The 180 Blog

Contents
1. 180 News
2. Something for Your Heart
3. Surf Report
4. Birthdays
5. Video of The Week
6. Forgettable Fact
7. Potent Quotables
8. Parting Shot

1. 180 NEWS

THIRTY HOUR FAMINE

This year's famine is in full swing! Hopefully by now you have received a famine collection kit. If not, be sure to pick one up this week. If you have not yet received a Famine Facts sheet, and the Parental Consent Form, you may download them both here. All Famine participants this year must have both a completed 180 Release Form and a signed Parental Consent Form. The Parental Consent Form needs to be turned in no later than THIS SUNDAY, February 18.

We have made a change to the previously released Famine Facts sheet. The meeting time at the church on Friday is now 6:45 pm as opposed to 7:00. Please make a note of this.

Last year we as a group were able to raise $4,268.49. This year our goal is $6,000! We can do it! $6,000 will feed nearly 17 children for an entire year!

See pictures of lasts year's 30 Hour Famine here.

Let's together STARVE HUNGER!

MEXICO OUTREACH '07 INFORMATIONAL MEETING

We are currently in the planning stages of this year's trip and are very excited about what God is bringing together! We are excited because God is leading us in some new directions. We therefore want to share them with you, answer any questions you may have, and listen to your feedback.

If you are considering being a part of our trip to Mexico this year we want to invite you (both students and parents) to a brief meeting this Sunday, February 18 in the Youth Center at 12:30. We don' t anticipate the meeting being very long. We know it is lunch time but we do want to provide ample time to answer questions and hear from you.

The dates of this year's Mexico Outreach are July 24 - August 4. To see photos and video of last year's outreach click here.


2. SOMETHING FOR YOUR HEART

MEET ZACH HUNTER...A KID LIKE YOU

Zach Hunter is a fifteen-year-old abolitionist and activist, spending much of his time working to end slavery around the world. He's the student spokesperson for The Amazing Change Campaign, which is inspired by the film "Amazing Grace". Last year he spoke to almost a half a million people and is educating and inspiring students everywhere to make a change in the world. He also founded Loose Change to Loosen Chains, a student run effort to help raise money to free slaves. Other than that, he's just your average, typical teenage guy.

His new book, "Be the Change," will be the focus of the next few weeks of devotionals. He is doing amazing things to help change the world, and you can do amazing things in our world, too.

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LIVING OUT INFLUENCE TODAY

Another way to look at influence is to consider what marketers call "branding." You're familiar with the brands you buy and can recognize them easily by their logos. When you see the "swoosh" you think Nike, just as when you see the little white apple you think Mac. Millions of dollars are spent to get you to remember these brands and their slogans. And, as we've mentioned, connecting celebrity to brands makes them even more powerful and memorable.

But have you ever considered your brand? Well, each one of us has his or her own brand--even if we're still in school. Whether you're geek, jock, or emo (or, to be more politically correct, academic, athlete, artistic), everyone has a brand. Your brand is who people know you to be. It's your reputation.

Now these brands aren't always a good thing. It's true they can lead to prejudice or a cliquish environment in which we hang out only with people who have the same brand as us. This is wrong. Instead of using our brands to exclude others, why don't we use them to help others? Whatever our brands give us access to, let's utilize it. Just because we're young doesn't mean our voices don't matter and our brands don't carry power and influence. The Bible says, "even a child is known by his actions" (Proverbs 20:11). This means we can't be let off the hook just because we are young. We can't just sit back and expect our elders to do all the work.

I'm hopeful because I really believe our generation has the power and passion to change things. This past summer I met a group of really great guys in a new band called Leeland from a small town in Texas. They started out leading worship in their church, but they've come a long way since then. Lately they have been touring with Third Day, and playing at some of the Christian music festivals I have been going to. These young guys are men of God, and are way more mature than many people older than them. They are some of the most talented, godliest guys I know.

Last summer, I was speaking at a music festival, leading seminars on justice and abolition. The lead singer of the band, Leeland Mooring, was listening. He and the other guys in the group (Jack, Jake, Mike, and Jeremiah) had never heard about modern-day slavery. It blew them away that something as heinous as slavery is still going on today, especially when they found out many of the slaves are children and teens like us! That day, I told the story of a teenager who worked as a slave in a rock quarry and ended up having her finger amputated. (She and her family were later rescued, along with many other slaves, through the efforts of an organization I support through Loose Change to Loosen Chains. I also talked about some of the many passages like Isaiah 1:17 that speak of how God calls us to seek justice and rescue the oppressed.

The guys from Leeland began exploring further what God says about justice in Scripture and got involved. They didn't second-guess their convictions; they stepped up and began using their influence to help kids held in slavery, speaking from the stage to urge people to get involved.

I think that's what our generation should be about. We can be what so many generations before us were too scared to be. Lots of people have tried to label our generation. Well, I'd like to see us known as the "Justice Generation" or JGEN. If we can harness the power of our individual brands, strengths, and passions, and use them for good, just imagine what we could get done working together with God. Let's get busy!

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Taken from "Be the Change," by Zach Hunter, copyright 2007, Youth Specialties/Zondervan. Used by permission. Order the book here.

3. SURF REPORT

~ Loose Change to Loosen Chains: Check out the MySpace page for Zach and the movement to end slavery.

~ The Amazing Change: There are more slaves today than at any other time in history. Learn more about the facts, William Wilberforce--an abolitionist, and how you can help rescue these people.

4. BIRTHDAYS

We're wishing big 180 birthday wishes this week to both Micha Pierce and Haley Carlsson! Hope you two have a GREAT week!

5. VIDEO OF THE WEEK

The following video is how one student used their creativity to promote the 30 Hour Famine.



How are you promoting the famine this year. Be a hero!


6. FORGETTABLE FACT

Goat's milk is used more widely throughout the world than cow's milk.

7. POTENT QUOTABLES

"If to be feelingly alive to the sufferings of my fellow-creatures is to be a fanatic, I am one of the most incurable fanatics ever permitted to be at large."
- William Wilberforce

"God Almighty has set before me two great objects, the suppression of the slave trade and the reformation of manners."
- William Wilberforce

===========our|sponsor===========

YOU HAVE THE POWER TO CHANGE THE WORLD!

Many people think teenagers aren't capable of much. But Zach Hunter is proving those people wrong. He's only fifteen, but he's working to end slavery in the world--and he's making changes that affect millions of people. Find out how Zach is making a difference and how you can make changes in the things that you see wrong with our world.

Check out "Be the Change" here.

Also available in your local Christian bookstore

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8. PARTING SHOT

Everyone has a photographic memory...some just don't have any film.