Paintball Was A Blast =)

Our first SAC event for 2012 was paintball and we had a blast. 17 men from Smiley's young adult ministry played paintball for 3 hours for our January SAC (Sunday After Church) event. I love playing paintball, but this was the longest time and the most fun I've ever had playing. And the best part was that we had the KISS look-alike rock band out playing with us. Great guys, great times!!

Next SAC Event is our Super Bowl Party on Feb 5th!!



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SAC Is BAC(K)!!

Last year GTD started supplying regular monthly outdoor activities to our home church's young adult ministry that I (Doug) have been a part of since 1988. The idea is to put together activities that promote relationship building and encourage regular attenders to invite unchurched friends to church followed with a fun activity... all while enjoying God's amazing creation. We call it SAC which is stands for Sunday After Church.

It's been a big hit, and now SAC is BAC(K) for 2012. Check out the activity line-up below for the 2012 SAC calendar. If you are a young adult and never married between the ages of 17-25 and looking for a thriving church and young adult ministry to be a part of then we encourage you to check out First Baptist Church of Indian Rocks Church and Smiley's Coffeehouse (the young adult ministry of FBCIR). Come pray with us then come play with us!

2012 SAC Calendar

Jan 15: Paintball
Feb 5: Super Bowl Party
Mar 18: High Ropes Course
Apr 15: Ultimate
May 20: Fun-N-The-Sun Beach Day
Jun 3: Wakeboarding Day
Jul 22: Softball
Aug 26: Canoeing
Sep 16: Flag Football
Oct 28: Indoor Rock Climbing
Nov 25: Cookout at the Park
Dec 16: Geocaching

Hope to see you there =)

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And Another GTD Retreat Scheduled =)

God continues to bless GTD with more ministry opportunities. Calvary Baptist Church of Clearwater & Skycrest Baptist Church of Clearwater are teaming-up to do a GTD youth retreat over spring break. This event will be for the 8th graders. We love working with Skycrest Youth Pastor - Mitch Kuhn and CBCC Youth Pastor - Ron Cooney and we look forward to all that God is going to do on this event!! We can't wait!!

We Got A Mac!!!

It's been nearly impossible to do any quality video & photo editing on our outdated computers. Other than the occassionl virus, our used PC's have been doing well for our basic needs, but they continually crash when it comes to anything that has to do with graphics. So we were able to purchase GTD's first Mac!! A Mac Mini. And we can't wait to put together awesome brochures & videos that help market our events to more churches, groups, & individuals so they can experience one of GTD's God-awesome adventures!! Thank you Father for this great blessing =)

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Raise The Risk



Last month I was asked to write an article about taking risks for Raise The Risk blog. I compared rappelling to obeying God. Here's the link to the blog if you're interested.
http://networkedblogs.com/rxR8R



Another Retreat Scheduled =)

Yay!! We have another group signed up for a GTD Retreat. This time it's the adult leaders retreat from the middle school youth group of Calvary Baptist Church of Clearwater (CBCC). This is another amazing church in the Pinellas County area. Laurie & I have been attending there regularly for a few months now. The middle school youth program is lead up by a great friend (and a great man of God) - Youth Pastor Ron Cooney and his awesome wife Brooke. If you are looking for a great church to attend then add CBCC to your list of places to check out.

GTD welcomes CBCC's middle school youth group leaders to our spring retreat program!

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Back-to-Back In The BLACK!!!!!!

I'm ecstatic to report that GTD just completed 2 back-to-back years of finishing in the black (with slight profits) during a very harsh economic climate. That's huge news and we give God all the glory!!

Look Who's Going On A GTD Retreat!!

2012 is off to an amazing start! Praise The Lord, we have groups lining up to do GTD events. We want to welcome Calvary Chapel of St Petersburg's middle school youth group to our spring retreat line-up!! CCSP has been doing summer adventure trips with GTD since the early 2000's and now they are ready to dip their toe into one of our God-awesome weekend retreats. We love working with CCSP!! They have a solid ministry that unashamedly teaches the truths of God's Word while having a blast. We are always blown away by the depth of Godly character and fun-loving attitudes we see in their youth. That depth reflects the quality and commitment to Jesus that oozes out of their adult leaders, especially their Youth Pastor - Josh Harris. If you are looking for a GREAT youth group & church to be a part of then we highly recommend checking out this church (see website here). It's with great JOY that we welcome CCSP to GTD's Retreat Program!!

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Another Group Heading To Costa Rica!!

We are so excited to announce that The Family Worship Center of St Augustine, FL has signed up to do a GTD summer mission trip to Costa Rica!! This is a wonderful church full of fantastic people making an impact for the Kingdom of God. Check out their website here.

THIS IS OUR 8th MISSION TRIP SCHEDULED FOR 2012... FAR SURPASSING OUR GOAL OF 6... AND ONLY LEAVING ROOM FOR 1 MORE SUMMER TRIP!!

Thank YOU Jesus!!

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$500 Grant Received!!

Our profound thanks to the Hardy Huntley Charitable Foundation for their generation donation of $500 to GTD!! God bless you guys!!

Happy New Year!!

As we say goodbye to 2011 we pray that 2012 is already off to an excellent start for you!

GTD is preparing ... or more accurately "preprayering" for our greatest year ever! We are excited as God takes us on into our Promise Land this year!

We can't wait to share with you the faith journey we've been on for the past 4 years... "captive & enslaved in Egypt", "rescued by God", "crossing the Red Sea", "plodding through the wilderness", "crossing the Jordon River", and now "entering the Promise Land"... it has been and continues to be EPIC! You will be able to read all the details on our blog in the weeks to come.

As for now, we are making several adjustments to our 2012 event calendar as our Mission Program is exploding and we are making room for more groups to participate. Our goal is to have all the changes made and the website completely updated over the next 2 weeks. We will post it on this blog when everything is complete.

Thank you for being a part of GTD! We look forward to what God has in store for 2012 and we hope to see you on one of our God-awesome events this year.

God Bless & Happy New Year!!
- The GTD Staff

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Merry CHRISTmas!!!



We have so much to celebrate in Christ! He is the gift that just keeps on giving. Wishing you the very best this CHRISTmas season!
From The GTD Staff - Doug & Laurie

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All Nighter

Laurie & I are first in line to reserve the Ft DeSoto youth campsite for a March retreat with an awesome youth group from Canada. We've been here since 2am. We are pulling an all nighter parked in front of the camp office to make sure we get the camp. They have a strict policy of only allowing reservations to be made up to 90 days in advance and first-come first-served.

New Action Camcorder Donated!!

Thank you Paul & Susan Salce (Laurie's parents) for your generous donation of the Drift HD170 Action Camcorder to GTD!!! We can't wait to use it!!

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Happy Thanksgiving!!

"give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."
- 1 Thes 5:18

The reality as Christians is that we have so much to be thankful for... whether our circumstances are great or our circumstances are brutal. Whether rich or poor, healthy or sick, happy or sad we were designed with a capacity for an unconquerable attitude of gratitude because of who Jesus is in us, who Jesus is to us, and who Jesus is through us. God has not made us to be fair-weather appreciators, but rather all-weather thankers. Our faith rises above our circumstances. Our wings soar not only above the storm, but more importantly, right through the storm. And that's the point. In a dark world that is upside down we don't have to wait until everything is made right before we glow with thanksgiving. We don't have to feel great to be thankful. On this wonderful day called Thanksgiving God reminds us that the best day of the year to give thanks is everyday of the year.

I thank You Father for all good things that come from above.

And I thank You in all things for how You work for my good and for Your glory.

Thank You Jesus!!

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Bonding Times!

Fathers & sons adventuring together!!

BREAKFAST for Body & Soul

After a nice breakfast of eggs, sausage gravy & biscuits the fathers & sons had morning devotions together =)

Father / Son Retreat Has Begun

38 dads & sons from Tampa Covenant Church arrived safe & sound to camp tonight. The camp set-up went smooth and everyone was a huge help :). We had chili for dinner and smores & hot cocoa for dessert around a kickin' campfire! Our Impact Point centered around the Transfiguration events recorded in Matt 17. In the story God the Father declares loudly & publicly that Jesus is His Son whom he loves and in whom He is well pleased. Likewise we had all the dads publicly declare their love for their sons and share with the rest of us what they are most pleased with. It was a very touching display of love & affirmation =)

Great Videos From The Banquet

These are the videos that were shown at our Annual Banquet... all produced by Laurie Finger!! They include our 2011 Highlight Video, our Costa Rica Experience Video, and 3 introduction videos for 3 different speakers - Pastor Aaron Walp, Laurie Finger, & Doug Garner. Enjoy!!

Mission Accomplished!!

$20,231 RAISED!!!!

Thank you to all the table sponsors, donors, monthly partners, attendees, supporter, hard working volunteers, staff, workers, and businesses that played a vital role in making our 10th Annual Banquet a great success!!
 
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And a very special thanks to all the speakers that shared on stage last night... great job!!
Leigh Anne Presley (mother)
CR Intern: Savannah Jenkins (daughter)
Fred Byda (Liquid, Slammed & Grand Canyon partcipant)
Pastor Aaron Walp (Pastor of Family Ministries at Calvary Baptist of Clearwater)
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And, of course, thank you to our Lord who enabled us to surpass our goal last night!! GLORY TO GOD!!

Thank U Set Up Crew

I ran out of time to post these, but here are a few pics from our banquet set-up yesterday. Our many thanks to the set-up crew & volunteers that poured their hearts into the banquet. The results of the night will be posted soon =)

GTD Banquet Tmw Night!!

We have our 10th Annual Banquet for GTD tmw night at Ruth Eckerd Hall... catered by Carrabba's!! Can't wait!! Celebrating 15 years of ministry!! Thank U Jesus!!

And THANK YOU to all of our Table Sponsors:

• Real Estate Closing Solutions (Dana & Martha Ward)
• Mullins Enterprises (Jerry Mullins)
• JAG (Jerry & Ann Garner) 1
• JAG (Jerry & Ann Garner) 2
• Family Center on Deafness
• Kiwanis Club of Pinellas Park
• Taylor Family Funeral Home
• Paul & Heather Williamson
• Jesse & Amber Altamarino
• People Helping People of Pinellas Park 1
• People Helping People of Pinellas Park 2
• Peter Ward
• Chris & Melissa Atkins

Preparing For Our Annual Banquet

We are four days away from our biggest event of the year, our Annual Fundraising Banquet. It will be held at Ruth Eckerd Hall on Tues Nov 15th from 6:30pm - 9pm and catered by Carrabba's. This is our 10th Annual Banquet and we are celebrating 15 years of ministry (praise the Lord!!!). Our goal is to raise $20,000 as well as share highlights from the past year of successes, cast next year's vision, and celebrate our 15 year milestone with our audience.

We have currently raised $9792 ($2700 received & 7092 pledged for 2012). So far we have 11 of 24 monthly partners signed up for 2012 and 13 of 20 tables sponsored. Click here to see the daily updates and details of the event.