Crossfire Movie Bonanza

Just wanted to give you all the run down for this Saturday. We will be kicking off the movies at 11 am with an all time classic...Home Alone, followed by lunch, then another round of Christmas cheers in the form of The Santa Clause, Alvin and the Chipmunks, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, then Dinner, and then we will wrap it up with my favorite Christmas movie, Elf. Was that a run on sentence? I don't care. If you can only show up for a little while, then show up for a little while! It's a busy Christmas season, and we just wanted to be able to have a time to hang out with some of our favorite people! Hope to see you Saturday!

Update

Hey guys, just wanted to update you all on Ashley's job situation and thank you all for your prayers. Her Physician Assistant license has finally arrived! Now we are waiting for her malpractice insurance to go through, then it's off to work she goes! Which is a great thing for her. She has spent the last six years of her life going non-stop, and now she's really going crazy. So thank you for your prayers.

Superbowl is coming up next week! Make sure to get your m oney and forms into me ASAP! This Wednesday night is the deadline for $44. After that it will go up to $49. So make sure you get your friends signed up this week. It's going to be a great time, and we are all going to have a blast. Look forward to see you all this Wednesday night at 7!

Changes are being made!

Hey everyone! Just wanted to remind everyone to come on out this Wednesday night at 7 pm for Crossfire. We'll have a lot of fun, and you'll get to see some of the changes that are being made to the Cafe. Also we are going to need your help coming up with some names, so start thinking! See you Wednesday!

Reminder!

Last night was an awesome night. I always look forward to coming to Crossfire and hangout with all of you. I would encourage you to spend some more time in I Timothy 4. I know we went over it a little last night, but dig into it yourself. I'm sure you will be bless by this amazing chapter. And remember...Go to church...Get of your butts and serve...and Watch your back!

Also don't forget that this Friday October 23 is movie night. We will be watching one of my all time favorite cartoon movies...Ice Age!!! So come on out 7 PM. Bring some food or soda or a friend. Great time hanging out with each other.

Fall Festival is coming up fast! We still need more people to sign up to work our game room. Trust me you will have an awesome time, and it's a great way to be involved here at Sonrise. Not to mention you know you're getting candy out of the deal!

And finally, Superbowl is coming up November 21. Let me remind you the deadlines one more time! Cost is $39 before November 3rd, after November 3rd it goes up to $44, then after November 14 it goes up to $49! You guys know you are going to come, so get your money into Ashley or I quick!

That should be it for now. Keep checking the website as we begin to use it more often. Stay strong guys!

Back from Virginia

Ashley and I missed you all on Sunday. We left Wednesday night after church to begin our drive down to visit my brothers in Virginia. It was awesome driving through the mountains with all the leaves changing. I enjoy taking some time out to see how beautiful God's creation truly is. We got to do a lot of fun things while we were there. Ashley loves going to haunted houses, so we went to Scraremare which is put on by Liberty University. It was pretty freaky and a lot of fun. I almost punched a guy who jumped out of the woods to scare me. Check out there website...www.liberty.edu/scaremare. I'll put some pictures up from the trip so you can see some of the other cool stuff we did...like hike up to the top of a mountain. Although we had a great time visiting with family, we are excited to be back with all of you. See you Wednesday!

Thank You!

Ashley and I wanted to thank everyone who came to the reception on Sunday. It was great being able to celebrate our wedding with our church family. Sonrise is an amazing place to be apart of, and I pray that you see that. We also want to thank Crossfire for the card and gift card to Raindancer. I love taking Ashley there, and I love it even more when I don't have to pay. Thanks!

You guys are awesome. Remember our focus on prayer as a group. Continue to work on the foundation of your walk with Christ. Remember it's a RELATIONSHIP! So spend time with HIM!
See you at the pole at 7 am!

Back to work!

Well things are beginning to get back to normal. The last couple weeks have truly been a world wind. The week leading up the the wedding was a lot of fun, but also a lot of work during that time. Turns out it's hard to pull off a nice wedding! Now I will give credit were credit is due. Ashley did probably 99.9% of the work, but I did pick up my tux. So that has to count for something...right?
The wedding was awesome, at least what I remember from it. Ashley and I were amazed how fast everything happen! I do remember seeing her walk down the aisle for the first time. She definitely was the prettiest bride ever! I know everyone says that about every bride, but they are all wrong! Ashley was the prettiest!
We also had Calling Levi sing for us at the wedding. This turned out to be the most awkward moment of the ceremony. Mark and Tammy were singing "I Will be Here." I look up at Mark as he was staring right at me and singing to me. I felt very uncomfortable at that moment!
Long story short, Ashley said I do, so we are now married! We are both so excited to be back here and pour our lives into Sonrise. Look forward to seeing you all soon!

Yankees Part 2!!

As I look back at the different Yankees games I have been to over the years, I'm going to have to say that Thursdays Yanks vs Red Sox was the best game I've seen. Ashely bought me tickets to the game like 6 months ago. It was my graduation/birthday present...something like that. All I know is that for the past 6 months I have been waiting for this game. Ashley even said "NO WEDDING TALK!" Which she did a pretty good job at. I absolutely loved our seats. We were right smack in the middle of fould ball territory. The EMS lady was stationed 5 feet from us. Anytime there was a foul ball she would go make sure no one got hit the head. The closes foul ball land about two rows from us. If it was a little closer I may have ran over the sleeping baby in front of us to get to it. Not sure.
Although this game may end up being completely meaningless when the Yankees don't make the playoffs, it's always good to see them beat the Red Sox. Final score: Yankees 3, Red Sox 2! I'll let you know how Yankees Part 3 goes after I go watch them beat up on the Blue Jays Saturday!

Yankees!!!

It is no secret that I am a HUGE Yankees fan, and I was pumped to be able to go down to Baltimore to watch Yankees beat up on the Orioles. It was such an awesome experience. I have been to Camden Yards once before, but it was for an Orioles vs Diamondbacks game. As my dad, my brothers Stephen and Jon, and I waited outside, we started to realize there were a lot of Yankees fans there. By a lot, I mean that is really all we saw! We went in for batting practice and grabbed some good food before we went and found our seats. The game was amazing. It was back and forth for most of the game. We got to see two back-to-back home runs by the Yankees. My brothers and I were going nuts. I was running around giving complete strangers hugs! My dad sat there with a smile on his face thinking "My boys are idiots." Oh well, we had a blast. Yankees won, and I got to see Marion Rivera come in and save the game. It was crazy. When you looked around the stadium as he pitched all you saw were flashes from peoples' cameras. We were all watching the greatest closer of all time do what he does best...win games. The best part about all this is that I get to do it all over again...twice. Ashley and I will be driving down to NYC on Thursday to watch the Yankees smack around the Red Sox (fingers crossed!) and then my dad and I will go down to NYC on Saturday to watch Yankees get another win against the Blue Jays. I'm not going to lie...I love my life!!!

I'm jealous!

Ok, let me get the rest of you caught up with what just happen here at church today. I get a phone call from my mom, and she tells me that my dad has just won a free trip to Mexico. For obvious reasons I did not believe, so I walk down to her office. As I am walking down the hallway I see my dad standing there practicing his golf swing with a big smile on his face. While we were at the conference we all signed up for a free Mexico give away. They had the drawing on the final day. My dad wanted to get going so we could get back to New York. I said we should wait the extra five minutes to see. Well he's the boss, and we left. But apparently while we were driving to Ruby Tuesdays, Jonathon Falwell was reading my dad's name. Although I am very jealous, I am also very excited for it. If anybody deserves a free vacation, it is definitely my parents.

It's good to be home...for a couple days.

Well Jeff and I finally made it back to NY Wednesday night around midnight. We were able to be apart of a great Pastor's conference down in Lynchburg, VA. It was really cool for me because I got to spend some time with my brothers who live in Lynchburg. Jeff and I stayed at Jon's house. Jeff was very nice and humble when he said he would sleep on the couch in the basement and give me the guest room. Sounds really nice of him, until you realize that there was a 50" flat panel tv hanging on the wall in front of the couch!
The line up of speakers was awesome too. First night we were there we got to hear Rick Warren, author of Purpose Driven Life, speak. I always liked Rick, but after hearing him speak I gain an even greater respect for him. There was a bunch of other guys like Jim Cymbala from Brooklyn Tabernacle, Jonathon Falwell from Thomas Road and Liberty.
What I really enjoyed about this conference is that it gave me spiritual charge that many of you received while you were at camp. Camp really spoke to me and challenge me, but my goal for that week was to help all of you grow and find answers to the crazy questions of life. This conference allowed me to get away from everything and listen to what God had for me.
But now I must stop typing because I need to get in a car and drive three hours back to PA for Ashley's graduation! Don't miss Sunday. We are all going to be upstairs because I get to preach!

Tuesday was crazzzy!

I have been bumming the last couple weeks over the fact that we were losing Kyle. Apparently he is moving to Disney Land where he will work as Mickey Mouse. So on Tuesday I took Kyle and Tyler out for the day before Kyle left. So I will now give you the play by play of the day.

9:30 AM-Pick up Kyler (Kyle and Tyler together) in Ashley's convertible. Kyle gets in like a normal person. Tyler jumps head first into the backseat...it's going to be a fun day.

9:40 AM-Order our food at Tops

10:10 AM- Tyler runs to the bathroom

11:00 AM- We arrive at Funplex Funpark

11:00. 53 secs AM- Tyler deposits his breakfast all over the sidewalk in front of the building!

11:30 AM- Kyle walks into a boat...don't ask

12:01 PM- Bumper boats... I am amazed that they didn't fall into the water

12:30 PM- Tyler gets a bright idea to go into the Gyroscope.

12:33 PM- Tyler now realizes that wasn't such a bright idea

12:45 PM- I destroy everyone racing the go-karts

1:00 PM- Jump on a trampoline. Kyle wouldn't flip. What a girl. Tyler did one flip and almost puked again. I flipped and felt very old.

1:15-PM- Stop at CVS for medicine

2:00 PM- We arrive home

2:30 PM- I have never been so sick in my entire life!

Moral of the story is...hanging out with Kyler makes one sick!

LIFT!!!!

I don't even know where to begin on this one. Yesterday I returned home to my nice comfy couch after a very long and blazing hot week of Lift Camp. The beds were uncomfortable, their was no AC to be found, and I sweated through a dozen shirts, and it was the best week that I have had with Crossfire! We sang, danced, played games, got shot in the face with paint balls, played laser tagged, learned that Tyler is a ballerina on ice skates, watched more teens guzzle down soda then I ever want to see in my life time, saw teens accept Christ as their Savior, and watch teens recommit to God. Now what's not fun about that. There was only one thing missing from the week, and that was those of you who didn't go this year! I'll be on here more posting about what went on this past week, but right now I need to go take a nap! Check out Crossfire's Facebook page for some Lift pictures!

Sports Camp is here

That's right, Sports Camp is official here. This was one of those events that I thought was sooo far away, but it came up fast! I am pumped for all the action going on here at Sonrise this week. While I'm running around with the basketball and soccer campers, we have VBS going on in the Children's Center, and Music Camp going on in Building 2. This made me happy because nothing was going on in the Teen Center, which meant no cleaning for me! However, it looks like it might rain some this week, so...all the Sports Camp kid will be running into the teen center to take cover. Looks like I'm going to have to clean after all.
Well I have to go finish getting ready for tonight. If you haven't signed up for Sports or Music Camp it is not to late. Show up tonight and be ready for a great time. If you are to old for the camps, then come on out to serve. It will be a great opportunity for you to get involved with YOUR church.

Craziness!!!

Alright, this week has just been insane...and it's only Tuesday! We are frantically getting ready for VBS/Sports Camp/Music Camp which starts in less then a week. Not to mention that little thing a bunch of us are going to. I think it's called LIFT Camp. There is so much thinking and planning that goes into all of this, but it is always worth it.
I was talking to one of the LIFT guys yesterday, and he was asking how all of you are doing. I told him how many of you made commitments here at Crossfire to live for God. We were both really excited because it comes at a perfect time. Camp is only going to make those commitments stronger. Camp will allow you to open up and share with others, to be accountable to your friends, and hopefully will challenge you to take those commitments to the next level. Not to mention camp is going to be a blast!
So if you haven't done it yet, make sure you go to www.liftstudentministries.com and register for camp. There is a link on the front page. From there to follow the simple steps to filling out the form. Don't forget to print the form out when you are done, have your parent sign it and hand it in to either Ashley or myself (interpreted "Give it to Ashley") Let me know if there is anything I can do to help you guys get ready for LIFT! See you Wednesday...

Reminder

Just a quick reminder...money for camp is due Sunday Sunday Sunday!!! We have an awesome group already signed up and many of you still need to finish off your balance. If you have any questions on how much you still owe give me a call or drop me an email.

I'm so excited for camp. Things are really coming together, and I love how excited the group is this year. Camp will definitely be a fun week and also a challenging one. For those of us who have made commitments over the last couple weeks, camp will be a great place for you to building upon those commitments. See you all soon!

Camp is almost here!!!

Hey guys, just wanted to give you an update on camp. Camp is coming right around the corner! Don't forget that the money is due on Sunday the 13th. I know it's a lot of money, but I promise it will be sooo worth it! The week will be jammed pack with fun and energy. Be prepared to build on realtionship you already have, and begin great new relationships. I'm so excited to see what the Lord has for our group at camp this year. I believe that camp will really help those of us who made commitments last week. I hope you are praying for each other. We need to remember that we are not alone. We are all in this together. See you guys tomorrow night at Crossfire! Try calling some friends or even some students who haven't been there in a while. Look forward to seeing you all.

The 4th of July Rocks!

Well I hope all of you enjoyed your 4th of July! Ashley and I are out in Rochester staying with her aunt and uncle. They have a beautiful house on the lake. Needless to say we spent the majority of the day out on the lake. Word of advice to everyone...do not scarf down a huge lunch and then go tubing right away! Ashley's uncle with doing his best to flip me (which he was successful many times), and I definitely got sick. However, the day was too nice to let a little puke stop me from enjoying it. So the day is coming to an end, and Ashley and I are about to go take a walk out to the gazebo to watch the fireworks over the lake. Life is good.

Long day

Well today is finally coming to a close. I started the day by getting up at at 5:30 am and waking Justin Hamm so we could begin our trip to NYC. We were heading down to our friend Dan's funeral. We arrived at the church a lot sooner then I expected, and we walked up just in time when they were rolling the coffin out of the hearse. That's when it finally hit me...Dan was gone.
Last week I tried to help a family who lost a love one, but I think I forgot to how hard it truly is to lose someone you love. Hamm and I struggled through the service, but we had a real hard time when we had to help carry Dan's coffin out of the church.
On the way home, we were talking about what everyone had to say at the funeral. The pastors, teachers, family and friends all talked as our Dan was the greatest Christian who ever walked the face of the earth. This confused me because all though the Dan I knew was carrying and loving, he wasn't exactly the way everyone was describing him. Whether Dan tried to or not, he had some people believing he was a little better then he was.
How often do we fall into this trap. We are so worried about what people are going to think about the real me that we hide who we really are. As I think about all that we have been talking about at Crossfire, I realize that for us to stick to our commitments we need to stay away from putting on acts. We need to be real. We all have flaws and failures, and we need a lot of help. However, we can't help each other when we all think everyone is "fine." Let's stop the act as a group. Let's stand up and be real.

Love you Dan...You will be missed.

Podcast 6-20

Life is a strange thing...

Today is definitely one of those days that you can call strange. There was obvious excitement heading into the day due to the fact that Jeff and Jessica were having their second child. However life can throw curve balls at us. While Jeff and Jess were celebrating the life of a new child, I was at a family's house mourning the loss of their loved one. This really got me thinking. What is this thing we call life? It comes so fast with such joy, but it also seems to leave just as quickly with such pain.
Later I received a phone call that a good friend of mine from college had passed away last night. Dan was 23 years old... same age as me. He had a freak asthma attack and was rushed to a hospital that wasn't prepared to deal with his condition. This really added to my thoughts about what is life.
I don't know a lot, but one thing I do know is that life is not guaranteed. It can leave just as fast as it enters, however we all get a shot at this thing called life. We all take life for granted, but why? I know some people have a mentality that they will live their life the way they want to now, but they will change things later as they get older and more responsibility is placed on them. Why wait? We have one shot at this thing called life... why waste it? Let's celebrate life! Let's rejoice with Jeff and Jessica over new life, but let us also change our own. Let's not wait to live for Christ... start now!
After all, Life is a strange thing... do the best with the one you got.

Sweeping Ashley off her feet...

Or more like stepping on her feet. Ashley and I had the wonderful opportunity last night to learn to foxtrot. Yes the foxtrot. And when I say learn, I mean have someone show me how to do it and completely forget how to do it about a minute later. I had three different instructors come over and show me the same two moves throughout the night. Each one assumed that no one else had shown me how to do it due to the fact that each time I tried I looked like a baby giraffe learning how to walk. However, Ashley looked like she's been dancing for years. This may have something to do with the fact that she has been dancing for years! Ashley wanted to make sure that we took some lessons so we didn't look stupid at our wedding, so we signed up for some classes. That's right everyone, I'm taking dance lessons, but it's for the wedding and Ash so it's defintely worth it.
I can't wait till the wedding when I can break out some of my moves, and listening to people say, "Andrew really should have taken some dance lessons before the wedding...he's terrible." Can't wait...

Getting excited about camp...

The more I talk to everyone that went to camp last year, the more I find myself getting pumped up for camp. This week should be a great opportunity for all that are able to attend.

Speaking of being able to attend camp...we have an awesome church!!! I put a letter out to our church family talking about Lift Camp 08, and asked them for help to get some of you to camp. The response was amazing. Money started to come left and right! The Lord is really providing for us this summer. We need to be extremely thankful that we have people in OUR church who don't just see you as a bunch of annoying teens (which you are), but see you as opportunity to invest in God's Kingdom. That's cool. A lot of churches wouldn't do this.


So with that said, if you need help financially to go to camp, come talk to me and we can definitely work something out. Look forward to seeing you at Crossfire this week!

Thuderstorm!