Confirmation

A sample of the videos we use

Confirmation is an opportunity for young people to affirm the faith into which they were baptized and, for those who were baptized as infants or small children, to renew the baptismal vows taken for them by their parents or guardians. Confirmation also makes young people aware of how God is and has been at work in their lives, even before they were old enough to realize it. And confirmation affirms a new commitment—a new covenant relationship—between a young person and Christ’s body, the church.

First UMC Crestview

8-Week Journey

Sundays (9:30am-10:30am)

6th-12th Grade

Class 101 Know Your Story

Is the Bible true and what’s it all about?

     - The story of Redemption

How can God be “three-in-one”?

     -  God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit

Class 201 Confirm Your Faith

What does it mean to be “born again”?

     -  The Way of Salvation

Why Should I follow Jesus?

     -  The Way of Discipleship

Can I be a Christian without going to church?

     -  The Way of Community

Class 301 Live Your Commitment

What’s a Methodist?

     -  Grace and Holiness

Going Forth: Now What?

     -  Membership and Mission

Looking Forward

Prayer for the New Year

I am so thankful that you are a God who makes all things new. You give us a new start and a new heart. You give us a new life and a new spirit. Our past is forgotten. Our old life is gone. You have made us into new creations.

You create.
You redeem.
You transform.

Thank you for this New Year. Thank you for new opportunities. Let us never settle for what was, but let us go on to what lies ahead. Let us look forward.

"Great is his faithfulness; his mercies are new each day!" Lamentations 2:23

New Year's Words

Typically, like most people, I make a list of resolutions for the new year. However, for 2014 I wanted to do something a little different. Instead of making resolutions, I decided to pick three words that I hope are a huge part of the upcoming year. I want these three words to give this year direction and guidance.

1. Devoted--I want to be a devoted father to my two children. I want to be a devoted husband to my wife and a devoted pastor to our young people. Devotion does not require perfection, but it goes beyond the ordinary. Devoted means loyal, faithful, constant, and committed.

2. Worship--I want to spend more time in prayer, adoration, and praise. I pray for a greater desire for God and the things of God.

3. Compassion--I want to spend more time in the service of others. In our service to the least of these our brothers and sisters we find Jesus. Sometimes the older we get the more bitter and resentful we become. Life can harden our hearts and make us fearful. I pray that increased age would only make me more kind and caring. I want my heart to be tender and accepting. I pray for the spirit of Christ to increase in my life.

What about you? What three words would you choose for 2014?

Worth the Wait -Adoption Update

Meet Caleb Kyrie Dasinger! For those who don't know, our family has been on the journey of adoption for some time now. This has been a long and sometimes difficult journey. Tedious paper work, unexpected expenses, and a few disappointments have come along the way.

However, as soon as we held Caleb in our arms we knew he was worth the journey. All the disappointments and difficulties faded to the background as we immediately fell in love with our second child. Caleb is healthy and doing well, and our daughter Kenzie loves being a big sister. The last couple of weeks have been a whirlwind. Our bodies are tired, but our hearts are full! God is good! 

Our family has chosen to document and write about our journey as a way of raising awareness for adoption and orphan care. We've often been asked the question: "Why adopt? Why go through this messy and expensive process when you can have kids the old fashion way?" Glad you asked! There are several reasons really...

1. God cares for the orphan and therefore we should too! The Bible speaks about this in several places. (see Psalm 68:5-6, Isaiah 1:17, James 1:17)

2. Adoption is at the heart of the gospel! Through Christ, God not only declares us not guilty, but he then adopts us as his sons and daughters! Our adoption cost God a lot, but he believed we were worth it. Adoption is our highest privilege as Christians. 

(see Romans 8, Galatians 4, 1 John 3)

3. We choose adoption because we believe every life matters. And I don't mean this in the pro-life bumper sticker kind of way. I mean we believe every kid deserves a family. Every kid deserves to be loved and cherished. Following Jesus means loving others, especially those who have been marginalized and forgotten. This truth can be lived out in different ways: visiting prisoners, foster care, serving the poor, or assisting widows (just to name a few).

4. However, the best answer I have is sometimes there are moments in our lives where we do not reason things out, we just know in our hearts that God has called us to do something and so we do it. I believe these are the best moments. If we walk by faith, we will get to be a part of some amazing opportunities. Don't be mistaken, following God's call will probably make life more challenging in some ways, but in the end it will be worth it.

Give Us Grace

A Prayer for Advent:

Merciful God, you sent your messengers the prophets
to preach repentance and prepare the way for our salvation.
Give us grace to heed their warnings and forsake our sins,
that we may greet with joy the coming of Jesus Christ, our redeemer;
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen. (The Book of Common Prayer)

Scripture: John 1:10, 12

He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him.
He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him.
But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God.

Make Ready Our Hearts

Prayer for Advent:

Eternal God, in your providence you made all ages
a preparation for the kingdom of your Son.
Make ready our hearts for the brightness of your glory
and the fullness of your blessing in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

(The Book of Worship 1944)

Orphan Awareness Month

For those who may not know, November is Orphan Awareness Month. As Christians, our call to care for orphans is pretty clear in the Bible. Here are just two examples:

"Learn to do good! Seek justice! Help the oppressed! Defend the orphan! Fight for the rights of widows!" Isaiah 1:17

"Pure and lasting religion in the sight of God our Father means that we must care for orphans and widows in their troubles, and refuse to let the world corrupt us." James 1:27

The mandate is clear. So why do we hesitate to help? (1) Helping orphans seems overwhelming and unending. (2) Helping orphans is a complex problem with complex solutions. However, here are some good ways to get started:

1. Pray. Sounds simple, but the most important thing we can do is intercede for others. Plus, as we pray, God will begin to give us his desires. Our hearts will begin to break for the things that break his.

2. Get educated. There is a lot of great information on blogs and in books. Here are a few suggestions: 

"Orphanology" By Tony Merida and Rick Morton

"Orphan Justice" By Johnny Carr

"The Hole in Our Gospel"By Richard Stearns

3. Support others. Support and encourage foster parents. Get them gift cards for date nights and offer to babysit. Give monetary gifts to those who are adopting. Everyone is not called to adoption, but we should support those who are. Adoption is expensive and every gift helps!

4. Sponsor a child. Help support a child and their family through organizations like World Vision and Compassion International. 

5. Consider becoming a foster parent. Consider adoption. Again, every family may not be able to foster or adopt, but every family should think about it.

The vast number of orphans can seem overwhelming. It can seem that no matter what we do, nothing will really help. However, as Christians we believe every life is worth fighting for. One adoption helps one child. It's worth it. One foster family provides a safe place for one child. It's worth it. I believe God can take the small things we do and multiply them in amazing ways. Never underestimate what our God can do! Never underestimate the power of love! 

Modesty and Beauty

Great video about the evolution of swimsuits and issues of modesty. She is speaking specifically to females. However, I think modesty is something our whole culture needs to think about (including guys). Talking about modesty typically turns into judging one another and looking down on females for dressing a certain way. I do not think that is helpful. I like how she keeps the topic positive.   

"Modesty is not about hiding ourselves, it's about revealing our dignity. We were made beautiful in His image and likeness. The real question is: How will you use your beauty?"