October Youth Update

We are off to a GREAT beginning of the 2014-15 school year.  Youth is going strong every week from 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM, then Connie & I are scurrying home for our 8:15 Grads @ Grahams meeting. Sundays are BUSY as we are proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Even our 10:00 AM Sunday morning class has picked up in attendance.  We are hoping to touch over 30 people on any given Sunday as the year progresses. Our topic on Sunday morning is “InTune with God Through Purpose, Purity, Power & People.”  With the Youth on Sunday nights we are “Becoming a GREAT Youth Ministry” through knowing “Who is God, Jesus & the Holy Spirit.”  Our grads are exploring the topic of “Extreme Love.”  So the Word of God is being spread!

Our IYC Sunday was a blessing highlighted by testimonies from Corey Forster, Liz Dale, Paul Hassen, Nick Torres, Tristan Mapes, Sabrina Torres, Jessi Smith and Shane Mudd. All of our delegates came home closer to God and we are anxious to watch how it plays out in their daily lives. Several commented that they could hardly wait for the next one in San Antonio, Texas.  It was a BIG event with over 5000 in attendance, $65,829 given for Spread the Word missions ($600 from us) and incredible stories of God working in our kids!  Thank you for all the prayers and support.

Speaking of prayers, we could still use some more volunteers to “Prayer Warriors” for our youth.  We are entertaining the idea of including the Grad Class participants, which would multiply our numbers.  Pray about it and let us know.  Thanks!

Our Mum Sale was not as great as we hoped, but after reducing the number to just 50 delivered, we were able to sell most of those.  We will be having a poinsettia & wreath sale in December plus possibly some can collecting and we know Olive’s yard will need to be raked soon.  We appreciate you donating pop cans & bottles on a regular basis.  It doesn’t seem like much, but last year we had almost $700 in can & bottle money.  It adds up!

Our Church of God WINTER RETREAT at Cran-Hill Ranch is coming up on January 9-11, 2015. Sounds like a long time from now, but a $50 registration deposit is DUE by November 30, 2015, with the remaining $49 due by January 4, 2015 (total cost $99).  It’s a great deal for two night’s lodging, five meals, snacks, all programming and much of the recreation.  This year’s speaker is Brett Talley from the Church of the Crossing in Indianapolis.  Josh Lavender (recommended by Tommee Profitt) will be our worship leader. By December, Connie will be praying for snow and making some of the final preparations!  Think ahead, earn your money needed and mark it on your calendars.

As you know, our Detroit CSM mission was very successful and were blessed greatly again.  On Sunday, September 28th we made the Midland Daily News with pictures and an article about our trip. Hopefully, you were able to catch that as we had quotes from students and a general description of the mission. Check the Youth bulletin board because we will have it posted for a few weeks.  We are possibly considering a weeklong adventure in Detroit next summer.  Keep that in your prayers!

Missions – YES, we already have 12 people signed up for our Guatemala Mission on the dates of February 5 -12, 2015.  If you are still thinking about it, please let us know ASAP because we will begin having our Spiritual Preparation Meetings in October.  Our goal of $5000 to help with the cost of a Guatemalan Home is set and we are praying for God’s blessings in helping out another family.  Each year it is exciting to include new participants on our team to share the blessings of Guatemala.

New 2014-2015 Parental Medical/Permission Release Forms were mailed to each family during August.  We NEED to have these forms completed and turned into Pastor Jerry ASAP.  If you have lost your copies, contact Pastor Jerry and we have more.  Many have been received, but we still need a few more. Please help us have this necessary paperwork done for the year so students can attend meetings, ride in the church van and attend any youth event.  Thanks for your help!

We have tentatively planned some of our events for the year with the details still needing to be worked out.  They are as follows:

  • October 25: Service project – the Diaper Alliance followed by visiting Grandma’s Pumpkin Patch & Maze
  • November 23: Service project – Thanksgiving Baskets @ Aldersgate followed by Bowling @ Northern Lanes
  • December 21: Christmas Party @ Mt. Haley
  • January 9-11: Winter Retreat @ Cran-Hill
  • January 23: Mt. Haley Lock-In
  • February 22: Swimming Party @ Four Seasons
  • May 15-17: State Youth Convention

There will be events in March & April yet to be determined and there probably will be other events mixed into the schedule.

Every summer we attempt to upgrade the Youth room at church and we have been successful again. We have new darker rugs to replace our light tan one and we have an air hockey table that we picked up cheaply at a garage sale.  Also there are some new wall pictures & sayings that spruce up the room. We are forever grateful for the church providing a “newly remodeled” room a couple of years ago.  Thanks again that we have an inviting room for our youth and their friends.

Parents and church, your prayers, support and encouragement are greatly appreciated and we look forward every week to sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with our students through interaction, study, fellowship and relationship.  Thank you for sharing your son or daughter and our congregation for holding the youth up in PRAYER.

Love God, Love People, Live It!

Blessings,
Pastor Jerry  

August Youth Update

WOW!!  Powerful, Incredible, Spirit–Filled, Fun, InTune with God, Jesus!  Words cannot describe the 2014 Nashville International Youth Convention and the experience that 10 kids and 4 counselors had this summer (along with over 5,000 others).  We came back touched by Jesus, grounded in our faith, changed people and ready to serve our Lord.  We desire to not only be a good youth group but a GREAT Youth Ministry, being disciples in our daily walk, serving our community and proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ. The stories & experiences will be talked about through the next few months and remembered in our daily lives. We will be sharing with you soon about all we experienced and participated in.  Everything went just as planned, our hotel stays, Mammoth Cave, our incredible worship services, classes, our Change the World service project, the Indianapolis Zoo, downtown Indianapolis, the Spaghetti Factory, and what a place for the convention – the Gaylord Opryland Resort.  God blessed us with the funds to go, the experience and mostly His love.  Thank you to everyone who played any role in making this happen.  It was incredible and God blessed IYC.  
 
We followed that experience with our “Day @ the Beach” @ Ludington State Park last Sunday as we were blessed again!  It was a BEAUTIFUL DAY on Lake Michigan for the Mt. Haley Youth Ministry! Rained all the way there – then the skies parted and the sun shone until 4:00 then we departed and rained all the way home. God Was GOOD! Enjoyed Cops & Donuts, picnic, and fun on the beach! Great Day!

We are NOT having Sunday night youth throughout August.  However, we will be beginning the new school year on Sunday, September 7th for all youth – new 6th graders through one year after graduation. New 2014-2015 Parental Medical/Permission Release Forms will be mailed to each family during August.  We need to know for sure the new 6th graders entering the youth ministry in September, so please let us know who they are.  Also, Pastor David and Pastor Jerry will be meeting with the Young Youth parents this month as they make the transition into Sunday night youth.  We will be contacting you soon.  Although we have no Sunday night youth, we are having Sunday School classes for Young Youth (with Ron Hyde) and the “Tough Questions With God” class (with Pastor Jerry) at 10:00 AM each Sunday.

We have had the planning meeting in Detroit with the Center for Student Missions (CSM) for our mission trip to Detroit on the weekend of August 22-24.  We currently have nine signed up to participate and we can accept 5 more people (high school – college) up until Wednesday, August 6th.  If you are interested, please contact Pastor Jerry ASAP.  Plans include working at a food bank, helping with a clothing agency and serving supper at a homeless food kitchen.  We will probably share meals at a “Soul Food” restaurant, a  “Polish” restaurant and a “Mexicana” restaurant, all located in Detroit ethnic neighborhoods. Plus on Sunday morning, we will worship and attend the Hope Community Church on East Jefferson Avenue in Detroit.  We have many Spirit-filled and serving opportunities on this weekend.  We were chosen as one of three groups to help “pilot” a mission trip in Detroit as CSM expands to another US city.  God has blessed us with experience-based opportunities.

Our Winter Retreat isn’t until January, but it will be here sooner than we think.  Taking a little break from fundraising, however, we will have our annual “Mum” Sale in September along with some yard work opportunities.  We have greatly appreciated all the support we received the past few months in earning our way to IYC and the Detroit CSM.  We will have another “Garage Sale” next April and we thank you for all your contributions; however, we ask you to “save them” until next April. Connie and I have been receiving things already for next April – which we appreciate – but we are fearful for their well-being with storing them in the church’s garage (rodents & mildew), because we do not have space available in our home.  So, I am trying to kindly trying to say “Thank You,” but keep your treasures for us until April!

The Youth topics and curriculum for Sunday nights & mornings in the Fall has not been decided yet, but with IYC and student input we have some great ideas in the hopper.  Most of all we want to help our kids experience God, to equip them to live as disciples, and to send them out to serve the community and share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with their family and friends.

We encourage you to attend the services and events of the St. Louis Camp Meeting being held Thursday, August 7th through Friday, August 15th. Worship Service is every evening at 7:00 PM with Evangelist and Song Evangelist, Dr. Jeff and Joanie Frymire. Children, Youth and Adult activities are planned each day.  Come and join us for “Camp Meeting!”

Parents and church, your prayers, support and encouragement are greatly appreciated and we look forward every week to sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with our students through interaction, study, fellowship and relationship.  Thank you for sharing your son or daughter and our congregation for holding the youth up in PRAYER.

Love God, Love People! 

Blessings,
 
Pastor Jerry  

July Youth Update

God is SO GOOD!  On Thursday, July 3, our Mt. Haley Church of God International Youth Convention delegates will travel to Nashville, TN. We have a 7-day adventure planned and God will be glorified in this special moment in time.  The primary purpose for attending an IYC is to create a moment for life change and we are hoping for transformed, changed lives as we engage in the activities of the IYC.  The other benefits we will reap from this will live well into the year.  One of the benefits throughout the process has been getting to spend a lot of time with our kids while fundraising, where our relationships have been strengthened and grown and we are so proud of our kids.  Many of them thought three years ago that attempting such an adventure was not possible at Mt. Haley but they have hung with me as I kept telling them that “All things are possible with God” and that God will bless their lives, their spiritual growth, their relationship with Christ and our Youth Ministry. We are especially pleased, blessed and thankful that our group will be offering over $600 to the national youth missions outreach.  We have faithfully tithed 10% of our fundraising money to “Spread the Word” since the beginning and we want to glorify God in our efforts.
  
And, what an effort is has been!  Many of our students earned the funds to pay their IYC registration in December, pay their way to Winter Retreat in January, pay their way to State Youth Convention in May, pay the cost of IYC, plan & pay for the Detroit mission in August and some are even saving for the Guatemalan mission next February.  God has BLESSED our youth greatly – spiritually, economically, and in their daily walk with Christ!

We MUST say THANK YOU to all the people in our congregation who have prayed for us, encouraged us, bought things from us, hired us for jobs (and many times overpaid us much more then we were worth), brought pop cans and given donations on our behalf.  Words cannot express the gratitude we have for you because this clearly became a whole church endeavor and we were extremely blessed by the congregation. Thank You!! 

Meanwhile, we are in Nashville being blessed by God and you can follow us daily on the IYC Itinerary posted on the Mt. Haley website (and on the bulletin board in the narthex).  We hope to come home with many testimonies and stories of our 2014 adventure.  
 
We are doing “Day At The Beach” at Ludington State Park on July 27th.  There will be some spontaneous events throughout the summer so watch all of our media outlets for events.  Every Sunday morning we will be doing “Tough Questions With God” and we encourage students to attend the morning class.  There will be no Sunday night meetings throughout July and August; however, we start up again on Sunday, September 7th.
 
Pastor David and I will be holding a meeting with Young Youth parents to discuss our past couple of years, concerns, goals and their transition into Sunday night meetings in the fall.  They are welcomed at any summer activities of the youth.  
 
Our summer mission opportunity is an experience with the Center for Student Missions (CSM) in Detroit on the weekend of August 22-24, 2014.  This was an unexpected opportunity offered to our youth ministry due to my past experiences with CSM in Chicago, Los Angeles, Houston and Nashville.  We were asked to bring a high school group to “pilot” a weekend in Detroit, a new city for them, as they explore expanding their national program to another US city.  We are registered for 10 people presently and must bring a minimum of 7 and a maximum of 14.  Please pray with your student about possibly participating in this weekend at the end of the summer.  Our ministry had a fantastic time in Chicago two years ago and we know that some would like to experience God’s work again in the city.    
 
Parents and church, your prayers, support and encouragement are greatly appreciated and we look forward every week to sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with our students through interaction, study, fellowship and relationship.  Thank you for sharing your son or daughter and our congregation for holding the youth up in PRAYER.
 
Love God, Love People!
 
Blessings,
 
Pastor Jerry

IYC: Nashville

Our youth group is preparing to travel to Nashville from July 3 through July 9 for the International Youth Convention of the Church of God.  Please keep them in your prayers as they engage in this potentially life-changing experience!

This Word document gives the full itinerary for our group.  Download it and keep up with their travels and events!

2014 IYC Itinerary

June Youth Update

June is always one of the most exciting times of the year!  The end of the school year, graduations, parties & open houses, exams, accomplishments, warm weather and the anticipation of the summer. Our Youth Ministry has completed another successful school year as we met weekly discussing prayer circles, relationships, “God’s Not Dead,” God’s purpose for us, characters of the Bible and of course, Christmas & Easter. We also have done parties, a lock-in, Winter Retreat, State Youth Convention, many fundraisers, covered a
lot of miles in the van and a lot of times together.  God has blessed us in many ways.

$415 by 6/29 is our general theme this month as we prepare the final
arrangements for the International Youth Convention.  We have 9 students and 4 adults committed to traveling to Nashville, TN for the Bi-Annual International Youth Convention of the Church of God, from Thursday, July 3rd through Wednesday, July 9th.  Our theme is from Galatians 5:25, “Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.”  There will be fabulous speakers & services, great bands, opportunities for service, instructions on purpose, purity, power and people, sights to see, a 5-star hotel and many other once in a lifetime experiences. PLEASE PRAY for the spiritual awakening of our students and adults plus for the financial blessings still needed for the experience.  Some students are ready to go and paid, however, there are some students who still need God¹s help (and maybe even your help) in conquering the $415 by 6/29.  God has a plan and we
are believing in it!  There will be a Youth-Parent Meeting on Sunday night, June 29th.  We are asking all IYC youth and their parents to be at that meeting for last minute preparations for the trip.  High School youth will NOT meet on June 8th (my son¹s ordination), however we will meet on June 15 & 22, then the IYC group on the 29th.  We are expecting all IYC youth to be attending the meetings in June.  The lessons will be appropriate for all high school students.

Another mission opportunity we have this summer is an experience with the Center for Student Missions (CSM) in Detroit on the weekend of August 22-24, 2014.  This was an unexpected opportunity offered to our youth ministry due to my past experiences with CSM in Chicago, Los Angeles, and Houston & Nashville.  We were asked to bring a high school group to “pilot” a weekend in Detroit, a new city for them, this summer as they explore expanding their national program to another US city.  We are registered for 10 people presently and must bring a minimum of 7 and a maximum of 14.  Please pray with your student about possibly participating in this weekend at the end of the summer.  Our ministry had a fantastic time in Chicago two years ago and we know that some would like to experience God¹s work again in the city.

This summer we will be doing a lot of IYC fundraising in June.  If you have opportunities for students to earn some quick cash for this, please give us a call.  Our softball game with the Meridian Church of God will have to be delayed due to scheduling conflicts so it will be sometime later in the summer.  We are doing “Day At The Beach” at Ludington State Park on the weekend of July 26th. There will be some spontaneous events throughout the summer so watch all of our media outlets for events. Every Sunday morning we will be doing “Tough Questions With God” and we encourage students to attend
the morning class.  There will be no Sunday night meetings throughout July and August, however we start up again on Sunday, September 7th.

Pastor David and I will be holding a meeting with Young Youth parents to discuss our past couple of years, concerns, goals and their transition into Sunday night meetings in the Fall.  They are welcomed at any summer activities of the youth.

Once again, we would like to express “Congratulations” to our Bullock Creek High School graduates, Brandon Helm, Isabella Krolikowski, and Nick Torres. We know all of you have college and work intentions; however, you are welcomed to come to Sunday night meetings for the next year.

A special “Thanks” is also extended to Lawrence and Jo Adams (plus Connie) for supervising our State Youth Convention with my needing to leave on Saturday morning for my Dad’s funeral.  We have heard nothing but good reports about the weekend and I was very appreciative for the help as I joined my family in Indiana in honor of my father.

Parents and church, your prayers, support and encouragement are greatly appreciated and we look forward every week to sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with our students through interaction, study, fellowship and relationship.  Thank you for sharing your son or daughter and our congregation for holding the youth up in PRAYER.

Love God, Love People!

Blessings,

Pastor Jerry

May Youth Update

God is GOOD all the TIME!  We are blessed as a church with the kids we have in the Youth Ministry.  Sure, there are moments, indiscretions, break-ups, behavior miscues and just the trial of being normal teenagers, BUT, the positive things far out-number the negative and they are good kids.  Keep them in your prayers always as they search their way through life.  My God-Sighting for today!  Challenge yourself and look for the good things God does everyday!

We have been BUSY!! At least, I have been. Garage sales, leaf raking, auctions, selling flowers, and clean-ups, not to mention meetings, activities and everything else.  Your youth pastor lives a blessed life!  The blessings has been getting to spend a lot of time with the kids as we rack up miles traveling from job to job and we are slowly earning our money needed for the big summer events. Every single student going to State Youth Convention is PAID – three weeks before going.  We are adding to our youth accounts for the International Youth Convention being held Thursday, July 3 through Wednesday, July 8th, 2014 (includes traveling).  Each delegate needs $415 to cover lodging and food.  It will happen.  Parents, thank you for helping your kids earn their way to the convention – it will be an experience they will never forget.

Our Youth year is winding down as the school year does.  For the Sunday night meeting our schedule is as follows:

  • May 4th – Relationships
  • May 11th – We know this is Mother’s Day and your student should honor this day; however, if they’re free, come to youth that night for last minute details on SYC.
  • May 18th – State Youth Convention (No Youth)
  • May 25th – Memorial Day Weekend (No youth)
  • June 1, June 8, June 15, and June 29 – Youth for all high school with emphasis on IYC Preparation.  Lessons will be appropriate for any student even if not attending IYC.
  • NO Youth June 22nd
  • July 3-8 – Attending IYC in Nashville
  • August 22-24 – Center for Student Missions in Detroit
  • September 7 – Fall Youth begins

In the middle of May, the summer schedule of youth activities will be announced.  There will be NO Sunday night youth meetings during July & August, but we will have periodic youth activities with devotions throughout the summer.

The Young Youth will meet every Tuesday with May 20th being their last session.  On May 20 we will be having a pizza party & treats.  We are doing the Faith 4 Life curriculum “God’s Purpose For Me.”  In the Fall, there will be no Young Youth meetings on Tuesday and they will join the regular youth meetings in the Fall Sunday nights providing they meet the required stipulations which parents will be supplied with in August.

The Michigan State Youth Convention (theme: “Ignite”) will be the weekend of May 16-18.  Special letters will be sent next week with all the information you need for the weekend. We will be working with the Meridian Church of God for transportation and help with the convention.  Pastor Jerry will need to leave the convention by noon on Saturday the 17th to attend the Memorial Services for his Dad who passed away in January, leaving Lawrence & Jo Adams in charge of the remaining time and getting the students home.  Everything should work out well and we are very excited about the possibilities for spiritual growth.  Keep us in your prayers!

The SYC will open on Friday night with Royal Tailor in concert. Royal Tailor is a Christian band with hits like “Ready, Set Go,” and “Jesus Love,” featuring TobyMac. Our other guest is John Tibbs.  John and his group will be leading us in worship throughout the weekend. Our speaker for the weekend will be Leo Robinson II.  He will challenge us to pursue vibrant lives for Christ.  Leo is from Flint and a Church of God Youth Pastor.

We were very excited have received a special invitation from the Center of Student Missions (CSM) to participate in a missions weekend in Detroit on the weekend of August 22-24. Detroit is a new city for CSM and we were invited to “pilot” a weekend there this summer.  The pilots are taking place at “invitation only” status and we were invited to participate.  We have already paid the deposit and the weekend is open to any high school student or graduate.  The cost will be $110 per person. We have 10 openings, so we will be taking sign-ups soon.  Watch for more details as this project develops.

Fundraising is in full swing and we have been blessed.  We made almost $600 at the recent garage sale and having been doing work projects every week.  REMEMBER – if you would like the students to work for you, please contact Pastor Jerry and work out the details.  It is a fundraiser helping us with IYC and Detroit, so as you hire us, please pay us for what the task is worth to you to have done.  We do not work by the hour and the money goes to the Youth Ministry, and then is distributed to the students.  (It does need to be worth our effort!)  The kids have been great workers this spring and we are very proud of their work ethic.  Also, you should know that with every dollar we earn (working, selling, etc.), we tithe 10% to “Spread the Word,” the outreach and mission arm of the International Youth Convention. Our offering will be made in Nashville this summer at the convention and we already have several hundred dollars collected.  We want to honor God with our earnings.

We want you to know that the Youth Update is not only in the church newsletter, but also on the church’s webpage so watch for it every month.

Parents and church, your prayers, support and encouragement are greatly appreciated and we look forward every week to sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with our students through interaction, study, fellowship, and relationship.  Thank you for sharing your son or daughter and our congregation for holding the youth up in PRAYER.

Love God, Love People!

Blessings,

Pastor Jerry

April Youth Update

The snow is LEAVING! We are down to BIG piles and patches here & there, then with a little more rain and a few warmer days they will be gone.  Almost like sin, although it never disappears because of the world we live in, a little bit of God’s Word each day, some good relationships and fellowship with Christians, some regular attendance of church and a whole lot of prayers will help you avoid some of the sins we encounter in our daily walk with Christ.   Let Christ do the power lifting in your walk with him and more joy & contentment will fill your days.

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March Youth Update

Lamb or Lion? It has been a cold snowy winter and the long rides on Sunday and Tuesday evenings after youth meetings have been chilly.  We are not only ready to have  March come as a lamb, but to continue to put our trust in the “Lamb of God.” God has been GOOD!!

Our adventure to Guatemala was fantastic.  After enduring weather in the 70’s for the week, it was hard to come home to another snowstorm.  Because of weather, we were blessed with two extra days in Guatemala and some extra sightseeing.  The whole trip was a “once in a lifetime” experience and blessings were flowing. Our team will be presenting a report to the Mt. Haley congregation on Sunday, March 16, in the morning Worship Service at 11:00 AM.  Come and share in the blessings of the trip.

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January Youth Update

We welcome the New Year 2014 as we count the BLESSINGS of 2013.  We have grown spiritually and in youth numbers as we enter the New Year and it is awesome to know how much God loves and cares for us – each and every day.   His BLESSINGS are so apparent and our appreciation of how he blesses us just continues to grow.  Thank you God, thank you parents, thank you youth and thank you Mt. Haley Church of God.  May we proclaim His Gospel!

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November Youth Update

Life is going to get more interesting this month.  My wife sprained her ankle (or at least hurt it) this past week and has been unable to put weight on it or walk very well. Hopefully, in a few days she will be better.  We have a full agenda with the Church of God General Assembly, the MSLI, Weekly youth meetings, church, a bowling party and of course, Thanksgiving.  We are always active and blessed with an abundant life from God.  However, it will be different in a couple of aspects – first the good news.  We will be having another grandson due on November 14 with the only obstacle being that it will be in Atlanta, Georgia.  Somehow we will overcome the distance.

photo by José Goulão
photo by José Goulão

The unexpected news is “I need to have extensive knee replacement surgery” on Thursday, November 21st.  SO, this will cause some adjustments in youth scheduling, it will put me down for a few weeks followed by some weekly rehab and hopefully, have me ready to travel to Guatemala in February. Fortunately, I am blessed with a great wife and super youth counselors, Jo & Lawrence Adams, who will carry on the torch through the next couple of months.  We don’t know all the adjustments, however we will keep you informed.  I am asking for your prayers!!  God will be GOOD all the time!

Our Sunday mornings continue to buzz along with our study of “The Parables of Jesus” and the “Circle Maker” will be coming to close just before my surgery.  Our Sunday morning and nights plus Tuesdays have been experiencing great attendance with lots of energy, prayer and the Word of God.  Both youth meetings have had to work through some issues this Fall and that can be shared by your son or daughter.  But, youth is going well and we are growing both spiritually and in numbers. Praise God!

Our fundraisers continue.  Several youth earned money working at the fairgrounds a couple Saturdays ago, we did very well at the Bake Potato Supper, Olive’s yard will begin raking on November 4th, the Gift Card sale ends on November 3rd and we will have a poinsettia & wreath sale beginning next week.  Preparing for registrations for Winter Retreat and the International Youth Convention is keeping us very focused.

There will be a Bowling Party @ Northern Lanes on Saturday, November 16th and we will be packing Community Thanksgiving Baskets at Aldersgate Methodist Church on the afternoon of Sunday, November 24th.  Our Christmas Party will be December 15th.  There will be NO YOUTH on Sunday, November 24th because of the Community Thanksgiving Service at the Meridian Church of God and November 30 because of the Mt. Haley Hanging of the Greens Celebration Service.

We have two Big Events to register for in December. Winter Retreat is the weekend of January 10-12, 2014.  A $50 registration is due to the state office by Wednesday, December 4th.  To accommodate that due date, we will need your $50 and confirmation of attendance by Sunday, November 30.  Registration can take place after that date, but it costs more and the registrations are limited this year.  Tommee Profitt will be the band along with Michael Thigpen as the speaker.  Letters are being sent to parents this week.

The second registrations is the Early Bird Bonus Registration for the International Youth Convention in Nashville, TN on July 5–8, 2014.  The cost is $115 and must be postmarked by December 12, 2013. Registration will continue, however, the cost increases at different due dates.  The Speakers, Worship Leaders and Christian Bands haven’t been announced but they will be “Big Name” venues.  There will be many discussions about raising the funds for food, lodging and transportation.  Parents should have received a letter about this already.

Parents and church, your prayers, support and encouragement are greatly appreciated and we look forward every week to sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with our students through interaction, study, fellowship and relationship.  Thank you for sharing your son or daughter.

Love God, Love People

Blessings,

Pastor Jerry