Today we had some extended recreation time and took off for the beach. Be jealous… very very jealous. 🙂

Good morning! Did you notice the time on this post is a little later than usual? 🙂

Yesterday we read the Word, said the Word, heard about the Word, talked about the Word, encouraged others with the Word. . . it was ALL about the Word. Our speaker last night, Jayson French, took us to two main passages in Revelation 10:10 and Ezekiel 3:2-4. Giving us lots of Biblical history, and all the while grilling a steak on stage during his sermon (yes, seriously!) he talked about how many people go their entire lives just smelling the word, being around the Word, but never actually “eating” the Word… never letting it get inside of them and change them from the inside out. And if there is any reason that people go to conferences like this, and wonder why two weeks later they remain unchanged, it’s because they don’t “eat the Word.”

He shared about how he believes this Book brings life, how he knows this Book changes people, and how he believes it is stronger than any double-edged sword (Hebrews 4:12), he went through a series of circumstances he or others were facing and then asked, “What does the Word have to tell me about that? What does the Word say to me about that?” Then, something pretty incredible happened. People all throughout the stadium began standing up and reading Scripture. Some shouting it, in fact. And at the end, these words came across the screen, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is SEEKING.” After the main session was over, we shared the Word. Students shared what was on their heart, what they were struggling with, and then we all looked up Scripture to share with them. If you haven’t caught on already, our students began starving for the Word last night… and some for the first time.

Today we are moving into day 4, and we’ll be looking at the life of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. We’re watching a film produced by CIY & Voice of the Martyrs called LOVE COSTS EVERY THING, which brings focus to the persecuted church all throughout the world. It’s going to be a big day.

Anne

Good morning again! We’re headed into Day 3 here at MOVE. Yesterday we took a deep look into the life of Rahab and Joshua. Rahab’s change began when she hung a scarlet cord outside her window. Our students were asked this question: If the red chord is a symbol of calling on God’s help, where do you need the red cord in your life? Is it a habit? Relationship? Fear? Past regret?  We learned that in order for Rahab to experience rescue, she had to first come to obedience. Rescue requires obedience. Grabbing hold of the red cord and calling on God for help is the first action of faith. Our students received red ribbon and took them to our main session, where they were given an opportunity to attach their “red cord” onto a stream of other red cords, symbolizing that they were a piece of God’s bigger story for their lives. At the end of the night, this phrase ran across the screen,“Speak Lord, for your servant is TRUSTING.”

Today we are diving into the life of Josiah, from 2 Kings 22 & 23. Through the life of Josiah, we see that he knew how to respond to God’s word. The bottom line today is for us to not only understand the importance of God’s word, but that we would be familiar with it and know how to respond.

Thanks for praying for us this week. Keep it up. I can’t wait to see how studying the life of Josiah changes us.

Anne

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

It really is as beautiful as it looks!

Good morning! We’re moving into our second day here at MOVE and things are gearing up. Last night, we had our first main session and heard all about Samuel’s encounter with God. Awakened in the middle of the night, Samuel received his first calling–a call that would alter the way he lived from that day forward, a call that would last a lifetime. God called Samuel three times before Samuel understood who was actually speaking to him. God calls us to all sorts of things: big things, small things, and even some seemingly impossible things. In 1 Samuel 3:9, God clearly called Samuel, and Samuel responded by saying, “Speak Lord, for your servant is listening.” 

This question was asked: WHO ARE YOU LISTENING TO? What voices are the loudest in your life? What voices have the most influence? Parents, coaches, friends, boyfriend/girlfriend, youth leaders, teachers, etc.? And, does God’s voice matter?

Last night we studied Samuel, and today we’re looking at the life of Rahab from Joshua 2. God has every intention of using all of us, but first, we have to surrender to Him. The challenge for our students today is to begin with confession. Please pray for all of us today as we continue to seek out God’s voice and ask Him to speak clearly to us.

As we continue throughout the day, we’ll post pictures (and who knows, maybe even a video)! Thanks for tuning in.

Anne

Hey there! We made it safely and it is BEAUTIFUL here! We’re hanging out in our rooms and heading to dinner soon. Tonight’s theme is LISTEN for God’s voice. I’m so excited for this week… please continue to pray for our students this week. More tomorrow!

Anne

Well, it’s 2am in Indy and we’re in the middle of Nebraska driving through rain which is supposed to put us in the middle of a storm. Everyone is tired but pretty anxious to get home so there’s little sleeping occurring at the moment. Vicki and Tina are at the helm once again. We have night duty. We enjoyed a nice evening of rafting last night accompanied by a stay at the Virginian in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Nick read the students multiple bedtime stories a few hours ago and we thought they were asleep, but boy were we wrong. They’ve quieted down after a bathroom break but have yet to fall asleep. I am pleased to inform you, however, that all the sponsors (other than Vicki of course) are knocked out. Rick will be the next to take control and as I am told, Wesley will be his copilot. Well we have to check the radar to see how much longer we’ll be in this storm. We’ll see you all tomorrow (or if you want to get technical like Vicki, we’ll see you all today)!

The last picture was of Jarred & Marilynne right after hiking out of our backpack trip. This pic is when Tina made the worlds smallest s’more!

I decided to take advantage of the wi-fi signal at the Teton National Park visitors center!
We’re on our last full day of the trip – hard to believe it’s gone by so quickly!!
Yesterday we hiked as far into the Tetons as we could go before we hit snow. The rangers wouldn’t let us go farther because they have had a lot of avalanches in the area. But we still got to do a great 7-mile hike around Jenny Lake & up to Hidden Falls. They’ve had a lot of unseasonally late snow this year, and we found out that just a month ago, the Jenny Lake Lodge was under about 10 feet of snow! This group has not been able to do the amount of hiking that most groups get to do, but they have seen wildlife that no one else has seen! I lost count of the number of bears we’ve seen, but the last number I heard was 10! Yesterday along the trail, we saw a male & female moose drinking from a lake while a black bear played on the hill right above them! What a gift!!
Today we’re doing a raft trip on Snake River, then we’ll stay somewhere in Jackson Hole before hitting the road in the morning.
Keep praying for energy, as everyone is getting tired, and for continued spiritual growth.
Looking forward to seeing everyone on Tuesday!