Cedar Point Trip

Well...we are just a couple of weeks away from our trip to Cedar Point. I'm excited and I know the youth are too...I'm just waiting to hear back from the bus company to find out how much the total cost will be. My best guess at this point is $55 per person. This includes admission, one meal and transportation. We will meet at the church at 7:00 a.m. and travel by bus to Cedar Point. We will split up into groups led by an adult chaperone and head off into the park for a great day of rides and activities. We will be back late and contact parents when we're close to home. Watch the bulletin and watch for the upcoming letter coming out next week with all the firm details.

Music Search Process Is Over

Last Friday we hired our new Music and Worship Pastor. His name is Brian Pappal. Brian is married to Ashley and they live in Jefferson Hills (not for long). When I get back from vacation I will post more info and introduce you to Brian and Ashley. Praise God the search is finally over and we can begin to move forward. Welcome aboard Brian!!

Vacation is Coming, Vacation is Coming

It's been a long time since we've had a vacation. I'm ready to take a break and recharge my batteries as we gear up for an exciting fall. The family is heading east to Lancaster to rest and relax with our Amish brothers and sisters. We have rented a house on a 100 acre farm to get away from it all. We'll probably leave the farm to check out Gettysburg and Hershey and the surrounding area. We leave next Tuesday the 1st...keep us in your prayers!!

Is The Search Over?

The end of our search for a Music & Worship Pastor may be upon us. After reviewing over 100 resumes and interviewing a number of people we believe we have finally found the right person. The process was not easy as we were looking for someone to pull off Traditional, Blended and Contemporary worship. We originally posted the position as two positions and through the grace of God we found someone who could fill both. Our prayer is that we can announce this on Sunday if all goes well on Friday when we work out the details with the candidate. Thanks for your patience and prayers. It's time to take things to the next level and reach our community for Christ like never before. Praise be to God!!

VBS 2008

Well we're off and running with VBS 2008. I'm not gonna lie...it's tiring me out. My role this year is to lead the opening and closing programs. My character is Eugene the nerd. I know not much of a stretch. It's fun hanging out with all the little ones but not something I would like to do on a regular basis. We need to find our place of service and God is good at leading us in the right direction. I'm sure glad he has called me to work with youth. Thank you Gina for working with the little ones...it's truly a gift and you do it well.

I'm also very proud of our youth who once again have stepped up to help lead this year. We certainly couldn't do it without them!! Thanks guys...

Destination Unknown

Well we survived our first ever road trip. We had four destinations over 5 days to visit. We started off at Minister Creek in the Allegheny National Forest. Minister Creek is on Route 666. Pretty symbolic area and great for those teaching times. We settled in and set up camp and headed up the mountain on a 2 mile hike to the Minister Creek lookout. The lookout was set atop a huge rock looking over the valley. We took time to look at Matthew 4:1-11 where Jesus was tempted by Satan. As we were wrapping up our teaching time on good vs. evil we looked up into the sky and saw black and grey clouds moving from the right to left and big white clouds moving from the left to right meeting in the middle. It was one of those awesome sights that provided a powerful illustration that could only come from God. We spent the rest of the day hanging out skipping rocks and swimming in the ice cold creek...just ask Bryanna who was the first one in...on accident of course. The guys established their tent known as Code 6.



We then moved on to Destination #2 which was Niagara Falls Canada. We spent the day at the Skyline Inn and Indoor Water park. It was a blast hanging out and enjoying a relaxing day. We wrapped up day 2 with dinner at Bostons Pizza. We took time the next morning to visit the falls and spend time in personal devotions in a nearby beautiful park. It was one of my favorite times of the trip. We made it back across the border with no problems. Thank you God.



Destination #3 took us to Camp Judson on Lake Erie for another day and night of camping. We spent the better part of 2 or 2 1/2 hours playing soccer. I still haven't recovered from that event. I learned a lot about our group during that soccer game. Some of our more quiet students aren't so quiet when you get them on the soccer field. Alex and Jessyca certainly surprised me. We wrapped the night up with a teaching time on the beach as the waves crashed in and the sunset before us. God is so good.



We moved on to Destination #4 the Galloping Inn at the Soaring J Ranch in Corry, Pa. It was a sweet place to call home for a couple of days. We had a farmhouse and cabin to call home. We went on a hayride and went horseback riding. We also did some fishing and swimming at the pond. The last night we played a marathon game of football which I may never recover from. Again the students surprised me with their competitive nature...some of them are animals on the football field. We wrapped up the night with a time of sharing and prayer. What a great night and what a fabulous group of teens.





We were able to make some new friends and shore up some of the old friendships. This is certainly one of those trips that I will never forget. Thanks to the students and leaders who participated. Jake, Sean, Brea, Lindsay, Bryana, Jessyca, Jaisa, Alex, Doug, Nick, Matt, Lizzie, Alex, Jim, Chris, Sandi

Updates Coming Soon

Sorry I've been away from the blog for awhile. I've been spending a lot of time working on the hiring of our new Music Pastor and last week I was away on our youth road trip Destination Unknown. This week is VBS and it's a lot fun but a lot of work at the same time. I promise to post some pictures from Destination Unknown and

Help Wanted

T minus 3 months and counting. The launch of our Saturday night service "The Creek" is just around the corner and we're looking for a few good musicians to come and worship with us. We are lacking in the drummer, guitar and bass guitar department. We're pumped about the no strings attached worship service and looking forward to having a great time worshiping Jesus!! Do you play any of the above instruments? Give me a shout and we'll get you plugged in...anticipating great things from God...

Jeff

Turn The Page

It's that time of year when school is wrapping up for the summer and graduations are taking place. For many they are beginning a new stage of life. Such is the case in our household. It's hard to believe but Makenzie is moving out of Ben Franklin Elementary and into Neil Armstrong Middle School. Is it possible she is really going to be in 5th grade next year? In youth group the year after that? Where does time go? In one week Makenzie graduates from Elementary school. I guess it's time to Turn The Page. Congratulations Makenzie...we're proud of you!!