Niverfolk Music Festival

well...in a few weeks we have a local music festival coming. i (mark) am putting this festival on with help of my band (guerrilla warfare) and a few other local bands.

this is NOT actually a youth event.

this is NOT actually a christian event.

say what?????

here's the deal...

we're bringing together 5 - 10 different young adult bands, mostly non-christian (of which most have some christian upbringing). a christian event would not accurately depict such a festival, and with this definition we as believers can subversively minister to our community. through the means of music we fellowship, encourage, and pray for others, reaching and speaking into their spheres and passions, rather than making a christian event that they'll forget about the instant they hear about it (just like the christian event going on at the forks on the exact day of this niverville festival).

it's something tailored to niverville.

something tailored to the music-lover's soul.

please pray that bridges will be built between the church and the strays.

the crazy sunday part 3: WHEELS IN THE HEELS

okay, so this "event" was a little unorthodox.

with a few random connections, we ended up facilitating the filming of a professional commercial. it was for a shoe company called "heelys" who makes shoes with wheels in the heels so people can choose to either walk or glide.


anyway...what i wanted to share was that this was a great opportunity to get the youth in our town excited and involved, as well as a great opportunity for us staff to host it and NOT run the show.



not running the show means we did not have to run around like chickens with their heads cut off, but instead help out where needed and really just hang out and connect with all the young people popping by. there were about 50 people who stopped by over the course of the evening, acting, skateboarding, cheering, or just curious about what was happening in little ol' niverville!


i left at 1 am, filming was still going on. but my day began at 6 am and this sunday had been crazy enough.

crazy good, that is.

a HUGE blessing on all fronts.

here's some more pics of this epic event!

the crazy sunday part 2: HEART & DEDICATION

So in honour of our fabulous, hard-working, sacrificial, and fun-loving VOLUNTEERS...we headed out to St. Malo Beach for a great BBQ. Our volunteers are given the month of August off, as we give our evening Drop-In programs a rest...as well as the volunteers! We've been blessed over the last few years to have such a dedicated group of young adults helping us out, and though sometimes we're a little low on numbers, heart and dedication can go much further than mere numbers. We're excited about what God is doing with this heart and dedication...and where He is leading us.

Props to all you amazing people who help us out week in and week out!!

Here's some pics to represent this heart & dedication!

Preparing the great food (made by guys?) right next to the lake.

Kevin likes food.

Grillmaster David working his magic

mmmmmanitba pork!

look who shows up...daddy McMahon! along with his "manly" hat.

the crowds gather around the newborn McMahon...Elsa!

Elsa and the dudes.

What's a party at the beach without a little badminton?

the volunteers giving it to the staff...ouch!

Kristen can hardly handle the pressure of the badminton intensity. And..here's Melissa Sawatzky...who we honoured as she is moving on to a YWAM bible school, and leaving her volunteer post of a good 5 years or so! You will be missed dearly, Melissa!

And here's Kevin Falk...YFC's trooper volunteer of 13 or 14 years already!!! Kevin is also moving on from his post, and so we honoured him as well for such true heart and dedication. We've all been blessed by your involvement, Kevin!!

the crazy sunday part 1: HE WILL RISE UP

so here's a snipit of the update i gave at maranatha on sunday:

"So just the other day I found myself frustrated and complaining a bit because of rejections i've received on availability of accommodations in town. My wife and I have been homeless for a few months now, for we left our rental house in May because our stable income had gone up in flames along with the Bakery. So we decided to attend a friend's wedding in Germany and come home to the unknown. With no home thus far, I've been waiting, and waiting...and waiting. Now in my miserable (rather pathetic), complaining state, God, by His great mercy, shared something with me.

"the LORD longs to be gracious to you;
therefore He will rise up to show you compassion.
For the LORD is a God of justice.
Blessed are all who wait for Him!"
-Isaiah 30:18

I share this not only as a personal update, but it struck me that this message also pertains to us in the drop-in ministry. We as YFC workers constantly feel a tension between striving to make ministry happen, and letting God do His thing. But the question remains, what do we do when we wait? (well i could go into a whole sermon, but i won't).

Well there is another feeling of tension that I would define as busy striving vs lazy waiting. Instead of one right and one wrong, this tension is a pendulum swing of wrong thinking and action. We're caught somewhere in the middle, letting His plans happen while being proactive to what He's calling us to do. In this process we must remember that God is in our corner, He wants the best for us and He is RISING UP to show us compassion. We are blessed when we wait on Him.

So I do want to say that... God is on the move here in this town!
His Spirit is stirring, and we all have a continual decision to join Him where He's at.
This looks different for each one of us.
At YFC...we're in a process of God's vision for niverville super-ceding some generic youth ministry model or YFC goal.
We believe in taking time to work together, and that working together takes time.
No overnight solutions as we wait.
This is a birthing process, we are careful not to deliver prematurely...but then again being way overdue is not so good either, as Eric and his wife know all too well (just gave birth to their first baby, Elsa...2 weeks overdue!).

We've all had our share of hard times...but go back to Isaiah 30:18!!! We ALL really have to understand the very heart of God when we're trusting Him, waiting on Him, and relying on Him, or we're doomed to become bitter, complaining children who completely miss the joy of His glorious inheritance!"

- mark von riesen

the crazy sunday preamble

well sunday, the 7th, has come and gone...and it was quite the day to report on (to say the least!). my day started at 6am, getting up with enough time to go over what i was going to share with my church @ maranatha that morning, as well as making it to the worship team practice before the service started.

right after the service i had made arrangements with all of our volunteers to meet up with us and head to st. malo beach for our summer volunteer wind up. we spent the afternoon in the hot sun, sharing food and fellowship...and badminton.

soon after this, gordon and myself headed to our headquarters to host the filming of an internet commercial campaign by a shoe/rollerskate company called heelys. they used local teenagers and our skatepark to film, and after many takes, a few stints of rain, and over 50 teens coming by, it was 12:30 am and time for me to head home. gordon (the single guy) stayed until the bitter end, when the filmers finally packed up in the middle of the night...and he crashed on a couch at the drop-in.

anyway, that's the preamble to our crazy sunday. details will follow...soon!

-mark

'twas a night to remember

well well well...the month of august has come.
for us at YFC, this is significant...for it is the only month of the year that we put our Drop-In evening programs to rest.
why, you ask?
well...here's a reminder: we give our volunteers a summer break, we give ourselves as staff a bit of space to plan for the new season coming up, and august happens to traditionally be a slow month in niverville for young people to be available.
now, having a month off would be nice...but the skatepark happens to be frequented on a DAILY BASIS, keeping us quite busy throughout every summer. this summer will be no exception, we are very sure. so we covet your prayers in having an impact with the kids we come in contact with, as well as the time to get out and connect with hurting youth who don't come to the centre on their own initiative...AND the ability to have time to think, pray, and plan for the upcoming year. thanks.

on another note...we just had our summer wrap up party! it was an amazing night, filled with great food, many youth and volunteers, meaningful connections, fun games, and AMAZING fireworks to cap the night (and summer drop-in evenings) off!!!

fellowship around the "communal counter"

skatepark being used...as per usual

card games attract the competitors

time to head outside...with everyone's anticipation for the fireworks, we had everyone's attention and were able to share our hearts very candidly about why we do what we do with the drop-in. God has greatly impacted each one of us youth workers and given us a BIG LOVE for each young person we meet...and He is ready and willing to pass it on to each of them.

the message is hitting home...we hope!

ooooo.....ahhhhh

absolutely blown away

the excitement is contagious...'twas a night to remember!