There is something incredibly depressing about reading anything at all in the news.
You hear about fighting, about racism, about anger about war and it does nothing but produce fear!
It’s so easy to get discouraged and start believing that there is no good in the world.
It’s a trick of the enemy, no doubt, because once we start feeling like we are the only ones who are committed to God and who want to serve Him, the less we have the strength to serve.
God designed us to be better together. When we serve together, we give each other strength to keep going.
Surrounding yourself with other believers who are serious about their faith is what Surge is all about…
2014 was the year we started running this Christian Teen Leadership Conference and I had no idea where it would go from there.
You can read more about our first year and why we started it here.
It was a refreshing and encouraging reminder that there are teenagers and adults who are serious about their faith walk with God!
2015, and 2016 did not go off without some things that threw me off, for sure, but we kept going regardless.
This year, I felt ready for the game.
I felt more prepared than the past years.
We had found a location that we loved and had worked out great the year before, so were thrilled to be able to use this as our location again this year!
There were things that threw me again this year. Disappointments that came right up until the very start of the conference.
BUT. God moved.
And God can move in spite of anything the enemy tries to throw at you. Don’t ever forget that.
I wish I could tell you the feeling of the conference.
The feeling of standing in a room filled with teenagers, ministries, leaders who are there with a desire to grow in their relationship with God.
I wish all of you could have been there, because when you are surrounded with those kind of people, it does something to you.
It challenges you and it changes you.
God’s Word is alive, and His Spirit is moving here in New England in a way that gets me all kinds of excited.
Some of my favorite parts this year were:
*We added another day! Last year was great, but I really wanted a big part of this conference to be the connections made that could last and help support the teens throughout the year. Adding an additional evening made the event perfect…in my opinion. 🙂 It gave the teens the chance to play soccer, games, and just hang out to get to know each other better!
*The amazing worship team who came together and did more than just lead worship.
Their hearts were incredible, they wanted to be a part and their talent was unbelievable. (my boys are still talking about the drummer!!)
*The various ministries we had present at the event, sharing their hearts with the teenagers, and many of them getting involved in the workshops, and meeting and interacting with the teenagers. (TeenPact and Ben Laine did an especially good job interacting with the teenagers!)
*The workshop speakers who were committed, passionate about their topic and willing to be open and available to the teenagers. One of my big desires with this conference from the beginning was to have people of all different ages from the New England area who could come and speak. I think it’s easy to start planning a conference and find “big names” to try and get people to come. I did not want that. I am consistently blown away by the way God can speak through all of us! He doesn’t care what I have for a resume, what I have for a degree…He uses the weak to lead the strong. And that is exactly what I love about Him! The workshop leaders were from all different stages of life, and all had so much to offer.
*The giveaways! Cam, Jeb, Maddy, Ethan and Megan did a great job making everyone laugh, and giving all of us the opportunity to see someone lick their elbow AND eat an entire banana in 1 second flat. (Check out the video Megan put together to see if you can find it!)
*The small groups. We added more small groups this year and it was such a good addition to what we were trying to accomplish. The teenagers really enjoyed this aspect as well!
Here’s what one of our small group leaders said after:
I helped with a small group this year. Some of the girls said they didn’t have a lot of strong Christian friends to stand with them at home, but they also said they’d already made some new friends at Surge! Seeing these kids yearn for Christ and make moves to stand stronger in Him is an awesome thing.
Here are what some of the teens said after:
Surge is an incredibly inspirational conference that helps you grow more in your faith and walk with God. You also get an opportunity to meet dozens of other Christian teens who are all going through similar trials and can relate to whatever you are going through. The leaders are all very excited to be there and are super fun and interactive with amazing stories to tell. I have really enjoyed spending time at Surge and I will definitely be going next year!
Surge 2017 was a blast! It really helped strengthen my walk with Christ in a number of ways including through workshops, small groups, and worship. It was also nice to meet other Christian teens that love the Lord.
This conference was the highlight of my summer! I was so fired up and inspired when I left!! I would totally suggest it to anyone! Can’t wait for next year!
I hope that just by even reading this post, you will be encouraged to see that there are so many around you who are on fire for Jesus!!
This conference gets me so pumped up and encouraged to keep going strong with inspiration from those around me.
When teenagers want to grow? It makes me want to grow!
It’s contagious, and it’s amazing to be a part of.
I already can’t wait for next year!
Rising. Growing. Leading. It’s what we do.
*Special thanks to:
~Ruth Boulter who keeps me sane and helps run everything smoothly.
~Print Mail of Maine for donating our amazing brochures for the event!
~Dominoes Pizza of Dover for donating 10 pizzas!
~New England teenagers for being so incredible and encouraging me in my faith.
~My family for supporting all the crazy ideas I have and for being absolutely amazing in every way.
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