Go Dawgs!

It is a good day to be a Bulldog. The Diamond Dawgs are going to the College World series in Omaha, Nebraska and rumor has it that when the NCAA football preseason ratings come out in a couple weeks, The University of Georgia is expected to be at #1. I know I'm in Florida now, but I gotta say... "How 'bout them dawgs?" Where are the Florida Lizards... err, I mean Gators?

Visiting Memory Lane

Today, after several weeks of procrastinating, I restricted myself to my office and forced myself to clean. It is amazing what you find when you start sifting through old stuff. There were boxes of things that had not been opened for years. I uncovered all sorts of treasures. One of which was a picture of the first group of teenagers I ever youth pastored (East Chattanooga Church of God - C.R.U.N.C.H. Time Youth Ministries).

I was sitting in my office thinking about the way we use to do things. How I used to create newsletters with a copier, scissors, tape and a typewriter. Wow! I am also reminded of the mistakes I made and learned from. And even the lessons that God took me through. I wish that I would have kept a journal through all of this journey. What an amazing story it would make.

What about you? When you look back at where you have come from and what God has brought you through, what do you remember? Can you see God's finger in every trial and celebration? I remember being a 20 year old youth pastor and taking kids on a retreat being old enough to take care of 25 teeanagers but not being old enough to rent the van to take them. I'm also reminded of the excitement of getting ready for a youth service, hoping that maybe, just maybe one teen would get something out of it. My prayer today... "Lord, remind me of those times. Let me have that same excitement each time I minister to young people. Let me see them through those naive eyes once again. Soften my heart."

What is your prayer today?

The Refuge 2.0

For those of you that keep up with us but are unable to see our place of worship, here is the updated version of The Refuge sprinkled with our summer Boot Camp series theme. Enjoy!

Take the Poll

Help us out this week and take the poll at the bottom of the page. Take it only once so that our results can be as accurate as possible. Thanks and check out www.1students.com on a daily basis.

Your Field Manual

For those of you that missed it, we started our new series last week at the Refuge called Boot Camp. We layed the foundation for what this summer holds. We are going to change the course of history by standing up for what is moral and right. This week is week two in our Boot Camp series. The briefing will be entitled, "The Bible: Your Field Manual". We'll see you at 18:30 at headquarters.

Graduation Weekend

This weekend in the Sunday morning service, we will be recognizing all of our graduates. Don't miss it!

Get Camouflaged

Make sure that you wear your favorite camo stuff tonight. We are kicking off the summer with a bang. We are starting BOOT CAMP at 6:30pm. Tonight we take a stand and find out how we can turn the direction of our nation.