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{Heart4Teens.com} *Tornadoes* 4/14/03 ______________________________________ 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 or visit: http://www.heart4teens.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 _________________________________________ 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/ _________________________________________ Tornadoes Tornado season is here, which means you can expect to hear one of those bizarre news stories in which a twister sweeps through a neighborhood, completely demolishing one house, but leaving the nearly identical home next to it virtually untouched. Keep that phenomenon in mind as we approach another annual spring event--the commemoration of Passover and Easter. You've probably celebrated Easter since you were a kid, but what about Passover? Do you know much about it, or is it something you leave to your Jewish friends? If you've never thought about Passover before, now would be a great time to start. After all, it's no coincidence that Jesus' death and resurrection (the first Easter) took place during Passover. Passover started way back in the days of Moses as the Israelites were preparing to leave Egypt and set out for the Promised Land. God had sent nine plagues to get the attention of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. A tenth and final plague was about to occur. At God's instructions, faithful people in each Israelite home killed a lamb and splashed some of its blood on their doorframes. On a designated midnight, God passed through the land. When He saw the blood on the door, He "passed over" the house and no harm was done, but in every household without blood on the doorframe, the firstborn son died. So even though two dwellings may have looked nearly identical, the blood on the doorframe meant the difference between life and death. Fast-forward almost 1,500 years to another Passover. Two thieves hung on crosses, on either side of a third crucifixion victim. To most observers, one thief looked pretty much like another. But one criminal saw the blood of the figure next to him, dared to believe that He was the Savior, made a statement of faith, and was in Paradise that day. The other merely scoffed and died. The blood meant the difference between life and death. Fast-forward another 2,000 years. Two students in a youth group look and act very much alike--singing, praying, going to church, and being good normal teenagers. One has thought about the significance of Jesus' sacrifice and has made a commitment to Him, but the other has never gotten around to it. Jesus shed His blood for both of them, of course, but only one has "applied" it. Merely looking like a Christian doesn't result in abundant life here and now, and eternal life later on. Jesus' blood still means the difference between life and death. Think about these things this week as Passover and Easter approach. Think about them again each time you hear of tornadoes hitting one house and sparing another. Don't let another Easter "pass over" until you've considered the importance of responding to the sacrifice Jesus made on your behalf. A tornado is indiscriminate. It never distinguishes between what is destroyed and what is spared. God always does. On your own ... Read about the first Passover in Exodus 12:12-30: http://biblegateway.com/cgi-bin/bible?language=english&version=NIV&passage=Exodus+12%3A12-30 Read about the thieves who were crucified with Jesus in Luke 23:32-43: http://biblegateway.com/cgi-bin/bible?language=english&version=NIV&passage=Luke+23%3A32-43 Think about your own commitment to Jesus. Is it a genuine relationship, or are you just going through the motions of acting like a Christian? _________________________________________ LET'S GO SURFING DUDE! ~ Historical Evidence of Jesus' Resurrection Is it crazy to believe that someone can rise from the dead? Not if that someone is the Son of God! http://www.gospelcom.net/faithfacts/easter.html ~ Marshmallow Peeps Everything you ever wanted to know about everyone's favorite Easter candy. http://www.marshmallowpeeps.com/ __________________________________________ Thought For The Day: "Get on your knees and fight like a man." Verse for the Day: "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." --2 Chronicles 7:14 Teen's Thought for the day: "The way to get to the top is to get off your bottom." Parent's Thought For The Day "Children miss nothing in sizing up their parents. If you are only half convinced of your beliefs, they will quickly discern that fact."--Dr. James Dobson Coach's Thought For The Day "You always miss 100% of the shots you don't take." -- Wayne Gretzsky Writer's Thought For the Day "There are no dull subjects. There are only dull writers." --H.L. Mencken Deep Thought For The Day: "How much deeper would oceans be if sponges didn't live there?" --Steven Wright _________________________________________ REQUEST: Dear Michael: I hope this message finds you and yours very well. I am coming to you again to ask you for the immense favor of putting out for me a request for prayer for my father, Thomas D., who has been diagnosed with lung cancer. May he be healed, may he know peace and comfort, both physically and spiritually. Thank you so much for making this available to us, your readers. I do believe it helps. May God bless you mightily, Kim Luret Kimluret@aol.com _________________________________________ 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. THIS WEEK: All-Stars: We will continue with the last part of our True Love series. The Outlet: We continue with our Prayer of Jabez for Teens series! _______________________________________________ UPCOMING EVENTS Sunday April 27: Roller Skating at the Skatin' Place in Janesville. 7 - 9 PM. Cost $6. All money coming in is being donated by the Skating Place to our Guatemala Missions trip this summer! *********** Saturday, May 3 at 8:00 p.m. at Faith Community Church New Rocketown Recording Artist "Alathea" Tickets: $3 Advance $5 Door "Alathea exhibits strong talent" if you're ready for something fresh and invigorating instead of today's all-too-usual pop fare, then Alathea is definitely a group to check out. Gospelsite.net "Indian Creek. It's got a cool Americana vibe with its acoustic instruments and her plaintive delivery. This trio sounds like a star-in-the-making to me." "Music Row magazine (Robert K. Oermann review) "The sound could probably best be described as folk pop, very earthy with touches of country and bluegrass. While there is a very folksy country sound to the instrumentation of this album, it is tempered with a healthy dose of pop songwriting. The results are delightful." ChristianityToday.com *********** Friday May 9: Open Gym. Basketball and Volleyball. 7 - 9:30 PM. Tentatively scheduled for Clinton High School Gymnasium. Tuesday May 27: Taking a trip to Rev'd Up in Rockford. Go-Karting, Mini Golf, etc. Details and times forthcoming. Saturday June 21: Bowling at Blackbridge Bowl. 1 - 4 PM. ___________________________________________ Change Is Here! 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. The groups are 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) meets from 5:00 - 6:00 PM at the church. This group is 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! _________________________________________ 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 _________________________________________ Author MICHAEL T. POWERS http://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 __________________________________________ |
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Touching Lives - One E-mail at a Time! Author Michael T. Powers - HeartTouchers @ aol.com
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