Small Group Outings

Hey there everyone tonight is the night where we all go out and hang out!

Tonight is SMALL GROUP OUTINGS! For some of you, you will not be meeting at the church you will be meeting at houses, restraunts, coffee shops, or even Powder puff football games :)

So please make sure you know where you are going to be meeting tonight!

Its normal times from 6:30 - 8:30pm, and for the parents please make sure your student talks with their small group leader. I will be at the church tonight to help any new students who show up or any students who show up and forgot that they have small group outings today. So I will be at the church the entire time tonight so if anyone wants to come sit with a lonely Youth Pastor tonight and help him do some work they are more then welcome too :)

Hope you all have an amazing night!

P.A.

Small Group Outings

Hey there everyone just a little friendly reminder that tomorrow we are NOT having normal Youth Group we are having small outings tomorrow! So please please please make sure you know where your small group is meeting and going and if you need money or if you need to bring something please please please make sure you know what you guys are doing.

I will be here at the church for any new students who show up I will direct them where to go but please make sure if you are inviting friends that they know that this week is a different week then normal.

I hope that things are going well for you all today, I am excited tonight to see the mens soccer team do some work tonight, and I am excited for Homecoming this Friday! Its gonna be awesome.

Here is a devotion for you guys today.

"Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things" (Philippians 4:8, NIV).

A Native American boy was talking with his grandfather.

"What do you think about the world situation?" he asked.

The grandfather replied,

"I feel like two wolves are fighting in my heart. One is full of anger and hatred. The other is full of love, forgiveness and peace."

"Which one will win?" asked the boy.

To which the grandfather replied, "The one I feed."

Franklin Delano Roosevelt said,

"Men are not prisoners of fate, but only prisoners of their own minds," and James Allen rightly stated that, "You are today where your thoughts have brought you; you will be tomorrow where your thoughts take you."

Another has said,

"What the mind dwells on the body acts on."

If you don't believe this, think how temptation works--first a thought that seems to come from nowhere . . .we feed it and the thought begins to expand . . . then one's feelings get involved . . . and the more we think about it .. . the more we hunger for it . . . then we begin to rationalize and justify what we want to do . . . and the battle is lost. It's all in the mind.

As they say about computers: GIGO = garbage in garbage out. So it is with the mind. If we keep looking at and thinking about garbage, we will act out accordingly. But, if as the Bible says, we concentrate on thoughts that are noble,right, pure, lovely, and admirable, we too, will act accordingly. It's all in the mind, for what the mind dwells on the body acts on.

P.A.

God is amazing

So last night God showed up in a big way! We raised over 2500 dollars for our 3dyc trip, and winter retreat and we still have 2 more fundraisers to go! whoop whoop :)

Man I am so proud of the students, and the parents who stepped up and wants their students to grow closer to Christ. I am so pumped for this amazing conference. Please be in prayer for us as we prepare even more for this conference now.

Wow, I can't get over it what happened last night, I give all the glory to God. I recognize that all good things come from God!

Ok I have to move on....

This Wednesday is our Small Group outing so make sure your students get a hold of their small group leader and know where they are going. Most groups will be meeting at the church at 6:30 and be done and back at 8:3o but some groups will be gone before and after that so please make sure your student knows where they are going.

Also at the end of the month we are doing our 3rd Annual Harvest Party! It is going to be off the chain that night, so be looking for more information and flyers to come.

I hope you all have a great week, may you come to know God's heart more this week.

P.A.

Student Auction tonight!

Hey there everyone tonight is the night! Student Auction at 6:00pm at CVMC. Come out to and bid on some sweet silent Auction items from a happy wife chocolate basket to 5 hours of free maintenance on your car. We have tons of things to bid on, also we are auctioning off 25 awesome students.

So come prepared to help the Crystal Valley youth group get to EPIC conference and our winter retreat.

Hope to see you at 6pm!

P.A.

Here is a little funny

Man what a night

Last night was seriously awesome!

God has done some amazing things through this Anger series, keep seeking after God in all that you do students. I know last night I wasn't just talking with you guys I was talking right back at me too, so please be praying for your youth pastor too, because Satan tries to get his footholds in my life too. So lets keep praying for each other and lets keep seeking out Christ together.

Alrightie! This Sunday is gonna be so BANANA's! With the student Auction, the dessert Bar afterward, the massive silent auction we are going to be doing its going to be just straight amazingness! So invite tons of your friends and your parents friends and tell them if they are coming to bring a dessert! Its going to be just awesome. The silent Auction will just fun, and also hopefully bring in alot of funds for the youth ministry.

God is doing some great things inside this youth ministry and is spilling out into the community which is just awesome, we want to be part of this community and be able to share what God is doing! So we will see you all here on Sunday night! 6pm - 8pm with our special guest Auctioneers! Also remember parents we have a little kid auction also! Its is going to be just awesome, hope to see you out here for this amazing night!

P.A.

Anger series Finale tonight

Hey there everyone! Sorry I am getting this blog out so late, I have a really busy day with seeing people at the hospital, and See you at the Pole this morning!

Hey guys tonight we are going to be finishing up our Anger series and really putting the final touches on how to TAME anger. Come tonight and here some really awesome passages on taming your anger. Tonight we are going to have some fun, we are going to worship God, and we are going to hopefully take some steps in getting closer to Christ.

So come tonight at 6:30 and hang out with us for a little while. God has some amazing things He wants to do tonight.

Also just a little reminder that this Sunday night we need all the students so be ready to help out with the Auction. Come and bring a dessert to share with people as they come to help out the youth group! 6- 8pm this coming Sunday night!

Hope to see you all tonight!

P.A.

The start of something new!

Hey there everyone I really hope you guys are having a superb day.

So this coming Wednesday night is going to be the bee's knee's because its going to be awesome. I really hope you guys could come out and join us out here at CVMC from 6:30 - 8:30. We are going to be finishing up our Anger series this Wednesday with a pretty cool and interesting challenge. So come this Wednesday and have some fun with us as we hang out and learn about how to get closer to Jesus together~!

Also tomorrow morning is See you at the Pole! Make sure you are there Crystal Valley is running the Junior High part of it while Raiders for Christ will be running the High school end of it. So tomorrow morning come out and pray around your flag pole. Even its raining out still come because we will still have somethings going on! I promise. Its going to be a wicked awesome cool thing :)

Last announcement you need to be aware of. This Sunday is one of the biggest Sunday's for the Youth Group we are having our student auction so please come and support the youth group by coming and bidding and some really cool and awesome things! We have a silent auction going on, we will have a student Auction going on, and we will be having a kid auction where only kids from the age of 3rd grade and under can bid on things like cookies, toys, and other cool things! So bring the whole family out that night to have a great time! If you guys are going to come please bring a dessert to share! We want to make sure we have enough desserts for everyone!

Here is a devotion for you today!

I read about this doctor who died and didn't leave a bunch of money for his wife. She couldn't figure what happened to all his assets, so she checked back through his records with the intensity of a private investigator. What would she find? Did he blow all the cash on gambling? Did he have a mistress who he supported on the side? Was he a drug addict who floated to cocaine market in his area?

No. All she found was a number of accounts that were crossed through with this note:

"Forgiven - too poor to pay."

But this wasn't enough for the physician's wife. Later on she decided that these accounts must be paid in full and she proceeded to sue for money. When the case came to court, the judge asked but one question. Is this your husband's handwriting? When she replied that it was, he responded: "Sorry ma'am, but there is no court in the land that can obtain a debt once the word forgiven has been written."

Ever felt unforgiven? There are few things worse in life than having a gnawing, belittling, condemning voice in your head saying that someone is holding blame over your head even after you apologized.

Maybe that's why there are verses like I John 1:9

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."

I love that verse, and I apply it daily. That's why I can know and feel forgiven.

But what does this verse have to do with our relationship with other people? Plenty...let me explain.

First and foremost - every human on earth has offended God and is in need of forgiveness in order to restore our relationship with Him and go to heaven. Just like in the story above, God looked at the "bill" we owed Him, and because of Christ's death He can write: "Forgiven-too poor to pay" when we trust Him for salvation.

But that's not where it ends! Too many believers are just like the doctor's wife. They go digging through past records and demanding payment from people. Sort of reminds me of a story that Jesus told- see if you can pick up the theme:

Then Peter came to him and asked, "Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?"

"No!" Jesus replied, "Seventy times seven! For this reason, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. He couldn't pay, so the king ordered that he, his wife, his children, and everything he had be sold to pay the debt. But the man fell down before the king and begged him, `Oh, sir, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.' Then the king was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt.

"But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment. His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. `Be patient and I will pay it,' he pleaded. But his creditor wouldn't wait. He had the man arrested and jailed until the debt could be paid in full.

"When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him what had happened. Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, `You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. Shouldn't you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?' Then the angry king sent the man to prison until he had paid every penny.

"That's what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters in your heart." (Matthew 18: 21-35)

You probably have heard this story before, but knowledge is not the issue, application is! Perhaps today God is asking you the same question as the King in the story: "Shouldn't you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?"

I'm not saying it's easy, or even pleasant. I've been wronged before, and I must admit that it sometimes feels good to hold anger in your heart. But the point is that if you are a believer, you have been forgiven of an insurmountable debt at Christ's expense. You were "too poor to pay", so Jesus erased the debt. Therefore you have a serious and required responsibility to go through the book of your life and cross out the debts of those who "owe" you.

If you are feeling unforgiven, perhaps it is because you are holding a grudge yourself. If you are holding a grudge against someone else this day, then God will put you in a mental prison until you "pay Him back" for the death of Christ...think your mental bank account can handle that one?

P.A.

The best week ever

Hey there everyone I hope that everyone is having a super wicked awesome Monday!

I know that I am, NOT!

My cowboys lost, Nebraska Lost, ND won......My weekend of football not so good, but oh well. We will prevail!

This week is a huge week for the youth ministry. We are ending our Anger series this week, and let me say if you weren't there for this anger series it has been a really good series a lot of really good dialouge and some really interesting things that have come out of this series. Also we have the student Auction coming up on this Sunday.

Let me just say a couple things about the Auction. This Auction is one of our main ways to fund raise for our students. This year we don't have as many students that are getting auctioned off mainly because our students have been so busy, but we still have lots of students, and things we are auctioning off. So please take some time out on Sunday night to come and see what we have to offer for our Auction. Remember we are having a time for a kids auction in the middle of our student Auction so you can bring the little guys and girls to the auction. So make it night out with the Family its going to be a really good fun time with people. We are going to be having some testimonies from students and leaders from what 3dyc has meant for them. We will have some time of just hanging out with the students who will talk your ear off about how much fun they have had in the past few years. So please invite some friends and if you are going to be coming please bring a dessert to share! That is so important we want to make sure we have enough for everyone who comes in!

God is doing some amazing things in our youth ministry right now so why don't ya come and see how you can help continue the work of God in our students! We hope to see you all there this Sunday!

God is awesome, Last night we have about 13 high school students come to the church and take about 15 mins in prayer and worship. Then we talked about making eternal deposits with our life. God has called us to use our time for Him and not ourselves. Last night was great getting to talk with all the students and they had phenominal things to say. So the High school NEXT class on Sunday nights at 6pm is going great!

Have an amazing week!

P.A.

God has it all mapped out

Hey there everyone I really hope you guys are having a good day today.

So a little story from my life that happened last night, for the first time in almost a year I actually got to play soccer with other people my age and not Junior high students or high school students. It was pretty beast, but today I woke up and I tried to move and my body was like whoa there little buddy. My calves are so stinking soar its not funny, and my knees are saying every time I move, STOP! But it was still fun I enjoyed myself alot. I might just have to do it again next Thursday.

anyways, this sunday is a pretty big Sunday around here we have our Journey meal together after the 2nd service this weekend, we also have Junior high NEXT class going on, and we have our High school next class going on at night from 7 - 8pm this week. PLEASE NOTICE THE TIME CHANGE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS!

Also some pretty exciting news. We have already planned a big event for the summer! More details to come but just let you all know it means going somewhere far away :) God is moving and God is doing some pretty cool things in right now. So keep up that hard work of laying your life down for Christ every day. I know its hard, but keep on keeping on brothers and sisters.

Hope to see you guys this weekend down at the festival :) Yippie. Fireworks tonight. A great place to see them is at the church I think I might be here tonight so maybe we will see you all there.

Have a great weekend.

See you Sunday

P.A.

A little funny with a little serious

Hearing the Voice of God!

So last night was pretty awesome!

This Anger series is going really well, and I hope that you guys are learning tons! I hope last nights illustration really put it into perspective for you about listening to God's voice. We have to make sure that we are drawing near to God to hear His voice and not the others that are giving you bad advice. When you are angry you have to recognize you might need to have a hard conversation, you might have to make a hard decision, and you might have to say I'm sorry. God wants to direct you through all the junk and the pain, but when we choose to do things are own way. Then it doesn't work out the best.

I hope and I pray that you guys take time to really look at those scriptures we gave you, and when anger starts welling up you guys can turn to those scriptures, and then turn to others. Always Always start with God and His word. I can not stress that enough that the Word of God will never EVER lead you the wrong way. Open up yourself to be directed by God and I promise just like Raleigh did last night you will get to the goal.

I hope to see you guys on Sunday. Junior high next class in the morning, and the High school next class at night. We start at 7pm this week because we are playing for the 4-6th graders!

See you later everyone!

P.A.

Hearing the Voice of God!

Tonight my brothers and sisters we are going to continuing on in our dialouge about Anger and how it affects our lives. God has got some major things in store for tonight so come tonight and be prepared to be blown away.

Tonight we are going to be discussing when we get Angry who should we listen to? What should we do? Where should we turn? I really want to give you guys some practical uses for Anger. Because I believe that when we get angry we need to understand what is a good way to deal with those emotions. So tonight we are going to set out to show you what it is like in your mind when you get Angry. This is going to be a little experiment but I think its going to be a really good tool to help everyone see how confusing it can be when you get Angry and only listen to those around you.

We need to understand that God that created us wants to bless us, wants to guide us, and I believe for most of us we don't really listen to God all that much, especially when it comes to our Anger.

So tonight we are going to be dialoguing about in our small groups like we did last week.

I hope to see you tonight!

P.A.

Youth Group Tomorrow

Hey there everyone! I hope you are all having an amazing day!

Tomorrow night is going to be awesome, We have got some amazing games planned, some awesome rocking worship, a really cool and different way of learning about Anger, and then some time to plan you small group outing. Its going to be amazing. God has got some really cool "Ah ha" moments this coming Wednesday.

A couple of announcements,

1. If you have anything you want to donate to the silent Auction this is the last week to do that, also students tomorrow night will be the last night for you to sign up for the Auction. If you have anything you want to donate please Email me at cvmcadam@verizon.net.

2. Small Group outings are coming up in 2 weeks so leaders, and students you have got to get a plan together by the 23rd of September and let me know where you guys are all going so I can make sure I have contact info for those who show up late because of practices.

God has some awesome and amazing things for each and every one of you. Continue to pursue God with everything you have. I promise you wont be disappointed.

Here's a little video to get you thinking this morning.



P.A.

God is Amazing

Hey there everyone I hope you are all having amazing days!

This week for Youth Group we are going to be continuing on in our Anger series and we are also going to continue on in our discussion small groups this week. I think last week was really fun and I am glad that we got to have some really good dialouge about Anger what it really means. This week we are going to finish up those discussions and talk about how Anger effects us on the inside. So come this Wednesday and get pumped up for Youth Group!

The student Auction is coming up soon and we are still accepting things for the silent Auction, and also for the student Auction students can sign up this week. This will be the last week though for everything because we will need to start getting things put together. Come see me on Sunday morning I will have my table set up again in that corner right when you walk in. It is vital that everyone sign up so we know how many people are coming and how many people we can expect. Also if you are coming please bring a dessert to share with people. The youth group is providing the Ice cream and toppings, but if everyone else will bring something to share that would great!

Those are all the announcements I have right now I hope everyone is having a great day. Here is a devotional for you today!

Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. (Luke 22:31,32)

Unfortunately, just like in the days of Simon Peter and Jesus, Satan is alive and well on planet earth. Guess what? Just like he desired to sift Peter like wheat, he longs to rip us to shreds. You might say his plan is to make Christians into 'shredded wheat'! Fortunately for us, in the same way Jesus prayed for Simon Peter, He is also praying for all believers.

According to I John 2:1, we have One who speaks to the Father in our defense, Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. When we sin, Jesus is praying for us. When we stumble, He is upholding us before the Father. When the devil shoots his fiery arrows or accuses us of wrongdoing, Christ is right there to defend us.

Do you think the prayers of the Son of God go unanswered? I don't think so! The Father hears the prayers of His Son on our behalf.

Think about that for a moment. There are times in all of our lives when we struggle. Like Peter, we stumble and fall in our relationship with Christ. Yet He will never leave us or forsake us! In fact, when we are at our worst, Christ is at His best. He is constantly pleading grace before our heavenly Father to help us.

Perhaps today you are going through a tough time. It could be the consequences of sin, a family struggle or a broken relationship. Possibly you're catching flak because of your witness for Christ on campus, or it might be that you're just plain discouraged.

Take courage in one awesome truth. Someone is praying for you. Someone is passionately upholding you before the throne of the King. Someone knows your struggle and is articulating it before the Father better than you ever could. Someone cares. That someone is Jesus: the Author and Finisher of our faith.So now you can pray with confidence and witness with passion, because you know that you are not fighting the battle alone. You are standing side-by-side with your Champion and Eternal Savior, Jesus Christ. He is petitioning the God of heaven and earth on your behalf.

As you bring worry, discouragement, and failures before God, remember that:

"We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have
one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are-yet was without sin. Let us then approach the
throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of
need" Hebrews 4:15,16

Satan may desire to make us into 'shredded wheat', but Jesus is conforming us into solid rocks!

P.A.

Friday, whoop whoop!

Hey there everyone I hope you guys are having an awesome day! I know I am, its been pretty sweet the first couple hours. Just a few announcements for ya today

1. High school NEXT class starts this Sunday night, we do not offer a high school morning class for you guys any more, we are really encouraging you to plug into a ministry like Childrens ministry, Sound team, 1st impressions team, 4-6th grade ministry, or maybe help out with some of the Junior high students. We have lots of things for you to get involved in on a Sunday morning. For Sunday night we will start at 6pm with a worship and prayer time with the worship band, and then from 7-8 we will have a study. We really want to make this a discussion oriented time just like we had this summer. We hope to see a lot of you there.

2. The student Auction is coming up. We need to start inviting people to the church for our Auction on September 27th! Its going to rock hard to the core. We hope you can all come and be a part of that. We will have a sign up and all the things we are auctioning off this Sunday at church so people can take a look and see what is getting Auctioned off.

Those are the 2 large announcements for today. I hope you guys have an awesome time this weekend we hope to see a lot of you at church on Sunday, and remember High school students this is the first Sunday we don't have a morning option for you, only at night from 6-8pm!

Here is a devotion for ya today!

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." (John 13:34-35)

Real love. Christ-like love. It must not come must not come naturally. Otherwise, why would Jesus have to make it a command? He must have thought that somehow, someway, believers have the ability through the Holy Spirit to live a life of genuine love. Yet not only do we have the ability, we also have the responsibility. In fact, Jesus makes it clear that self-sacrificial love is the way that the world will know we are children of God. Notice that Christ did not say: "by this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you know many verses and have your theology solid..." or " by this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you attend church, speak in tongues, and avoid all sin..." He simplified it for us- love one another.

So how do we show this love? I believe it is expressed through our unconditional acceptance of people regardless of race, creed or color. Whether that person is kind to you, or treats you like dirt. Whether you agree with their lifestyle, or stand against it. All of these things are quite irrelevant when it comes to obeying God and loving others. If you set up any pre-requisites for loving others, then you are disobedient to Christ and ineffective in your witness.

Let's look at how this principle played itself out in the life of Jesus.

In John 4 we find Him in a tense situation; He is a Jew, living in a land occupied by Romans. The Romans do not particularly like the Jews, and the Jews return their sentiment. Yet, when Jesus is asked to heal a Roman official's son, He does so immediately — no strings attached, no power plays, no political games.
Jesus does not hold grudges, nor does he require obedience before demonstrating love. He cares for people regardless of their personality, position, or possessions.

In Luke 9:51-56, Jesus and His disciples were walking through Samaria. Jesus was trying to teach a group of people who were rude and unresponsive. Ever met anybody like that? What is your typical reaction? His disciples' reaction was to ask Jesus: "Do you want us to call fire down from heaven and destroy them?" Jesus basically replies, "No way! Are you demon possessed?" Evidently in Jesus' mind, anger, revenge, prejudice, and unloving attitudes are unacceptable and sometimes demonic.

I know that as Christians we are called to hold each other accountable. Yet we should not use accountability as an excuse to harbor hatred or indifference. As well, we should not expect those who do not know Christ to live as we do. Unbelievers need to be shown that they will be completely accepted by the family of God. This acceptance should not come because of any qualifications or actions on their part, but because God loves them. God loves people unconditionally. So should we.

There are people in your schools who are lonely and don't fit in. Many feel ashamed and outcast for whatever reason. If we make anyone feel like an outcast because he/she is different, we bring shame to Christianity. If we check people out to make sure they're cool before we share the gospel, we are allowing our prejudices to interfere with God's work. This is a tragic mistake and blatant sin.

Often the error of non-acceptance turns people away from God and Christianity — possibly forever. They run as fast and as far away as they can in the other direction, seeking out other religions and organizations that will embrace them. At that point Satan and those he has deceived will stretch out their welcoming arms. If the enemy has the ability to "love" and accept people, then how much more should we! Remember, people will go where they are accepted and stay where they are loved. Is your world a place where people want to stay?

P.A.

Sunday night Class Schedule

Hey there High school students here is the schedule for the High school NEXT class on Sunday nights that starts this week. I also put the topics we are going to be discussing. Please Bring your Bibles and your thinking caps. We are going to be discussing things that are really interesting. So come ready to have some good discussion and fun! Here is the schedule my friends

Musical Chairs and Missions

Man last night was great! I hope you all had a great time last night. We had some really fun and awesome moments like watching the people who were blindfolded try to find a seat in Musical Chairs remix, to trying to build that weird sculpture. Also being able to come together and worship God as a youth group is always one of my favorite things. Then listening to Amanda's heart for missions and then talk in small groups about Anger and read through Ephesians and James together and really dive deep!

Man last night was good! We hope to see you guys next week when we continue on in our endeavor to tackle this anger issue.

Also just want to make a reminder note that this Sunday is our first Next class for high school at night we will start at 6 and be done at 8pm. We are going to have some worship time and then get into the topic at hand. So we will be done by 8pm, and if we want to get together afterwards for some ice cream over at Sunday best I would be done for that :)

But come Sunday night High school students to discuss, pray, and learn more about the God we serve! God has some really awesome things in store for us!

I hope you all have an amazing day. If you want to watch the best 7th & 8th Grade soccer teams in the area come to the Magic fields around 4:45 today and watch the NMS take on ECA.

See you all later.

P.A.

Tonight is the night!

Hey there everyone sorry this is getting out so late today, but I have been wicked busy this morning!

So tonight we are going to be having some amazing fun! We are playing a new game called Music Chairs remix, and also a game called build a bear! Its gonna be fun so come out and check it out, also tonight on the Agenda is some sweet worship with the worship band! Its gonna rock, in addition to that we have a special speaker coming in tonight to talk about her missions trip to Mexico, and after all of that we are going to continue on in our quest to remedy this Anger situation. We are going to be doing something totally different tonight for small groups! Its gonna rock some people's faces off. So come tonight at 6:30 and stay till 8:30. It will be some good times tonight. God has some amazing things planned for you tonight, so why don't you come and check it out.

CVMC at 6:30 - 8:30 tonight! Maybe bring a friend with ya tonight.

Tonight guys bring a bible and a journal because there are somethings tonight I want you to write so you can remember them. We will be changing somethings up tonight that are pretty cool, so make sure you bring a bible and a journal tonight to write things down!



P.A.

Good Golly

Hey there everyone!

I hope you all had an awesome weekend, I spent my weekend in Minnesota at a Tandem Rally, and dressed mostly in biking Jersey's I know its a pretty picture! But we rode over a 150 miles this weekend on our bike and it was really fun :) Except I am really really sore :)

Ohh well

Tomorrow at Youth Group is going to be off the chain, we are going to be switching things up a bit tomorrow night because we have a special guest coming in to speak to us about Missions. Her name is Amanda Northrup and she goes to CVMC and she went to our youth group for just a little bit before she graduated and went down to Mexico. She is going to come in and share about her time in Mexico! So come tomorrow ready to hear about some really cool things about Mexico and some really cool upcoming missions possibilities.

Also tomorrow night we are going to be continuing on in our series on Anger, but we are going to be doing the message a little bit different and I think you will enjoy the way we are going to be doing things tomorrow! So come ready to have an awesome time tomorrow night!

Some Big things are coming so make sure you are there to get every last detail of information :)

Also this Sunday we kick off our new Sunday night high school next class. This first class will be kicked off with some worship and prayer time, and then we will talk about what we are going to be learning about and discussing! So high school students 6pm this Sunday night.

Also Parents: This is the last week for you guys to help donate items to our Student Auction please email me at cvmcadam@verizon.net to let me know the item you will be donating! It will help me out tremendously! Thank you.

Hope to see you all tomorrow!

P.A.

There is so much truth in this!

When anger wins, You lose!

Hey there everyone!

Last night was really fun, I am glad that a lot of you guys showed up to really kick off this Anger series, and last night was powerful! God was really working, Keep remembering that when Anger wells up inside, that Jesus commands us to love one another even when its hard, Go back to Matthew 5 and read through those verses again about Anger. Its going to be hard because Anger cuts deep, really really deep. And again those people last night who came up to the front to get prayed over, that stuff is in God's hands now! You can take a break from worrying about it, because we claim, and we stand with boldness that God will make a way for that stuff to be broken off from your soul and mind.

God is powerful please remember that. Next week we are going to be diving into healthy ways of dealing with Anger. So next week please bring a Bible, and a journal! Next week will look a little bit different because we are going to set somethings up to have more of a discussion.

Both Next classes will meet this week. So come on Sunday morning come and hang out with some really fun cats! :)

Here is a devotional for ya today!

One man challenged another to an all-day wood chopping contest.

The challenger worked very hard, stopping only for a brief lunch break. The other man had a leisurely lunch and took several breaks during the day. At the end of the day, the challenger was surprised and annoyed to find that the other fellow had chopped substantially more wood than he had.

"I don't get it," he said. "Every time I checked, you were taking a rest, yet you chopped more wood than I did."

"But you didn't notice," said the winning woodsman, "that I was sharpening my ax when I sat down to rest."

(Source unknown)

If you're like me, sometimes it seems that dealing with the world is like chopping wood. It's hard work, it takes time and concentration, and in the end you never get as far as you thought you would. Then on top of that, there never seems to be time to rest. Our to-do-list, deadlines, relationships, and multiple activities keep us on a mad dash that would make a rabbit tired. We rush out of bed and play slave to the schedule until we drop back into a restless slumber.

In other words, our axes are getting dull. Without any time for sharpening, we accomplish less and less with the same effort, until soon we just get used to the idea that we can't cut it like we used too.

But then there are other believers who seem to have found some kind of 'secret'. They seem content with their lives, they handle things well, and they rarely seemed stressed out.

Guess what? I'll let you in on their secret.

Ready?

The secret is that there is no secret. In fact it's spelled out in God's word. For example:

Quiet down before GOD, be prayerful before him. Don't bother with those who climb the ladder, who elbow their way to the top. (Psalm 37:7)

"Be silent, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world." (Psalm 46:10)

"As often as possible Jesus withdrew to out-of-the-way places for prayer." (Luke 5:16)

These folks have simply decided to obey God, and not miss the forest for the trees...so to speak. They take time out to sharpen the axe, which is why they are skilled at chopping through life the way God intended.

Perhaps you have been swinging your axe a little too long, and you need a rest. Not just any rest, but one with a purpose. In order to accomplish this, you will need to do five things:

1. Get alone. I mean really alone. No cell phone, no laptop, as remote as possible.
2. Bring a Bible. Focus on a few select passages of Scripture like the Psalms or the Gospels.
3. Pray. Not the standard 'bless this food/help me I've got a test' type prayer, but the 'pouring out your heart' before God type. Act like you're talking to your best friend in the whole world, because you are.
4. Listen. When was the last time you just sat in silence and listened for God? My thought is, if Jesus needed to do it- you think we might need it too?
5. Worship. Praising God is a sure-fire way to get the blade razor-sharp, because it brings us to the place where we remember that God is God and we are not.

Of course, this is just my suggestion. The main point here is to take a time out, because if you don't, you could soon be choppin' up the wrong tree...or something like that.

P.A.

Blam - Its going down tonight

Hey there everyone! Tonight is gonna rock something major, tonight we are going to be having tons of fun, we have got some awesome games, some sweet worship, kicking off a new message series tonight, and as always everyone cool in Middlebury and Elkhart will be here at the CVMC tonight!

So be here tonight at 6:30 for some awesome changes in the Youth Room! We have moved things around, switched things up a bunch, and Nate Hickox's favorite thing.....An awesome new Countdown!

So tonight bring a Bible! A Journal! And a heart that is ready to hear from God. I posted a little movie on here a couple days ago, find it down most likely at the bottom of the page and watch it before you come to youth group. Because tonight will center around God speaking to you tonight in an awesome and real way.

So be here tonight, don't miss out. Make this a priority because tonight can be life altering. Also bring a shovel because we are going deep tonight my friends!

See you all tonight!

P.A.

God prepare our hearts

Hey there everyone! I hope you are all having a fantastic day.

Tomorrow we are kicking off our Anger series and I am really excited about where God is going to be taking us.

If you haven't watched the video I posted yesterday please watch that and think about what that might mean in your life. God has some amazing things he wants to do in your life, and a lot of it starts with are you willing to surrender and let God do some work in your own life.

With this Anger series, my prayer is that you will all come with a soft heart and just wanting to hear from God. Please be in prayer for this Wednesday I believe that God really wants to heal wounds that were caused by anger. Also some people are just angry people and we want to let you see what Anger does to other people. So tomorrow night we are going to be diving into the hurts and the pains of Anger.

Please bring a Bible and a journal tomorrow night, and for the rest of the nights in this series. We are going to hitting only 1 verse tomorrow, but next Wednesday we will be heading all over the Bible.

God has some major things in store for some of you this Wednesday. Are you willing to go deep?

Here is a Devotion for you today

"Be silent, and know that I am God!" (Pslam 46:10)

Ever find yourself saying to people: "My schedule is crazy right now"? How about: "Man, I am so tired these days from all the stuff I have to do".

I hear that all the time, in fact I've said it myself. What a shame, because that's not the way God intended life to be lived. In reality, it's Satan who tempts us to push our schedule to the brink. If he can't get us sinning, he can at least keep us busy.

It doesn't have to be that way, you know? Somewhere in between the time of your aggravating alarm in the morning and your final feelings before bed, you should take a spiritual breather.

But I don't have time! I have way too much to do already!

Are you sure? Maybe you've just piled up a heaping helping of hectic hullabaloo.

Here's a story that illustrates the point:

As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a village where a woman named Martha welcomed them into her home. Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord's feet, listening to what he taught. But Martha was worrying over the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, "Lord, doesn't it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me."

But the Lord said to her, "My dear Martha, you are so upset over all these details! There is really only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it-and I won't take it away from her." (Luke 10:38-42)

Martha had a palm-pilot. Martha had a cell-phone. Martha defined herself by her diligent diversions. Martha was so busy 'doing' for God that she forgot where God was- in her own living room!

People in our day would look down on Mary.

"What have you been doing all day Mary?"

"Nothing."

"Oh, are you sick? Is there something wrong? Why aren't you being productive?"

Notice what Jesus said: "There is really only one thing worth being concerned about..."

I suggest that each and every day you schedule a "peace out" time where you do nothing but sit at Jesus' feet. I must warn you, though; it will come at a price. You might fall behind on the flow of "Scrubs", or even miss out on the latest half-baked serving of 'reality' T.V.

The important thing to keep in mind is that every precious second invested in your relationship with Christ can never be taken away.

What does a "peace out" time look like?

I get alone, in a quiet room or in a park. I clear my thoughts of all worries, knowing that God is in control. I listen intently to all that is going on, and I turn my eyes upon Jesus in worship, praise, adoration, and love. I remember His blessings, I confess my sins, I plead for grace, and most importantly: I am silent so I can know that He is God.

Peace out!

P.A.