With the new school year comes the opportunity to improve how we do things around The St. James Youth HQ. That’s why we will now be hosting a monthly planning session. Parents, youth, volunteers, Sunday school teachers, and anyone interested in getting plugged into our ministry will be strongly encouraged to join us.

Our goal is to start out planning as much as two months out for the weekly events (Sunday and Wednesday programs) and 6 months out for our special events (retreats, lock-ins, service projects, etc.). Hopefully, by this time next year, we will be able to plan the big events as far out as a year in advance. This will greatly help parents, volunteers, and other church ministries coordinate our calendars.

Our first meeting is September 22nd @ 6pm and will include a dinner. Future meetings will be the third Thursday of every month. So even if you can’t make the meeting this month, mark your calendar for the following dates: 10/20, 11/17, 12,15, 1/19, 2/16, 3/15, 4/19, 5/17

Frequently Asked Questions:

“How long will the meeting last?” Our goal is to keep the meetings under an hour and a half so that we don’t conflict with other church events.

“How much will dinner cost?” For our first couple of meetings, we’re going to keep the meal free. After that, we may ask for a small donation per family to offset the cost. We will determine that as a group at one of the meetings.

“I’m a parent and I want to make sure my youth isn’t uncomfortable with my role assisting the youth. What are my options?” There are dozens of opportunities for service in this ministry that wouldn’t necessarily put you in direct contact with your youth. For example, if your child is a jr. high, you can assist in a sr. high trip. Or you could assist in some behind the scenes coordination for a specific event. We need you on this team and there are several ways to make that happen.

“What about the youth involvement. Can teenagers assist in leadership roles?” Absolutely! We will be planning our calendar on an event-by-event basis. That means that if you’d like to be a leader on a Sunday night program, you would volunteer to be a part of that specific night. This allows youth to focus on a specific task or event rather than just be “on call” as a youth leader. (NOTE: There will be a time once a quarter for “youth only” feedback, planning, and leadership opportunities.)

“Is this new structure a permanent change?” That depends on us. This youth group is growing and it’s our challenge to step up and adapt to this growing ministry. Part of that growth process will be learning not what works best for youth ministry in general, but for St. James specifically.

This is such an exciting time in the life of this (over 50 year old) ministry and I can’t wait to see where God will take us all in the coming months!

-Trey | Youth Ministries – St. James UMC Atlanta

If you attended our last retreat, be sure and swing by The Youth Room soon and grab your poster. Be sure and scratch off your name so we can keep track of who’s already got theirs.

Sunday, August 28th

Beat the heat and join us for our end of the summer Pool Party! Meet at the church at 6pm with your bathing suit and towel. Pick up will be at 8pm in the Peachtree-Dunwoody Rd. parking lot. $5 for dinner (first time guests eat free!)

We’re meeting at the church at 4pm on Saturday and heading up to The Cimowsky’s cabin. There, we will be treated to a delicious home-made meal and have some great chill time around the bonfire.

The next morning we’ll wake up, get a quick breakfast, pack up and head to the river. We will stop at fast food on the way (be sure to bring cash for your lunch).

We are scheduled to be on the river at 1pm. With travel time and time for instructions, it should take 3-4 hours total for the trip. After our amazing adventure, we’ll load up in the bus and head home.

We are not doing dinner together on Sunday night but will allow youth to purchase a snack either at the rafting facility or on the road. We will call from the road once we get an exact ETA and will meet back at the church for pick-up

Packing List:

Vitals:
-Clothes for two days
-Toiletries and a towel
-Sleeping Bag and Pillow
-A bathing suit. (One pieces or a t-shirt for the ladies. Come to think of it, let’s just go ahead and clarify that guys will need one pieces, too…)
-Everyone has to wear shoes in the river, either old tennis shoes or sandals that have straps around the ankle, NO FLIP FLOPS
-Proper attire for rafting is comfortable clothing that will dry quickly, not blue jeans and sweatshirts! Umbros, bathing suits, shorts and t-shirts, etc. (Bring a plastic bag for wet clothes)
-Towels and a change of clothes would be helpful and you are welcome to shower and change at the rafting facilities before we head home.
-Jewelry is not advisable on the river. Eyeglasses and sunglasses need to be secured, too.
-Sunscreen
-Cash for fast food lunch Sunday

(Not as) Vitals:
-Waterproof camera
-Extra cash for various gift shop items at the rafting facility like t-shirts, hats, stickers, souvenirs, etc. (We will be purchasing rafting trip pictures as a group so you don’t have to worry about buying one for yourself)

If you have any questions, please contact the church office at 404-261-3121 or email Trey Hockman, Director of Youth Ministries, at thockman@stjamesatlanta.org.

See you soon and God bless!

“Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.”
-1 Peter 4:10

As Christ’s church, we’re called to serve one another. I saw no better example of this than the recent mission trip to Nashville with the youth and adults from St. James. 13 youth teamed up with 12 adults for a week in Tennessee doing construction and service in the Nashville area. Of our 13 youth in attendance, only 2 had ever been on a St. James mission trip before and only one youth had experience in our field of work, roofing and siding. However, with a willing spirit and few sore thumbs, by the end of the week we had ourselves a team of professionals worthy of the toughest of jobs.

But even more important than the hard labor, these youth and adults learned more about how to show Christ to one another. Our theme for this year’s trip was “On Earth as it is in Heaven.” Every night, we gathered together to share where we saw Jesus that day. This time of discussion was invaluable for the growth of the group. As we shared stories ranging from the highly goofy to the powerfully tear-jerking, we truly experienced Jesus’ passion for his people. I’ll never forget the encouraging words my brothers and sisters in Christ gave to me during our nightly devotions.

I have been genuinely humbled by this experience. The hard work of the youth, the servant hearts of the adult leaders, the appreciation from those we served, and the love of Jesus Christ changed me forever.

It is easy to read the words from 1 Peter and follow Christ’s commandment when on a church sponsored mission trip. In ministry we call this time a “mountain top experience.” The challenge now, having come down from the mountain, is to incorporate this piece of scripture in my daily life. My prayer is that we be “faithful stewards of God’s grace” not just when we put on the old, torn up pair of blue jeans and work on a roof all day for 6 days. But also when we drive to work or school every morning to interact with those we see daily. I want to challenge you to ask yourself every morning, “Who needs to see Jesus today? And how can I serve them?”

May you use whatever gift you have received to serve others today. Amen.
-Trey

NOTE: This event is now closed for new registration. We’ll post a full packing list soon.

July 23rd-24th, 2011 Middle Ocoee River. For more information, contact the church office at 404-261-3121.

Meet us at the church at 7pm for a great night of games, fellowship, and food. Youth and encouraged to bring a snack to share with the group. Pick-Up will be at 10:00am on Sunday. (Youth are also invited to participate in our Sunday morning 10:30 worship service. Please bring a change of clothes if you plan on attending. The service is from 10:30-11:30)

See you then!

Keep your eyes on our YouthTube Channel for tons of clips over the next week or so. And hey! Here’s one now!

$20 per person.  Begins Thursday, June 30th @ 7pm

This 4 week course, from the people behind Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University, is designed for high school through college students and will build lifelong confidence for your future by providing sound, biblical principles for winning with money.

Register by turning in your cash or check made out to “St. James UMC” to the church office. 20 spots available. Registration will be on a first come, first serve basis and will close at the start of the first session.

For more information, contact the St. James church office at 404-261-3121 or email Trey Hockman, Director of Youth Ministries at thockman@stjamesatlanta.org.

June 12th-19th. $75 per person.

Available for all rising 9th grade and above.

We’re gearing up for this summer’s mission trip to Nashville. Signing up just takes 3 easy steps. (Attention volunteers: We need these forms filled out by you as well!)

1 – Click here to visit out Sign-Up Genius and register. This will give us an accurate head count.

2 – We need to know what skills you have so we can be assigned our jobs once we’re in Nashville. Click here to download a skills sheet. You will rate yourself on a scale of 1-5 for each skill. You can either print out a skills sheet and turn it in to the church office, or simply send an email to thockman@stjamesatlanta.org with your skill numbers on it.

3 – Last but not least, click here to download the official permission and liability form. Turn your form in along with a check for $75 made out to “St. James UMC” into the church office.

And that’s it! You’re in! We’ll post a packing list soon so stay posted to the blog and keep reading our email newsletter, The Circuit. (If you’re not signed up to receive emails from St. James Youth, send us your email address and we’ll get you connected.)