News

* Everett just got a new indoor skate park.  So happy for all the skaters and a huge thanks to the Sanchez family for opening this place.  The Garage is on Rucker Avenue in Everett. Check it out.

* Skate & Rec Night dinners are covered for the month of March.  We are in need of people to sign up for the month of April. Please contact me if you are able to provide part or all of a meal.

* Excited about some fun stuff we are planning for Skate & Rec Night.  We hope to see you all there! 

President's Day - 2-18-13 - NO SKATE & REC NIGHT

Please note we will not be having Skate & Rec Night on Monday, February 18th.  This is President's Day and not only are the schools closed, but this starts the week of mid-winter break for Northshore School District. We look forward to seeing everyone back on Monday, February 25th for pizza!

Saint Valentine's Day - Bible Session Notes - 2-11-13

Saint Valentine’s Day

2-11-13

Saint Valentine’s Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine is celebrated in many countries.

It began as a customary public worship celebration of one or more Christian saints named Valentinus.

The Legend & Martyrology (a list of martyrs)

The legend says that Saint Valentine was imprisoned for performing weddings for soldiers who were forbidden to marry and for ministering to Christians who were being persecuted under the Roman Empire. 

It is said that during his imprisonment he healed the jailor’s daughter.  Before being executed he wrote to her and said “from your Valentine” as a farewell.

Romantic Love

Things began to shift from honoring Saint Valentine to romantic love in the High Middle Ages roughly 1000-1299 when the tradition of courtly love flourished.  Courtly love is the concept of nobly and chivalrously expressing love and admiration.  This was generally between a man and a woman where the man was trying to win the love of the woman NOT between a husband and wife.

Modern Day

By the 15^th Century, Saint Valentine’s Day had evolved into an occasion in which people expressed their love for each other by presenting flowers, candies and chocolates, and sending greeting cards now known as Valentines.  Since the 19^th Century hand written greeting cards have given way to mass produced greeting cards.  Saint Valentine’s Day is still an official feast day in the Anglican and Lutheran churches.  Although many countries honor Saint Valentine’s Day, it is not a day off from work, and it has become a general holiday for showing love.

Bible Drill Verses (Discussion)

Mark 12:33 To love Him with all your heart, with all your understanding, and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.

I John 4:19 We love because He first loved us.

Colossians 3:14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

I John 3:18 Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and truth.

I Corinthians 13:13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love.  But the greatest of these is love.

I John 4:7 Dear friends, let us love one another for love comes from God.  Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.

Questions

What are your plans for Valentine’s Day?

How can God be a part of your plan this year?

What could you do or whose life could you touch with God’s love this Valentine’s Day?

Update

I don't believe I posted the notes from January 14th, and for that I apologize.  We talked about "love is kind" and looked at I Corinthians 13:4-5.

Last week, Jeremey and Melody Drew ran the show at MAD Skates & Rec, as Bev and I headed south to Arizona to spend some time with my parents, as well as to do the Rock n Roll Half Marathon.  Bev and my mom, Karen Bennett, have been training together and successfully walked the half marathon.  My husband, Jason, and I have been training to run the event together.  We ran into a few difficulties along the way, but we managed to complete the half marathon in 2:33:54.  We did not make our goal time, but we had a good vacation as a family. Huge thanks to Robb, Jeff, Jeremy and Melody for taking care of Skate & Rec Night while we were gone.

This week we had video night and pizza.  There was a good turn out, and it looks like we're going to have to start buying more pizza on pizza night.  We also played some serious dodge ball and had a good group skating this week.

Speaking of food, we are definitely in need of some people to step up and help out with dinners.  Dinner needs to feed 15-20 people and needs to be at the Bethany Bible Church gym by 6:30pm.  If you are able to help in any way, please contact me 206-423-0813 or brett@madskates.com.  Last week one person provided soda, one person provided chili, and one person provided the bread.  This is a great way to spread the load, so if there is just a portion of a meal you'd like to provide, that would be great.  Desserts are always loved by the kids as well.  Right now our next need is Monday, February 11th.  Additionally, March 4th, 11th, and 18th are all needing dinners. 

Thank you for your continued financial and prayer support.  Checks should be made out to MAD Skates and can be mailed to MAD Skates & Rec Center, Attn: Brett Spore, 21705 2nd Avenue SE, Bothell, WA 98021.   Paypal donations are also accepted using brett@madskates.com or the link off the blog page.

God bless!

Dinner Signups Going on NOW!

Dinner signups for 2013 are going on now! The last Monday of every month is pizza night, and those are the only nights filled right now. We need help from anyone willing to bring dinner or buy dinner or participate in some way with providing dinner. Contact me if you can help on Monday nights with food! Thanks!

Insurance Money is In!

Thank you to our amazing friends and family who came together to cover the insurance money that was needed.  God is great, and we thank Him for those wonderful people He has put into our lives and ministry.

Bible Session - 12-10-12 - Jonah's Response - God's Lesson

Jonah’s Response – God’s Lesson

Review last 3 weeks: 
            God told Jonah “Go to Nineveh.”
            Jonah runs in the opposite direction and gets on a ship.
            The ship almost sinks in a storm.
            The sailors cast lots; it’s Jonah’s fault.
            Jonah has the sailors throw him overboard.
            The sea becomes calm; the sailors are saved.
            Jonah is swallowed by a large fish where he stays for 3 days and 3 nights.
            Jonah turns back to God and the fish pukes him out onto dry land.
            Jonah goes to Nineveh, the entire city repents, and God saves Nineveh.

Read:  Jonah 4:1 But Jonah was greatly displeased and became angry.

God just saved over a hundred thousand people and Jonah is ticked off about it.  Why do you think Jonah was so strongly upset about God’s grace for these people?

Read:  Jonah 4:2-3 He prayed to the Lord, “O Lord, is this not what I said when I was still at home?  That is why I was so quick to flee to Tarshish.  I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity.  Now, O Lord, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.”

Jonah is really ticked off at God!  He perfectly describes how awesome and loving God is. He’s supposed to the man of God on the street telling people how awesome God is and to live for God, and yet, he can’t seem to pull himself together.  His emotions are running low.  He’s spent.  He didn’t want to go to Nineveh.  He didn’t plan on spending three days in the reeking gut of a large fish.  He hates the people of Nineveh and all they stand for, and now God went and saved them.  He is irate!  He calls it quits.  It’s like he’s throwing in the towel and saying, “You’re an awesome God, but I can’t handle your grace for these people.”

Read: Jonah 4:4 But the Lord replied, “Have you any right to be angry?”

God sounds just like a Dad here.  It is not like it your decision who I save or don’t save.  I can almost hear Jonah whining at God, “But, but Daaaaaaaad.  Nineveh has never loved you. Nineveh is full of rotten people who hate, and kill and do all kinds of evil that you would never tolerate.  You shouldn’t save them!”  And then God says, “Sit down.  Calm down.  Take a chill pill my son.  I’m still in control here.”

Read: Jonah 4:5 Jonah went out and sat down at a place east of the city.  There he made himself a shelter, sat in its shade and waited to see what would happen to the city. 

I wonder if at this point Jonah was thinking maybe God would change his mind and destroy the city after all.  I wonder if he looked at Nineveh’s repentance and thought, “That’s never going to last.  They’re going to fail and then God’s going to smite them!”

Why do you think he was waiting to see what would happen to the city?

Read: Jonah 4:6 Then the Lord God provided a vine and made it grow up over Jonah to give shade for his head to ease his discomfort, and Jonah was very happy about the vine.

One thing I note here is that Jonah never thanked God for that vine.  I wonder if verse 7 and 8 would have been different if Jonah’s response had been different.

Read: Jonah 4:7-8 But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the vine so that it withered.  When the sun rose, God provided a scorching east wind, and the sun blazed on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint.  He wanted to die, and said, “It would be better for me to die than to live.”

The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away.  God takes away the vine that he had provided for Jonah. 

Why?

Read: Jonah 4:9 But God said to Jonah, “Do you have a right to be angry about the vine?” “I do,” he said.  “I am angry enough to die.”

Jonah really is hard headed.  He really is not getting God’s object lesson here.   Read on…

Read: Jonah 4:10-11 But the Lord said, “You have been concerned about this vine, though you did not tend it or make it grow.  It sprang up overnight and died overnight.  But Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well.  Should I not be concerned about that great city?”

Jonah is so self-absorbed throughout this story that he can’t see the bigger picture.  There are one hundred and twenty thousand people who are going to die instantly and go straight to hell unless God extends his grace and mercy to them and allows them to repent, heal, and grow in their relationship with God. 

Think about the people in your life.  Is there someone specific God is sending you to?  Will you be hard hearted and hard headed like Jonah until the bitter end or will you see the bigger picture and reach out with God’s message of salvation? 

Christmas Party - Monday - December 17th

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Our Christmas party is next Monday, December 17th from 6pm - 8:30pm.  Dinner, dessert, drinks, presents, and fun will be provided.  We're looking forward to seeing you there! 
If you have any questions or still need to RSVP, please email me - brett@madskates.com

God bless!

$315 Needed

Insurance is due in one month, and we are $315 short in that column in our budget.  If you are able to help, please mail a check to MAD Skates & Rec Center, 21705 2nd Avenue SE, Bothell, WA 98021.

Thank you very much!

Bible Session - 12+ Group - 12-3-12

Jonah Goes To Nineveh

Review last 2 weeks: 
            God told Jonah “Go to Nineveh.”
            Jonah runs in the opposite direction and gets on a ship.
            The ship almost sinks in a storm.
            The sailors cast lots; it’s Jonah’s fault.
            Jonah has the sailors throw him overboard.
            The sea becomes calm; the sailors are saved.
            Jonah is swallowed by a large fish where he stays for 3 days and 3 nights.
            Jonah turns back to God and the fish pukes him out onto dry land.

Read:  Jonah 3:1 Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time:
If God tells you once, listen and obey.
If God tells you twice, you better already be moving!

Read:  Jonah 3:2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.”
In Jonah 1:2 God says “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.”

In Jonah 3:2 God says “Go and proclaim the message that I give you.”

I find it interesting that God did not say the same thing both times.  He also did not say “proclaim the message I GAVE to you” which would be the message from Jonah 1:2.  Instead he says “the message I give you,” which implies there will be a new message or more to the message he previously gave.

Read: Jonah 3:3 Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh.  Now Nineveh was a very important city – a visit required three days.

Finally!  Jonah finally obeys and gets to where he was supposed to go.

Nineveh was a HUGE city for that time.  If the Bible writer takes the time to point out the size of the city, you know it is important.

Read: Jonah 3:4 On the first day, Jonah started into the city.  He proclaimed: “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overturned.”

Jonah wasted no time.  He went straight to the punch and delivered God’s message. Now we know what that message was that God was going to give to Jonah.  40 DAYS

Read: Jonah 3:5-6 The Ninevites believed God.  They declared a fast, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.  When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took of his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust.

Why did Nineveh believe Jonah?  Why did they believe God’s word when they did not worship God?   Because Jonah smelled like rotting fish guts?  Because no prophets from Israel have ever prophesied to a foreign nation before?  What do you think?

Well, the Ninevites believed, fasted and put on sackcloth.  Three points to look at here.

1.      All of them.  It doesn’t say that some believed God.  It says that ALL OF THEM believed God.  To make this point, the Bible says from the greatest to the least.  To stress the point even further, the Bible goes into detail about the kings’ actions.

2.      How a leader acts greatly impacts those under him or her.  Believe me, your actions speak louder than your words, and if you’re thinking “This does not apply to me; I’m not a leader.” Look behind you, if anyone is following you, you’re a leader.

3.      Sackcloth – Usually made of coarse, black goat’s hair sackcloth was used for making bags, but also for wearing during times of mourning or deep repentance (being very sorry for things you’ve done and turning from them.)

Read: Jonah 3:7-9 Then he (the king) issued a proclamation in Nineveh: “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not let any man or beast, herd or flock, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink.  But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth.  Let everyone call urgently on God.  Let them give up their evil ways and their violence.  Who know?  God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish.”

A few key thoughts in this section.

1.      The leader sets the example – puts on sackcloth, removes himself from the throne, and sits in the dust.  Then he sends the proclamation.  A good example of leadership – He sets the example and then asks the same of his followers.

2.      In the king’s proclamation, he says no one (man or beast) can eat or drink.  I have 2 cats, a dog, and a rabbit.  I cannot imagine trying to put sackcloth on them and keep them from eating or drinking for even one day.  They were supposed to do this with all of their “beasts” or large animals.

3.      In the king’s proclamation, he tells everyone to “Call urgently on God.”  I feel like all too often as Christians we become complacent.  Just like the Ninevites, we need to call urgently on God.  We need to be passionate about our relationship with God.

4.      Give up your evil ways and violence.  Do any of you have a habit that you have tried to quit? Now imagine you were born into a family, a city, an entire culture where that is a habit for everyone.  You’re 15 years old now.  You’ve spent 15 years surrounded by this habit.  You’ve developed your own habit, your own behavior patterns, and now on the king’s command, you give it up.  Sound easy?

5.      Hope – The king is tough on his people?  Sackcloth – fasting – prayer – keep the animals form eating and drinking as well and cover them in sackcloth as well.  Why?  Despite the 40 day warning with no offer of forgiveness, the king holds onto the hope that perhaps God will spare his people. 

Read: Jonah 3:10 When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he had compassion and did not bring upon them the destruction he had threatened.

Can you imagine the celebration in Nineveh?  From sackcloth to celebration!  God spared Nineveh!

Next week: Jonah’s Response – God’s Lesson