Middle School
Jeff
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Homepage: http://jeffpatterson.me
Posts by Jeff
Welcoming Andrew Martin, our new Middle School Pastor.
Aug 6th
We are happy to introduce Andrew & Jodie Martin, who joined us August 1st. Andrew is our new Middle School Pastor. Here’s a message from him:
Hey everyone! Well I have been living in Oregon for 3 days, enjoying the sun…everyone tells me it’s always like this, so that’s exciting! But I just wanted to introduce myself and tell you a little about me.
I have been a youth pastor in California for the past 8 years. My relationship with Pastor Joel goes all the way back to the mid-90′s when I was a student in Joel’s first youth group. He has been an amazing friend and mentor to me over the years. My wife Jodie and I were both born and raised in Northern California, in the Bay Area, but had to go all the way to Los Angeles to meet each other, while attending Biola University.
I grew up a Pastor’s Kid, and I first felt the call to go into full time youth ministry after college when I was living in Mozambique working at an orphanage and teaching at a Bible College. After I came home I became a volunteer in the middle school youth group at the church I grew up in. I have been working in ministry ever since. I love hanging out with students, teaching, discipling, and just building relationships and being involved in the lives of kids.
I enjoy basketball, baseball, college football, ultimate frisbee, coffee, breakfast, lunch, dinner, Monster energy drinks, reading, fishing, Chipotle and listening to music. I also have an 1 year old Siberian Husky named Posey who only has two working legs.
My wife and I are so excited to be here and be a part of the Willamette Christian family, and work with the middle school students and their families! We can’t wait to meet you!
-Andrew
MOSES: Surrendering to God’s Mission
Jun 20th
Our Scripture this Sunday was EXODUS 3-4, where we read of God’s call on Moses’ life. Moses was minded his own business, in the middle of nowhere it seemed, as a forgotten wannabe hero in earlier days. As Mo tended his father-in-law’s flock of sheep, God appeared to him:
There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a blazing fire from the middle of a bush. Moses stared in amazement. Though the bush was engulfed in flames, it didn’t burn up. “This is amazing,” Moses said to himself. “Why isn’t that bush burning up? I must go see it.” (Exodus 3:2-3)
It was amazing. Can you imagine?
God called out to Moses, and confirmed who He was — the God of his fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The one true God (YHWH) had “certainly seen the oppression of my people in Egypt.” He continues: “I have heard their cries of distress because of their harsh slave drivers. Yes, I am aware of their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the power of the Egyptians and lead them out of Egypt into their own fertile and spacious land.” (vv. 7-8)
Then Moses invented some excuses…
First, he thought he could not lead people.
But Moses protested to God, “Who am I to appear before Pharaoh? Who am I to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt?”
God answered, “I will be with you. And this is your sign that I am the one who has sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God at this very mountain.”
Then, he thought he needed something else:
13 But Moses protested, “If I go to the people of Israel and tell them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ they will ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what should I tell them?”
14 God replied to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. Say this to the people of Israel: I Am has sent me to you.” 15 God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: Yahweh, the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.
This is my eternal name, my name to remember for all generations.
God gives Moses the great promise of success: God would be with him.
This man of God would lack no good and necessary thing!
That reminds us of the great words from the band U2:
What you don’t have you don’t need it now
What you don’t know you can feel it somehow
What you don’t have you don’t need it now
Don’t need it now
What a beautiful day
—U2, Beautiful Day
Questions to Share:
- What is the great promise Moses received from God?
- WHEN GOD CALLS, HOW DO YOU RESPOND? // Have you ever sensed God calling you to do something difficult? » What was it? (How did you follow through?)
- What activity will you do this week that requires courage?
Our memory verse this week is EXODUS 4:12:
“Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.”
Previous weeks Scriptures were:
- Philippians 2:13: “For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.”
- 2 Timothy 2:22: “Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.”
Next week: ELIJAH (1 Kings 18)
INHABIT: choosing to be set apart
May 16th
We begin a new series this weekend: INHABIT.
The series is based on the life of Daniel.
Week 1: INTENTIONAL.
Week 2: INFLUENTIAL.
Week 3: INDIVISIBLE.
Week 4: INGRAINED.
We’ll post teaching previews, summaries, Scriptures, and questions in this space.
Ask [Almost] Anything: We’ll tackle some great questions this Sunday
May 12th
![ASK [Almost] ANYTHING.](http://cl.ly/6jRS/ask_almost_anything_240.png)
Students have awesome questions. Many times curiosity drives their exploration of faith and truth, and we want to reward their wonderings with some godly wisdom and timely truth. A few times a year we do this in our ASK [Almost] ANYTHING sessions. This Sunday our teaching time will be fielding the students questions and succinctly responding to them.
We’re received questions about relationships:
- How do you help a friend who is struggling?
- How do I get along with my siblings?
- I have a friend who likes someone who I think is rude. Should I tell her, or should I just leave the issue alone?
And on Christian living:
- Why does God want us always to forgive? Isn’t it sometimes too bad to always forgive?
- What did you make me for? What is my purpose?
- How can I hear God talking to me?
Questions about God:
- Who created God?
- [Asking God] Why did you make Satan if He knew that he would become the devil?
- [Asking God] How do You know all?
- Why don’t You do stuff like the burning bush anymore?
And serving:
- What are some things that I can do as a home school student to serve God?
- What are more ways to serve God and others?
There are also questions on doctrine and theology:
- What age do babies automatically stop going to heaven?
- What is it like in heaven?
- When will the world end?
And many other questions showing the students’ curiosity:
- Was Solomon really the smartest man ever?
- Will you wash away my sins?
- I believe in God, but sometimes I am afraid that I will go to hell. How can I be sure that I won’t?
- When you pray for something, does it come true?
Peter Made New (John 21)
May 8th
Today we taught the middle schoolers about the life of Peter, the close friend of Jesus who vowed to never leave His side, and then buckled under the pressure. Peter betrayed Jesus for temporary security, and even denied publicly he ever knew Him. We’re just like him.
We’ve all experienced betrayal from a close friend, and it hurts so deeply. What if we are the one who has betrayed the trust of another? Like Peter did. What if the one we betrayed was God Himself? Is there any hope for us? Like Peter, there is grace and truth, which can satisfy our longings to change, and because Christ is who He is, we can become who He calls us to become. Like Peter we are loved. Like Peter, we can be made new.
Jesus chased after Peter and restored him. Read all about it in John 21.
- When have you needed to say “I’m sorry” to a close friend? (Did you apologize? How did it go?)
- Why is it hard to admit our mistakes and follow through — to apologize?
- In what area of your life do you want to be ‘made new’?
Resurrecting goldfish? (John 20)
Apr 26th
This Sunday we are grateful to have our High School Pastor, Chris Nye, teaching us God’s Word. We’ll be in John 20:1-23, looking at the Resurrection of Jesus.
Chris writes a preview for us:
I can remember when my first goldfish, Bowser, died. I had bought Bowser on sale at the local pet store after begging my dad for 25 cents. He was trying to talk me out of it, telling me that I wouldn’t feed it, that cleaning the bowl would be difficult, but I insisted over and over again that I would take care of him and love him forever.
It would be only three weeks before Bowser died. But I would like to take this time to defend myself: I fed Bowser, I cleaned his bowl, and I even gave him a nice spot in the shade on the counter in the kitchen. Even though I followed all the directions perfectly, Bowser still died.
My first thought, upon seeing his lifeless body float to the top, was this: was Bowser murdered? My dad never seemed to be a fan…but then, upon thinking more about Bowser dying, I thought: why? I did everything right but he still died. As a small child, I understood the idea that still sits with me: death is wrong. Death is not normal. Death should not be a part of this life.
Sometimes we say things like, “It was his time to go,” or “that’s just the circle of life” or “the way things go.” But why? Don’t we agree that death is bad and life is good?
We do agree on that and God agrees with us. So much so, that the death of His only Son would not be the end of the story, but rather the beginning. The resurrection of Jesus is the foundation on which all of Christianity is built. In our suffering and in our terror, Jesus says, “You will have new life.” We put all our rest and hope in this historic fact: that though we may die, through Christ we may truly live.
Let’s explore that together.
Honest answers.
Apr 20th
On Sunday we continued our study through the Gospel of John (‘The Face of God’) as Ben taught from John 17. Here we see Jesus praying in the Garden the night He was betrayed and went to the cross. He is envisioning the future of His followers, and praying for them. There’s best life is in view, and He of course knows we will wrestle with our fears and desires. We desire to be free from fear (from pain and regret), and we fear losing what we desire.
Ben asked us three great questions:
- Describe your idea of a “perfect life.”
- What do you think Jesus wants for your life?
- How do these two match up?
The student’s card pictured above notes an honest assessment. Oftentimes what we want most in life is not what God wants for us.
Why do you think that is? does He want less joy for us?
