The last post of 2010...

Well the year has come to a close. This will be my final post of 2010 (125 posts in all!!!) We had a great year in our youth group. It has been fun to see you all grow throughout the year and we've had many spiritual highlights! My favorite is always the annual retreat at Storybook Lodge, and this year was no different. RISE UP!

As the year closes it is exciting to think about what God has in store for our youth group. The junior highers are having a new year's eve lock-in tonight (which will be tons of fun) and I know they will kick off the year right for our youth group.

Hope you all have a wonderful new year's celebration, and look for the first post of 2011 early on next year!

-PT

Youth Group tonight - Junior Highers bring your money for the lock-in

Just a reminder that we DO have youth group tonight! And if you are in 7th or 8th grade you need to bring your money for the lock-in this Friday.

I look forward to seeing you tonight. Have a great day!

-PT

Pray for Curt

I just wanted to ask you guys to join me in praying for my friend, Curt Vanderstelt. Curt is the lead pastor at North Bay Church here in Superior. He also works with the youth group there. Many of you in our youth group know him for several reasons. He has been at and even hosted several of our combined youth group rallies - and even was the speaker at a few of them. He also was one of the leaders for our campus missionaries events including the retreat and the recent Connect event. And he was with us last summer on our road trip down to the Twin Cities to go to Valleyfair and Mall of America.

To give you some background he has had 3 major brain traumas in his lifetime, including getting hit in the head with a softball during a church softball game against Bayside of all teams. That happened 3 years ago and it left him without memory for a few weeks. His brain is very fragile because of all these past injuries. Well last Tuesday he had to have a routine knee surgery for an injury he had last year. But when he woke up from the surgery (which went fine by the way) he could not remember anything. He is currently suffering from retrograde amnesia and the doctors believe it is a result of the anesthesia they used for his surgery - that it somehow traumatized his brain and his memory was lost.

The first few days were pretty bad but he is getting better. I actually went and visited him today, which was really nice. It was scary because there were moments when his memory was good and then times when it was bad. But he was Curt and it was fun to joke with him. We read some scripture, prayed, and even watched some baseball. His wife and two daughters are doing good considering what they are going through. The doctors say that only rest and time can help at this point.

Please pray for Curt and his family when you read this and anytime you think of him. I thank you for joining me in this and I will keep you all posted as I hear more. I believe that God will completely restore his memory some day and am praying that God will give their family comfort, peace, and joy until that day arrives.

Thanks.

-PT

What you missed

If you didn't hear or know, we DID have youth group last night. It was a blast. Here's what you missed:

-for starters, Ryan Paulson (above) was there - enough said

-we played Team Pictionary Crazy Drawing Movie Guessing Running Game. You know you wished you had been there for that (even if you don't even know what it is)

-we saw the return of the quiz - won by Luke Tunell in dominating fashion

-we gave away some sweet prizes

-we read the story of Jesus Christ's birth

-oh, and we had some snacks at the end.

It was a great night and we will be having youth group again next Wednesday, December 29th. Hope to see you then!

-PT

Youth Group tonight!

Just wanted to let everyone know that we WILL be having youth group tonight (JR. and SR. High.) There will be NO dinner provided like normal, and AMP (5th and 6th grade) will NOT meet. But for those of you in 7-12 grade come out for a great night!

I look forward to seeing you all there.

Have a great day!

-PT

Back from vacation

Hey everybody. Just wanted to let you know that I haven't posted on here all week because we were on vacation. The first half of the week I just stayed home and played with Garrison and Josiah. It was a much needed time for our entire family, and I truly enjoyed every minute of it. Then the last half of the week we drove down to the Twin Cities. We visited some of my siblings, Sarah's dad, and also did some Christmas shopping. Then we drove to St. Cloud to have our Christmas with Sarah's mom. We just got home tonight and I am glad to be home!

So what did I miss on Wednesday night? Let me know if you attended youth group and how it went. I will be back for next Wednesday, and YES we WILL be having JR. and SR. high. (Wednesday, December 22). There won't be dinner, so just come at 6:30pm. Hope to see you then and catch up!

-PT

Questions for Amos

Well we had another great Sunday School class today with Amos Tarfa. He mostly answered questions from last week which were rolled into 4 main parts:

1)Questions about our origin

2)Questions about our meaning

3)Questions about morality

4)Questions about destiny

I hope you enjoyed having him share with us and want you to know how you can continue to connect with him. The first place is to check out his website for Going Deeper International Ministries. You can click the link on the left hand side of this blog - "Growing Deeper" Or you can also email Amos, his email is tarfababi@gmail.com

AND - if you would like a copy of his book for $10 just check with me, I still have some copies. Or you can get it on Amazon.com

If you have any further questions, please post them as a comment on this blog post and I will get them to Amos.

Have a great week everyone!

-PT

p.s. - don't you love this picture of him? I had to put it up here since he mentioned how much he loved tennis during our class today...

Cancelled - Night at the White House

Sorry everyone, but due to the weather conditions getting continually worse, we are going to cancel Senior High Night at the White House. As much as I'd love to have you come over and hang out, I really don't want you or your parents to have to get out on the roads. There is a severe weather warning out there for our area and it is saying to stay off the roads unless absolutely necessary.

Also, over by our house it is SUPER windy and the snow drifts are really starting to develop. So we are going to cancel.

I'll keep you posted as to when we will make it up and have one again. Hope to see you at church tomorrow or youth group Wednesday.

-Tom

Senior High Night at the White House

The original White House - circa 2006

The color of the house is now Castlestone

While our house is no longer white - we will continue the tradition of Night at the White House. This is actually the fifth year that we are having this event. Basically all senior highers are invited to our house to come and hang out from 6-9pm. We will have food, games, wii, videos, and even movies if you really want.

So come out tomorrow (Saturday, December 11) night from 6-9pm. Email, facebook or text me if you need directions.

See you tomorrow night!

-PT

Weeds, wheat and the end of the world

See what you miss if you don't come to youth group? Last night was a lot of fun and turned out to produce some very good discussions. We read and studied the parable of the weeds. Check out Matthew 13:24-30 and 36-43. It led our discussion to talk about two main things:

1) Putting your trust and faith in Jesus Christ is the most important thing you can do.
2) Sharing your faith in Christ with those who don't know him is next most important.

It also led to some really good questions and discussion on what the end times will be like. If you have any thoughts or further questions, just make a comment on here. I look forward to hearing what you have to say. You can share a question, concern about the end times, opinion about the end times, or general thoughts and reaction to this section of scripture.

-PT

Amos Tarfa

Yesterday during our Digging Deeper class for Sunday School we had a special guest speaker, Amos Tarfa. Amos has been our guest a handful of times and always does a great job sharing his heart for defending the truth about God and our faith. He shared some key points to his new book, Christianity 201 (pictured above). And he provoked some really good questions that you guys came up with afterward.

He will be coming back to our class next Sunday, December 12, from 11am-noon. He will be answering the questions from yesterday as well as any other questions you may have. Please join us and be ready to soak it all in.

Also, we have copies of his book for $10. If you would like to support him and his ministry as well as get a really good book on Christianity and how live your life of faith - let me know. I will have them on Wednesday night as well as Sunday morning. The books are also available on Amazon.com

-PT

2011 Retreat

Last night at youth group we officially announced the date of our 2011 Retreat. Next year's retreat will be Thursday, March 24 through Saturday, March 26. This is during the week of spring break for both Superior public schools as well as UWS. We will be having the retreat at Storybook Lodge in Gilbert, MN. We have booked James Alan Hall and Collective Element as the worship band. We also have confirmed that Pastor Mark from Belize will be coming back to be our main featured speaker. We are very excited about this event and can't wait to tell you more about it in the coming weeks.

The cost will be $60 and you will need a (new) 2011 permission slip on file (they will be available after the new year). You can start registering beginning Wednesday, January 5. We will be announcing more info over the next several Wednesdays.

The retreat is 16 weeks away. That means we will be leaving 112 days from today!

I can't wait. If you have any questions just let me know.

-PT

Youth Group on Wednesday

Alright, it's been too long since we had "regular" youth group. But it's back. Come out on Wednesday night for good old fashioned youth group! We will start at 6pm with a free dinner for anyone and everyone. Then at 6:30 we will break into our groups. AMP for 5th and 6th graders, JR. HIGH for 7th and 8th graders, and SR. HIGH for 9th through 12th graders.

Also, we have a big announcement for JR. and SR. HIGH.

So come out for a great night. We look forward to seeing you on Wednesday!

-PT

What are you thankful for?

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I hope that you all have a great holiday and a really long weekend. I am thankful for God's love, my awesome family, and the best youth group in the world.

Take a moment to let us know what you are thankful for this season. Just make a comment on this post.

-PT

No youth group this week

Just a reminder that we will not be having youth group this Wednesday, November 24. This is due to the Thanksgiving Holiday. I hope you enjoy Thanksgiving with your family and have a nice time off school.

We will be meeting again for youth group on Wednesday, December 1. Plan to be there. We have a BIG announcement!!!

-PT

Operation Christmas Child

We were excited to announce today that we collected 101 shoeboxes filled with toys, clothes, and other items for children all over the world. Several of our youth were involved in putting together shoeboxes with their families. And our AMP group spent one of their nights of youth group shopping for the shoeboxes. The picture above is from AMP a couple weeks ago when they went to Target and picked up items for two shoeboxes.

Thanks to everyone who participated in some way in helping Bayside reach our goal of 100 shoeboxes - and more importantly to have a huge impact on children all across the globe!

-PT

Harvest Home is Wednesday night!

I just wanted to let everyone know what is happening this Wednesday for youth group. We are having our annual Harvest Home event at the church. The youth group (grades 7-12) will be serving a meal to the entire church family and friends. If you can remember please try to wear black pants and a white shirt - or something nice. Come ready to serve. We will have students running the drink carts, running plates from the kitchen out into the fellowship hall, and cutting the pies and prepping them to be served. There will be plenty of work so come out for a fun time of serving. Above are some pictures from last year and it seems that every year we have a lot of fun. Also, after we serve you will be able to eat a meal yourself - and typically we have plenty of pie left for the students to eat up.

There will be no AMP (5-6 grade) meeting, but everyone else is welcome to come out for a fun night! See you there!

-PT

Good weekend!

Just wanted to let everyone know what a good weekend it was with our youth group. There are three specific things that made it such a good one:

1) On Saturday morning we had our Campus Missionary Connect event at Central Assembly of God. It was a great time and a lot of fun. There were about 40 students there and I would say 10-15 were from Bayside. We had food, games, worship, testimonies and some encouragement.

2) On Saturday afternoon we had a dodge ball fiesta at Christian Missionary Alliance. It was a blast! There were about 30 students there and again about 10-15 from Bayside. We played several games of dodge ball and were able to scout out the other youth groups for our upcoming dodge ball tournament.

3) On Sunday morning we had our weekly Digging Deeper Sunday School class. This is always a good time. We typically start with a time to just hang out in the youth room. Then we talked for a bit about the sermon from church which was about John chapter 3 when Nicodemus visited Jesus. We also had some one on one time to discuss and an opportunity to write out John 3:16 in our own words. Remember that this class meets every week and is open to anyone in grades 5-12. We usually break up into different age groups.

To those of you who participated in these events, thanks for a great weekend. And if you didn't - we missed you and hope you come next time!

-PT

Campus Missionary Connect is Saturday

This Saturday, November 13 - we are having Campus Missionary Connect from 10:00am until noon. It will be held at Central Assembly of God. We will have homemade donuts (no joke) and fruit, there will be games, worship, testimonies, and an opportunity to check in on your plan of action.

So if you are a campus missionary or you are considering becoming a campus missionary - make sure to stop by and check it out.

ALSO, on Saturday from 1:00pm - 3:00pm we are having a dodge ball fiesta at Christian Missionary Alliance. Come out for a fun afternoon of dodge ball.

See you guys tomorrow!

-PT

The total is in...

Alex, Tommy, and Ryan at a local school in Belize

Over the last four weeks we were able to raise $374.42 to go towards the Christmas Children's party at Hattieville Baptist Church in Belize. With this money the church will buy meals and gifts to give to the children in their village. Our original goal was $200 and we easily surpassed that! Our new and updated goal was $400, and our youth group account can easily contribute the remaining $25.58. I plan on sending $400 to Pastor Mark Sommerville and the church in Belize! And to remind you that in Belize the US dollar is actually worth 2 Belize dollars. So they really are receiving $800 in their money!!!! This will go a long way to help make Christmas a reality for the children in their town, and to spread the gospel and love of Jesus Christ this season. Thank you Bayside Youth Group for doing your part! PRAISE GOD for providing through you!

-PT

Fasting, Wineskins, and Old Shoes

Tonight we looked at a difficult passage of scripture. We certainly didn't have enough time to really cover the details. So I wanted to give you another chance to think about what this passage means for you. Here it is, from Matthew 9:14-17:

Then John's disciples came and asked him, "How is it that we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples do not fast?" Jesus answered, "How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is still with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, then they will fast. No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse. Neither do people pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved."

So take a moment and comment on here with any questions or thoughts that you may have about this verse. Also look up 2 Corinthians 5:17 and Ephesians 4:22-24 because they might help shed some light on this particular scripture.

Let us know what you think!

-PT

A New Goal

VBS gathering at Hattieville Baptist Church

I'm excited to announce that we have surpassed our goal of raising $200 to send to Belize for their Children's Christmas Party! We received two large donations in addition to the continual donations and collections that we've been making. So far we have collected $311.28!!!!! Praise God and thank you to everyone who has given. Now that we have surpassed our goal, it's time to make a new goal. We still have one more collection on Wednesday night at youth group. I think it could be our biggest one. So I am setting our new goal at $400! Let's just see if we can get there. So remember to bring your extra change and coins, and continue to pray and consider making a donation out of your own regular money. Maybe you could sacrifice something that you have been saving for or something you normally buy - give it to this cause for the children in Belize and see how God will bless you.

I look forward to seeing you guys on Wednesday night!

-PT

Student Profile - Cody Casper

Today's student profile is all about Cody Casper. Cody is a senior at Superior High School and a part of the class of 2011. Cody has been a part of the football team and is an avid wrestling fan. His dad, Tom (Big Daddy), is a youth leader and all three of his older brothers have graduated from our youth group.

What is your favorite part of youth group?
Small group time because we can break down what we just learned.

What is your favorite memory from youth group?
When I gave up my bad attitude at the retreat and then having to live that out during the basketball tournament.

What is the best part about being a senior?
It's my last year and I'm the one people can look up to.

What are your plans for after graduation?
Business college, culinary arts college, and photography college.

What is the coolest place you have ever been?
New Jersey.

What is the one thing you wish you could do?
I wish I was 100% healthy because my goal has been to set a new squat record of 850 pounds. I believe I can do it but I need to be healthy.

Anything else you would like to tell our youth group?
Just live your life for Christ. Take it from me, it's the best thing you can do. To have that feeling to know that God is there for you and that no one can do what He can do.

Thanks Cody!

-PT

Bring your coins/cash on Wednesday

Pastor Mark juggling the basketballs and soccer balls we donated to their church

I wanted to let you all know that I received a call from Pastor Mark in Belize last week. He was excited to hear how well we (you) are doing and he said to say hello to Bayside for him. I also invited him to come to our retreat in 2011 - and he is now praying about that and figuring out if it will work. If you were not there I will tell you that at last year's retreat he was our featured speaker and did an amazing job.

Don't forget that we are continuing to collect loose change and cash for his church in Belize, Hattieville Baptist Church. We collected again on Sunday and we are now up to $77.71! This money will go towards their Christmas Party outreach to the children of their local community. Our goal is to raise $200 by November 10. We have 8 days to go. We will collect tomorrow night at youth group, on Sunday during digging deeper class, and next week at youth group will be the final collection. Continue to collect your change around the house, your school, your parents cars, your little sibling's piggy banks, the streets of Superior, etc! Also continue to pray about something that you normally buy or pay for that you could sacrifice and give the money towards this cause.

We'll see you on Wednesday night!

-PT

Thank you

For those of you who didn't know, October is Pastor Appreciation month. Today at church the deacons and congregation showed their apprecation to Pastor Mark and to me during the worship service. Then, after the service Alex represented the youth group in presenting me with a plaque and card from all the students in our youth group. It was really awesome and I just wanted to take this moment to say thank you. Thank you to all you students who were a part of putting this together. Thank you to all you students who have shown your apprecation to me and my family. Thank you to each and every student who is a part of our awesome youth group. Thank you for being real, for being bold, and for being an encouragement to me. I am very thankful to be the youth pastor at Bayside and no doubt am thankful for such a great group of students.

-PT

Christmas in Belize

Hattieville Baptist Church

Thank you to everyone who has brought in change and cash for our friends in Belize. We are collecting any loose change and cash on Wednesdays and Sundays until November 10th with a goal of $200. This money will be donated to Hattieville Baptist Church in Belize for their annual Christmas party. At their party the church gives every child a meal, a Christmas gift, and a gift to give away to someone else for Christmas. They have had 350 children come to this event so it is a big deal (there are only 1500 people in the entire town!).

Last night we raised $27.78 more for the cause. This puts our total at $57.86 in the first two weeks of this challenge. Now we are halfway to our due date, so we really need to start chipping away at our goal. We have 2 weeks to go. All we need is $142.14! Let's do it! So remember to keep collecting loose change around the house - and maybe considering sacrificing something that you normally buy in the next 2 weeks and giving that money to the children in Belize instead.

All for God's glory...

-PT

Youth Leader Profile - Tami Nicholas

Today our youth leader profile is on Tami Nicholas. Tami has been a youth leader for a total of 8 years (this is her second stint). She serves as a senior high small group leader and is our residential "geyser." Tami is married to Steve and they have one daughter, Emma - who is an active member of AMP. Tami also sings with the worship team on Sundays and enjoys reading and scrap booking. Here are some of her favorites:

Food - Steak
Drink - Coke (from McDonald's)
Candy - Dove Chocolate
Color - Green
Movie - 50 First Dates
TV Show - Extreme Makeover Home Edition
Outdoor Activity - Golf
Sports Team - Green Bay Packers
Quote - "It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt."
Bible Verse - Proverbs 3:5-6

Be sure to thank Tami for her time and commitment to our youth ministry. We appreciate all that you do!

-PT

Reaching our goal

As you may know by now we are collecting extra change or cash to help raise money for a Christmas Party for the Hattieville Baptist Church in the country of Belize. We will be collecting every week until November 10 and our goal is $200. After our collection on Wednesday we are now up to $30.08. We have three weeks to go so it is time to step it up!

Remember to collect extra change around the house. And maybe even SACRIFICE something that you would buy on your own and donate that money to the cause. For example, instead of buying a pop you could give that 50 cents to the cause. Or instead of buying lunch (gasp - could you go without a meal? Many of the children we are helping do that every day!) you give that couple dollars to the cause. Or instead of buying the latest movie or CD or video game you want really really bad - you could give that money to the cause.

Let me know what you think and I'll see you Wednesday!

-PT

Lamentations 3:21-25

Yet this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope:

Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed!
HIS compassions NEVER fail!
They are new every morning.

Great is your faithfulness!
I will say to myself, "The Lord is my portion, therefore I will wait for him."

The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him. To the one who seeks him.

Spare Change

If you haven't heard by now we are partnering with Hattieville Baptist Church in Belize to help them with their annual Christmas party. Our youth group visited their church on a mission trip last year. They are a small church (100 people or so) in a small town (1300 people or so). Yet every year they have a Christmas party for the local children and usually attract 300 kids. So pretty much every child in town and around the area knows about it and comes.

For this event the church provides a meal, has games, music, activities, presents the gospel, gives every child a Christmas gift, and gives every child an additional gift to give away to someone else. This is an amazing ministry that their small church cannot do alone. That is where we come in.

Our goal is to raise $200 by November 10. $200 in the United States is actually double that amount in Belize, so really they will have $400 to spend on gifts for these children and other expenses for this great event. We have 4 weeks to raise the money. My challenge to you is to collect spare change and make donations. Every Wednesday and Sunday for the next 4 weeks we will be collecting with our goal of $200. We already have $11.11! So we just need $188.89 to make our goal. Can you be a part of this awesome opportunity?

-PT

AMP sleepover

We had our first ever AMP event last Friday night. It was a split sleep over. The girls got to go to a hot tub and then spent the night at Dave and Amy's house. While the guys got to have a night in the youth room. I heard that the girls had a lot of fun. They watched some girly movies, talked girls stuff, and ate ice cream! The guys did guys stuff. Action movie, video games, food, food, and more food. Oh and we even got in a quick game of football. Besides of course all the foosball and air hockey.

It was a lot of fun and we are excited to continue the ministry to AMP students. Thanks for a great night!

-PT

Getting to know you

This last Wednesday we had a very interesting discussion in the 11th and 12th grade small group time. We were on the subject of loving your neighbor and got to talking about "new" students in our youth group. We actually had 2 students in the small group who have started coming to our youth group on Sunday or Wednesday in the last month or so. It was interesting because both had different experiences in how they felt their first time at our youth group.

The discussion really got us thinking about how we react and interact when there are "new" people in our youth group environment. My challenge to EVERYONE who is a part of our youth group is to be aware of those around you and to be a welcoming person. If you see someone you don't know, ask them their name and get to know them a bit. Our youth group is NOT too big for you to know everyone's name. So you really should know everyone's name that is at each youth group event. I challenge you to get out of your comfort zone a bit and find out some more about others that are attending youth group - whether it is their first time or they are there every week. And that doesn't mean all your best friends that you always hang out with at youth group anyway.

Let me know what you think.

-PT

Carpet Ball Champion

Every summer in our youth group we have a carpet ball tournament. Thanks to Grant Leach (current junior high youth leader and former Bayside youth group student) we have a carpet ball table at our church. Grant built it back in 2005 for a project at school and had it delivered to our church. Starting in 2006 we have had an annual summer carpet ball tournament. Each year approximately 16 students have participated in this summer long tournament. Adam Johnson won the very first ever tournament in 2006 by defeating Ryan Paulson in the finals. The following year it was Jase Tunell who took the championship by defeating his cousin Alex in the final. In 2008 Alex won the championship by defeating his cousin Luke in the final. In 2009 history repeated itself as Alex Tunell once again staked his claim on the championship with a victory over Luke in the finals. Alex was the first 2 time champion and a back-to-back champion at that.

The 2010 tournament served some very interesting match ups as Alex looked to defend his title. It also marked a bit of history as Jessica Xiong was the first female participant to make it into the final four. However, she was defeated in overtime by Zach Brookmole. In the other semi-final Erick Tunell defeated Michael Johnson (younger brother of our first ever champion in 2006). So the championship was set, Zach Brookmole versus Erick Tunell. History was made as this matchup drew the largest crowd ever for a carpet ball game at Bayside. In dominating fashion, Erick defeated Zach 5-1 to become the new champion. It was the fourth straight year that a Tunell won the tournament. "I'd like to thank my family for their support. And the crowd was amazing. I could really feel the momentum shift when the crowd got behind me. Lastly, I want to say Hi Mom - Love you!"

It was an amazing journey through the tournament, congratulations Erick! In the first round he defeated Erica Mittlestadt 5-3. His biggest challenge came in the second round as he faced off against his brother and 2-time defending champion Alex. But Erick survived with a 5-4 win. He followed that up with two dominating performances to prove this was not a fluke. 5-1 defeats over Michael Johnson and Zach Brookmole. Erick has already placed his name in the brackets for next summer. "I'll be back to defend my title next year. So everyone better start practicing now, cause I'm gonna bring it!" Strong words from a strong champion.

-PT

Good Samaritan Reminder

For those of you who were at senior high youth group on Wednesday, this is a reminder. For anyone else - this is a challenge. Last Wednesday we read the parable of "The Good Samaritan." We learned that the Samaritan in the story was willing to help another person out and it was considered 'loving your neighbor.' However, we also learned that Samaritans were looked down upon by the culture back then - and for Jesus to use this people group as an example really said something.

We challenged our students to think about someone in your life who is looked down upon. Maybe it is someone that you dislike - or even hate. Maybe it is someone who is just plain annoying to you. Maybe it is a person who is challenged and others look at them differently because of it. Just identifiy someone that you know who you or others look down upon.

The challenge for this week is to show kindness to that person. Essentially, to love them as your neighbor. Give them something. Show them appreciation. Be kind to them. Go out of your way to 'love' them. We are going to be talking more about it this coming Wednesday. So you have a few days to take on the challenge. I'm praying for you.

-PT

Student Profile - Taylor Christner

Today's student profile is all about Taylor Christner. Taylor is a senior at Superior High School and a part of the Class of 2011. She is a member of the SHS Diving Team, student council, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Pledgemakers, and Spartan Singers.

What is your favorite part of youth group?

Praying and small group time.

What is your favorite memory from youth group?

Last year at the retreat, at one of the last sessions during worship everyone had their hands up and it was such an awesome picture. That was the best retreat ever!

What is the best part about being a senior?

Free time!

What are your plans after graduation?

Air Force ROTC and Northwestern College.

What is the coolest place you have ever been?

Hawaii for sure.

What is the one thing you wish you could do?

I wish I could fly.

Anything else you would like to share with our youth group?

Take every opportunity that you get to spend with your fellow youth group students. And make good choices!

Thanks Taylor!

Youth Group on Wednesday

I just wanted to let everyone know that we WILL be having youth group on Wednesday night of this week. I'm looking forward to seeing you all there. We will be talking about the Good Samaritan. And for senior high we will be having a bonfire! (smores included!)

See you on Wednesday!

-PT

The Good Samaritan

Most of you have probably heard about the good Samaritan. But what is it? Or who is it? Take a minute and think about it. You can make a comment on this post and let us know what or who the Good Samaritan is to you. I also want to challenge you all this week. Take 5 minutes, just 5 minutes and read the story of the Good Samaritan. It is found in Luke 10:25-37. If you get a chance you can read it and then make comments about it on this post. We are going to talk about the Good Samaritan at youth group for the next couple weeks and see what we can apply to your lives. Let me know what you think!

-PT

Campus Missionary Retreat

On Saturday and Sunday we had our campus missionary retreat. It was amazing! 16 students from Bayside were able to go. There were a total of 47 students there and it was a great time. Thank you to each student who went and took this thing seriously - because there was some great training and I believe that you all are now equipped to be missionaries in our schools! Here are some pictures for you to enjoy:

One Year Ago Today

Exactly one year ago today Sarah and I were blessed with the birth of our second son, Josiah Thomas Bush. I can't believe it has already been 1 year! Thanks to all of you who show your love to Josiah (and to Garrison) and have welcomed him into the family of Bayside. We are thankful to raise our kids in this greater family!

See You at the Pole

Hey everyone, tomorrow (Wednesday, September 22) is National See You at the Pole. All across the country students will be gathering in front of their schools to pray. Will you join them? Both Superior High School and Superior Middle School will have See You at the Pole at 7:45am, TOMORROW. Make every effort to be there and spend time praying for your school, teachers, classmates, this school year, and each other. Have a good day today. And tomorrow, I'll see you at the pole!

-PT

Campus Missionary Retreat

I just wanted to remind all the students who have made a commitment to be a campus missionary this year that this weekend is our retreat. This retreat is an opportunity for you to get training and be equipped. If you have any questions or uncertainties about being a campus missionary, this will be the perfect opportunity for you to get answers and to gain confidence in what you are doing this school year as you represent Christ.

Please let me know by WEDNESDAY at youth group whether or not you will be coming with us. The retreat begins Saturday morning at 9am and we will be back on Sunday morning between 11am and noon. If you need more information, please let me know ASAP.

We have 27 campus missionaries and I hope that as many of you as possible can make it. Hope to see everyone at youth group on Wednesday!

-PT

Why Parables?

On Wednesday night we began our new series and theme of "Who is this Jesus?" We started our journey looking at the reason of why Jesus used parables to teach. In Matthew 13:10-17 the disciples asked Jesus this exact question. But his answer is mysterious. As we searched deeper we found that the parables were used as a secret code, making the gospel all the more intriguing.

It was a great night and we were glad to see so many of you out there. We had a total of 65 in youth group! If you have further questions about the parables please email me or post them in the comment area on the blog. We will continue learning from and about the parables over the next several weeks and months. I'm looking forward to it.

Hope you all have a great weekend!

-PT

Sing 'til the whole world hears

As many of you know our youth group theme lately has been "Until the Whole World Hears." This is based off the famous song by Casting Crowns. If you have been to church or youth group in the last month or so, then I have certainly played it for you at one time or another. At home and in the car a lot of the time the song will come on and Sarah and I will sing along with it. The other day Sarah was driving and Garrison starting singing it on his own. It was really cool. Of course he doesn't sing it as well as when we had the camera on him, but check this out:



So as you hear me challenging you all to live your life 'until the whole world hears' about Christ - you can now be encouraged: it's so easy even a 2 year old can do it! (Or at least sing it.)

-PT

Feeling Sketchy

I decided to shave my face the other day. Actually I had planned this for quite awhile. If any of you have seen my driver's license you may know that I had a mustache in the picture. So when I went to renew my license on Friday I decided to do it again. Here is a picture I took just before going to get my new license:



Even though I am certain all of you will just love this look (my wife included), the new look was shaved off just hours after my visit to the DMV. The only way we can enjoy it now is this picture. That being said, I felt it was necessary to post it on the website. I hope you like it. Let me know what you think! Oh and also - just ask to see my new license because the picture on it just as good!

-PT

Youth Leader of the Month

Scott Paulson is our September Youth Leader of the Month. Scott has been a part of Bayside youth group for 5 years. He serves as a senior high small group leader and also leads worship on occasion. Scott is married to Beth Ann and they have 4 children - all of which are a part of Bayside youth ministries. Ryan is in senior high, Jaycie is in junior high, and "The Twins" - Amanda and Katie - are in AMP. Scott works for Super One Foods and is a deacon at our church.

Some of his favorites:
Food - Ribeye on the weber
Quote - "It is what it is"
Candy - Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
Snack Food - Popcorn
Color - Blue
Movie - Toy Story
Outdoor Activities - Fishing and Football
TV Show - Everybody Loves Raymond
Sports Team - Green Bay Packers
Hero - Pastor Len Carlson

Be sure to thank Scott for his years of service to our youth group. He is an important part of our church. Thanks Scott!

-PT

Student Profile - Alex Tunell

Today's student profile is all about Alex Tunell. Alex is a senior at Superior High School and a part of the Class of 2011. He is a member of the Spartan basketball and track teams as well as National Honor Society, Pledgemakers, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and SHS student mentors. Alex also leads the EDGE Bible Study at SHS.

What is your favorite part about youth group?

The quiz.

What is your favorite memory from youth group?

The secret adventure during winter retreat.

What is the best thing about being a senior?

Graduating next year.

What are your plans after graduation?

Going to college for business.

What is the coolest place you've ever been?

Disney World in Florida.

What is the one thing you wish you could do?

Snowboard.

Anything else you'd like to share with our youth group?

I love you guys.

Thanks Alex!

What a night!

I thought this picture above was one great photo from many taken during our Valleyfair road trip. The picture is of Julianna, Ashley, Becca, Hunter and Derek.

Tonight was a lot of fun as we had our fall youth group kick-off. This marked the debut of the AMP group for 5th and 6th graders as well as the separating of JR. and SR. High. There were 51 in attendance and we had a great night. This included some fun soccer, a bonfire with smores, a cool video, some small group time, and so much more.

Also, 19 students made the commitment to be a campus missionary at their school this year! I am pumped up and excited for what God is going to do through our students. I expect even more students to sign up, and if you didn't get a chance to we will have more opportunities in the next 3 weeks.

Thanks to everyone who was there tonight. It was a lot of fun!

-PT

Fall Kick-Off is Wednesday

School starts and we are kicking off our fall season this Wednesday night. It is going to be a great night. We have some cool things planned for you. An opportunity to commit to being a campus missionary this school year, and a bonfire with a possibility of smores.

This also marks the debut of our all new AMP ministry. AMP is a group for fifth and sixth grade students to come and hang out together and grow closer to God. Amp will be led by Dave and Amy Lemaster.

Also, JR HIGH and SR HIGH will begin meeting separately during the school year. This will give you an opportunity to build stronger relationships with those in your age group and have a more focused spiritual emphasis for your maturity level.

It is going to be a great school year and I can't wait to kick it off tomorrow night!

-PT

Mall of America and Valleyfair!

Today we leave for our road trip to the Twin Cities! It is going to be awesome! We leave after church around noon or so and head straight to the Mall of America. Then we are going to Elim Baptist Church for the night. In the morning we will head over to Valleyfair for the whole day and then drive back home Monday night.

There are 36 students from Bayside that will be attending! 16 are coming from North Bay Church. Plus a total of 11 leaders. That's a grand total of 63 people on the trip! WOW! That is by far the most we've had since I've been here! I can't wait for this trip.

Check back for pics, updates, and the kick-off of our fall season in youth group.

-PT

Thanks for a great night

I just wanted to say thank you to all our students and youth leaders for a great night at youth group. We had a lot of fun and I enjoyed having you all there. We played extreme human tic-tac-toe. We had some great games of carpet ball. We talked about campus missionaries. We had a huge bonfire. And we had smores!

Remember for the next week: every time someone mentions school starting back up to think and pray about being a campus missionary this school year. Starting next Wednesday you will have the opporunity to make the committment to be a campus missionary. Keep praying!

6 days left of summer. Enjoy every moment!

-PT

Candy Machines!

We are going to be getting two candy machines to go next to our pop machine outside of the youth room. I need to know what kind of candy you guys like and would buy from the machines. The options are Skittles, Reese's Pieces, M&Ms, Mike & Ikes, Hot Tamales, and Gumballs. Use the poll on the left side of the blog to vote for your favorite choice. We are hoping to have the candy machines soon! MORE SUGAR TO YA!

-PT

Rainbows with Ponies...an explanation is in order

Trust me this is not by my choice. As many of you know we had a time at the beginning of the summer where I was taking ideas for color schemes for our blog. I announced that all summer long we would have a different color scheme each week based on your ideas. I knew this day was coming, but here is your rainbows and ponies!

This will be the color scheme for this week. Those of you who wanted this better be sure to make comments and let it be known you are enjoying this, because you might be the only ones! Check back in the next few days for a new poll to vote on!

-PT

Corn Roast on Tuesday

Remember to come over to Bayside on Tuesday night for our 5th annual Corn Roast. This year the theme is "Tonight's the Night." We will have free roasted corn, hot dogs, games for kids, inflatables, a climbing wall, a antique car show, and Zach "Jungle Boy" Walters will be the featured guest speaker. Bring your family, bring your friends. The event will be from 6-9pm. This Tuesday, August 24!

See you there!

-PT

Indescribable

This Wednesday night we are going to have a great night with wonderful opportunities. First we are going to watch a really cool video called "Indescribable." It is a video about how God is so powerful and awesome and it shows some really amazing pictures of the universe and how obvious it is that there is a God! After that we are going to go out for a walk and pass out corn roast flyers to houses in the Billings Park area. Then we will come back for a bonfire at the church. If you beg loud enough, Dani might bring some smores again!

Hope to see you on Wednesday!

-PT

Verse of the Week

Romans 12:2 - "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will."

So what does this verse mean for you? How can you be transformed? How does that affect you in the different areas of your life? Family? School? Church? Friends? As the new school year approaches, how are you going to be different?

-PT

Smores this Wednesday

As many of you know we have been having bonfires after youth group for the last few weeks. We will continue to do so for the rest of the summer. With that in mind it has taken some time for you guys to get used to the idea, so to encourage you to come out this Wednesday and STAY for the bonfire one of the youth leaders is planning on bringing some SMORES! So plan on coming to youth group this Wednesday, stay after for the bonfire, and enjoy some SMORES! I hope to see you on Wednesday!

-PT

Picnic on Sunday

Here's a scary picture for you. Don't mess with these guys. This is Grant, Tyler, and Philip at the church picnic last year. So watch out for them this year! Remember it's this Sunday afternoon at Pattison Park. Right after church we will head over there for hot dogs and hamburgers on the grill. There will be games, swimming, and all sorts of fun. And we are having a baptism at the lake. Come out for a great time. We look forward to seeing you there!

-PT

I hate the Packers...

But I actually like how this color scheme looks right now. Enjoy it for this week only Packers fans. Also wanted to remind everyone that this coming Sunday is our annual church picnic. On Sunday, August 8, right after church we are heading out to Pattison Park for the church picnic. This will include hot dogs and hamburgers as well as a potluck of side dishes and desserts. We also will have games and swimming. AND we are going to have a baptism service, so if you are interested in being baptized let me know.

Also remember that we have youth group on Wednesday and a bonfire afterward! See you then!

-PT

Psalm 1

The other day I decided to start reading through the book of Psalms. I started in the first chapter and have enjoyed reading through this wonderful book of the Bible. As I read through each verse I found that a lot of it can be applied and worked into the lives of students today. Here is Psalm 1:

"Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a treeplanted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous; for the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish."

Where are you walking? Where are you standing? Where is your delight? What do you think about day and night? Some very telling questions that can say a lot about where you are at in your life right now and where you are at in your walk with God. I hope that this Psalm will encourage you to walk, stand, delight, and meditate with God. Let me know what you think.

-PT

Great Night

What a great night at youth group! We had a solid turnout and a fun time. A nice game of football, great weather, and even some carpet ball games. We also closed the night out with a 'small' bonfire! Next week it will be normal size, we promise.

The main focus of the night was the talk about campus missionaries. We are challenging all of Bayside youth group students to make a one year commitment to be a campus missionary at their school this year. The key verse of the night was Romans 8:28-31. Take a moment and read that verse.

What does that verse say to you and how might that encourage you to become a campus missionary? Post a comment with your thoughts.

And thanks for a great night at youth group.

-PT

Trick Colors

Just for a few hours we are changing the colors to white on white as suggested by many of you. Hope you like it.

The reason I will change it back quickly is because other people may check the blog and have no clue we are changing the colors all the time.

See you all at youth group!

-PT

ROAD TRIP!

It is time to start preparing for our youth group summer road trip. This year we are heading down to the Twin Cities to see the Mall of America and Valley Fair! The trip will be August 29-30, which is the last Sunday/Monday before school starts back up. All youth group students in 7th-12th grade are invited to come along. We will meet at Bayside at noon on Sunday, August 29th. We'll drive down to the Mall and spend the day there, then drive to a church and spend the night there. On Monday we will get up and go to Valley Fair for the day. We plan to return to Bayside at 9:30pm on Monday night, August 30.

The cost is $60 which includes the travel expenses, breakfast and lunch on Monday, and your ticket to Valley Fair. Students will need to bring their own money for dinner at the Mall and dinner at Valley Fair as well as any spending money. Also, you should know that we will be traveling via a motor coach bus - much more luxurious than our old funky colored buses! We will have individual seats as well as televisions to watch movies on the road!

All students who attend must have a 2010 permission slip on file at the church. You can start signing up NOW! Space is limited because we have to fill the motor coach and we will be taking this trip with North Bay Church youth group as well. Both of our churches have a select number of seats available on the bus - so the sooner you sign up the safer you are to guarantee your spot! You can sign up on Sundays at church or on Wednesdays at youth group. If you have any questions just let me know.

So what are you most looking forward to about this trip? ME? I can't wait to get back on the EXTREME SWING!

The top picture is Alex Tunell, Luke Tunell, and Pastor Tom. The bottom picture is actually Grant, Philip, and Tyler - you just have to zoom in to see them!

-PT

Wood Lake Bible Camp

Well several of our senior high students are at Wood Lake this week for camp. A few weeks ago many of you junior highers were down there. Here is a picture I snagged off of facebook of some of the girls:


There are actually six girls in this picture from our youth group. Shelby Fulkerson is the back right, Erica Mittlestadt is the very right, Leanna Carey is up front, then Megan Tunell , Jaycie Paulson, and Becca Tunell are in the middle. Looks like they had lots of fun. If you have any more pictures, share them with me and I can put them on our picture page.

-PT

July Youth Leader of the Month

Annie Drexler is our youth leader of the month for July. Annie has been a part of Bayside youth group for several years. She serves as a junior high small group leader and every once in a while will make super good treats to bring to youth group! Annie is an elementary school teacher at Cloquet Christian Academy and is currently pursuing her master's degree. Her favorite part of being a youth leader is the free car washes!

Some of her favorites:
Food - Chicken Enchiladas
Cereal - Raisin Bran
Candy - Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
Snack Food - GORP
Color - Green
Movie - Serendipity
TV Show - NCIS
Outdoor Activity - Roller Blading
Sports Team - Green Bay Packers
Bible Verse - Philippians 4:13

Be sure to thank Annie for all she does for our youth group. We appreciate your years of service and your heart for youth ministry!

-PT

Welcome Back

Well several of our junior high students spent the last week at Wood Lake Bible Camp. From what I hear it was a great week. If you were at camp share a comment about your favorite memory from this year. If you didn't go you can still share a comment about any camp memory that you have enjoyed.

Also, many of you are heading to the Sonshine Music Festival this week. Have fun! We'll miss you, take some pics and let us know how it goes.

Lastly, I posted a picture below from a night a youth group a few months back. Just wanted to get another picture on there. See you all on Wednesday night, I hope!

-PT

GO Vikings!

I just wanted to announce that Brett Favre will be returning to the Minnesota Vikings this coming season for one last shot at a Super Bowl. In light of this wonderful news I have changed our blog to the Vikings colors. (And because a few of you suggested it.) So don't get all mad, Packers Fans, there will be a week for Packers colors as well. (Only because 1 of you suggested it - GRANT!) I hope you all are enjoying your summer. Youth group has been fun and we will continue to meet every Wednesday night throughout the summer. Have a great day!

-PT

Check out this video

I want to thank everyone who was involved with making a video for me when the church celebrated my graduation from seminary. There were many students and youth leaders involved in making this happen, and it was a really cool video. I wanted to post it on here so that you guys can see yourselves on the video again. So click the link below and it will take you to the video page.

http://vimeo.com/12809978

Thanks again, I love you guys!

-PT

Summer?

I still haven't heard back from all you guys. What have you been up to this summer? Obviously not checking the youth group blog. Well make sure to check in at youth group, we meet every Wednesday at 6:30pm. Hope to see you there tomorrow night.

-PT

Youth Group tonight!

Don't forget it's Wednesday today and we have youth group! Remember we will continue to meet for youth group every Wednesday throughout the summer. So come on by and enjoy a night with all your friends from Bayside. We hope to see you there!

New colors and a new week

Here is another of your suggested blog colors: green and pink? It's going to have to grow on me. So now that you have had a couple weeks to digest the fact that summer has started, and now that summer has "technically" started, what are you all up to this summer? Drop a quick comment and let me know what you are doing. Sleeping? Video games? Chores? Working? Camp? Vacations? Reading your Bible? Surfing the web? Counting the days until school starts back up? Just let me know. Hope you all are having fun. Don't look now, but school is only 10 weeks away. Technically only 72 days until the first day of school...I'm just saying.

-PT

Feeling Yellow?

So we finally got rid of the pink! And here's yellow! Just a reminder that we will be changing the blog colors every week for the summer. Let me know what you think. Well today is the first official day of summer break from school. What are you all up to?

Last Friday we had a great night for Girls and Guys Night Out. I didn't take any pictures, but if anyone did just email them to me and I will post them on the blog. Hope you all had fun.

And I hope to see you on Wednesday night for youth group! Have a great week!

-PT

Girls/Guys Night Out

Don't forget that FRIDAY is Girls and Guys Night Out at youth group. We are meeting at Bayside at 6pm. The girls and the guys will go out separately to do their own thing. Then we will meet back at Bayside for a bonfire until about midnight. Your friends are welcome to join us, but everyone who attends must have a permission slip on file. There is no cost. See you on Friday at 6pm!

-PT

Pink?

Hey this was one of the suggestions. So enjoy it for the week. Or despise it for a week. Either way it's here to stay...for a week. I look forward to seeing everyone at youth group tomorrow night. And don't forget this Friday is Girls and Guys Night Out. We will meet at church at 6pm. Girls and Guys will go out separately to do some fun stuff - then we will meet back at church for a bonfire. Hope to see you there.

-PT

New Colors

Okay so about a week or two ago I changed the color scheme to white and asked for suggestions on what color scheme you wanted. So this is what we are going to do: Every week this summer the blog will be a different color scheme. At the end of the summer we will decide which one we like the best. So this first one is black with neon blue. This is as neon as it will let me be blue. Hope you enjoy. Let me know what you think!

-PT

Bigger and Better Pictures

Here are the results from Bigger and Better:

Our lovely and adventurous participants!

4th Place - A set of Golf Clubs

3rd Place - Couch and Chair

2nd Place - The old door (with hand carved designs)

Winners - Grill and Cash!

Everyone had a fun time! I look forward to our next big event, the Girls and Guys Night out on June 11!

-PT