January and February Update

So Cal Trifecta: Surf

All of our clubs are back at it, and there is a ton of excitement in the air!

Our Capernaum club (club for kids with special needs) is meeting every 1st and 3rd Wednesday and have been having a blast. For March they are starting things off with a Movie Night tonight at Laguna Niguel Presbyterian Church, starting at 7. If you would like to learn more about this ministry, please email Rachel Antoun, our amazing interim team leader here. They are in need of guy leaders and helpers!

The WyldLife Marco Forster club kicked things off with a pizza party at Ballpark Pizza. It was a great time and we got to meet one of our amazing new leaders, Nancy Harris! She just moved here from Indiana where she did WyldLife for 4 years. She is super excited about getting back into things here and getting a chance to meet and build relationships with some girls from Marco. Marco had their first club last night, where 4 new kids came, had a blast, and then heard Bailey tell some of his story and share about the Prodigal Son. 

Marco WyldLife last night!

This story captures so much of what Young Life is about. We are for the kids that have wondered away. We LOVE the kids that have searched out the foreign land, and spent everything they had on partying and "wild living!" We love getting to be the people that meet them where they are, and help them find their way back to an incredibly loving Father, that runs to meet them, and embraces them in a way that is beyond comprehension.

The Ladera Ranch WyldLife club is doing amazing! They just got back from one of the most action packed days ever: the So Cal Trifecta! This was a day that started with snow, moved to the surf, and then ended with pizza at the Ladera skate park. What a memory for these kids... and leaders! Grant is trying to do something that will create a life-long memory for these kids once a month. He wants them to see how amazing life can be, and how a life with God is truly an adventure! Friday @ Founders has been incredible, and all the leaders have been getting the opportunity to share about Jesus on Friday mornings. Doughnuts, games, friends, and Jesus just doesn't ever get old! Grant has also started a small group with 8th grade boys that meet on Wednesday mornings to talk about life, read a verse from the Bible, and walk to school together. 

So Cal Trifecta: Snow

The high school club is going through some big changes! While club on Monday night was a ton of fun last year, we started to feel that we were spending so much time on club, and not enough time going to meet kids on their own turf. Because meeting kids where they are is the heart of Young Life, we are making some changes. This semester, we are going to be focussing on Contact Work, Campaigners, and Events. 

First, we are going to have Study Hall @ Starbucks every other Wednesday. This will be a time for kids to bring their homework to Starbucks and work on it with friends and leaders. We had our first one last week, and it was awesome! We will also be going to games as a leadership team together several times a month. This is all in an effort to show kids at SJHHS, Tesoro, J Serra, Dana, and SM that we care about what they care about... but mostly, that we care about them. 

Study Hall @ Starbucks

We will be starting a new format for Campaigners on Wednesdays. Campaigners will be on the Wednesdays where there is not Study Hall @ Starbucks. Guys and Girls will meet together for pizza and meal time questions before hearing a short talk and then breaking up into small groups, guys with guys and girls with girls. All of the leaders and I are really excited for this new format this semester, and truly believe that we will see some amazing things happen through Young Life in the High Schools in South Orange County this semester!

Campaigners

Lives are changing, and kids are meeting Jesus right now in South County Young Life! If you know someone  that would be a great leader, or are someone that would be a great leader, please contact me! We are in need of leaders for both middle school clubs (Marco Forster and Ladera Ranch) as well as in our Capernaum club (special needs ministry). Getting to walk with kids that don't normally attend church, or have much interest in Jesus is truly a gift. We get to be the love of Jesus in their lives, and then often get to begin a journey towards Jesus with them. 

Please call or text me, Luke Bright, at 949-293-6443, or email me: LukeBright.YoungLife@gmail.com. 

Friday @ Founders

What is Young Life?

High School Campaigners

"What do you do?"

I get this question a lot. It is usually followed by, "What is Young Life?"

If you look at the mission statement of Young Life, "Introducing adolescents to Christ, and helping them grow in their faith," it seems pretty straight forward... Young Life seems to be like any other youth ministry. We are trying to share Jesus with kids, and help them develop and grow in relationship with him.

To a very large degree, this is correct. We are like most church youth groups. We try to develop an atmosphere that is attractive to kids, and will foster their growth in Jesus.

But, at the same time, we are different than most local church youth groups.

We primarily seek the lost sheep that don't seem to have a flock, or have wondered away from home. We are going after the kids that aren't going to one of the many amazing youth groups that are all over South Orange County.

In Luke 15, Jesus tells a few stories of lost things. He tells the story of a lost sheep, and then a story of a woman who lost a coin, followed by the story of a father who loses a son. In the first two stories, the shepherd and the woman drop everything they are doing and seek after what they have lost. Jesus says that the shepherd would leave 99 sheep to just find the one that got lost.

Young Life is this shepherd. We are a part of the arm of the Church that goes out from the pen in search of the lost sheep. We do not have a building, and when we go out doing Young Life, we are leaving the flock behind in search of sheep that have gotten lost, or even sheep that just never seem to have found home. We go to these sheep, meet them where they are, earn their trust by showing them that we like them just the way they are, and then begin to bring them home through a loving and caring relationship.

This takes a lot of time, and, often times, it doesn't look pretty, doesn't look flashy, and can be incredibly hard work. More times than not, it might not be much to look at, there might not be a huge crowd, flashy program, or loud music. Sometimes it might just look like someone surfing with someone else, or getting coffee, or going to a movie, or weird adults showing up at freshman games. It can be exhausting and can test the patience of even the best leaders... but just like in the stories Jesus told, when we get to bring one of these sheep home... ITS TIME TO PARTY!

So, what do I do in Young Life? I get to search for God's lost sheep, his kids that seem to have wondered away, and begin the journey back home with them... even if it takes years, and even when its costly.

Please email me if you would like to be a part of this search and rescue mission! We are currently looking for leaders for all our clubs. There are opportunities to work with middle school students, high school students, and special needs kids.

Marco WyldLife

Ladera WyldLife Bonfire

Ladera WyldLife

A Look Inside: Eat the Menu

Over 40 kids, and over $250 of McDonalds food... such a fun night.

The purpose of events like this in WyldLife is to give kids a place to be crazy kids, to build relationships between kids and leaders, and for leaders to earn the right to speak into their lives.

While these events just look like chaos, there is actually so much more going on just under the surface!

South County Young Life Celebration & Fundraiser

The Annual South County Banquet is just around the corner! Please join us for a fantastic evening filled with great food and drink, a wonderful silent auction, inspirational stories from the ministry this year, and some great entertainment in true Young Life fashion!

 

CLICK HERE to register for the event online, or text Luke, 949-293-6443, for more details. Every penny raised at this event will help continue the ministry of Young Life in Southern Orange County.

WyldLife Eats the Menu!!

Matt and Charlie with each teams menu!

Fridays are for WyldLife in Ladera Ranch!

 

We had our first Friday night Club last night. The game we played was called Eat the Menu! It has become the annual kick-off event for Ladera Ranch WyldLife club.

 

Last night over 40 kids came to McDonalds ready eat some really delicious and healthy food (there may be a bit of sarcasm there)! We split up into three teams and ordered $250 worth of food. Each team had to race through the food and the team that finished first won.

 

While this event may seem crazy (it is) and it may be hard to understand the reasoning behind doing something like this, it goes a long way in helping us leaders earn the right to be heard. Having these events where kids are encouraged to do something way out of the norm, but still super fun, helps them to realize that we want them to have fun, be crazy kids, and be themselves. As they begin to see that we aren't trying to change them, and that we genuinely want to be their friends, they begin to trust us. As this happens we get to share Jesus' love with them... and they listen because they know we care about them, and we have earned the right.

 

The beauty of Young Life and WyldLife is relationship. Leaders build real friendships with kids and then enter into their lives in order to support, encourage, and love. When kids give us permission, we are quick to help direct kids towards better life decisions, build habits that will help them in the future, and introduce them to Jesus, helping them learn what it is like to have a real growing relationship with him.

 

So, while things like Eat the Menu may seem a bit strange... there are some deeper things happening amidst the chaos.

Team Turkey Sandwich getting crazy!

The desert queens doing work on the sweets!

Chomp chomp chomp...

When WyldLife takes over McDonalds!



The MVP of the night... you don't want to know how much her ate.

Our Week at Oakbridge!

This summer's Oakbridge trip was easily one of the best camp trips I have ever been a part of. From the kids all getting along, to the leaders doing an absolutely amazing job, to the camp staff… it was incredible.

We took 19 kids this year, and of those 19, 6 kids said "yes" to Jesus for the first time ever, and 10 kids rededicated their lives to Jesus that week. 

Please watch the following video and take a look at the pics to get a glimpse at what a week at WyldLife camp looks like! We will be going to winter camp this November 20-22, and then back again next summer (we will let you know the dates ASAP)!

About to have one of the best weeks of our lives!

Matthew meeting one of the WIlderness Explorers!

Mixers the first night.

The boys slept out under the starts the first night… it was awesome!

The food at Oakbridge is sooo good!

Unity game uniforms!

Again, that camp food is so good, Jack agrees!

Protect your leader… Matt was pretty dry compared to the other guy!

All camp pic! I see a lot of yellow!

The leap of faith.

Leaders got ruined at the carnival… so fun!

Grant, Matthew, and some pantyhose!

Max, having a blast at the messy games!

Spencer, about to do damage ith some shaving creme!

Best messy games ever!

Everyone had a blast!

Don't mess with Michele when it comes to card games!

Midnight dance party!

Water games!

Failed attempt at a human pyramid.

The high dive was a highlight! Natalie getting wild!

Archery! Kieron's got some great form!

Tyler G with the bull's eye!

The game room!

The ropes course was rad.

Spencer soaring down the zip-line.

The girls doing some awesome freestyle walking at the skatepark. 

Guys had epic pillow fights the last two nights!

Saying "YES" to Jesus!

Such a wonderful week!

Marco Club craziness

We had an awesome time last week at club. Filled with lots of funny games Like seeing who can drink the Coke the fastest through a giant straw working as a team it was hilarious, high-fives,and the word being brought by one of our leaders Kelly Martnick. Kelly spoke about his Zacheus and how God wants to be in each one of our lives no matter who we are or what we've done. It has been really fun having a bunch of new kids coming to check out what a wyldlife is all about and to see how much fun they're having and the connections that are growing with their leaders and their understanding of who Jesus Christ is and what he's done for them in their lives.