How do we see the Church?

We are just completing some research in the schools where we work looking at how young people view the world and how they view Christianity. Once completed we are looking at over 1,500 young peoples views on life and there have been some really interesting comments. As you can imagine with that many there have been some really varied answers, i think my favorite was to the answer to the question ' what are the 3 main influences in your life.' which had 'my testicles' as one of the three. 
One of the questions i was most interested in was 'What do you think of the word Church?' This had both some encouraging replies but also some distant and derogatory comments. This challenged me to think about how i see the Church. Working for a Christian organisation that is often termed as a parachurch organisation some people would put words in my mouth. I once heard someone say parachurch organisations are called that because they are like parasites where it takes rather than gives. This is totally against everything YfC and in particular Nottingham YfC believe. In Revelation it talks about the Church being the Bride of Christ and so if we love the bridegroom we must also build up, encourage and love His bride. When someone last asked you about Church, what did you say? Did you winge about something that you didn't like? Did you dismiss the question and move onto another subject or did you tell them how beautiful and amazing it is. 
How do we see the Church? Let's build the Bride of Christ up as honour Him.

Richard Dawson

Big day out you've been framed

Watch "Big Day Out 2012 'You've Been Framed'" on YouTube

Check out some of the great videos created at our you've been framed sessions at our big day out last month

2012 verses of the year : Matthew 25:14 - 30

Each year we pray into what God is saying to us for the next 12 months. If you have followed us over the past few years you will know that last year we had Paul's vision of the Macedonian man running through our ministry. Paul wanted to go one way and doors kept closing but God drew him to Europe and that way was free. In the past 12 months we have seen huge growth in our ministry and we are thankful to God for that as it has been down to Him that we have been on the move. An early picture that one of our trustees had in our first year back in Nottingham was that of Nottingham being lit up in 5 or 6 different areas by the influence and the work of Nottingham YfC, with the ministry being light in the darkness. Let me just say this wasn't to suggest no one else or no other organization was providing light, this was just a picture of what God possibly wanted NYfC to look like.

Ten and a half years on and we see God's light shining through NYfC in 6 different areas of the city and influencing many more. Arnold, Beeston, Bilborough, Inham Nook, Radcliffe and South Notts are our key areas where the light is shining but our influence through support, mentoring and empowering the local church to impact a generation is growing more and more.

Often we see growth as a numerical thing and that is not always wrong. Gavin Calver, our national director has a vision to see a million young people reached each month through YfC, that is exciting and we would love to see that. In fact if you looked at the amount of young people we come into contact across Nottingham then we have the potential to see over 6,000 young people each month, that is amazing and i can't help but be humbled by what God has given us.

This year our passage for Nottingham YfC is Matthew 25: 14 -30 the parable of the talents.

God has given us an amazing opportunity but sometimes we don't take that opportunity or even take it for granted. Do we take what God has given us and protect and defend it because we are scared of losing it or do we take what He has brought into our lives and grow it. Our work with young people is very relational and i love the fact that we see the same young people week in week out bringing Hope and potential in their lives. Sometimes though in relational youth work it becomes more about turning up, getting through the evening making sure they behave. What we aim to do through the work and what I hope and pray will be a key word in Nottingham YfC is TRANSFORMATION. We want to take what God has given us, the young people he has brought our way and transform their lives with the love of God. If we can do that then 2012 onwards is going to be a great time to be part of the Kingdom of God and in particular Nottingham Youth for Christ. Please pray for us as this is what will really bring these words to fruition.

Who is teaching who?

A few weeks ago now I went with a group of young people on the eq:mission. Since returning I've had a bit more time to reflect on the things that happened and ways we sought to work with the churches and Burton YfC to serve the community there.

So often images portrayed of young people are negative - they are the ones that drop litter or are disrespectful. The young people that came on the 30 hr mission challenged this stereotype in Burton. They collected litter, all with giggles and smiles, and they gave away drinks and held doors open. Generosity was shown in face painting and in sellotaping a bit of loose change up for those who might need it at the bus stop or the pay and display machine. The light of God working in and through them was evident and no less bright when the face paint had been taken off. We went to Burton to serve and learnt so much ourselves - coming back to Nottingham challenged to live out the small actions that we did in Burton in our home city.

My lasting memory of the weekend will be looking for a young person who had disappeared - I eventually found her in the kitchen washing up!

The young people that I spent the weekend, and the many others that I see and work with in Nottingham humble me in so many ways and is a reminder to me of how I often feel like they teach more more than I ever will do them.

Sara Reynolds

Our God is a big God


I was sat amongst some friends this week and we listened to song called 'You are' by Bradford Church . We spent a few minutes thinking about the song and we were asked what the one thing was that stuck out to us . When listening to this song the words that stuck out to me was ‘You are’. In the song it talks about all the things that God is...

“You are the strength for the those in need , You are the defender of the weak Your everything we need, You are our God”

It can be so easy in our everyday lives to forget how big God is ! , We can forget that God is interested in the small things in our lives as well as the big. God is all the things above and so much more . I was challenged to try to include God in all parts of my life not just the big things.

Do we truly understand where God is or do we put Him in a box and see Him where we want Him to be. It is easy to see that God is there when we worship or when we sometimes pray, but do we see God when people are hurting or struggling? Let us show others that actually we see God in the smallest things like a baby smile or a hug to someone in need. Where will you acknowledge God this week and where are you going to take Him over the next few days?

Emily Swinburne / Richard Dawson

Changing endings

One of the things that marks the start of the Christmas season for me is the vast array of high quality and big production adverts that are released by large companies, all trying to compete for the biggest chunk of the 16 billion pounds people in the UK will spend on Christmas presents this year. The Coca Cola advert is probably the most famous, and this year the John Lewis advert has impacted lots of people with a great message of how giving is better than receiving.

I know there are many more adverts to come, but there is one that has struck such a chord with me and has reminded me why I do what I do, and why the work of Youth for Christ in the city of Nottingham and beyond is so important. It is an advert for Barnardos:

In youth work, you hear lots of stories. Some stories are funny, inspiring and happy and others are just heartbreaking. The young people that we work with are all on a journey and they all have a different story. Some of the beginnings to their stories have not been good ones. Some people in the lives of those young people think they know what the ending to their story will be. Some people in the lives of those young people have even told them what their ending will be. Some of those endings are not good.

For us at Nottingham Youth for Christ, we believe in a God who specializes in changing the endings to people’s stories. Jesus set people free, healed and restored, turned the world upside down and changed the lives of thousands even millions of people and he is still doing it today.

By listening, loving, caring, creating, laughing, hoping and praying with young people we are here to empower them to change the ending to the story they are living. Sometimes this takes years, sometimes we may never know the ending would have been different without our involvement and sometimes it doesn’t work and the ending is just as heartbreaking as the beginning. But we know we make a difference, we know God is at work in the lives of young people in our city and we are privileged to be a part of it.

Jo Dolby

eq:mission to Burton

So we have just got back from our latest eq:mission where we ended up in Burton-upon-Trent. Here is a completed set of video diaries from the weekend so you get a glimpse of what we got up to. A full review will be up soon.

You can find out more about our 30 hour missions @ www.nottinghamyfc.co.uk/eq and download a booking form for our next one.