A letter to graduating 8th graders

I read this letter to the 8th graders last night as a final charge to them. I also gave them a laminated copy of it. I have more if your son/daughter didn't get one.

Dear Edge Class of 2010,

I know that the last 3 years have probably not gone too quickly for you, but they have for me! It seems like just the other day, you guys were coming into Edge as little 6th graders. You were so small and so innocent…some of you. You were also so excited about everything. You have changed a ton over the course of 3 years…more than you have even recognized yourself. The growth you have experienced in 3 years was probably a little bit of a blur to you, but it was very evident to me.

Obviously, all of you have grown physically because this is the time of life where that just happens. However, I have seen many of you become more mature. I have see many of you go from crazy little kids to guys and girls who are easy to talk to, serious about life, and serious about your faith. Needless to say, you have grown a lot. Most importantly, you have grown spiritually…some of you more than others, but all of you in some capacity. Some of you made decisions to make Christ your Savior during middle school. Some of you made your faith your own. Before, going to church was just something you did because your parents brought you and believing in God was just something you said because that is all you knew. But now, you have recognized that God actually loves you and that Jesus actually died for you. Coming to grips with this changes everything. You have grown through mission trips, retreats, camps, service projects, small group, and just weekly Edge meetings.

So many of you have had moments of brilliance, moments of glory, moments of faithfulness, and moments of growth. Some of you stepped out in faith at school. Some of stepped up and took on leadership roles within Edge. Many of you brought your friends to Late Night or Edge Games so that they could hear about Jesus. So many of you have grown to understand what Edge is all about.

However, as you move into high school, you have some decisions to make. You must make your faith in Christ so much more than moments of brilliance. It has to be daily. You are headed into a time in your life where you must decide who you are. If you have been at Edge long enough, you have heard me say that you belong to Jesus Christ. You know that He bought you at a price and that price was His death on a cross. That moment in history is what defines your life if you know Christ. Don’t lose that! You must decide now who you are going to be. You have to decide that you are going to follow Jesus and build your life on the solid foundation. Remember that if you decide to make no decision about Christ, you have made the wrong decision. The Bible is very clear that following Christ is not easy and not many people actually follow Him. Jesus says that the road to life is narrow and few find it while the road to destruction is broad and many go there. That means that following Christ is hard, but has a great reward. You get to have life abundantly…life forever. It does not mean that things will always go well. It does not mean you will be rich. It does not mean you are invincible. But it does mean that you will experience freedom, joy, hope, peace, and forgiveness. It means that when bad things happen and rough times come, you will be like the house built on the rock and you will not fall because of your faith.

Don’t ever forget who you are. You don’t belong to your friends, you don’t belong to drugs or alcohol, you don’t belong to your girlfriend or boyfriend, and you don’t belong to anything or anyone but the One who loves you so much He died for you. You belong to Jesus Christ. Run after Him, serve Him, love Him, love others, and spend time with Him. Tough times will come your way, but He will never ever let you down. I want each of you to think about who you want to be at the end of high school. I want each of you think about how you want to be remembered. When your classmates are looking back at an old year book of your high school days, what are they going to say about you? Don’t wait to take your faith seriously until it’s too late. Decide now how you want to be remembered. At the end of high school and at the end of your life, I want you to be able to say what Paul said at the end of his life.
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 2 Timothy 4:7

If you ever need anything from me, I am here for you. My hope and prayer for you is that you would stay involved in Tha Porch, but more importantly that you would never forget who you are in Christ!

Love in Christ,
Todd

the friend you've always wanted, part 1

The series
This series is called, “the friend you’ve always wanted.” Now, I know what many of you are thinking. He is going to take about how the best friend you could ever have is Jesus. Although that is true that Jesus is our friend, that’s not what I am talking about. Instead, I am talking about human friendships. We are calling it the friend you’ve always wanted because we are going to challenge each one of you to be the friend you have always wanted. Too many times, we point to other people and say, they are a bad friend, they are mean, they are rude, they are this and they are that, but this series is not going to be about other people, this series is going to be all about each one of you asking the questions, “Am I a good friend?”

This week
The importance of Christian friends

1. Christian friends should not be your only friends.

Christian friends should not be your only friends, but they should be your best friends. That is really important because there is a line that we need to draw here.

Why is it important that we don’t just have Christian friends?

There are 2 passages that give us commands on what we are supposed to do as Christians. Here they are:

Matthew 28:19-20
Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Acts 1:8
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

How are we supposed to tell people about Christ if we don’t have any friends that are not Christians?
Now, you could tell people about Christ that aren’t Christians, but how are they going to trust you and see how it works in your life if you aren’t friends with them?

2. Christian friends are not always good friends.

A real Christian friend is someone who actually builds you up and encourages you. Someone who doesn’t drag you down, that doesn’t lead you to more sin.

· Christian school doesn’t make you a Christian
· Coming to Edge doesn’t make you a Christian either.
· Going to McDonalds doesn’t make you a hamburger.

If you have friends that are Christians, but you know they are bringing you down, you may need to distance yourself.

1 Corinthians 15:33
Do not be misled: "Bad company corrupts good character."


3. Christian friends will be your greatest friends

Out of all the friends you have, you need Christian friends the most. If they are living as a Christian (not perfect, but striving to follow Christ), then they are going to become your most valuable friends. Why would Christian friends be so valuable?

EXAMPLE of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and the feiry furnace (Daniel 3)

What does this story have to do friendships?
These 3 guys stuck together in their faith in God and did amazing things because of their faith. Do you think they could have done it alone? Maybe, but it would have been a whole lot more difficult. Having friends that shared in the same faith, gave them the power to stand up to the King and the strength to be thrown into a furnace together. That is the power of having Christian friends.

Exposed, part 3

Here is the last outline for the Exposed Series.

Do not let anyone treat you as if you are unimportant because you are young. Instead, be an example to the believers with your words, your actions, your love, your faith, and your pure life (1Timothy 4:12).

5 Steps toward Sexual Purity:

1. Know your STANDARDS

2. Make your standards KNOWN.

3. Choose WISELY.
· who you like
· who you date
You are not the same as those who do not believe. So do not join yourselves to them. Good and bad do not belong together. Light and darkness cannot share together
(2 Corinthians 6:14).

4. Avoid SEXUAL situations
But run away from the evil young people like to do. Try hard to live right and to have faith love and peace, together with those who trust in the Lord from pure hearts
(2 Timothy 2:22).

5. Make CHRIST your most important relationship
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well (Matthew 6:33).

Thought For The Week:
Sexual PURITY is POSSIBLE!

SPRING THING SPEAKER BIOS

Hey parents, we are bringing in 2 very important speakers for our SPRING THING retreat. I wanted to make sure you were familiar with them and why I picked them specifically to come speak to your kids.

ANGIE SMITH

Angie is a 30 something that realized that God wanted to use her story of impurity to reach young women's hearts. She began her ministry PurityTalks to mentor and speak to girls about self-image, dating, and sex.

Because of this, she wrote her first book "Finding My Pure Heart Again" which will be available this summer. Her heart and passion in her ministry is to help teach that God's love fills the voids in a world where beauty is so important and that we are beautiful in His eyes. She has honest and open conversations to discover what God thinks about these topics.

Angie is also an actress who uses dramas and skits throughout her chats to bring truth to life. Angies enjoys her free time writing, spending time with fmaily and laughing with friends.

JOEL DANIEL HARRIS
I am the middle school youth guy for flipd, the middle school ministry of First Friends and am also First Friends’ Instigator of Justice (the job title came with a sweet super hero cape, so I had to say yes). In my free time i work as an Associate Staff member with the CCO. as part of this, I hang out with students at Malone University (the college from whence i graduated), trying to help them think about living lives without compartments. I also get the opportunity to travel to various colleges (like Messiah, Kent State, Kenyon, Gannon, etc) and church youth groups leading workshops & retreats. I worked at The Chapel for 4 years as their middle school guy & pastor of porn. I co-created and gave leadership for 3 years to a small group ministry related to pornography & sexuality known as six19. The small groups are currently inactive, but i still do presentations occasionally.

Exposed, part 2

Here is a brief outline of week 2 in our Exposed Series

We’ve Been Lied To!

Lie # 1: The OUTSIDE matters more than the INSIDE.
… God does not see the same way people see. People look at the outside of a person, but the LORD looks at the heart (1 Samuel 16:7).

Charm can be deceptive and beauty doesn't last, but a woman who fears and reverences God shall be greatly praised (Proverbs 31:30).

Lie #2: SEX matters more than LOVE.
Let love be your greatest aim (1 Corinthians 14:1).

There are three things too wonderful for me to understand--no, four! How an eagle glides through the sky. How a serpent crawls upon a rock. How a ship finds its way across the heaving ocean. The growth of love between a man and a woman
(Proverbs 30:18-19).

Lie #3: MYSELF matters more than OTHERS.
Don't be selfish; don't live to make a good impression on others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourself (Philippians 2:3).

Lie #4: Who I HAVE matters more than who I AM
You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit them together in my mother's womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! It is amazing to think about. Your workmanship is marvelous--and how well I know it (Psalm 139:13-14).


Thought For The Week:

Do I BUY the LIE?

Exposed, part 1, What was God thinking?

This is the first part in the series called Exposed, which is all about God's truth and plan for sex and dating.

WHAT WAS GOD THINKING?
We started off by talking about sex as a gift that God has given us, but the world has distorted.
Here is an outline of our time together.

2 MYTHS about SEX

Myth #1: Sex is WRONG
God created sex and here is what the Bible has to say about things God created.
For everything God created is good… (1 Timothy 4:4)

Myth #2: Sex is LIMITLESS
Don't use your body for sexual sin like the people who do not know God
(1 Thessalonians 4:5)

The REALITY IS, GOD MEANT SEX FOR GOOD, BUT IT HAS BEEN TWISTED AND MADE BAD.

What was God's plan for sex?

Intended for a MAN and WOMAN
So God created human beings in his image. In the image of God he created them. He created them male and female. God blessed them and said, "Have many children and grow in number. Fill the earth… (Genesis 1:27-28)

This may seem pretty obvious but not really in this day in age. We did a brief talk about homosexuality and that fact that it's a sin, but still doesn't give us the right to tease people or make fun of people who are struggling with it. It's a sin just like having sex before marriage is a sin. Both are not part of God's plan.

Intended for MARRIAGE
So a man will leave his father and mother and be united with his wife, and the two will become one body (Genesis 2:24).

Marriage should be honored by everyone, and husband and wife should keep their marriage pure. God will judge as guilty those who take part in sexual sins
(Hebrews 13:4).

CLOSING THOUGHT: God’s PLAN is PERFECT

Will you follow it?

Jim, week 4, The Tongue

This was the last week of our Jim series, which is an overview of the book of James.

SCRIPTURE: James 3:1-12
TOPIC: The Tongue

Although the tongue is just a small part of the body, it has tremendous implications for our lives. The tongue is a difficult topic that James makes very clear using 3 important illustrations.

1. Bits in the mouths of horses
Horses are controlled by little bits in their mouths. Horses without bits have caused massive amounts of destruction. Just with their mouth, you can control a horse. It's the same with our tongues. If we can't control that small part of our body, we can be very destructive and hurtful. We can do a lot of damage.

2. Rutter of a ship
Even in a fierce storm, the rutter of a ship can control a ship and the direction it goes. It's such a small part of the boat but has the power to control. It's the same with our tongues. Our tongues are small but have the power not just to hurt but to change lives in a positive way. With our words, we can help people, encourage people, and and share the of Christ with people.

3. A forest fire
Forest fires start with just a small spark, but before you know it a whole county is destroyed. Our tongues have the same kind of power. Gossip spreads so easily. A few words can be passed on and distorted to hundreds of people in a matter of minutes. Reputations can be destroyed. Feelings can be hurt and lives may never be the same.

Our words have a tremendous amount of power.

We finished the night with worshiping God through song with the Edge band leading. I challenged students to think about the words they are singing and to think about the verse in James 3 that says, "Out of the same mouth, come blessing and cursing." We curse others with the same mouth we praise God with.

"Jim" part 3, favoritism

This week at Edge, we were on our 3rd night of our series called, "Jim" which is an overview of the book of James. We took a look at James 2:1-13, which is all about favoritism, or judging others.

This is a really important topic for all people, and especially middle school students. Here is the basic outline.

1. I started with a few example stories of favoritism.

2. We talked about what favoritism is...favoritism is writing someone off because of a superficial reason. It's making judgments about someone without even knowing them.

3. Favoritism is a sin.

4. "Love your neighbor as yourself" is the way to avoid favoritism.

5. Mercy triumphs over Judgment.

The bottom line here is when we look at a person, we need to see them how God sees them, as valuable, worth creating, and worth dying for.

We finished the night with breakout discussions on the topic and challenged students to think of one way that they could show that they value to someone they may have previously judged.

Full Throttle, week 2 recap

In week 1 of this series, we talked about why it's important to grow in your faith?

This week, we answered the question, "How do you grow?" Last night, we talked very practically about what spending time with God looks like. We broke it into 2 segments...

1. Listening to God
2. Talking to God

After each segment of teaching, we gave students a chance to practice these disciplines. It went really well and hopefully students not only had a chance to refuel last night, but also to learn how to refuel on their own. They each received a prayer card to show them a good method of prayer called P.R.A.Y. praise, repent, ask, yield.

Here is a very basic outline of the teaching.

Listening to God

1. Listening to His words
The whole Bible is filled with God's words for us. If we read as if it were God's words to us, God is speaking to us.

2. Listening to His people
Sometimes God uses His people to speak to us. We should listen to wise, godly people.

3. Listening to His Spirit
God has given believers the Holy Spirit for a reason. Sometimes, the spirit nudges us to do something. That is God speaking to us.

Talking to God

1. Talking to Him honestly
God wants us to be open with Him. We shouldn't always say the things that we think we should say. We should say the things we are feeling.

2. Talking to Him respectfully
As honest as we should be with God, we should also respect him because we are talking to the God of the universe.

3. Talking to Him continually
The bible says pray continually. We can have an ongoing dialogue with God. He is always there for us. We can always talk to him.

Takeaway: Each student was given a little race car at the very end to remind them to spend time with God. Our series was called full throttle, because in order to be living the Christian life in full throttle, the pit stops are vital. Hopefully the car will be a friendly reminder of the need to refuel by taking pit stops with the Lord.

Full Throttle, Week 1 Recap

We are back with Edge recaps so that parents can stay in the loop and know what their son or daughter heard at Edge...

Full Throttle is a series on growth. It started last night and now is just a 2 part series. We are focused on 2 questions...

1. Why GROW in Christ?
2. How can I GROW in Christ?

This first week, we focused on talking about why it's so important to grow.

Ask your child about the Nascar Analogy: I talked about our Christian life as a Nascar race. When we accept Christ as Savior, we are crossing the starting line (the green flag) and usually it's a strong and exciting start...full throttle, and when we finally meet Jesus face to face, we are crossing the finish line (the checkered flag). So what happens in between the green flag and the checkered flag?

Pit stops are vital to the success of a Nascar driver. Without them, they will be pushing their car around the track. It's the same with us. Just like those cars, pit stops are vital for us. We have to refuel by spending time with God in order to keep running on full throttle.

We really focused on the relationship part of growing. If you were to start a friendship with someone, you are going to spend time with them, talk to them, and listen to them. It's the same with our relationship with God.

Ask your son/daughter about the story of my first girlfriend in 8th grade. Ask them how it was a really bad example of a relationship.

The secret to growth is spending time with God.
As we spend time talking and listening to him...we get to know him better and even start to see as he sees.

WHEN WE SEE AS HE SEES, WE WILL DO AS HE SAYS

Next week, we will focus on the practical question of "How do I grow?"

Sunday AM Change

Hello parents,
I am excited to announce a change happening in Edge starting on Sunday, March 14th. Pastor Joe’s challenge for this year for our church is to go from being consumers to disciples. This challenge along with 6 years of doing Sunday morning Edge the same way has caused me to rethink our format. Right now, 180 students sit under my teaching in the gym. Because of the size, it is difficult to interact with students, connect with their different levels of maturity, and give them a chance to respond. While I know that growth takes place, I kept asking myself, “Is there a way that we could engage students more in order to see more growth?” With that said, our Sunday format is being renovated in order to be more intentional and purposeful about seeing students grow deeper in the love for Christ and the church. This program is called, THE CORE. The purpose of The Core is two part…

1. to create atmospheres where middle school students can grow more intentionally at their level of maturity
2. to help students understand what it means to serve in the church.

Explanation of THE CORE
All middle school students will gather together for the first 15 minutes of the hour for hanging out together, icebreakers, and Edge announcements. Then students will split into 3 classes by grade level. There will be a very qualified teacher and several assistants that lead this class with curriculum provided by me. Classes will be 40-50 students in size (as opposed to 180) which will enable the teacher to facilitate more discussion, connect with students at a deeper level, and give a chance for students to respond each week to the lesson. Along with these classes is a service program. If students are involved in an Edge small group, their small groups will rotate serving in our children’s ministry on a monthly basis. Each month, 4-5 different small groups would be assigned to an area of children’s ministry for the whole month (instead of going to class). That way, students will be growing/learning in a class for 3 months, then serving for a month (GROWTH AND ACTION).

TIME CHANGE
The difficult part of this new plan is finding the space to make it all happen. In order to accommodate for this change, we are going to have to move Edge to the 11:30 AM hour. While this isn’t our first choice, it is the only way to make it happen with the space available to us. With this change, we will be able to meet in 3 large classrooms versus the 10 AM hour where there is no space available. We definitely don’t want to throw a wrench in your usual Sunday morning plan, but our purpose cannot be accomplished without this change. We feel it is more important to make this purposeful change than to worry about which hour we meet.

THE DETAILS
Starting on Sunday, March 14th, students will meet together at 11:30 in room 8/9 downstairs for our opening program (checking in, hanging out, games, and announcements). Then they will split into 3 rooms (Room 8/9, 10, and 11) for their grade specific classes. These classes will include creative teaching, student interaction, and discussion.

I realize that this change will mean that parents have a lot of questions/concerns about what this means for their family? We have spent hours with our best thinkers here at the church working out what this will mean for families. I can assure you that we have thought of most (if not all) of the questions/concerns that you might have. Feel free to ask questions and express concerns. We realize that most of the concerns will have to do with inconvenience because of what your family is used to. Please consider making a small sacrifice to allow your son/daughter to be involved in this program.

There has been a lot of thoughtful and prayful consideration of this change. I am really excited about how God might use this program in to deepen our student’s faith.
Thanks,Todd