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.