If you missed the echo olympics you missed alot of fun. The first thing we did was the event that you signed up for was described to you. After that, everyone ran down the hall and got all pumped up. Then the games began and it was intense from the start. There was speed eating, speed skating, and suit up all at once. Everyone was cheering and screaming for their teams.
The speed skating race was intense but the winner won by a long shot who was a mokan and 2nd and 3rd place were won by just inches by blooians.
The speed eating event was a devouring event in which people had to eat bowls of popcorn. Popcorn was flying everywhere and it was a close contest but moka ended up winning and bloo came in second.
Suit up was a confusing but fun event. The winners of suit up won in record time–they were blooians, but moka came strong with a silver and a bronze.

The next events were build it, sled racing, and hockey.
Build it competitors were zealous and intelligent. Both teams built amazing paper bridges but the mokan bridge held the grape fruit and brought home the gold. The blooians came strong in second.
The sled race was one of the most energetic races i’ve ever seen. First mokans had a really strong lead but blooians came back and ended up having a new world record. Mokans did have a solid race and ended up getting silver.
The two hockey games were the most passionate sports games i’ve ever been to. First the blooians were winning and then the mokans were winning. But in the end there can be only one winner and the mokans came on top with a score of 2-1 in the first game. The second game was just as fierce as the first. Bloo was winning then the mokans were winning but the blooians came out with the victory score of 4-2.

To sum all this up it was probebly the funnest olympic games i’ve ever been to and plan on coming next year. The blooians won by the score of 9-8, this olympic games was the closest one in history and probably ever. Next time the olympics happens i recommend if you didn’t go to go next time, it will change your life and how you experience these unique, intense, passionate, and fun sports.

We live in a world where being a male or female means meeting society’s
expectations of men and women.
In the scripture we see God creating male and female in God’s own image.
At Reveal we will explore what it means to express our gender in a way that leads to life and wholeness rather than discrimination and suffering.

Who: 7th-12th grade students
When: Saturday March 6, 10:00-3:00
Cost: $10
*Includes lunch*
Details:
> Live Simply… bring only what you need.
> Bring your journey group journal, bible and pen.
> Make sure you agree to the participants commitment on the registration form, and have a release form on file with the EG Offices.

Contact Natalie at 651-287-3014 or npotts@whchurch.org for more information.

This past week at echo, we talked about how God’s love for us enables us to express love for other people.
Loving other people is one of the hardest things we can do, especially when we define love as an other-oriented, unconditional, self-sacrificial attitude. Often in our lives, there are people we find it easy to get along with, and we can quickly point to that comfortable friendship or relationship and say that we love that person. Other times, people hurt us, and we daydream about punching them in the stomach (if you are the type of person who wants to appear nice all the time). Or we actually do punch them in the stomach (if you are the type of person who enjoys coming off as aggressive)! Strangely enough, that violent, vengeful feeling is an indicator that we are being presented with an opportunity to self-sacrifice, with an opportunity to demonstrate agape.

As part of the covenant that God made with Abraham, God said:
“I will bless the entire earth through your descendents.”
That line stands out to me. God intends for the people of the Kingdom to be a blessing to the entire earth! This means we have the privilege of demonstrating self-sacrificial love to all those around us. In difficult relationships, we do our best to forgive, and to reconcile. This can be an intensely painful process, especially when it means we actually need to sacrifice, and we actually need to change! This is our role as Kingdom people. We demonstrate to the world what it looks like to have whole and peaceful relationships among ourselves, as members of the body of Christ. God loves us, and trusts us to be agents of his love and healing in the world. God sent the Holy Spirit to live in us and partner with us in this task. As God’s love lives in us, may we look outward and show that love to those around us.

Students in the Moka Room, join us at the Jackson household for an afternoon of sledding and winter fun! We’ll meet at the Jacksons’ at 2, and get picked up at 6.
Their address is 6341 26th St N, Oakdale, MN 55128.

We’ll go sledding for the first hour and a half, then head back to the house for dinner and games. Bring warm outdoor clothing, your sled (if you have one), and your favorite board game.

The cost of this event is $5 bucks and that includes dinner!
Call Hannah at 612-718-5459 with questions or to RSVP.
We hope to see you there!

Enjoy this excerpt from the book Spiritual Direction, by Henri Nouwen.

How much of our energy goes into defining ourselves by deciding “I am what I do,” “I am what others say about me,” or “I am what I have”? When that’s the case, life often follows a repetitive up-and-down motion. When people speak well about me, and when I do good things, and when I have a lot, I am quite up and excited. But when I start losing, when I suddenly find out that I can’t do some task anymore, when I learn that people talk against me, when I lose my friends, then I slip into the pit.

What I want to say to you is that this whole zigzag approach is wrong. I am not what I do, and you are not what you do, or what others say about you, or what you possess. “You are God’s Beloved!” I hope that you can hear these words spoken to you with all the tenderness and force that love can hold. My only desire is to make these words reverberate in every corner of your being– “You are the Beloved!”

The voice that speaks from above and from within whispers softly or declares loudly: “You are my Beloved son or daughter, on you my favor rests.” It certainly is not easy to hear that voice in a world filled with voices that shout: “You are no good; you are ugly; you are worthless; you are despicable; you are nobody unless you can demonstrate the opposite.”

These negative voices are so loud and so persistent that it is easy to believe them. That’s the trap of self-rejection. It is the trap of being a fugitive hiding from your truest identity.

Bloo room students, join us on Saturday, January 23rd for a day of outdoor winter fun! Meet at Woodland Hills at 3:00pm and get picked up at 6:30pm. We will be heading to John McDonald’s friend’s house in Hudson, WI for iceskating, hockey, and sledding. Bring your own skates, sleds, and hockey equipment. And be sure to dress warm! The cost is $5 and that includes dinner and snacks. With questions or to RSVP contact Alisha at alishagilbert3@yahoo.com pr 763-245-9444.

IMPORTANT: Before you are able to come on this event, you will need to fill out a bright pink EG release form. This form will be good for all events during the year of 2010. Stop by your team room or the Hub to pick up a release form. With questions about this, contact Natalie at 651-287-3014 or npotts@whchurch.org

Join us for an echo parent gathering on Wednesday, January 20th, from 6:30pm-8:00pm. Look for signs in the building to show where we will be meeting. Contact Erica with questions or for more details at 651-287-2070. We hope to see you there!

December’s offering brought in $188.55. Through World Vision, we are going to purchase a goat, 2 chickens, and supplies for a new mother–to keep her children healthy.

Raising animals is crucial for struggling families, especially in areas of the world where food is hard to come by. A goat and chickens will provide eggs, milk, and meat to an undernourished family. This will enable them to not only feed themselves, but to generate income, by selling eggs and milk, in order to meet some of their other needs.

Thank you for all you have given. Let’s continue to be generous throughout the Advent season. As we ask the Lord to care for those in need, let us take a step in becoming the answer to our own prayers. We are, after all, the body of Christ on earth.

Hey friends,
Just a few reminders for our last echo of 2009!
1. Project Home is still in the building. Please continue to enter and exit through the gathering area doors. We want to offer the families in the north wing as much space and privacy as possible during their stay here.
2. This Wednesday we will be having Afterglow during the second half of our journey group time. Bring a snack or beverage to share during this time!
3. As I mentioned, this Wednesday (the 16th) is the last echo of 2009. We are taking two weeks off (Dec 23rd and 30th) for us all to enjoy the remainder of the Advent season with family and friends. As we do so, let’s continue the work of Jesus and celebrate as he would want us to: peacefully, simply, and together.