Monthly Youth Challenge

Date: Second Sunday of each month.  (The date may be adjusted if necessary.)

Time: 3:30 pm  (The time may be adjusted, if necessary.)

Place: The location will change monthly.  Each participating congregation will host.  If for some reason a participating congregation is not able to participate in hosting, that is not a problem.

Purpose:

  1. For the youth to be challenged each month with an individual activity in order to help prepare them for Christian service.

Format:

  1. Think – Pray – Do
    • Think about the challenge, study certain scriptures associated with the challenge.
    • Pray about the success of the challenge (this is designed to help our youth understand the value of prayer).
    • Do the challenge.

Challenges: These are individual challenges that cannot be done as a group.

  1. Set up a Bible study.
  2. Defend against a false doctrine.  (Study to be able to do so.)
  3. Read and explain a passage.
  4. Memorization of certain verses or passages.
    • Number and types of challenges will increase (ideas for challenges will be considered from anyone wanting to make a suggestion).

Individual Challenge:

  1. Each challenger will be responsible for fulfilling each month’s challenge.
  2. For example, if the challenge is a study of a passage and then an explanation given, they will not be permitted to use outside information such as commentaries or to ask a parent or anyone else what the passage means.
  3. The idea is for them to try to come to an understanding of the passage on their own – the passage will be discussed at that month’s meeting.
  4. The discussion may take the form of answering a position with the information gained in the assigned passage.
  5. The challenger is not limited to the specific passage but can use any passage of the Bible to help them in coming to an understanding of its meaning. Only outside helps are not permitted.

Team Challenge:

  1. Teams will be chosen when the challengers arrive at the meeting.
  2. The purpose is for each congregation’s youth to be on teams with youth from other congregations.
  3. There will not be a Cordova team, Forest Hill team, or any other; but teams made up of members of Cordova, Forest Hill, and any other congregations that participate.
  4. The team challenge will have something to do with the individual challenge each month.
  5. The challengers will not know exactly what the team challenge is until the monthly meeting, but it will always have something to do with the monthly challenge.
  6. Using the previous example of the individual challenge, the teams would have to explain the meaning of a certain passage to the proctor that is assigned to their team (most likely by giving answers that can be found in the assigned passage).
  7. The winning team will remain the same for the following month, while the others will be shuffled.
  8. Each team will be graded by a proctor and points allocated.
    • In case of a tie, 3 random questions (chosen by the challenge leaders of each congregation) will be asked.  (The tiebreaker questions may or may not have anything to do with the monthly challenge.)
    • If a tie remains after the 3 tiebreakers, it will stand.

Age Groups:

  1. 1st – high school.
  2. The requirements may be modified for younger challengers.
  3. The younger challengers may participate in the challenge with a parent or other adult.
  4. The younger challengers will participate with and be on the teams with the older challengers.

Monthly Format:

  1. A prayer, followed by 20 minutes of congregational singing.
  2. 30 minutes devoted to the team competition.
  3. 10 minutes allocated to recognize the individual challenge efforts.
  4. Finishing with a period of fellowship and refreshments (provided by host congregation).
  5. An hour will be allocated for each monthly meeting, but if more is needed that will be fine.

Monthly Youth Challenge Leaders:

  1. Cordova: Rick Owens, overseen by the elders at Cordova
  2. Forest Hill: Matt Jones, overseen by the elders at Forest Hill
    • Invitation to participate is open to any and all faithful congregations of the Lord’s church.

June Youth Challenge: Sunday, June 30, 3:30 pm at Cordova

See link for details of the June Challenge on, “Is Dancing Sinful?”  Monthly Youth Challenge_June 2013

The Monthly Youth Challenge (MYC) is designed to equip our youth for better S E R V I C E to the Lord and to give them the opportunity to spend time with other Christians.  Each month, they are given an individual challenge and a team challenge to complete.  Various congregations from the area come together to make this much-needed work a great success.  If you think this is something that could benefit your children, call or come by and find out more about it! – Rick, member and minister