Giant Sundae Sunday

Next Sunday, April 1st at 10:15AM, Velocity is going to to be HUGE!  As a wrap up to our How To Save A Life series we’re going to have an extra special program for April Fools day and we’re encouraging EVERYONE to invite a friend.  We’re making it a perfect Sunday to bring friends and we’re hoping to have a record breaking number of students with us for all the fun we have planned.  Not only will we worship together and play some extra fun games, we’re going to have a GIANT ice cream sundae.  We’re talking epic.  You won’t want your friends to miss it!

Invite Idea: Consider having a sleepover the night before.  Pizza and video games (or late night giggle sessions for the ladies) are a great lead in to fun worship and a giant banana split.  Have a sleepover and then come to church together in the morning!

How to Save a Life Breakfast

Beginning this Sunday, March 11th we’ll be going through a new series in Velocity all about how to share the life changing message of Jesus with those around us.  Sometimes that means breaking the rules or going against the norm but God has big things in store for us if we’ll learn to step forward in some simple ways.

On March 18th, we’ll be beginning the series in adult worship as well as we lead into Easter early next month.  There are some big things planned for that kickoff on the 18th so our student minitries are planning to all attend the 11:30AM service together.  That day we will NOT have our regular Velocity programming at 10:15AM.  Instead, we’re planning a fun breakfast and some games (we’re even breaking out 9 Square-in-the-Air!) at 11:00AM in E205.  Then we’ll all head down to the worship center in time for the 11:30AM service to begin.  You won’t want to miss it!

If students cannot attend the 11:30AM service with us, they should plan to attend worship that day with their families.

100% Pure Speech

This past Sunday we wrapped up our current series from 1 Timothy 4:12 called 100% Pure.  We talked about how we can strive to live our lives honoring God with the words we say.  During the message we had a “little” pillow fight.  We used the resulting mess to talk about how hard, or impossible, it can be to take back words once they’ve been said.  The only thing you can ever hope to do is clean up the mess, but sometimes even that is impossible.

We encouraged students to take two challenges this week based on Ephesians 4:29:

1. Go 24 hours without saying anything negative.  No put downs, complaints, gossip, etc.  (Tell people around you if you’re taking the challenge and have them give you a thumbs down as a reminder if they notice you using negative language).
2. Begin using postitive lanugage and give at least 5 compliments/encouragements in 24 hours.

Velocity Dodgeball Tournament

The dogeball tournament is almost here!  Next Wednesday, March 14 from 6:30-8:00PM we’ll be gathering in the gym for our most highly attended event of the year.  Make sure you come and invite your friends!  It’s a super easy excuse to come to church and meet some fun people.  Also, don’t forget that the students with the best dodgeball outfits get prizes so figure out something fun to wear.

Parents: We’re looking for some additional snacks for the night. If you’d be willing to bring some chips or cookies or send them with your student that night, please contact ChrisS@wschurch.org to let us know.

Student Center Dedication Event

On Sunday, March 25 from 4:00-5:30pm the entire West Side family is invited to a unique prayer & worship event to dedicate our new Student Center.  Come see a sneak peek of the building, worship with us and pray for the building, the students and the lives that will be changed in this amazing new ministry space!

If you missed it a few months back, you can find out more about what we’re planning for the Student Center and even see a live feed of construction progress online now.

Love Costs Everything

We’re excited to announce that on Sunday, March 11^th at 6PM in Studio 1 we have the opportunity to host a national simulcast of the documentary, “Love Costs Everything.”  It features internationally acclaimed author, Francis Chan and real-life stories of the world-wide persecuted church.  It is a powerful film and will not be something you’ll want to miss.  Discussion guides will be made available following and the cafe will be open so consider coming with your small group or bringing family.  Due to intense subject matter, we suggest those attending to be Jr. High and older.  We hope you’ll be able to make it.  RSVP today!

Believe Recap

Last Friday over seventy of us headed down to St. Louis for our annual trip to the Believe conference.  It was an amazing weekend and hopefully you either got to go or got to hear about it from someone who did.  If not, make sure you don’t miss it next year!

We’ve uploaded some of our pictures to Facebook so you can take a look there to see some of the fun.

Guess Who’s Coming to Lunch

This month we’re going to be visiting a few schools over lunch.  Check out our dates below and make sure you come meet us to hang out.  Even better, bring your friends, we’d love to meet them!

• Franklin M.S. – Friday, 2/17 – Pick up a pass before school and bring your lunch to Mr. Keys room with us.
• Pleasent Plains M.S. – Monday, 2/27 – We’re planning to hang out in the Cafeteria so find us there.
• S.C.S. – We’re around most days so we’ll pop in sometimes.  See you soon!

We’re planning on more dates this semester so check back for additional dates.  We’ll try to be there every few weeks.

WS101: Student Edition

Next Sunday, February 19th from 4:00-6:45PM we’re hosting our next West Side 101 class. It’s a class that our church offers every once in a while to help people better understand what baptism and membership are all about. It includes dinner together (free food is always good!) and it’s been a great class for everyone who has been a part of it in the past.

As a part of this event we offer a student only version of the class. If you’ve been thinking about making the decision to be baptized, or even if you don’t know much about baptism and want to know more, this is the perfect class for you. We’ll have dinner together and participate in the regular 101 class for a short period of time.  Then the students will split off to hang out and talk more about baptism and what it means for students.

If you’re interested in signing up you can register by sending an email to WS101@wschurch.org. Or, if you’ve got more questions, feel free to contact me at ChrisS@wschurch.org.

V-Group Serving Night

The week of Wednesday, February 15th each of our V-Groups are planning their own opportunities to serve and make a difference in our community.  We will not be meeting at the church during our regular time that night.  Instead, check the list below to make sure you know your group’s plans.  If you’re not in a group or aren’t sure which is yours, contact Chris.

• 8th Boys – Meet at church – 6:15-8:15PM – River Birch Senior Center
• 7th (Jon, Stuart, Corey) – Meet at church – 6:30-8:00PM – Lewis Memorial
• 7th (Jerry, Tony & Curtis) – Meet at church – 6:30-8:00PM
• 6th Boys - Meet at church – 6:30-8:00PM – Community Clean Up
• 8th Girls – Meet at Inner City Mission – 5:00-6:30PM – RSVP to Brenda
• 7th Girls – Meet at church – 6:30-8:00PM – bring cookies for fire stations
• 6th (Melissa & Heather) – Meet at church – 6:30-8:00PM – Bring $3
• 6th (Brigette & Michelle) – Meet at church – 6:30-8:00PM to deliever cookies