Student Ministry This Week
HERE'S WHAT'S HAPPENING IN VSM
VSM Midweek, Wednesday, 6:30 PM
Following our worship time on Wednesday, we'll be throwing it back to some old school Valentine's crafts for Mom and Dad.
VSM Beach Retreat, May 3-5 (Date Change)
Our Beach Retreat date has changed. Our original date was April 26-28, but we are moving the Retreat to the May 3-5. This retreat was a blast last year, and we know that your students will want to be a part of this incredible weekend. Registration for the Retreat will open this Sunday, February 17. The cost for the Retreat is $125.
Middle School Missions Experience Update
We are committed to giving our students opportunities to serve and grow in their faith through ministry. We will be looking for ways to plug students into service this spring and summer. In the meantime, we'd love to have some middle school students connect with our student leadership team which meets on Wednesdays at 5:45 PM.
Movie Outing, Sunday, February 24, 1:30 PM
Family Devotional
The LIFE
Week 5, Devotion 1
Think about this quote:
“[Jesus] stands between us and God, and for that very reason he stands between us and all other men and things.” – Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship
Picture a line. You at one end and God at the other. Jesus stands between you, in your sin, and God, in His absolute holiness. On the cross, Jesus took the wrath of God that you deserve and put it upon Himself. Without Jesus, you stand condemned before the God of the universe.
Picture a line. You at one end and everything and everyone else in the world at the other. Jesus, again, stands between you. Because Jesus stood between God’s wrath and you, He must now stand between you and everything else in this world. Jesus demands that He be the highest priority of the disciple’s life. The cost of discipleship is so high. So was the cost of our salvation.
Some things to think about . . .
- Have you ever thought about your faith like this?
- Why does Jesus get to demand an all-encompassing discipleship from us?
- How could you explain this to someone else in your own words this week?
Week 5, Devotion 2
Take some time to think about what is most important to you. What do you spend the most time doing? What do you think most about? What do you spend your money on? Grab a sheet of paper or a page in your journal. Write down those most-important things on the left side of the paper.
Now, take some time to pray and talk to God about the things most important to you. How do you think Jesus would rank those things on your list? Write down that order on the right side of the paper.
Now, compare your lists. Are there any differences? Are there any things on the first list that shouldn’t be there at all? Is there anything on that first list that you wouldn’t give up for the sake of following Jesus?
Commit some time to praying and asking the Lord to help you make the things that are most important to Him the most important to you. Ask Him to give you a heart that is ready and willing to give up everything for the sake of following Jesus.
Week 5, Devotion 3
“’If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.’” – Luke 14:26
Have you ever tried going a week without social media? Or maybe even just a day? No Snapchat. No Instagram. What if you had to go an entire day without speaking to anyone? Wow. That would be difficult, not to mention lonely.
The reason social media plays such a huge part in our lives is that God wired us to want communication with others. He designed us to need relationships. So why would Jesus tell us that if we don’t hate our families we cannot be His disciples?
At first this teaching may seem harsh. It’s important for us to understand that Jesus is not teaching that we are to have no love for family. His emphasis is on priority. Our love for Him should be so great that our love for everyone else looks like hate in comparison. This means that every other relationship we have doesn’t even come close to our relationship with Jesus.
We must be willing to leave behind everything for the sake of following Him—every relationship, every possession, and every comfort. The things that we are not willing to give up are actually idols that distract us from truly worshiping the one who gave His life for us.
Jesus isn’t saying that you cannot love your family and cherish your relationships. He is saying that you must love and cherish Him more.
Some things to evaluate . . .
- Do you spend as much time getting to know God through His Word as you do scrolling through social media?
- Is your relationship with Jesus more important to you than your family and friends? What evidence do you have to answer the way you did?
Here’s a challenge for you:
- Choose a verse or passage of Scripture to memorize (maybe even take a picture of it and set it as the background on your phone). This week, when you are tempted to scroll through social media, practice memorizing Scripture instead.
WEEKLY DISCIPLESHIP OPPORTUNITIES
Sunday Morning Life Groups, 9:15-10:30 AM
Sundays in Valleydale Student Ministry are awesome times where we gather in groups in order to dig into God’s word and experience the Bible in a meaningful and impactful way. We call these groups Life Groups, and you can expect to be a part of a group that will be excited that you are joining them. Life Groups meet at 9:15 in the Theater on the 3rd floor of Valleydale. After Life Groups, we move to the Worship Center for the 10:45 Worship Service.
Sunday Evening D-Groups
D-Groups are student groups that meet in homes on Sunday nights for a time of fellowship and Bible study. These groups are age and gender-specific, and they give our students the opportunity for a more casual environment to talk about Scripture and what God is doing in their lives. Meeting times and locations vary on Sunday nights. Contact us at students@valleydale.org for details.
Wednesday VSM Midweek, 6:30-8 PM
We want VSM MIDWEEK to be your student's favorite night of the week! For our Midweek we have crafted an experience that combines worship, teaching, small group discussion, games, crazy events, and strange giveaways. Not only do we have a blast each week, we also ensure that each student has a chance to encounter God's Word and gets to know other students. VSM Midweek starts at 6:30 and meets in the Theater on the 3rd floor of Valleydale.
About VSM
Email: students@valleydale.org
Website: valleydale.org
Location: 2324 Valleydale Road, Birmingham, AL, United States
Phone: 205.991.5282
Facebook: facebook.com/valleydalestudents
Twitter: @vcstudents