Rooted Junior Hai

a long time update.

2009-11-04T17:20:00.000-08:00

So it has been a while since we've updated you all on what's been happening in rooted Jr. High, but here's a good ole overview:
We've started a series called SHAPE, which stands for Spiritual gifts, Heart/Passion, Abilities, Personality, and Experience. It's meant to show our awesome jr. hai'ers how they can best use their ability and how God has created and shaped them for His amazing work.
Other than that we've been continuing having a great time at Rooted whilst we have our awesome movie war that you can see on your youtube channel called "Rooted Junior Hai".

Our new series!

2009-10-26T17:48:00.001-07:00

Rooted has started a new series....and it's all about YOU! We are talking about how God S.H.A.P.E. s up! God created you uniquely for His glory!

So whether you are Page and Kayla, who are loud and love to throw cake...

Or weird Chandler who likes to eat shave ice...

Or boys who love to make funny faces....

Or Ryan, who has NO IDEA what is going on, ever...

Or Michael, who likes to make fun of Josiah!

God has formed you for HIS GLORY and HIS PURPOSES! you are not a mistake! See you Tuesday Nights!

Community as God Intended

2009-09-16T16:58:00.000-07:00

Wow, what a week, right? We as a group got to go to the BEAUTIFUL Iao Valley aka Jurassic Park minus the dinosaurs. Here's some sick pics of what went on and even a recap vid that I put together to commemorate the event!

Proverbs 10

2009-09-10T16:40:00.001-07:00

Have you been keeping up with the proverbs challenge?

Read a proverbs a day! Today is Sept. 10th, so I read Proverbs 10.

Here's the proverb that I liked:

Proverbs 10:19- Too much talk leads to sin. Be sensible and keep your mouth shut.

That's right. The Proverbs, THE WORD OF GOD, tells us to keep our mouths shut! By the way, I read out of the NLT (New Living Translation) version...you should get one.

I'm a talker. I love to talk. I'll talk to a door. I'll talk to the cat who walks on my car at night. I'll talk to my waitress. I'll talk to my surf board. I like to talk.

Here's the thing, though...sometimes, when I talk, it's like I don't even know what I'm saying after a while. Do you know what I'm talking about? (no pun intended). It's like, the girl inside my head is saying to the girl on the outside, "WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? I'M LEAVING. YOU CAN HANDLE THIS WITHOUT ME"

The girl in my head is a smart chick. She likes to compare modern day authors to classic literature. She knows the history of Maui. She also has a keen eye for exceptional art and a keen ear for up and coming music. The girl in my head desires to please God and be a DOER of the Word and not just a HEARER (james 1:22-25). I like the girl in my head.

It's the girl on the OUTSIDE that freaks me out. She is crazy. She likes to sit and watch tv shows and reality shows all night. She pretends to not "hear" people when they ask her to do something. She even speeds on the highway because she is in a hurry. She is super impulsive.

Especially with words.

Back to the "two girls" that live in me: Paul in the New Testament even talks about his "flesh" fighting with his "spirit":

"I don't really understand myself, for i want to do what is right, but I don't do it. Instead, I do what I hate...I want to do what is right, but I can't...I have discovered this principle of life--that when I do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong...I love God's law with all my heart, but there is another power within me that is at war with my mind." Romans 7:14-23

Crazy!

So as far as the words go that I say, I've realized this: I need to have self control in what I say. I need to stop talking sometimes. I need to say things that my heart and mind want to say, and not from the flesh.

SHUT YOUR MOUTH AND BE SENSIBLE :)

Here's the good news in Romans: "Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord!" Romans 7:25

KEEP READING PROVERBS!

Whit

FINDING SYDNEE

2009-09-08T17:48:00.000-07:00

Check it out: Last week's video. So we told Syndee not to go into the woods, but she didn't listen! Can Thayna, Jarrett, Alyssa, and Noa find her in time? Is the journey too hard?

We are starting a new series in Proverbs this fall. We are going to learn how to make good choices by listening and following the words of the wise. Our challenge this month? Read a Proverbs a day :) What is today's date? September 8th! So Read Proverbs 8!

If you come to Rooted with your fave proverb of the week written down, your name goes into a drawing to win a Rooted shirt at the end of the month! Super Super Cool!

Glenn is going to be sharing this week about his testimony and some proverbs that helped him through life!

ALSO, WE ARE GOING TO IAO VALLEY THIS SATURDAY! MEET AT THE CHURCH AT 9AM! WE WILL BE BACK AT 2PM! BRING A LUNCH!

A Newish Era

2009-09-02T17:43:00.000-07:00

So it's a sort of newish era in rooted history. We now have a completely new combination in leadership in whitney and myself (glenn). I know that it's going to be an amazing time and I know that in time I'll be able to get to know you all so well! This is just a little welcome, and I want to leave you with one of my favorite verses and just contemplate it and keep it close to your heart!

Ephesians 4:1-7

I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. 7 But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ's gift.

Remember that time we played Kajobe

2009-08-14T16:52:00.000-07:00

Kajobe Can Can is a game played with a trashcan and rope. Pictures:

Skits from Last tuesday!

2009-08-13T18:22:00.000-07:00

I did it.

I put those skits on YouTube for the world to see...

Hilarious, updated versions of well-known bible stories.

Which one was your fave?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bs-t1CDu_Fo Part 1 of our Junior Hai skits!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FEkuNsAqCvo Part 2 of our Junior Hai skits!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TeCPY93VMA8 Part 3 of our Junior Hai skits!!!

Lanai camp Oh Nine!

2009-07-31T17:27:00.001-07:00

Want to see more Lanai camp OH NINE pics? go here!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2788439&id=8311439&l=c5d3a245b1

I'm going to get a little Philosophical

2009-07-15T15:29:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite things to do is to research teen culture. I like to see what is going on in the world of young adults in the media, news, music, movies, ect. I especially like to see what the "stars" and celebrities are talking about. A lot of times, these "stars" are people who are living day to day, trying to get ahead, and have been blindsighted and hurt by their own success. In the end, they are lost and depraved...perhaps the most to be pitied of us all.

Why?

They don't know the Lord. They don't know the life of love and peace that comes from Jesus.

Why am I talking about this on our Rooted blog? Because it is important to know what our society and culture is thinking and saying because that is being fed to our nation...to our friends and family and neighbors. We need to know these things so that we can show them the light.

Speaking of the "light", in Rooted, that is what we've been talking about...our identity in Jesus. He says WE ARE LIGHT. We ARE light. We cannot be anything else.

Check out this quote:

"All this talk about happiness and sadness and darkness and light. Both things always exist cocurrently. I am a happy guy, but I'm also a very sad guy. It just happens to be at the same time" Coldplay's Chris Martin in Spin Magazine, July 2008

Can you destroy this quote? My heart goes out to Chris Martin, who, by the way, is married to Gwenyth Paltrow and have a daughter named Apple.

First of all, he himself confesses that he is sad and happy. Dude, you are the lead singer of a super-sick band known worldwide. How are you still sad? You have it all. Money. Fame. A family. Everything.

Does he know the Lord? I'm not trying to judge his salvation, but would he be so confused if he had tasted the goodness of the salvation of God? Does he know the Love of God?

Secondly, he claims that we can be two different things. We can be darkness and light. This is wrong. If we are light, we cannot be dark. We cannot be two different things.

If you know Jesus, you ARE THE LIGHT. You cannot be dark any longer or ever again. This is what sets us apart from the lost and dying world. We are not like them. We are light.

Keep being salt and light. And keep up with the culture of this day. Pray for people to see the hopelessness of this world and the HOPE that comes from knowing the Lord.

A Tuesday Night like No Other...

2009-07-08T12:54:00.000-07:00

If you've been coming to Rooted at all this summer, you know that we have been talking a lot about being "Salt" and "Light". That's what Jesus says we are as believers in Matthew 5:13-16. We have really been breaking these words down and trying to figure out how we can do that in everyday life. Last week, Papa Juan challenged us to be salt and light in the everyday things...going surfing, doing chores...how are we any different from the rest of the world?

So last tuesday night, we decided to actually do what we've been learning. We looked at Colossians 4:2-5, which says:

"Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. ³ Pray for us, too, that God will give us many opportunities to speak about his mysterious plan concerning Christ. That is why I am here in chains. ⁴ Pray that I will proclaim this message as clearly as I should. ⁵ Live wisely among those who are not believers, and make the most of every opportunity. "

What did we do, then? We prayed. The students had no idea what this night would hold...Even I as a leader had NO IDEA what was going to happen. All we knew was that it was time to pray for opportunities and to make the most of every opportunity.

We prayed that God would keep us safe as we did whatever we were going to do. We prayed that we would have words to say. We prayed that God would give us direction. The students were asking God to do some amazing things.

After we prayed as a group, I asked the students, "Okay, so what did God tell you while we were praying. Did anyone get a picture or a word?" The students asked if we can use cars, and we told them, whatever God wanted them to do, God will provide what they need.

So we broke up our leaders with cars into 3 groups, and we were sent out to be salt and light... and to be back by 7:50...we had one hour.

And what an hour it was.

As I came into the room when all the students returned, you could feel the energy and the excitement. They couldn't wait to share what God did that hour. They were glowing. Literally, each student came back into our youthroom changed. They really did look like physical lights!

We sat down, not in a circle, but in a huge cluster, each student wanting to get the groups attention to share what had happened. Here are their testimonies of God using them:

Stories of how they were able to pray for people, invite people to Friday night service, and talk to people that they knew about the love of God!

We go to KAM3 every thursday...the students decided they want to talk about God to everyone they see...

Wow!

Hume Videos

2009-07-03T12:38:00.000-07:00

My favorite Hume Video from when we made Noa and Kayla do the crab walk in the "Great Race" on the last day of Rec at camp.

Nothing bring greater joy to my heart than watching my junior high kids do something they really hate.

Rooted is Moving to TUES NITES!

2009-06-25T17:22:00.000-07:00

Rooted Junior Hai is no longer going to be on Sunday nights!!! STARTING THIS TUESDAY NIGHT, JUNE 30TH, WE WILL BE HAVING JUNIOR HAI EVERY TUESDAY NIGHT FROM 6-8PM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

End of May in Pictures....

2009-06-03T18:55:00.000-07:00

Evan and Kenze graduate 8th grade from Doris Todd!
Vini hangs out with Lil Rio and Kayla at the graduation!

Kids chillin' at beach baptism (5 Rooted students got baptized!)

Marina and Joshua sing for talent show!

Chandler and his parents at the talent show!

Kayla and Kenze

Josh and Rio serving food

Marina and Ana are going to HUME!

Luke is a rockstar!

Car Music Video

2009-05-27T13:09:00.000-07:00

So about two weeks ago, we were on our way to the Maui Food Bank to do a service project, and this song came on the radio.

Whitney: OMG, this is my favorite song right now!

Girls: Mine too! Turn it up, turn it up!

We played it loud and screamed obnoxiously. Then, get this...it came on another station ten minutes later! Crazy! So we pulled over to McDonalds (waiting for the guys and Marla) and made a little car music video.

Without any further ado, here are my girls, Rio, Kayla, Danielle, and Taylor, singing their heart out to "You Found Me" by the Fray...

You so want to go to Rooted Service Projects.

NOA

2009-05-12T18:07:00.000-07:00

There is only one kid I know who can make me want to kill him and make me die laughing in the same moment: Noa. After our run-ins this weekend, it is safe to say I've never met anyone with the charisma and energy this kid had.

7th grader at Doris Todd where he plays the trumpet. Takes drum lessons from Jeremy on Tuesdays, where I get to chat it up with him on the couch while waiting for Jeremy. Avid surfer. Carpools with Kayla, Mackenze, Zoe, and Evan. Besties with Tristan, Luke, and Evan. An only child....

Noa can also do really good impressions. He does a really good Whitney impression.

Noa also wishes he could be an island for May Day :)
Noa has a heart of gold. We've had many-a-talks about loving people and how Noa always looks out for the feelings of others. It's no wonder he has so many friends. I can always count on him to show up to events, as well as to be a leader at those events, whether it's a Movie Night or the Maui Food Bank!

Noa also always prays for us. He never refuses to pray when I ask him at Rooted, and he is always willing to serve in any way.

And he is hilarious.
It's not easy being a junior high heartthrob, but somebody's gotta do it.

We LOVE FOOD!

2009-05-05T16:57:00.000-07:00

Rooted Jr. High students LOVE food. But what do they love more than food? Feeding the hungry! Which is EXACTLY what we will be doing this saturday.

Did you know that every five seconds, one child dies of hunger in the world? By the time it takes you to finish reading this post, 12 children would have died due to hunger. We can help!

This Saturday, the maui food bank needs help sorting the canned food they received from their food drive this spring. Rooted is going to help!

Be at the church at 4:30pm. We will be back by 8:30pm. Wear closed toed shoes (no cute slippers, boo!) and we will be getting dinner! Come prepared to work and help serve the hungry of Maui. They are counting on us to be there to help!

Marina and Mackenze will be there. Will you? We went to the food bank this past fall with High School, and we had a blast. Helping the hungry AND having fun? The possibilities are endless!

This Sunday, Rooted helps the Furnace!

2009-04-28T14:04:00.000-07:00

What happens when Rooted meets the Furnace? It's beautiful. This Sunday night, High School aka the FURNACE, is having an auction night to help raise money for their mission trip to LA! High school always helps junior high, so it's only fitting that junior high gives back to them! Our beautiful high school leader RIO is going on her first mission trip to Hume! This post is dedicated to Rio and all she does for us! Good luck raising money, Rio baby!

Be at Rooted this sunday night to help High School! We are serving the Lord by serving our brothers and sisters!

What Marley Wrote...

2009-04-21T18:21:00.000-07:00

To prepare for Easter three weeks ago, we asked some of our students to answer the question, "What is Jesus to you and what does the cross mean to you?" The students then were able to share that with the rest of junior high. When we were thinking about specific students we wanted to share, this beautiful young girl Marlena (aka Marley) came to our mind. She wrote out what she wanted to say, and I got her permission to share it. Here she is, and her love for her Savior in her own words:" What is Jesus to me? My savior, my Go, my best friend. That is what Jesus is to me. One of my goals is for Jesus to be in my life. I want people to look at me and be able to see Jesus in me. He is someone who I can go to when there is a storm in my life. I can always count on him to make me feel better. He's also the best friend you could ever have. He will always love me even if I have betrayed him. He always forgives when I sin. When I am in pain mentally or physically, I always go to him for help. For example, when I have a stomache, I ask God if he can make it go away. And when I am having trouble with school, I always go to him and I ask him to help me make the right decision.

What does Jesus dying on the cross mean to me? When I think about how Jesus dyed on the cross for all of us, all I can think is, "Wow, he really loves us!" I don't know if I would ever be able to do something like that. It's kind of like every day we say, "I love you, Mom", "I love you, Dad", but if you think about it, would we give our life for them? That is how much God loves us. I think that by dying on the cross for us, he is showing us how much he loves us. Jesus sacrificed his life for all of the sins that we would make. The way that I look at it, is that he sacrificed himself so that when we sin, he can forgive us. i think that he can do that, because he died to take the consequences of our sins off of us. When we sin, it's like we're crucifying him.

There are some words from a song I would like to share with you, because it really means a lot to me and it says: Be with me, Lord when I am in trouble. Be with me Lord I pray. I like this song because when I am in trouble, I know that God will be with me"

Here's Marley and some of her crazy friends from our Girl's Purity Retreat. (Kamalei, Janae, Kayla, and Marley) We are so blessed to have these girls!

tHe mAnY FaCeS of KAYLA

2009-04-20T22:57:00.000-07:00

I just got done having Starbucks with an intelligent, beautiful, sweet, generous, fun-loving, God-loving young woman...No, i didn't go get coffee by myself. I actually went with this chick named Kayla. I'm going to introduce her with this picture of her spitting popcorn onto Taylor's whipped cream-covered face. Just one of the many faces of Kayla... A true friend: Kayla. Kayla is a spunky, if not a little overly-dramatic, 7th grader who goes to Doris Todd. Did I mention she's a Brazillian? She is lovingly referred to as "Krazy Kayla"...the stories I could tell about this girl, but she probably is already having a heart attack because I'm posting these pictures...

Why am I talking about Kayla this week? Look at her. There is so much to tell from that face. This face says, "Hey. I know I'm pretty ridiculous. But guess what. I don't care!" that's what I love about this girl. she is so confident in who she is and in who God made her. She is a strong young woman who isn't embarrassed about ANYTHING. I mean, nothing shakes this girl. She will always stand up for what she believes in and she will always delight in who the Lord made her. Even though she's 10 years younger than me, she teaches me about being confident in who the Lord has made me.

My favorite memory of Kayla is when I taught her to drive. Praise the Lord she has a couple more years until her permit. I think this face is her "old man driving" face. What an actress. She truly does have the gift of drama...in theatre! She's done a skit in junior high for us, and it was incredible. She, of course, played the Bad Girl. What a rebel. She's not afraid to get up infront of a crowd. In fact, she even read her obituary for the whole Rooted junior high one night when we were talking about "dying" to ourselves to follow Christ. Okay, this picture is going to get me into a ton of trouble. I have no idea why she was making that face. Alex was giving her a facial. Every time I took at this picture (even right now, as I keep glancing up as I'm typing), I literally laugh out loud (not just computer lol, you know?) It reminds me of a dying giraffe, gasping for her last breathe. But she still looks happy. Kayla is always looking on the bright side of things. Even when I give her embarrassing books, or things go terribly wrong at school, she still manages to say, "But that's okay, Whitney...I'll get over it." What a great chick. Always trusting the Lord! Kayla, I'm so sorry for putting this picture up. BAHAHAHAHAHHA!

At Starbucks today, Kayla and I were going over her lesson that SHE IS GOING TO TEACH this Tuesday at girl's bible study. It's about Deborah. I'm so stoked to hear her teach. She has some amazing wisdom and insight in the the things of our God. She wants to teach our bible study that God uses women in the bible to show His glory. One of the points she wants to hit is that each one of us have been given a talent to use for the Lord. Kayla's talent: dance. This girl can dance hula and ballet. In fact, she dances hula on stage for Hope pretty frequently. With as crazy as this girl can be, when she dances for the Lord, she is so peaceful. It's absolutely breath-taking. She is a gorgeous daughter of the king, dancing solely for her Daddy. But it doesn't stop there. Kayla, along with her friend Mackenze, help teach ballet at the church to 4 and 5 year olds. I know. I can't get over it either :)

Kayla loves fashion. The outfits she gets away with sometimes make me want to vomit. She's so stylish! But thrifty, too! I love her sense of expressing who she is through her clothing. She stands out, definitely, but all for the Lord's glory.

Kayla, I love you, sister. Now you can go have a dramatic episode on how you can't believe I would do this to you... believe it. I love you! And I'm so thankful the Lord put you in my life! You are going to rock the kingdom!

Kayla's verse: "Blessed is the man (woman) who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him. She will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out it roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit." Jeremiah 17:7-8

Rooted goes to see Invisible Children

2009-04-15T18:56:00.000-07:00

www.invisiblechildren.com
Invisible Children...even though you can't see them, they are there. We are talking about the Invisible Children of Uganda. These children are abducted from their homes and forced to become child soldiers in the rebel army. It's been a war that has gone on for over 20 years...and is still going on now. These children are taken from everything they know, their families, their homes, and put into the rebel army as slaves. They carry guns and are tortured if they leave...and they are around the age of a junior high student. They are 11, 12, or 13.

What are we going to do about it? This Sunday night, the Hope Chapel Interns are showing a screening of the Invisible children at 7pm. How perfect that it is right during our Rooted meetings! Rooted is going to go as a group to see the showing of the film and to find out ways to get involved.
It is unjust that these children are forced into war slavery. The bible is clear that God fights for justice. In fact, Micah 6:8 tells us what is good to God: "TO ACT JUSTLY, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God." God does not turn his eyes away or closes his ears to the cries of those who are hurting and who are oppressed.

Come Sunday and see what it's all about.

Tristan plays some guitar...

2009-04-07T13:55:00.001-07:00

Every week, there will be a JUNIOR HIGH STUDENT OF THE WEEK...meaning, we will be profiling some of our talented and unique students!

This whole idea stemmed from our VERY FIRST Student of the Week, TRISTAN! Tristan is extremely gifted in guitar, and after listening to some of his stuff, I decided he was too good to just keep to myself! He taught himself guitar thru youtube.

Tristan is a 7th grader at Kihei Charter School. This kid is memorable- he leaves a lasting impression on everyone he meets. Aside from his guitar skills, he has incredible likability with his friends. I've not met one person who does not love Tristan. He has a sweet and gentle spirit, as well as a fun-loving and witty personality.

Above all, my favorite thing about Tristan is his desire to see others come to know the Lord. He has brought so many of his friends to church, and people come to church because they know Tristan will be there. He sets such a great example of a young man after God's own heart- he even sits in the front row on Friday nights and right in the front for Rooted on Sunday nights. His desire to please the Lord is apparent in the way he is also available to serve- whether it be on the Junior Hai Greeting Team on Friday nights, or helping during our Movie Nights.

My personal favorite Tristan moment was late last year, when I was just trying to establish myself in the youth ministry as a leader. Tristan was in his phase where he thought being a punk was super cool (ha!). This is also when he had some long hair, too! Anyways, he was sitting in the back, causing a ruckus, and I came up behind him to control him.

"Tristan," I said. "You are a leader and people watch what you do. Use your powers for good, not for bad. You can do better." He looked at me, obviously kind of preturbed at me. However, later that night, apparently I was causing a ruckus, and he came up to me and said, "Whitney, you are a leader. I expect better from you." Now, a normal person would have seen this as total smart alleck, but I bursted into laughter. It was super witty and not meant to be disrepectful. Since then, we've been close.

My prayer for Tristan is that he would follow Jesus because he knows his voice, and not other strangers, because he will not recognize their voice. (John 10:4-5) The word I have for Tristan to describe him is ZEAL- "Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord." I love you, Tristan!

I could go on and on about Tristan and how much I love this child of God, but I'll just let his light shine for the Lord through this video. He wrote this song and performed it for me.

BOLT Family Fun Night

2009-04-07T13:42:00.000-07:00

If you haven't been to a Hope Chapel Family Fun Night, I have one question for you: WHY? For the showing of BOLT, we actually had CLOWNS! This is Mark, one of our clowns. The other clown was one named "Petals", who just happens to be Mark's Mom!

We had some fun games for the keikis! Throwing bean bags into the frog's mouth happens to be a Hope Chapel Trademark game! Tristan and Rio show how it's done!

We love little ones! Shane spent time playing with the kids, while letting them tackle him to the ground.

And if you get hungry, Melisa and Camy will show you how to make a good hot dog! Ketchup and mustard is a must!

Rooted Family Fun Nights are a BLAST! We were able to see some junior highers we hadn't seen in quite a while, as well as new friends! The movie was great, too! Outdoor movies are the best! Thank you to all who came! See you at the next one!

Jr. High Pirate Whale Watch Pics

2009-03-25T13:17:00.000-07:00

BOLT MOVIE NIGHT!

2009-03-24T13:03:00.000-07:00

I have a confession...I have a Miley Cyrus "Got Milk" poster in my office here at the church. Why am I telling you this? Because there is an event coming up that is going to make me a very happy girl...

THIS SUNDAY NIGHT, WE WILL BE WATCHING AN OUTDOOR SHOWING OF THE MOVIE BOLT!

That's right, big screen, beach chairs, blankets, and the stars. And, of course, food and games.

If you remember last month, we did a Madagascar 2 Movie Night, and it was a blast! It is so awesome to see the whole community come out and spend time together.

The movie starts at dark. Games and food will start at 5:00pm. The movie is free, and food will be available to buy!

I wanted to share a quick story with you about why Movie Night is such an incredible event:

Recently, I've had this desire to go out to my neighbors and meet them, just to get to know them. I live in the apartments across from Safeway, and there are SO many people who live there. I've really wanted to reach them for the Lord and love them where they are. I thought that many of the people in my apartment complex would enjoy a free movie out on the lawn, especially since it is Spring Break. What a great way for Hope Chapel to make a positive influence on the community!

I took Nohea Kim and his little sister Kaiemi with me. I had printed up a ton of flyers and decided to go door to door and just meet my neighbors and invite them for the movie. It was so cool to see how God used that time for me to get to contact my neighbors. I met many who said they would LOVE to come. I've been praying for them, BY NAME, since I met them, praying that they would come and that the Lord would use the night for my neighbors to know the Lord.

ALL THAT TO SAY: Invite your neighbors, family and friends to HOPE CHAPEL FAMILY FUN NIGHT, THIS SUNDAY starting at 5pm. See you there :)

Imitators of God

2009-03-09T13:39:00.000-07:00

If you weren't there Sunday night, you missed such a treat.

Aside from indoor soccer (with a slight injury of Nash's big toe), peanut butter and animal cracker speaking contests (Jesus is the best thing that has happened to me!), and a full-band worship with Bodey, Orry, Shane, and special guest Josh Mac, we had a return special guest speaker: that's right, THE PAPA JUAN came and hung out for a second night last night. If you haven't heard of Papa Juan, you can catch him on Friday Nights at Hope Chapel's "The Gathering". He is the Friday Night intern, and he sometimes speaks on Friday nights, or even sometimes gives announcements. He loves to give shout outs to the junior highers.

This Sunday night, we continued to go through Ephesians. Papa Juan went over Ephesians 5:1-2: "Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children, and live a life of love, just as Christ loved you and gave his life as a fragrant sacrifice to God."

Here's a cool fact we learned: Baby whales learn from Mama whales how to sing and jump out of the water. They IMITATE their mama. Papa Juan used to imitate gangsta' rappers.

Here were the questions of the night: What things of God do we need to imitate? What things of the world do we need to stop imitating?

Good questions to think on! Are we living a life of love?

We ended the night with 2 small groups: one for guys, and one for girls. The guys had a time of praying with each other, while the girls talked about how good it was to be together with believers in church (as some had been away for a while).

If you missed this week, there's more to come! SUNDAYS 6-8PM IN THE YOUTHROOM!

March Madness!

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It feels like March will be an incredible month! With Spring Break close, we have so much to look forward to! Our last movie night was a success, all because of our amazing jr. high workers trying to work for Hume Lake in the summer. Our next movie night will feature the movie BOLT! with Miley Cyrus and John Travolta. It will be on Sunday March 29th from 5-8pm. More information to come!

Our girls and boys retreats were amazing as well. From what I heard from the boys' retreat, they went into caves and were scared by gorillas. The Guys and Girls both were able to learn about Purity and loving the Lord with all their hearts, souls, minds, and strength. (Mark 12:30) Our fun thing for March will be a WHALE WATCH on March 24th.

We are studying the book of Ephesians at Rooted. We have recently finished Ephesians 4, talking about Unity in the Body. The students are really becoming unified and making new friends and encouraging each other!

Remember: Rooted every Sunday night at 6pm in the Youthroom! See you there!

What a BIG WEEK!

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Okay, let's recap:

Madagascar 2 was an INCREDIBLE night. We had so many people show up for the bazaar beforehand and for dinner, and then we had lots of families and people on the lawn to watch the movie! Thank you to everyone who made it a success!

This week:

We have our purity retreat for our guys and for our girls! Everyone will meet at the church at 9am on Saturday Morning (feb. 21) and then the girls will leave for Keanae, and the boys will leave for Uncle Pat's property (a change from the original location of Polipoli). We will be back around 1pm on Sunday afternoon (feb. 22). Hope you can make it!

This sunday night, instead of regular Rooted, we will participate in the all-church prayer night! Make sure you are here at 6pm for dinner, then prayer, then dessert! Call if you have questions!

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength." Mark 12:30

FEBRUARY CALENDAR!

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Tristan and Chandler express LOVE for one another: "No one has ever seen God, but if we LOVE one another, God lives in us, and His love is made complete in us" 1 John 4:12

Here are the things coming up in February!

Feb. 6th- Junior High Fundraiser- Friday night dinner of Shoyu Chicken, Rice, Salad, and Corn!

Feb. 15th- MADAGASCAR MOVIE NIGHT! 4-8pm! $5 meal tickets, concessions, free games, and a FREE OUTDOOR SHOWING of MADAGASCAR 2! At Hope Chapel in the Courtyard...You should come!

Feb. 21-22- Guys/Girls Purity Retreat. Everyone meet at the church at 9am on Saturday, the 21st, and we will be back by 1pm on Sunday the 22nd. The Guys are going to camp at Poli Poli, and the girls are going Keanae and staying in the Kepler Cabin! Make sure you sign up to come...we need permission slips signed.

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As always, call if you have questions! The verse for today is this:

"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith, who, for the joy set before Him, endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." Hebrews 12:2

Our New Blog!

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Aloha Family and Friends of Rooted!

We have a new blog that will be updated regularly to help keep you connected with what's going on! Pictures and news will always be posted! Any questions? 879-3853 and ask for Whitney