Invitation to REFUGE

On May 1, 2008, we will open the invitation to REFUGE to any youth leaders who would like to attend. We are hosting REFUGE as a gift to Youth Pastors and Youth Ministry Leaders. Our hope is that it will be a time of listening and focus for those who have dedicated their lives to ministry to teenagers.

The blog entries below contain important details about REFUGE. There is a link on the right side menu bar where you can register. REFUGE is FREE. We are simply asking for some basic info to prepare for your arrival.

As of this date, REFUGE registration is about 70% of the seating capacity of Brook Hills (2200), so we feel certain that there will come a time when we must close registration.

We hope to see you in September.

Randy Hall and the Student Life Team

Registered? Hotels?

The invitations to Refuge have been limited to a few emails and one letter. We asked you to hit reply on the email to let us know you were coming. If you did that, we have your registration. If not, there is now a link in the right menu of this blog where you can fill in a short form and let us know you are coming.

We've blocked rooms at a variety of hotels, with a wide range of rates. Click the link to the right to see the list.

Excited about September!.

Randy

REFUGE UPDATE

Dear Friends,
I am pleased to let you know that Kristian Stanfill will join us to lead worship for REFUGE.
Here are the details:
REFUGE is a two-day gathering of youth pastors and youth leaders.
Dates: September 8-9, 2008 (starting Monday at 7:00 p.m.)
Location: The Church at Brook Hills, Birmingham, AL
Cost: It’s FREE!
REFUGE leaders are…
Kristian Stanfill
Chris Tomlin
Louie Giglio
Randy Hall
David Platt
We have reserved blocks of hotels rooms with special rates for those attending REFUGE. All the hotel options are available online. Keep checking back for additional information.
We welcome and encourage your spouse to attend with you.
Please do not forward this email invitation… we’ll keep you posted if something changes in regards to spreading the word.
If you are ready to register for REFUGE, just reply to this email and let us now you are coming. Also, the original REFUGE invitation is copied below, just in case this is the first email you have received.
Hope you can join us.
Randy Hall

Second Refuge Invitation

Friends,

I wish you could read the e-mails I received this week in response to the REFUGE invitation we sent out last week. The responses are very encouraging. I’ve copied them out of the emails I received.

Here are just a few:

1. A youth minister writes...
YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW LONG I'VE WISHED FOR THIS!!! LOOKING FORWARD TO IT....

2. A husband writes…
Randy, I cannot wait! My friends and I attended some of the very first REFUGE gatherings and it had such an impact in our lives. Thank you for bringing it back and for making it FREE! What a great blessing and ministry to youth workers! I have already put it on the calendar for my wife and me. Thanks so much!

3. A personal friend of mine writes…
Randy, count me in! I have missed REFUGE and I’m excited all over again about this. There have been so many “stakes” that have been placed in my walk with the Lord and many of them have come around REFUGE. Thanks for offering this again. God is good!

4. And my absolute favorite…
YAAAAAAAAAAAYYYY !!!! *doing a little jig in the office* My wife and I went to a REFUGE in b-ham in '01. Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you. You guys rock! We will always love Student Life!! Thanks for thinking of the little guy!

5. One more response we received this week…
Psalm 40:1—I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry.
When I attended this 10 years ago it was a monumental moment in my call and life! God moved mountains and reminded me that He is not always silent! Thanks for listening to Him. You guys do an amazing job in reaching, teaching and encouraging. Thanks!

These responses confirm that REFUGE was a valuable and meaningful experience 10 years ago, and that there is a need for such a gathering again.

NEW DETAILS…We have some new details to report.

REFUGE will be hosted at THE CHURCH AT BROOK HILLS. This is the home church for many of us who serve at Student Life and we are pleased to invite you to join us. Again, the dates are September 8-9, 2008. We will begin around 6 p.m. on Monday evening, September 8th, and we will meet on Tuesday morning and Tuesday evening. Again, REFUGE is free—our gift to you.

We are planning for REFUGE to be a time to focus on Who we serve. There will be no exhibit halls, no seminars or anybody telling anybody "how to do" anything. I am praying that we can clear our minds of job descriptions and programs for a couple of days…please!

My pastor, Dr. David Platt will be a part of the REFUGE team. David and Heather have been with us at Brook Hills for almost two years. They adopted Caleb last year from Kazakhstan and then found out that they were expecting…hello Joshua!

I am also looking forward to sharing my heart during REFUGE. In all 15 years of Student Life, I have never put my name on the poster as a speaker for a Student Life Camp or event. And after REFUGE, I may never speak again, but God is so good, and we have been so blessed...I just want to brag on what God has done in my life and my family’s life and in Student Life...I already know what I want to say…I can't wait to share with you.

I am still working on a few more invitations to complete the team…more to come.
Again, I am thankful to Louie Giglio and Chris Tomlin for giving their time to share in this gift to you.

We had hundreds of responses last week. Many people confirmed their plans to attend (almost 500) and others have asked for more information.

WE WILL NOT BUILD A WEBSITE FOR REFUGE, so please don't look for one. We hope a few e-mails will serve us well in communicating the details.

In a few weeks we will release a list of hotels near Brook Hills. Sometime in a month or so we will create a single web page where you will be asked to go to provide us with some details. But for now, please just hit reply and tell us if you’re coming and if your spouse is coming with you.

Based on the response, we are not ready for this e-mail to be forwarded. I will let you know if we have extra space available in a few weeks.

Thanks for trusting us with your students!

Randy

Initial Refuge Invitation

Ten years ago...
We hosted a gathering of youth pastors called REFUGE. Dave Busby and Louie Giglio were part of the original gatherings. Since that time, we have been asked again and again to host REFUGE because of how meaningful this time was for the few hundred leaders who attended.

The time has come for us to host REFUGE again. Our desire is that REFUGE would be a time of renewal and listening for God to speak into your life. There will be no seminars, no "How To" or idea sessions, no exhibit hall. REFUGE is more about WHO you’re teaching your students about than HOW you’re teaching your students.

REFUGE is FREE. I am pleased that you are one of the first to hear about this free event. If you can handle the gas and a place to stay, there is no conference fee. This gathering is our gift to you!

Mark your calendar to join us in Birmingham, AL on September 8-9 (and maybe the morning of the 10th).

Louie Giglio has agreed to help us provide this gift to youth pastors and youth ministry leaders.

Chris Tomlin will lead worship.

Other leaders will be announced soon.

This invitation is for you and your spouse if you have one. Please do not forward this email – this invitation is specifically for you. There is not a website yet. We’ll pass on more details to you as we know them.

In you Lord, I have taken REFUGE;
let me never be put to shame;
deliver me in your righteousness.

Turn your ear to me,
come quickly to my rescue;
be my rock of REFUGE
a strong fortress to save me.

Since you are my rock and my fortress,
for the sake of your name lead and guide me.

Keep me from the trap that is set for me,
for you are my REFUGE.

Into your hands I commit my spirit;
redeem me, Lord, my faithful God.

Psalm 31:1-5

If you would like to be part of this gathering, reply to this email and type REFUGE in the subject line. There will be a registration process soon. For today, though, I wanted to get this invitation to you as soon as possible. I hope you can join us.

Thanks so much for trusting us with your students,

Randy Hall
President, Student Life