I recently read an article in Group magazine that was an interview with Jon Foremen, the frontman for Switchfoot. I

thought you guys would enjoy reading some of it, so here it is:

Interviewer: What role has music had in forming your identity as a follower of Christ?

Foreman: Music has been an integral part of

my life ever since I can remember. When I was a kid I just loved the way that it felt to listen to music. As a kid at Disneyland I would literally follow behind the marching band. My parents had to chase me down

one time-they didn't know where I was. I thought I was part of the band. So music has had a deep impact on me. I discovered Led Zeppelin in junior high and decided that, as fun as my piano lessons were, I was ready

for electric guitar. Then, as you begin to write more and more songs through junior high and high school, they began to be a little

more introspect ive-maybe the song becomes a vehicle to discuss things you otherwise couldn't talk about. And that's

where I am at today,using the transcendence of music to be more honest than I would be in a conversation. I would say I write songs about the things I don't understand, and the biggest mysteries to me are probably

women, deity, and politics.

Interviewer: In "Vice Verses" there's the lyric: "Every blessing comes with a set of curses." What do you mean by that?

Foreman: I mean, your weakness is your

strength and your strength is your weakness. You know, a kid grows up in a family with a lot of cash, and suddenly that becomes his curse as well as his blessing. Another kid, maybe across the border in Tijuana, has

nothing and he has everything. [Some of those kids] have a hope and a joy that a spoiled rich kid north of the border can't

possess, you know? That analogy plays out in other ways-a girl who's incredibly good-looking will be cursed with that all her life

unless she learns there's more to her life. When I look at culture, I see we have so many gifts given to us that allow us to be lazy. I've heard it said that any culture that makes ease its goal has already begun its

demise-I can't think of any nation where this would more relevant that my own. The United States has become the culture of comfort. Growth, strength, and beauty are not things that come from comfort. They are

refined qualities that are brought to the surface often by pain or trial.

Interviewer: A couple of songs on the new album are about wasting our lives now while we wait for the hereafter. What's the

difference between a '"wasted" life and an un-wasted one?

(continued on the following page)

All things concerning MYC

this month. Get connected.CONNECT

December 2011

AN INTERVIEW WITH JON FOREMAN

“It's the simple, humble kid who's faithful and attentive to the Holy Spirit--that's where it begins.”

Foreman: Knowing yourself and knowing your maker are two true and good goals that are often put aside for pleasure or

distraction. And we have so many distractions...

Interviewer: You have a song on your new album called "Restless"-that's a perfect description of teenagers today. What do you

think is good and bad about restlessness?

Foreman: I think to be discontent with a world that is wrong is actual ly the appropriate response-to feel uncomfortable with the way that the poor are treated or with

the racism that still exists in our country or with your own spiritual hunger. These are discomforts that can move you toward the truth. You know, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they

will be filled." I think the Beatitudes, especially the early ones, speak of a restlessness and yearning for a world we've never known.

Firestone: If you could go back and tell your

16-year-old self one thing, what would it be?

Foreman: In terms of the mysteries of life, don't worry as much about politics or girls.

Firestone: To use a word that you've admitted to stealing, how can we "re-

appropriate" what it means to be church in this hurting world?

Foreman: This starts with the humility of knowing that we can do nothing on our own. And it doesn't matter if you've got a camera

pointed at you or a microphone-none of these things are the living embodiment of Christ on this planet. It's the simple, humble kid who's faithful and attentive to the Holy Spirit--that's where it begins. All of us,

myself included, have a tendency to be caught up in hype. But the Gospel is about being humble to the point where you're willing to pick up your cross and daily pursue a communion with this gracious God who

loves the world. He loves us so much that he gives of himself for us to consume.

Switchfoot Music So I thought you might be interested to know that Switchfoot has a new CD out, Vice Verses. Maybe it’s something you might put on your Christmas list. If you are more inclined to something acoustic, you might

check out Jon Foreman’s solo offering, Limbs and Branches.

Christmas Party Gifts As is our tradition (and one of my favorite MYC traditions, I might add), we will be adopting a family for Christmas. This is a family who could not afford Christmas gifts on their own, so we are going to make sure

that their tree is full. And we do it completely anonymously, so that only God can get the glory.

Here’s how things work. There will be a Christmas tree in the youth room with gifts

on it for each of the members of the family. Pick one off the tree, go out and buy the gift, and bring it with you to the Christmas party. We will wrap the gifts together and then deliver the Santa sack full of gifts to their

doorstep that night. Gifts should cost $10-$15.

Winter Retreat Fall Retreat is Winter Retreat this year, appropriately since the dates of the retreat are January 13-15. The details are coming together. We will be joining our friends from Boulevard again this year. Lane

Moss is our guest speaker. And most importantly the theme is The Feast. We will be spending the weekend feasting on God--the richest and truest of food. Sign-up

details will be in the mail to you shortly.

Believe MIddle Schoolers, I’ve got something just for you--Believe. Believe is a weekend conference designed specifically for Middle School students. Filled with teaching, worshipping, and group time, it is an

experience that will draw you closer to God and the others in the youth group.

This year, Believe is in Tulsa on February 3-4. If you want to learn more about the conference, you can check out details online

at www.ciy.com/believe. Be on the lookout for a mailing from Nathan with information on how to sign up. The cost is $65 if you sign-

up by the earlybird deadline of December 28. After that the cost goes up $10.

There are also two spots for High

Schoolers on this trip--one guy, one girl. If you are a Believe veteran and would like to go along as a leader, please submit a one page letter to Nathan explaining why you want to go.

Camp Barnabas   Here’s the update on where we are at

with Camp Barnabas. We are still waiting to hear back from Camp Barnabas concerning our group’s registration. If they place us with our first choice, we will be headed back to

Purdy, MO the last week of June, 2012. But that hasn’t been confirmed yet, neither has the number of spots we will have to fill. Just as soon as I hear back from Camp Barnabas, we will start the application

process on our end.

Kiva Money   Remember the money that you raised

during the summer of 2010 that we used to give micro loans to entrepreneurs around the world

through Kiva? Well, a lot of those loans have been repaid and there is some money in our account that we can give away again--$2,766.43 to be exact. That’s enough for 110

more loans. So, on an upcoming Wednesday night, we will get the

details together and you will have the opportunity to pick new entrepreneurs to lend to.

Harrison’s Wedding   It’s (Facebook) official, Harrison has a

girlfriend. And she is about to be his wife. By the time your next Connect arrives in your mailbox, Harrison will be a married man. Go to their wedding website to check out all of

the details. And you can leave them an encouraging note on their guestbook. harrisonandkelly.ourwedding.com

“RememberThis December,

That love weighs more than gold!”

~Josephine Dodge Daskam Bacon

This Month’s BirthdaysDecember 5 - Amysha Trammell

December 25 - Jesus

“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

- John 1:14

2 3 1 2SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY

29 30282726

109876

25

42 31

5171615141311 12242322212018 1931

Christmas Party

Cell Group

No Cell Group

No Cell GroupChristmas Day

A Few Decorating

Ideas

Parent Meeting

Irving Xmas Dinner

Harrison’s Wedding

ON THE CALENDAR IN DECEMBERAll MYC Cell GroupWednesdays, 6:30p at MCC Not a lot going on for Cell Group this month. We will meet like we usually do the

first Wednesday of December. Most likely we will spend our time talking about Kiva and worshipping together. The second Wednesday is the Christmas Party. Then we will not meet on Wednesdays during the

holiday break.

Drama Productions Some MYCers are involved in drama

productions this month. Wanted to let you know about them. Try to make it out and support one another. Check with those

involved about the when, where and how much details.

Honk!, December 1-4 Morgan Lindsay and Ashley Stewart are involved in Honk!, a retelling of the story of the ugly duckling. It shows at the Muskogee

Little Theater the first weekend of the month.

Spoon River Anthology, December 9-10 The second weekend of December holds performances of The Spoon River Anthology, featuring Morgan Lindsay and David Carducci. This show will be held at the Muskogee Teen Center. Saturday’s show

includes dinner catered by Ginos, if you choose to come early and pay a little more cash.

Parent MeetingDecember 11, 12:00p at MCC Our next Parent Meeting of the school year is December 11. Make plans to stick around after class and share a meal together. Lunch will be provided--the cost will be $3 per person.

Christmas PartyDecember 14, 6:00-9:00 at the Smith’s

This year’s Christmas Party will be

hosted by the Sheldon and Bailey’s house.

There will be good food to eat and some games to play--always entertaining. But most importantly, we will once again be

giving to an anonymous adopted family. Check out the previous page for details about the gifts. The Christmas Party is always a wonderful outpouring of love and a great thing to share in with each other.

ChristmasDecember 25 You know that Chr istmas is on December 25. You know that we celebrate Jesus’ birth on Christmas. You know that we

put gifts under a Christmas tree, even if you don’t know why we have that tradition. You know that Santa Clause is not real. But have you seen this YouTube video:www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8gmARGvPlI

(You might even be the lucky 10,000,000th viewer. There were 9,958,863 views on December 1.)

MYC3206 N. York St.Muskogee, OK 74403

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