It's Time To PAR-TAY!!!

Hey Element Church!

Guess what...IT'S HERE!!!!!

Element Church turns one year old THIS SUNDAY, and we want and need YOU to help us celebrate!
Here's how:

1. Come to church this Sunday.

2. Invite & BRING someone with you! (THIS SUNDAY is a pretty big deal, so PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE don't come alone!  It's going to be a GREAT WEEK, too!)

3. STAY FOR LUNCH!  (After church, we're having a BBQ BASH in the same park where we had City Reach to celebrate what God has done in this past year, so plan on partying with us!)

4.  Bring a dish to share.  It's ok if you can't bring something, or you get this message late --we want you to come anyway!  However, if you can help us out by bringing a side dish or a dessert to share, that would help us all to have plenty of food to go around. (Besides, this way you get to show off your inner-chef skills, right?)  Element will provide plenty of hot dogs and BBQ pulled pork, as well as the drinks.  

Just so that we don't have too much of one thing, let's plan on doing it this way:  if your last name starts with the letters A to M, plan on bringing a dessert to share.  If your last name begins with N to Z then plan on bringing a side dish.  If you really feel like showing off your "mad cooking skillz", then bring both...we'll eat it all!

That's all for now.  I'm so pumped for Sunday.  City Reach was awesome. Thanks to all who prayed, gave, and served to make it such an incredible success.  Now, we look to Sunday and ONE BIG PARTY to celebrate all that Jesus has done for us, and the fact that we get to tell Millvale about it.  Are you ready for this?  I am SOOOO ready!

Love you guys,
Pastor Rich

Father & Daughter

Please allow me to pause and say how much I love my daughter, JoLyn! She turned 14 today (08.18.09) and I could not be more proud of her! She loves God, her family, her friends, and is one of the most fun people in the world to be around!

To celebrate her birthday, check out this video I made of her and I a couple of years ago.

I love you, JoLyn!!!

Jacki Mac turns EIGHT!!!

This was an incredibly busy weekend with the Spiritual Breakthrough Retreat, but in the midst of all of that, Jacki turned 8 years-old on Sunday!

Although we were unable to schedule a birthday party for a couple of weeks, we wanted to make sure we could make the weekend special for her. So, after the Saturday sessions, we went to see Madagascar 2 at the "cheap theater" in the South Hills area. Then on Sunday we hit up every kid's favorite lunch spot...McDonald's!

After lunch, we headed home to change and get right over to the church for our Upward Basketball practice. When we finished, we joined Jodi's parents for a birthday fiesta at Don Pablo's.

We wrapped tonight up with a Skype video-phone call on my computer with my parents, sister, and my grandparents. It's so great to live in times when we may be separated by many miles, but modern technology made it possible to celebrate together!

Lastly, I just want to say what it is that I appreciate about my littlest angel. Jacki is one of the most compassionate and loving people I have ever met! She loves God with all of her heart, and she loves the people around her almost as fiercely! She is loyal to those she loves (we pray together daily for her teachers and friends)- - and she is loyal to all of her favorite things, as well. (You think I love the Phillies, Eagles, and Flyers? This Pittsburgh-born kid LOVES her Philly teams. Don't believe me? Try getting her to cheer for any other team - it's not happening!)

I love Jacki and I am so proud of her! I just hope the next eight years don't fly by so quickly!