I find it so easy to think that my friends don’t want anything to do with Jesus – and the statistics seem to back that up.

In the last 20 years churches in the UK have seen a 90% free-fall drop in attendance of under twenties. This has left 59% of churches with no attendees aged 15-19 at all. I don’t need to ask them what they think about God, Jesus and church – they’ve voted with their feet.
 
One of these friends of mine, Phil – more suited to getting into fights on Saturday night than church on Sunday morning – in the middle of watching a typically depressing England game, began to tell the room how he wished his life was different. “I wish that I’d never slept with anyone else so I could say to my girlfriend that she was the only one I had been with. I wish that I had a better relationship with my dad. I wish that I hadn’t done the things I’ve done so God would accept me.”
 
Friends like Phil are desperate to be rescued, the problem is that they simply wouldn’t recognise the rescue boat when it arrived. Having not grown up in church or in a religious society, they have no initial frame of reference for the gospel. This is the heart of Mobilise 2012 – The Rescue: that we would refocus our gaze onto Jesus, for only he can rescue us; and that our worship of him would launch a thousand rescue missions into our nation.
 
The Speakers
 
PJ Smyth, Tom Shaw, Andrew Wilson, Joel Virgo, Mike Betts, Adrian Holloway and Stef Liston.
 
The Venue
 
Pontins Holiday Camp, Prestatyn. We’re excited to be all on one site for our main celebrations, seminars and accommodation! There’s lots of extra activities on site including a swimming pool, football and tennis courts, high ropes and a fabulous beach just over the road.
 
Accommodation
 
We’ve made getting accommodation really easy for you this year as we’re all on one site! You can choose from 4 or 6 person self-catering chalets in Popular or Classic style.
 
All-in-one price from just £110
 
We’ve scoured the country to find the best venue and accommodation all at an amazing price. Popular chalets will cost students just £110 for your ticket and chalet from Tuesday to Friday. For regular delegates it will cost just £125.

It’s easy to book, just click here

Here's our quick guide on how to book for Mobilise 2012.

REGISTER FOR MOBILISE 2012 HERE

Our tickets prices include your conference ticket and accommodation - no searching for hotels, youth hostels or B&Bs anymore!

Please find details on our accommodation here.
 
You can book now here.

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** Please note that we will do everything we can to place you in your accommodation preference, however we do not have unlimited accommodation and therefore can not guarantee that we can place you in your exact accommodation preference or grouping. **

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Jo Wells speaks to Dave and Jude May from Emmanuel Church Oxford about leading a Mobilise Worldwide team in Turkey:

Breakfast bagels and coffee bouncing, we all ran towards our departure gate while the words “last call for departure gate 3 flight xxx to Turkey” rang in our ears.

How did we manage to fall so far behind when we left the hotel 30mins earlier then we had previously planned?! The dream of visiting a church in Turkey almost didn’t take off at all.

Touch down in Turkey, and we soon realised to our horror that we had somehow managed to drag the British summer along with us, and the usual 30-35+ degrees had mellowed to a very average 22. The unusual dip in temperature was much appreciated however when we started our manual work. Cleaning and gardening at the church building and retreat centre were first on the agenda. The boys dug up some big rocks, cut down trees, built a big bonfire, and felt, well very manly. That evening we sang around the huge bonfire in Turkish (very upbeat songs) and then some classic English ballads (“My Jesus… My saviour…” – no joke) were enjoyed by all.  As the Turkish believers shared how they had met Jesus, and what they had to sacrifice to follow him, the reality of their stories hit home hard. This wasn’t a distant article in a magazine or a 30 second burst on a promotional DVD, this was real. Their love for Jesus was so tangible, and it broke our hearts, we will never forget that evening round the bonfire.

We can’t go any further without introducing Michael. He leads the church in Yalovah, and has so many stories about God’s faithfulness and goodness. Our times with Michael affectionately became known as ‘Story time with Uncle Michael’ and as we listened to Michael tell stories of God’s miraculous provision we could see faith rising in our students. What an amazing opportunity to hear first-hand how God is building his church – and how he can use you in his extraordinary plans.

We met so many people on our adventure to Yalovah, and we can truly say it felt like home the minute we arrived because we were among family. Even the language barrier wasn’t a problem thanks mainly to Google translate, however a bit of miming seemed to go down a treat as well (how DO you mime ‘do I flush the toilet paper down the toilet or not?’).

Over the trip we had the joy of seeing our students step out in ways they never had before; praying for people on the street, moving in new spiritual gifts, meeting God in powerful ways. They really came out of their shells, and we started to see future leaders, and church planters. We know they all took something really special away with them from the trip. God spoke to all of us while we were in Turkey and we all saw more clearly the importance of establishing God’s church and seeing his Kingdom advance around the world. Our students have learnt so much, and it’s great to see them now applying that new found knowledge and passion into our church context back home.

Leading a team abroad has been challenging at times, but also hugely rewarding. We really believe the trip to Turkey has enabled us to be more effective in equipping our students to follow God’s call for their lives. We can’t think of a more exciting adventure to be on.

We are looking for up to 30 people to help us make Mobilise 2012 run smoothly and safely as Stewards. Could this be you?

When applying to Steward at Mobilise 2012, please note the following conditions:

1) that you will need to be available from mid-day Tuesday 10 April to 2pm Friday 13 April.
2) you will be allocated shifts for approximately half of the conference time.
3) as a thank you from us, we will reduce your booking price to just £50 (we will give you a refund if you have already booked in or a voucher code if you have yet to book in).
4) there are only 30 Stewarding positions available and will be allocated on a first-come-first-served basis.

God loves enthusiasm, loves it. The excitement of discovering a pearl of great price and selling all we have to buy it is one of the stories Jesus told to illustrate the kind of desire God looks for in His people. Students are some of the most enthusiastic people I know, confident that everything’s possible and refusing to believe that anything could ever go wrong – anyone who thinks anything else is a miserable defeatist, and probably old.

The Bible offers a corrective to this perspective. Of course there’s no book more faith-stimulating, more confident in the power of God and the accomplishment of His purposes than His Word – but what that looks like may surprise those who expect every good thing to happen right now. Abraham and Sarah are promised a son when they are pensioners, then have to wait 25 years for the promise to be fulfilled. Acts is full of amazing demonstrations of God’s power – over a 30-year period. And there are plenty of persecutions in that time too.

This is important: if you’re not expecting obstacles and challenges, you will be floored by them when they come. If you expect every moment of your life to be thrilling, you’ll quit on important things at the wrong time. Terms will drag, friends will resist the gospel, colleagues will sin – the world is in a state.

Learn from the lives of heroes of faith, Jesus above all. See the time gaps between the chapters: the waiting, the frustrations – God in charge over them too. We don’t give up in the face of opposition, none of those heroes did. We must be prepared to stay the course: people can be healed, set free, and saved in a moment, but they are brought into a lifetime’s discipleship. We’re called to change campuses, workplaces and communities, and to build mighty churches – this will take a generation at least. Enthusiasm won’t be enough.

One of the reasons for this is that God wants to do things in you as well as through you. He loves your enthusiasm but He wants you to have more than a bit of excitement. Charles Spurgeon, a preacher and church leader for 40 years, explains:

Faith untried may be true faith, but it is sure to be little faith, and it is likely to remain dwarfish so long as it is without trials… Tried faith brings experience. You could not have believed your own weakness had you not been compelled to pass through the rivers; and you would never have known God’s strength had you not been supported amid the water-floods. Faith increases in solidity, assurance, and intensity, the more it is exercised with tribulation. Faith is precious, and its trials are precious too.

God loves enthusiasm; He loves tried and tested faith even more.

We've got hundred's of reasons for you to book into Mobilise 2012. Here, Mobilise host Tom Shaw shares just one big one.

Mobilise 2012 - The Rescue Essentials

Everything you need to book into Mobilise 2012

Event info

Accommodation info

How to book

We've got some great accommodation lined up for you at Mobilise 2012 all on site at Pontins Prestatyn Sands Holiday Park. Here's your guide to the accommodation.

For the best experience decide in advance who to share an apartment with. Please ensure you add the names of the people in your group on to your online booking form so we can match you up. To book a whole apartment you will need to be in a group of 4 or 6 people (please note that 2 will need to share a double bed).

Don’t worry if you can’t fill an apartment or there’s only one or two of you, we’ll fill it up with others from your church first so you’ll be with people you know.

It is possible to book an apartment under occupancy, but you will need to pay a supplement of £50 per vacant bed place (ie £100 for a double bed) - please add this to your booking if you require it.

Popular Accommodation, offers you a comfortable apartment at our best price. The apartments include a fitted kitchen, private bathroom and lounge with TV. All our Popular Apartments have either 1 or 2 bedrooms, so they can sleep up to 4 or 6 people (including a double sofa bed in the lounge).  Fresh bed linen is provided for added convenience. Electricity is payable by a key meter.

Popular Apartments are available in the following combinations:
Popular 4 Bed (2 singles & a double bed)
Popular 6 Bed (4 singles & a double bed)

Classic Accommodation includes an increased standard of accommodation. Generally a Classic Apartment is closer to the central amenities meaning more convenient access to all the facilities on your Holiday Park.  All our Classic Apartments have either 1 or 2 bedrooms, so they can sleep up to 4 or 6 people (including a double sofa bed in the lounge).

Classic Apartments are available in the following combinations:
Classic (4 Bed: 2 singles & a double)
Classic (6 Bed: 4 singles & a double)

Accommodation FAQ

Can the apartments be mixed gender?
We would highly recommend that you book single gender apartments - with the exception of married couples of course! Please take advise from your leaders if you are unsure.

I can’t see my first choice of apartment anymore?
There are limited numbers of each type of apartment, so book quickly to ensure you get your preferred one.

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** Please note that we will do everything we can to place you in your accommodation preference, however we do not have unlimited accommodation and therefore can not guarantee that we can place you in your exact accommodation preference or grouping. **

________________________________________________________________________________________

In the last 20 years we have seen a 90% decline in attendance of under twenties in UK churches and 59% of UK churches now have no 15-19s attending. That means that most people you know have no idea about Jesus and what he could mean to them.

Something has to change.

We need to launch a rescue.

The Speakers
Main sessions:
PJ Smyth
Tom Shaw
Just announced Andrew Wilson

More to be announced soon!

The Venue
Pontins Holiday Camp, Prestatyn.  We’re excited to be all on one site for our main celebrations, seminars and accommodation! There’s lots of extra activities on site including a swimming pool, football and tennis courts, high ropes and a fabulous beach just over the road.

The Date
10 - 13 April 2012

Accommodation
We’ve made getting accommodation real easy for you this year as we’re all on one site!  You can choose from 4 or 6 people self-catering chalets in Popular or Classic style. Find out more about our accommodation here.

All-in-one price from just £95
We’ve scoured the country to find the best venue and accommodation all at an amazing price. Students booking into the Popular chalets will cost just £95 for your ticket and chalet from Tuesday to Friday. For regular delegates it will cost just £110.

Find out more information about booking here.

Or click this text to book now!

All my life I've been a Christian. While I had my faults and life was by no means perfect, I stayed on the straight and narrow, did well in GCSE's, A levels, and got accepted into the University of Portsmouth to study Business Studies at 18. Things were good.

Except that I never had a girlfriend. As a result, I never had to consider seriously my standing on sex before marriage prior to university. Sex just wasn't an option for me. I could tell you what youth group had taught me, but I had yet to live it.

Amazingly this changed when I went to university! In a miraculous move of God, I managed to find myself a good looking, godly woman who wanted to date me! This was good. And for the first time in my life I had to practically think about where I stood on sex before marriage. On living together before marriage. On having your girlfriend stay over in your room. And all of a sudden, I found that I didn’t believe the youth group arguments.

So I had my girlfriend stay over in my room. Many times.

Somehow, we didn’t have sex - she was a Christian too, and a better one than me - but we didn’t see the harm in sharing a room, and we were even planning to live together in a house share in our second year. Fortunately for us, we had some good friends.

A couple in the church who were, and still are, very dear to us challenged us on our choices in this area.

They pointed out that actually the standard Jesus calls us too isn’t just to live God’s way of no sex before marriage and then try and get as close as you can to that guidance without breaking it by having sleep overs, but to flee from sin. In fact, in this area the Bible tells us to not even give the appearance of sin! While we weren’t sleeping together, it certainly looked like we did. And this was a bad thing. God didn’t approve.

I’ll be honest, I didn’t hugely like the challenge.

Obviously we were living this way because it was what we wanted, but the problem was that it wasn’t what God wanted. So we prayed about it. Studied the Bible. Talked openly about the issue of sex and where we stood on the issue as a couple. And while I didn’t like the fact that we would have to have a curfew and had to be seen to be doing the right thing, we couldn’t ignore what God’s standard was and we both made the decision to rise to his challenge.

So our relationship changed.

All of a sudden we had to do things other than make out with the door closed and have sleep overs. We had to go out more, and talk more, and maybe even pray together. And for the first time in my life I could see why we are called to not have sex before marriage. It’s not to spoil our fun, but to deepen our relationships. To build a foundation on which a marriage can rise up.

From those days I remember walking Natalie home at the end of a date, and leaving on the doorstep. I remember walking on my own back to my place and realising that by me honouring the decision we’d made to live God’s way and not even giving the appearance of having sex I was demonstrating my growing love for this woman and for my God. And that was priceless.

My only regret with our pre-marital relationship is that we had those first months, and I praise God for the people that encouraged us not to continue living that way before we got married. When we finally did get married I found that we had in fact made the right decision. Our relationship and commitment to one another was based on a deep friendship and respect. And that was the best possible foundation to have before we saw each other naked.

If you’re going through a similar situation, why not follow Owen’s example of chatting it through with each other, looking at what God has to say and seeking out your leaders’ advice.  You never know, something better might be on offer.

If you’re a fresher or new into a relationship and wondering how to work this out.  Why not make friends with a Christian of the same gender as you in the first few weeks of term and ask if you can sleep on their floor when your girlfriend or boyfriend comes to visit.  You can then offer your hall room or digs to your partner and demonstrate your love louder than any words or gifts - it also makes an incredible witness too.

In America most uni students get their food provided for them. This fast food is of such poor quality that freshers often gain quite a bit of weight coining a phrase the 'Freshman 15' - for when someone gains up to 15 pounds in weight in their first year at uni. Recently Jeff Brewer, an Acts 29 pastor in America, gave an alternative 'Freshman 15' on The Gospel Coalition website that is really worth checking out.

In it, Jeff brings 4 missional and 11 discipleship ways that freshers (or second or third years for that matter) can seek to glorify God as they head of to uni in the next month.  Check out the full article here, but some of the missional highlights include:

5. Take advantage of the unique opportunity to get to know a wide variety of people from different backgrounds who have all been sovereignly put in the same dorm. Ask people to tell you their story.  Sit, listen, and ask follow-up questions.

6. Seek to radically love others as Christ did. Avoid gossips and gossiping. It’s gross. Loving like Christ isn’t.

9. Remember that others are going through the same changes and new experiences. Look for opportunities to speak truth about the gospel to people who want a fresh start in college. Show them the hope in the gospel and forgiveness available to them.

14. Make a prayer list and pray for the people on it. Start with your roommate and the guys down the hall who don’t give a rip about Christ.

Here are some of the discipleship highlights:

1. There is no greater way you can spend your time, energy, and effort than pursuing Christ with all your heart. Education matters. That’s why you’re going to college. But pursuing Christ matters more.

2. Join a church. Find one that preaches the Word, loves worshiping God as a body, and seeks to make Christ known. Once you find it, join it and start building relationships. [I would add here one that values the work of the Holy Spirit too.  You can do this easily through Uni Connect].

8. Look for opportunities to serve. Serve broadly, serve lovingly, serve faithfully, and serve diligently. Look for where there is a need and dive in. [The obvious place to serve is in your church, but look for opportunities to serve your friends, lecturers and neighbours too].

11. Work hard. Fight against laziness by remembering you are seeking to please Christ, not your professor (or mom or dad).

12. When you find someone you are interested in dating, make sure that their one aim in life is the same as yours (see #1 above).

15. Pursue God joyfully. Is there anything greater than knowing Christ? Make the joy of pursuing Christ a hallmark of your life.

Would you agree with these?
Would you add anything else?

If you’re heading off to uni this Autumn it’s also worth downloading ‘How to thrive at uni’ - a seminar given at Newday for those heading to uni.