Quake: A Ministry of Lake Hills Church, dedicated to Middle Schoolers...

by: Matt Williams - Director of Middle School Ministries

Most people write off Middle Schoolers as crazy, out-of-control, unreachable, mean, self-centered... the list goes on and on and that's why I love getting to do what I do. Having the opportunity to minister to these students has been an absolute blast, because once you dig through all the junk in their lives, all the walls they have been taught to put up, you begin to see and love them for them.

At the end of the day everyone just wants to be loved and accepted. They want some one to sit there and say, "I care" and it's no different for these students (no matter what they might say). That is "Why" we do what we do... we let these students know that the God of everything, the One who knitted together all of existence, loves them, accepts them, and sent His Son for them. That He alone knows them inside and out, walks with them everyday... He puts His arm around them in the tough times, laughs with them in the good times, and smiles when they do the same for some one else.

With all that said, redefining Church for the Middle Schoolers of Austin and beyond has been our vision from day one, but the methods and manners of attaining that vision change daily. Our lives are a series of events, a collection of choices, that set us on the paths we walk everyday. My hope and dream for this ministry, for these students, is that we might create memories today that will set us on paths to redefine Church for the people around us.

So, "How" might we do it in '08? Video? Worship? Teaching? Relationships? Ministry? Candy? Programs? Quake? Beach Week? Mission Trip '08? Attention? The "How" will always change... the "Why" will not...

Tell a Middle Schooler they are awesome today!!!