he 8th annual CHAOS Dinner Theater will take place on Saturday March 15 at 6 p.m. at Trinity Lutheran Church followed by an encore performance on Sunday, March 16 at 4 p.m. at Trinity Lutheran Church.
This year’s show title is “The Truth about Youth.”
Many people tend to think of today’s youth as the leaders of tomorrow. However, scripture never places youth in such a category. It never instructs youth to wait until they are more mature or knowledgeable until they begin to consider what plans and purposes the Lord has their lives. According to God’s word, youth are to be leaders today who passionately desire to honor and serve the Lord. Paul told Timothy, a younger man in the faith,”Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity” (1 Tim. 4:12). God specifically commands young people to be leaders — to lead by example. Youth are to understand God’s instructions and let the world watch them grow their spiritual walk with the Lord.
As a youth minister, I am burdened for the church in the days ahead. I am burdened for today’s youth who must not only strive to live exemplary lives right now but who will one day attempt to serve as faithful leaders within the church. I am burdened because it is not getting any easier to live in this world. I am burdened because young Christians today often fail to understand that God desires to have a close, intimate relationship with them right now, a relationship that only comes about when we obey the Scriptures. Sadly, many young people often feel as though God will only use them or speak to them through His Word when they grow older. Yet this is certainly not true!
Despite the mixed signals and poor examples pop culture often set for this generation, there are young people that are very much alive in their faith and working hard to live out their faith. As a youth group, we asked ourselves this question — are we measuring up to what God wants us to be? Are we just following the crowd? Or, do we stand out as those who desire to be faithful and holy despite the hypocrisy and compromise all around us? With that, CHAOS students started pouring their time, heart and talents into preparing real life examples of God’s truth to our perspective audience. Our group was in agreement that we wanted to send out a positive message from the youth of today, one that shares God’s love, forgiveness and grace.
Throughout the show you will see many different Christian arts and drama including music, dance, black light drama, monologues and comedy. Several students will be sharing personal confessions of struggles in their own life as an attempt to reach out to someone who may be faced with the same issues. The high school youth will perform a skit titled “You Are More” featuring Kolby Fisher a sophomore from Trinity Lutheran Church. Kolby wrote the scenes based on her on her life experiences and her own faith. Rebecca Clark, an eighth-grader from Trinity Lutheran Church, choreographed her own dance solo to the song “Roar” for the opening of our show. Middle school students will perform a comedy skit called “Sin Chair” that displays a comedic interpretation of how sin can follow you featuring Sollei Bassinger a sixth-grader from Mt. Moriah Lutheran Church. An entertaining montage of music will also have you dancing in your seat while enjoying the sounds of many different generations of music. Students also made a music video titled “Voices” that expresses the love and appreciation they share for their family.
We hope to leave our audience with a feeling of hope for not only today but the future. A hope that can only be found through Christ. Our goal is to share the truth of God’s presence in our own lives and the desire we have for generations to come.
Each student in our youth ministry has used their talents and personal experiences to put together a show that we hope will speak to the hearts of our audience. My students inspire me each year at the way they incorporate so much heart and sincerity into the show. It is beyond rewarding to watch them grow in their spiritual life, connect in the church and share their faith in such unique ways.
CHAOS performs at a number of church and community events throughout the year. If you are interested in having CHAOS at your event, please contact Candice Carter at sryouthdirector@yahoo.com.
Dinner will include baked spaghetti, salad, bread, drink and dessert. Tickets are $10 for adults, $6 for children 10 and under, 3 and under are free. Tickets are paid for at the door but reservations are required for the show on March 15 and we are very close to capacity. If you would like to make a reservation or be placed on a waiting list for cancellations, please email reserveCHAOS@gmail.com
For those who can’t get tickets or are unable to attend the March 15 show, an encore performance of the show will be performed on Sunday, March 16 at 4 p.m., Trinity Lutheran Church, 108 West Rice St. Landis. No reservation or tickets required. A $5 suggested donation will be graciously accepted for the CHAOS Youth summer mission trip. This is a wonderful event for church youth groups and anyone who would like to join us. All proceeds from this event will help support our summer mission trip to Braxton County, West Virginia, where we will help with home repairs for the elderly and families in need
The South Rowan Lutheran Youth is a joint youth ministry of Lutheran Chapel, St. Enoch Lutheran Church, Mt. Moriah Evangelical Lutheran Church and Trinity Lutheran Church in the South Rowan area. Middle and high school youth from all four churches participate and they go by the name CHAOS Youth, which stands for Christians Hyped about Our Savior. Candice Carter has served as the full time youth director for the group since 2004.