A special live event is happening online Tuesday March 1st at 7 PM for teenagers across the country.

We live in a world full of problems, full of injustice and full of pain. People are homeless, children are hungry, and sick are hurting.

It can all be overwhelming, because at the same time we have our own problems. You have responsibilities at school and home and with family and friends. Youth groups all over have problems and have people suffering with insecurities, dealing with doubt or haunted by their past. What are we supposed to do?

There is hope.

Imagine a night where christian teenagers from all over the world took time to pray for each other: youth group praying for youth group, student praying for student, city praying for city, and all happening simultaneously. Tuesday night March 1st we invite you to experience GO! Presents: All Together Now.

It will feature stories of teenagers and youth groups from across the country. You'll see what they are doing to encourage other youth groups. You'll hear what they're doing to keep focused on the simple fact that God is in control. It will all be live at http://fhu.edu/go.

It's time for a generation to come together and pray.

How to get involved:

1.) Make plans to watch GO! Presents: All Together Now on Tuesday March 1 at 7 PM. You can watch it at home or have your entire youth group experience it together.

2.) On Wednesday March 2 we are encouraging youth groups to hold All Together Again as part of their normal Wed night class time. We will be providing curriculum youth ministers and class teachers could use as part of the time or they will be able to download and show portions of the previous evening's event if they choose.

Feel free to contact Brad Montague (bmontague @ fhu.edu) with any questions, comments or ideas about this unique event. We'd love to hear from any groups or individuals who are planning on being a part of this. It'd even be great if this became a regular yearly event. Students across the world pausing to acknowledge that God is in control can only bring about wonderful things! Let's put away everything that distracts and focus on giving Him all the glory.

It's time for us to acknowledge Him - all together now.

On March 1st we'll be pulling the curtain back on a new project called GO! Presents: All Together Now. Can't wait for you to see it all. It's going to be a really great night. You should also stay tuned for something really cool: the GO! Camp promo video. Oh yeah.

This past November we held our first GO! Conference. It was a special day of leaders speaking to other leaders. Here are a few videos from the day in case you haven't seen them yet.

This first video is a phone interview we did with author Kenda Creasy Dean. She wrote a book called "Almost Christian" that is about the spiritual lives of teenagers. What she had to share was challenging and insightful.

This next video is really cool. Catlyn and Addison are two girls in Florence, Alabama who wanted to make a difference. They got their two youth groups together and said - let's feed an entire community. So awesome. Also awesome? Look for them at GO! Camp June 5-10, 2011!

Want to see more? You can now download the entire GO! Conference via iTunes : http://fhu.edu/s/x6W9J You can also view selected clips from the event here: http://vimeo.com/album/1490334

Hello to all our new friends! What a great weekend! The above photo is from our set up at Evangelism University in Savannah, TN. We got to meet SO many cool teenagers and youth leaders from all over the country.

EU is a really unique event. It all happens in a high school. Students are invited to focus on how they can better reach their friends and communities for Christ.

Fearless leader Brad got to lead a class with a group of students on finding their gifts. There were tons of other classes on topics dealing with things happening in the world today and how young Christians can make an impact. The keynote speakers, David Shannon and Taft Ayers, were really incredible. Their messages were inspiring and encouraging and a reminder of how God's message is truly life changing. We should also mention that the singing - well - there are no words to describe it. Singing with that many young people is always incredible.

We'll be making several other stops along the way before camp happens June 5-10 this summer. Do you have something happening in your town you'd like us to join you for? Want us to come by for a Wednesday night visit? Need help with a service project? Want us to come and convince your whole youth group to come to camp? Bring us to your town!

Also - stay tuned because there are some big announcements coming this week! Excited about all that's happening and about to happen in the world of GO!

This is one of those things that is sick, disgusting, shocking and absolutely no fun to talk about. What's terrible about it is just how real it is and how many people still have no idea it's happening.

Every day across the world there are human beings who are sold and forced into labor or prostitution and forced into lives that lead them to believe they have no other choice. It might be easy to believe that this would happen in other countries, but would you believe that it's happening in the United States? I was shocked to find out that areas such as Atlanta and New Orleans have dealt heavily with the problem.

Here are a few more sobering facts:

-Human trafficking is now a leading source of profits for organised crime, together with drugs and weapons, generating an estimated 9.5 billion dollars per year.

-The overwhelming majority of those trafficked are women and children.

-Every two minutes a child, somewhere in the world, is being prepared for sexual exploitation

-The average age of a trafficked victim is 14

The fact that 'National Humantrafficking Awareness Day' has to exist is terrible in and of itself. Thankfully, this isn't something that has to always exist. There are lots of great people doing their part to create change. She Dances is an organization working to create safe houses and counseling for girls who've been sold in Honduras. NotForSale is a group working hard to get information out to people and to stop slavery. They've also provided a powerful, eye-opening resource: The Slavery Map (http://slaverymap.org) that will allow you to see just how close to home this issue is.

Christians everywhere can do something. Take a moment to pray. Regardless of where you are geographically you can pray for those who are hurting. Pray for their rescue and their healing. You can also keep learning. Look for ways you and your church can get involved to help provide rescue and healing. It's possible.

"One thing I ask from the LORD, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple. For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock."

Psalm 27:4,5

GO! is going to be incredible and for some crazy reason I have the opportunity to direct it. I'm the pale dude in the hat. That's me. Don't judge.

The other people are part of the GO! staff. In just a few months we'll all be welcoming you to campus for a week that we hope brings lasting impact to both you and your community. We've been hard at work for quite a while getting things put together for you. In the very near future you'll be finding out more about how you can register and what all you can expect at this thing. Before that goes down there are a few things I want you to know:

1. I CAN'T WAIT FOR YOU TO EXPERIENCE GO! Seriously. It's going to be fun. It's going to be inspiring. It's unlike anything I've ever been a part of and I hope the start of something really special in your life too.

2. I AM A COMPLETE IDIOT. Seriously. I'm going to make mistakes along the way. In fact, I'm certain there are already misspelled words in this post.

3. YOU ARE THE KEY TO GO! There's a ton I don't know, but here's what I do know: God has amazing things in store for you and for me. I think teenagers are the key to changing the world. I am constantly in awe of what God is doing - especially through young people. GO! is exciting but I'm even more excited about what will happen after it. If we can inspire each other to truly love God it will lead us to really love our neighbor and will in turn change the world. Let's make that happen.

4. I WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU. We very much want GO! to be student led. Got questions? Have ideas? On the blog (and at camp) I'd like to highlight different youth groups or individuals who are doing cool things in their community. Send us those. Drop me an email: bmontague(at)fhu.edu

Hopefully this blog can be a way to keep you connected to all things GO! and even a few other things as well. See you June 5-10, 2011. It's gonna be good.

“You can’t start a movement, but you can prepare for one” - Vincent Harding

June 5-10, 2011 will be the first session ever of GO! Camp. Here's why it's important:

You'll fall in love with the mission for your life and mine: Love God. Love your neighbor. Change the world.

I believe this generation of young people can change the world. Seriously. You understand the need to do more than sit on the couch. You know you were meant for something bigger. You totally get the heart of the Gospel. All many are waiting for is just permission: permission to move. So here it is. GO! It starts now. Move into the life God has called you to live.

The week of camp you'll see examples of people living extraordinary lives of service. You'll hear how they did it. You'll get to experience first-hand effective ways to impact your community. You'll connect with other people who, like you, know they were created for more. You'll not only see how to serve, you'll be constantly reminded why we serve.

The entire week is being designed for you. It's about you leaving inspired to do exactly what you were meant to do. It's about you leaving empowered with all the things you need to do it too.

Are you part of a youth group that wants to grow closer while learning how to serve better? There will be a priority placed on youth leaders connecting with their students throughout the week. You'll have plenty of opportunity to take in quality time with your youth group while also connecting with other Christians from all over the country. It'll be an unforgettable week.

There are people in communities all over who need what you have. They need to see God's love put into action. I think you're just the people to do it. So what are you doing this summer? Join us for GO! Camp.

Let's GO!

Brad Montague, Director