Hey everyone, if your not busy today or tomorrow it would be awesome if you could come help at the Neighborhood Center. I will be there today and most likely all day tomorrow too! Hope everyone is doing well!!

Kristan

Hi everyone! I hope your week is going well and that everyone in college is doing awesome on their finals! I just wanted to remind everyone about helping out at the Neighborhood Center. On Saturday, people can show up any time after 10. Next Thursday, the 18th is their delivery day and they will need lots of help that day as well, 8 a.m. until around 4ish. I am hoping to make it later in the afternoon on Saturday (I have a teacher certification test in the morning) and I intend to be there on the 18th. The Center is on Beach St. now, in the new community center building. (over by Greg & Jess, Crystal & Ryan's) If you cannot make it I completely understand as this is a busy time of year. But if you can, GREAT!

Also, I hope to see everyone at Christmas in Song this weekend!!!

Keep warm!!

-Kristan

coffee shop

Tonight we will be meeting at The Main Grind (the coffee shop downtown) at 7pm. We're meeting there instead of at NTC tonight, so please let everyone know.

Friday November 21st..."2 -> U"

Hey, long time no post! Just a quick reminder that this Friday night in the rotation of our meetings is the "2 -> U" night. A night for Q & A, and anything goes. If there are not any pressing questions on your heart, I have one for you to consider. "What Does A Fruit-Bearing Christian Look Like?" Jesus was very clear in His teachings that normal Christian life is one that "bears fruit." What does that mean, and what does it look like? He said to his disciples in John 15:16, "You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you." Think about it, when He chose us, He didn't just make Himself real so that we could know we are going to heaven, He chose us and put us in the world that we might bear fruit, and that our fruit would remain. Did you also catch the second point in this verse that Jesus is making? He indicates in the second half of the verse that receiving answers to prayer is a direct result of our bearing fruit. Now that is a big thought.

If there are not any other pressing questions that you have, which we are totally open for, let's press in on this thought from John 15:16. I believe that each of you are in the process of being FRUIT-BEARING BELIEVERS.
'Till Then,
-Don & Mary / Mel & Barry-

November 7th

Hey guys. My dad (Pastor Don) is out of the country for the next week, so for our meeting this week we will be hanging out at Barry and Mel's house this Friday night at 7pm. We will be doing this instead of meeting at NTC. If you'd like to bring cookies, chips or something that'd be great. This is just going to be a time to hang out together and talk. If you need directions their home, get a hold of someone (other than me) I am horrible with directions!
Hope to see you there :-)

Friday October 24th...

Long time no post....what's the deal? So much I would like to say, so much on my heart for the Young Adult Community (YAC). Not sure where to start. According to the media this present generation will not only determine the next technological success story worth multiplied millions in the global economy, they will also determine the next president of the US. Perhaps like no previous generation, this generation of 18 to 30 year olds will set the course of the next 4 - 10 years for not only America, but the globe. That is kind of scary thought, especially in light of the aimlessness and the moral and ethical struggle so many are in. Don't mean to get heavy on a blog post, but there is so much at stake it is mind boggling. In light of this, I realize this Friday is supposed to be our "One for Fun" time, but since this is the last time we will get together before our national election, I would like to spend some together in prayer, say 7 - 7:45pm, before heading out to do something fun. Talking about "fun," does anyone have any ideas? Please fire away...PLEASE. I think we are open to almost anything, from cow-tipping to wine-sipping, well maybe not that open. Just fire away...until then...
Don & Mary - Mel & Barry

help needed!

Is there anyone that is free this Friday from 4 to 7 (or you know of anyone that is?)

Justin Cardinal needs 3 or 4 people to help him at Meals & Wheels tomorrow evening from 4 to 7 to help serve a spaghetti dinner there. When you are done serving, you too can eat dinner and then head out.
We really need your help, so if you are available please post it on here as soon as possible.
Thanks!

September 26th

Hello. This is just a quick update to remind everyone that there will be young adults (man, we need a name!) this Friday night. As usual, it will be at 7pm upstairs in the lounge.

Friday September 5th & Some Thoughts...

This Friday evening the Malone church (New Covenant) is celebrating their 30th anniversary, and Danny & Giselle Bonilla will be sharing. We also have Jae-Jae Lombardo & Linda Morales from NTC singing a special during the service. If you can make it, let's plan a night on the town, leaving here at about 6pm and catching a bite in Malone when the service concludes. Please post whether or not you will be able to make it, because if there are enough of us we could perhaps take a van over.

Hey...has anyone given any thought to Brit's post on Psalm 51:6? If not, why not? Come'on put some thoughts down on what she wrote. In the last three weeks two huge disappointments have happened in Christianity...revelations about Todd Bentley and now Austrailian singer Michael Guglielmucci, the guy who recorded the Hillsong runaway hit, "You're My Healer." He recently confessed he never had cancer after deceiving tens of thousands of believers, not to mention his wife and family. He has also confessed that the cancer deception was just an extension of his secret addiction to adult pornography for the last 16 years. The following www.youtube.com link is very disturbing, and also enlightening of how sincere people can be led astray. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HcswYwQczPc&feature=related) I would say, in light of these recent Christian news events, that Brittany's post is especially pertinent.

How will we know who/what is true and who/what is false? "...truth in the inward parts..." ummhhhh...time to post...

1- fun!

This Friday evening (August 29th) there will be a cookout/fire at my home. It's the first week of college classes and we thought that this would be a fun way to relax. It'll start around 7pm and if you need directions to my house please email me at meg_curry67@yahoo.com or my dad at doncurry1@twcny.rr.com. We'll provide the hot dogs & buns, but if everyone could bring either a liter of soda, a desert or chips, then that would be great. Write a quick post on here stating what you'd like to bring, so we don't end up with 10 bags of Doritos and no drinks. Thanks! We hope to all see you here. :-)

verses

On Friday evening we discussed my "life verse", an impacting, life-changing verse. I would like it if everyone could post one of their "favorite" or life-changing verses, and explain why it is meaningful. It will be interesting to read your thoughts on them and it will help everyone to understand each other a bit better.

"...but I press on to take hold of THAT..."

Great night last night as we considered Php 3:4 - 13 and how the apostle Paul was perpetually reaching to take hold of "...that..." for which Jesus had taken hold of him. I so appreciate how Paul lived in the tension and peace of knowing he was in the center of God's will, yet at the same time continually reaching for ALL God had for him in this life. Everyone who has been laid "hold of" by Jesus has been apprehended for a both a GENERAL and SPECIFIC purpose. General in that we are all supposed to become more like Jesus and "bear fruit," yet specific in that according to Eph 2:10 "we are...created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do..." "...Prepared in advance..."??? You mean there are specific things we are to accomplish for Him in this life that He has already prepared for us to do. YES! Now to me that is a big thought...any thoughts???

What Potential...This Blogging Thing...

Wow...my first real experience in 'blogging'. (Wayne, I heard that...'what an old _art he is) If you haven't yet, PLEASE check out the blogs from the previous post...some really good thoughts there, and let's keep 'em going. For me, this is another vehicle to have an exchange with people who are really digging for truth. When I was in University we would sit around and speculate on the 'God thing' because we were really interested, and we did not care what crazy things someone might say, all we wanted was the truth. Truth, unlike knowledge, must be sought out vs. being acquired, though it may be right there in front of us all the while. That's why Jesus is called, "the way the truth and the life," not 'the way the knowledge and the life', since He must be sought after and found, like the treasure in the field, which is worth everything once we understand its value. Let's keep digging...and blogging.

Friday July 18th..."2 - You" gathering....

Time to connect again and we cannot wait! I have asked Gabe to head up our worship time, so we are going to worship, I mean "no holds barred" worship. Remember, however, that each time we gather there may be some guests present, so we need to make sure we love and receive each person so they do not feel 'outta place', making sure we are flexible in everything we do. The life mantra of the apostle Paul from 1Corinthian's 9 is a model every Christian should endeavor to follow.

"19 Even though I am free of the demands and expectations of everyone, I have voluntarily become a servant to any and all in order to reach a wide range of people:

20 religious, nonreligious,

21 meticulous moralists, loose-living immoralists,

22 the defeated, the demoralized—whoever. I didn’t take on their way of life. I kept my bearings in Christ—but I entered their world and tried to experience things from their point of view. I’ve become just about every sort of servant there is in my attempts to lead those I meet into a God-saved life.

23 I did all this because of the Message. I didn’t just want to talk about it; I wanted to be in on it!"

PLEASE COME WITH ANY AND ALL QUESTIONS THAT MAY BE ON YOUR HEART. IN FACT, PLEASE DO US A HUGE FAVOR AND EITHER POST YOUR QUESTION, OR IF IT IS PERSONAL, PLEASE EMAIL IT TO ME AT doncurry1@twcny.rr.com SO THAT WE COULD BE A LITTLE PREPARED. The questions can be about anything from "Is there really a heaven and a hell, and how can we know?," to "What about pre-marital sex?," to, "How can the church become more relevant to my friends?," to "Does God really hear our prayer?" or "Does the bible say anything about homosexuality?" There is no guarantee that each question will be answered to your satisfaction, but just addressing them as a group and journeying toward an answer is sometimes 90% of the battle. The chances are that if you have a question, or are questioning, then most if not all have the same question or questions. The truth is if we don't have questions or at times question things, then we are not being intellectually honest. Growth requires heart-rending questions. Let's not hold back, it's 'open season' for questions.

Enjoy The July 4th Weekend...

It has been brought to my attention that most of the YA Community is busy this weekend with family and friends. In light of this we will postpone our next meeting until Friday night July 18th. Please note our format will remain the same....1-Fun, 2-You, 3-Me & Mary/Mel & Barry, 4-The Door, with the 18th being 2-You week. By 'You' it means that our time together is dedicated to any question or concern you may have about anything, whether it be about doctrine, life, career, future, end-times, relationships...whatever you want to discuss we will discuss...it's open season so let's dive in.

3rd Night In Lakeland....

Night number three was quite differnt than the first two nights in that Todd Bentley was not there as he was ministering somewhere in North Carolina. The worship was again led by Heather Clark and it was wonderful...a real sense of presence. She actually wrote a song right before the service about going the nations and it was incredibly anointed and inspirational.
The meeting/bonfire tonight is at Mel & King Barry's house at 7pm and please bring munchies and soda. If our flight is on time Meghan and I will not arrive in Syracuse until 4:40pm. Assuming we make our connection at JFK and our flight into Syracuse is on time, we will still have to pick up our luggage and then take the shuttle over to pick up our car. Providing all things go well, we will probably not be leaving Syracuse until after 5pm, which will put us into Massena around 8pm. If everything goes well, I may be seeing you tonight, but if not, we will see you Sunday.
Meghan & PD

2nd Night In Lakeland...

Well it is after 3am, so my update will be extremely brief. The worship this evening was completely different than last evening, yet it was excellent. HeatherClarkband.com led in worship and it was soooo anointed. Todd Bentley had a difficult time ministering since he was so emotional during worship, and just from the day. He made the comment early in his exhortation that he really felt disengaged today and had planned on having someone else speak for him, but when he heard the worship, he felt like the Lord wanted him to jump in and lead. Though it was different, it was good, as his emphasis was desperation for more of God, for fire to fall in every community where there is hunger for God, and for the Lord to impart a double portion to people so they could carry something back to their home churches. At the end I happened to see Brian Cooney and his wife, former worship leader/pastor of New Life Worship Center in Rhode Island, and we had a great time catching up, as he is now living in Nashville, TN working with Steve Fry. Just before leaving I asked a Chinese lady and her son from San Francisco (I had met them briefly last night) to pray for Meghan. She also brought some of the other people who were with her from SanFran to pray. It was a good and intense prayer, so we are continuing to contend for all God has for Meg/Gorgeous. More later.....

1st Night In Lakeland...

Meg & I arrived in Lakeland at around 5:30pm and waited in line until just after 6pm to go into the meeting. After getting inside we noticed people up near the platform praying and pressing in for the meeting. The service started with great music and genuine sense of expetantcy. During the worship, which you all know if you were watching, the worship leader felt people were focusing too much on him and the platform, so he and the band just quit playing and started encouraging everyone to just worship from their hearts. Well this continued for about 40 minutes and was wonderful, as it just ebbed and flowed for quite some time. After the relatively quiet time of worship, the band started up again and we sang for another half hour or so before Todd Bentley came up. As you know his speaking was more exhortative and encouraging for people to trust Jesus for personal and community breakthroughs. When his prayer began Meghan and I did pray for quite some time, and twice she experienced a lessening of the pain, but after some time it would return again, not sure why. As you may know, Meg is not quick to say something is happening, from all the dissapointments she has experienced, so for her to really sense something going on with her pain level, we know there is something happening. There is so much I would like to write, but I will wait until later after going to a few more meetings. Thank you to everyone who is praying for us and trusting God for a genuine move of His Spirit in our generation. Go for it...
Press On,
-PD & Meghan-

June 6th will be the next time there is a young adults meeting. As usual, It'll be at NTC at 7 pm. The next meeting after that will be June 20th.
For those of you not at the prayer service last night, there was two prophesies that were read that were spoken over NTC over the past few years. Both were about this "house being a house of miracles and healings" and to "go". Go out and get the healing and bring it back to the four walls of the church and to our community. The prophesies came at an appropriate time because I was debating whether or not to fly down to Lakeland Florida to experience the miracles that are happening there. As many of you know, Meghan suffers from extreme neck pain and surgeries, and different sorts of therapies have not helped aleviate the pain. On June 17th at 6am Meghan and I are flying to Lakeland together to pray for a miracle in her, and more importantly to obtain a more accurate view on what is happening in Lakeland. We will be back in time for young adults that night and will hopefully have some great news and insight to share!

No service

No meeting this Friday night.
There is a special service at Cross Current, so we won't be meeting.

Where Are We Headed?

Glad you asked! We have only gathered twice so far, and though it appears to be a small beginning, I am excited at the prospect of what'all is on God's heart for us as a community. There are several objectives I believe we are to keep ever before us. First of all, in an effort to follow the Biblical pattern of Acts 2 as a Biblical Community, we need to be "God-Focused & Others-Oriented." Practically that means we are headed in the direction of seeking God and experiencing His Presence, as well as looking for ways to serve people who may be close to God and others who may be far from Him. What this looks like is that once per month we will focus on Worship/Prayer/Presence/Prophetic Insights/Exhortations, etc., and once per month we will focus on others in some sort of disarming relational context.
Because you are all adults, our times together will require more and more participation by each one of you. You will be overseeing the worship, and greatly helping with a 'disarming relational context' so that the feel of our relational times together emerge from your generation and not ours(even if the 70's were cool -I heard that snicker Wayne-).
In addition to serving others locally, we are also looking forward to connecting on some short term missions trips. As Erwin McManus says, often our most meaningful relationships are forged as we "serve others with others."
We Love You All So Much,
PD & Mary
Barry & Mel

The next meeting will be May 23d. Meghan has a big appointment in Syracuse for her neck (hopefully the doctors will be able to come to a conclusion about what is putting her through constant pain, 24/7) and we may or may not be back by 7 for the meeting. We are still meeting, it'll just be run by Barry & Mel Russell.

What A Time To Live!

I am not sure if you have heard all the going's on in Lakeland, FL. where there is an apparent move of God with thousands of people flocking to experience it. I cannot believe how polarized people have become regarding this happening, some strongly supporting it as an authentic move of God, while others are strongly denouncing it, saying it is not only a mixture, it is actually demonic. People on both sides of the fence whom I greatly admire and respect. So what are we to do? Well I think Paul Johansson did a profound job this past weekend in Massena addressing the Florida spectacle without actually addressing it by name. He masterfully laid out that the purpose of God is always for our Restoration, which invariably necesitates a Visitation from Him, but the Visitation is not the purpose, it is to lead us to Restoration through our response of Obedience to His voice during the Visitation. The Visitation softens our heart in order to respond to God's Spirit, but short of Obedience to His voice, we will only have an experience (as good as that may be) but there will be no lasting change or 'fruit', as Jesus puts it, in our lives.
I would like to share with you on Friday night at least two thoughts Paul Johansson shared with some of the core leaders this past Saturday in light of the present 'stir' in Florida. The first is based on "What holds you up also holds you down," and the second is in regards to how professional sailors are able to catch even contrary winds and utilize them (called tacking) to help propel them in the direction they were already headed.
So, why do I say all that....I say all that because I am sure part of our discussion will be around how are we to recognize an authentic move of God, and how can we discern a false one, since the Bible is so clear that in the last days there will be many "lieing signs and wonders" whose author is not God, but actually Satan himself. Scarey thought, but very real.
After this discussion, I would like to lay out some objectives for our YA Group, and where we are headed.

May 9th

The next meeting will be Friday May 9th! Last time we ended up having a decent turn out, but I am anticipating a greater one this next time. Once again, it'll be at NTC at 7pm upstairs in the "new" lounge. (Starting in the summer months it'll be at our house as well, but for now it will be at NTC).

I really hope that all of you can make it, and possibly even bring a friend or two! :-) Bring any questions that you have or an interesting topic to talk about.

You don't have to bring snacks (some will be provided) but if any of you want to bring anything, feel free to.

from meghan..


This Friday (May 2nd) my dad will be preaching at Cross Current because Jessica is not feeling well. She has been preaching on discipleship for some time now, so my dad is going to also speak on discipleship. If you would like to come to the service, you're more than welcome to. It's at 7pm downtown (next to the town hall).


Matthew 4:19 says "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men."

first official meeting!

Hello everyone. I'm writing this to remind you that there WILL be a meeting this Friday night at New Testament at 7pm. This will be a good time and I hope that all of you can make it! Please spread the word so that we'll have a good turn out. Once again, this is for anyone age 19 (or out of high school) to 32ish. Leave a comment if you'd like to come.

Heading Home...

It's Saturday about 1pm and here is Meghan about to leave Upstate Medical...YEAH!! It has been a long week, but the worst is definitely behind her. We just arrived home and are rearranging some things to accomodate her wheel chair. We just want to thank everyone for praying for us, and especially for Meghan. Though we don't understand what'all happened this week, we are thankful that Meg was surrounded by people who love her, were medically knowledgeable and were praying for her. Thank you Noreen, Nancy, Dr. Kim, Barry & Mel and everyone who helped and prayed for Meg...we couldn't have done it without you! Thanks so much to Brittany, Kristan, Wayne, Gabe, and Chaya who came to the hospital to visit Meg yesterday. It "meant A LOT to her and it brightened up her day. She feels so blessed to have such incredible friends that would do something as huge as that". Also HUGE thanks to Phil & MaryAnn Brothers who treated us like kings while we were in Syracuse. The ministry of care and compassion for others is such a powerful ministry, and having been the recipients of so much this week, we are freshly amazed at how impacting it can be. We are not sure what the future holds, but one thing we are certain of is that we are going to contend like never before for healing and the ministry of the supernatural.

One of the more significant messages of Christianity is that no matter who a person is or what their need is, we are to be a "good Samaritan" for them in their time of need. I am not sure there is a better way to express the Love of God to people than simply being there for them in their time of need. As a Young Adult Community, one of our mandates for us is to find ways to practically express the heart God to others, not because we want anything from them, but because it is simply the nature of God. The One who causes it to rain on the just and the unjust. We love you guys and look forward to journeying together.

Brief Update...Day 4 In Syracuse....

Overall a pretty good day, although Meg's pain level has not diminished much. She was up in a wheel chair for over an hour but it was extremely difficult, and by the time she was able to lay back down she was really hurting. If she has a good day on tomorrow, Friday, we are hoping she could possibly come home this weekend. I just told Meg that we prayed for her this evening and how anointed it was...she wished she could have heard it. Dane and I will be leaving in the morning for Syracuse and hopefully will be able to bring Meg and Mary home. Thanks again for all your support and prayer!

Day 3 In Syracuse...

Here are 6 minutes of footage from our last Boston trip in what we thought was Meg's last surgery...until she fell Sunday. As I write this it is 10pm on Wednesday, and Meg has just received two units of blood. Apparently her blood loss from the surgery last week in Boston, compounded with what she lost in Syracuse really depleted her and she was unable to recover sufficiently. PT came in her room about 4pm determined to get her sitting up on the side of her bed, but because the pain was still so intense she had to immediately lay back down. I phoned just after this and she was still crying. She really is being a trooper, but the pain is getting real old, and she is hoping for some relief. As you're praying for her, please pray about the pain situation, including the pain in her neck. The 'pain team' may be giving her an injection in the scar area of her neck tomorrow to help alleviate the pain in that area. All in all the care has been very good and everyone is really trying to help Meghan. Of course Momma is also tired and trying to comfort Meghan any way she can. We SOOOOOO APPRECIATE YOUR PRAYERS and your concern for Meghan and our family. We are so grateful to know and be friends with some the greatest people on planet earth. We love you all so much!

Day 2 At University Hospital - Upstate & YA Announcement

(In The Car on Return Trip From Boston Last Thursday)
Today was a bit better for Meghan with the pain management team working hard to moderate her pain level. For most of the day her pain hovered between 9 & 10 out of 10, and for a short time this afternoon it was 8.5. During that time she was able to sleep for an hour at a time. It looks like tomorrow morning they will be forced to give her two units of blood as her blood work is not showing sufficient increase. Tomorrow as well they are going to try and get her out of bed and start some PT, which she is dreading. For the past two nights Mary was not able to get any sleep, so fortunately this afternoon she was able to go over to Pastor Doug & Marie Brushell's home to catch some zzz's. She felt better in the early evening, and Meghan was doing a little better so I jumped in the car around 7pm and headed home to be with Daner.
We still so feel everyone's support and prayer, however we definitely have our moments...Meghan & Mary especially.

YA - Though I am not certain where I will be this weekend, I am still planning on having the vans ready to go at 6pm at the church to head over to HCF'S 5th year anniversary celebration in Cornwall. If you read this post, PLEASE spread the word for anyone who would need a ride, and obviously who ever is going to drive perhaps you could hook up with someone who may need a ride so that "no one is left behind."

We Love You All!!,
-PD & Mary-

Post Surgery...

Hi Everyone,
Meghan was in surgery this morning from 10am to 1pm. Doctor Simpson (I checked to make sure his first name was not Homer) installed a rod, he called it a nail, that is "Y" shaped and includes two screws to secure the femur shank to the femoral head. He believed it was a success, stating it was not a grand slam, but was definitely a home run. She has been in excruciating pain since the surgery and we are just trying to keep her comfortable. We have grown so accustomed to the extra special care Meg received in Boston that we are spoiled. This is a great hospital, it's just not the same and she has several times said, "let's go to Boston."
We so appreciate your prayers!! Please keep them up, as there are several more decisions that have to be made, and we and the Orthopedic team need great wisdom. Presently they want to give her a transfusion, but due to having blown out two ports in Boston during a transfusion she is petrified. As I type this two doctors came in and said they will postpone the transfusion until the morning and hopefully her blood counts will come up sufficiently so that she will not need a transfusion. Please Pray! If she has any dizziness, then they will immediately give her a transfusion.
Please know that we love all of you and so feel the support and prayer. Thankfully 4 of Meghan's 5 professors have written back to me and told me to tell Meghan not to worry about her course work because they will make arrangements for her. What a relief that was for her to hear.

...in the beginning...of YA...
This is kind of a crazy launching communiqué for Young Adults, because the only thing on my mind right now is Meghan. If you were in church this today you know we had a great morning...Adam Avery preached a great message...people were engaged...presence during communion was wonderful...and then. Some people were speaking with me after service and Meghan came up to see what we were going to do after service. When she was about 10 feet from me I saw that she was kind of daydreaming and when she went to lean on her right crutch it wasn't securely under her arm. In slow motion I watched her fall hoping I could have gotten there sooner to catch her, but I was too late. She hit the floor hard and then began to scream in pain. We knew something bad had happened but we were hoping nothing was broken. Well X-rays revealed our worst nightmare concerning her hip repair. Her femur had completely broken off right at the repair spot, in an ugly fashion. After hours of haggling with trying to get her airlifted to Boston, and then to Syracuse, in the end nothing worked out and they are presently transporting her to Syracuse to see Dr. Katz in the morning. Dr. Katz graduated from Harvard Medical School so she knows Meghan's orthopedic surgeons in Boston and will have access to her file and be in constant communication with them. Please pray for Meghan...that she is able to remain comfortable in transportation since any motion is excruciatingly painful for her. Second, that tomorrow we will have great wisdom in knowing who should perform the surgery to reattach her leg using similar hardware to what she just had removed, and that the surgery will be a huge success.