doing their homework while they baby-sit, Brittnia spends her time playing hide-and-go-seek, tag, and reading countless books to my overactive children. She has role-played "The Lion King" so many times that I think she must secretly shudder at the name "Mufasa," as much as the hyenas do in the Disney movie! ("Mufasa! Mufasa! Mufasa!") Many times as we walk up to our house while Brittnia is baby-sitting, we will pause outside of the window for a minute and watch her as she lovingly plays with, reads to, and cares for our two rambunctious boys. One night, just as we were leaving the house and our children in her capable hands, Caleb jumped on her back for a piggyback ride. Kristi and I went to dinner, then stopped back at the house two hours later for something before we went to a movie. As we walked up to the door, we could see Brittnia walking around the living room with monkey-boy Caleb clinging to her back. I know better than to think that my boy had stayed there for the entire two hours, but I can honestly say that it wouldn't surprise me if it were true. In all things in her life, Brittnia does what is expected of her and then some. In the past four years she has earned our respect, our loyalty, and our love. We are extremely proud of our Brittnia for everything she does in her life, but never were we prouder than when we found out that she had committed her life to Christ toward the end of her freshman year. She shared with us that one night she went into her room, cried, and prayed for Jesus to come into her heart. She asked Him to take over her life because she needed help. She took all of the things she was dealing with at the time, and surrendered everything to Jesus. She became a new creation... This past Sunday, Brittnia was baptized. She stood before family and friends and made a public profession of her faith in Christ. Kristi and I had been looking forward to sharing this important day with her since she first told us when she was getting baptized, a little over two months ago. We could just picture her beaming face as she would stare out over the crowd and make eye contact with those who love her dearly... Caleb, our five-year-old was so excited Sunday morning as we were getting ready to leave our house. "Daddy! We get to go see Brittnia get pushed in the water today, don't we?!" On the ride to Brittnia's church, Kristi and I explained to Caleb all about baptism and what it stands for in a believer's life. All of us were anticipating Brittnia's big day... I dropped Kristi off at the door and then went to find a parking spot. I had Connor with me and when we walked into the sanctuary, I saw that the baptism had already started. A numbness crept into my heart. One of the few times in our life we thought we were early -- twenty minutes early! I looked at Kristi and begged, "Please tell me that Brittnia hasn't been baptized yet?" She didn't answer right away, and my stomach turned to ice, because I knew from her silence that Brittnia had. It turned out that the baptism had started at 12:00 and not 12:30. Both of us had the time wrong and later when we got home, the invitation mocked us with the correct time. There were fifteen to twenty believers being baptized that afternoon, and I sat there totally numb as the pastor finished up with the last seven or eight people. I wanted to cry. I wanted to ask the pastor if he could do it again. I wanted it all to be some kind of a bad dream that I could wake up from... We had let our Brittnia down... We had wanted to make eye contact with her, just before she walked to the baptismal and tell her that we loved her... We had wanted to silently pray for her young life just as the pastor said, "I baptize you in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit..." We had wanted our two young sons to see Brittnia as she publicly let everyone know that four years earlier she asked Jesus to forgive her of her sins, come into her life, and had given total control of everything over to God. We had hoped that it might make an impression on them even at their early ages... We had wanted to watch Brittnia's future husband, Jeff, as he also was baptized, and pray for their young relationship, that it might stay strong... But it wasn't meant to be... Jamie Rusch, who was sitting in front of me leaned back and whispered, "If it is any consolation, Brittnia's face got really red just before she was baptized." That made me smile, as everyone who knows Brittnia knows that she blushes easily... Caleb, who was sitting on my lap, finally realized that it was over and that, as far a he could see, Brittnia hadn't been baptized yet. "Awwwwwwww! Brittnia didn't get dunked!!" he shouted. We gave Brittnia a hug afterwards, wet hair and all, and she asked us if we got to see it. I had to tell her that we were about four minutes too late, and that we had the time mixed up. She reassured us that it was all right, but I felt my stomach tighten again into the kind of knots only an Eagle Scout could tie. All day I asked, "Why God? Why did we have to miss this important day in our Brittnia's life?" Even though we missed that moment, we wanted to share this with you today, on your nineteenth birthday, Brittnia: Jesus will always be there for you. He never makes promises He can't keep and He is never, ever late in His timing. He will be your Friend when your friends fail you. He will be your Parent when your parents fail you. He will be your Husband when your future husband fails you, and he will fill the void that is in all of our lives like nothing else can... Brittnia, Jesus will bless your life and provide for all of your needs, both emotionally and physically and then some. He will comfort you when you are down, make your marriage work when there seems to be no hope, bless you with wonderful children, loving friends and family and then some. You could be our baby-sitter for the next twenty years. You could help me with my video business for the next fifty and be the perfect employee. You could have been born fourteen years later and ended up marrying Caleb and been the perfect daughter-in-law... but there is nothing, absolutely nothing, you could ever do that would top giving your life to Jesus as you have done. That makes us the happiest people on the face of the whole earth! No matter what happens the rest of our lives, no matter how close we may get to you, it all pales before the thought that we will get to spend the rest of eternity with our Brittnia. We love you...and then some! Michael T. Powers Heart4Teens@aol.com For those of you who would like to wish Brittnia a very happy birthday today, you can write to her at: brbrandl@hotmail.com ********* Michael T. Powers, the founder of HeartTouchers.com and Heart4Teens.com, is the youth pastor at Faith Community Church in Janesville, WI. He is happily married to his high school sweetheart Kristi and proud father of two rambunctious boys: Caleb & Connor. In his spare time he loves coaching the JV Lady Cougars basketball team in Clinton, Wisconsin. He is also an author with stories in 15 inspirational books including many in the Chicken Soup for the Soul series. To preview his book or to join the thousands of world wide readers on his inspirational e-mail list, visit: http://www.HeartTouchers.com Most importantly, Michael believes that life is not about religion, but about a relationship -- a relationship with Jesus Christ. __________________________________________ Thought For The Day: "Perserverance is a great element of success: if you only knock long enough and loud enough at the gate you are sure to wake up somebody." Verse for the Day: "Ask and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you."--Luke 11:9 Teen's Thought for the day: "I have never been hurt by anything I didn't say." Coach's Thought For The Day The Clinton Lady Cougars Rule! (Just wanted you all to know that) Deep Thought For The Day: "The money from this tobacco settlement should be used to fight illiteracy since people can't seem to read the Surgeon General's warning." _________________________________________ ALL-STAR Ministry --The Youth Church of Faith Community Church in Janesville, WI If you are in 6-12th grade and live in the southern Wisconsin/northern Illinois area and would like to check us out, we meet every Sunday night from 6:30-8:00 PM at Faith Community Church which is located at 2931 Lucerene Dr. in Janesville, WI. (About 4-5 blocks south-east of The Skating Place.) Currently we have students from Fort Atkinson, Milton, Janesville Craig, Janesville Parker, Orfordville, Clinton, Beloit Memorial, Beloit Turner, South Beloit, and Hononegah. E-mail me back if you have any questions about our weekly meetings or would like to come to any of our events that are listed below... We have way too much fun and then, most importantly, talk about issues that are relevant to you as a teenager. _______________________________________________ Change Is Here! Starting the week lots of exciting changes are going to happen: All-Stars will be extending its time to 6:00 - 8:30 PM on Sunday nights. 6:00 - 6:30 will be time for the youth to chat and discuss anything they want with the youth leaders or each other. 6:30 - 7:00 PM will be for games or fun activities and then 7:00 - 8:30 PM will be for the lesson and discussion time. Students are still welcome to "hang out" after 8:30 PM if they want, as the leaders are usually at the church until at least 10:00 PM, and some nights even later. (For the past couple of months the students have continually complained that we are running out of time before we get to really discuss the topics in full and asked if we could have longer teaching times... I know, most of you are probably now getting back up off the floor from the shock. We have been most encouraged that the teens have been wanting to stay longer to be able to discuss the lessons more fully.) The Outlet: "Get plugged into Jesus Christ!" (Teen Cell Groups) Wednesday night community groups for teens will also start this week. The groups will be limited to no more than ten teens and will be originally split into Jr. High and High School ages. This night is for those teens who want to dig deeper than what we do in All-Stars, but may not be ready to be a part of the Extreme Teens. These cell groups will also be doing special activities with each other as the year goes on to build community. "The Extreme Teens" (formerly the Core Group) will be starting Sunday March 16 from 5:00 - 6:00 PM at the church. This group will be very extensive with weekly homework, memorization, service projects, etc. Students interested in this group will have to fill out an application, provide references as to why others think they should be involved with this, and sign an agreement as to what is expected of them. (If your teen will also be attending All-Stars that night, they are encouraged to bring a sack lunch or snack to tide them over until 8:30.) We are very excited at what God will be doing with our youth! ______________________________________ UPCOMING EVENTS February 2/21 - 2/22 -- 30 Hour Famine (Students start fasting at 4 PM on Friday through 10 PM Saturday night.) Students need to meet at the church at 8 PM on Friday evening. We will be staying overnight at the church and then ending our fast on Saturday evening. The entire 30 hours are scheduled out with lessons and activities as the teens learn about what other people go through each and every day. March 3/2 Christianity 101 Class: 5:00 - 6:00 PM at church. 3/7 - 3/9 -- Fort Wilderness Winter Retreat (Cost: $94, which may go down as more fundraising is done, but we won?t know exactly until Sunday March 2. This price does not apply to those who helped with the Chili dinner. Your cost will be at the most $74.) Room and board is $78 per person with the extra $16 going to pay for van rentals and gas. Last year cost us over $800 just for van rentals and gas and we will be taking more people this year. Your teen?s $25 deposit is due Sunday February 23. Checks should be made out to "FCC Youth" and the balance is due on or before Wednesday March 5th. Teens will be meeting at the church at 4:30 PM on Friday March 7, departing for Fort Wilderness at 5 PM and returning to the church around 7 PM on Sunday evening. Teens will have regular meeting times where God?s truths are taught by the Fort Wilderness staff members but will also have plenty of time for fun activities. Activities included in the price are: Horseback Riding, broomball, ice skating, cross country skiing, nature hikes, inner tubing, etc. All meals are paid for, however your teen will want to bring money for fast food on our trip up and back as we will be stopping for food during the five hour drive. Extra spending money is up to you and your teen for snacks or purchases at the "Canteen". Teens need to bring their own bibles, towels, sleeping bags, and pillows, along with very warm clothes and winter gear. Warm hats or ski masks, gloves, boots, and layers of clothing are a must. _________________________________________ Author MICHAEL T. POWERS www.Heart4Teens.com "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." Galatians 2:20 ___________________________________________ Would you like to see your story in Heart4Teens.com? Writer's guidelines can be found on our Web site here: http://www.Heart4Teens.com/guidelines/ ___________________________________________ "I need a daily source of inspiration and encouragement in my life!" SUBSCRIBE: To become a Heart4Teens.com Member send a blank e-mail to: Heart4Teens-subscribe@myinjesus.com Then get ready to laugh, cry, and be deeply touched by some of the best stories on the Internet! __________________________________________ UNSUBSCRIBE: Send a blank e-mail to: Heart4Teens-unsubscribe@myinjesus.com __________________________________________ Do you feel as if life has no meaning for you? http://www.greatcom.org/english/four.htm __________________________________________ Author Michael T. Powers Contributing Author to Chicken Soup for the Teen's Soul on Love and Friendship and 14 other inspirational books. Check out his book: Straight From the Heart by visiting: http://www.HeartTouchers.com |
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Touching Lives - One E-mail at a Time! Author Michael T. Powers - HeartTouchers @ aol.com
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