Now I'm no scientist, but I love NUCLEUS!

Recently, I realized that some of you who read this blog may have no idea what it is that happens at First Baptist Church of Senoia at 5:30pm Sunday afternoons. Even if you look at our weekly schedule and see "Nucleus" on Sundays, there's a good chance you still are in the dark. If you are in this category, I don't want you to stay there; that's why I am about to share with you what this Nucleus thing is all about.

As I began to move toward a ministry position, God laid a vision on my heart for a youth ministry that went beyond fun and games, a ministry that would ground students in their beliefs so that they will hopefully stay in church after graduating high school (something very few youth actually do now). This foundation is intended to equip them to have a greater impact on their world for Christ. From this vision, a discipleship program called Nucleus was born.

The name Nucleus comes from the picture of an atom. The nucleus is at the very core of that atom. Likewise, what we study in Nucleus will get to the very core and center of Christian beliefs and values. It is designed so that a student may finish all the topics during their middle school and high school years. Nucleus is broken down into two semester-long classes a year. In some topics, we will study both the Old and New Testaments, what other religions of the world believe, and how we can defend our beliefs to others. Right now in Nucleus, we are in the middle of a class called "The Foundation." This study takes a deep look at all that Christians believe about the Bible, God, Christ, and the Church, among other things. It is really amazing to see how much God is teaching us through this study, and how excited the students are to dive into God's Word to learn more.

The Scripture that is the motivation behind the idea of Nucleus is 1 Peter 3:15 - "But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear." Being ready to answer questions about his or her belief in Christ is a valuable quality for any believer, but it is becoming more and more critical for students especially to understand what they believe and why they believe it. If they can grasp these things, then nothing that they hear from others, be it a friend or a college professor, that is contrary to the Word of God will sway their faith one bit.

This is Nucleus in a nutshell. I hope that if you are a student in the Senoia area interested in learning more about what Christians believe, then you'll consider coming and joining us Sundays at 5:30pm. We'd love to have you.