Upcoming Events!!!

Hello everyone. I just wanted to keep everyone posted on upcoming events for the rest of 2011 and the beginning of 2012.

Dec 21st - No Service

Dec 28th - Courageous Movie Night 6:30pm in main sanctuary

Dec 31st - Senior High New Year's Eve Sleepover (Bible Study Kick off) Starts at 7pm

Jan/Feb - Wed nights at 6:30pm Normal Decision Service

Feb 5th - Family Superbowl Party - Sunday night

Feb 18th - Serve Erie Event and Sleepover at the Church. Details to come.

Christmas Party

Come join us on December 14th, at 6:30pm at Erie Christian Fellowship for our Decision Youth Christmas Party. We will have food, games, and some prizes. Top prize will go to the one wearing the ugliest sweater. See you there.

Happy Thanksgiving

This week is a great time of year to reflect on life and the people in life that I'm are thankful for. My list is long of people who have helped make me who I am, inspired me to become better, and encouraged me along the way. But who am I the MOST thankful for? To whom do I owe everything?

My answer is simple. I am thankful for Jesus. Without Him, I am nothing. Without Him, I can do nothing. Without him, I know nothing. Without him, I have nothing. Without him, I would not be a good husband, a good father, a good son. Without Him, I would not be able to take my next breath, see my next sight, speak my next words, or think my next thought. Sounds a little extreme, you say? I say not! He is my way to relationship with God the Father. He is my escape from the tortures of hell, my entrance into the wonders of eternity in heaven. He has set my life in motion, and by His grace, mercy, love, and blood, He allows it to continue one heart pulse at a time.

In HIM, I am the righteousness of God. In HIM, I can do ALL things. In HIM, I walk in wisdom and knowledge. In HIM, I have all things.

Thanks be to God who has given for me, his one and only precious son, Jesus.
IN HIM.

WEiRD

We are starting a new series November 9th called "WEiRD (Because normal is not working)". This is going to be an awesome series that will challenge us all to walk a life that does not look like the world.

God wants us to live like Jesus. But the more like Jesus we become, the weirder we will get. If we really want to give our lives to God, then people are going to think we're weird. The choices we make, the values we have, the way we spend our time and money, even the way we think and talk will be different from everyone else. We are not supposed to be like the world. We are called to be different - set apart, holy. Jesus did not die on the cross so we could go on living like everyone else. Be different. Be like Jesus. Be Weird.

Connect - One God, One City, One Hope

Come join us for this amazing youth worship night. Several youth pastors from the local Erie area have been meeting for a few months getting to know each other. The more we talked we realized that we had one thing in common (and it was not our denomination). It was that we wanted to break down the walls of our churches and join together to worship and serve as one CHURCH. This is the first event that will Connect students and leaders together to begin to forge relationships and partnerships so that we can join together and serve our community. Don't miss this event.

Date: Sunday, November 6th
Location: Grace Church
Address: 7300 Grubb Road
Time: 5:30pm-8:00pm

Parents are welcome to stay. Food and beverages will be available at the cafe.

Man Up!

I recently read a CNN article that gave statistics about how men are disconnected from their families and our culture is prolonging adolescence. It gave a stunning statistic that 18-34 year old men spend more time playing video games than 12-17 year old boys. Wow! It said that women are taking the place of men in many areas. At the end of the article it challenged men to "Man-Up."

Seriously...CNN just told us to man up!? It is time that we, as the church, begin to take the lead in this area. The media is constantly bombarding young men with a skewed view of what a man looks and acts like. Shows like Modern Family, According to Jim, and even back to Married with Children portray men as fumbling idiots with zero leadership, lack of intelligence and a total disconnect from their family.

In Acts 2, it talks about how the local church "did life" together. They ate together, worked together, and fellowshipped together. Men, it is time to Man-Up and begin to live according to the example set by the early church. It is time for us to push back against this sad stereotype being broadcast by the current pop culture. We are able to lead. We CAN meet the emotional needs of our families and be fully engaged in those relationships. We have what it takes!! We are not perfect, we may struggle, but we never give up. We are fearless and tireless. We are able because of Him who strengthens us!!!

There are 3 things I think we can do right away to begin taking back some ground.

1.Find a Timothy - Just like Paul, we need to find someone that we can mentor - speaking encouragement into their life. This may be one of your kids, a young person in your family, church, or neighborhood, or just someone that seems like they need some help. We all have a story - areas of struggle, victory and strength that can be used to lift up someone else.

2. Find a Paul - We all need someone in our life to mentor us - helping, encouraging, and lifting us up. We all have areas in our lives that could use some outside wisdom and revelation. Stop worrying about what people think and go find someone that can help you. Don't let your marriage fall apart, don't continue to stumble through the snare of pornography, don't drown under the pressures of work. We are ALL men. We ALL struggle with the same issues. It is only pride that keeps us from sharing them openly with another. Pride keeps us from "confessing our sins to one another, so that we may be healed." (James 5:16) Let's kick pride in the butt and get on with it....

3. Be real - As men, we usually don't like to talk about deep things. We want to talk about the weather, sports, and "man stuff." Talk about our marriage? Kids? Finances? Addictions? No way!! We feel like a failure if we couldn't "handle it" or "fix it" on our own. C'mon....let's say it together....PRIDE! No one can handle it all and fix it all on their own. Some of you are drowning out there but refuse to GET REAL because of pride. Let's get over it and get real. Then we'll see real victory over Satan, our enemy, in this fight for our families, our faith, and our lives.

We are warriors. If a warrior was wounded, but didn't tell anyone and tried to just patch it on their own, that wound would begin to get infected. Eventually it would ooze and puss and stink. Such a wound would quickly end up killing him because he chose to avoid proper treatment. So, be a great and mighty warrior, but get some treatment for your wounds. Remember the Word in James 5:16 says if we confess one to another we are HEALED.

Find a Timothy, find a Paul, get Real, get HEALED and MAN UP!

Handling the Crunch - Part 3

Create a Filter

People seem to have a problem saying no. They end up saying yes to too many things and before they know it they are over booked, over worked, over scheduled, and over tired. One thing that I found is that we need to learn to say "No" and stop making apologies for saying it.

Well, you might be asking, how do I know what to say no to? All the things I say yes to are important, critical, eternal, etc. Well, I challenge you to make yourself a filter. A filter is a list of questions that you can run any decision, event, or request through to help find the right answer for you. We all have priorities, but sometimes are lives don't always reflect them, because we get distracted by good things that take us away from our "top" things, or better things. A filter helps to keep your actions in line with your priorities. It keeps you focused, and keeps you from getting "off track."

Our family priorities are:
1. Being led by the Holy Spirit
2. Family time
3. Peace & Simplicity
4. Relationship Building
5. Healthy Choices (food, sleep, restful schedules, etc.)

For my wife and I we typically use the following questions:
1. Holy Spirit, do you have direction for us in this?
*We check our spirit for any input from the Holy Spirit. We try to be intentional about including the Lord in every decision that we make. Our time = our life, so we believe that God cares how we spend it!! All our other questions come after this one. This is the biggie for us!
2. Does it involve the whole family?
* It is a huge plus if we can all stay together....what can we say...we like each other and we like staying together.
3. Is it simple?
*We value peace and nothing keeps the peace like simplicity!
4. Does it foster relationships? Will this help build friendships, accountability, intimacy, etc.?
*Relationships are worth spending time on.
5. Will we have to compromise our digestive peace? Does this interfere with naptimes or bedtimes?
* Grabbing fast food is NEVER an option for us, and we consider quality over convenience when choosing our food. Sleep is essential to good behavior and strong immune systems in kids and adults. We are protective of our health, but not to the point of rigidity (that's why it's our #5 and not our #1)

This is our filter system. It works really well for us. Each person's filter will and should be different. You cannot adopt someone else's filter - it simply won't work because each family is different. We're not all supposed to be alike. Respect your own priorities by living them out through filters and respect others for doing the same....even if their filter necessitates them saying "No" to something you consider high priority! We are all created unique and have different talents, jobs, skills, families, etc.

So, go ahead and create a filter and start using it to help guide your yes to be a yes and your no to be a no. Start lightening your load and being intentional about what you take on by running it through your filter.

Handling the Crunch Part 2 - Be Where You Are

Distractions are everywhere!! My iphone, my andriod tablet, my laptop, facebook, twitter, sports scores, my jeep, and the list could go on and on. Distractions takes you away from what is right in front of you. This is a HUGE challenge for me. I am like the guy on the commercial that is changing the baby's diaper, while talking on the phone and surfing the internet. I know I am not the only one that struggles with this. God has been walking me through this with the little phrase "Be Where You Are".

Too often we miss the moment! We miss the birthday party (even though we are there) because our mind is somewhere else. Maybe we went to the other room to just "check my email" for a second and get lost for 30 minutes. Many of us are often somewhere else. We are thinking about tomorrow, next week, next month, next year, and missing what is right in front of us. If you get caught up in this, you will find that "time flies." The days and weeks and years are a blur and you can't seem to recall much. When you really focus on what is directly in front of you, when you are truly present and engaged in the moment, something wonderful happens. In our house, we call it "slow time." It is a fantastic phenomenon where the day crawls by, and there is lots of time for all that we want to accomplish and then some. We talk, play, work, and live fully engaged and fully together - focused on our relationships in the moments of the day, rather on the line items of our to do list. Funny thing is, the list gets done in the course of it all. Seems that God honors us when we put relationships first which is what "be where you are" is really all about!

Jesus' ministry focused on who was right in front of Him. He focused on the PERSON at hand. In Matthew, the Bible commands us to not worry about tomorrow. So let's stop thinking and worrying about tomorrow because God is already there. Let's start living in the PRESENT because it is a wonderful gift from the Lord.

Handling The Crunch Part 1 - Be Intentional

Ephesians 5:15-17 gives these instructions….
1. Be intentional about how you live,
2. Be wise,
3. Don’t mindlessly waste your time and opportunities,
4. Don’t be foolish,
5. Understand what the Lord’s will is.

Life is Busy!! Most days we go to bed and feel exhausted and wondering where the day went. With technology, work, school, sports, band, etc we never seem to have enough time to do it all, much less rest or “be still.” How are we ever going to be able to hear God’s voice, to be still and know who He is if we can’t even manage to make it to school or work on time! We can’t even remember what happened yesterday, last week, last month, even last year. It’s all a blur!

I don’t know about you, but when my life is over, I don’t want to look back and see a blur of iPhone apps, work schedules, and rushed conversations. I want to KNOW God. I want to recall tender moments with my wife and children. I want to relish close friendships that were of great value to me. I want my time to have made a lasting imprint. How do I plan to make this happen while handling the crazy crunch?? By following God’s Word in Ephesians.

Let’s pretend that at the beginning of each day, we’re all given 24 tickets – each ticket is one hour. We only get 24 hours to a day and there is only so much that we can jam into that time. We need to REALLY consider…Are we spending our time on those things that will leave a lasting imprint on life? Things that really matter to us and to God? Let’s break down how much time we really have….

Sleep – 7 tickets (at least)

Work/School – 9 tickets

Shower/Eat/Drive – 3 tickets

We’ve already blown through most of our tickets and we’ve done nothing but the bare essentials!! What we do with our few remaining tickets is how our life will be defined. This is the CRUNCH. This is where we need to be intentional. This is where we need to decide. These tickets are nonrefundable. They are precious. We need to choose wisely - choose relationships over tasks, choose to be together instead of separate, and choose to rest instead of push harder and do more. The way we spend those few remaining tickets will determine the course of our lives. This is important!! We need to PAY ATTENTION to how we spend our time, and make intentional choices that reflect our goals. Don’t let others tell you how to spend your time. Their goals are not yours. Be intentional!

So….24 tickets….1 life. I’m going to pay attention to how mine is spent! How about you?

Tear Down the Wall

We had a great service this past Wed night. The message I gave was called "Tear Down the Wall". It focused on how the Bible commands us to forgive those that sinned against us and when we do not we put up a wall. A wall between us and that person and a wall between us and God. Mark 11:25 says, "And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins". Wow. Offenses will come (Luke 17:1), but we must learn to forgive.

Forgiveness is the willingness to give up your resentment toward someone who has wronged you, regardless of how serious or painful that wrong might have been. In other words, you renounce any desire to get even. We can identify three elements to forgiveness: to give up resentment about the wrong; to give up resentment toward the wrongdoer; and to give up plans for retaliation. Forgiveness is more than just saying some words; it must come from the heart.

You may be saying, but you do not know what I went through. You do not know what happened to me. You are right, I do not, but God does. He promises to work all things together for our good (Romans 8:28), and tells us that we can do all things through Him who strengthens us (Phil 4:13). So go ahead and Tear Down that Wall and Forgive. It will not be easy and you may never "forget" but you can "FORGIVE"! And when you forgive it will bring freedom.

I end with this: Eph 4:32 - "And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you."

- Jason

Current Series

Our Current Message Series is called "United".


Sept 7 - Salvation Is Here
Sept 14 - The Stand
Sept 21 - Tear Down the Wall
Sept 28 - Who are you? by Special Guest Paul Luciano
Oct 5 - Solution

Come join us for this awesome series.

Look out Blogger Here I Come

Hello everybody. As you can see it has been a long time since we updated this site. Well, we are back. I am very excited to use this as a tool to communicate events, thoughts, post pictures, etc. We will primarily use our Facebook page to make regular updates, but I will be posting on this site as well. Just to let you know of a few upcoming events:

Christmas Child Shoebox Packing Party - Sat, Sept 24th @9am @Grace Church on Grubb Road.

See you at the Pole - Wed, Sept 28th @6:30 or 7:00am @ your school.

Paintball Saturday - Sat, Oct 22nd @ 12:00pm @ the Weaver's.

- Jason