Thank you all for a wonderful year. And a HUGE thank you to each of our wonderful staff, Micah Watson, Tom Toombs, Far From Ordinary, Shaun Groves, and the whole crew. We are excited to announce an amazing lineup and lots of great changes that are sure to make next year even more inspiring, challenging, and just plain fun!

Make sure you Like our Facebook Page to keep up with all of the news and then check out all of the great pictures on our homepage!

The post Thank You! appeared first on The EDGE Student & Leaders Conference.

We have been efforting calling all of our registered group on the phone. If you are a group leader and we have not contacted you yet, we will. Letters and emails are also going out even as I type this update. However, for those of you who have yet to hear the news, here is the scoop.

The Grand Hotel and Convention Center–our venue for the past several years–is no longer in business. The doors have literally been closed. This was a piece of information handed to us in early December and then verified by hotel management around mid-December.

We have been working to remedy our location woes since that time and we are excited to announce that The EDGE 2013 will go on. We have secured a new location and we are certain God has more than met our needs! The new location–the Smoky Shadows Convention Center–is just a few stoplights down the road from The Grand.

Regretfully, we have been forced to modify the daily schedule because it is not a logistical nor physical possibile for us to provide small group sessions such as the scheduled student Bible studies and adult leadership training sessions. There is simply not enough space to do them. Please accept our apologies.

However, we are excited to announce an upgrade in our lodging arrangements and the addition of a continental breakfast at the new hotel provided at no extra charge to the conference. Each of the guest rooms we will use will contain two king beds and breakfast foods will be available to those who want them on both mornings of the conference.

That is the update in a nutshell. Of course, if you have any questions that we failed to answer please contact us. We cannot wait to see you. We are excited about worshiping with you! And we are positive that God has great plans to move in the hearts and lives of your students at this year’s conference.

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Meet Tom Tombs…

Tom began ministering to students when he was still one of them – way back in 1982. And though youth culture has sure changed a lot since then – from cassette tapes to mp3s – audiences are still sucked in by Tom’s humor, entertained by his daring stunts and illusions, and transformed by his stories.

My favorite? Tom’s retelling of Luke 17 – the tale of ten lepers healed…and one who said thanks. Check it out below!

Pray God will use Tom Toombs to inspire and equip students and leaders alike at the Edge in January as He has at countless other events for three decades now.

“Tom Toombs is a mesmerizing presence with youth. His skillful use of humor, pathos, and drama nails truth to heart in a way that is not
easily forgotten. When given multiple presentations, it is fascinating to watch the anticipation build each session. He will be the program
participant everyone talks about.”

-Chuck Kelly president New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary

Get to know Tom better by following him on Twitter and liking him on Facebook.

And hey! October isn’t over yet! So there’s still time to invite other groups to the Edge and win an iPad. Details here.

The post Introducing Tom Toombs: Creative Christian Youth Communicator appeared first on The EDGE Student & Leaders Conference.

Tell Everyone

Tell every youth leader you know about the Edge conference coming up in January. Send them to theedgeconference.com/register to register their group.

Tweet it, Facebook it, email it or phone a friend. Just be sure you tell them about this next part…

Fill In The Blank

Every registration form will ask “How did you hear about The Edge?”. Tell your friends to put your name or your church’s name in that blank so we know who sent them.*

Save Money

Refer a NEW group to the Edge by the end of October and BOTH your group and theirs will receive one free adult registration for every eight students registered.

Win An iPad

For the big mouths overachievers? Refer five NEW groups to the Edge by the end of October and you win an iPad!

*Fine print: To win discount or an iPad, registration forms must be received by us by the end of October. Churches who already attend the conference are not considered new churches. Be specific about your name or your church name so we know who you are. Call us for additional terms, restrictions, or with any additional questions.

Thanks for helping us pack the house in Pigeon Forge. And remember to keep praying daily that God changes the lives of everyone who shows up!

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They look alike. They both play guitar. They both stay busy leading thousands of people each year in worship.

Matt Redman lives in another country. Micah grew up in another country. His parents were missionaries for much of his childhood in Jerusalem.

Micah has traveled to India twice with the International Mission Board. Matt likes Indian food.

Micah will be leading students and leaders in worship at the Edge conference in January. Matt was busy.

Seriously, I’ve never Matt Redman (and I sure hope he has a good sense of humor) but Micah Watson is one of my closest friends. No one makes me laugh harder. And no one knows better that worship is more than singing songs to God – it’s living life with God and for God. For Micah, that sometimes means traveling to far away places to make music and tell other about Jesus. No one is as humble.

It’s rare that musicians are both immensely talented and humble. Micah is both. Jesus said that apart from Him we can do nothing (John 15:5). Micah learned that lesson well on two life-changing trips to Mumbai.

Micah explains in an interview by CommisionStories.com…

Sharing Christ
Micah Watson pauses while filming a music video to share stories about God’s love with curious faces of all ages in the slums of Mumbai.
Photo © 2012 IMB / Rocco Speicher

“God went before us and is behind us working,” he said. “When you go on a trip like this, you’re just becoming a part of what God is already doing. You’re not creating a new thing. We just need to tap into what God is doing.”

Since that first trip, Watson has shared about India at every concert he’s given throughout the southern United States. His song — Your Hands, Your Heart, Your Voice — is the result of a year’s worth of talking about what God is doing in India.

He returned to the Mumbai slums to make the music video. The trip was different this time, however. Even though people stopped and stared, forming a crowd around him. Even though trash covered the streets. Even though dirty children roamed wild. Watson’s heart and voice reached out to every one as he shared the Gospel.

“As overwhelming as it is that there are so many people,” Watson said. “It’s more overwhelming that God knows each one of them.”

Watson said music is the one art form that people can’t ignore. His goal is to use music to stir people’s hearts toward what God’s doing in the world.

“If you can get songs in front of the church that are focused on missions, on what God is doing in the nations,” Watson said, “If you can get that rolling around in people’s heads, then maybe more people would give, go and pray.

“When people hear the song Your Hands, Your Heart, Your Voice, I hope they will stop and realize, ‘Hey, I have to go and be God’s heart and hands. It’s not just a lovely thought for someone else,’” Watson said. “You don’t do your Christian duty at 18 and that’s it. We’re commanded to do it.

“So, let’s do it!”

Get a glimpse of life in India and take a listen to Your Hands, Your Heart by Micah Watson in the video below.

Oh, and one last comparison to Matt Redman. They’re both on iTunes. Load some of Micah’s music on the iPod and listen all the way to Pigeon Forge in January.

Will you commit to pray for Micah in the weeks ahead as he prepares to lead us in song at The Edge?

Haven’t registered for the Edge yet? Click the banner below to get started. See you there!

The post Micah Watson Versus Matt Redman: Youth Worship Songs And Service appeared first on The EDGE Student & Leaders Conference.

For the next thirty minutes we scurried back and forth against a cinder block wall…dodging.

After Ted’s concussion, we took a break to sing a couple songs in a circle around the mustache guy. Then he opened the bible, read a couple sentences, told a funny story and then I went home.

And I never came back to youth group. I wanted more than dodgeball.

I wanted friends.

I wanted Jesus.

I didn’t even know it, but I wanted Jesus.

I admire Craig Tacket and the rest of the gang at Inlightened Ministries. For years now Craig and his team have traveled this dodgeball world giving young people and their leaders Jesus.

Jesus is the friend closer than a brother. He offers relationship longer lasting and intimacy deeper than any person – cute girls included – can provide. He satisfies. He comforts the bruised. He’s what we want. He’s all we need.

Every musician and speaker for The Edge conference will give youth and their leaders Jesus.

I’ll be your on-line guide in the weeks leading up to The Edge conference January 19-21 in Pigeon Forge, TN. My job is to introduce you to the people who will be giving us Jesus at The Edge. And to help you prepare your heart and mind to meet Him.

Come back often for interviews with musicians and speakers, giveaways, devotions, videos and more.

And I promise: No dodgeball.

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This past year at Pigeon Forge we did our first mission project experiment called Mission:Grand and it was a great success! Over a hundred students represented Christ by spending their free time serving both the hotel staff and the guests that they don’t even know and may not ever meet. They worked so hard that all of our projects were finished in about half of the allotted time!

For those that attended this past winter we are certain that God worked through the music, words, and talents of Dave Edwards, Ben Glenn, and Micah Watson. We consider it a privilege that we had the opportunity to minister alongside these great men of God. We sincerely hope that each person who attended had a God-centered experience and we would love to see each of you back next year anticipating God’s continued work in your life.

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Thanks to Robbie for consistently delivering high quality shirts at affordable prices for ministries like us. I can’t wait for you all to grab your shirts at this winter’s conferences which are right around the corner!

The post The EDGE shirts are here! appeared first on The EDGE Student & Leaders Conference.

Mike grew up in the small town of Elgin, Oklahoma. His father was a full-blood Cherokee and his mother was Comanche and Kiowa. Though he comes from a proud Native heritage, his family was ravaged by alcohol and drug addiction. As a “teenage mom,” Mike’s mother was in and out of his life and would eventually pass away at the age of 40 due to an alcohol related illness. Mike’s father was completely absent from his life.

Through all of the turmoil, pain and abandonment, there was hope. God put people in Mike’s life that would love him unconditionally and model the love of Jesus Christ for him. It was that love and example that would lead him to give his life to the Lord on November 1, 1990.  It became clear to Mike that God had been with him through the storms of his life and that each and every circumstance was instrumental in shaping God’s plan for his life. Mike has been called to preach the love, hope and comfort that can only come from the gospel of Jesus Christ.

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