Youth Group Winter Update
Making Do
At the end of last year, I preached a message for the church’s online service, detailing the fact that our command to gather together, to encourage one another spiritually, and to bring forward the work of the gospel has not been rescinded or put on hold because of covid-19. Our ability to meet together in-person is certainly restricted, and our gatherings are certainly not the same as they had been pre-pandemic, or even before the most recent restrictions on church services were put in place. But nonetheless, we make do with the circumstances we’re given.
What does that look like for us? It means our weekly youth group meetings are taking place on zoom instead of at church, and that our social activities happen in outdoor places that are still open amidst the current restrictions. Since the church service restrictions were put in place, we’ve had two outdoor daytrips.
The first of our recent gatherings was a ski day at Cypress Mountain during Christmas break. A few of us hit the slopes for the day, enjoying fresh powder as the snow continued to come down. Conditions were ideal and a great time was had by all.
The second excursion was our recent tubing day, where a group of fourteen of us went to Cypress again for some sliding fun. Many of us quickly found it was most fun to link tubes together and go down in a group. At some points, we had 10-12 tubes sliding down the hill at once!
In the midst of these exciting daytrips, we’ve also been digging deep into the book of psalms, going through one chapter per week, verse-by-verse. We’ve learned about the importance of being careful who we spend our time with, the true blessedness that comes to us when we meditate on and apply God’s word, the kingship of Christ over all worldly authorities, the value of confidence in the mercy of God for His children, the value of difficulty in building up our faith, confidence in the final justice of God amidst worldly injustice, hope in God when evil seems to prevail in the world, the importance of being reliable and just, and so much more.
As David says in Psalm 119:9-11:
9 How can a young man keep his way pure?
By guarding it according to your word.
10 With my whole heart I seek you;
let me not wander from your commandments!
Blessings everyone,
Zach Noso
