Application Interviews for 2007 begin

We're starting the interviews for new students in both the Diploma and Year 13 courses tomorrow.

All you graduates and students reading, think back to the terror you felt when you turned up to College, all nicely dressed, desperate to impress the intimidating faculty ... spare a thought for the new applicants and pray that they'd be relaxed for the interviews.

Pray that we'll be able to understand each other well and that the Lord would help us make wise decisions regarding who to accept.

For anyone still thinking about applying, you might want to get a move on! Apply before Thursday and we may be able to interview you on Saturday. There are still places open, and second round of interviews will be held in mid January - apply now to guarantee an interview.

Open Day this Saturday

For anyone interested in having a look at Youthworks College - and for anyone thinking of who they should send to Youthworks College, this Saturday is for you!

The Open Day starts at 9:30 and goes through to 2:00pm. There are a number of different information sessions for you to drop in on - hear what College life is like from students and staff. There's a free lunch provided at 12:45pm.

Contact the College office (8268 3367) for more details

The Ranch

I often get asked, so here's the answer: this is what I get up to when students aren't around -
Building Burgers in Camden!

Teen Ranch has opened a Burger Shop called 'The Ranch' (5 Oxley St Camden, between the new age shop and the hairdressers) and I spent the lunch hour rush working alongside Graham Poole (aka 'Dr Poole', husband of graduate Linda Poole (YWC 2000), aka 'Mum') making burgers. Which made me realise how relaxed and stress free running a Bible College is in comparison!

The aim behind The Ranch (in my understanding - which Pooley might want to correct) is to have a missional presence in the community and a context for teaching and modelling whole of life discipleship. The shop is staffed by Teen Ranch staff - Cert III trainees as well as senior leadership - with the challenge that if you can work out how knowing Jesus makes a difference to how you flip burgers then you'll learn a lot about how knowing Jesus makes a difference to every part of your life (and I guess the flip-side, if knowing Jesus doesn't make any difference to how you flip burgers then does he make any difference at all?). At the same time there's the opportunity and challenge to connect with the regular Aussie hamburger buyer who will come into a burger shop but not into a church.

At another meeting yesterday someone told the story of how the Mormons were forbidden from having a presence on a university campus in Chicago, so they bought a shop directly opposite the entrance of the uni with the aim of making this the cheapest and best place to get food and drinks for all the uni students - and as a result Mormonism boomed in that community.

So what does it all mean? (... I can feel a critical reflection coming on ...) Is the sort of thing the Ranch is doing an evangelistic strategy? Is it a ministry supporting business venture (it's a business that makes money!)? Is it a ministry training ground? Or better, it's all three, or rather, it's life - the full life, whole life, doing everything to the glory of God: connecting with others, being involved in the community, modeling discipleship, learning discipleship. It speaks to me of having an idea and giving it a go; of making decisions shaped by the Kingdom rather than shaping our view of (and involvement in) the Kingdom by our decisions.

And if the College ever goes under I can add 'experience in the fast food industry' to my CV.

Table Tennis Champion 2006

At least those from previous years' Tuesday-Wednesday class will be interested to hear that this year's table tennis champion is Andrew Spalding. It came down to a three way round robin for the championship between Kiel, Spaldo and the Dean.
I thought it would be best to let the students win, so they don't get too sad ;-)