Since starting Project 4:4, I have learned to appreciate how God uses mankind to work His plans. As I was reading through Genesis and Exodus, God’s use of imperfect people caught my eye. I mean, I would not be happy if my husband lied about me not being his wife and then gave me away to another man – twice! Also, I would not be inclined to give my servant over to my husband. What I am trying to say is that God does not need perfect people to fulfill His plans, because He is perfect.  This gives me assurance that God can use me just as I am. My fear and faith in the Lord is enough to allow me to be led me down the path He wants me to take.

            Doing Project 4:4 increases my connection with God in many situations. One of the ways is that reading His Word daily helps me to grow spiritually beyond Sunday. It also is a great way to praise Him on the Sundays when I cannot attend church due to volleyball tournaments. Finally, it encourages me to look to God during troublesome situations when I am not in my best state. By the end of Project 4:4, I believe that I will have grown to know and connect with the Lord in more ways than I thought possible. I am excited to see where He leads me.

Guest Post by: Hannah Japp (CCC High School Sophomore)

Series Summary

The word “Promise” carries a lot of weight. Whether placing your hand on a Bible in a court of law or sealing a pinkie promise with a kiss, making a promise is a big deal. Unfortunately as we have all witnessed, not every promise seems to pan out. Is there actually anyone who keeps all of his or her Promises? Over the next several weeks we will look at the promises that God has made to his people, and how time and time again He has never broken one.

Stand Alone Week (January 8 )

Project 4:4 marks an exciting time here in the High School Ministry. As we set out on this adventure of reading through the entire Bible together, we want to kick it off with a party! This week we will combine our service with the Middle School students for a time of musical worship, Bible trivia, teaching, and fun. Come celebrate with us as we celebrate the start of year that will be life changing.

Stand Alone Week (January 15)

Before we dive into specific passages as part of Project 4:4, we’ll take a broad view look at the first 5 books of the Old Testament.  These books contain key Biblical passages like: creation, the fall, centuries of history of the Israelites, the law, and more.  During this week, we’ll learn how to correctly read and interpret these passages, as well as how to look for Jesus woven throughout each story.

Session One:  Serpent Covenant (January 22)

A talking serpent, deception, pride, and a couple bites from a piece of fruit was all it took to turn the world upside down. Sin entered the world and with sin, come consequences. But even in the midst of this bad news, God had a plan of redemption. This week we will talk about how sin entered the world and God’s promise that it will one day exit.

 Session Two: God’s Covenant with Noah  (January 29)

After the waters receded from earth covering flood in Genesis 8, God makes a covenant with Noah that never again will he curse the ground, and never again will he destroy living creatures.  In making this covenant, we learn that God is a never changing God, that even when everything else changes, he does not.

 Session Three: Abraham Covenant (February 5)

When God made a covenant with Abraham, He promised to bless his descendants & make them into a nation that God would call His own.  In return, Abraham was to remain faithful to God & serve as a channel in which God’s blessing could flow to the rest of the world.  In this covenant, we learn that God is always faithful even when we are not.  He brings about blessing in His time & way.

 Session Four: The Passover Covenant (February 12)

At the beginning of Exodus, God’s people are enslaved in Egypt.  When God is ready to free his people, he brings a series of severe plagues, the final causing death to firstborn all throughout Egypt.  But, God provides a path for people to escape this judgment.  The Passover covenant of Exodus 12 lets us know that God has power over everything and everyone, and the power to deliver us from what we come up against in life.

Project 4:4 is a challenge that Christ Community Church is taking to read the entire Bible in one year. During 2012, every ministry in CCC is taking the Project 4:4 challenge and will be teaching, studying and discussing the same content. It will be an opportunity for everyone to grow in Biblical knowledge and in their ability to know and love God. Most people haven’t read the Bible cover to cover and when everyone is doing it together, that’s some motivation! In the Daily Bible in Chronological Order, each day’s reading is only about five pages long and it’s all laid out for you.

In the High School Ministry, we are jumping in on the Project 4:4 challenge! Here are some ways high school students and families can get involved:

• By reading the Bible each day: You can pick up a Daily Bible in Chronological Order or follow along using the chronological plan found in the reading guide that CCC has put together. Both are available for purchase in the Student Center, at the Sarpy Campus and in the atrium. (Bible $15 / Reading guide $5)
• By taking on the challenge as a family: We are strongly encouraging families to take the Project 4:4 challenge together! As a family, you can talk about what you’re learning and how you’re applying it to your lives. We’ll be providing a key passage from each week’s reading that we think would be great to discuss as a family. Click HERE to download the key passages for the first few months!
• By participating in community: The series for Worship (Sundays / 9-10:15 AM) will discuss topics related to where we’re at in the Bible reading plan. The subject matter in Journey Groups (Sundays / 6-8 PM) will tie in as well and there will also be time for further discussion of what God’s teaching everyone.
• By staying accountable: Reading through the Bible in a year isn’t easy, but we believe that with the encouragement of others who are taking the challenge too, it will become much more doable! During both Worship and Journey Groups, there will be ongoing challenges to stick with it and keep spending time in God’s Word. By taking the challenge together, families can also encourage each other and keep one another accountable throughout the year.
• By checking out CCC’s online resources: From daily video blogs to videos that tackle the tough questions that may arise as you read, there will be tons of helpful resources available on the Project 4:4 website.
• By living out what you read: We believe that increasing Biblical knowledge is good, but a key component to fully understanding God’s Word is to live it out. The challenge for 2012 is not only to grow in knowledge, but also to apply that knowledge and live differently because of how God is speaking to each of us.

Our hope is that 2012 is a banner year of spiritual growth in the lives of our high school students and their families. We believe that reading the Bible and taking advantage of the other Project 4:4 resources are a key part of that spiritual growth. We hope that you will take the challenge with us!

Pastor Brad

Series Overview

Advent is about looking forward, anticipating the celebration of the birth of Jesus. During this series, we’ll be looking at the serving heart of God. That even though he is God, he still offers us hope in his generous and humble gift, his son, Jesus. The first 2 weeks of the series are “you own the morning” weeks – where students will completely plan, prepare for, and execute the service. The final week will be a combined High School and Middle School Experience.

Session One: Hope in the Generous Heart of God (December 4)

What does it mean to have hope in the Lord? This week, we will be discussing the plans that God has in place for our lives. Believer or non-believer, we all struggle at some point in our journey. God has blessed each and every one of us with weaknesses, but these struggles make us stronger. In times of hardships, who do you put your hope and trust in? Be ready to discover how to dive deeper in your faith by putting your hope into the generous heart of God!

Session Two: The Humility of Christmas (December 11)

The Bible is completely counter-cultural. In such a fast paced society where truth is often taken for granted, humility is an essential aspect for seeing the truth and accepting when we are wrong. But why was humility such an important aspect for Jesus, the one and only, all-powerful God? Why would the only one who was never wrong and who created “right” humble himself to a manger among farm animals? We’ll take a look at the value of truth and the humility of Christmas, while looking at the mysterious and powerful nature of Jesus himself.

Session Three: Special Christmas Morning (December 18)

This week we will have a combined Worship service as we combine both High School and Middle School ministries for the morning. We will both celebrate the birth of our Savior and serve others in our community as we close out the first semester of Student Ministry.

December 25 – No HS Worship – Christmas Break

January 1 – No HS Worship – Christmas Break

Series Overview

Every day students are faced with situations, or crossroads where they can choose to make God-honoring decisions or not. In this three-week sermon series, we’ll tackle some of the more difficult roadblocks that can hinder us from serving God freely. From our past, to conflicts, to fear of taking risks, we’ll talk about some of the more difficult roadblocks we face and outline a plan to help overcome these roadblocks in God’s strength.

Session One: When Your Past Is A Roadblock (November 13)

In The Lion King, Rafiki hits Simba in the head and says to him, “The past, you can either run from it…or learn from it.” We all have things from our past that, if we allow them, will negatively affect our future. Whether it’s something from this past weekend, this past summer, or past year, or whether it’s a relationship, or family stuff, or the result of some bad choices – God can help us overcome our pasts so they don’t become a roadblock for our present. In week 1, we’ll take a look at the life of Saul turned Paul and how God specializes in turning bad into good for his purposes.

Session Two: When Conflict Is A Roadblock (November 20)

One thing that we can guarantee in life is that you will have to live it with other people and because we deal with other people there will be conflict. Conflict between parents, teammates, siblings, co-workers, friends… and the list goes on. Sometimes conflict is our fault and other times that’s not the case at all. When conflict is a roadblock in our lives, we must learn the art of forgiveness. In week 2, we will take steps toward getting past conflict through forgiveness.

Session Three: When Fear Of Risk Is A Roadblock (November 27)

When you read the bible, you find countless people whofailed miserably & yet God used them for His purposes. In our culture today, nobody wants to be a failure & our fear of failure is often a roadblock to accomplishing what God wants in our lives. This week, we’ll look at one of Jesus’ followers who didn’t let a roadblock stop him, but rather looked past his fear of failure & took a huge risk.

This past Sunday (Oct 2), I spent my afternoon wearing a crazy costume, and hauling a couch all over Omaha. Approximately 200 students, 35 teams participated in the annual Couch-O-Rama event. I thought my teams costume was pretty fantastic, however I was blown away when I saw the creativity of the other teams. We had cows, potatoes, footy pajamas, and princess costumes. One of my favorites was Amy Gerhart’s group; they dressed up as the Duggar girls.

When the scavenger hunt officially began, it was mad dash to the door. I’m surprised that no one got injured in all the excitement. My team ran for our truck and scanned the list of locations. Alex Ehly definitely came up with some interesting ideas. For example, take a picture with a donkey, with two female police officers, with Mayor Suttle, and with a life size cut out of the one and only Justin Bieber. Our strategy for attacking this list was to start out west, and head back towards the church. Having Amy Anderson as our leader, we of course had to get a picture with her bulldog, Bruce. We also found ourselves at a cornfield, Village Pointe, Bennington High, on a trampoline, etc. Hauling a couch in and out of the truck was definitely exhausting, but we captured some great pictures and had a blast!

During that whole action packed day, what astounded me the most was the number of students who participated. Couch is a fun event where students can grow closer to their fellow journey group members. The purpose of Couch-O-Rama is also to expand our journey groups, and embrace new students into the community. I believe we accomplished this, because there were many new faces that day. I encourage those of you who invited friends to keep investing in their lives. That ultimately is the goal of Couch-O-Rama, inviting our friends, and opening the door to Jesus.

-Tabitha Barth

(Senior in the CCC HSM)

Series Overview

A Creed is defined as a set of beliefs that guides someone’s actions. The fall 2011 Creed series is all about God the Father and Jesus Christ. This series will take us much deeper than a focus on behavior modification, because when we begin to understand the why behind the actions, it helps us develop those actions with greater passion. We’ll discuss what we believe, and then give opportunity to apply it to the world we live in.

Session One: God is… (October 2)

There are many views about God out there – and even though many in our world would suggest they are all valid, this logically cannot be true. Even many Christians are confused about who God really is. We’ll kick off the Creed series by taking a good look at who God is according to the Bible.

Session Two: God is not… (October 9)

A lot of people view God as a distant but all powerful being. This God is there to give them what they want, when they want it, and then to hang out waiting for us to ask him for something else the next time we need it. It is possible that God is active and present in our everyday lives, and that he wants more from us than just to talk to him when we need something? Could God really want a relationship with us; and more?

Session Three: Jesus: Fully God (October 16)

There really is not much debate about the historical fact that Jesus existed as a man, but what about the claim people try to make about Him being God? Did Jesus Himself even claim to be God? If so, how could He possibly prove it? And honestly, what difference does it make anyway? This week we will examine the evidence that Jesus is really who He claimed to be… God

Session Four: Jesus: Fully Man (October 23)

It’s amazing to think that we have a God who became a man. Over 2000 years ago, Jesus entered the scene on planet earth. He became flesh and lived, moved, and breathed among us. He walked in our shoes, dealt with temptation, was rejected and ridiculed, and unjustly accused. So, what does this mean for us in our relationship with God? Does it change the way we relate to our Maker & Creator?

Series Overview

Evangelism. Just the word alone conjures up a multitude of images—and most of them make students squirm. But sharing the Good News of Jesus doesn’t have to be pulpit pounding or televangelist cheesy. In this three-week series, we will get a practical handle on three ways we can be a testament to spread God’s love. The word on the street is that God loves us all. This series will hopefully make it easier for us to get out there and spread the Good News.

Session 1 – Making Noise With Your Friendships (Sept. 11)

Our peers are often the most difficult group of people to reach with the Gospel message. It’s intimidating and sometimes our fears get the best of us. What if I don’t know what to say? What if I say the wrong thing? What if I lose friends? What will they think of me? It seems easier to stay in the safe zone & not say anything at all. But, what if God has called us to something greater? The truth is God doesn’t want us to leave our friends in the dark. We are His plan for reaching them. This week, we’ll tackle some practical ways to share with friends the greatest news in all the world.

Session Two – Making Noise With Your Lifestyle (Sept. 18)

God has called his followers to be salt and light; that our lives would look so radically from the world that people are drawn to Jesus. But statistics tell us that most Christians live no differently than those who do not have a faith in Jesus Christ. In week 2 of the series, we’ll discuss the importance of living a changed life, and helping students ask if they want to live a life that seeks the attention of others to honor themselves, or if they want to live a life that grabs the attention of others while seeking to honor God.

Session Three – Making Noise With You Words (Sept. 25)

Scientists say on average, we all speak about 16,000 words each and every day. It’s obvious that we all understand how to have conversations, but why does that all of the sudden change when it comes to Spiritual matters? Why do we clam up and think we have to give a mind-blowing presentation when we share our faith with others? This week we will dive into the reality that conversions take place through conversations and not presentations.

Series overview

We’re kicking off the fall with a series called One – which is all about community and the importance of growing in our walk with God in relationship with others. During the series, we’ll be emphasizing Journey Groups and the importance for us to be around people who are challenging us to follow God more closely. We’ll also be using these weeks to share the vision and plan God has for the future of High School Ministry!

Session One: John 17:20-23 (August 21)

We’ll kick off the series by looking at Jesus’ prayer in John 17. We’ll ask each person to consider – where do you participate in Biblical community? And, we’ll take a deeper look at the John 17 passage, unpacking the context of what’s going on there and discussing what unity is.

Session Two: John 17:20-23 (August 28)

What is the goal of community? Some have taken it too far and made their lives all about creating safe Christian bubbles and separating themselves from the world. Others have immersed themselves in the world so much that they are impossible to distinguish from everyone else. According to John 17, some amazing things happen in the world when Christians are unified. In week 2, we’ll dive deeper into this passage to discover the end results of community.

Session Three: Acts 2 (September 4)

In Acts 2, we have probably the best picture of community the world has ever seen. But, can we really sell all of our possessions and give to others? How much time do we have to give to building community? Is what we give up to experience community worth it? We’ll wrap up this series by looking at the Acts 2 picture of community and discussing what that can look like in 2011.

If we learned anything down at Compass during the week of our Compass Missions experience (July 10-15), I think it would have to be to show love under any circumstance and to especially show God’s love. Self dubbed, team South Fort Millard definitely showed an immense amount of God’s love to the kids down at Compass, but we also shared it with each other. As a part of the team I felt like God put the exact right people in the group, not all of us knew each other super well, so it was great to get to know people and grow close throughout the week. Of course the first bus ride down was kind of interesting, trying to get to know each others names, where we went to school, and any other facts but by the night we were playing games and laughing, which was done pretty much every night. God definitely blessed us this last week with the group we were in.. We learned to pray for each others circumstances, and how God has been working in our lives, and when needed, we would encourage each other about the kids.

From the very first night, the kids changed my life. It seemed to be that throughout the entire week the little things that they said about their community would just shock me, but to them it was “normal”. This trip showed me how small the issues we go through are, compared to other people, and it put a lot into perspective. With that, some of the kids who seemed to be going through the hardest circumstances had the most amazing hearts for Christ. You could just tell that some of them wanted to learn more about Christ, and even if there were kids who didn’t, they still showed up and were hearing it. It was amazing to see God working through us to teach the kids, but I feel that God taught me more through the kids then I taught them.

Through the week we also were taught Spiritual Disciplines by Miss Jenny every morning. Spiritual Disciplines were definitely a challenge. Half the week we would sit in silence allowing God to speak into our lives, or we would pray with scripture, and on the last day we did a really cool exercise that pretty much entailed giving something up to Christ and then having a conversation with Him. We would always share what we saw and I think that also taught me a lot about how Christ works in people’s lives and how differently He works in others lives.

Through Spiritual Disciplines, nightly group devotionals, cooking dinner for each other, playing lots of games at night like Life and Star Wars Monopoly, scheduling showers for 12 people and with only one shower available, swimming at Mahoney, lots of frisbee, a craze of four square, and definitely through the kids, South Fort Millard grew close, and learned a lot about love through Christ. It was an amazing week, and we were all impacted so greatly by Christ, and we were all so blessed.

-Jen Kelly (CCC High School Ministry Student)