By Vanessa Nichol
EDMONTON, Alberta, Canada -- Twelve youths, ages 9 to 17, decided to get together to learn more about Jesus Christ.
They formed a youth group named The Circle of Friends after the song by the Christian band Point of Grace. After some research, the 12, along with their parents, decided to try the Alpha youth program.
The Alpha course originated in London, England, at Holy Trinity Brompton, and is used widely by churches in North America and around the world. Adults and youths, Christians and non-Christians alike, use the course. The Alpha youth program offers a creative and interesting approach for young people to learn the good news of Jesus Christ.
The course had 14 sessions. Some of the topics covered were Who Is Jesus?, Why Did Jesus Die?, Why and How Should I Read the Bible?, Why and How Do I Pray?, How Does God Guide Us?, Does God Heal People Today?, and Making the Most of My Life!
Each was given an Alpha youth manual (for ages 9 to 14 the middle school manual, and for ages 15 to18 the high school manual). Each person was expected to study his or her manual each week to prepare for the coming session.
The group leader, Irene Nichol, had a reward system for those who did the work at home for each week's session. After four or five weeks, every member did the prep work so the reward system was no longer needed.
At the start, some weren't sure what to expect from the Alpha youth program.
Devin Schafers said: "At first I felt edgy about it. I thought that it was going to be boring, but as we went further into the program, it became lots and lots of fun."
Tamara Nichol said this about the program: "I went into it thinking I was just going to have fun with my friends, but after a while I realized I was having fun getting closer to God and I was thinking more about things." Tamara has been through the Alpha course twice now, the second time as a junior leader.
A visiting friend, Joanne Kunstek, commented, "Before we arrived at Alpha, I thought that it was going to be a bunch of people sitting around reading a Bible, but I was surprised to find that it was tons of fun, and not boring at all!"
Sara Bowes said that she loved the games, while others loved the singing. All in all, the youths enjoyed getting together with friends and getting closer to God.
The program finished Sept. 1 with a barbecue and camp-out, complete with fireworks. Each participant was presented with a certificate to recognize hard work and accomplishment.
The circle of friends has decided to keep the group going. Alpha was the springboard to bring the group together. With the strong friendships that have now been built, they plan to take what they've learned in Alpha and apply it in their daily lives and serve others through the group. They have now started a Christian character building study and have continued to plan for the future.
CIRCLE OF FRIENDS--Top, from left:
Seth Johnson, Vanessa Nichol, Rebecca Johnson
and Kyle Nichol; center: Tamara Nichol, Amy Teague,
Alison Teague, Sara Bowes, Devin Schafers and Andrew
Johnson; bottom: Jilene Schafers, Antoine Vachon and Brandon Nichol.
[Photos by Irene Nichol]
Vanessa Nichol
Copyright © Worldwide Church of God, 2000