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When I heard that the Student Ministries Center was getting a revamp, I was really excited. I wish the renovation came a couple of years earlier! A bunch of memories came back to me, and the one that impacted me the most was the 6th grade Winter Retreat snowboarding. When I heard we were going snowboarding, I couldn't have been more excited. I remember watching guys do all these cool tricks on YouTube, and I thought I could do them as well. I got my snowboard and walked to the beginner hill. This is where things started to go bad for me. Brad Wetherell was the Student Ministries Pastor - he, me, and a couple other students were together. I couldn't get up the escalator to save my life. I felt so bad and embarrassed because a line started to form behind me. When I finally got up there, you start off sitting down, then push yourself up and go. Pretty easy right? Wrong! I couldn't even push myself up. Looking back now, I feel really bad for Brad, he was stuck with this 6th grader that couldn't even get down the beginner hill. Thank you, Brad, for sticking with me!

This is just one of the many memories I have from Youth Group. Even in my last year, I still enjoy partaking in new things like joining the youth band as a drummer, which was pretty cool. I know that all these memories will stick with me for the rest of my life, so, I just want to thank Brad, Dennis, and Albin for all the good memories!


When you're a senior comes graduation, which gets me thinking of my future. I'm going to Harper College; I remember the pastors talking about how a lot of students walk away from their faith when going to college. A verse that stuck with me is Matthew 7:13, "Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few."

To those reading this - particularly graduating seniors - stick with the Word and read your Bible. I know it's not easy or may feel like a task you don't want to do, but we're going to be challenged in college. It may be by fellow students or professors that we will be faced with defending our faith. There will be times when we don't know what to do; that's when we  lean on God and ask him for advice and wisdom.

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