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{Heart4Teens.com} *The First Jesus Freak* ______________________________________ 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 ______________________________________ Stephen, The First Jesus Freak Jerusalem, Israel 34 A.D. Across the courtroom, the young man on trial continued preaching. The jury fidgeted nervously as he told of their religious heritage and forefathers. What did Abraham and Moses have to do with Jesus? Another young man in the audience, about the same age as the defendant, seemed not to be listening. His mind was already made up on the matter of this Jesus follower. The crowd of Jewish leaders, however, grew more agitated at every word from the young defendant. Suddenly the preacher turned to the audience. You stubborn and hardheaded people! Youre always fighting against the Holy Spirit, just like your ancestors did. They killed the prophets who told about the coming of the Righteous One. And now you have turned against Him and killed Him. You have received the law of God, but you have not kept it. When the crowd heard this, they were even more furious, but the defendant ignored their growing anger. His face glowed like that of an angel, and he stopped talking and pointed to the ceiling. Look! I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God. This was too much. Yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him. They dragged him out of the city to stone him. He continued preaching all the way. The young man who had been in the audience, one Saul of Tarsus, followed after them. He stood a short distance away from the defendant, looking steadily at the sky as the mob grew larger. The cries grew more heated now. A man handed Saul his coat, then stooped to pick up a stone as though waiting for a signal from Saul. Saul lowered his gaze, then looked directly into the mans eyes and nodded. It was time to silence the young preacher. Stephen, the defendant, continued despite the crowds jeers, because the Man he was telling them about was so important to him. He couldnt stop talking about Him. Several more men had now removed their coats, handed them to Saul, and began gathering rocks, many of them so large that the men had to lift them with both hands. This blasphemer must be dealt with! He speaks against Moses! We dont want to hear about your Jesus anymore! A rock sailed past Stephens head. He stopped speaking long enough to duck it, dazed for a moment, then stood to continue. The second rock caught him near his temple, and he fell to his knees. Another hit his shoulder. Then there were too many to count. No more Jesus talk! Let this be a study to all who would proclaim this Jesus! Another stone found its mark. Then another. He couldnt open his eyes for the sting of the blood. His clothes were torn by the blows and blood dripped freely from the tatters. He began to pray, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. Then he scanned the crowd until his eyes locked with those of the young man who held the bundle of coats. And Lord, he continued, do not hold this sin against them. When he said those words, Stephen died. Slowly men gathered their coats from young Saul, who was soon alone with the body of the young preacher. Saul had come to Jerusalem to help silence this growing craze about Jesus of Nazareth. Despite his hatred, he could not shake the young mans words and how fearlessly he had faced death. He stood staring at the body of the first martyr for this Jesus. The glow that had so angered Saul was still on the young mans face. He had seen it as the smug pride of a heretic, but could it have been something else? He quenched the thought and turned away, more determined than ever to crush this Jesus movement. Read the Bibles account of this event in Acts 7 and find out what happened to Saul in Acts 9! As you read, keep in mind that it all started with a seed placed in his heart by a young man full of faith, grace, and power -- a Jesus Freak who could not stop telling people about Jesus, even if it meant sacrificing his life. * * * But the Lord said to Ananais, This man is my chosen instrument to carry my Name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my Name. (Acts 9:15-16, NIV). From: Jesus Freaks: Stories of Those Who Stood for Jesus by D C Talk and Voice of the Martyrs. Check out the Voice of the Martyrs website at: http://www.Persecution.com _________________________________________ LET'S GO SURFING DUDE! Having Thoughts of Suicide? Are you dealing with suicidal thoughts, or have you tried to commit suicide? Visit the link below before you do anything else! http://www.heart4teens.com/suicide __________________________________________ Thought For The Day: "Happiness is a perfume you cannot pour on others without getting a few drops on yourself." --Ralph Waldo Emerson Verse for the Day: "Happy are those who long to be just and good, for they shall be comletely satisfied." Matthew 5:6 Kid's Thought For The day: "Conquer yourself rather than the world." Parent's Thought For The Day "Babies are such a nice way to start people." --Don Herold Coach's Thought For The Day "Any fool can criticize, condemn, and complain. And most fools do." --Dale Carnegie Deep Thought For The Day: "Why do the signs that say "Slow Children" have a picture of a running child?" _________________________________________ 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! 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 _________________________________________ 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 6:00-8:30 PM at Faith Community Church which is located at 2931 Lucerene Dr. in Janesville, WI. (About 3 blocks south-east of The Skating Place.) Currently we have students from Fort Atkinson, Milton, Janesville Craig, Janesville Parker, Marshall, 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: 9/28 -- God of Losers Important Note: Both the Jr. High and Sr. High small groups will be meeting at the Powers house this week! _______________________________________________ UPCOMING EVENTS For Those Students Who Passed the Summer Challenge: We will be attending the Michael W. Smith/Mercy Me concert in Milwaukee on Thursday, October 16. We will also be heading to the Dells on Friday night October 17th and then returning Saturday night October 18th. The only money you would need to bring would be for snacks and souvenirs if you wanted to buy them! ___________________________________________ Upcoming Topics: 9/28 -- God of Losers 10/4 -- "God and..." or just "God." ______________________ All-Stars has extended 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. 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. 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 is doing with our youth! _________________________________________ Author MICHAEL T. POWERS www.Heart4Teens.com Contributing Author to Chicken Soup for the Teen's Soul on Love and Friendship and 15 other inspirational books. "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 |
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Touching Lives - One E-mail at a Time! Author Michael T. Powers - HeartTouchers @ aol.com
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