A God of Connection

If you were having a birthday party, who would you invite? When you first get your driver's license and your first car, who will get to drive with you on your first legal drive? When a family has a baby, who do they invite to visit them at the hospital? When we encounter special moments in life we usually only think to share them with the special people in our lives. We wouldn't think to invite strangers or socially awkward individuals; instead we would invite people we are most comfortable with. Yet when it comes to the most special moment in the history of mankind, God chose to connect various groups of people of different backgrounds.

Luke 2:8-20 tells of how an angel appeared to a group of shepherds and told them about the birth of Jesus. They then went and visited Jesus after he was born and then went out and shared their experiences with others. In thinking about this story it is interesting to think that some of the first visitors recorded getting to visit the Savior of humanity were a group of grungy, outcast sheep herders. Shepherds in our everyday Nativity set seem peaceful, hygienic, clean, smiling, and socially acceptable. But when we understand the true context of being a shepherd, we realize that these shepherds were a group of people that spent the majority of their time alone in the fields, they were smelly, gross, and maybe even socially awkward and overlooked. Yet God chooses to bring these smelly loners to participate in this pivotal point in history.

As the Christmas season continues to unfold we need to think about how we as Christ followers can take initiative and begin inviting people to connect with the family of God. Remembering that God sees past backgrounds, race, wealth, social status, appearance and all of the other things that we would typically use to disqualify someone from connecting with us. God is a God of connection and he wants to use us to connect people.

RECAP: Invite Night

Former MLB player and owner of Rijo Athletics, Jose Rijo, came and spoke at Uturn last week and it was an incredible event for everyone who attended. Jose openly shared about his experiences being adopted, losing his father at a young age, struggling with substance abuse, breaking free from gang involvement, and pursuing his dreams by making it to professional baseball.

Jose's story took an amazing turn after he made the pros when God told him to leave MLB and begin a baseball training business. His story is one that inspired many students to think about how God can call us to do things in life that don't always make logical sense, but they are what's best for us. "God doesn't call the equipped, he equips the called" was a quote that Jose shared with the Uturn students and really challenged them to think about what God is asking them to do.

If you were unable to attend this dynamic night at Uturn we will be posting a podcast of the message on iTunes that you can download for free.

Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire

Recently at Uturn Jr. High we discussed the topic of lying and how easy it is to be dishonest throughout the day. We can lie by giving false truth, we can lie by exaggerating the truth, we can lie by cheating, we can lie by twisting the truth to benefit ourselves, or we can even lie by omitting/holding back the truth. In fact, lying is one of those choices we can make so instinctively that we may not even realize that we have been dishonest. Lying is also one of those subject matters that has become so easily excused by our culture, whether its a "little white lie" or "kind of cheating" or some other form of deceit we have found it to be culturally acceptable and even justify our deception with logic. "Well its okay to cheat on your homework cause they give you the answers in the back of the book" or "I don't have to tell my parents what I did last night cause they didn't ask".

If you read in Acts chapter 5 verses 1 through 11, you see an example of how God commands his followers to be honest. In this example, there are two individuals (Ananias and Sapphira) who sell their property and give most of the money to the church as a donation. Unfortunately they tell the church that what they gave was the full amount, even though they had decided to hold onto some of the profits for their own personal gain. When confronted about the issue by the church leaders, both Ananias and Sapphira lie about giving the full amount of money and are both instantly struck dead by God. WHOA!

Now this story isn't in the Bible to scare us that if we don't give God all of our money He'll send lightning bolts from heaven to kill us. What this story shows is that God wants the people of his church to be honest with each other. There was no need for Ananias and Sapphira to lie about how much they gave, in fact the church leader even said that there was nothing wrong with them keeping some of the money; the issue came down to their dishonesty and lack of integrity.

Lying is such an interesting topic because we're told since we were little kids "DON'T LIE", yet such a simple command can so easily be overlooked and broken. On the topic of lying Jesus had a simple thought in the book of Matthew chapter 5 verse 37 - Let your "Yes" be "Yes" and your "No" be "No". Again a simple command that is not simple to follow. In fact Jesus even describes himself as "THE TRUTH", so as followers of Christ we need to be making conscious choices to be truth tellers. Another reason to strive for honesty in your life is that lying hurts people. We've all been on the negative side of a lie; whether it was a rumor, some one cheated us, or a broken promise. Deception, deceit, and dishonesty can hurt people and destroy our relationships.

This week we want to challenge you to think about the following questions as we've discussed this topic of lying: When do you lie? How do you lie? Why do you choose to lie? Hopefully as you reflect on these questions you'll be able to discover your motivations for choosing to lie and our prayer is that you'll make the decision to repent of that habit and in the future choose to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

AWAKE Student Leadership Conference

Join us for an amazing weekend of fun and discipleship as Uturn JH partners with many other youth groups from around the north Puget Sound area. At the AWAKE Conference there will be awesome worship, relevant speakers, interesting workshops and even free stuff. You won't want to miss this opportunity to be challenged to put your faith into action. If you'd like to go make sure to get a permission slip signed and bring $55 on Friday. Students from Uturn JH will be carpooling up to New Life Center in Everett, WA. Be sure to email Pastor Sean if you're going to come, that way we have carpool space. seann@eastsidechurch.org

Friday Night Drop Off: 5pm at Eastside Foursquare Church
Friday Night Pick Up: 10pm at Eastside Foursquare Church

Saturday Morning Drop Off: 8am at EFC
Saturday Evening Pick Up: 5pm at EFC

YourTurn Challenge: Penny Prayers

This week at Uturn JH we talked about the importance of establishing a lifestyle of prayer. Prayer should be viewed as a critical part of our life because prayer is about talking with God about everything going on in your life. It has been said before that "prayer is powerful" but I would say that the God we pray to is powerful. Not only is God capable of answering your prayers, but he earnestly cares about you and what's going on in your life. Prayer doesn't have to be contained to a certain room or sound a certain way or require a certain posture of your body. Prayer is about talking with God and as Christ followers it is vital that we constantly communicate with God. Your prayers throughout the day may be prayers of praise, prayers of confession, prayers of thankfulness, or maybe its a prayer requesting God to do something in your life or the lives of others. Prayer should characterize our lifestyle and as Paul says to the Thessalonians we need to "PRAY CONTINUALLY". (1 Thessalonians 5:17)

In order to help us remember to pray we've created a YourTurn challenge that will be very helpful. For one week we're encouraging everyone to carry a penny in their pocket and every time they feel that penny, see that penny, or take that penny out of their pocket they should take a moment to pray about anything on their mind. Our hopes is that one cent can inspire a student to begin having frequent conversations with God. They don't have to be long winded or sound super spiritual; just PRAY.

Movie Review: X-Men First Class

X-men First Class is the most recent superhero flick to hit the DVD and Blu-ray shelves and we thought it would be good to do a quick review. We discuss the plot, the content, and any moral to the story. You can check out our 3 minute review on our Youtube channel.

Click here to watch our review of X-men First Class

X-Men First Class has a running time of 2 hours and 12 minutes and is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence, language, brief nudity, and sexual content. You can read more about the movie on it's IMDb page.

Uturn understands that entertainment is a staple within our everyday life. To help get students thinking about their entertainment choices we do periodic reviews of popular movies and music. Just because Uturn does a review, does not mean they endorse the product.

The Edge Review

Throughout this summer 11 Jr. High students participated in the student discipleship program at Uturn JH. They were actively involved in Uturn JH and served their youth group in many different ways. Every week The Edge group helped set up the student center for service, they cleaned up after services, helped prepare the Wednesday night meals, helped wash dishes every night, and went on service projects. All of The Edge students read through a book called: Live Large, Be different, Shine bright. This book challenges students to live as examples in their communities, and to focus on Jesus in all they do. We are so proud of these students and the devotion they have for Jesus and their community at Uturn. It has been an honor to serve and laugh with them all. We to thank all The Edge students for their selfless hearts and the group discussions that we shared together. We pray that they all continue to strive after God and put into practice the things discussed this summer.

The Edge students for summer 2011:
Jasmine McDaniel
Kyra Hedman
Jessie Zirker
Mary Brown
Sydney Meyer
JoHanna Flahiff
Nic Zirker
Bethany Horn
Alex Toole
Melani Bryant
Noah Wilde

Click here and you too can purchase a copy of the book we read this summer on Amazon.com.

Movie Review: Surf’s Up

Animation, comedy, family

IMDb Site for Surf's Up

***Reminder: Uturn JH does not always endorse the movies reviewed, we do this to help students and families know about the content and messages within popular movies. We also hope to challenge you to evaluate your own entertainment choices.***

Review:

Surf’s Up is a fun, engaging, and totally righteous movie about a young surfer penguin with big dreams. Cody Maverick grew up in Shiverpool, Antarctica where he was the only surfer. He has dreams of seeing the rest of the World and surfing with the best of them. The movie takes place at a surf competition where young Cody Maverick has a chance to prove himself as a pro surfer. This film gives a fun spin to the animated movies as it is shown as a documentary. There are times when our young surfer talks directly to the camera, and when reporters interview people and describe the gnarly waves. I recently watched this movie for the first time, and feel that it is highly enjoyable for all ages.

Final Thoughts:

This is a great film for the whole family. I found it very clean and hilarious. The animation was very well done, and the scenery was beautiful. This movie makes me want to grab my board and hang ten. I hope you enjoy this as much as I did.

(post by:Jason Langsev)

Hydrate Your Soul

Do you ever find yourself desiring more from life? Do you have a sense that there's more to life that all that you have now? Does your soul crave something that can't be satisfied by XBOX, Facebook, texting, new clothes, or popularity? This summer Uturn Jr. High took time each week to look at what stops us from answering that thirst of our souls. Believing that our hearts have a longing that can only be satisfied by our Creator, we took the summer to explore what it would like to truly pursue God and HYDRATE OUR SOULS. This teaching series was based on the book, The Pursuit of God, by A.W. Tozer (click here to buy it on Amazon.com) and it really challenged us to abandon any type of spectator faith founded in complacency and laziness. We explored the ideas of battling materialism, dealing with doubt, responding to His presence, silencing ourselves to hear His voice, following God amidst trials or struggles, and finding our true hope and satisfaction in Him alone. Jeremiah 2:13 says, "...they have abandoned me - the fountain of living water. And they have dug for themselves cracked cisterns that can hold no water at all!" These words from Jeremiah clearly articulate what can easily happen after we identify that our heart aches for satisfaction. We encounter a moment of decision, we can either pursue God and seek His answers for life's questions, or we can venture down our own path, substituting God's plan for our own. In the moment our own plan can seem correct, but in the big scheme of things we come to realize that our plans don't truly satisfy, instead they leave our souls still thirsting. This entire series centered around the idea of whether or not we would passionately pursue God in order to quench that thirst in our souls. I would encourage you to buy a copy of Tozer's book and take the time to slowly read through it, it's not a quick and easy read, but it will challenge you in your relationship with Jesus and inspire you to truly HYDRATE YOUR SOUL.

Activate Your Bible

This spring we did a 7 week series looking at the different sections of the Bible and how they all fit together. The first section we learned about was the Pentateuch which includes Genesis through Deuteronomy. The Pentateuch was followed by the Historical books which includes Joshua through Esther. Gaining a greater understanding of these two sections of the Bible is crucial because they lay the groundwork for the New Testament. There is so much background information and historical context cannot be overlooked simply because these sections are a little more dry and less entertaining to read. In the Pentateuch and Historical books we are able to see that God wants to have a relationship with humanity and just how much he loves his creation. As we progress through scripture we encounter the Poetic books of Job through Song of Songs. This section not only teaches us about the character of God, but also challenges us to express ourselves in creative ways. Whether it be through song, poem or narrative we should tap into our creativity and share our emotions, thoughts and beliefs in ways that people can relate to. The final section of the Old Testament that we see are the Prophetic books. While many are scared, confused, or bored with reading the prophets, we must remember that God uses mankind at times to share his truth and his promises. Reading the prophets will also give us a greater context for the historical sections in Kings and Chronicles.

After four weeks of breaking down the Old Testament we finally made it to the New Testament. We looked at the differences between the Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. We discussed that while Jesus is the central figure of each gospel they are written by different men and they focus on different attributes of his ministry. The next week we had a great discussion about the book of Acts and how the Holy Spirit empowered the early church to explode onto the scene after Jesus' ascension. Our series concluded with a look at the different letters of New Testament, everything from Romans to Revelation. These letters were written by different men to different audiences at different times during early church history, but they all were written to edify the church body and point people closer to God's will for their lives and for the church.

The Bible is a book that can often be described as long, wordy, confusing, old, and boring; and when this is your view of the Bible there's no way you're going to be motivated to pick it up daily and study it, memorize it, and live your life differently because of it. Hopefully after this series students started to realize that the Bible is a book that is inspired by God, full of insight, capable of challenging our status quo, relevant to us today, encouraging and comforting during our tough moments, and one of our greatest resources for understanding who God is and who we are.

If you would like to listen to any of the messages from this series, you can find them for free on iTunes by searching for "Uturn Bothell".

Where is God when you're in a JAM?

This past weekend we continued our "Hydrate your Soul" series by talking about pursuing your relationship with God during times of struggle, trial, or overwhelming circumstances. It can be so easy to direct our focus on the problems of life rather than keep our eyes on Jesus. Difficult circumstances are never easy to navigate, but we have to remember that as Christ followers we have God on which we can depend and trust. We need to be diligent in following Him even when times are tough. We can't forget that God is still there, his presence is still around us, the Holy Spirit is still empowering us; even when life hits the lowest of the lows. No matter how lonely, discouraged, frustrated, overwhelmed, overlooked, stressed, or stretched we may feel we must constantly do our best to remain faithful to Christ and trust that He can help us navigate these troublesome times. Even though life has gotten difficult, we have to remember that God has not abandoned us, He's still right there, and He still loves you dearly. Its during the tough times that our faith gets thrust into action. Those are the moments when we need to admit our dependence upon Him alone, and look to God for guidance, strength, wisdom, and peace. We also must remember that God can use these difficult times to refine us and teach us to be more like Him. Keep your eyes and ears open to the Holy Spirit so you can see how God is using your circumstance to make you more like Jesus.

If you feel that you're going through a tough time right now, here are some verses that may be an encouragement to you:

1 Peter 1:6-9, 1 Peter 5:7, James 1:2-4, James 1:12, Galatians 6:9, Matthew 5:10-12, Matthew 7:24-27, Isaiah 26:3-4, Isaiah 35:3-4, and Philippians 4:4-9

Monthly Newsletter: June 2011

Click here to download this month's newsletter and stay informed about all of the latest and greatest stuff happening with Uturn JH.

The Edge: Summer 2011

Click here to download the PDF of the packet

Pebble in your Shoe Challenge

This week at Uturn JH we discussed that Jesus is our only Savior of the sins in our lives. No matter what we've done or how bad we might think we are, through faith in Jesus we can be forgiven for our sins and be given a fresh start. To remind us of our need for Jesus we decided to put out a week long challenge to any students and leaders in Uturn JH that wish to join us. We've each committed to putting a small pebble in our shoe until Wednesday, June 8th. During that time we'll feel the discomfort of the small rock as it rubs into our feet, but that tiny rocky annoyance will serve as a reminder for each of us that we are nothing without Jesus and we each desperately need him in order to be in right relationship with God. You might even find yourself reflecting on your life and realizing that there is an area of sin in your life currently that you need to repent of. While to some it may seem like a silly or insignificant challenge, we think it will be a great reminder of our need for Christ in our life, and that's something we never want to forget about.

Godman: 100% God 100% Man

This winter the Uturn JH took an in depth look at the life of Jesus through the gospel of Mark. We started in January and ended our 16 week series a week before Easter. We covered the full spectrum of topics as each week we looked at a section from a chapter in the gospel.

Issues we discussed:

-redefining our identity as Christ followers (Mark 1)

-the healing of the paralyzed man (Mark 2)

-experiencing the power of the Holy Spirit (Mark 3)

-illustrating truth through parables (Mark 4)

-how to share your personal story (Mark 5)

-finding unshakeable peace during life's storms (Mark 6)

-changing the attitudes of our hearts rather than just our behavior (Mark 7)

-Jesus' divine identity (Mark 8)

-battling temptation (Mark 9)

-leading by serving others (Mark 10)

-Jesus clearing the temple (Mark 11)

-discovering the greatest commandments (Mark 12)

-keeping your faith alert rather than drowsy (Mark 13)

-remaining faithful to Christ despite peer pressure (Mark 14)

-the magnitude of Christ's sacrifice (Mark 15)

-Jesus tells us to get up and go (Mark 16)

Monthly Newsletter: May 2011

Click the image above to download a PDF copy of this month's Uturn JH newsletter. Its full of information about our upcoming Guys/Girls Overnighters on May 20 and a Jr. High family dessert/meeting on June 15. Check it out and stay informed.

2011 Jr. High Summer Camp

2011 Jr. High Summer Camp
August 15-20
Cost: $250 if you sign up by July 15

All registrations done online

Join us for a fun week of growing in your relationship with God and growing in your friendships. Summer Camp is a great chance to explore your faith, ask those tough questions, experience dynamic worship times, hear relevant teaching and put your faith into action. Not only that, but we have a blast during the week. You can participate in swimming, climbing wall, basketball, mini golf, paintball, canoe rides, and even a giant blob that launches you into the air and into the lake. All registrations are done ONLINE this year so click here and get signed up. Camp will fill up.

You can also "LIKE" the Seattle Area Foursquare Camp Facebook page and stay informed

Mexico Mission Trip: Day 5 & 6 & 7

Our time here in Mexico has been flying by so quickly we haven't been near a computer to give an update. Our apologies for the delay. Tuesday was Day 5 for our team and needless to say it was jam packed with activity. First we went to a local community called La Reforma (The Reformation) and distributed fliers that advertised a weekly Bible study that is run by some of the associate pastors of Hope Chapel Rosarito. It stretched the students to walk the neighborhood streets and pass out these fliers. After we completed our task we loaded up the carpools and went down to the local school in the Vista Marina neighborhood. We spent the afternoon preparing the school grounds for our upcoming painting project that would take place on Wednesday. The students were out there scraping old paint off of walls, clearing weeds and brush, and getting everything ready to paint. After our dinner time we participated in the Bible study that we had advertised earlier in the day. The entire Bible study was spoken in Spanish and translated into English for us, and while it was a different experience for all of us, we found ourselves forgetting it was even being translated because we were so engaged in the dialogue about the text. Our students really enjoyed the opportunity at the conclusion of the Bible study to pray for some of the attendees.

Day 6 was Wednesday and it was an early and long day of work. It began with a 6am wake up so that we could be at the school in Vista Marina by 7am. After our team was divided up into teams they spread out and tackled their objectives for getting our painting project done. Our team spent 9 hours repainting the 6 buildings of the school. They had prepared themselves mentally, emotionally, and physically for this strenuous day of labor, and they lived up to the challenge with flying colors. Throughout the day we didn't hear complaining, whining or arguing; they knew they were there to serve this community and they gave their best. A cool thing about this project is that by now having the school up to federal code it can be in line to get additional grants for other supplies and equipment. The transformation of the school was amazing and all of the leaders were so proud of the effort the students displayed. Following our time of painting we went to HCR for a 3 hour midweek service in which we spent time in prayer, eating dinner, and learning about communion and water baptism. Don and Sandy have been working really hard to keep this biblical foundations class going for their church because they understand the importance of their congregation having sound doctrine. Our Wednesday night concluded with our regular team debriefing session, but then we had a powerful time of worship and prayer together in the rental house. It is an honor and a privilege to serve with such amazing students, and its incredible to see what God is doing in their lives this week.

Our last full day in Mexico is Thursday. While most of the day will be a lot of fun with shopping, time at the beach and a BBQ, we are having a time to share Jesus at the public school in Vista Marina. As a way to show their appreciation the school is allowing us to have 30 minutes of the school day to share whatever we want. Pastor Don continues to remind us that this sort of thing is unheard of because federal schools don't allow for the blending of church and state. Please be praying for us to have an amazing time of fellowship and evangelism as we soak up our final full day with Hope Chapel Rosarito.

Mexico Mission Trip: Day 3 & 4

Sunday and Monday were great days of ministry for our team in Rosarito. Sunday included two church services at two different churches. The first was at Hope Chapel Rosarito, where our team got to participate in worship, performing their dramas, and the teaching. Pastor Sean preached about the parable of the Lost Son (Luke 15). Every time the team performs their drama and skits they seem to get better and better. After the service concluded we zipped over to Iglesia Cristiano: Nuevo Esperanza for a time of ministry. Our team performed their skits, shared testimonies, and prayed for the members of the church during the response time after the sermon. The students had a great time ministering to the two congregations and came back to the rental home full of stories and memories. You could really see the newly found passion for serving Christ at the conclusion of Sunday evening.

Monday could best be described as a day of labor as the team did a variety of work projects around HCR's campus. Our team pulled weeds, painted walls, sorted clothing donations, and scrubbed walls and floors. They did an amazing job taking initiative and working hard to serve the church. Pastors Don and Sandy were very grateful for all of our efforts in the day. We concluded our evening with a time of interactive discussion with the missionaries. This allowed for the students to ask the missionaries any questions they had about missions, Hope Chapel Rosarito, or ministry. It was inspiring to hear their many stories about how they trusted God and faithfully followed the call on their lives. It is amazing how quickly the trip is flying by; many of our teammates are shocked its already Monday night.

Please continue to pray as our team maximizes every moment to share the gospel in this community.

Mexico Mission Trip: Day 2

Our second day in Mexico has zoomed by at super speeds and been a very effective day of ministry. We awoke in our rental home and enjoyed a delicious breakfast of biscuits and gravy. With loaded tummies we hit the road to a local community called Vista Marina. This is a neighborhood that Hope Chapel Rosarito has been ministering in for over two years. Each year of our Jr. High trips our teams have been privileged to serve in this community too. In fact during last year's trip a family in the Vista Marina community got connected with Don and Sandy and it sparked a relationship that has flourished ever since. Before our visit to the community in 2010, this family had heard lies and gossip about HCR and its pastors, but after our time ministering and getting to meet Don and Sandy they realized how ridiculous this speculation was to begin with. Now that same family has been hosting there Spanish speaking service in their home since September and the service has grown to so many people they're busting at the seams. It is awesome to see what God can do to bring new life in a community. This afternoon we had the privilege of serving with some of these families in their churches and the pastors of HCR. We cooked and distributed a free lunch, passed out nearly 100 balloon animals, performed 2 children's skits and puppet shows, and had our drama team perform their pantomime. We ended the time with a short message about God's love. It was incredible to see our students dive right in and serve wherever needed. Whether it was picking up garbage, serving a hot dog, or making a balloon dog they had smiles on their faces and were showing the unconditional love of God to the people of the Vista Marina community. Following our time in Vista Marina we made our way to the new HCR campus and prepped the building for service tomorrow morning. God is really uniting this team together as they get their hands dirty, stretch their comfort zones, and make themselves available for God's work.

Prayer Request:

-be praying for us as we have two church services at two different churches on Sunday, we really want the Holy Spirit to use us to encourage these two congregations however most needed

-pray for energy and health, no big issues have come up, but we want to be rested and ready to give our best effort

Mexico Mission Trip: Day 1

Friday, April 1st was the first day of Uturn Jr. High's Mexico Mission trip for 2011. It all started at 9am as we met at the airport for check-in, team photos, prayer, and security checks. After enjoying some tasty airport cuisine we boarded the plane and made our way to San Diego. When we arrived at San Diego we met up with Hope Chapel Rosarito's pastors, Don and Sandy Godwin. Before we crossed the border into Mexico we stopped by In-n-Out for a quick and yummy dinner. After getting into Mexico we made our way to our rental home and settled in for the week of ministry. Later that evening we joined the Godwins in attending a game of futbol rapido (indoor soccer). It was awesome to find out that Hope Chapel Rosarito has been sponsoring one team and attending their weekly games. They not only show up and enjoy the game, but they bring bottled waters for halftime and offer conversation and prayer after the game with the players. Over the three years that they've been supporting and loving this team they've seen some of the players dedicate their lives to Christ. Their futbol ministry is a prime example to our team of spreading the gospel of Christ through building friendships and showing the unconditional love of God. It is hard to believe that our team is finally here in Mexico already. After months of preparation and hard work, God has safely brought us here to do His work and expand His Kingdom; and we are just thankful for the opportunities He's giving us.

Please Keep us in your Prayers:

-for boldness as we go into a community to do an outreach on Saturday

-for physical healing for some of our teammates feeling a bit sick

Uturn JH 2011 Mexico Team

Each year Uturn Jr. High sends a team of JH students and adults down to Rosarito, Mexico to partner with Hope Chapel Rosarito. During our time down there we will be performing a pantomime drama, putting on a puppet show and interactive story, we'll be participating in maintenance projects around the church, and ultimately sharing our faith in Jesus with the community. Mother Teresa once said, "its not how much you do, but how much love you put in the doing." This quote truly captures our heart for this trip. Our goal is so much more than completely tasks, our purpose for this trip is to make the unconditional love of God visible. This team has been diligently preparing, praying, and saving money since January and they are ready to hit the ground running when we arrive Friday afternoon. Thank you to everyone who has helped support this trip financially and prayfully. Throughout the trip you can check back on this site and read updates and see pictures of everything we're doing.

Unplugged Challenge

March 27th thru April 8th

Join the Jr. High Mexico team in giving up technology for just under two weeks. In order to be better mentally and spiritually prepared for our time in Mexico, our team has committed to turning off the many distractions around them and spending more time with Jesus. We recognize that there are so many different ways we can become distracted from pursuing Jesus so we're taking some time to intentionally seek Him.

What we're saying NO to:

TV

Movies

Videogames

Facebook/Twitter

Magazines and recreational reading

Internet for entertainment purposes

Music/Radio/iPods

What we're saying YES to:

Praying for the mission trip

Studying the Bible

Journaling

Personal times of worshipping through songs

Listening to God

Spending quality time with family

Hopefully you will join us in making this sacrifice. I guarantee it will change your life because you'll find yourself consistently saying Yes to God and creating opportunities to connect with Him.

Jr. High Newsletter: March 2011

Here is the monthly newsletter for the month of March. Click on the image above to download the PDF copy so you can have the latest and greatest information about everything Uturn Jr. High is doing.

Monthly Newsletter: February 2011

Here's our newest Uturn JH newsletter for the month of February. It is packed with important information about upcoming events for the Jr. High. Click on the image above to download the PDF copy of the newsletter and print a copy for yourself.