FW - Students

All Church Conference - This Sunday, August 28th

noreply@blogger.com (Chad) — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 20:11:00 +0000

Youth & Parents,

As most of you are probably aware, there has been much discussion over the past year regarding the future of the relationship between Faith-Westwood and The Water's Edge. This Sunday, August 28, following the 10:30am services of worship, we will hold an All-Church Conference. This conference will take place simultaneously, at both the Water's Edge and Faith-Westwood's main campuses, via web video technology. The purpose of the conference will be to vote on the proposal listed below.

"The Water's Edge will charter as a new United Methodist congregation on January 1, 2012. The two campuses will continue to operate as one church under one budget until and ending on December 31, 2011."

This proposal is unanimously supported by our Church Council, Staff Parish Relations Committee, Pastors and our Staff but it still needs the vote and approval of our congregation. Anyone who is a "member" at Faith-Westwood/The Water's Edge is eligible and strongly encouraged to be present and vote this Sunday. A member is anyone who has participated in a membership class at Faith-Westwood or The Water's Edge, or who has completed the confirmation curriculum and participated in confirmation services to become a member of our church. If you are not sure of your current membership status, you can contact Edna Fleming at the church office 402.895.3394 x1004.

As students and parents involved with the youth ministry (or in college), I would like to let you all know that going forward and through the end of next summer (2012), the youth ministry will continue to operate as a single youth ministry. While there may be some changes over the next 12 months (addition of staff, parent & volunteer meetings, etc) please know, we are making every effort to maintain the unity of our student ministry through the end of the summer 2012.

This means all students who currently attend the Faith-Westwood or The Water's Edge are all still part of IGNITE (middle school) or CHI ALPHA (senior high) and are invited and encouraged to participate in all Faith-Westwood/The Water's Edge student ministry activities including weekly programs, camps, retreats, and summer 2012 mission trips.

If you have any questions as to how this vote and decision might affect you or your family or your involvement with Faith-Westwood/The Water's Edge, I encourage you to please send them as an email to chad.schuchmann@faithwestwood.com or give me a call at one of the numbers below.

I hope to see you this Sunday morning!

Chad Schuchmann

Director of Student Ministries

Faith-Westwood/The Water's Edge

402.895.3394 x1005 / office

402.990.4851 / cell

noreply@blogger.com (Chad) — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:29:00 +0000

The world tells us that we can be anything we want to be! That we can do anything we want to do. But sometimes, we are reminded that God has awesome plans for us. It leaves us with questions that need answers.

How does God see us?
Who does he want us to become?
What does he hope to make us into?

The Bible is full of word-pictures that gives us a glimpse of how God sees us…how he’s MADE us. It’s our job to figure out how to see ourselves the same way God does. Come together with middle school youth from around the area for an unforgettable weekend where we’ll discover the answers to those questions and so much more…Click here to register for the event.

Consider Yourself, Then Consider Christ

noreply@blogger.com (Chad) — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 21:26:00 +0000

My Pastor Sent These Thoughts To Our Staff Today About The Season Of Lent. They Are Thoughts From Frederick Buechner (a Presbyterian Pastor and Author) I Hope They Help You “Consider Yourself Then Consider Christ.”

In many cultures there is an ancient custom of giving a tenth of the year's income to some holy use. For Christians, to observe the forty days of Lent is to do the same thing with roughly a tenth of each year's days. After being baptized by John in the river Jordan, Jesus went off alone in the wilderness where he spent forty days asking himself the question what it meant to be Jesus. During Lent, Christians are supposed to ask one way or another what it means to be themselves.

If you had to bet everything you have on whether there is a God or whether there isn't, which side would you get your money and why?

When you look at your face in the mirror, what do you see in it that you most like and what do you see in it that you most deplore?

If you had only one last message to leave to the handful of people who are most important to you, what would it be in twenty-five seconds or less?

Of all the things you have done in life, which is the one you would most like to undo? Which is the one that makes you happiest to remember?

Is there any person in the world, or any cause, that, if circumstances called for it, you would be willing to die for?

If this were the last day of your life, what would you do with it?

To hear yourself try to answer questions like these is to begin to hear something not only of who you are but of both what you are becoming and what you are failing to become. It can be a pretty depressing business all in all, but if sackcloth and ashes are the start of it, something like Easter may be at the end.

Frederick Buechner, Whistling in the Dark - An ABC Theologized [New York: Harper and Row] 1973, pp. 74-75

Kairos or Chronos?

noreply@blogger.com (Chad) — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 20:11:00 +0000

This past week, I was given a going away present from the church that I worked at before coming to Faith-Westwood. It was a clock, which is kind of funny being that I received it almost a year-and-a-half after moving here to Omaha. On the clock there is an inscription that reads, "Chad Schuchmann, Kairos or Chronos, Good Shepherd, 2003-2007." As I read the inscription, I started thinking about how we look at, understand and use time.

In the Bible, there are two Greek words used in the New Testament to describe time. The first is Chronos, this word gives time in relationship to calendars, seasons, dates and clocks. In today’s world, this term actually fit’s the majority of us. We live our lives according to Chronos time. We are ruled by appointments, alarm clocks, schedules, meetings, date books, Blackberrys and iPhones; every one of them telling us where we need to be and when we need to be there.

I’ve spent a lot of time trying to operate according to a schedule, a calendar, and a datebook. I’ve set goals for my life of when I want to have accomplished certain things, when I wanted to be married, to have kids, to buy a house. I’ve set goals for ministry regarding dates and times for milestones to be hit. I’ve tried to keep lunch appointments and have meetings that only last an hour.

The one thing that I have discovered is that this idea of living according to Chronos time, of setting dates and appointments, of setting the “alarm clock of my life” just doesn’t quite cut it when it comes to walking in a relationship with God.

In Jesus’ day, there was actually very little use for the concept of Chronos. People operated with regard to relationships events rather than pay attention to the clock. This concept of time is known as Kairos, it’s the “fullness of time.” It is the understanding that time happens within the realm of relationships, and is interpreted as “the appointed time in the purpose of God.” The Greek understanding of Kairos is that it is an undetermined period of time in which something special happens. It never says what the something special is. That depends on the person using the word. But no matter what, Kairos, is more about time being qualitative, not quantitative.

As you look forward to 2009, my prayer is that we could all look to the possibility that God might have a different timing than we do for ourselves. That we could learn to trust that in the fullness of His time, Kairos, that His will, will be done.

January Friday Night IGNITE Activity Set

noreply@blogger.com (Chad) — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 06:51:00 +0000

We will be heading to Tranquility Ice rink to do some skating. After, we will head to Cici's for their pizza buffet. Cost is $10.00 and includes skating and food. Sign up at the registration link on the left.

CHI ALPHA Christmas Party

noreply@blogger.com (Chad) — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 17:48:00 +0000

Don't forget that this Sunday is the CHI ALPHA Christmas Party. The party will begin at 6:15pm and last until 8:30pm. Please click on the links to the left to learn more about it and sign up to attend! We'll see you Sunday Night!

IGNITE Christmas Party!

noreply@blogger.com (Chad) — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 16:43:00 +0000

Don't forget that this Friday, December 5th is the IGNITE Christmas party. Click on the registration and calendar links on the left to learn more about them and sign-up to attend. The party is open to anyone currently in grades 6-8 so bring your friends!!!

Y.W.A.M.!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Chad) — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 19:22:00 +0000

Last night was an incredible night at CHI ALPHA. We were blessed to have John & Rachel, Jed & Natalie, Jenny and Tinita share with us about their ministry and experiences in mission through Youth With A Mission (Y.W.A.M.). I am constantly amazed at the sacrifices that individuals are willing to make as God works in their lives and show's them His will. I was encouraged by their love for God, their desire to follow in Jesus' footsteps and to commit their trust to him. It is not often that high school students have the opportunity to hear from people so close to their own age who are so confident in their faith in God. As the Y.W.A.M. team shared their stories, I could see the interest and curiosity that was growing among those in attendance. Personally, I was reminded that we are all called to serve God in mission, regardless of the career path our lives take. But still, I could not help but wonder what kind of a difference it would make if just one student each year from Faith-Westwood would answer a call by God to a life in mission. Wow! Thanks Y.W.A.M. for being so great, for sharing your lives with our youth and for demonstrating what a life (or six) lived for Christ can do!

Urban Plunge A Great Success

noreply@blogger.com (Chad) — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 16:00:00 +0000

This past week 13 students participated in a Mission Trip right here in Omaha by taking an "URBAN PLUNGE" with Christ for the City International. During the week, we stayed at Turning Point, a youth ministry center at 45th and Bedford. We were able to visit a number of different local ministry organizations to learn more about what they do, why they do it and how they function. At many of the visits, our students were also able to help and make a difference. Here's a quick overview of what we did:

Monday

Mission For all Nations - Organized food pantry and helped do clean up
Angels on Wheels - Made Root Beer Floats and prayed with residents at the Sienna Francis House
First Baptist Church - Went on a prayer walk along Park Avenue

Tuesday

Open Door Mission - Toured the Facility, ate lunch with residents, organized food pantry, inventoried school supplies for backpack drive
Dessert Ministries - Did Karaoke and made friends with residents at a nursing home
Bridge Church - Attended a Multicultural Worship Service and Student Bible Study

Wednesday

Release Ministries - Attended presentation about Ministry to teens who are in jail and toured the Douglas County Youth Correctional Center
Abide Ministries - Learned about Ministry in Urban Omaha, helped by doing yardwork and clean up at Abide and some of their new properties.
Hope Center - Played soccer and basketball with children. Helped children with art projects. Made fools of ourselves trying to learn how to unicycle with kids!

Thursday

Did some deep cleaning at Turning Point.
Returned to Mission For All Nations to assist with packing food for the Food Pantry, served area residents and clients by helping to provide them with food, prayer and carrying the food to their vehicles.
Returned Home.

If you would like to know more about what we did, find one of our students and ask about their summer mission trip to OMAHA!

Fall Kick Off Lock-Ins Begin This Weekend

noreply@blogger.com (Chad) — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 15:55:00 +0000

Join us for our fall Kick-Offs and Lock-Ins and Paintball

Middle School Fall Kick Off - THIS FRIDAY NIGHT, August 8th @ 7pm.

Paintball - THIS SATURDAY MORNING, August 9th @ 9am

Senior High Fall Kick Off - NEXT SATURDAY NIGHT, August 16th @ 7pm

Go to the Registration Page now and get signed up!!!!!

Mission Trip Wrap Up

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 18:21:00 +0000

Well, this week is certainly eye-opening. We have had some great experiences and the students continue to amaze as they are beginning to finish up their projects and are more than willing to go help out at another site. By the way, not sure if we mentioned it the other day but there are about 350 students and adults here and we are working at about 35 or 40 different sites.

A couple of highlights to share with you...

A news crew from the local NBC affiliate in Columbus, Channel 4, came down and was shown a few different sites. At one site they interviewed the students and our very own Marin Maycock made the evening and late news. We'll make sure we bring a copy of it back with us to show in worship next week. If you can't wait that long, you can look around for their video at www.nbc4i.com. No promises, we've been having trouble finding it.

Another big story came out of a group that has been helping an elderly woman by painting her barn. On Tuesday she was so impressed with the work that the crew assigned to her had been doing that she said she might have to go down to the barn to see it herself. The group came to learn that she had not been down to the barn since her husband had passed away.........35 years ago. When they showed up on Wednesday, she told the group she had gone down there to see it.

These are the kinds of things that happen when students from all areas of the country come together to simply serve out of their ability, great or small. God shows up, he's been here preparing this place for us to arrive, and now that we are here, he is using the willing to make a difference in this community. And the difference is enough that local newspapers and television stations are coming to find out about it. The difference is big enough that an old woman visited her barn for the first time in 35 years. The difference is big enough that Christ is being proclaimed as we "LOVE OUT LOUD" for Jesus Christ!

Mission Trip Update

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 15:49:00 +0000

It's day 2 1/2 of the Student Ministry Mission trip to Baltimore, OH. So far the trip has been quite eventful and the students are already having a great time meeting new friends and trying having new experiences.

A Few of the Highlights so far...
1. Many shared in the experience of helping to conquer two Crave Cases of burgers from White Castle (about 10 students helped down 60 total burgers - better known as sliders). Coming in with the largest take was Evan Welsh who managed to take in 20.
2. We arrived to camp on Sunday afternoon with the vans belting out "Good Morning Baltimore" from the Hairspray Soundtrack. Gaileen Krebs, Sharon Jensen and Roger Coffey were already here with smiling faces to greet us.
3. After a stellar performance in last night's camp drama, Doug Giffin has decided to embark on an acting career following the trip. We're sure he can make it great in Hollywood!
4. Our theme for this trip is "Love out Loud." Monday's focus was that Love Risks and our students learned and began to experience what it means to add a little risk into their lives as Christians in order to both grow in their faith and make a difference in the lives of those they encounter.
5. We've begun to hear the "God Sightings" (Stories of how God has showed up during out days) and it is already very apparent that God is moving and acting on our worksites. The biggest highlight is that the residents who live at our worksites are probably more excited, appreciative and willing to participate with our crews than they ever have been before and morale and excitement is high!

Please continue to be in prayer for us. We know we are on your mind and are daily encouraged by the knowledge that your prayers are there to support us.

New Paint in the Student Center

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 19:22:00 +0000

On Monday and Tuesday, middle school students involved in the Impact program joined up with Richard Harrison and our Chad Schuchmann, our Student Ministry Director, to complete the painting of the youth room. The new colors really have helped to contribute to a coffeehouse gathering place feel for the room and now compliment the furniture. In all, approximately 70 hours of work went into covering nearly 1600 square feet of wall space with two coats of paint. The students that participated in the painting were able to use their donated time to earn scholarship money towards their participation in a short-term, local mission trip this summer with Urban Plunge Omaha that will take place July 27-31.

New Format

noreply@blogger.com (cody) — Thu, 29 May 2008 20:17:00 +0000

Faithwestwood.com is taking on a new format. Watch this page for updates, or better yet, subscribe to these updates by clicking the link at the bottom of this post. This page will soon be filled with stories and pictures of current happenings, but for information on this ministry area, click 'ministries' under the 'about us' heading.