First of all, I'd like to give an idea to everyone just what Hi-Def Youth Ministries is all about. Hi-Def has taken new shaping in the last 8 months or so. We are not a "group" anymore, because we believe there are too many problems with being a "group." Youth "groups" don't necessarily love one another unconditionally. Youth "groups" tend to be very exclusive and occasionally hypocritical. Youth "groups" can sometimes put on a face to make it look like they are just another fun "group" of people. Youth "groups" are focused on things such as money, numbers, activities and games. We are no longer a youth "group." We are a youth CHURCH. Jesus died for the church, not a group!Hi-Def is a place that no matter what student walks in the door, regardless of what they've done in their past, what their reputation may be, what family background they come from, or even what they've done earlier that day...they will be loved. We believe that, like I said before, too many youth "groups" out there are exclusive, hypocritical, and even condemning. Our youth have made it a point to go out of their way and continue to learn how to walk in the love of Christ, as well as how to show it. We are not necessarily focused on activities, but we do have some fun, that is guaranteed! Our main focus has been prayer, whether corporately or individually. Corporate prayer has completely transformed Hi-Def, and it has opened up ways for the students to be real and honest with each other about issues they are dealing with and it has given them opportunities to step up and come together as a group by praying for each other every single week.
Recently, prayer has continued to flourish within the kids. Every student in the group has shared an honest and vulnerable testimony up to this point, and the group has come together and prayed for every single one of them. Do the words HONEST and VULNERABLE scare some of you parents? To be HONEST, they should. Our kids have become one here at Hi-Def. They are no longer a group, and not just a church...but a family. We have complete trust in one another. I'm sure the kids have shared struggles and hardships that they haven't shared with anyone else, including parents, which in my opinion is sometimes the best place to share them, within the church...because there is unconditional love and complete trust as soon as you walk in the door. We believe that any situation or hardship can be revolutionized through prayer and a relationship with Christ...and our kids haven proven that to be true time and time again. It is the only healthy way they will get through any "impossible" situation or rough stretch in their lives.
Within the next couple weeks, Hi-Def will have some great people coming in to perform and speak. Witness, a christian hip/hop artist from North Central University will be here next week with some music and a phenomenal testimony that your kids won't want to miss. Tonight, in fact, we have a guest speaker, missionary Sandy Youngren who has survived many difficult situations.
You may not guess that Hi-Def is growing exponentially, because we are not about numbers. However, the areas that we are growing in are the most important. We have what every teenager on this planet is searching for: Love.
Thanks for checkin' out the blog! Stay tuned for more!
-Ryan Heckman
www.harmonybwb.com
