Launching Summer Online Bible Study

     For the last few months, I have been leading the youth at our church, Chestnut Grove United Methodist in King NC.  This past week our youth were taken on a mission trip to Louisville Kentucky by three adults from our church.  Today as of the witing of this post, they are somewhere on a river in West Virginia white water rafting before they will travel home later today.  I am so excited to hear their stories of how they experienced doing missions this week, some of them for the first time.  I am thrilled the youth have had this opportunity to grow together, to grow towards God, and to serve people in need.  Missions make up an important piece of our work with the youth and with our church.  One other important ministry with the youth is teaching discipleship.
     We are preparing to launch an online Bible study through this blog on July 11.  Our first text will be from the book of Mark.  Start with chapter one.  If you want to join our youth in this Bible study, you are welcome to study with us.  Here is our simple format.  We invite our whole church to read the Bible every day.  One day a week, we meet face to face to read scripture, to study together, and to build into our gathering time, “community time.”  Community time is the time where youth are invited to share prayer concerns or praises with the rest of the group.  Sometimes the youth have a lot to say. Sometimes they are quiet.  We close with prayer. During our face to face time, our new structure is meant to be user friendly.  Using our Bibles, digging into the Gospel of Mark, we will look for what the passage teaches us about  four things : God, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit and the church?  From all of these points we invite you to reflect on your main take away from this passge today.  Write it down.  If you want to share your insight, you are invited to write it below in the comment section.  We look forward to launching into Mark starting on July 11.  We will read one chapter a day.  So Mark has 16 chapters which means this study will run 16 days. While we have long summer days, let’s give the Lord a little more time.  You are invited to start with us and hang with us for 16 days in the Gospel of Mark. Our whole congregation will be invited.  Join us in this deeper study of the Holy word.  We believe in the authority of scripture and as Wesley said, the word contains all we need to find salvation.  We challenge you to turn up the heat on your daily walk with God and join us.  God is with us. God is for you!