Student Ministries

EPIC & CIA

May 2023

No family is perfect — not even the ones that seem “normal” on the outside. No one truly has a “normal” family, and that’s okay! Sometimes it’s the most not-normal families that God uses to make the most not normal difference in the world. In this 4-week series, we’ll look at four imperfect and “atypical” families from Scripture. We’ll discover that not-so-typical families are often used by God because not-so-typical families pray for each other, have tough conversations, and forgive each other.

April 2023

You’ve probably heard of Jesus. You might even think you know a lot about Him. We all have some idea of who we think Jesus is. We might think of Him as a nice guy, a great teacher, a carpenter, or a guy who could walk on water . . . but who is Jesus really? In this 4-week series, we’ll look at what other people have said
about Jesus, along with some key moments in Jesus’ life and ministry and even Jesus’ own words, to help us see that Jesus is God, Savior, truth, and better than a best friend.

March 2023

The host of angels proclaiming Jesus’s birth to the shepherds in the fields. The parable of the good Samaritan.
The parable of the father and his two sons.
Zacchaeus climbing the sycamore tree so that he can see Jesus.
Jesus meeting two disciples on the road to Emmaus after his resurrection.

These stories, which are among the best-known and most beloved passages from the Gospels, all come from the Gospel of Luke. Scholars consider Luke one of the “Synoptic” Gospels because of its similarities to Matthew and Mark. Many believe that the authors of these books drew information from some of the same sources. While many of Jesus’s teachings and miracles in Luke also appear in other Gospels, several stories and teachings (such as those listed above) are unique to Luke.
We have limited information about the author of Luke, and we don’t know exactly when it was written. Tradition says that the author was Luke, a traveling companion to the apostle Paul; and scholars estimate that it was written in the late first century, fifty or sixty years after Jesus’s death and resurrection. But the book itself doesn’t provide these details.
Luke’s Gospel is addressed to a man named Theophilus (a name that literally means “lover of God”). The author says that he has “investigated everything carefully from the beginning” and has written “a carefully ordered account” of Jesus’s life (Luke 1:3). Luke’s author takes his job very seriously and hopes that his book will inspire those who read and hear it to put their faith in Christ.
This six-session study explores the major themes in the Gospel of Luke and how they are relevant to Christ’s followers in the twenty-first century. It follows the story of Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection; it draws lessons from Jesus’s teachings and parables; and it examines Jesus’s interactions with the wealthy and powerful and with the poor, sick, and vulnerable.

February 2023

Whether it’s a journey to Mordor, The Upside Down, outer space, or wherever Forky ran off to this time, we all love a great adventure story. Maybe that’s because, deep down, we know we’re designed to live an adventure story of our own — and with Jesus, we can. There is no greater adventure than the journey of knowing God more deeply, so in this 4-week series, we’ll talk about four ways we can do that: by spending time with God, spending time with others, sharing our stories, and using our gifts to serve others.

October 6, 2022

We are having a great time at Youth Group so far this year and would love to have you join us if you are in grades 7-12!

7th-8th grade meet at 7:30pm and you can register here: https://vbspro.events/p/events/b34061

9th-12th grade meet at 7:30pm and you can register here: https://vbspro.events/p/events/f8cc74

Blessings, Alison

August 22, 2022

EPIC is back in full swing this year! I am so excited to get started. We look forward to weekly gatherings, fun events, and trips!

To join in on the fun register on one of the two following links:

9-12: https://vbspro.events/p/events/f8cc74

7-8: https://vbspro.events/p/events/b34061

Blessings, Alison & The EPIC Team

June 23, 2022

Hello! I am Alison the new Director of Youth Ministries. I am looking forward to getting to know everyone and to get our groups running this fall when we kick everything off again! We have lots of exciting things coming this fall (and a few more this summer) so keep an eye out for that information. I can’t wait to live and work in community with you all!

Blessings, Alison Merrill

February 1,2021

Confirmation is not only a United Methodist tradition, but is a great class of spiritual investigation, questioning, learning, growing and formation. The 2021 confirmation class started the week of January 24th and is looking quite different than what confirmation class was even just a few years ago. With COVID restrictions in place, confirmation classes are being offered both in person as well as online to meet the comfort and safety needs of everyone. While there are many other changes in the curriculum and requirements, one thing has stayed the same our students are guided through a course to discover what the Christian life is all about. Confirmation Sunday will be on April 17th.

EPIC is also starting back up again! Starting January 31st, EPIC will meet weekly in an alternating in-person and online format. The first week we will meet in person, the following week we will have small group on zoom, then rotate back to an in-person meeting the following week. Our hope is that this gives all of our students the opportunity to attend in whichever setting meets their comfort level. EPIC will meet each Sunday night from 7:00-8:00pm either in the youth room at church or on zoom. Contact Pastor Beth for more information.

Pastor Beth

October 1, 2020

EPIC Student Ministry

This Fall, EPIC is meeting every other week instead of each
Sunday to restrict our COVID exposures. EPIC’s kick-off took
place on Sunday, September 20 with a bonfire and Covid safe
s’mores! While we forgot to get pictures of the rest of the evening,
we did get a picture of our EPIC leaders preparing the s’mores
bags! Following the kickoff, EPIC will meet bi-weekly at the
Hershberger Residence for small groups starting on October 4.
Face masks are required.

For any questions please contact Alison Merrill, our Director of Youth Ministries at: youth.nlmethodist@gmail.com or call the church office at (319) 626-2762.