En Route to Nashville

1. Name / Geographic Location: My name is Ryan Barton, and I'm from the wonderful, city of St. Louis, Missouri.

2. Church/ Pastor: I attend Pastor Gary Tracy's church, New Life Center, in Bridgeton.

3. Age: I am 24 years young.

4. Favorite Bible Character: Hmmm....I would have to say David, because I believe you should always have the courage and faith to stand up to your problems. No matter how large or small.

5. I’m currently reading… hahaha....ok, You ready? The Gospel According to The Simpsons. Seriously, I'll tell you about it later.

6. I last downloaded… Some new updates for my Samsung Omnia. I love my phone!!!

7. My Youth Congress History . . . 2001 - Atlanta, GA. I attended with a small group from my church. 2003 - Nashville, TN. I attended with friends and family. 2007 - Charlotte, NC. I attended with the General Youth Division and helped with my duties with the GYD.

8. At NAYC, you’ll most likely find me at… In the middle of the crowd, I love people and I plan to meet as many of you as possible.

9. I predict this Youth Congress will be… the best ever. Which we all say every year, but seriously they get better and better EVERY year. This one will be more impactful, more anointed, and will create more blessings than ever before.

NAYC Bound

I know I know, it's a week early, but I had to go down to see the Bible Quizzing and have a bit of vacation too. On my GPS it only looks like a few inches away, but it says 5 hours. (pay no attention to the speed. I think it's broke... :)

I'll shoot some video on the way and post it, but for now I'll let you visual my trip a bit. Starting from the GPS.

Ryan A. Barton

Myself (JWH)

Name / Geographic Location: My name is Justin Herring and I am from the Detroit Metropolitan geographic location.

Church/ Pastor: I attend Faith Apostolic Church of Troy, currently pastored by Marvin G. Walker.

Age: I am 23 years old.

Favorite Bible Character: My favorite Bible characters are Jesus Christ, the Messiah, and also Jonathan, son of King Saul of Israel and friend of David.

I’m currently reading... I am currently reading the fiction of Booth Tarkington.

I last downloaded... I last downloaded all 52 episodes of WNYC's Radio Lab.

My Youth Congress History... I have attended the past three Youth Congresses.

At NAYC, you’ll most likely find me at... At NAYC, you will most likely find me by contacting me and requesting a meeting.

I predict this Youth Congress will be... I predict this Youth Congress will be good.

Wherefore art thou...(ben)

Twenty-six years ago, my parents decided to name me Ben. I grew up in the Wilmington-Newark, Delaware area, and have attended Newark UPC (pastor: Steven Beardsley) since birth. While I've always admired Jesus, I feel more akin to David. In the wake of grad school, I am now re-reading such treatises as The Evolution of International Society (Watson), and Imperial Grunts (Kaplan), while entertaining myself with Eats, Shoots & Leaves (Truss) and Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar (Cathcart and Klein). Since I work in IT, I frequently download files, the last of which was likely this. I've attended Youth Congress since 1997 (Nashville), and may be growing out of it, however, I'm passing along the experience to the next generation, as I bring them along to explore interesting places and meet "interesting" people. Youth Congress will, of course, be quite tiring.

Also, I hate Shakespeare.

Next in Line ... S.E.N.

1. Name / Geographic Location: Shohna Neumann, hailing from Lithia Springs, GA
2. Church/ Pastor: Atlanta West Pentecostal Church, Rev Darrell Johns
3. Age: 16 [Hey, don't let anyone look down on you because of your youth.]
4. Favorite Bible Character: Not to be picky, but there's two: Joseph [no one talks about him enough]. He had the whole package. Not only did God totally orchestrate his life the way any of us would die for God to do, but Joseph always had the right attitude. And David praised God no matter what. David was real with the Lord, like you would be with your best friend.
5. I’m currently reading… Whence Came a Prince.
6. I last downloaded… no clue.
7. My Youth Congress History . . . is unfortunately nonexistent!

8. At NAYC, you’ll most likely find me at… wherever my friends are. I'll be catching up with all us poor young people who've been separated a while!

9. I predict this Youth Congress will be… brilliant, showered with God's Presense, full of His glory and revelation.

A Brief Introduction...(JDR)

1. Name / Geographic Location: Joel Riley/The burbs of Detroit City.
2. Church/ Pastor: Faith Apostolic Church of Troy/Marvin Walker.
3. Age: 23
4. Favorite Bible Character: Jacob
5. I’m currently reading… Misquoting Jesus by Bart Ehrman and an Introduction to Biblical Hermeneutics textbook.
6. I last downloaded…I'm all over the place, but I do know that I cannot get enough of the Animal Collective right now.
7. My Youth Congress History . . . In 2001 in Atlanta, my relationship with the behemoth that is Youth Congress began...and have been to every single one since...during this time I have gone through the prototypical experiences at a Youth Congress: Heard life changing sermons, had an encounter with God that can never be forgotten, broke up with a former girlfriend, consoled a friend who has been broken up with, cowered at talking to beautiful potential wives of the opposite gender, questioned some things religiously, held onto other things religiously, and talked and joked with the best of friends until the wee hours of the morning in the hotel lobby.

8. At NAYC, you’ll most likely find me at… probably the nearest coffee shop... (yes I am that guy).
9. I predict this Youth Congress will be… an indicator of how many youth congresses in the future will be administered.

NAYC Questionnaire (RAO)

1. Name / Geographic Location: Ryan O'Neil/Jonesboro, AR and soon to be White Hall, AR
2. Church/ Pastor: Calvary UPC/John Chance
3. Age: 23
4. Favorite Bible Character: I don't play favorites. I love them all the same.
5. I’m currently reading… the Bible.
6. I last downloaded…the font "serifa" for a logo I was creating.
7. My Youth Congress History . . .Been every year since 2001. Best and longest message: 2003. Calvin Jean. "Click on it, and it's yours."

8. At NAYC, you’ll most likely find me at… places where Bible Quizzers are.
9. I predict this Youth Congress will be… Amazing. I always love youth congress.

And Now, Your Host for This Event . . . (kdc)

1. Name / Geographic Location: Kent d Curry of Florissant, Missouri

2. Church/ Pastor: New Life Pentecostal / Pastor Garry Tracy

3. Age: Neither teen nor twentysomething

4. Favorite Bible Character: Daniel – a real man with a real job and a real walk with God.

5. I’m currently reading… Too many titles without making any serious headway: Pagan Christianity (Largely overrated), The Scene Book, The Only Child and some thick magazines that mock me with their existence.

6. I last item I downloaded… escapes my foggy memory.

7. My Youth Congress History reaches back to Youth Congress No. 1 in Memphis. It was smaller, but you could tell they’d hit on a winning format, even back then. Let’s see, I tried to break up with Nita at Youth Congress in Cincinnati, but she wouldn’t let me. (That was humiliating.) We had a long, romantic conversation on a Memphis (?) hotel balcony overlooking the city. She was beautiful that night. We missed a bunch of Congresses, returned to Nashville in 2003 and can hardly wait to see how God will move this year.

8. At NAYC, you’ll most likely find me at…the Word Aflame Publications (WAP) booth. Please drop by & say hello.

9. I predict this Youth Congress will be…God-drenched, the same size as Charlotte (17,000ish), but less news worthy.