This blog is to help spread information quickly and effectively to students in BASIC, their families, and other FGRC members. It will cover the lesson covered the previous week, the lesson for the coming week, and other announcements.
Greetings BASIC students and parents,
I am writing to let you know that as of today, posts will no longer be published to this address. For all updated blog information, please begin to check the BASIC page of our new church website. I strongly encourage parents and students alike to sign up to receive updates via e-mail on the new blog. The deliver is instantaneous and will go to whichever e-mail address you put in. The sign up is on the upper, right hand side of the screen.
Greetings BASIC students and parents :-)
Just a reminder that tonight, we are going to 3 mile project! Please be at church (Forest Grove Reformed Church) at the parking lot by just after 5:00 PM. We will leave then and should be back by 8:45 PM give or take a few minutes. If you have any quesitons, please call me at 616-594-6144, or at church, or e-mail me at danunekis@gmail.com. Students are already covered for the majority of what 3 mile project offers (excluding arcade games), and they will get pizza as well. However, additional snacks and the aforementioned games will be extra. For more information on what 3mp has, check out their website at www.3mp.org
Greetings BASIC students and parents. The following is a message for all Frontline students in the 2013-2014 year. So, if your child is moving into high school this year, please read on! If not, look for more upcoming information and put our tentative start date of September 11 on your calendar! --------------------------------------- Frontline students and parents! Put the following dates on your calendar
Saturday, August 17: we will be having a luau at Sandy Pines. Be at the church at 4:45 PM to get a ride, and we'll be back by 10:00 PM that night. Come hungry--we're serving dinner there. Bring a swimsuit, towel, and any other stuff you might want (frisbee, soccer ball, cards, etc.)
Saturday, October 19: We will be participating in the Big Day of Service in Grand Rapids! This will be most of the day (morning through late afternoon). The cost is $30 and you MUST SIGN UP BY AUGUST 17 to participate at this reduced rate! More information at:http://groupmissiontrips.com/the-big-day-of-serving/ Remember, you can always check our blog at fgrcfrontline.blogspot.com, or e-mail me at danunekis@gmail.com for more information!
Hey BASIC! I
It's hard to believe that the whole season has passed by already. I want to thank you all on behalf of the sponsors and me for making this a great year. I look forward to seeing you all throughout the rest of the spring and summer, and getting together regularly again next fall.
Just wanted to let you all know that we will have an open gym time next Tuesday (april 2) at 7pm. Come hang out with your friends during spring break and play some basketball, volleyball, or just sit and chat..
Dear BASIC students and parents,
I have a correction from our last blog. Next week (Wednesday March 20), we will meet at the hall at our normal time of 7:00 PM--NOT at 6:30 PM as previously stated. Tonight, all students at BASIC received a half sheet of paper to pass on to their parents. It also had this correction, as well as a brief thank you to all who have participated in BASIC this year. So, for lending us your kids, for bringing snacks, for saying prayers, and everything else that you have done, we want to thank you!
As always, please e-mail me with any questions at danunekis@gmail.com
Greetings BASIC students/family! Just a heads up for what we have coming. This coming Wednesday, March 13, we will meet at the gym at our normal time and have a lesson together like most weeks.
Next Wednesday, March 20, we will meet at the gym at 6:30 PM and head out to visit some of the shut ins from Forest Grove Church. It will be a great time to hang out with people who are older than us and learn from their experiences, as well as hang out with our friends from youth group. Please note the time change--we will meet at 6:30 PM at the hall and be back by 8:00 PM (our normal ending time). Looking forward to it!!!
What we covered this week
This week, we talked about Samuel. Samuel's mother promised that if God
would give her a son, she would give him to the service of the Lord.
She did indeed conceive, and she was faithful with her promise. She
gave Samuel to be trained by and watched over by Eli. In the text we
read, Samuel was laying in bed and heard the voice of the Lord. Three
different times, he went to Eli asking what he wanted. However, Eli
caught on it was God calling to Samuel, so he told Samuel to respond to
God by saying he was ready to listen. God gave Samuel a difficult
message that Eli was going to be punished for his sins, but Samuel was
faithful and reported this message to Eli the next day. In this text,
we are reminded that God can speak to whomever he wants whenever he
wants, however he wants. However, we all have a lot of noise in our
lives and it can be difficult to discern which voice belongs to God.
With practice, we will be able to better discern God's voice from among
the others calling out to us. Announcements The BASIC sponsors and I are talking together to try to plan one
last "fun day" with the youth. We will send out announcements as soon
as we have more details, but we hope to start with a small service
project and then finish with a fun event such as bowling or going out
for pizza. Please stay tuned for further announcements.
Please contact me or another sponsor with any questions! I can be
reached via e-mail at danunekis@gmail.com or cell phone at (616)
594-6144.
Just a quick reminder: There is not BASIC tonight. I encourage and invite you to attend Forest Grove Reformed Church's Ash Wednesday Service. It starts at 7:00 PM in the Sanctuary. I look forward to seeing everyone next week Wednesday!
I wanted to throw out a quick thanks to everyone for a GREAT time this weekend! We had 22 students and 9 adults who participated, and everyone seemed to have a blast. There was something for everyone. We did everything from ice-wall climbing, broomball, and cross-country skiing, to playing cards, riding horses, and tubing down huge hills! The programming for the weekend included 4 different large group sessions where all 250 participants and leaders got together for a time of worship through singing (led by the Adam Lacher band) and hearing God's word as reflected on and taught by Chris Gibson (youth ministries director at Christ Memorial Church, Holland, MI).
I want to share my thanks with:
Youth- They did a stand up job representing our group. They were well behaved, had a ton of fun, and showed incredible respect for all the leaders.
Adult leaders- We had 8 adult leaders who gave up a whole weekend to come hang out with the kids. They got some great exercise climbing the hill a few times a day, were a wonderful support to me, and probably got a lot less sleep than they would on any other weekend. Pray for their energy this week!
Rhonda Lameyer- While Rhonda was not able to join us on the retreat this weekend, we would not have had a retreat were it not for her hard work before hand. Because my hours are limited, Rhonda volunteered to undertake virtually all aspects of planning this retreat. She gathered information, finances, release forms, parent information, contacted CHR with questions, and ultimately had every aspect of the planning done for the team. We showed up, and it was all so smooth thanks to her hard work.
Cran Hill Ranch: Not only did Cran Hill Ranch put on one of the best middle school retreats I have ever been a part of, they did it in an incredible location with a huge variety of activities, kind and helpful staff, and in a beautiful location. We lodged in what seemed to be a brand new cabin, had wonderful food, a great band and speaker, and a huge plethora of activities to choose from. Way to go Cran Hill!!! If you want more information about any of their summer camp programs or whatever else, you can find them at www.cranhillranch.com.
YOU!- As the youth leader, I want to express how grateful I am when parents are willing to trust us with their children for the weekend. I hope they communicate to you how much fun we had this weekend, and you can consider it for next year as well. Thank you for getting in your payments, paperwork, and letting your child experience this with us!
and now....as promised....to any students who read the blog...here's the video I was talking about all weekend :-) Enjoy!!!
What We Covered Tonight:
Tonight, we talked about the story of Sampson. Sampson was a Nazarite--set apart for God from birth. However, he fell in love with Delilah and began to compromise his faith in God for his love with Delilah. Eventually, she betrayed him into the hands of his enemies. God's strength left Sampson until he prayed for strength one last time. Sampson died a man full of God's strength. We learned that nothing is beyond God's redemption, and God continues to use people who are sinful and broken to accomplish his purposes.
Important Announcments:
No BASIC next week! There is an Ash Wednesday service at 7:00 PM. We will NOT be meeting together at the gym on Wednesday, February 13.
For those going on the retreat, please remember to be at church by 5:45 to load the bus. We will leave at 6:00 PM sharp. Our estimated return time is 2:00 PM on Sunday, February 10, but I will try to update the blog if that is going to change either way.
Upon your arrival Friday evening, please make sure to have any forms or money you still haven't turned in. Contact Rhonda Lameyer or Daniel Unekis with questions.
What we covered tonight
Tonight we talked about Rahab. She was someone who God used for incredible purposes, but she (like Moses) is not who we would immediately think of if someone told us to pick out someone for God's perfect plan. She was a prostitute and not a part of Israel (God's chosen people). However, God saw it fit to use her to help the Israelites in their quest to take the land that God promised Abraham centuries earlier. Interestingly enough, Rahab is mentioned in Matthew during the genealogy of Jesus!
Announcements:
Please make sure to turn in all pertinent paper work for the Winter Retreat which is in 9 days! Any questions, please e-mail me or Rhonda LaMeyer. If your child is going on the retreat and was at BASIC tonight, they should have brought home a few pieces of paper with a packing list, release form, and information on when we are leaving.
Greetings basic! I know we only had 1 week off, but it seems like it has been so long since we met together. I'm excited to see you all tonight. Remember, I retreat is coming up in only a little over a week, so you will get some more information on that tonight. See you all in a few hours!
This Friday- Feb. 1st- Weather dependent- They've been closed the past two days!!
Leaving church at 5:30 returning at 10:00 pm. Please text or facebook
Karri if you are going so we can figure out drivers/vehicles.
Thursday- Feb. 7th- Leaving church at 4:15 pm and returning at 9:30.
Please text or facebook Karri if you are going so we can figure out
vehicle usage.
Friday- Feb. 15th- Leaving church at 5:30 returning at 10:00 pm. Please text or
facebook Karri if you are going so we can figure out vehicles usage.
Sat. March 2- Weather Dependent
Leaving church at 4:15pm and returning at 10:00 pm. Please text or
facebook Karri if you are going so we can figure out vehicle usage.
What we covered tonight:
Tonight we talked about the call of Moses. Moses was born in a time when his fellow Hebrews were in slavery in Egypt. He was raised in a life of luxury and plenty because the Pharroh's daughter raised him. However, after Moses murdered an Egyptian for mistreating slaves, he fled. During his "exile" in Midian, he was out shepherding a flock near God's mountain when he encountered God through the burning bush. The main point of tonight's lesson was to listen closely because God is calling each and every one of us to participate in the work He is doing in this world. We should not be waiting until we are older, more qualified, or smarter to be intentionally showing God's love to those we interact with. Next Week:
Next week we will talk about Rahab and the spies. If anyone wants to read ahead, you can start in Joshua 2. Announcements
The retreat is drawing near! Information was sent out today. If you have a mailbox at Forest Grove Reformed Church, please look there for your "parent packet". If not, you should be receiving it in the mail (hopefully Saturday).
6-8 grade boys have the opportunity to sign up for a small basketball league through Sherri at Jamestown Reformed Church. Please contact Daniel Unekis or Bill & Nancy Veldhuizen for more information.
Announcement from Karri Hubach:
Ski Club heading to Bittersweet This Saturday. Leaving Church at 4:15 pm and Returning about 9:30 pm If you have questions, you can call/text Karri at 893-4136.
Greetings BASIC students and parents,
Just a reminder that we are resuming our meetings for BASIC this Wednesday. The time is the same as before (from 7:00 PM until 8:00 PM). I look forward to seeing the students again. This week, we will be discussing temptation and how to best avoid it. Our text will be Genesis 39--the story of Joseph and Potapher's wife. Hope you all can make it!
