aliens in Jesus' footsteps

Beach Day!

2009-06-09T14:04:00.002-05:00

Come celebrate the end of another school year this Saturday at 57th Street Beach. We'll be hanging out from 12:00-3:00. Bring your soccer balls, footballs, frisbees, and whatever else will facilitate a fun day at the beach. It's supposed to be in the 70s, so hopefully it will be a nice day.

See you there.

See You Saturday!

2009-05-28T15:53:00.002-05:00

I hope you all enjoyed the holiday weekend. HTCY is back in full force this weekend. On Saturday we will continue our "Who am I?" series at 7:00 pm at the United Church.

Sunday will see the return of ExNihilo and ECHO as we keep making our way through a study in the book of Micah.

Memorial Day Weekend

2009-05-20T23:16:00.001-05:00

Just a reminder that there are no HTCY meetings, studies, or activities over the upcoming Memorial Day weekend. Enjoy your long weekend and nice Chicago (or wherever you will be) weather.

Also, don't forget to get in on the latest COW competition below.

C.O.W

2009-05-13T18:38:00.002-05:00

C.O.W

2009-05-06T14:08:00.002-05:00

C.O.W.!!!

2009-04-29T21:22:00.002-05:00

Add a humorous caption and win a buck!

New Series

2009-04-28T14:38:00.002-05:00

We are a few weeks into two new series at HTCY. On Saturday nights we have been in a series called "Who am I?" Our studies have taught us some interesting things about ourselves: we are nothing, we are ambassadors, and we are idiots. All the while, we find ourselves learning more about God than ever before. All of our identity is found in him and because of him.

On Sundays we have been going through the book of Micah. So far one of "God's policemen" has been laying down the law and bringing some pretty bad news to Israel.

Any thoughts on what we've been studying? Anything been difficult or hard to think through? Anything you hadn't really thought about before? Anything encouraging? Let's get some chatter going in here again!

C.O.W.

2009-04-15T23:35:00.002-05:00

Where is my Hairbrush?!?!

2009-04-13T21:52:00.003-05:00

Just realized this didn't make it up for some reason. Last, but certainly not least, here is the Hairbrush Song video.

Pokeman Theme

2009-04-11T12:05:00.002-05:00

Here's Jacob in an impressive solo debut...

Love My Lips Videos

2009-04-09T15:59:00.002-05:00

The Love My Lips videos are up. You will probably realize that two of the acts are currently missing (Jacob's Pokeman and the Hairbrush Song). These two acts seem to have magically disappeared from my computer. However, they should be up by tomorrow afternoon.

Great lip sync, everyone! Looking forward to next year.

Jesus is a Friend of Mine

2009-04-09T15:05:00.005-05:00

The judges are back...

Baby Got Book

2009-04-09T14:25:00.003-05:00

Your 2009 lip sync champion...

Pants Rock Opera

2009-04-09T14:03:00.004-05:00

Matt and Laura's debut...

Just the Two of Us

2009-04-09T13:43:00.003-05:00

Sappy love song #2

Puppy Love

2009-04-09T13:27:00.003-05:00

Brendon busting out another sappy love song...

Canned Heat

2009-04-09T13:09:00.003-05:00

HTCY's favorite Napoleon Dynamite impersonator...

No Shepherd Girls

2009-04-09T12:37:00.004-05:00

Our first-ever yodeling, foreign language act...

Burnin' Up

2009-04-09T11:19:00.003-05:00

Here's the Burnin' Up video. I received a special request from Georgia to get this one up. I'll try and get all of them up today.

Sugar Daddy

2009-04-03T15:42:00.004-05:00

Here's act 2...Simeon and David doing "Sugar Daddy."

My Little Buttercup

2009-03-29T23:40:00.004-05:00

Here's the first of the Love my Lips 3 videos. The others will come over the next few weeks.

Enjoy.

Love my Lips 3!

2009-03-23T22:58:00.001-05:00

Just a quick reminder that your songs are needed for the lip sync. At the very least you need to e-mail Kevin with your song, the artist that sings it, and who will be in the act BY WEDNESDAY.

C.O.W.

2009-03-18T21:17:00.003-05:00

C.O.W

2009-03-11T21:13:00.005-05:00

1$ PRIZE 1$ PRIZE 1$ PRIZE 1$ PRIZE 1$ PRIZE 1$ PRIZE 1$ PRIZE

Jazz and Java

2009-03-10T09:21:00.002-05:00

This Friday HTC is putting on their second ever "Jazz and Java" evening. This is an evening of great jazz music. The musicians will include some people from Holy Trinity and also guest musicians from Texas and elsewhere - a very talented group.

I also just heard that HTCY's own Charlie Stanton will also be joining them with his saxophone. If you have never been to Jazz and Java you should go and you can support Charlie at the same time.

It takes place this Friday night at 7:30 pm at the downtown congregation (50 W Erie).

C.O.W

2009-03-04T20:57:00.003-06:00

Location: Ethel's Event: Fondu Chocolate

C.O.W

2009-02-26T21:01:00.005-06:00

Add your captions!

Interdigitation!

2009-02-23T15:14:00.002-06:00

Our talk on Saturday night was about the resolution to "Read More." This was related to the time we spend on our own reading the Bible, delighting in God's words and it becoming real in our own lives.

Was there anything that encouraged you for your personal Bible reading from Saturday night? What are some helpful tips you have used that you can give to others about reading our Bibles on a regular basis? Do you include other things in your Bible reading time? (music, journaling, etc...).

Let's help each other out and encourage one another to be in God's word on some kind of regular basis.

Penny War!

2009-02-20T13:18:00.002-06:00

Just a reminder the Fight for Gasimu is still on. Bring your pennies, nickels, dimes, quarters and cash to fight for your team and support Gasimu's eduaction, health and village.

Youth Group is back Saturday night at 7:00 with H2O to follow.

See you there.

SnOw BLaSt

2009-02-19T19:47:00.034-06:00

C.O.W

2009-02-19T19:26:00.003-06:00

The photo inventory has been updated with new pictures from Snow Blast 09! Take a second and add a comment to win a prize!

SNOW BLAST

2009-02-10T09:12:00.002-06:00

Despite the 60 degree weather today, we are still planning Snow Blast for the weekend. Whether the snow shows or not, we will still jump on a bus on Friday afternoon and head to Michigan for a weekend of fun.

It's not too late to sign up, so there is still time to invite a friend. There are always scholarships available for those who cannot afford the cost of the trip. Just give Kevin a call or an e-mail and it'll get figured out. We want everyone to be able to come.

I am still praying for snow and think you should join me.

See you Friday!

C.O.W

2009-02-04T21:46:00.003-06:00

Hello people! Take a moment, view the picture, and add a caption with the exciting possibility of winning a dollar for your post!

Win Penny War Money!!!

2009-02-04T12:49:00.003-06:00

Last Saturday at youth group we looked at Acts 1:8. At first glance it looks like a command to us to quickly get into the world and be missionaries everywhere! (Which it does talk about). But, it was also a command to the disciples that was completely filled through their ministry by the end of the book of Acts.

This is something that we need to be careful of when we read our Bibles. Verses and passages are set in bigger sections of writing. Those sections are in books. Those books together make up the whole Bible. Usually we do this naturally when we read books or even watch movies. If you were to turn on a movie, say "Remember the Titans," to a random place you might see a scene that only deals with conflict and fighting teammates. If this was all you saw you could think the whole movie is just about a football team that doesn't get along. But if you watch the whole movie, that specific scene plays a role in a larger story and makes sense with the beginning and ending.

The same is true of our Bible reading. We can come away with some crazy ideas of what the Bible says if we just take one verse and try to decide what it means on its own. We need to remember that single verses function as a larger part of the story.

Here's how you can earn some money for your team (or against the other team) in the Penny War for Gasimu and see how context works when reading the Bible. I will give you $0.25 for each passage you do (up to $1 per person). You have to do both parts.

First read these verses and write down what you think they mean.

1) Matthew 19.26
2) 1 Corinthians 13.4 (notice the word "arrogant")
3) Philippians 3.14
4) Philippians 4.13

ONLY GO ON TO THE NEXT PART FOR EACH VERSE AFTER YOU HAVE DONE THE FIRST PART

Now read the bigger passages and write down what you think the verses mean now.

1) Matthew 19.16-30
2) 1 Corinthians 4.6; 4.14-21 (especially 18 & 19); 5.2 NOTE: the word "arrogant" and the words "puffed up" mean the same thing
3) Philippians 3.12-21
4) Philippians 4.10-13

Bring what you have written down and show Kevin at youth group on Saturday to learn the importance of context and to get your money to fight for Gasimu!!

C.O.W

2009-01-07T21:53:00.002-06:00

Leave a caption for the prize of $1!

Happy New Year!

2009-01-07T10:31:00.002-06:00

Welcome to 2009! After taking a couple weeks off we will be back this weekend with youth group on Saturday. We are going to be starting a new series called "Resolved." We are going to find out what the Bible has to say about some of the most popular New Year's resolutions. The typical fun, games and music will also be there with H2O to follow. It all starts at 7:00.

We will also be announcing the next three events for HTCY this Saturday. Come and make sure you get all the details.

Also, ECHO will be starting again this Sunday. We are going to be studying the book of Exodus from now through March. Exodus is full of great stories from Israel's history and has a lot that we, as God's people, can learn. Join us at 2:45. If you've been a regular at youth group and never check out ECHO, this is a great time to start!

Check back here throughout the week for your chance to win $1 from Kevin's wallet in our C.O.W. competition.

CHRISTMAS PARTY!!

2008-12-18T16:19:00.001-06:00

The annual Christmas Party is this Saturday! Show up at the United Church (53rd and Blackstone) for games, prizes, snacks, and the annual white elephant gift exchange. Don't forget to bring a white elephant gift to throw in with the others. The party will go from 6:30-9:00. See you there!

C.O.W

2008-12-10T22:26:00.002-06:00

Baskets of love

2008-12-05T16:07:00.007-06:00

C.O.W

2008-12-03T20:54:00.002-06:00

And We're Back

2008-12-01T11:49:00.003-06:00

I hope you all had a restful and enjoyable Thanksgiving break. Drop a note in the comment section and let us know what you are thankful for this year and how you spent your long weekend.

Youth group is back on Saturday. We have two more weeks in our series, The Cross. And then comes the annual Christmas party!

See you on Saturday!

Operation: Turkey Basket, Baskets of Love, or Whatever You Want to Call it

2008-11-12T16:56:00.002-06:00

This Saturday we will be partnering with By the Hand to deliver baskets of Thanksgiving meals to families that they serve that are in need of a meal for Thanksgiving. Meet us at the United Church at 9:30 am. We will be done around 1:30. There is no youth group at night.

Also, don't forget to submit your caption to the latest C.O.W. photo below this post.

C.O.W

2008-11-12T09:44:00.004-06:00

C.O.W

2008-11-05T19:51:00.004-06:00

Post your caption, win, and your one step closer to being a millionaire! Be creative and funny while your at it and even better!

If Youth Group was Longer

2008-11-03T13:20:00.004-06:00

This past Saturday in youth group we continued our The Cross series with a discussion on "Jesus Died Because God is Just." We looked at Romans 3.23-26 where it talks about God being "just and the justifier" because of what he did through Jesus on the cross.

We didn't take any time, really, to talk about the implications of this on the person who already has faith in God through Jesus' death on the cross. But take a look at the passage again:

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified
by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,
whom God put forth as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by
faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine
forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his
righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the
justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

One of the main reasons we didn't talk about what the Christian is supposed to do is because there isn't much in the passage telling the Christian what to do. Look at the verses: What are the two things the we have done or are supposed to do? How much of a role do we play in salvation? What is our role in salvation? What is the encouragement that we can take from this as Christians?

Comment and discuss, please!

2008-10-29T22:11:00.005-05:00

And boy are we back! Add a caption, and possibly win one dollar from the very pocket of KS himself...so write, write, write!

Murder Mystery Pictures!!!

2008-10-24T19:19:00.006-05:00

Saturday Night

2008-10-24T12:18:00.001-05:00

Just a quick reminder...Youth Group is happening tomorrow night. We had a great turnout at the Murder Mystery. If you know someone who came last week that doesn't always come to youth group, make sure to invite them back.

7:00.
United Church.
53rd and Blackstone.
H2O will follow.
Be there.

By the Hand

2008-10-14T13:02:00.002-05:00

Many of you volunteered at By the Hand at some point over the summer. They have opened a new site in Englewood, not too far from Hyde Park. I think it would be great if a bunch of us got involved on a regular (maybe every week or two) basis. If you have already volunteered there let me know if you are interested in going back. If you have not volunteered before I will get you set up so you can.

The main help you can give is in tutoring and there will also be opportunity to just hang out with the kids.

If Youth Group Was Longer...

2008-10-01T11:31:00.002-05:00

This is going to be a semi-regular posting on the youth group blog. Back in the day our blog was used for fun stuff, but also to stimulate some conversation from the things we had previously talked about at youth group. From now on you will occasionally find posts called "If Youth Group Was Longer." These will be dedicated to bringing up something that we didn't have enough time to talk about at youth group but is important to the topic.

This past week we spent a lot of time talking about the Christian "race" we are running. Most of what was talked about focused on the difficulty of the race. However, we should not approach the race, or the text we used (Hebrews 12.1-17), as complete despair. Consider verses 5-10; they assume that we are God's children. For those who face trials and difficult times in their faith are God's children. God promises that he will be faithful to his children and make sure that they finally come home to him forever.

We may be running a difficult race that is full of obstacles, trials, and hard times, but God is faithful. God knows his children and promises not to lose any of them to a difficult race. Rather, he promises that he will make sure we get through to the finish line.

So, though we may want to shy away from the race we have the guarantee of finishing. It is not a race to be won against other competitors, but a race that we complete with all Christians and can help one another finish.

Any thoughts? Is this passage as discouraging as it first may seem? How does our outlook of the race change knowing that God will see us across the finish line?

We're Moving!

2008-09-30T11:54:00.002-05:00

After taking up temporary residence at the church office, we will finally be in a more permanent situation starting this Saturday. Youth group, H2O, and ECHO will all be taking place at the United Church of Hyde Park on the corner of 53rd and Blackstone. All times will remain the same.

See you Saturday!

HTCY Weekend

2008-09-19T13:36:00.002-05:00

Happy Friday! The weekend is upon us and that means one thing...it's time for HTCY's happening to start up again. Saturday night we will be at the church offices again (1525 E 55th St) at 7:00-8:30. Join us for fun, music, friends, and the next part of our series on the cross. H2O will follow and also be at the office.

ECHO has started up again on Sunday afternoons. We will be meeting at 2:45 to continue to study the book of Romans and have small groups for discussion and prayer. When you come to KAM for ECHO remember that the police guarding the block have no idea what ECHO is. Tell them you go to church at Holy Trinity which meets at KAM.

See you this weekend!

Let Justice Roll Conference

2008-09-14T22:38:00.002-05:00

Many of you have taken part in the various service projects that we have done. For those of you who have volunteered with By the Hand here is an opportunity for you. Park Community Church is holding a one day conference on Saturday from 9am-3pm. If you are a BTH volunteer and contact me or Erin by the end of Monday, BTH will pay your way to the conference if you are interested. You can check out the conference here.

Youth Group

2008-09-10T13:42:00.003-05:00

I hope everyone had a great time on the Kick-off Retreat! Any fond memories? Funny moments you will never forget? Leave them in the comments section.

Our Saturday night meetings are back! Join us this Saturday for a great time of fun, music, and a brand new series. This year we are very excited to have a full band to lead us in song. And our new series is "The Cross." Join us to learn what happened at the crucifixion of Jesus and why it is important.

For September we are meeting at HTC's offices. They are located at 1525 E 55th St in Suite 203. We will be there at 7:00 and ECHO will follow.

See you there!

Wanted: Your Service Ideas

2008-08-15T14:22:00.003-05:00

This past week at youth group we talked about wealth, poverty, and its effect on the city. As Christians, service to those who are in need is a calling we receive directly from Jesus. We talked about the stories of two kids who have found ways to serve and fight for social justice around the world. Here is a page with video and links about Zach Hunter, the teenage abolitionist. And here you can read about Austin Gutwein and his "Hoops for Hope" fund raiser that he started.

We are looking for your ideas! How can we as a youth group serve Chicago? How can we help people around the world? What projects can we do? How can we raise money towards a good cause? Put all your brilliant ideas down on paper or in an e-mail and get them to Kevin by the end of the month. At least a few of them will be used in our upcoming year of HTCY!!

Boat Party Date Change!

2008-08-11T15:13:00.002-05:00

Hey everyone! Youth group is on for tomorrow night at 7:00. Join us as we continue our series called "Summer in the City."

Also, there is an important date change you need to know about. The boat party is going to be changed from Aug 16 to Aug 23. So it will be a week later, but the time and place will remain the same.

We're Back...

2008-07-21T15:18:00.003-05:00

Youth Group is back this week. I apologize to any of you who showed up last week to nothing. You missed a fun time camping.

Join us tomorrow (Tuesday) as we continue our series called "Summer and the City." 7:00 at KAM, per usual.

@ the Point!

2008-07-17T10:08:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow continues our summer time of "Fun @ the Point." Join us from 10:00-12:00 at the Point to hang out and have some fun. It's supposed to be a hot one tomorrow, so fun should obviously include getting wet, so come prepared. We can also jump in the lake afterwards. See you there!

NO YG TONIGHT!

2008-07-15T12:33:00.001-05:00

Hey everyone! We had a blast on the camping trip this weekend. Sorry if you missed it. Here's what's going on at HTCY this week:

1) No youth group tonight.

2) Fun at the Point on Friday at 10:00. Come ready to get wet.

3) ECHO is back on Sunday at 2:45

4) Youth Group will meet again next Tuesday at 7:00 at KAM.

HTCY Update!

2008-07-05T23:00:00.003-05:00

Just a couple of things you should know about HTCY:

1) There is no ECHO on Sunday. Enjoy your holiday weekend.

2) There is volleyball on Monday. I will be gone. Good Luck! Let's win one when it counts.

3) Youth Group on Tuesday will be taught by Sam Smith. It is sure to be a great time and Sam will have some great things to say concerning our new series.

4) The camping trip in July 11-13. Invite your friends and sign up at youth group.

NEW SERIES!! NEW SERIES!!

2008-06-30T10:42:00.002-05:00

That's right...we are starting a new series tomorrow night. Our summer series will be "Summer in the City." Join us on Tuesday nights as we seek to gain a biblical understanding of the city and what it means to live as a Christian in the city. It's going to be a good series and a good summer of youth group. See you there!

And, if you need something to do tonight join us at Montrose Beach at 7:00 for volleyball.

Camp, etc...

2008-06-27T14:29:00.002-05:00

A big thank-you is in order to everyone who helped out at the soccer camp this week. Thanks for all you did to make the camp a success. We ended camp today with a BBQ and had a lot of families out. If you missed out on the soccer camp, you should look forward to helping out at the basketball camp coming up at the end of July.

Also, no youth group tomorrow. But, you can catch us for ECHO on Sunday and then our new summer series on Tuesday night at KAM. Check with your parents about the camping trip on July 11-13 and sign up at youth group this week.

See you then...

If You Need Something to do Tonight

2008-06-24T12:45:00.002-05:00

Hey everyone.

John Mulholland (Erin and Brendon's Dad) wanted to let you know about a TV program that is on tonight. It is about the slave trade in America and is on the Public TV channel. This is an important topic in a city that can still be very racially divided. Check out the links below and the show if you have time tonight.

http://www.pbs.org/pov/pov2008/tracesofthetrade/

http://www.tracesofthetrade.org/

Next YG

2008-06-23T17:35:00.002-05:00

Just a reminder that we are switching to meeting on Tuesday nights for the summer. So, our next meeting will be on July 1. We will still be at KAM and we will still be meeting at 7:00. If you really need to hang out with HTCY people between now and then, join us for volleyball at Montrose beach on a Monday night at 7:00.

When we meet on July 1 we will be starting our series called "Summer in the City." It's going to be a good one. We will be gaining a biblical perspective of the city as well as looking at topics like poverty, justice, culture, arts, etc... By the end of it I hope we are all better prepared with an understanding of what it means to live as a Christian in the midst of one of the world's great cities.

Soccer Camp

2008-06-19T16:15:00.001-05:00

Next week is HTC's soccer camp at the Midway. Many of you have attended or helped with this camp in the past. Those in charge of the camp are always looking for any help they can get. Even if you have never played soccer there are definitely ways you can help. Let me know if you are interested through a comment here or giving me a call or e-mail.

Volleyball Tonight!

2008-06-16T13:30:00.002-05:00

The HTC summer volleyball season start tonight. The games start at 7:00 at Montrose Beach. If you can make it try to get there a few minutes before that. Hope to see you there for the start of our title defense!

By the Hand

2008-06-09T13:07:00.002-05:00

Happy Monday! If summer isn't here for you yet, it is a mere few days away. At youth group on Saturday Erin took a few minutes to talk to you about a service opportunity at By the Hand and the reading classes that they are doing this summer.

I have talked to a few of you who are interested in taking part or at least learning more. If you are interested in being part of this service opportunity let me know by leaving a comment on here, or reaching me through various other means (phone, e-mail, text, facebook, courier owl) this week. It is important that we get an accurate head count as we try to set some things up.

This is a great way to get involved with service in the city in which you live. You may even learn a few things yourself. I am looking forward to taking part in this with whoever is interested. If you are interested, double check with your parents and let me know that you are interested in the next few days.

Volleyball - Please Respond!!!

2008-06-03T00:08:00.002-05:00

I know you are all studying hard for finals...but here's a little summer thought. The volleyball league is coming back and we took a show of hands of who would be interested on Saturday. After all was said and done we had an end roster of over 20 people.

So...I need to know where you stand. If you raised your hand are you serious about playing? Because if we have that many people genuinely interested I think it would be best to split up into two teams. But, if we are only going to have 6-10 people show up on a weekly basis then I'll keep it one.

The league will be on Monday nights and up at Montrose beach. We can probably figure out some transportation, but you might not be able to count on it entirely. So, double check with your parents and respond in the comments RIGHT AWAY!!

5k for Gasimu

2008-06-02T15:28:00.002-05:00

Hey everyone! If you have not yet signed up for the 5k for Gasimu, you have until Wednesday. Just leave a comment to this post saying you will participate. All who participate (raising $30) will receive a free t-shirt. The 5k run/walk is at 9:00 am on June 21.

2008-05-28T23:46:00.005-05:00

Here it is people, this weeks picture! You know you've always wanted to win a C.O.W so go for it! Wrack your brains for the funniest, wittiest or most entertaining caption of them all...

C.O.W

2008-05-14T23:13:00.006-05:00

And we're back with a brand new picture! Enter this contest for caption of the week and win one dollar for the wittiest/funniest caption...click for a closer look.

How do we View God?

2008-05-13T10:22:00.002-05:00

Hey everyone! This past Saturday we talked about the question, "does God really send people to hell?" This is a hard question because it brings before us a view of God that we don't usually think about: his judgment of sin.

Our 3 point were:
(1) God desires all people to be saved
(2) A holy God saves and judges
(3) All people are offered the gospel as salvation

Any lingering thoughts or questions from our talk? Did you learn anything? Did you disagree with anything?

City Champs!

2008-05-11T13:46:00.002-05:00

Congratulations once again to Joanna and Erin Mulholland. They are Chicago's women soccer champions!

C.O.W

2008-05-07T21:09:00.006-05:00

Here it is...this week's C.O.W picture. Best caption wins $1. You can always get more details by clicking on the picture and looking at it more close up.

C.O.W.

2008-04-29T12:25:00.009-05:00

Introducing C.O.W!! This is a new HTCY contest that will take place entirely on the blog. From the time a new picture (accompanied by the official C.O.W. logo seen to the left) you will have until 12:00 noon on Saturday to submit your funniest/wittiest/best caption for the photo.

The winner, as deemed by an expert panel of able-to-be-bribed judges, will receive $1 with which they can do whatever they please. You could buy a double cheese burger at McDonalds, trade it for four quarters, let Gasimu eat for another day, the possibilities are endless!! So tell everyone who usually doesn't check out the blog to get in on the new contest. A winner for this photo will be announced on Saturday at youth group.

2008-04-27T18:18:00.003-05:00

Most of the girls from famine!

Now that is a sample pew that we had to sleep in...

"Precious!!" as Val would say

Ok, as decreed by Kevin himself, best caption for this pic gets a prize people!

The Gang

Fun at the Point

2008-04-21T22:04:00.002-05:00

Rumor is a bunch of you have Wednesday and Thursday off this week. I'm sorry for those of you who attend Lab or will be taking tests all day. Everyone had their days off, I guess. You will be in our thoughts and prayers!

For those of you wondering what to do with all that extra time, look no further. Wednesday morning drag yourself out of bed and get to the Point at 10:30. I'll bring a frisbee for some ultimate frisbee. Feel free to bring soccer balls, whiffle ball and bat, or anything else that looks like fun. It's supposed to be a beautiful day so we'll play some games for a couple hours.

Bring your "A" game and we'll see you there.

Still Hungry?

2008-04-15T11:03:00.004-05:00

I hope everyone has recovered from 30 Hour Famine this weekend. We had a great time with scavenger hunts (congrats to team "We Are"), singing, watching videos, work projects, playing games, and eventually eating. You still have until April 26th (at youth group) to turn in your Famine money, so keep collecting.

Also, just because Famine has ended does not mean that children around the world have gotten to eat. As a youth group we still support Gasimu in Kenya. We raised a good amount to support him through the penny war, but this is an on-going effort. If you bring 50 cents each week we will have enough to get Gasimu food, health care, and education on a regular basis. So please don't forget to help out Gasimu. $2 a month is not too much, you can give more if you want.

What did you enjoy about Famine? What were your favorite activities? What did you learn?

Your Thoughts, Please

2008-04-06T23:58:00.002-05:00

I want all of you southsiders to know that I can admit defeat when it flies in my face. Congrats to the Sox. We'll see what happens next weekend at the Cell.

More importantly, we are coming off of another busy youth group weekend. I heard there were a ton of you on Saturday night. Everything sounds like it went really well. Your missing leaders had a great time at the Jupp/Palmer wedding. All I have heard about Dan's talk so far is the trick he did at the beginning. What else did he talk about? What was interesting, compelling, or thought-provoking on the topic of Christianity being the only true way?

Also, we had another great discussion at ECHO. This Sunday we were in Romans 1.18-32. It is kind of a depressing passage that talks a lot about sin, the sinner's rejection of God, and God's wrath against sin. Any lingering thoughts or questions based on our study in Romans so far? We've had a good group both weeks and would love to see more of you there if you are interested.

Thoughts from the Weekend

2008-03-31T09:11:00.003-05:00

Happy Monday to everyone. I know it's raining and I know you have to go back to school. But, baseball season is officially here! Good luck to your favorite Chicago team (even though the Tigers will take both of them this year ;) )

I hope everyone had a good time on Saturday night. I really enjoyed the discussion we had about the question "is Jesus God?" Any lingering thoughts on this topic? Any thoughts on the series so far? I hope it's been helpful as we seek to talk to others about our faith and to edify the faith we have.

It was also exciting to start ECHO on Sunday afternoon. Thanks to everyone who came out. Paul packs a lot of information into the first 17 verses of his letter, but we learned at the basic level Romans is all about the good news of Jesus-- the gospel. What did those of you who were there take away from the discussion?

YOUTH GROUP SATURDAY!!!

2008-03-24T15:08:00.004-05:00

HTCY is back this week. We will be meeting at 7:00 at KAM. To see everything that is going on this weekend see the previous post. We are looking forward to talking about the question "is Jesus God?" and beginning our ECHO group and Romans study on Sunday. See you then!

No Youth Group Saturday

2008-03-18T17:15:00.002-05:00

Hi everyone! Just a reminder that there will be no youth group on Saturday because of Easter. You can look forward to getting back together on March 29. Our next question in the series got questions? is "is Jesus God?"

Also, we are starting our ECHO class on March 30. This will be a time on Sunday afternoons form 2:45-3:45 where we will be having a time for Bible study, discussion, and prayer. This will be similar to the lesson times that we had when going through 1 Peter. We will take a passage of the Bible and go through it together. We are going to start with the book of Romans. All who are interested are invited!

Lip Sync!!

2008-03-05T11:59:00.003-06:00

Love my Lips is fast approaching! Only 3 more days until the fun hits the stage. I hope you are all working hard on your acts. After last year there are going to be some high expectations.

There will be plenty of tickets available at the door. So feel free to invite whoever you want. Make sure your families are there and anyone else who seems interested. We are also looking for some cookies, brownies, chips, etc... for the intermission. If you or your family is interested in baking or buying some goods, that would be awesome. Just bring them with you. It could even be a good way to introduce someone to HTCY (us willing to be fools for everyone has to say something).

If you have any questions let me know. See you Saturday. Everyone needs to be there by 6:20. Don't be late.

Let's help children around the world get something to eat!

Love Your Lips?

2008-02-25T12:29:00.002-06:00

The 3rd HTCY lip sync is fast approaching. We have sold a decent amount of tickets so far and I am sure that more people will be buying them this weekend at church. So, get your acts together. You need to sign up this week at youth group or church to make sure that you are included in the program.

I hope you guys are excited about this time. Let's put some good thought and work into our acts this year and make them really fun for the audience to watch and enjoy. Feel free to bring props, go all out on your costumes, and do whatever it takes to make it a good time.

Remember, whatever money we raise will go towards the 30 Hour Famine and will feed starving children around the world. So, make sure to invite your families and whoever else is up for an entertaining evening.

Also, this Saturday we will be exploring part two of "can i trust the Bible?" We will be looking at what the Bible says about itself. So bring your Bibles and be ready to dig into them and see what they have to say. Bring your thoughts and questions as there will be a discussion time afterwards if you are interested.

100th Post!

2008-02-14T10:31:00.004-06:00

The youth group blog has officially hit its 100th post! You can go back and count them if you don't have faith in my numbers (actually don't, because that 100 number includes deleted posts). Speaking of faith, we are starting a new series this week at youth group -- "got questions?" -- in which we will be asking various questions that you often interact with at school or have wondered about concerning the Bible or what Christians believe.

This week we will be asking the question, "is faith illogical?" We will be talking about whether or not it makes sense to have faith, if we need to have faith, and what exactly faith is. We will, of course, also have time for games, singing, and hanging out with one another.

I would love to see all the new faces from the retreat back with us on Saturday, so invite your friends to come back with you. And, feel free to invite more friends. If you have had conversations with friends that wonder about the things you believe, this is a great opportunity to continue conversation or let them get a perspective from someone else as well.

Lastly, we are moving our starting time from 6:30 to 7:00. So we will now be meeting from 7:00-8:30. See you all on Saturday.

Are You Ready for Some Football?

2008-02-01T11:08:00.000-06:00

If you haven't been paying attention, the Super Bowl is coming up this weekend. So, Val thought the youth group should celebrate. Tomorrow afternoon, from 3:00-5:00 we will be playing football (and I'm sure other raucous events in the snow) at Shoesmith Park. You should all throw on your snow gear and join us for a good time. See you tomorrow.

Winter Retreat

2008-01-28T15:01:00.001-06:00

The Winter Retreat is nearly upon us. In 11 days a big yellow bus will be pulling into the KAM parking lot to take us away for a weekend of fun, games, and learning the story of the whole Bible. Registration forms and permission slips are available on this site, so have your parents print them off and fill them out. Forms are due at youth group this Saturday or church on Sunday.

That means that this is your last week to invite friends and others who you think would enjoy a weekend of fun or might be interested in coming to HTCY on a regular basis. This is a great way to have fun, meet new people, and get a feel for what HTCY is like. So, talk to your friends, invite them to come (I've even invited some friends), and let's fill up that bus. If we need another one, that can be arranged. It's guaranteed to be a great time (with or without snow).

Bundle Up!

2008-01-17T11:09:00.000-06:00

As most of you know we will be going ice skating this Saturday. As some of you may not know, it is supposed to be pretty cold on Saturday (around 11 degrees). So make sure to throw on a couple of extra layers and join us for some fun on the ice! There is an indoor area at the rink so you can go in and warm up as you wish.

Also, if you aren't so sure that you want to be outside, come and join us anyways. There will be hot chocolate, board games, and good company inside where it will be warmer.

See you Saturday!

News & Notes

2008-01-14T12:23:00.000-06:00

Happy Monday, everyone! A lot of HTCY related events took place this past weekend. Here are a few tings you'll want to know:

(1) We're going ice skating on Saturday! Bring $8 ($5 if you have your own skates) and clothes for being in the snow, if some comes. We will provide the hot chocolate. We will meet at Woodlawn & the Midway at 1:00 pm and your parents can pick you up and 4:00 pm.

(2) The Fight for Gasimu has begun. Over the next 5 youth group meetings (not including ice skating and the retreat) you can bring your change to help win a pizza party for the sr. high or jr high. Check here sometime next week to get an update on the points thus far.

(3) The Winter Retreat is coming soon. We have a bus that really wants to be filled up and can get another if needed. You can tell your parents and friends to go to the youth group website for a registration form and more information. Forms and money are due by Feb 3.

Gasimu!

2008-01-11T12:19:00.000-06:00

Hey everyone. The end of the week has come once again. That means that Saturday night is closing in again. And that means you get to come to youth group again!

This week we will be playing games, singing songs, and getting closer to the end of 1 Peter (only three more studies and we're done). But, we will also be starting something new with hopes of raising money for Gasimu, the child we support in Africa. So, I can't tell you too many details now, but you will want to bring your pocket change and the pocket change of some other people to help get your team off to a good start. That's all you get for now, join us tomorrow night at KAM at 6:30 for more details and all the fun of HTCY!

Manana

2008-01-04T10:57:00.000-06:00

That's Spanish for tomorrow in case you are one of those unfortunate students who is stuck taking French or German.

Tomorrow will be the return of HTCY and the first meeting for 2008! It's sure to be a good time and there will be announcements for a few upcoming activities that you won't want to miss. So make sure you are there.

Prayer for Kenya

2008-01-02T16:31:00.001-06:00

The last three summers I (and many of you) have spent time, along with many others from our church, working with a church in the slums of Nairobi, Kenya. If you have not been following the events, there was a presidential election in Kenya on Dec 27 and the results have been contested and possibly corrupted. This has led to violence, especially along tribal lines. This is a pretty good summary article on what has been happening. Please take a few moments to pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ as they persevere through this extremely difficult time.

Here is the e-mail from the pastor we have worked with concerning his family, church, and neighborhood.

ia m writing this information as a prayer request. IAM IN TEARS
BECAUSE OF WHAT IAM NOW WITNESSING!
My family is well, safe but i regrate to inform all our friends at Holy
Trinity church and fraternity that all is not quite well after the Dec 30
anouncement of election results.
The Chairman of the election commission announced presedent Kibaki to run
for a second term but was met with steep resistance from the oposition.
Please pass this information to all in Holy trinity so that you may keep us
in prayer.

ALL AROUND HURUMA IS BLOOD SHED! SLAUGHTERING OF PEOPLE OF AN ETHINIC
COMMUNITY WHO HAVE BEEN TORCHING HOUSES AT NIGHT.
NOW I HAVE WITNESED SEVERAL CASES OF PEOPLE BEING KILLED WITH ALL SORTS OF
CRUDE WEAPONS.
people including our churccch members have fleeing to other secure areas in
protection by the police. Stuation is extremely tense.
The previous sunday and new year celebraton no people in church due to fear
of being killed.
transport paralysed completelty. We are accesing the stuation.

We have no money and food in our family .we depend on our church members for
survival-pray with the kenyan stuation.
Thew police seem to relaxed as they see all take the law on their own hands
PRAY PRAY PRAY FOR GOD TO CONTAIN THIS POLITICAL SITUATION
STANLAS

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2008-01-01T11:51:00.000-06:00

I hope you all made it until midnight last night. What did everyone do with their vacations?

The holidays have come to a close and that means one thing: HTCY is back. We will be back together this Saturday, 6:30 pm, at KAM. See you there!

and more pics...

2007-12-19T12:41:00.000-06:00

more pics...

2007-12-19T12:40:00.000-06:00

Christmas Party Pics!

2007-12-19T12:36:00.000-06:00

I hope everyone had a blast at the Christmas party. Leave a comment and let us all know what you enjoyed and what we should bring back next year. Here are some pictures to rekindle your memory. Enjoy your break from school.

Stories

2007-11-20T16:54:00.001-06:00

I apologize for not getting this up sooner; I've been slacking off on the blog world. Anyway, does anyone have any stories from last week that they want to share (anonymously)? We were challenged to look for, or create opportunities that would demonstrate the fact that we have faith in the person and work of Jesus in the midst of people who don't believe the same things. Let us know if anything happened for you!

And, that doesn't have to be a one week thing; it's not like it is too late to do something along the same lines.

Are You Ready for Some Football?!?

2007-11-08T20:28:00.000-06:00

This is from Val. I think all of you, everyone else from youth group, and at least two of everybody's friends should be there (and then come to youth group at 6:30).

What: 2-hand touch football and perhaps some kickball!
When: Saturday, November 10th
Where: Shoesmith Park
Time: 3:00 - 5:00 PM

What to Bring: Yourself, FRIENDS, and if you have them (cones, football, and kickball).

Dinner: You can go home for dinner and if you feel inspired, invite a leader! Hint Hint! :-) Or a group of us can go to Potbelly's or some other local eating dinery in Hyde Park.

We will play in rain (as long as there is no lightning), snow, or shine. All games will be co-ed. Start practicing now and make sure to bring your A game on Saturday!

See you then!

Maize Maze Pics

2007-10-24T21:22:00.000-05:00

Erin Schwartz had a camera at the maize maze. Here are a few of the snaps that she took.

Maize Maze

2007-10-12T14:38:00.001-05:00

Sorry it has been so long since anything has been posted on here. I promise to do better starting...NOW.

Tomorrow we will be taking HTCY's first ever trip to a maize maze. We will be going to Richardson Farm and trying to navigate our way through their corn. They have a pretty cool design that is a commemoration of the Bears team that went to the Super Bowl last year. You can check it out at the link in the last sentence.

We have a bunch of people signed up, but still have room for some more. So, if you know anyone else that wants to come or have a friend you've been wanting to invite to youth group, this is a great chance.

See you tomorrow at 2:30.

aliens in Jesus' footsteps

Beach Day!

See You Saturday!

Memorial Day Weekend

C.O.W

C.O.W

C.O.W.!!!

New Series

C.O.W.

Where is my Hairbrush?!?!

Pokeman Theme

Love My Lips Videos

Jesus is a Friend of Mine

Baby Got Book

Pants Rock Opera

Just the Two of Us

Puppy Love

Canned Heat

No Shepherd Girls

Burnin' Up

Sugar Daddy

My Little Buttercup

Love my Lips 3!

C.O.W.

C.O.W

Jazz and Java

C.O.W

C.O.W

Read More

Penny War!

**SnOw BLaSt**

C.O.W

SNOW BLAST

C.O.W

Win Penny War Money!!!

C.O.W

Happy New Year!

CHRISTMAS PARTY!!

C.O.W

Baskets of love

C.O.W

And We're Back

Operation: Turkey Basket, Baskets of Love, or Whatever You Want to Call it

C.O.W

C.O.W

If Youth Group was Longer

Murder Mystery Pictures!!!

Saturday Night

By the Hand

If Youth Group Was Longer...

We're Moving!

HTCY Weekend

Let Justice Roll Conference

Youth Group

Wanted: Your Service Ideas

Boat Party Date Change!

We're Back...

@ the Point!

NO YG TONIGHT!

HTCY Update!

NEW SERIES!! NEW SERIES!!

Camp, etc...

If You Need Something to do Tonight

Next YG

Soccer Camp

Volleyball Tonight!

By the Hand

Volleyball - Please Respond!!!

5k for Gasimu

C.O.W

How do we View God?

City Champs!

C.O.W

C.O.W.

Fun at the Point

Still Hungry?

Your Thoughts, Please

Thoughts from the Weekend

YOUTH GROUP SATURDAY!!!

No Youth Group Saturday

SnOw BLaSt