New Years Eve Youth Lock In

Palm Grove Youth Kids host a "Lock-in" for all area youth every New Years Eve.  This year approx. 175 kids attended.  It is a fun evening of volleyball, pizza, chips, etc. and lots of coffee, hot chocolate, and soda.  It was pretty chilly this year so us youth leaders enjoyed the warmth of the fire, along with the youth.  It's pretty hard to have a "lock in" in a ball field but the gates were locked from 10:30 to 12:00 and everyone honored it.  Reggie did a good job of handling the mic and getting everyone organized on a team for volleyball.  He also had jokes he would entertain us with occasionally.  His jokes led to a "lame joke" contest around the fire.  We found out that at 3:00 and 4:00 a.m. jokes can get quite lame!
The Steve Stutzman family ministered to us around 11:00 through music and testimony.   Steve shared some very thought provoking challenges which we will remember for a long time.  This year the youth committee had requested that it be a lock in for youth only so hopefully no married folks were offended.  They love that the married people have New Years parties, too, but felt it was becoming two parties in one ball field.  We ordered 56 pizzas from Domino's, served about 150 cups of coffee, lots of hot chocolate but not too many cold sodas.

I was blessed to see a field full of youth who were looking for some good, clean fun on New Year's Eve and who listened attentively while Steve shared the Gospel!  I pray God's blessing on them in 2012!

(By the way, the last group of youth left after 4:30 a.m. so us "old folks" got home around 5:00 a.m.!)

Palm Grove Welcoming Committee (they also collected the entry fee of $5.00)

Worship and Message amidst the fog

(something eerily special about this)

May God bless each of you in 2012, too!

Who knows, this may be the year Jesus returns!!