What A Night!!

First, I want to thank Aaron for getting the pizza for our party last night during youth group! Last night was by far the most teens we have had on a Wednesday night and I believe it was because of three things, The Sex Series, The Pizza and The Head Shaving. I am not sure if we can plan on having over 70 from here on out, but if we do then we are in desperate need of some more adult help. I had a great time last night and it is definitely worth shaving my head in order to get the truth about God's Word and Sex out to that many teens. I was super excited to see a bunch of new faces and I think they did pretty good at listening during the lesson (I did notice some of you trying to quiet them down and I really appreciate that)! Our next YWT meeting is next Tuesday the 4th of March at the Steury's house (I apologize for not getting to you Aaron and Judy earlier on this on, I think this is my second strike). Karolyn and I have been talking a lot about whether it would be wise for us to split the Jr. High and Sr. High! I know that everyone I have ever talked to and everything I have ever read says to split them ASAP no matter what the numbers are. I have wanted to do this for a long time now and know that is important for various reasons which we will talk about at the meeting, but their are a lot of questions that need to be answered first. I want to encourage you all and I truly believe the growth in our group is due in a LARGE part because of your help and efforst. Thanks for everything that you all do. You are storing up heavens in treasure and it is awesome to see. Thanks again.

-Joel

Wednesday Nights

OK, we need more adults up in the youth area on Wednesdsay Nights! You guys are doing an awesome job, but some of our "small" group sizes are 12,13 and sometimes even higher. I know that with the group of guys I had last night, if we want to accomplish anything serious in the time we have the group can't be much bigger than 7 people. I think the smaller the group size the more intimiate it can be and the deeper we can dig into their lives! I wanted to encourage you guys and let you know that I have seen lives changed over the last few months and have had numerous conversations with teens that are very positive. We are dealing with a different crowd than what we are used to and we need more help. I am going to contact a few people that have shown interest in the past and see if I can get them plugged in. If you guys know of anyone who would be good at it or has talked about it before please take the initiative to talk with them and see if they would be willing to help out. We have an awesome team right now and I am excited to see it grow. THANK YOU SO MUCH for everything that you guys do. We could never be as big as we are or impact as many teens as we have without all of YOU! I hope you guys have an awesome weekend and we'll see you next week when I lose my hair.

-Joel

Super Bowl Party & Other Things

I think the Super Bowl Party went very well this year. I am not sure exactely how many people watched the game but at least it was a "safe" party for those who came. We had great attendance and I did see a lot of good interaction between the teens as well as the adults with the teens. A big "Thank You" goes out to the Steury's who opened their home for this crazy time. Continue to pray for Aaron as he gets over this Pnemonia and for his speedy recovery. I forgot last night to thank Toby for the work he put in the Casa in the form of the picture colloage on the Casa counter (it looks awesome)! Again, thanks for all of your hard work and everything that you do for FOCUS Factor Ministries and more importantly for serving the LORD in His work. I know this is a hard stretch of the year as the teens have "cabin fever" and things can get a little crazy! Keep up the good work. I am very grateful for all of you and know we couldn't accomplish half of what we do without YOU and the time that you give. Have a great day and I look forward to the future.

-Joel