What We Do & How You Can Help
Sunday Morning Class: (Weekly) 9:00-10:00am
Sunday morning class is designed to teach teens the Word of God. We do this by Studying a book or character in the New or Old Testament for a quarter. We also take a quarter to teach a topical study.
How You Can Help:
- Be a team player! Come to the teen class for a quarter. We want adult leaders who will love teens, love to learn and ask questions. Also if there is an activity along with the lesson we expect for adult Leaders to “jump in and get their feet wet.”
- Teach a quarter (Curriculum assigned unless you ask for a specific topic). Specifically we are looking for teachers who wouldn’t mind having their name on a list to rotate in every other year or so.
- Bring Refreshments: (Donuts, brownie’s, milk etc.) and start the hot water for hot chocolate.
Sunday Night Devotional: (AKA: Spirit & Truth) (Weekly) 5-7:30pm
On Sunday nights we go a little deeper. First we start out the night with a meal to fellowship a little bit. Then we move into worshiping God with a devotional, singing, praying, and humbling our hearts before Him. After worshiping God the teens break off into “Mentor Groups” where teens learn important life lessons from some of the best adult leaders in the congregation.
How You Can Help:
- Bring Food – Sign up for a date to bring food for the night (Nachos, Pizza, Spaghetti, Taco Salad, Finger foods, Lasagna, Enchilada’s etc. Just something simple). Any meal that you can provide will be much appreciated and well consumed. The sign up sheet will be in the foyer.
- Showing up! Teens tend to take their faith more seriously when they see adults take their faith seriously. Please enjoy some food on us and show up to worship God during the devotional time. Interact and talk with the teens, make them important to you.
- Mentor – When we use the word mentor it primarily means (teacher). But for Spirit & Truth the Mentor is more than just a teacher. We would like mentors to be good at teaching the materials provided for Sunday nights but also we would like for mentors to be able to guide our teens in good advice and wisdom. Also we would like mentors to organize day or night out trips with their group of teens. That means getting a couple of other people to help out and take your teens to do something fun (don’t worry it can be free) once a month. So as not to put too much responsibility on a mentor, mentors will be teamed up w/ another mentor or possibly two or three, so the job does not just lie with one Adult. Their will be applications for this position and applicants will be selected by the youth minister.
- Parent Bible Study – If you are a parent and would like to stay for the parent Bible study, we invite you to do that as well. The parent Bible study meets in the same home as the teens and is during the “Mentor Group” time when the teens split into gender specific groups.
Wednesday Night Program: (AKA: Soul Café) (Weekly) 7:00-8:00pm
The Wednesday night program is designed for teens to bring their friends to. We meet together with about a half hour of game playing, Italian soda drinking, and sugar feeding fun. After the sugar high we have a half hour of a video class or class.
How You Can Help:
- We are in need of greeters. Adults who are willing to get involved in the lives of the teens and their friends. Perhaps the relationship is built chatting over an Italian Soda, or a game of ping-pong, but whatever you decide to do get involved in these teens’ lives. The point of greeters is to make the teens feel welcome and safe.
- Clean up lock up crew. Inevitably when you have guests come to your house there is going to be a mess to clean up (Especially with teens). There is a need for one or two helpers to do a room check and clean up after the program. Most of what this is, is pushing furniture back, picking up trash, turning lights off and locking up.
Area Wides: (Monthly) Second Sundays 3-7pm
The main purpose of Area Wides is to encourage teens in the faith walk and to fellowship with other congregations. Local churches prepare a quality youth rally to encourage teens to grow in their faith and relationship with Christ. Also this is one of the only times that the teens get to see their Christian friends from camp and other outside events.
How You Can Help:
- Transportation: More and more teens are getting excited about these area wides and we will have over two van loads attend. If you can provide a ride to a local church, we will pay your gas.
- Chaperone: A good Adult to Teen ratio is 1:5. The more teens that start attending the more we will need chaperones. Also don’t be surprised if you choose to come to an area wide to help out and end up being blessed by the event.
Ecuador Mission Trip: (Yearly) July or August 10-12 days
A survey with the question “What influences your Christian walk the most?” was handed out to over a thousand Christian teens. Listed among the answers was parents, friends, youth minister & family but none of these were the most chosen. The number one thing that influences teens to remain faithful as a Christians was their mission trip(s).
We are blessed to go to Ecuador and work with an Ecuadorian camp and watch Ecuadorian and American teens have the time of their life and be impacted Spiritually For the rest of their lives.
How You Can Help:
- Prepare your teens. If you have a teen that is attending the mission trip helping them complete the requirements for the trip is essential.
- Fund Raising: Going to Ecuador is no free trip. If you can help with our fundraisers like car washes or garage sales, we could definately use your help. Also if you are skilled at organizing those type of fundraisers please let us know.
- Packing party’s: Every year that we go to Ecuador we always take two bags: One for us and the other full of stuff for the camp and campers. It is a strenuous job that would go much smoother with more helping hands but has been taken on by only one family in the past. If you can help relieve some of that burden please do so.
- Decide to join the trip: You won’t be the same when you come home! We would love for you to see the beautiful people and places in Ecuador with us.
Bellevue Teen Retreat: (AKA:TBA) (Yearly) November 18-20th
The Bellevue Teens every year have a fall retreat at Delano Bay Christian Camp. The purpose of this retreat is to relax and have fun, but also it is seen as an opportunity to grow closer to each other and perhaps more importantly closer to Christ. The weekend is filled with fun and games, but it also is scattered with getting into the word, and littered with opportunities to deepen a relationship with Christ. The retreat comes at a time where school has recently started and this is a time of refocusing for the upcoming year.
How You Can Help:
- I need your Vehicles: Just sign em over to me, it will be easier that way!
- Adult Mentors: More than I need someone to baby sit the teens over the weekend I need Adults interested in involving themselves with these teens lives. There are so many opportunities at this retreat for teens to commit/re-commit their lives to Christ. I need Adults who will be there to see the teens through some of the difficult transitions in their lives while at the retreat.
- Be part of the planning committee: We can always use fresh ideas from those who are spiritually minded and can see where the teens need to be going. This would consist of working out a schedule and Spiritual events to fill those time slots.
- Game Coordinator: Like what was mentioned before there is a significant amount of free-time at the retreat (hence the word retreat). If you love games and love to organize games you need to be at this retreat doing just that.
Summer Camp: (Yearly) various dates throughout the summer
During the summer months the teens have a chance to attend a week long camp with other teens their age. There are camps for grades 1st-12th grade, hosted at the Delano Bay Christian Camp. In addition to attending a camp the teens (if they are old enough) get a chance to be a camp counselor.
How You Can Help:
- Provide Transportation
- Counsel at Bellevue’s summer camp
Faith Quest: (Yearly) Labor Day Weekend
For several years the Vancouver and Metro Churches of Christ have coordinated a weekend-long time of worship, teaching and spiritual growth at Camp Yamhill. Faith Quest is attended by teens from all over the northwest, extending into Canada and as far south as Arizona. Approximately 600 teens and chaperones attend this extraordinary event each summer, making the singing and fellowship opportunities outstanding. Faith Quest consists of speakers who are brought in from around the country and around the world. Days are divided into keynote addresses, times of praise, faith-building activities, classes and a very minimal amount of free time. After months of camps and mission trips, this is the culminating event of Spiritual growth and encouragement for our teens before they return to school in the fall.
How You Can Help:
- Serve as a chaperone
- Serve as camp staff
- Provide transportation