Summer Gathering!

Please save the dates of June 25th to 28th as we head back to Yosemite Valley for our annual summer gathering. This years theme: Road Rules: Stories from the Road of Life. More information will be coming soon. Stay tuned!!

Mexico House Building- April 21st

Come get your hands dirty and help some of our brothers in Mexico on April 21st (all day). Please plan to join us as we put some feet on our faith and share the love of Jesus with others. Meeting time is 7 am near the boarder. Join us for a great trip as we partner with Amor Ministries to build a house! Their goal is simple: To build hope. They say, "Hope is a concrete floor, Hope is four strong walls, Hope is a roof that doesn't leak, Hope is giving more than you can, Hope is getting more than you gave! " It is hard work but the rewards are awesome.

From the Amor Website:

The Amor Mission Trip
The Amor mission trip is a short-term mission trip based on serving the local church in Mexico, while creating cross-cultural understanding through direct exposure to the Mexican culture. Amor Ministries doesn't want a group to just build a house in a developing nation. We want a group to understand the conditions of poverty through immersion.

Due to the early meeting time (7am) near the boarder, Christ Lutheran Church has offered a place to stay Friday night (the 20th) for those groups that are coming from out of town. Those staying will be treated to a continental breakfast Saturday morning. Bring your sleeping bag and pillow. The cost is $35 per person, which covers building material. Each person/group needs to provide water and food for themselves while they are in Mexico. An Individual Mission Trip Participation form (PDF format) can be found at the Yahoo Groups page. Amor needs to have final numbers by April 11th so please fill out those forms and send it in with $35 before that date. Please have all checks made out to PSD College Ministry. Please note that youth under 18 must obtain a parent or guardian signature. Feel free to invite students who are seniors in High School as well. If you have any questions please contact Brandon Heath at 619-462-5211 x129 or bheath@christlamesa.org.

2007 PSD College Ski Trip

Are you at that point in the semester where you really are looking forward to finals being over and vacation getting underway? I know I am! Well just to get you thinking about what you might fill your time with the PSD College Ministry is proud to announce that registration has now opened for the 2007 Ski/Snowboard Trip. We will be back at Mammoth again this year at the Convict Lake Resort. We will have two cabins in ensure enough space for all of the gang. The trip will be January 4-7, 2007 and will cost $235 if you register with Brandon Heath by Dec. 7 or $255 if you get your $$$ and forms to him by Dec. 27. Registration forms can be found at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/psd_college/ in the files section.

Yuma Road Trip Registration Forms Available

Not sure what you want to do with the weekend of Aug. 19-20? Well, why not take a drive out to Yuma, AZ with your fellow college students and young adults for a ballgame and dinner at Cracker Barrel? Sounds a bit nuts right? Yuma in August. Well here me out. What is more college than an end of the summer road trip. For just $10 see the Yuma Scorpions play the Long Beach Armada. We will meet at the Cracker Barrel in town before the game for dinner, catch the game, and then spend the night at Christ Lutheran Church. A group registration form can be found at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/psd_college/files/>
Questions conact DCEDave@faithhb.org.

Summer Gathering - July 21-23, 2006

District College-Aged Gathering
Theme: ShatteredRestored
Date: July 21-23, 2006
Cost: $50 before June 30 or $65 after
Location: William Heise Park in Julian, CA
Speakers: Pastor Mark Jasa; Karen Kropf; & one more to be confirmed soon.
Participants: young Adults 18-25 years old


Registration forms will also soon be available at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/psd_college/ in the files section.

New Site for the Summer Gathering

We have out new location. The Gathering wil be at William Heise Park in Julian. We should have registration forms in the mail or e-mail sometime next week. They will also be posted on the yahoo group.

Da Vinci Code Resources

Here is a set of links to all kinds of resourses that can be found on the web:

FAQ’s from the official site for the book: http://www.danbrown.com/novels/davinci_code/faqs.html

The official site for the movie:
http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/thedavincicode/

Articles:
Lutheran Witness
The Da Vinci Dialogue
Crisis Magazine
Christianity Today
Evangelism Tool
Book Review

A Bible Studies
Debunking the Da Vinci Code
Engaging The Da Vincie Code
The Da Vinci Code and Other Heresies

Books
www.christianbook.com/

TV
The Da Vinci Code Evangelism Training

If you have additional resources please post them in the comments.

Venue Change for Summer Gathering

The location for the Summer Gathering is in the process of changing. The new location will be posted as soon as it has been confirmed.

Registration forms should be available at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/psd_college/ soon. They will be found in the files section.

Yuma Road Trip

Here is where things stand with regard to the planning for the road trip out to Yuma for a ball game and Crackerbarrell dinner.

The Basics:
Date: Aug. 19, 2006
Teams: Yuma Scorpions vs. Long Beach Armada
Ticket Cost: $5
Dinner at Crackerbarrel before that game.
Accomodations: Christ Lutheran Church in Yuma

A group ticket request form will be on the yahoo group soon.

Summer Gathering - July 21-23, 2006

District College-Aged Gathering
Theme: ShatteredRestored
Date: July 21-23, 2006
Cost: $50 before June 30 or $65 after
Location: Campland (Mission Bay, San Diego)
Speakers: Pastor Mark Jasa; Karen Kromf; & one more to be confirmed soon.
Participants: young Adults 18-25 years old

Watch for a postcard to be sent to congregations in early April and registration in late April.

Registration forms will also soon be available at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/psd_college/ in the files section.

Contact Dave Rueter with registration questions at 714-962-5423.

Logo

I might be slow at this, I had to trick my way to having the logo in the template so this post is just to make that happen.

Road Trip to Yuma

Leave a group of DCE's alone long enough without supervision and ideas like this not only start to get thrown out on the table but they are planned out and scheduled. This August 19, college students in the Pacific Southwest District will converge on Yuma, Arizona. Why Yuma? Why not Yuma! On tap for the road trip will be a baseball game between the Yuma Scorpions and the Long Beach Armada along with lunch at the local Cracker Barrel (if you don't know about Cracker Barrel, just trust me it is worth the drive). Cost details and group forms will be available in the next month or two. For groups traveling longer distances we are working with a local Lutheran Church for floor space to sleep on. For more information contact Dave Rueter.

Mexico Mission Trip

On April 8, 2006 we will team up with Amor Ministry to complete building projects that are underway in Tijuana, Mexico. We will be doing whatever is needed to complete the homes that Amor is building for people in need. The cost is just $30. Please bring money to buy your own lunch and dinner on Saturday. Each group should provide their own transportation and purchase the appropriate international car insurance. Groups should also bring tools that can be used on the work site (hammers, saws, shovels, rakes, wire snips, trowels, etc.) . To sign up your group contact Brandon Heath. If you are not from the San Diego area and wish to you may spent Friday and/or Saturday night at Christ Lutheran Church in La Mesa. Just let Brandon know when you register your group.

Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays?

This article originally ran as part of Faith Lutheran Church's The Mosaic Messenger a Newsletter for their college ministry.

So what are you going to do this Christmas when you are at Target and someone wishes you “Happy Holidays”? Are you going to be offended that they did not say “Merry Christmas”? Are you going to make sure you respond with “Merry Christmas”?

Though I have not given a whole lot of thought to the subject, here are a few of the thoughts that have occurred to me. See what you think.

The corporate action taken to prevent employees from saying “Merry Christmas” strikes me as just a bit odd. The retail industry needs Christmas to break even for the year and yet they want to avoid any mention of the word. I don’t know if any other holiday is picking up the tab nearly as well as Christmas has.

On the other hand, Christmas is not about telling other religions how wrong they are. It is rather a celebration of our Savior’s birth. Yes, Jesus is the only Savior for all mankind and yes, other religions are fallen, but what kind of loving approach starts with screaming “Merry Christmas” to drown out other religious sentiments.

If I got to Target (Wal-Mart has opted not to ban Merry Christmas, but I am still not going there for other reasons) and someone working there wants to wish me a Happy Holiday, a Happy Kwanza, or Joyous Chanukah (not sure the correct greeting of the last two), that is fine by me. I am not offended by someone not agreeing with me. Frankly I expect that they won’t. That is reality in the world today, people disagree. We just have the choice to avoid being disagreeable.

Christ is the way, the truth, and the life. But he is not an excuse to be unkind. I am afraid that both sides on this debate are missing the mark. What do you think?

Movie Night Thanks

Thanks to the Faith and the gang at University Lutheran Chapel at UCLA for hosting the Movie and Dinner night last night. We watched and eye opening documentary called Invisible Children. If you missed out you can check it out at invisiblechildren.com. There will not be a movie night in December (just the Christmas party), but we should have another movie night in January. I will post information on that as soon as we have a location and other details ready. If your group would like to host sometime contact DCEDave.

Summer Gathering

Plans are already getting underway for the second annual summer gathering. Keep checking back for up-dates. For now just block off July 21-23, 2006.

Christmas Party

Our Savior Lutheran Church in Arcadia will host a District College Ministry Christmas Party on December 11 at 5:30 p.m. Drinks will be provided. For last names A-H bring a side dish, I-Q bring a main dish, and R-Z bring a dessert. Also bring a White Elephant Gift to exchange (just wrap something up that you find in your parents closet that they can't even explain what it is or why it is there). For additional information or as a group to let us know you are coming contact Gilbert Fugitt at 626-447-1150

Annual Ski Retreat at Mammoth

You and your Young Adults (ages 18-25) are invited to the 6th Annual Young Adult Ski Trip, January 5-8. The trip started with a small group of Christian College Students from two southern California Lutheran churches. The purpose was to get away from the business of life and enjoy God’s creation. Group rates have made it possible to provide this trip to more while still having the relaxing effect. On the reverse side you will find an outline of what the trip includes, and just as importantly what it doesn’t include. Here you will find a little more detailed information about those items. Early Registration is set at $210 per person, postmarked by December 5th. This allows you to talk with those students back for Thanksgiving break. After December 5th, Registration will be $250 per person. All Registrations must be Received by December 23rd (Recommended Post Mark date being the 20th) Registration includes 3 nights at a retreat lodge, 2-day ski lift ticket at Mammoth Mountain and 6 meals. The Lodge holds 34 people, has a kitchen, meeting room and a Jacuzzi. Mammoth Mountain is rated number 1 in California, with several beginner, medium and advanced courses. To keep costs low for food, we ask that every person sign up for cooking and cleaning detail once your group has arrived.
Rental equipment is not provided in the registration cost. You may be able to find the rentals
cheaper in your hometown and are welcome to do so. If you want to know what the cost of Rentals are at Mammoth, please check out their website. Please be sure to read the “what to bring” section on the reverse side. Also, due to mixture of age, there will be no alcohol at the cabin during the entire weekend.

GENERAL INFORMATION

REGISTRATION:
Young Adult Ministries
C/o Brandon Heath
7929 La Mesa Blvd
La Mesa, Ca 91941

Contact Information
Brandon Heath
619-462-5211 x129
bheath@christlamesa.org

JANUARY 5-8, 2006
• Registration Fees
- Early Registration (postmarked by December 5) $210
- Late Registration (postmarked after December 5) $250
- Full payment for each participant must be included in
Registration. Once registered, names can be changed but money is non-refundable.
• Your registration cost covers:
- 3 nights in Mt. Morrison Cabin at Convict Lake Resort.
Check it out at www.convictlake.com/cabins/morrison.htm
- 2 day ski lift ticket Mammoth Mountain. Check out their web at www.mammothmountain.com
- Snack for Thursday night, Friday breakfast/Dinner, Saturday, Breakfast/Dinner Sunday Breakfast.
• Your registration DOES NOT INCLUDE equipment and lessons. It is recommended to bring your own equipment or rent at Mammoth.
www.mammothmountain.com/ski_ride/rental_demo/rentals will give you prices for rentals and www.mammothmountain.com/ski_ride/lessons/lesson_types will give you costs for lessons.
• Other Responsibilities
- Lunch at the ski resort IS NOT PROVIDED. You are welcome to make sandwiches and leave them in one of the vehicles that travel to the resort or bring about $12 for lunch
- You are responsible for your own transportation to Mammoth and back.
- You may not want to ski/snowboard both days and you are welcome to enjoy the town
but you must leave the cabin during the day.

WHAT TO BRING
- Sleeping bag/pillow
- Bible
- Dress in layers (the weather is unpredictable)
- Shoes to walk in the snow
- Chap Stick
- Group Games
- Your favorite movie
- Ski/snow equipment including sunglasses, gloves, hat, coat, and snow pants.
- Each car should have chains or be 4-wheel drive. Each vehicle should be prepared for winter, including having water bottles and blankets for the drive.