FOR NON-CORONAVIRUS TIMES
At First UMC, Amite we offer the following ministries with youth:
Sunday School
Every Sunday morning at 10am we offer Bible Study and video lessons for youth. Students receive incentives for daily Bible reading, Scripture memorization, and sharing their faith.
UMYF - United Methodist Youth Fellowship
Sunday evenings from 5pm-7pm we offer a time of Youth Fellowship which includes a meal. During the school year we rotate through the following activities each month: Bible Study Night, Small-Groups & Worship Night, Missions Night, Outreach Outing, and Fellowship Game Night. During the summer we meet at a different home each week for “Swim Study.”
Music Lessons for Praise Team: Children, Youth, & Adults
Wednesdays from 5:30 – 6:30 p.m., musicians from our adult and youth praise teams offer music lessons to children 4th grade & up, youth, and adults. The lessons are a six week commitment, and are offered for acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass guitar, chords for keyboard, and drums. The lessons are not comprehensive, but instead focus on everyone learning to play one of the songs from our praise teams. If a person desires full, comprehensive lessons on piano, guitar, etc., professional music instruction should be sought outside of these lessons. The music lessons for praise team are free, but an extra donation to the church is requested. Also, students of acoustic guitar, electric guitar, and bass guitar need to provide their own instrument and amp for electric instruments.
Sunday Drive, our Youth Praise Team
On Wednesday evenings from 6:30-8:00pm our Youth Praise Team meets for leadership training & rehearsal. The team is open to youth who are intermediate level musicians and singers (vetted by a casual audition), and to youth who are interested in being sound technicians and media technicians. Skilled adult musicians provide guidance. This is a high-commitment group and regular attendance is mandatory to remain a member. Sunday Drive plays for Sunday Worship Services once a month and for a Youth gatherings on Sunday evenings.
Retreats, Lock-ins, & Special Events
Throughout the year we have special overnight events including the Back-to-school retreat the first Friday/Saturday after school begins, a Christmas Party, an annual Lock-In, and a Spring Retreat.
Confirmation
Our Confirmation class takes place every year for 6 weeks starting in October and ending in December when our participants are confirmed in front of our church body. During these 6 weeks, our confirmands learn and understand what it means to be a follower of Christ. Confirmation is open to children 6th grade and above.
Youth Summer Mission
Each summer our youth participate in a week-long summer mission in July. The mission location for 2021 is St. Simon's Island, GA the week of July 10th-16th, 2021.
At First UMC, Amite we offer the following ministries with youth:
Sunday School
Every Sunday morning at 10am we offer Bible Study and video lessons for youth. Students receive incentives for daily Bible reading, Scripture memorization, and sharing their faith.
UMYF - United Methodist Youth Fellowship
Sunday evenings from 5pm-7pm we offer a time of Youth Fellowship which includes a meal. During the school year we rotate through the following activities each month: Bible Study Night, Small-Groups & Worship Night, Missions Night, Outreach Outing, and Fellowship Game Night. During the summer we meet at a different home each week for “Swim Study.”
Music Lessons for Praise Team: Children, Youth, & Adults
Wednesdays from 5:30 – 6:30 p.m., musicians from our adult and youth praise teams offer music lessons to children 4th grade & up, youth, and adults. The lessons are a six week commitment, and are offered for acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass guitar, chords for keyboard, and drums. The lessons are not comprehensive, but instead focus on everyone learning to play one of the songs from our praise teams. If a person desires full, comprehensive lessons on piano, guitar, etc., professional music instruction should be sought outside of these lessons. The music lessons for praise team are free, but an extra donation to the church is requested. Also, students of acoustic guitar, electric guitar, and bass guitar need to provide their own instrument and amp for electric instruments.
Sunday Drive, our Youth Praise Team
On Wednesday evenings from 6:30-8:00pm our Youth Praise Team meets for leadership training & rehearsal. The team is open to youth who are intermediate level musicians and singers (vetted by a casual audition), and to youth who are interested in being sound technicians and media technicians. Skilled adult musicians provide guidance. This is a high-commitment group and regular attendance is mandatory to remain a member. Sunday Drive plays for Sunday Worship Services once a month and for a Youth gatherings on Sunday evenings.
Retreats, Lock-ins, & Special Events
Throughout the year we have special overnight events including the Back-to-school retreat the first Friday/Saturday after school begins, a Christmas Party, an annual Lock-In, and a Spring Retreat.
Confirmation
Our Confirmation class takes place every year for 6 weeks starting in October and ending in December when our participants are confirmed in front of our church body. During these 6 weeks, our confirmands learn and understand what it means to be a follower of Christ. Confirmation is open to children 6th grade and above.
Youth Summer Mission
Each summer our youth participate in a week-long summer mission in July. The mission location for 2021 is St. Simon's Island, GA the week of July 10th-16th, 2021.
Summer Mission: The 2020 mission theme “GRACE” came to me in prayer while on Shellie’s senior vacation in Colorado last July. I was praying on the balcony overlooking Grand Lake and saw a young girl of about 12 set up an easel, canvas and paint-set on the deck below. I watched as she freely, without fear or hesitation, dove into that canvas to paint a beautiful work of art. I remember sensing God’s presence in this moment and hearing in my spirit that He wants us all to be that free & bold in how we live our lives. God wants us to know that we can face anything because we are Covered in His Love, Affirmation & Grace. We have ALL GRACE to step fully into the future. I knew this was a message for our youth, but even more specifically for our graduating seniors. I went down and met the young girl when she finished painting. Her name was GRACE! In Hebrew the word for Grace literally means “Covered.” I have been doing Bible studies, word studies, journal entries & praying about this as our mission theme ever since (11 months!). The planning for the mission to St. Simons, GA came together flawlessly this year for housing, missions, & activities. The Youth Council and Adult Leadership Team met last September and many of our adults put in at work for July 11th-17th vacation days. We began meeting regularly as a leadership team in January. Tamie Christmas & I went on a scouting trip in February to confirm everything. Then the pandemic hit. How we handle the mission now is influenced by state regulations, by the Louisiana Conference of the UMC guidelines, by the lack of funds we were unable to raise in fundraisers, by the lack of funds in our regular youth budget, and by the changing schedules of our youth. College orientation dates, high school graduation dates, camps & dance recitals have all been crammed into July. The original week set aside for our mission now has the OFA Academic Banquet, Prom, and Cheer Camps. It is still uncertain if we will even be allowed to gather in groups larger than 10 in July, and we have 55 participants signed up to go on the mission. With all of these variables, it is clear that our 2020 Mission has to be cancelled. Our Deposit to Epworth by the Sea, St.Simons,GA was non-refundable but transferable, so we have rescheduled to July 10-16, 2021 (Please set aside this week for next year!). All Deposits for 7th-11th grade students will be rolled over to next year. All Deposits for seniors will be returned. If parents choose to just donate those deposits for the Youth Ministry or to transfer over to younger siblings, please inform Allison! And if you have any questions or concerns, please contact Allison. As for THIS Summer - Small Group Gatherings and fun events will be scheduled as we are allowed to begin meeting again. We will continue with our virtual devotions & meetings until then. And, no matter what, God has us COVERED! He is good & full of all grace!