Alive Youth Church Weekly

 Hello, Alive Youth Church! Happy Tuesday, everyone! What an incredible night we shared this past Sunday. When the best night of the week gets even better, you know it’s because of our  annual AYC Costume Party!  Truly one of the highlights of the year for our ministry.  Every year, I’m blown away by the creativity, group ideas, and the full-on commitment our students and leaders bring. Shout-out to some of my favorites:  Phineas and Ferb , the group of grandmas, the “Fruits of the Spirit,” and, of course, the brave soul who came dressed as  me!  A few costumes still have me scratching my head, but that’s part of the fun. The AYC Costume Party never disappoints, not just because of the laughs and the craziness of 100+ costumes jammed into a church, but because it’s another reminder that  following Jesus is fun,  and it’s even better when we do it together. After a night like that, it’s easy to wake up the next day and think,  “Well, back...

 Happy Tuesday, Alive Youth Church friends! Welcome to Alive Youth Church Weekly. Last Sunday  night, we gathered at 6:30pm. We worshiped, learned about the Holy Spirit's  power of conviction in our lives, played a great game of reverse charades, and ended the night with some good old-fashioned   karaoke, with appearances from the West Salem High School choir and one of the best 6th-grade singers I have ever heard. Seriously, we need to get that girl a mic more often! As always, I am so encouraged by our students, our leaders, and the amazing time we have together on Sunday nights. Cheers to another great week, and I look forward to meeting again for our annual AYC COSTUME PARTY on October 26th, 6:30pm. See you soon! Or maybe I won't see you if your costume is so good that I don't even recognize you.  Here we go... It seems like years ago that we gathered for summer camp at the beginning of July. This week, I was going through my notes app on my phone. Dele...

Alive Youth Church Weekly I hope your week is off to a great start. Just wanted to say how thankful I am for you. Seriously, it’s such a gift to do life and ministry together. I’m already counting down the days until Sunday. Can it hurry up already?! I miss getting to hang out, worship, and see what God does when we’re all together. Here's what's on my heart and mind this week for AYC: I’m constantly encouraged by our Youth Ministry. We have the best students, incredibly supportive parents, a rockstar leadership team, and one truly amazing church family. I honestly couldn’t be more thankful. I could brag on them for days. But even in the middle of all that’s going right, there’s always this question that stirs in my heart:  How can we be more like Jesus?  That’s really the heart of why we’re here, isn’t it? That question drives everything we do in ministry, in leadership, and in our personal walks with God. When I reflect on it, my mind immediately jumps to the spiritual disci...

 ALIVE YOUTH CHURCH WEEKLY MARK YOUR CALENDARS OCTOBER 26TH = COSTUME PARTY!!!! If you missed AYC this Sunday night, just know: we laughed hard, worshiped even harder, and left with a smile on our faces, our hearts challenged and ready for the week to come. Oh, how great is our God! How great is He, that He wants a relationship with you and me, allowing us to have a close and intimate relationship with our Savior! Between the snacks, games, and exciting worship, we zoomed in on a specific verse in Acts 4. One small verse with a big, powerful message.  “When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and took note that  these men had been with Jesus .” — Acts 4:13 (NIV) One of my all-time favorite verses in the bible. I want to be known as someone who has been with Jesus . Marked by Him. That my presence, words, actions, and energy would all point towards Jesus alive in me. It takes courage to live for...