Details on Upcoming Events!!!

As a reminder, there is no Wednesday Night Live! this Wednesday, November 26th. Enjoy your Thanksgiving Break!
.
Additionally, here's the deal on the next few weeks:

.

Flower City Work Camp Meeting

Wednesday, December 3rd

6:00 - 6:30PM

Adults & Students (Grades 7-12)

Youth Room

* If you're interested in participating in FCWC April 2009,

please attend this meeting!!!

.

WNL! Collection Competition!!!

Wednesday, December 3rd

6:30 - 8:30PM

We're going door-to-door in efforts to collect items for

Open Door Mission. We'll break off into teams and winning team

with most items will win a prize!

*Permission slip required*

** Please dress for the weather**

.

Service Project: Open Door Mission "Stuff-a-Bus"

Friday, December 5th

5-7PM @ Marketplace Mall (in parking lot)

We're helping the mission collect and "stuff" donated items.

We'll hang out at the mall afterwards (7-8PM)!!!!

*Please dress for the weather*

.

Sr. High Night

Sunday, December 7th

Time & Place: TBA

.

If you have any questions, please contact John at jcleghorn@ridgelandchurch.org

or by phone at 585.766.3917.

Snow Camp & Revolve Tour

Two major events are coming up within the next few months.

Here's the deal on both of them:

.

Winter Freeze 2009 Snow Camp

w/ Victory Baptist Church

Students in Grades 6-12 welcome!

January 9-11, 2009

Camp Hickory Hill, Varysburg NY

Registration deadline is December 21st!

Cost is $70.

For more information, snag a Winter Freeze packet from

the Youth Room today!

.

Revolve Tour: All Access Conference for Girls

Only girls in grades 6-12!

February 27-28, 2009

Blue Cross Arena, Rochester NY

Tickets cost $54, early-bird rate.

Registration deadline is December 21st.

For more information, contact John at jcleghorn@ridgelandchurch.org

or see Sue Cymbal.

.

** Only completed permission form for Snow Camp and Revolve Tour

is required at registration deadline. Payment is due at time of event**

December 2008 Events!!!

Don't have a December 2008 calendar?

Grab one here!

.

Some Events to highlight:

Flower City Work Camp Informational Meeting

Wednesday, December 3rd

6 - 6:30PM, Youth Room

Students (Grades 7-12) & Adults

**If you want to participate in FCWC, you are highly

encouraged to attend this short meeting**

.

Service Project: Open Door Mission "Stuff-a-Bus"

Friday, December 5th, 5-7PM

Marketplace Mall

We'll be helping Open Door Mission recieve goods and "stuff the bus."

Afterwards, we might hang out at the mall!*

*(If students want to hang out, it would be from 7-8PM)

.

RCC Community Project: Muggin' the Neighborhood

Saturday, December 13th @ RCC

10-12PM

Help spread the news about Ridgeland and welcome

our neighbors to Imagine Christmas!

Friday Ice Skating!

Here are some FAQs regarding this Friday's event:

.

How many friends can I bring?

There is no limit as to how many friends you bring! If you are bringing friends, however, try to let me know beforehand so I can purchase enough food. Just email me at jcleghorn@ridgelandchurch.org or let me know on Wednesday night.

.

Does my friend have to pay for rental skates?

For your friends, I will cover the $4 to skate. If they need rental skates, they will need to cover the $3. If for some reason your friends can't cover the cost, please speak with me privately - I'll make sure they're taken care of.

.

What are the details again?
The session goes from 8-10PM @ RIT Ice Arena. Please use the lower-level entrance located just off Parking Lot D. Parents, please be prepared to pick up your student promptly at 10PM.
.

Thanks Everyone! See you Friday! If you have any other questions, please email John at jcleghorn@ridgelandchurch.org or call at 766-3917.

Upcoming Events!!!

*** There is a minor change to the

November student calendar***
.
Due to last minute scheduling conflicts,

Bowling Night on Friday November 21st will be cancelled.

Instead, we'll be going ice skating at RIT!

Here's the deal:

Ice Skating @ RIT

Jr. & Sr. High Students

Friday, November 21st from 8PM - 10PM

Meet at Ritter Ice Arena, lower level entrance

Cost is $4 to skate, $3 for rental skates

(students may bring their own skates, no rental fee applied)

.

Food is Provided!

If students bring friends, their friends skate for free!

.

Also, the Sr. High students are invited to Panera Bread on Hylan Dr. Sunday, November 23rd 5:30PM - 7PM. It's a time to relax and hang out. Students need to bring some $$ for food/drink.

.

If there are any questions,

please contact John at jcleghorn@ridgelandchurch.org or 334.6722

Awareness Test

Are we really as aware of our surroundings as we think we are?

(DO NOT READ UNTIL YOU WATCH VIDEO)

What does this video have to do with anything?

How often do we get caught up with what's going on in our life and our goals that we fail to see what's around us? Sometimes we could be missing opportunities...when we fail to observe what's going on around us we fail to act in ways to helps others.

If someone is hurting and we don't see it...how can we encourage them?

If someone is hungry and we don't see it...how can we feed them?

If someone is lonely and we don't see it...how can we befriend them?

Something to think about...

Wednesday Night Live! Update

Last weekend, I attended the National Youth Workers Convention in Pittsburgh, PA. It was a great time to connect to other youth workers in the United States and learn from the veterans the ins-and-outs of ministry. One thing that was of particular interest to me was the discussions we had on today's youth. According to the veterans, today's youth are:

· Often misunderstood
· Often misunderstanding
· Not only wanting to know how, but why…
· Searching for spiritual things – something bigger then themselves.
· Want something to commit to, to be a part of
· But Church is often a struggle, seeming irrelevant and boring
· Tired of cliché, same-old stuff messages
· Dislike fake, hypocritical, and phony people

This got me thinking... don't all of us sometimes feel that way?

.

This past Wednesday Night, we began to discuss the issue of moving closer to God and the struggles that seem to go along with it. Sometimes we dislike the things we do as Christians because they're not really fun. Sometimes we dislike the things we do because they don't make any sense. Sometimes reading the Bible is more tiresome than life-changing, making us feel like it has no implication for our lives today. But instead of rising to the challenge of promoting change, more often than not we stick ourselves in a rut and inwardly wrestle with God.

.

Jesus calls us to something more, to a bigger life than just making in through each day. Life is more than a routine, a set schedule of rising in the morning and doing the daily tasks. Christianity is more than just reading a few passages out of the Bible and attending Church on Sunday - it's about seeing God. Jesus spoke this quite simply when He said, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God" (Matt. 5:8). God doesn't care so much for our words or our actions. He doesn't care how much money we make nor what we wear - He's to be at the very core of our heart. He's to be what we breathe, what we feel, what we think. Our everything is to be His.

.

As a youth ministry, we're going to continue looking into this idea of growing closer with God and hopefully answer some of the questions we have. Remember, Wednesday Night Live! meets at 6:30PM on Wednesday nights...