UNITED STATES 2007 - FacePlant Skate Church Winter 2007-2008 VIDEO

UNITED STATES 2007 - FacePlant Winter Schedule and Stuff

A YEAR IN REVIEW AT FACEPLANT SKATECHURCH.

I can't believe that another year has gone by. Last Winter was when we first decided to bring SkateChurch indoors. We raised money from the community and screwed down plywood to our main sanctuary floor. Remember that? It was a raw plywood floor that had an orange fence surrounding it with a lot of ramps on the floor. We had the quarter pipes, a couple of kickers, boxes and rails set up. This is before Whipple Creek Church was meeting in the facilities on Sunday mornings. Well, things look a little different this Winter. We painted the main sanctuary as well as the plywood as Whipple Creek Church now meets here every Sunday morning. We don't have a fence. We just move chairs to the sides every Thursday. There are not as many ramps but more room to skate. Now we just set up the spine, a kicker, a box and a couple of rails. We started charging at the door to help cover the costs ($1 for sponsored and $2 for unsponsored). We don't have quite as many every Thursday but new skaters are always coming out. We've had a bunch of skate competitions with trophies being awarded to those who placed. We've had sponsorships for those who have excelled both in skating and spiritually. We've had a sick FacePlant Skate Tour where we've traveled to different skate parks in Oregon and Washington. We've taught on the parables of Christ, the miracles of Christ and are currently studying through the gospel of John. We try to make the messages fun and relevant; from handing out rubber snakes to showing movie clips from the "Passion of the Christ." Last SkateChurch we had 1 person make a first time decision to follow Christ and 1 recommitment. That makes 83 first time decisions for the year 2007 at FacePlant Ministries, totaling 163 first time decisions and hundreds of recommitments since FacePlant Ministries started in January of 2006. Praise the Lord for the great harvest that has taken place here in Vancouver, Washington among the youth. Now my prayer is that those young people would stay faithful to Christ and continue to grow and develope in their walk with God. Here is a Christmas greeting I sent out to all the FacePlant youth that I could via MySpace a week ago:

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Hey FacePlant Youth:

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I just wanted to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. It has been another great year at FacePlant Ministries with 83 young people making first time decisions to follow Christ.I only have one question about that: Some of you 83 young people I still see around on Tuesdays and Thursdays. But many of you I have lost contact with because you haven't been out to youth group at FacePlant Ministries or church at Whipple Creek. Where have you been? God's Word says in Hebrews 10:25 that we are to "not forsake the assembling of ourselves together" and that we should meet together, like at church or youth group, "even more so as we see the Day of Christ approaching." My hope in prayer is that those of you who I don't see anymore are attending another youth group or church. If not, please take this as an invitation to come back to FacePlant Ministries.

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As Christ-followers, we are told from God's Word that we are to:

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(1) Pray without ceasing (talk to Jesus throughout the day, everyday)

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(2) Read and study God's Word (the Bible on a daily basis)

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(3) Meet with other Christ-followers (like I mentioned above) and

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(4) Be a witness for Jesus (by your words and actions)

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These are things we need to take part in to GROW in our relationship with Jesus Christ. If we are not taking part in these things we are NOT GROWING and are remaining SPIRITUAL DWARFS. God is looking for MIGHTY MEN AND WOMEN OF GOD to do battle against Satan, not SPIRITUAL DWARFS. What better of a place to grow in your walk with God than at FacePlant Ministries. I know some of you think, "it isn't fun" or "there are too many hypocrites there." I challenge you to change that...make it fun by being there and be one of the non-hypocritical at youth group. We are studying end times in Matthew 24 on Tuesdays and the gospel of John on Thursdays.

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To those of you who are regular FacePlant attenders: I know that God has been and continues to bring you closer to Himself. I am very honored to be serving as your youth pastor. My hope and prayer is that you will continue to serve God faithfully, even in your youth, especially in your youth. I love all of you and can't wait to see what God has in store for you this next year. There will be no FacePlant Ministries on Tuesday, Dec. 25, Thursday, Dec. 27, or Tuesday, Jan. 1. Again Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. See you guys around.

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Grace and peace,

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Chris Chin Chung

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FACEPLANT WINTER CAMP 2008.

Coming up from February 1st-3rd, 2008 we have FacePlant Winter Camp for Middle School and High School Students. Will will be driving to Camp Davidson in Sisters, Oregon. It costs $100.00 per student. There will be skating (they have an indoor skatepark), snowboarding, a guest band and guest speaker, and lots of FUN! Make sure to sign up with me either on Tuesdays at Youth Group or on Thursdays at SkateChurch. DON'T MISS OUT!!!

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Christian Young

Youth Pastor

UNITED STATES 2007 - FacePlant Skate Tour - Innerspace and Sea-Tac

INNERSPACE INDOOR SKATE PARK ***

On Sunday, November 11, 2007, a big group of us from Team FacePlant took a trip to Seattle, Washington to skate Innerspace indoor skate park. Josh, Kyle P., Travis, Curtis, Boomer, Mick, Jake, Cole, Victor M., Brandon, Jonas and I all got to go. I can't say that it was really worth the 3 hour drive just to hit Innerspace, although it was a fun indoor park to skate. It's a bit smaller than D.O.S. but has a similar feel. It costs $8.00 per person and they have a skate shop inside (which is good because Boomer snapped his deck kick-flipping the three-ledge). They have a mellow hip which we all tore up, a nice mini-ramp, a tall handrail, a box, a funbox with hubba and three-ledge and one side of the park is lined with quarter pipes. Please check out the video to see more (unfortunately my computer had trouble with the size of our video so I had to cut out Cole and Victor's parts...sorry guys). The trick of the day goes to Mick who landed the kickflip down the three-ledge. Like I said, it is a fun park and worth the 8 bucks for a few hours of fun. Overall I give Innerspace skate park a 3 star rating.

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SEA-TAC SKATE PARK **

On the way back from Innerspace, we all headed to Taco Bell which is sort of a ritual for us. On the way there we spotted a lighted outdoor skate park. We decided to stop and skate it for about 45 minutes on the way back from dinner. Sea-Tac skate park is a small park with a pyramid and fun box and rail in the middle with a long quarter pipe on one side and ramps on the other side. The pyramid and fun-box were the things to skate. I personally didn't like how steep the transitions were on the pyramid, but a couple of the guys really liked it and the locals were ripping it up. It was definitely good that we happened upon this park that night. Even though it was really cold outside, the team had a blast. I'm sure they would have stayed longer if they could have. Overall I give Sea-Tac skate park a 2 star rating.

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Christian Young

Youth Pastor

UNITED STATES 2007 - Team FacePlant Innerspace and Sea-Tac VIDEO

UNITED STATES 2007 - Notes On Colossians

Tuesday Night Middle School and High School Youth Group

We've been having a blast on Tuesday nights at youth group. Generally, our Tuesday night youth group consists of group games, hanging out, worship, prayer, Bible teaching and small group interaction. This past year we have studied through the books of James, 1 Peter and most recently Colossians. I feel that it is important as a youth group to study God's Word so that we have a firm foundation in life, even starting in our younger years. I know that God's Word will continue to change us and guide us at FacePlant Ministries in all that we do. I just wanted to highlight some points from our most recent study in Colossians.

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Thursday Night Skate Church

We have just moved back indoors into out main sanctuary for SkateChurch on Thursday nights. We are currently studying through the book of John at SkateChurch. Last Thursday night, Russ Manning spoke from John 2 when Jesus turned over the tables over the money changers in the temple. He gave an invitation to receive Christ and 2 new young people gave their lives to Christ. SkateChurch is an awesome outreach to the community and between SkateChurch and Tuesday night youth group, we have now had 82 young people put their faith in Christ for the first time over the past year totaling 162 in the past 2 years. thank you, Lord for the changed lives at FacePlant Ministries.

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Notes On Colossians

CHAPTER ONE

* Colossians 1:2, "Grace to you and peace from God." You will not experience the peace of God unless you have first experienced the grace of God.

* Colossians 1:4, "Your faith in Christ Jesus and your love for all the saints." Most people will miss heaven by 18 inches, the distance between the mind and the heart. It's not enough to simply have a head knowledge about Christ, but to put your complete trust in Him, letting Him call the shots in your life asking Him to come and live in your heart.

* Colossians 1:10, "That you may live a ife worthy of the Lord and may please Him in every way." How many of us wake up every day saying, 'how can I please You today, God?' as opposed to, "What will I do today that can make myself feel better' or 'How can I get other people to like me." We need to be pleasers of God and not pleasers of man.

* Colossians 1:11, "Being strengthened with all power according to His glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience." God's power through His Holy Spirit in our lives is like an electric guitar...unplugged you aren't making any process, no noise, but plugged in, your life is gonna rock!

* Colossians 1:13, "For He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness." When we were without Christ we were like people wandering around in the pitch black darkness, running into things, getting hurt with no sense of direction, but when we came to believe in Christ, He flipped the lights on.

* Colossians 1:17, "In Him [Christ] all things hold together." Not only did jesus create all things, but Jesus literally holds our molecular structures together...He causes us to breathe in and breathe out [breath of life].

* Colossians 1:18, "And He [Christ] is the head of the body, the church." When I was younger, I loved doing flips off of the diving board at my Aunt Gail's swimming pool. The key to doing flips is to move your head the way you want to flip and then let your body follow. As a youth group, as a church, we need to follow where Jesus, the head of the body is turning.

* Colossians 1:22, "But now He has reconciled you...to present youholy in His sight, without blemish and free from accusation." We are set apart from God's enemies. God no longer sees us as defiled by sin, but sees us like He sees His Son Jesus...without blemish. Satan, called the 'accuser of the brethren' now has empty accusations against us.

* Colossians 1:24, "To present the word of God to you in its' fulness." In order to present the Word of God in its' fulness, we need to know the Word of God in its' fulness. What if you didn't know all there is to know about basic math? Let's say you know how to add but not to subtract. What happens when you try to balance your checkbook? You think you have more money than you really do and may even go bankrupt. It is dangerous to only teach bits and pieces of the Word of God. False teachings have occured because Scripture wasn't understood in the context of the whole Bible.

CHAPTER TWO

* Colossians 2:2, "That they may be encouraged in heart and united in love." Some churches leave you feeling horrible, like a hopeless case...discouraged in heart. We should be lifted up inside. The church, or the body of Christ is supposed to build people up, not tear people down. Unity without Christ is short-lived. Love without Christ is incomplete. Unity in Christ + Love in Christ = A church that is strong, impactful and how God purposed it to operate.

* Colossians 2:3, "In whom [Christ] are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." Everything we need to know and the practical application of that knowledge, which is wisdom, is found in the person of Jesus Christ. Do you have your B.A. (Born Again) degree or your P.H.D. (Pray Hard Degree)?

* Colossains 2:4, "That no one may decieve you by fine sounding arguments." If all our wisdom and knowledge comes from Christ, no one will be able to deceive us. Jim Jones, David Koresh, Joseph Smith, Muhammed all deceived people who weren't grounded with a firm foundation in God's Word.

* Colossians 2:13, "You were dead in your sins...God made you alive in Christ." The definition of being pronounced dead: no brain activity, no pulse, dead, cold, just an empty shell. During heart surgery, the surgeon takes out the bad heart and replaces it with a healthy heart. Sometimes the body will try to reject the new heart...the old flesh or sinful nature has to get used to the new heart Christ gives us...that is why many people struggle with sin so badly, even after God makes them spiritually alive through faith in Christ. Every person adjusts differently and at different paces...but there should be evidence that the new heart is making that person spiritually healthy.

* Colossians 2:14, "Having cancelled the written code, with its' regulations, that was against us and stood opposed to us; He took it away, nailing it to the cross." During Jesus' time if you were imprisoned for your crime and you were paying your time in prison, after you had served the full amount of time for your crime, your sentence was nailed to your prison cell door with "tetelostai" written across it. In Greek "tetelostai" literally means "It is finished" or "the debt has been paid in full." These are the words Jesus cried out from the cross. This is what happens when we put our trust in Him...our debt, punishable by hell, is cancelled, and we get to spend eternity in heaven with Jesus.

* Colossians 2:16, "Do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival..." Webster's dictionary defines "to judge" as (1) to pass legal judgment on (2) to form a judgment or opinion concerning (3) to decide or settle authoritatively (4) to think or hold as an opinion (5) to act as a judge in. Religious leaders had turned laws that God created to set Israel apart from others and that were for their own good into strict observations that determined how righteous a person was or was not. Somehow, today in many churches, people have come up with some kind of twisted code that they use to accuse and point fingers at other believers deeming them not right with God because of what they look like or listen to. Rules and regulations don't create permanant change with healthy motivation in peoples lives. Instead, we should default on extending the grace of God and letting Christ change people from the inside out. There is no condemnation or judgment with those who are in Christ Jesus.

CHAPTER THREE

* Colossians 3:2, "Set your minds on things of above, not on earthly things." I have heard it said that someone can be too earthly minded to be any heavenly good or too heavenly minded to be any earthly good. I don't know that any of us have to worry about being too heavenly minded these days. What a struggle. In fact, if we are heavenly minded, focusing most of our thoughts on Christ, we will automatically be impacting the world for God. Our mind is our thought life. What we think about most is what is most important to us. If we think on things other than God all the time, those things can become idols.

* Colossians 3:3, "Your life is now hidden with Christ in God." When we stand before the judgment seat of Christ at the end of time, and the brilliance of God's glory streams from His throne, we will be hidden in the shadow of the cross. God will see His Son, not our sin because we are hiddden in Christ.

* Colossians 3:9-10, "Since you have taken off your old self with it's sinful practices and have put on the new self." Changing our clothes...i have an old long sleeve shirt that I still have from before I gave my life to Christ. I used to party in this shirt and live contrary to God's ways while wearing this shirt. That shirt reminds me of my old life before Christ. I need to take off that old lifestyle in order to put on the new life in Christ.

* Colossians 3:17, "And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him." Eat, drink, skateboard, play music, talk, think...do life in the name of the Lord Jesus. But let's caution ourselves to be a good representative of Christ as we are doing these things in His name.

CHAPTER FOUR

* Colossians 4:2, "Devote yourselves to prayer." When someone is devoted to a sport, that person's entire life and regiment revolves around that sport. They get up in the morning to train, practice that sport hardcore, even diet in a way that will help them excel in that sport. What would happen in our lives if we devoted ourselves to prayer? What would happen in the world around us?

* Colossians 4:3, "That God may open a door for our message." As people devoted to prayer we should always be praying that God would create opportunites in our life to share the message of Jesus.

* Colossians 4:5, "Make the most of every opportunity." Have you evet had a missed opportunity in sharing your faith with other people? i have. In Hayward, when I was a young youth pastor, our church housed a senior citizens fellowship every day. One lady in particular, Marcel, I would chat with every day for over a year. I never did talk to her about the gospel. One day, I didn't see her. I found out that she was unconscious in the hospital and close to death. the snior pastor, Drew Helms, and I went to visit her in the hospital. Drew prayed for her but I didn't feel released to leave. I asked if I could share the gospel with her, even though she wasn't conscious. I shared with her, not knowing if she could hear me, about sin, forgiveness, repentance, Christ's death on the cross, His resurrection and salvation. I said that no one could go to the Father except through Jesus. After I said these things she sat up, eyes closed, and muttered, "Thank you," and fell back down to her pillow dying shortly after. Praise God that she heard and responded to the gospel on her deathbed...but I had plenty of opportunities before that to share with her. Let's not miss opportunities to share the gospel of Christ with others.

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Christian Young

Youth Pastor

UNITED STATES 2007 - FacePlant Skate Tour - Woodland

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WOODLAND SKATE PARK ***

So yesterday, Saturday, November 3, 2007, Curtis calls me up and says, "Hey Christian. Some of us from FacePlant were wondering if you wanted to go to Woodland Skate Park today." Seeing as I was just chilling all weekend, I thought it a good idea to continue our FacePlant Skate Tour 2007. So Josh, Curtis, Travis, Jake, Cole, Jonas and I piled into "Bessy" (the old beat up church Suburban) and headed to Woodland. It actually wasn't too bad of a park. There is a mild street course and a rather large bowl to ride vert. There were quite a few bikers there so riding vert wasn't too easy. The hips were pretty nice. The boxes and ledges were cool. The hubbas didn't have metal coping and were a bit chunky. It is a little on the compact side, but the skating was good. You can check out the video on the FP blog. We tried best we could to shine the light of Christ. One of the guys that we talked to will probably make it to SkateChurch soon. It was a beautiful day for November and we had fun. Jake's 50-50 down the big hubba gets the trick of the day. Overall, I give Woodland Skate Park a 3 star rating.

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Christian Young

Youth Pastor

UNITED STATES 2007 - Team FacePlant Woodland VIDEO

UNITED STATES 2007 - New Sponsored FacePlant Skaters

NEW SPONSORED FACEPLANT SKATERS

Here we are at SkateChurch on November 1, 2007...the new TEAM FACEPLANT of Vancouver, Washington. As you can see, we are all sporting our sick FacePlant Ministries sweatshirts. In January 2008 I may add a few more guys depending on what happens. After that, I won't look at updating TEAM FACEPLANT until Summer of 2008. CONGRATULATIONS GUYS! I am so proud of you. For the most part you guys have really been raising the bar on your skating and walk with God. Don't be discouraged if you didn't make the team this time around. Keep working on it and don't give up. My hope is that someday, all of you can be on TEAM FACEPLANT. Here is the updated list:

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BACK ROW FROM LEFT TO RIGHT:

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Travis Reeder, Boomer Gasaway, Collin Whalen, [Chris Chin Chung], Jake Misener, Codie Cardon, Blaine Strachan, Kyle Ponciano.

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FRONT ROW FROM LEFT TO RIGHT:

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Austin Young, Curtis Christensen, Josh Newton, Mick Reeder, John Mason.

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NOT PICTURED:

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Brandon Clymer.

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TEAM FACEPLANT INTERNATIONAL

When I went on a short-term missions trip to Poland this last Summer I had an opportunity to do some skate park outreach in Piotrkow-Trybunalski. I skated and hung out with a lot of really cool guys. One of those guys is one of the top snowboarders/skaters in Poland. In correspondence with him via the internet since that missions trip, I have come to find out that he wants to be sponsored by FacePlant Ministries. He has a personal, hand-holding relationship with Jesus Christ and checks in with me every few weeks. Ladies and gentlemen, our first sponsored FacePlant International skater:

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Przemek Hoffer

UNITED STATES 2007 - FacePlant Skate Tour - Clackamas

CLACKAMAS SKATE PARK **

Today, October 27, 2007, Josh, Boomer, Jake, Brandon, Victor M., Eric and I continued our FacePlant Skate Tour by heading to Clackamas Skate Park. The park is a bit small and its' vert stuff is similar to Swift Skate Park (which I personally don't like). There really isn't much to skate. The street course has pretty sketchy transitions which makes it hard to get enough speed. The fellas landed some pretty good tricks and the trick of the day goes to Victor Marquay for landing a sick nose slide down the entire hubba. You can check out the video on the blog as well. Overall, I give the park a 2 star rating.

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Christian Young

Youth Pastor