Merge Student Ministries

For a complete look at Merge Student Ministries and to listen to our messages on podcast, check out www.iheartmerge.com.

Our Vision

The vision of our student ministry is simple: “build students that change the lives of other students.”  We aim to provide junior high and senior high students with all of the environments and tools necessary to become a fully devoted follower of Christ.

 Our goal is for students to take ownership of their faith and to grow in their relationship with Christ to the point where they are willing and ready to reinvest their faith into the life of another student.  In the earliest church, every person felt compelled to take the Gospel with them wherever they went or lived; our desire is that Merge Student Ministries produces students that live defined by the Gospel.

 Our ministry strategy and structure is kept simple on purpose.  We provide three major environments for students: MERGE, T.R.I.B.E.S., and DifferenceMakers.  We aim to keep it simple so that we can maximize the effectiveness of each.

Merge Youth Experience

Merge is our weekly worship gathering for students. At Merge, our goal is to move you beyond simply HEARING about how great God is to EXPERIENCING how great God is. Merge is a great place for a student to begin in our ministry.  We will not make any student uncomfortable and welcome students who aren’t sure about this whole “church thing.” From our live band and moving lights to our use of cutting edge media and understandable messages, Merge is a truly life-changing experience. Give Merge a shot and see what happens. We believe you will want to come back and be a part of Merge in the future. Merge is available for all students grades 7-12.  This is a multi-generational experience like none other.  Don’t just hear about God………  Experience God! Every Wednesday at 6:30 in the youth worship center.

At Merge, teaching students the Bible is our passion.  We believe the Bible is relevant to the life of every student, and we aim to teach in a way that points that out.  Typically, our messages are taught from within a series that we believe will engage students and give them the Biblical foundation they need.

Each semester we do 3 types of series: Truth Central, Expository, and Discovery.

Tribes Small Group Ministry

Students can connect to God and other students by exploring the Bible together in our weekly Tribes.  In Tribes, students are offered a safe, non-threatening place to ask questions, share struggles, and learn Truth. This is the next step for a student who has attended Merge and is looking to connect farther.

Tribes are set-up to go along with what students are learning at Merge.  In addition, to taking the teaching from Merge one step farther, students are also allowed an opportunity to ask questions, share stories, and have engaging discussion about the topic at hand or anything else that God is stirring in their hearts.

Also, Tribes give students the opportunity to connect with an adult and other students that will love them.  Tribes are a place that help us make sure that students are not falling through the cracks and that somebody will miss them when they are gone.

Tribes are at 9am on Sundays in the Senior High and Junior High areas.

Tribes are separated between our Junior High Ministry and our Senior High Ministry.  Also, students are broken down within each ministry by gender (guys are with guys and girls are with girls).  This helps make sure that the teaching and discussion is relevant and applicable for every student

Teach life-changing Truth creatively and practically.

Reach out to hurting and un-churched students.

Involve students with specific responsibilities.

Bond students with each other and yourself.

Engage students in discussion and thought.

Safe environment provided for hurting, seeking, and growing students.

DifferenceMakers

DifferenceMakers is a discipleship/leadership class on Sunday evenings. In this class, we meet weekly to read books together, discuss our quiet times, and develop leadership skills. The students who participate in this class will participate in the decision-making of the student ministry and help develop a strategy for reaching their friends.

These students are also invited to take part in our yearly mission trip/leadership camp Cultivate.  This year’s Cultivate is to Worcester, MA.

DifferenceMakers meet at two different times.  The Junior High DifferenceMakers meet at 4:30 on Sunday afternoons.  The Senior High DifferenceMakers grab some fast-food and head to the senior high common ground room for their discussion.

The following are examples of some of the books that have been covered in the past: A Call to Die, Crazy Love, Do Hard Things, Max Q, Help! I’m a Student Leader, and the Book of Romans.