The theme of the weekend was about the fact that when it comes to being a Christian we are all learners! That's what the word 'disciple' actually means. But unlike learning to drive, we never get to take the 'L plates' off! Jesus invites us TBA LEARNER 4 LIFE!
We hired a coach and took 14 members of Activ8, 7 young people from Broadstone plus Anne, Keith, Kate, Suzannah and myself. At Yeovil we were joined with another 12 young people from that Church (plus leaders) – 33 young people in total. Just to put this figure into perspective, at last year’s District Weekend we had about 100 young people – so to have a third of this total from just our own Circuit plus Yeovil was excellent. It’s a very encouraging sign.
During the weekend there was a whole range of different activities to do. Thanks go to Linds and the Yeovil leaders for all their help - particularly with resources. We ran two Christian-based sessions; dance and drama workshops plus ten pin bowling, laser quest and even karaoke!
On the Sunday morning we led the 10:30 service at which a large number of people (young and old) made an act of commitment to be a disciple of Jesus and a ‘Learner 4 Life.’
The young people completed evaluation forms and the feedback received was overwhelmingly positive. They all seemed to thoroughly enjoy themselves and for a few of them it was another stepping stone on their journey of faith.
THANKS A MILLION to all our fantastic leaders and of course to Richard and Lynda and their fab catering team for serving up what has to be the best food I’ve ever had on a youth weekend!!!
Here are a couple of fantastic poems about the weekend written by some of the young people in Activ8 who went:
Our Weekend In Yeovil
We went on a weekend,
we didn't want it to end.We got on the bus
without a fuss.We played some games
to find out people's names.We didn't look very bright
after the first night!We went bowling: Nick got a strike,
that night we sang down the mic.We went to Laser Quest:
Kate was best!On Sunday we did a service:
we were all very nervous.At the end we didn't want to go:
it's all thanks to Nick and Co.!By Chris, Clare, Tom & Ben
We all sat on the coach, Yeovil we were headingCarrying are belongings, pillows and beddingFor Circuit Youth Weekend 2006That Nick and Suzannah happily fixed.The only sound, pounding in my headYou spin me right round which was continually saidPete Burns seemed to be here, with us in spiritChris's cross dressing was extremely explicit.Anyway, we were here to be a learner for 4 lifeIt's not like passing your driving test, which causes immense strifeBeing a Christian, no one is a 100%But soon we arrived in Yeovil where everyone met.We dropped our bags and played a few gamesAnd ate a few hot-dogs until are tummies were tamedOne of the games we played, was playdoh pictionaryour group cheated, we didn't need a dictionary.Time went on until it was said''there's a long day tomorrow, everyone bed!"But nobody felt like sleeping, people were messing around instead.That's until Nick ended up mental in his headWhat seemed like a few days, morning appearedEveryone was drowsy, but in good cheerWe participated in the morning sessions that were plannedPeople got wet until the Teapots were manned.(Teapots - That was when we found Suzannah was not right in the head!)Lunchtime arrived, the food was brilliantPortions to be had, among the trillions!Praise for Darwina, Richard and LindaAnd for anyone else I didn't consider.Soon it was time to hit the alleyKnocking pins down, everyone was dandy (not randy)I came last, Like U.K in EurovisBut when it came to the shooting I really hit the Biz.At Lazer Quest, I was like James BondBut I found Pussy Galore had already goneKate was the winner, I'm sure it was a fixI was really hungry then, I could've done with a Twix.When we got back, tea was partakenthen we had some workshops which wasn't forsakenDancing and Drama, both were funBut Mrs Teapot's driving lesson outshone the sun.Karaoke started, I began to shudderI can't sing, I was heard to mutterLittle Vicky sang like a divaShe had great stage presence, everyone could see her.Soon it was time to go to bed and everyone wentI didn't get much more sleep I was Hastened to regretBut Sunday morning appeared, everyone got upDoing last minute packing of their stuff.Time flied, Morning service was overEveryone who participated gave a 100% or overSoon it was time to say goodbye, it had all endedBut I will put a plug in for the district weekend that could be attendedThank you Nick and everyone elseWho worked as hard as a little scurrying mouseSee you all again in 2007But I can't be doing this again, I need my beauty sleep until eleven.By Ben
ADVANCE NOTICE ... Our next young people's weekend will probably be the next District Youth Weekend in Bournemouth, Friday 22nd - Sunday 24th September 2006. Put the dates in your diaries and watch here for more details in a few months time.