Friday - Leaders Profile

1). Song of the Day: Gateway Next - ♫ Look Up ♫

2). Leader Profile - Kevin Jacobs

POSITION: Youth Pastor at Omaha Spirit Life, NE Fine Arts Coordinator

FAMILY: Married to Beth with three children

HISTORY: Grew up in Omaha, Graduate of North Central in Minn, MN

HOBBIES: Christian Music, Huskers Football, Milford's Dinosaur

3). Ministry of the Day: BGMC Kids - Website chocked for all games and fun activities to teach kids about missions and encourage them to give

4). Link of the Day: America's Best Adventures - Check out this photo gallery of the best hiking adventures to take in the USA.

5). Quote of the Day: 'Young adults are digital natives immersed in a glossy pop culture that prefers speed over depth, sex over wholeness, and opinion over truth.' - Dave Kinnaman, You Lost Me

6). Miscellaneous: Today is National Middle Name Pride Day. It is also the birthday of John Browne, English born Quaker from 1627. Finally, it is the anniversary of the day that the Space Shuttle made its' final landing after 39 flights, in 2011.

Thursday - Testimonies

1). Song of the Day: Flame - ♫ Let Go ♫

2). Blog Entry: Testimonies

- A young boy named Lathan was at church for the very first time. A guest missionary named Denny was there speaking. The boy was sitting in the front row, with a great view. Suddenly, the missionary moved forward, forgetting about the steps leading up to the stage, and fell down on his face right in front of the boy. He got up, unharmed, and said to the boy 'well, that's what happens when you get old'. The children's pastor remarked that she felt God wanted it to happen so he would never forget the first time he went to church.

- A former Jr. High student of mine from being a youth pastor in Bellevue wrote to me on Facebook. He is stationed at Fort Benning in Georgia and he's recently had 15 of his friends make a commitment to Christ. It all started when one of his friends saw his Fire Bible on his desk. They all became interested and a small Christian community was born!

3). Ministry of the Day: Student Edition Fire Bible - Here is where you can order your own Fire Bible for students, like the one mentioned in the testimony above.

4). Link of the Day: SolarBeat - See a musical rendition explaining the rotation of the planets around the sun.

5). Quote of the Day: 'To know just what has do be done, then to do it, comprises the whole philosophy of practical life.' - Sir William Osier

6). Miscellaneous: Today is National Proof Reading Day. It is also the birthday of Mario Hatcher (pastor in Bellevue, NE), a distinction he shares with Dennis Leitner (pastor in North Platte, NE) and the recently departed Micky Dolenz, of the band the Monkees, from 1945. Finally, it is the anniversary of the day that Ghana joined the United Nations in 1957.

Brian Korell, leading the way at the STL Rally in North Platte, December, 2011

Wednesday - Leaders Corner

1). Song of the Day: Group 1 Crew - ♫ Transcend ♫

2). Blog Entry: Leaders Corner - Messages

One of the most important aspects of our ministries are the MESSAGES; the moments where people speak to the group. Our superintendent in NE, Pastor Dwight, often says that pastors can start on a path toward success by doing hospital visitations and preaching good messages. Much time in our Bible colleges is devoted to teaching students how to prepare and deliver quality sermons. Unfortunately, this is an area that is often least attended to by our leaders today.

We must start with planning our preparation time. It's wise to have certain pockets of time assigned weekly to your preparation and planning for speaking. Find a place where it's easy for you to focus and eliminate distractions. Make it a point to include a file system of notes and illustrations, good commentaries, worship, and prayer in the process.

You may want to consider speaking in series, which help with deciding a weekly topic. I used to speak in 12 different series throughout the year, once a month. You can figure that you would personally speak 3 of the 4 times a month, with a guest speaker or special event for the other weekly meeting.

A few other ideas: 1) Sharpen your speaking skills by attending public speaking seminars in your city or online, 2) Visit a partner ministry once or twice a year to gain new ideas from their style, 3) Videotape yourself and go back to it to see how you look and sound from the seats, 4) Empower those with a speaking gift in your ministry to partner with you, and 5) Use several visual illustrations, since it is now considered that well over half of our population learn best from visual stimulation.

3). Ministry of the Day: TheFiftyTwo.com - A website packed full of 4 years of free Youth Ministry materials (Volume III is free, contact Toby to get your free code in Nebraska)

4). Link of the Day: TED - Some great examples of powerful public speaking in a variety of different topics and settings

5). Quote of the Day: 'Image trumps information' - James Geary, I is an Other

6). Miscellaneous: Today is National Cereal Day, and our final NE STL rally in Grand Island at Northridge Church. It is also the birthday of Mary Beth Haase (Children's Pastors Wife in Lincoln, NE), a distinction she shares with American Televangelist Tammy Faye Bakker, from 1942. Finally, it is the anniversary of the day that Alexander Graham Bell patented the telephone in 1876.

Speaking at the Norfolk STL Rally, November 30th, 2011

Tuesday - Bible Trivia

1). Song of the Day: Steve Cooper - ♫ Bigger ♫

2). Blog Entry: Bible Trivia

- Unfortunately, we don't have a correct comment from last weeks trivia, so the question will carryover to this week with a double payout - $10. Who was the first person to die in the Bible?

3). Ministry of the Day: Bible Quiz - Check out this program that focuses on teaching students the Word of God.

4). Link of the Day: Bedtime Help - a useful program designed to aid you in getting better rest by helping you go to bed at a reasonable time.

5). Quote of the Day: 'Bullies need to learn respect for others. They already have too much respect for themselves.' - Jean M. Twenge, The Narcissism Epidemic

6). Miscellaneous: Today is National Snow Shoe Day. It is also the birthday of famous artist Michelangelo from 1475. Finally, it is the anniversary of Scott and Nikki Mans (pastors in Bridgeport, NE), a distinction they share with the act of Bayer aspirin being trademarked into production in 1899.

Kids performing at Fun Arts in Burwell, Feb 25th

Monday - Life Lessons

1). Song of the Day: Jonathan David Helser - ♫ Endless Ocean ♫

2). Blog Entry: Different Culture

- I go a to an 'Express' Gym that is part of the YMCA in Grand Island. It's near my house and has a magnetic card given to its members for easy access. There are no locker rooms or other big amenities, just workout equipment and weights. They have several TV's mounted on the wall across from the aerobic equipment. The other day a man showed up with an entire xbox gaming system. He plugged it into the TV across from his machine and played a game of HALO while jogging on an elliptical. I like to read, but never thought of bringing my entire gaming system to keep playing the game at the gym. We live in a different culture of easy access.

3). Ministry of the Day: Interlinc - A great source for youth ministry, with regular mailings full of music, videos, and more.

4). Link of the Day: Scribd - A collection of writings online, add yours to the archives.

5). Quote of the Day: 'Better the friend we can see than the money we cannot.' - Greek proverb

6). Miscellaneous: Today is National Fun Facts about names Day. It is also the annual spring CE committee meeting in Nebraska. It is the birthday of famous American pastor Joel Osteen, from 1963. Finally, it is the anniversary of the day that George Washington patented the air brake in 1872.

Leaders Profile - Kevin Roach

1). Song of the Day: Trip Lee - ♫ I'm Good ♫

2). Leaders Profile - Kevin Roach

POSITION: Senior Pastor of River Hills Church in South Sioux City, NE

HISTORY: Grew up in Kansas, CBC Graduate

FAMILY: Married to Eunice, with 3 children

HOBBIES: Bowhunting, Road Biking

3). Ministry of the Day: Teen Girls Daily Calendar - Check out an activity and Scripture everyday for Teenage Girls

4). Link of the Day: TED Talks - Riveting talks by remarkable people, free to the world

5). Quote of the Day: 'Noble deeds that are concealed are most esteemed.' - Pascal

6). Miscellaneous: Today is National Employee Appreciation Day and the World Day of Prayer. It is the birthday of famous football player Herschel Walker from 1962. Finally, it is the anniversary of the day that the Olympic Theatre was inaugurated in Vicenza, in 1585.

Thursday - Testimonies

1). Song of the Day: Kristian Stanfill - ♫ Always ♫

2). Blog Entry: Campus Missionary Reports

- 'I am currently trying to work on making better choices for me and my future. I hope to give back to the community and hope that I can tell more people about Christ. I am enjoying youth group and our talks about purity. Pastor Julie Korrell at Northridge Assemblies of God in Grand Island, Nebraska has been amazing. The youth group has been very moving lately! I love being a child of God.'

- 'I came to school last Monday only to find out that one of my best friends had gone to a dare 2 share retreat that weekend and finally accepted Jesus while there! He came back on fire for God and it's absolutely incredible!!!! I mean when I met him, his first words to me were "I'm Wiccan." Its been a long journey but I've never seen him so happy and it's really stirred up conversations in our circle of friends and we've gotten a chance to share the gospel with our friends! His girlfriend was especially opposed to the whole thing at first but now she's more perplexed than anything. She sees that the change in him is a good one and I can tell she is curious. God is beginning to do awesome amazing incredible things in my group of friends and beyond!'

3). Ministry of the Day: STL Projects - See a listing of the current missionary projects that we are working towards in Nebraska Youth Ministries.

4). Link of the Day: Bicycling to Work - Check to see how much money you could save by riding your bike to work instead of taking your car.

5). Quote of the Day: 'A loving heart is the beginning of all knowledge.' - Thomas Carlyle

6). Miscellaneous: Today is World Book Day, as well as the first day of the Nebraska Men's Retreat. It is also the birthday of Amy Adams (pastors wife in Lexington) and Jennifer Wilkins (pastors wife in Omaha). Finally, it is the anniversary of the day that Nebraska became the 37th state in 1867.

Great Photography Entry from Fun Arts, Feb 25th