A Lesson in Unity

Most of you have heard about the fantastic experience that is offered by Savannah Christian Church around Christmas time. "The Journey" is an extremely realistic walk through the Christmas Story. It's complete with Roman Guards, a boat ride, the Magi, King Herod, Bethlehem, and finally, the Manger Scene. Hundreds of people work together to put this amazing show together.

While the venture around the lake is extremely impressive, my favorite part of The Journey is always worship. As we walked in, it seemed like another ordinary worship service, but this was far from the truth. Shortly after our group sat down, a small group of people came out and began to sing, as the music picked up tempo, more and more people began to come down the isles and join the group. It all ended with a fantastic performance that left chills.

After the group had left the stage, a movie began to play. The movie was of families reading The Christmas story from the Bible. As the story proceeded, the families began to speak different languages and the story was told. The camera continued to switch between various families speaking various different languages until the end.

As I watched the movie and listened to the choir, I thought about the unity that Christ calls us to share in our Christian homes. The families in that movie were no different from language to language and ethnic group to ethnic group. They were all listening to the same story, and they all believed in the same God. The people in that choir were all completely different from one another. Some of them were white, some black, some Asian, some Latino, some men, some women, some young, some old, there were even two people in wheelchairs, but they were all unified. Tonight taught me a huge lesson on the unity of the Body of Christ. It expressed that no matter what language we speak, what color our skin is, what denomination of church we attend or how long we've been alive, we are all united as one Body. We are the body that Christ has trusted to bring his message into the world.

The really sad part is that sometimes, the unity that we're supposed to have just doesn't show up. Some of us get so caught up in our differences, that we fail to see that we're all just alike. We all share on common goal, and that is to spread Christ's love. In Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus said,"ALL AUTHORITY IN HEAVEN AND ON EARTH HAS BEEN GIVEN TO ME. THEREFORE, GO AND MAKE DISCIPLES OF ALL NATIONS, BAPTIZING THEM IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, SON, AND HOLY SPIRIT, AND TEACHING THEM TO OBEY EVERYTHING I COMMANDED YOU. AND SURELY I AM WITH YOU ALWAYS TO THE END OF THE AGE." Jesus didn't say to make disciples of the people that we feel comfortable being around, he said to go to the nations and spread his word. Think about this: If we as a Christian body were all unified, how would today's world be different? Would the Christian world be the same, or would it change forever. I'm willing to find out, who's with me?

From the Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

Year Number 57-FINISHED!

The 57th RHUMC Barbecue has finally come to a close! It was another great year as our church family came together and worked their tails off to pull this off! Thanks to our great leadership team for this year, the big day went off without a hitch! We have never been as prepared for a Barbecue as we were for this year! Everything was set out and ready to go by Saturday morning and everything ran on schedule throughout the day! A special thanks goes out to all the people that have been praying for us as we have worked on this huge project!

From the Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

Waiting

So, it's 12:18 AM. I'm laying on the couch in the AA room at RHUMC listening to two gigantic refrigerated trucks growl in the night. As usual in this situation, I can't sleep. Tomorrow is the big day, the 57th Annual RHUMC Barbecue and Bazaar! We've all spent week planning and preparing for this great event! As I've said before, please be in prayer for us tomorrow. Everyone is tired from a long week! Please be especially praying our two chairs: Tommy Wyatt and JT Thomas. They've worked their tails off this week, and both of them are dead tired! Thanks for the prayers!


From the BARBECUE PIT ON Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

What's Next?

Well, band is finally over! Our last competetion was two weeks ago and we're so glad to be finished! It's been a great season, but we're all ready for a rest! I got home from school on our first night of no rehearsel, and I honestly didn't know what to do! It's great to come home in the afternoon and do nothing!!

So, what's next? the 57th Annual RHUMC Barbecue! That's what! The Barbecue is next Saturday, November 22nd! For the past few weeks, every one at RHUMC has been gearing up for our biggest event of the year! Hours and hours of work are being put into this big day! Thousands of pounds of pork will be smoked over an open pit. Hundreds of servings of spiced apples and potatoe salad will be prepared. And, it's all happening over the next week! Please be praying for us over the next few days as we prepare for this huge undertaking!

From the Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

Can you say Champions?

"And the winner of the 2008 Effingham County High School Coastal Classic Marching Competetion is The Rihcmond Hill Wildcat Marching Band!!" The crowd went wild! We all jumped (literally) out of the stands and rushed down to our leadership team that was standing on the feild waiting for us! We were jumping, screaming, and chanting that "we are the mighty BLACK AND GOLD!!!!!" All the hard work on that parking lot in front of Richmond Hill High School finally paid off!

Next week, we'll be traveling to LaFeyette, Georgia for our next competetion!\

Go Wildcats!!

From the Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

EFFINGHAM!!

The presure is on!! On Saturday, competetion season for the Richmond Hill Wildcat Marching Band will oficially begin! Our first test will be The Coastal Classic Marching Competetion, hosted by Effingham County High School! The excitment of the band is crazy! But we're also very nervous, and to make it even worse, our biggest competetion band (Houston County Black & Silver Brigade) happens to be preforming right before us! Did I mention that we're the last band of the night?

Please be in prayer for us as we preform! Also, be in prayer for our directors, our judges, our bus drivers, and all the voulenteers that make this whole thing happen! I'll post the results on Saturday night! Go Cats!!

From the Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

Time for a Break

High School has officially taken its toll. I knew that this was coming, but I had no idea that it would hit this hard! Over the past few weeks, I’ve been absolutely worn out. Luckily, the light at the end of the tunnel is getting closer and closer. As I write this, I am on I-95 South about to cross into Florida. Right now, I’m on the way to Steinhatchee, Florida, where I am spending the weekend fishing the flats on the Gulf of Mexico with Captain Jim Henley and my dad. There is no place in the world more relaxing than Steinhatchee. The people are amazingly friendly, the weather is beautiful, the food is delicious, and the fishing is superb! The small town charm that Steinhatchee offers is not matched by anywhere else in the country.

Taking these little trips gives me a lot of time to just sit on the porch of the Steinhatchee River Inn and watch the tide run. It truly gives you time to take in all the wonderful creation that this country has been blessed with. It really is beautiful out there on the Gulf. It’s warm and breezy, you’re surrounded by crystal clear water, and you don’t have to worry about anything else! I’ll be sure to post some pictures (and an update) when we head for the Hill.

See Yall Soon!

From the Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

A Vision of You

"Awaken what's inside of me.
Tune my heart to all You are in me.
Even though you're here, God come.
May the vision of You be the death of me.
And even though You've given everything.
Jesus come, O Jesus come!"

These are some of the words from "Vision of You", a song written and arranged by Shane and Shane, a well known Contemporary Christian band. I've heard many of this group's songs, but I'd never heard this particular one until tonight. After I got home from Marching Band, I flipped open my laptop and turned on some music. "Vision of You" was the first thing to come on. Usually, when I play music in my room, it's merely background noise, but this sng really caught my attention.

When you really listen to it, "Vision of You" seems to be nothing more than a prayer put to music. This prayer askes God to come into our hearts an turn them completely to him. It continues by asking God to completely overpower us and to show himself to us. This is the prayer we should all be praying, a desprate cry for more of him. It truly gives us an example of what it means to be "always hungry, never satisfied". We should always want more of God, and we should never he happy with the amount we get. As we learn to spend time with him, our thirst for him will partly be quenched, but we will never stop thirsting. The only way to satisfy you hunger for the Living God is by commiting to spending time alone with him. That is the only way we will ever see a Vision of You.

I want to see the Vision, how about you?



From the Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

Speeding By

So the other day, Reverend Bill pretty much took it upon himself to remind me that I had a blog. It’s a good thing that he did because honestly, I hadn’t really thought about updating since school has started. I haven’t really had time to think about writing anything. Truthfully, High School isn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be. Sure there’s a lot of homework and, of course, the endless hours of marching band practice. But it really isn’t that bad.

It’s really hard to believe that we’re already three weeks into school! So much has gone on over the past three weeks that it’s all kind of a blur. To start with, the RHHS Marching Band has gotten so much better! We tried to have our first football game last night in Pembroke, but we lost power and had to call it. They played today at 10AM and won 24-22! Go Cats! Also, the first Georgia game was today! The Dawgs played Georgia Southern and absolutely murdered them 45-21! I’m ready for a great season!

By far, the biggest thing to have happened in the Hill has been the welcoming of our new staff member at RHUMC. Jared Curtis moved here from Cocoa Beach, Florida last week and has settled into his new position as our Youth Leader. All the youth knew that things were going to change a little bit with new leadership, but Jared has done a great job getting to know the youth and trying to get everything up and running as normal. Of course, there’s nothing harder than saying goodbye to some one that’s been a part of your life for 5 years. Kristin is now serving as the Youth Leader at Riverstone Church in Kennesaw Mountain, Georgia. Kristin devoted 5 years of her life to the youth of Richmond Hill United Methodist Church and we will never forget her.

Anyway, that’s pretty much it! It may not seem like a lot, but trust me, it’s all very exciting. I’m going to try to start updating at least once a week! See yall soon!

From the Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

The Mountain of God

Over the past two weeks, I have been waking up every morning and heading to Richmond Hill High School for our annual Marching Band Camp. The Richmond Hill Marching Wildcats have often been spoken of as the best band south of Macon. This week, I learned why. Each and every day the band, and staff were enthusiastic and ready to work our way to the top. This year's show was written especially for the Marching Wildcats. The show includes three songs, a fast paced opener, a beautiful ballad, and a very exciting closer. The theme is ROCKY!

During these past two weeks, many people have asked me how Band Camp was going. As much as I hate to say it, my response always seemed to be: "it sucks"! That response was usually right on the money. Every day for 8 hours, we were running around a parking lot playing instruments. When we weren't marching, we were getting yelled at in sectionals for not knowing our parts. To top it all off, it's been 90 degrees ALL WEEK! Even though this week has pretty much sucked, we all know it's going to be worth it in the long run!

Yesterday, as I was listening to HisRadio, a song came on that really got me thinking. The song was "Mountain of God", by Third Day. As I listened to the lyrics I thought about how it related to Band Camp and how it relates to almost every other situation.

Part of the song says:
"Even though the journey's long,
and I know the road is hard.
You're the one who's gone before me.
You will help me carry on.
And after all that I've been through,
Now I realize the truth.
That I must go through the Valley to stand upon the Mountain of God.

As I listened to these lyrics, I started thinking about all the situations that this relates to. It related to Marching Band because we have to work our tails off at Band Camp before we're good enough to win at competition. It can relate to many other things to. The biggest connection I made is how this relates to life. As we go through life, there are times when we feel lost, confused, and hurt. The cold, hard truth is: sometimes, life pretty much sucks. The good news is, life is just one of the Valleys through which we have to pass. Once we get through we will get to feel the joy of standing upon the Mountain of God.



From the Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

VBS Update

It's already Wednesday and Vacation Bible School is going great! The kids are all having a great time singing, playing, and doing crafts! All of the voulenteers are very worn out, but we're excited that our church is able to provide this oppritunity for the children of Richmond Hill! Tomorrow and Friday will be our last two days! On Sunday morning, we will have a presentation of pictures and singing during the 11 o'clock service at RHUMC! Be sure not to miss it!

Thank yall so much for the continued prayers and support that we have recieved over the course of the week!

From the Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

Vacation Bible School 2008

Today was the big day that RHUMC has been leading up to for a few months. At 9AM this morning, the doors of the Sanctuary at RHUMC were opened to our community for our Annual Vacation Bible School! This year's theme is BEACH PARTY, SURFIN' THROUGH GOD'S WORLD. For the past month, we have all been working to register kids, make decorations, and plan activities. All of our hard work truly paid off this morning when we had an attendance of 187 children!

Thanks to a very dedicated leadership team consisting of Dawn Pape, Laura McKay, and Cindy Hardy; our first day of Vacation Bible School went off without a hitch! The Communication and Cooperation between all of our volunteers was truly amazing! All of us banned together this morning to provide a life changing experience for these kids! When asked why we do all this work for VBS, we always remember that this is our church's biggest outreach program of the year! For some of these kids, this is the only "church" that they ever get.

Please keep our Leadership Team and Staff in your prayers for the remainder of the week! Pray especially for these kids and their parents; that their lives will be changed by the encounters that they have had with the Spirit of Jesus this week!

I'll try to give yall an update as the week progresses! Thanks for the prayers!

From the Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

Sharing the Good News

Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." -Matthew 28:16-20-

As Jesus speaks these words to his disciples on the mountain in Galilee, he commands us to "go and make disciples of all nations". Matthew 26 tells us that it is our job to go into the world and spread the good news that Jesus Saves! As easy as it may sound, sharing the good news is not always easy. In today's "separation of church ans state environment", it is hard to tell others about Christ. Even inviting a friend to church can sometimes seem hard.

Jesus program of missions was 3-fold:
1) Go: This is the hardest part. The hardest part of stepping out in faith is actually getting up and acting. When we see the opportunity to share our faith with a friend, we usually screw it up by refusing to act. Most of the time, we just shrug it off, or make an excuse. If we actually get up and go, everything else seems to fall in place. It may sound intimidating, but this doesn't have to be that hard. It can be as simple as inviting the person to church, praying for them, or telling them about how God has changed your life.
2)Baptize Them: This part is pretty straight forward. A baptism is an outward sign that a person is in love with the Lord. Baptizing them will remind them that they belong to God and that he loves them.
3)Teaching them to obey everything Christ has commanded: This can be brought about by a support system. After they are baptized, they will continue to deal with temptation. A support system is a great tool to helping them avoid falling into sin.

God commands us to make deciples. It's really not that hard once we get up and get started. Once you pass the first step, there's not that much to it! Every time you share Jesus, you run the chance of changing a person's life forever! Once they find Jesus, they will never be the same! The best part is knowing that this person's life was transformed because you shared Jesus with them. That motivation will make you want to share the Gospel with more people! You have the power to change lives! To unleash it, all you have to do is Go.

From the Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

Exceptional

While at Lake Junaluska, we had the pleasure of attending The Annual Music and Liturgical Arts Week Talent Show. To be perfectly honest, it wasn’t all exactly talent, some of it was actually quite embarrassing. However, there were a few really great acts. In one of the acts, two girls got up on stage and danced to a song called “Exceptional” by Jojo. I’ve never really heard of her or heard any of her music but this song just really stuck out to me. Last night, right before I went to bed, I got on the computer and listened to it again. This song really made me think about a lot of my friends that struggle with acceptance at home, at school, and even at church. I just thought I’d share it, who knows, it may speak to you the way it spoke to me.



From the Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

Reflections From the Lake

As I write this, we are all on the bus heading home from a very memorable Music Retreat at Lake Junaluska, North Carolina. This entire week was such a blessing to all of us, especially the Handbell classes. I think we really did learn a whole lot more than we expected! The seminars offered also covered many areas of worship. Our prayer as a team is that we will be able to take what we learned at Music and Liturgical Arts Week and use it to enhance the worship experience of our home church. When you think about it, our question really is: Why did we come on this trip? For most of us, I think that we came not only to learn how to better serve God through music, but to also grow closer in our relationship with Christ.

Whether we realize it our not, God truly did work through this trip to bring us closer together as partners in serving him. We all learned so much this week about each other and our relationships together. We were all brought closer to him, not necessarily during times of worship, but as we spent time talking, laughing, and sharing. We all learned so much about the other people that came on this trip with us just by spending time with them.

Over the course of this week, we have all had a great time spending time with one another and just getting away for a week. Even though we’ve been rushing around a HUGE campus trying to be on time for classes and catch trolleys all week long, it still seems like we’ve had time to just sit back, chill out, and enjoy creation. The whole week has really given us a vacation away from the routine, time to breathe in, breathe out, and move on. This year’s Lake Junaluska Trip was truly a trip like no other. We all learned so much and grew in our relationships with Christ and one another more than was ever expected!

Thank you all for the prayers and support this week while we have been gone. God has blessed more than we could have ever anticipated. He has kept us safe throughout the entire week and has taught us many things. Thank you for all your support, it means so much more than you think.


So, being blessed so much on this trip, I leave you with these words:
*New Doxology By: Gateway Worship

Praise God from whom all blessings flow.
Praise him all creatures here below.
Praise him above, ye Heavenly Host.
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost.

Let and Earth and Heavenly Saints Proclaim,
The power and might of his great name.
Let us exalt on bended knee.
Praise God, the Holy Trinity.

Praise God, Praise God, Praise God who saved my soul.
Praise God, Praise God, Praise God from whom all blessings flow.

Praise to the King, the throne transcends.
His crown and kingdom never ends.
Now and throughout eternity,
I’ll the one who died for me.

Praise God, Praise God, Praise God who saved my soul.
Praise God, Praise God, Praise God from whom all blessings flow.
Praise God, Praise God, Praise God who saved my soul.
Praise God, Praise God, Praise God from whom all blessings flow.

Praise God from whom all blessings flow.
Praise him all creatures here below.
Praise him above, ye Heavenly Host.
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost.


From the Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

Preformance Day!

Today was the day that we’ve been working for all week! This afternoon after lunch, the performances began with the Children’s Demonstration. Joanne and Christine did a beautiful job singing 5 songs that they have prepared. Christine even had a solo!!. Soon after the Instrumental Group had their concert in the auditorium. Caleb, Hunter, Mary, Callie, and Miranda did a great job as they played 5 selections that they’ve only had about 2 hours to learn! After the concert, it was time for the moment that everyone had been anticipating. We all made our way to Shackford Hall for the Handbell Concert. Our Handbell Choir played 4 pieces; The Gospel Train, With all my Heart, All Glory Laud and Honor, and Happy Birthday Variations. Our Director, Valerie Stevenson, a famous composer, arranged all of them!

The night overall was wonderful! We all played our best and worked our hardest to prepare for this night! We’re really tired though, so we’re ready to sleep in our own beds again! So anyway, we’re coming home tomorrow! See yall soon!

From the Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

Finding Happiness

Over the past few weeks, some friends of mine have been struggling with finding happiness. You might say that this is a minor problem and that they were just having a bad day, but these people are facing issues that have haunted them for years. There are so many things that can send someone’s life into a nose dive. Grief, depression, and fear are just a few things that can truly haunt people, day after day. Our job as their friends is to help them get through it.

For the past few weeks, the Lord has been showing me and a few others what happiness really is. When you think about it, that’s always been a question in the back of our heads. The Lord has shown us that we, nor anyone else will ever be able to find true happiness in anything but him. All worldly things will satisfy for awhile but nothing will stay with you like He will. It doesn’t matter how rich you are, how many friends you have, or how high you are on the popularity scale; true happiness can only be found in God. There is NOTHING that will satisfy a persons hunger more than the living water of our living God. He is constantly helping people deal with sadness by just being there. But for him to bring you happiness you have to completely give yourself to him. Every ounce of your being has to be fully surrendered. If not, it could be too late.

There are different types of sadness; they could range from grief to true, full-blown depression. No matter how serious, God will always be here to help the people that want to have happiness through him. Other than him, there is no other.

“You who are young, make the most of your youth. Relish your youthful vigor. Follow the impulses of your heart. If something looks good to you, pursue it. But know also that not just anything goes; You have to answer to God for every last bit of it.”
-Ecclesiastes 11:9-

From the Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

Lake Junaluska 2008!

As many of you know, I am currently on a Music Retreat with RHUMC’s Music Ministry. On Sunday, June 26th, 2008 our team met at RHUMC to take on this exciting adventure. We loaded up the church bus and headed to Lake Junaluska, North Carolina. Lake Junaluska is a Methodist Retreat Center in the Appalachian Mountains. Church groups can come on retreats or come to conferences surrounded by God’s natural beauty, his creation. We arrived at the lake at about 2PM checked in with the Music Liturgical Arts Week 2008 staff. Once we were given our cabin keys, we unpacked the bus and settled in.

Music Liturgical Arts Week (MLAG) is centered around three main aspects of today’s traditional worship scene: voice, handbells, and dance. As most of you know, traditional worship isn’t exactly my preference, but MLAG enables worship to truly come alive. I’m here mainly for handbells, but MLAW offers 3 seminars each afternoon. Many of these seminars deal with the planning and conducting of creative and captivating worship. I have been excited to be able to attend a few of them so that I can take what I learned back home and put it to use with our Youth Worship Team.

Overall, we’re all having a wonderful time here at the lake. Please keep us in your prayers as we finish off the week and travel home. Thank yall so much for your support as we learn how to better our church’s worship!

Lake Junaluska 2008 Team Members:
*Jason Moon
*Yoon Nam
*Terri Jarrell
*Hunter Odom
*Caleb Ingram
*Adrienne Warren
*Allison Lott
*Mary VanDerHeyden
*Brittany Jarrell
*Callie Harkness
*Miranda Cooper
*Anna Lott
*Audra Warren
*Joanne Moon
*Christine Moon

From the Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28