gate the
annual youth confere nce
July 27-31
Dayton, Ohio
Things 2 Remember
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Useful Tidbits
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Thursday Friday
A Youth Ministry of
ALDERSGATE RENEWAL MINISTRIES
3-5 6-14
Saturday Morning
15-17
Equipping Sessions
18-25
Saturday Night
26-28
Sunday
29-31
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THINGS REMEMBER Gate Name Badge “All Access Pass”
Please wear your name badge to all Gate Sessions. No one will be permitted inside of the Gate Worship Area without their name badge. If you lose your name badge you can buy a replacement for $1.00 at the Gate Store. Also, no one will be allowed to leave the Main Session room after the session has begun except in Handcuffs or an Ambulance. Bathrooms are located inside of the Gate Worship Area.
Hotel Curfew
Each hotel has a curfew for person’s under the age of 18. Please do not be outside of your rooms after 11:00 PM without the company of a responsible adult. If you cannot find a responsible adult – a regular adult would do just fine.
Prayer Teams
The Gate Annual Youth Conference has trained youth and adults who serve on Prayer Teams. This is a unique opportunity to receive individual prayer during each service. We ask that only Prayer Team members minister in this way during the conference.
Worship Freely
Please worship however you feel led and are comfortable. You are welcome to sit, stand, jump, dance, lay down, etc. There is not one designated way to worship and we encourage you to be free in Christ and most importantly tune your heart to His.
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USEFUL TIDBITS What’s in this book anyway?
It is our hope that this book will help enhance your experience at the Gate 2011. Inside you will find info about the band and speakers, morning and evening devotionals, information about equipping sessions, and more. There is plenty of space for you to take notes during each session so that you can take this experience home with you!
Webstreaming
Do you have friends? Are all of them with you? Do you wish that someone was able to come to The Gate 2011 but couldn’t? All of our services are being streamed live on the internet! Pay close attention before each service and text as many people as you know to view the conference online!
Third Floor INSANITY!
Scan this code with your QR Code Reader on your mobile device to visit the webstream
Send the link to your friends
Check out the wide range of activities and contests going on in the lobby areas. This area will be open for use for an hour before every service and during some break times in the afternoon. Go on and have fun and get crazy….just not too crazy!
Gate Store
Be sure to visit the Gate store to purchase your 2011 t-shirts, slap bracelets, Twelve Ounce Jar merchandise, Bibles, books, and more!
Prayer Wall
Please be sure to visit the Devastated and Ruined Prayer wall located near the main worship space. Take time to pray over the requests painted on the wall and add your own! Let’s watch God do awesome things as He answers our prayers and takes us deeper in our prayer lives!
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World Cafe
Don’t miss this small group interactive learning experience! Meet new people and get a little crazy in the process! Pay attention for details for this event to be held Saturday afternoon before the equipping sessions. Space is limited so be sure to be there early!
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DEVASTATED AND RUINED
NO ORDINARY LOVE Speaker: Stephen Handy { Notes }
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THURSDAY NIGHT DEVOTION NO ORDINARY LOVE /Kourtney Brownlow// I am a Chicago Cubs baseball fan. If you know a lot about baseball you know what this means – however for those of you who could care less about baseball or sports in general bear with me. The Chicago Cubs have not won a World Series Championship since the year 1908; they are for all sense and purposes, baseball’s best losers. I, myself have been a Chicago Cubs fan since 1988 and for 23 years I have experienced insurmountable joy and paralyzing agony…the agony of defeat. What is important to know here is that Chicago Cubs fans are arguably the most loyal, faithful and loving baseball fans in the world. It isn’t necessarily the winning that keeps us around (obviously since that hasn’t happened in 103 years) but instead it’s the love of the game and most importantly the team itself. Wrigley Field (the Cubs stadium) is a near sellout crowd every home game of the season. Why? Because Cubs fans love the Cubs. It is not because they win or lose, but because of who they are and what they represent. Cubs fans have a love that is unwavering. A love that is full of hope. A love that focuses only on the good and forgives the bad. A true love. An extraordinary Love. A love that leaves every Cubs fan believing each year that the impossible could happen. That against all odds the Chicago Cubs could win it all. Love is like that, you know. When everything in the world is against it – it perseveres. 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 describes love like this, “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.1 John 14:16 says … “God is love. Whoever lives in Love lives in God and God in him”…So if God is love…then… God is patient, God is Kind, God does not envy, God does not boast, God is not proud, God is not rude, God is not self seeking, God is not easily angered, GOD KEEPS NO RECORD OF WRONGS. God does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. God always protects, God always trusts, God always hopes, God always perseveres. GOD NEVER FAILS. Now I don’t know about you, but that is no ordinary love. In fact it is extraordinary; so much so in fact that we ourselves as merely the “created one” and not the Creator…really struggle to love in this way. And because we fail to love in the way that God loves us and the way that he desires us to love others, we have
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NO ORDINARY LOVE somehow inadvertently distorted the definition of love. Through our own experiences and the experiences of others we might have be affected by a love of a different form. A love that doesn’t reflect God the Creator – the embodiment of love. A love that is not patient, nor kind. A love that perhaps was self-seeking or rude. A love that is easily angered. A love that has broken our trust. A love that has left us feeling unprotected. A love that seems to give up so easily. A love that has failed us and left us feeling broken and alone. This is how we love without God. This is all we can accomplish on our own. Even in our best attempts at loving others and ourselves – this love will fail. But God never fails – so when we begin to accept the love of God who IS GOD, then we ourselves begin being transformed by this love. It is then and only then that we can truly love ourselves – and give that love to others. Take a moment and reflect on the following questions: When you think about the word love what do you think about? Would you say that you love yourself? Do you love yourself the way God loves you or do you love yourself with a love that sometimes fails you? What are 3 ways that you can better love yourself? ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ What are 3 ways that you can better love others? ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________
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Take a moment to talk to God and let him love on you. In return – love on God.
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FRIDAY MORNING DEVOTION No Ordinary Mission /Rachel Wolverton// What’s your favorite chair? _______________________________________________ Do you have a favorite chair you sit in at home? Why? ________________________________________________________________________ Do you ever find that certain chairs cause you to act or think a certain way? ________________________________________________________________________ Read Mark 1:14-20 NIV What do you think Jesus meant when He told these guys He’d make them ‘fishers of men’? ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ Why would this have been appealing to them? ________________________________________________________________________ Read Luke 9:1-11 NIV Why did Jesus send them out two by two? ________________________________________________________________________ How did this act release their potential? ________________________________________________________________________ Have you had anyone in your life who helped you achieve your potential? Who was it and how did they help you? ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ Before they met Jesus, the disciples sat in a chair of complacency, comfortable living in that life was predictable, even if they weren’t considered much above low class. Jesus called them to something more. He does the same for you and me. In every person’s life, there is one of 4 chairs. Whichever chair you are sitting in will determine if your potential will be released or not:
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NO ORDINARY MISSION 2nd chair – Comfortable in your faith, all about you, you maybe take notes if its worth your while. You are used to God, but He isn’t your 1st love anymore. The Revelation churches were written to the 2nd chair people! It’s disgusting that a person can get used to God!!!! 1st chair – Loves Jesus completely! You take notes to grow, and it’s not about you all the time. You believe in hell. You are a disciple of Jesus not because of the discipline, but because of love. No one questions your integrity, your faith, anything, because it’s so obvious you love Jesus!!!! 4th chair – Not a Christian, brilliant, maybe an atheist, can be curious, may seek out 1st chair person for prayer, looks at 2nd chair person as a hypocrite, you let 2nd chair person turn you off of Jesus. 3rd chair – Most dangerous chair. 70% of these people go to church or youth group. Believe you are in the 2nd chair, but the reality is you are in the 4th chair. You think you are saved but you are not. You were talked into it, but never really sold on it; or you felt since everyone else was doing this, you didn’t want to be left out. Perhaps you’ve done lots of amazing things but Jesus doesn’t know you. Perhaps you are doing this because it’s a job to get to heaven, but never surrendered. “None are more hopelessly saved than those who falsely believe they are free” -- Johann Wolfgang van Goethe How do you know you aren’t in the 3rd chair? Evidence of the Spirit in your life – fruit of the Spirit & conviction of sin 2nd & 3rd chair people look identical but the 2nd chair person goes to church with eternal rewards, and 3rd chair person goes to hell and knows what is right but doesn’t do anything about it. God unleashes the potential in us when we sit in the 1st chair. It’s an absolute surrender deal. Worship means to bow down (butt in the air). Trust/Surrender means flat on the floor, no space left between you and the floor. The disciples dropped everything, their life, their family, their comfort zone to be in the 1st chair, to be ‘fishers of men.’ Have you?
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Have you surrendered? Which chair are you in? Do you need to move? Take a moment and reflect on this and talk to God about it.
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DEVASTATED AND RUINED
NO ORDINARY MISSION Speaker: Rachel Wolverton { Notes }
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MISSION AND OUTREACH REFLECTIONS What my group did for a mission project at The Gate 2011:
My specific task(s) for this project were:
I felt a little outside of my comfort zone when:
Something I learned today during my project was:
I was really impacted today when:
After my experience today I feel:
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DEVASTATED AND RUINED
NO ORDINARY WORSHIP Speaker: Stephen Handy { Notes }
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DEVASTATED AND RUINED
NO ORDINARY COMMUNION No Ordinary Communion /Kourtney Brownlow// Communion is a practice that is meant to be observed over and over throughout the life of a Christian. It is a holy time of worship when we corporately come together as one body to remember and celebrate what Christ did for us. Often times we go through the motions in our churches when we take communion and little thought goes into what we are actually doing. What goes through your mind when you are taking communion? Are you focused? Is it routine? Does it impact you? Reflect on what Christ’s death and resurrection means for you: ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ Confess your sins to God: ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ Give thanks to God for His presence in your life: ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________
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FRIDAY NIGHT COMMUNION Communion is not just a religious practice. The word communion itself means that an exchange of thoughts, emotions, and time should occur.
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Being in communion with God is in no way limited to the bread and juice that we partake of in our churches. It instead is of the person of Jesus Christ that we should partake of on a daily basis as a result of our relationship with Him.
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FRIDAY NIGHT DEVOTION No Ordinary Worship /Justin Dugan & Tom Lesieur (Twelve Ounce Jar)// John 4:23-24 says, “Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth. For they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and His worshippers must worship in spirit and in truth” NIV. In these two verses, Jesus says the word “worship” five times. Jesus makes this statement because he is stressing how much God desires true worship from his children. What images come to your mind when you think of worship? ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ Many times we only think of worship as a Saturday evening session on a retreat when the band is warmed up, or Sunday morning before the preacher delivers a great sermon, or coming together with fellow Christians to pray. Jesus’ teaching about worship reminds us that God demands spirituality and truthfulness from your heart and soul first and foremost. This inner relationship with God must always be present for true worship to overflow. Worship should come from your personal relationship and interaction with God. Worship at its core is what overflows from inside you, what God places in you to be revealed in a most personal way for the glory of God. It is important to note that your personal worship experiences do not always have to involve external stimuli like music, low lights and preaching. Yet, we often feel like we need these to reach our highest level of worship. God does not require great fanfare, with music and lights and powerful messages to reach you and change you. You have all you need for powerful worship anytime, anywhere.
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NO ORDINARY WORSHIP Take a moment and be still before God. Quiet your mind of all the distractions and just focus on who God is to you. After some time of silence begin to whisper to God what you think of Him. Now just spend some time telling God how much you love Him and why. Some questions to reflect upon is: do you need a worship leader, a dynamic preacher, a loud band or a group of friends to reach the point where you feel moved by God? Are these necessary for you to feel like you are communicating with Him? Jesus’ words in the book of John teach us that this is not the case. John wants us to realize that God alone is all we need to be touched and changed. God is always present and desiring you to open yourselves to worship him 24 hours a day/seven days a week. God is there to reach out to you even in the quietest and most intimate times and awaits the worship you have to offer from the stillness of your heart.
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As a response to that direction from God, try to experience the same intensity in your private worship time as you do in your most intense moments at the Gate conference.
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SATURDAY MORNING DEVOTION No Ordinary Desires /Jonathan Mallard// As I write this, I just received my new iPhone 4 from Verizon last week. Yes, I was one of the faithful Verizon customers that set my alarm for 2 AM to make sure that I was able to order one as soon as they were available, so I would not have to wait until they were available to the general public a week later. This is serious business. I have been waiting for this moment for almost a year. My fire was only fueled more last year at The Gate when my friend (shout out to Mel Tubb) let me play Angry Birds on her iPhone. I have been searching the tech blogs for signs of Verizon finally getting it. I have been talking to friends that work in the tech industry. I have been working on my budget to make sure I had enough money to buy the iPhone and pay for the data package every month. To say I was excited would be an understatement. I’m embarrassed to say, but I was actually giddy. When the day came, I drove to FedEx in the snow before I went to night school to pick up my new toy. I was so happy, I could almost burst. The iPhone was something that I desired, and I finally had my heart’s desire. The sad thing is that this story is true for me. And it’s probably true for you, too. Maybe not the Verizon iPhone (disclaimer: I know by the time you read this the iPhone 5 will be out and my phone will be obsolete), but you probably have those things in your life that you feel you can’t live without and you will pursue them to whatever ends necessary to obtain them. Romans 8:5-6 says “Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace”. What does it mean to have your mind set on what the sinful nature desires? ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________
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NO ORDINARY DESIRES How do these desires of the sinful nature affect your relationship with God? ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ What does it mean to have your mind set on what the Spirit desires? ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ God has called us to a much higher desire. He has called us to desire Him, and Him alone. The thing that is so amazing about God though, is that He will never let us down. The iPhone is great. It does a lot of cool things, but it could never live up to the hype I had built it to be. God is so much more than we could ever want or imagine and most of us know that, but somehow we allow these other desires to overpower our desire for God. Psalm 37: 3-5 says “Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him.” Our true desires will come forth in our lives when we first delight ourselves in God. When we commit ourselves to him and trust in him first. It’s crazy how something so simple is so hard for us to follow.
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Take some time and pray for your mind to be set on what the Spirit desires and then just take time to love on God and delight yourself in him.
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DEVASTATED AND RUINED
NO ORDINARY DESIRES Speaker: Charles Welchance { Notes }
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EQUIPPING SESSION OPTIONS An Equipping Session is held in a smaller group setting and is taught by different speakers on various subjects. We offer a variety of sessions for both youth and youth workers to dive deeper into specific areas of interest in our daily Christian lives. Youth will have the opportunity to pick 3 different sessions; please note that some of them are gender and age specific.
What About When Life Isn’t Abundant? Dealing with Stress, Anxiety, and Depression
Being a Christian doesn’t solve all of life’s problems and many people find themselves struggling with stress, anxiety, or depression. This session combines faith and psychology to discuss these issues and how our relationship with Jesus can help us through these tough times. Check this session out if you are struggling with some of these issues, or possibly if you are close to someone who is struggling. Speakers: Leslee Pedigo & Sarah Minchey Room: 304
Living Life on A Mission
Do you sometimes feel as if you are aimlessly living out your Christian life? Do you believe that God has called you to live your life on purpose every day? This session will remind us of how God has called us to be His hands and His feet everywhere we go and with everyone we encounter. In this session you will learn Scriptural and practical ways to live your life on a mission! Speaker: Rev. Charles Welchance Room: 307
Unwrapping Spiritual Gifts
In church we often hear about how we all have a ‘gift’ and that God has created us uniquely for ministry. This is the truth; except God did not just give us all a gift, but instead has made his gifts available to us all. Come explore the spiritual gifts listed in Scripture and what it means to ‘eagerly desire these gifts.’ Speaker: Rev. Lorin Pedigo Room: 308
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DEVASTATED AND RUINED Creative Worship
God has made us extremely creative people and He did that so we might glorify Him in whatever we do. Do you feel that God has gifted you creatively? Do you feel drawn to the arts? God wants to use these unique giftings in you to draw other people closer to Him. Come check out this hands on workshop and see how God can use the creative gifting in you! (Note: this is not a worship music workshop. Please check out the Song Writing workshop if that is what you are looking for). Speakers: Gracie Dugan & Elizabeth Abed Room: 310
The Spoken Word
Do you have a deep love for God’s word and the impact it has on God’s people? Has God gifted you in drama and speaking? Spoken Word is a unique and creative way to communicate God’s word to his people. Dive in to this creative writing and performing session and learn how to proclaim God’s word in a unique way. Speaker: Tiffanie Shanks Room: Theater (Gate Main Session Room)
The Heart of Worship: Song Writing (Equipping Session #3 ONLY)
Are you a musician or poet? Do you feel like you have a song in your heart but are not quite sure how to get it all on paper? Join the lead singer and bassist of Twelve Ounce Jar in this interactive session filled with practical tips and interactive exercises that will enhance your song writing. Speakers: Justin Dugan & Tom Lesieur Room: 311
Hearing God’s Voice
You may not know this but God still speaks today and He wants to speak to you; so how do we hear from Him? This session will help you better understand the heart of God and His desire to be in a two sided relationship with you. Learn how to speak less and listen more as God reveals the desires of His heart to you in this journey of faith. Speaker: Rev. Stephen Handy Room: 309
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EQUIPPING SESSION OPTIONS What Women Want…(Guy’s Only)
Do you find the female persuasion to be complex? Are you interested in finding you a good Christian Lady Friend? Do you ever wonder what women are thinking? You are not alone! Check out this session to discuss these questions as well as what it means to be a man after God’s own heart first, before pursuing the heart of someone else. If you are a guy, you don’t want to miss this! Speaker: Adam Cannon Room: 303
The Father, Son, and Holy cow...that Boy is CUTE! (Girl’s Only)
Let’s face it ladies, guys distract us. In fact – I would venture to say they are the #1 thing that distracts us from our relationship with God. What is it that allows us to get so caught up in relationships with guys? How do we have a strong relationship with God and maintain a Godly relationship with our significant other? This session you don’t wanna miss! Speaker: Kacie Maercker Room: 302
{ Junior High Tracks }
The following two workshops are tailored specifically for Jr. High students. Each session will only be offered once during a specific time and for session #3 you will have the option to pick a session from the list above. We encourage but do not require the Jr. High students to attend the Jr. High Sessions.
Explosive Faith (Session #1 Only)
Living the Christian life is supposed to be loud and exciting! As a Junior High student you are full of energy, passion, creativity and caffeine!! God wants to use all of this to show you how to have an EXPLOSIVE FAITH! This hands on session will help you see how God can use you just by being who you are! Speaker: Yousef Abed & Dustan Minchey Room: 311
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EQUIPPING SESSION OPTIONS Seeing the Bible Come Alive (Session #2 Only)
Sometimes reading the Bible can seem boring and pointless. Who really understands it anyway right? This session will open your eyes to how the Bible can not only relate to your life today, but also how you can understand it and have fun in the process! Get ready for creative and interactive teaching that puts you right inside the story! Speaker: Daniel Brownlow & Randall Sawyer Room: 311
{ Youth Leader Sessions }
The following sessions will be for youth pastors, volunteers, and parents. We highly encourage you to attend these sessions; you will have great teaching and an awesome opportunity to network with other youth leaders.
Setting Spiritual Boundaries (Session #1 Only)
Do you find yourself living youth ministry 24/7? Has your relationship with God gotten blurred with your ministry to students? Do you find yourself struggling with spending time with family and friends or ministering to that “student emergency?” Have you turned your phone off in the last year? This session will help remind us that we are indeed human beings and have very specific needs both spiritually and physically. This will be an awesome session that helps make us a better youth worker and a better person. Speaker: Rev. Holley Potts Room: V.I.P. Lounge
Church Relations 101 (Session #2 Only)
Leading a youth ministry is a rewarding but often a difficult job and responsibilities far exceed simply pouring into the lives of teenagers. How, as a youth leader, are you supposed to get your senior pastor on board with the youth ministry? How do you communicate the ministry to the church? How do you get more volunteers? How to you equip and activate those volunteers? How do you supplement your inadequate budget? This workshop will offer practical tips and training, as well as insight from a Senior Pastor’s perspective. Speaker: Rev. Lee and Judy Stevenson Room: V.I.P. Lounge
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EQUIPPING SESSION OPTIONS 60 Tips in 60 Minutes (Session #3 Only)
It’s always great to hear wisdom from those who have gone before us – as well as learn from the mistakes of others. This session will cover 60+ amazing youth ministry tips that can help you enhance your youth ministry, whether you’re the youth director or even a volunteer youth worker. Come check out this fast paced, high-energy session. Speaker: Kourtney Brownlow Room: V.I.P. Lounge
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@GateConference #GateConference2011
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EQUIPPING SESSION 1 Speaker: { Notes }
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EQUIPPING SESSION 2 Speaker: { Notes }
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EQUIPPING SESSION 3 Speaker: { Notes }
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DEVASTATED AND RUINED
NO ORDINARY CALLING Speaker: Charles Welchance { Notes }
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SATURDAY NIGHT DEVOTION No Ordinary Calling /Holley Potts// “The LORD said to Moses: ‘Give Aaron and his sons this command: ‘These are the regulations for the burnt offering: The burnt offering is to remain on the altar hearth throughout the night, till morning, and the fire must be kept burning on the altar. The priest shall then put on his linen clothes, with linen undergarments next to his body, and shall remove the ashes of the burnt offering that the fire has consumed on the altar and place them beside the altar. Then he is to take off these clothes and put on others, and carry the ashes outside the camp to a place that is ceremonially clean. The fire on the altar must be kept burning; it must not go out. Every morning the priest is to add firewood and arrange the burnt offering on the fire and burn the fat of the fellowship offerings on it. The fire must be kept burning on the altar continuously; it must not go out.’’” – Leviticus 6:8-13 Back in the days of the Old Testament, the priests were the ones with “no ordinary calling.” They had to endure many strange rules and regulations to carry out their duties. As Christians, we are not bound by these rules any longer, but they still carry wisdom and foreshadowing as to what God wants in our lives. We are all called to follow Jesus. It’s a journey full of passion, service and fire for God. We often find that when we attend an event such as the Gate Youth Conference we leave “all fired up” to follow Jesus. Sadly, many of us find that fire fading not long after we have returned home. How are we to keep the fire burning? Since our lives are to be an offering for God, maybe we can do what the priests did to keep that fire burning continuously. The Scripture says that every morning the priest is to add firewood to and arrange the offering on the fire. Our fire for God comes from a life that is committed to him daily. What are some things we can do to add firewood to the fire? Take a moment and write a few ways that you know of to keep that fire burning. What can you do to add firewood to the fire? ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________
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NO ORDINARY CALLING This year marked my 16th year in ministry, and I found that my own fire for God had been diminishing. What was missing from my life? A regular time of prayer, reading God’s word, and serving others. I have made an intentional effort to bring these back into my life in the past two months, and I already feel a new zeal and excitement for God’s work! I kindled the fire by adding firewood. What are some commitments that you can make to serve God in some way everyday? ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ What are some creative times and places that you can stay connected to God in prayer? ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ Maybe you can say a prayer every time you wash your hands or open a door. Maybe you can do like I did and not log onto Facebook at a certain hour each night and read the Bible or an inspiring book.
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We are called to the extraordinary calling of surrendering our lives to God daily as an offering. Look for ways to give your heart, mind, and hands and feet to God each day to keep the fires burning!
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INTERGENERATIONAL SERVICE Speaker: { Notes }
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SUNDAY MORNING DEVOTION Devastated By His Love & Ruined For The Ordinary Often times we go to conferences, retreats, big events, you name it‌ and it comes and goes so quickly. Our experiences, though impacting and genuine, seem to slowly fade away as we begin to nestle back down into the routines and life that we had before we left. We want so badly to keep alive that which God has birthed in us, to keep our commitments to Him. We desire so badly to live out the change that God has done in our lives. Take a moment and reflect on this week. Think about what it means to be Devastated by God’s love. Now take a moment and think about what it means to be a follower of Jesus who is Ruined for the Ordinary. Reflect further by writing down some things in the space given below. Things God Showed Me This Week: ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ Prayers That God Answered: ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________
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SUNDAY REFLECTIONS Commitments That I Made to God: ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ One of the key elements to keeping our commitments to God is accountability. What I mean by that is letting someone else know about what it is that you have committed to do. Find a friend in your youth group, a parent, a sibling and share with one another what you have committed to do for God. And allow them to pray for you and check in with you to make sure you are continuing to seek after God and follow His will. Don’t just be Devastated by God’s Love and Ruined for the Ordinary at a cool Youth Conference, but live that out in your everyday life. At the Gate we talked a lot about Getting Wrecked.
Now it’s time to STAY WRECKED!
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MINI-GATE RETREATS & REVIVALS Mini-Gate Retreats & Revivals
Why not invite the Gate to your city? Host a Mini-Gate youth rally and tell your community about the Gate. More importantly, your students will be rocked by the Holy Spirit. 1 night not enough? Host a Customized Mini-Gate Retreat for your youth group! All the planning is done for you, just bring your group! For more information visit www.gateconference.org Or email Kourtney at kbrownlow@aldersgaterenewal.org
Thank You!
Thank you for making this youth conference AMAZING! We would love your written testimonies, blogs, pictures, and videos. Not to mention your constructive criticism on how to make 2012 even better!
/GateYouthConference @GateConference
Be sure to look us up where all the cool kids hang out for quicker and more up to date info on The Gate Annual Youth Conference!
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Gate 2011 Schedule Thursday - July 28 6:40 PM 7:00 PM - 9:30 PM
Doors Open The Gate Session 1
Friday - July 29 8:40 AM 9:00 AM - 10:45 AM 10:45 AM - 11:45 AM 11:45 AM 12:00 PM - 4:30 PM 4:30 PM - 6:40 PM 6:40 PM 7:00 PM - 9:00PM 9:00 PM
Doors Open The Gate Session 2 Lunch Meet for Mission Mission/Outreach Free Time/Dinner Doors Open The Gate Session 3 Concert
Saturday - July 30 9:10 AM 9:30 AM - 11:30 AM 11:30 AM - 2:00 PM 2:00 PM - 2:45 PM 3:00 PM - 3:45 PM 4:00 PM - 4:45 PM 4:45 PM - 6:40 PM 6:40 PM 7:00 PM - 9:30 PM
Doors Open The Gate Session 4 Free Time/Lunch Equipping Session 1 Equipping Session 2 Equipping Session 3 Free Time/Dinner Doors Open The Gate Session 5
Sunday - July 31 9:30 AM - 11:00 AM
Intergenerational Service
GateConference.org