Diocese of Georgia Youth ProgramsMarch 2014 - Lent IV
In This Issue
Spring Rally
Youth Presence
Congratulations Fran and Roger!
Resurrection Planter
Youth Programs Photos
Sewanee Mission Trip & Pilgrimage
Teaching Children to Worship Deeply
Summer Camp
Calendar
Join Our Mailing List
Internet Links



Pray the Stations of the Cross
Fridays in Lent make the perfect time for praying through the Stations of the Cross. Many churches in the Diocese offer this as a service on Good Friday, while a few offer this every Friday in Lent. But you can pray through the journey of Jesus' passion (which means suffering). The Stations of the Cross developed as a liturgy in Jerusalem around the fifth century when it was created for pilgrims then flocking to the Holy Land. In time this service developed into 14 stations, marked along the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem.

Eight of these stations are based directly on the Gospel accounts of the crucifixion, while stations 3,4,6,7,9 and 13-including those of Jesus falling three times, meeting his mother, and having a woman wipe his face-are inferred from the Gospels or taken from pious legends of the crucifixion. Click on the image above or this link for the brief service you can pray through on your own in less than 20 minutes: Stations of the Cross
Spring Rally: Be Who Christ is Calling You to Be!
 
At the end of Lent are you going to need a big Honey Creek fix?
 

 Come on out to the Creek for Spring Rally!  The Spring Rally leadership team has been hard at work planning a packed weekend.  There will be singing, worship, games, small groups, large groups, prayer stations, and event a talent show!  The retreat with a leadership component. Young people not only learn more about being who Christ is calling them to be, but they are also given resources that increase their leadership skills to help them  lead both diocesan youth events and events at their home parishes.  

 

 Spring Rally will be held at Honey Creek April 25-27.  The retreat is for youth in grades 6-12; cost is $114.50.

 

Plan Now for Youth Presence Workshops
The Diocese of Georgia is teaming with Youth Presence Ministries to help multiple congregations create or further develop a strong youth presence in their context of ministry. It is the belief of Youth Presence Ministry that Youth Ministry is different in every place and possible in every place. The programs offered will focuses on the local congregation and their unique setting, circumstances, challenges and hopes for the future. This model also fosters church growth by the presence and interface of young people in their midst. 

All Congregations wishing to participate must send at least six participants to the workshops. The workshops will be held Friday from 6-9 and Saturday from 8:30-3:30. These participants should be people who are passionate about creating a youth presence in your church community. They don't have to be the adult youth leaders. At the vision workshop, they will be given skill to help find these people. Participants must commit to coming to the training sessions and, most importantly, working to implement the vision plan in the congregation. 

For more information, click here for a PDF: Youth Ministries Overview

Vision Session Schedule: Attend one of the following


Congratulations to
Roger and Fran Speer!
 
They are new parents, shown pictured here at right with their baby, Fynn Alton Speer, born a month early on Saturday, March 15. Roger works full time at St. Luke's Rincon as their Children and Youth Minister. Fynn is their first child.
 
Can't wait to see this little guy grow up and become old enough to come to Camp at Honey Creek!  Oh wait, he will when his mom and dad come to serve on the Spiritual Director team during Camp St. Peter I.
Resurrection Planter 
Need a project or discussion to talk about the Resurrection and Holy Week?  Why not make a resurrection planter this Lenten season.  This project is a great one for the younger people in your church.  Click hear for more instructions.  Katie Bryant at St. Timothy's Episcopal Church in Winston-Salem, North Carolina did this activity last year and it was a success with multiple Sunday school classes. 

 

Italy or Bust!
Good Shepherd pilgrims met together Sunday night and chose Italy as the destination of their pilgrimage next summer in 2015!
 
 
Who does this?
We have no clue.  We want to show off real moments from around the Diocese.  Send your youth group pictures to Elizabeth at eburns@gaepsicopal.org
Sewanee Mission Trip & Pilgrimage
The Sewanee Mission Trip and Pilgrimage is still accepting interested high school students who are able to travel to Sewanee, Tennessee June 23-30. This journey outward to Sewanee will be accompanied by an inward journey as we come to a realization that God is not in one place alone but in every place and every person. Participants will gain a deeper appreciation for their sense of place in creation, a sense of connection to those whom they may not see on a regular basis and the knowledge that they carry that connection with them through the rest of their lives.


Those who are currently enrolled in 9-12 grade are encouraged to join the Pilgrimage and Mission Trip to Sewanee, Tennessee, June 23-30. We will be working with the Community Action Committee, a community outreach program based in and closely associated with Otey Memorial Parish (an Episcopal Church in Sewanee).

Pilgrimage and Mission Trip Coordinator, the Rev. Joshua Varner, "We embark on this mission, not because we will change the world during our 8 or 9 days in Sewanee this coming summer, but because in traveling we will begin to change ourselves, and begin to bring about the dream God has for us and all creation."

The group will stay in the reflective setting of St. Mary's Sewanee, a retreat center founded by the Episcopal Sisters of St. Mary and will work at the convent and in the surrounding area. The trip will take place June 23-30, 2014, and the approximate cost is $1,000. Financial aid is available for anyone considering the trip. Please email Joshua Varner at jvarner75@gmail.com with questions.

A flyer with more complete information, including contact information on how to follow up, is online here: Pilgrimage and Mission Trip 2014

The registration form is online here: Sewanee Trip Registration

Teaching Children To Worship Deeply
The Savannah Convocation is sponsoring a Teaching Children To Worship Deeply: A Lenten Learning Day on Saturday, March 29th 2014 from 9am-1pm at Christ Church, Savannah. 

 

The Rev. Jeff Jackson, rector of St. Nicholas Episcopal Church in Hamilton, Georgia, will speak on engaging children worship, including Sunday worship and family devotions. Father Jeff is the father of four children, and has done children and youth ministry for almost 20 years. The day will include workshops led by dynamic church leaders in our convocation. 

 

 

Workshops include: 

 

Becoming Disciples Through Prayer (for children of all ages) 
Misty L. Graham, Director of Christian Education at St. Thomas', Savannah 

Kids Say the Darndest Things: Preaching To & With Children
The Rev. Jeff Jackson, Rector of St. Nicholas', Hamilton

Teach them well: When Sunday School no longer works
The Rev. Canon Frank Logue

The Bible isn't boring and Hymns rock:
Teaching Children to Worship Deeply through Scripture and Song
The Rev. Helen White, Vicar of All Saints, Tybee Island  

 

 

 

Got Something to Share? 
Please send in pictures, youth group games and activities, and stories to Elizabeth Burns at eburns@gaepiscopal.org 
 

 

Summer camp is the stuff! Reserve your spot at honeycreek.org 

 

Calendar at a Glance 

March 28-29
7th-9th grade
Honey Creek

April 25-27
6th-12th grade
Honey Creek

May 30-June 1
10th- 12th grade
Honey Creek

honeycreek.org
3rd-12th grade
Honey Creek

June 23-30
9th-12th grade
Sewanee, TN

EYE
July 8-13
9th-12th grade
Philadelphia, PA
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