SMITHFIELD, Va.—Youth in southeastern Virginia explored through worship and community service what it means to be created in the image of God during Youth EnCounter at Smithfield (Va.) Baptist Church last month.
Craig Morrison challenged youth to live in the “image of God.”
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“Imago Dei” was the theme of the two-day event, one of eight Youth EnCounters held across Virginia this year. YECs are evangelistic and inspirational weekend collaborations of churches, district associations and the emerging leaders team of the Virginia Baptist Mission Board. The Smithfield event was sponsored in part by the Blackwater Baptist Association, a network of about 30 congregations in Suffolk and the surrounding Isle of Wight, Southampton and Surry counties.
“Images are everywhere today trying to grab our attention: billboards on the side of the road, advertisements on television, magazines and the Internet,” said Timothy Lipp, children and youth minister at Smithfield Baptist Church. “We have even created images that the human eye cannot see unassisted by technology. 3D television requires the use of 3D glasses to view the 3D images, and the new iPhone 4S retina display pixel density is so high, the eye is unable to distinguish individual pixels. With all of these images vying for our attention it is easy to “see” why our youth struggle with what it means to live into the imago dei or ‘image of God’ that we were created in.”
Guest speaker at the Smithfield YEC was Craig Morrison, youth minister at Snyder Memorial Baptist Church in Fayetteville, N.C., who told more than 300 participants, “When we see Christ through others, we sometimes think ‘Wow! I want to live like that.’ We don't realize just how much we reflect God in everyday life. And we remember that the world is watching us, are we living in such a way that would make others say ‘I want to live like that.’”
Students helping the local food pantry ministry.
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Other worship leaders were the musical groups More Than Conquerors, Me in Motion, Finding Favour, and Stellar Kart.
“A highlight of the evening was singing together a cappella the song O How He Loves Us, while people prayed for the support of children in Third World countries,” said Lipp. “Decisions were made and lives were changed, but more importantly we were made aware of the presence of God moving in our midst.
Youth spent Saturday morning in mission projects in the area, serving at a food pantry, cleaning the yard of an elderly woman and beautifying the grounds at a rehabilitation center. Additional photos are available on the emerging leaders team’s Facebook page.
A YEC was held earlier this year in Annandale. Upcoming weekends will be held in Roanoke, April 20; Covington, April 22; Onley, Sept. 15; Waterview, Sept. 16; Fredericksburg, Sept. 22; and Dillwyn, Sept. 29.
Robert Dilday ([email protected]) is managing editor of the Religious Herald.