O come, O come, Emmanuel
And ransom captive Israel
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free
Thine own from Satan’s tyranny
From depths of Hell Thy people save
And give them victory o’er the grave
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Day-Spring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night
And death’s dark shadows put to flight.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, O come, Thou Lord of might,
Who to Thy tribes, on Sinai’s height,
In ancient times did’st give the Law,
In cloud, and majesty and awe.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.
good, so very good!
Here’s my article in our church’s latest newsletter. It was a fun chance to articulate how God has impacted my life since starting the job a few months ago.
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Good Times
Campfires, praise songs, early morning quiet times, hanging upside down in a giant amusement park ride…these are some of the things that come to mind when I reflect on the past couple months of my life. I feel lucky to have shared such great moments lately with the youth and youth leaders of EPPC. The Sr. High Fall retreat was an amazing experience. God showed up in a game of ultimate frisbee in the mud. And he was present as we sang our souls to him in worship. And the Jr. High day at The Park at MOA allowed us to enjoy the community God has given us. While sharing cotton candy and twirling around, four to a car on a roller coaster, God was smiling. Why? Because these are good times.
When God created the heavens and the earth, he saw all that he had made, and it was very good. The pinnacle of what God created was us and our community together. And God is still creating community. Whenever we gather together, pray for one another, or live alongside one another, that’s God creating…and it is good.
Parent’s, don’t worry if in response to your questions about how youth group is going, all you’ve received is a play-by-play of the sweet game they played or how much stuff fell out of their pockets while on the Mighty Ax ride. These were good times. But they only scratch the surface of the good that God is creating in the community here. Things like great small group discussions and Bible study are also happening. And all of it is adding up to real life change in our students.
“God looked over everything that he had made; it was good, so very good!” Genesis 1:31, The Message
Darrin Geier, Director of Youth Ministries
