XStream Love=Encouragement
Tonight we talked about encouragement being a great expression of love, and how Jesus modeled that by healing the leper. Take a few minutes to drop a note, send an email, make a gift, buy some flowers. Make a difference in the life of someone you love. It costs you very little, and the effects might be felt for eternity.

You are officially invited to come watch the State High Little Lions break out the bats as we take the field against Dubois Thursday afternoon at 4. We play at Community Field (right along Atherton), and admission is free. Come root for your favorite caoch--I'm #14.

XStream announcements for March 26
God is looking for young people who will step out of the boat and get real. Are you one of the few who have found LIFE?

March 28-29: 6-9th guys roller hockey/games/sleepover at Calvary. Invite a friend to come hang out and get to know us!

April 2—Metro Prayerwalking, leaving from Calvary 7-8:30

April 12—7th & 8th Ladies sleepover at Harvest Fields. Bring your jammies!

April 25—10th-12th overnight outreach

April 26—6th-9th grade guys cookout. See Mike Gess of Mark Horn for details.

Want to experience God in a new way this Easter? Come visit the Prayer Labyrinth. Good Friday or Saturday, April 18/19.

Tony Campolo's sermon from Mission Fest Vancouver

THE VALUES of Jesus not only call us to respond to the needs of the poor. The values of Jesus call upon us to promote justice. Count them up! You will find that the number of times in the scriptures that justice is mentioned outnumbers the number of times love is mentioned. The word 'righteousness' in the original language is translated best with the word 'justice.'
Right now, we have to face the facts that the Christian church, in its proper zeal to support the state of Israel, has forgotten that there's a group of people called the Palestinians. And unless we stand up and speak for justice on behalf of the Palestinians, we are going to lose the missionary struggle in the next hundred years. It's about time we faced these facts . . .
I know somebody out there is going to come up and lay this on me: "Doesn't it say in the scriptures that whoever blesses Israel will be blessed?" Indeed it does. But you don't bless Israel by equipping them with guns and tanks and planes to suppress the Palestinian people. We need to say that. I know that doesn't go over big -- because we've forgotten that our God is a God of justice, and loves the Palestinians every bit as much as he loves Jews. It's about time we woke up to that fact.
more

Thanks to Jordon for bringing thought-provoking articles to us on a regular basis.

I'm not sure why my pictures aren't showing up.

Little Lion baseball is back
The State High baseball teams get back into action this week against Dubois. You may not know it, but I am one of the varsity coaches. We play Thursday at 4 pm at Community Field. Come out and support us!

Congrats to our Little Lions!
In case you've been living under a rock for the past few days, State High's boys' basketball team defeated the Chester Clippers to claim their first ever AAAA state championship. In one of the most thrilling upsets in AAAA history, the Little Lions out on a display of teamwork and contribution in the clutch, powering them past a Chester team that was quicker and taller. Thank you, gentlemen, for a most entertaining season. Congratulations on your state championship, and on the lessons learned along the ride.

Middle School Sunday School Update
Field Trip tomorrow! We're going to visit the State College Christian Church, which meets at the Easterly Parkway school. We'll gather at the South Building, then walk to Easterly Parkway for the 9:45-11 worship service. On our way back to the South Building we plan to stop at the HiWay Pizza for lunch. Please bring enough money to cover your lunch! If you have any questions, call Stacy at 861-7242 or email me.

Kim Sublett wants your ideas
We're in the final stages of Gotcha!, and Kim wants to know if you have any Survivor type elimination games to help us find a winner. It was sort of fun watching the Six Survivors racing to finish their puzzles, then the Four fighting to find the raisins. Pictures will be up soon! Congrats to Katy Nold, Kasey Krupa, and Dan Saxton. May the best person win! Please drop Kim Sublett an email if you have a cool idea for the final showdown.

XStream changes, at least schedule wise
XStream Big Wednesday
*NOTE CHANGES*
3:30 Doors open for snacks, Homework room, video games, ping-pong, foosball, etc.
5:00 Bible studies, Worship Team practice
6:15 Dinner
7:00 HS teaching in Worship Room/MS Plunge Groups
7:40 All together for worship
8:20 HS Plunge Groups/MS teaching in Worship Room
9:00 Dismiss

XStream Daylight Savings Time
We’ve noticed a few things lately. First, we’re always rushed to get to all the things we believe we need to do on a Wednesday night. From teaching to worship to small groups—we’re always pushed for time. Second, students (for the most part) seem to be hanging around until 9 o’clock. We would like to extend our XStream meeting time by a half hour, starting April 16th. That would mean we run from 7-9 pm each Wednesday. That’s the way we met last year, and we believe that an additional half hour will give us the freedom to dig a little deeper, worship a little longer, and spend more time exploring what God is doing. We appreciate your support, and if you have feedback, questions, or comments, please let me know! Stac

The Prayer Labyrinth
Looking to meet God in a new/ancient way? We will be offering you the opportunity to come walk/pray/meditate through a labyrinth at Calvary’s church building during the Easter weekend. The labyrinth will be open Good Friday from 6-10 p.m. and Saturday 9 a.m.-10 p.m. It is a guided time of prayer that will take you on a spiritual journey. Participants should expect to spend at least an hour in the labyrinth. We will provide you with all materials you need for this experience. Come share the sights, sounds, smells, and tactile experiences that so many have found to be a place to meet God—the Prayer Labyrinth.

XStream Announcements for March 19, 2003
March 23—Middle School girls (and anyone else who wants to come—this is America, you know) ice skating. 1-3 pm $5.50

March 28-29: 6-9th guys roller hockey/games/sleepover here in State College. Invite a friend to come hang out and get to know us!

April 2—Metro Worship at Calvary. We'll be out prayerwalking, so bring your prayer/running shoes!

April 12—7th & 8th Ladies sleepover at Harvest Fields. Bring your jammies!

April 25—The 10th-12th students have planned an overnight event designed to reach out to their friends...more details to follow.

Want to experience God in a new way this Easter? Come visit the Prayer Labyrinth. Good Friday or Saturday, April 18/19.

Do you mind if I wave the flag of family patriotism?
My brother-in-law, Joe Montgomery (an original Team XStreamer), is in Wichita Falls, TX, learning how to fly fighter jets for the United States Air Force. I come from a military family. I am the first Sublett child to miss military service of some kind. I wanted to attend the United States Air Force Academy, but couldn't because of my allergies. I am proud of Joe. I pray for him and his fellow airmen, and the countless other military service personnel who are putting their lives on the line. I love our country, and I am fiercely proud of our military. Theirs is not an easy job. Regardless of your view of the potential for war and our country’s political environment, please pray for the people who will be put in harm’s way should war begin. Pray for the families who will send sons and daughters, moms and dads off to serve. Please support the men and women who serve this country, even if you do not support the political decisions.

Pray for our President, for our governmental leaders, for the leaders of the world. Pray for wisdom, for peace, for courage, for integrity, for humility. War is not desirable; neither is terror and tyranny. Pray that the voice of God will be heard, that peace will prevail, and that humanity will learn from this time of trial.

Forehead vs. Nose
The weirdest thing happened yesterday. We were waiting for Team XStream to show up for our monthly meeting. I was holding Sadie over my head, holding her with my hands just above her knees. When I let her down, she bent forward at the waist. Her forehead struck the bridge of my nose. I heard the crunch, then felt that warm flow...broken nose! Ouch. Sadie and I both got ice for our boo-boos. We're feeling ok today. Last time I broke my nose, I got 2 black eyes. Nothing black or blue this time, thankfully.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day
In the mood of the day, here is a a traditional prayer, first found in Thomas Cahill's How The Irish Saved Civilization.
This prayer is often called "St. Patrick's Breastplate" because of those parts of it which seek God's protection. It is also sometimes called "The Deer's Cry."

Caving this Saturday
We are headed to Bear Cave, near Derry, PA, for a day of caving. Here are the details:

*Meet at Calvary's parking lot at 9 a.m. We'll shoot to be home at 9 p.m.
*Bring a bag lunch and money for food on the way home (McDonalds or Subway).
*Water bottle
*Please bring $3 for gas.
*Wear your caving clothing on the way down. It's 52 degrees in the cave, so wear long pants and long sleeves. Boots are recommended.
*Bring a plastic garbage bag to carry your dirty clothes home.
*SInce you won't be wearing your dirty clothes home, make sure you have a complete change of clothing--COMPLETE! Don't forget the shoes and skivvies!
*Mandatory: 2 light sources. New batteries. No exceptions. A headlamp is great, but we can tape a flashlight to your helmet.
*Permission slip

We have helmets for you, and we have good maps. When we lived in Derry, this cave was oneof our hangouts. I've spent more than 100 hours in this cave. I'm excited. This is the first adventure I've had since my knee surgery. Wahoo!

Andy Mylin and some students from the CMA church are joining us. Andy and I are both Wilderness First Aid certified, and we will have our first aid kit handy. This is, however, the cave that all the local (Western PA) summer camps (Summer's Best 2 Weeks, Camp Allegheny, Ligonier Camp and Conference Center) use for their students. It is an ideal beginner's cave. There is a 30 minute hike to the cave from the parking lot. The van is full, but I will put your name on the waiting list if you email me saying that you'd like to go.

Here's my list of who's going:
Dan Saxton, James Hall, Mike Kajak, Melissa Ghaner, Rebecca Bodwell, Chad Ebersole, Ana Marks, Jason Miller, Christian Horn, and Daniel Philips. Please email me if you aren't going!

Looking for a cool distraction?
Andrew Petersen's website has an online version of Pass the Pigs. Check it out. But limit your time playing--you have work to do!

Lip Balm Addiction at an All Time High?
Can it be true? I know I like my carmex...Sam Montgomery warned me years ago of this oncoming evil!

Why Worship?
I read a good article tonight, and thought you might want to check it out.

...when we taste God’s goodness, our natural response is worship. Read more here.

more thoughts from Isaiah
I know we're still weeks away from Easter, but I was blown away this morning. Isaiah 53 packs a wallop. Be ready to spend some time here. Don't rush through this just because it's familiar territory. Stop to honestly think—meditate on the sacrifice of Jesus...

Jesus—the sinless one—suffers for the sins of many.
Jesus—the Life—dies a horrible death, in shame and disgrace.
Jesus—the Creator—crushed and caused to suffer.
Jesus—the Voice—silent before his accusers
Jesus—the Righteous—oppressed and judged
Jesus—the Author and Perfector of our faith—assigned a grave with the wicked.
Jesus—the faithful—betrayed and deserted.
Jesus—the lamb, cut off from the living—raised to see the light of life.
Jesus—the servant—given a portion among the great.

Incredible. Amazing. Almost too good to be true, yet there it is. More of the seemingly counter-intuitive ways of God. I am constantly reminded that His is an upside-down kingdom, where greatness is found not in power or gathering wealth, but in serving others. True life is found in the release of the reins, where joy and peace are found in the most obscure places—outside of myself.

More and more I am aware that God is so deep. I want to dive into him, to know him more, to be so in love with him that I am remade from the inside out.