Party over here , Party over there......

So next Thursday, July 16th, something really cool is happening in the art district of Charlotte called NoDa. The collaboration between the Surles fam, Scott Miller and Jeff Shinabarger is bring a GiftCardGiver party to Charlotte. What is a GiftCardGiver party, you might ask? Well, here is a synapse of what is going to happen. This excerpt is from the invitation that Kenneth Surles sent out on Facebook.
"With $15 Billion worth of gift cards going unused in America from this year alone the non-profit Gift Card Giver has decided to do something about it, collect unused cards and give them to people in need.

To help them out with this brilliant idea, Jess and I, along with Scott Miller, will be hosting one of the organization's popular "House Parties" on Thursday, July 16th at 7:00 PM at our home in NoDa, Charlotte, NC. There will be a wide range of card games, snacks, desserts, drinks and good times for all. Come to meet some new folks who want to bring tangible change to the world, flex your UNO muscles, or display your calm cool and collected domination of Jenga.

The only requirement is everyone gets "Carded" at the door. In order to gain access you haveto bring a gift card (from anywhere) with any balance (large or small). Cards collected will go to benefit the Habitat Family from Parkersburg, West Virginia.

You do not want to miss this opportunity to have fun and do good!

Check out the official invite here:
http://www.giftcardgiver.com/charlotte/ "

SO there you have it. Cool huh?

Well, here is one more tidbit on this whole thing. Everyone seems to have some gift card laying around in a drawer that has unused money on it. In fact, I have a Target card in my car with $1.18 on it and it is going to the party. Ashley and I would like to collect unused gift cards to take to the party. So if you can't come, I want you to think about mailing them to us or meeting up with us so we can collect the cards. Portions on the cards can range from 1 cent up to a billion dollars (BTW, if you have a gift card with a billion dollars on it, we need to become better friends :) . Send me an email at grammatico1@gmail.com to get our address to send them or to arrange for us to pick them up.

Peace!

Fast for Darfur - Day 1

Fast for Darfur - Day 1 from Ryan Grammatico on Vimeo.

Here we go ...Day 1! Join us!!!

Do you see what I see?

What do you think when you see this picture? I see potential, I see hope and loss at the same time, I see anger, I see confusion, I see a kid who should be watching LeBron instead of killing, I see a child who should smile instead of making a grimacing face, I see a child who should be holding a skateboard instead of an assault rifle, and I see that I can't take this anymore.
I am joining the fight, the only way that I can right now.

I am going on a three-day water-only fast next Wednesday through Friday (May 20-22), and would like for you to consider joining me. There are several things from which you can fast – it doesn’t have to be a water-only fast. You can fast from meat, alcohol, coffee, or even TV – pick something you love and go without it. The point is to be constantly mindful of the people of Darfur during this time. Every time you experience a hunger pang, or start to crave whatever it is that you’re fasting from, say a prayer for Darfur.

But don’t stop there. Tell your friends, ask them to join you, and ask them to tell all their friends and family about this terrible humanitarian crisis. Send letters to our president and members of Congress. Send letters to the editor of your newspaper. Send letters to TV stations. This is a chance for us to raise our collective voice for the orphans, widows, and outcasts of our world. I hope you’ll join me. (via Steve Cook's blog, but it's my hearts cry, as well)

I am tired of seeing the fighting , the hurt, the killing, and the lack of smiles in Darfur.

Daniel McCollum (click here for Daniels take)and myself, are joining our incredible friend , Steve Cook,(check out his blog here) for a time of prayer on Wednesday at noon at the Billy Graham Library Garden, here in Charlotte, NC. PLEASE COME JOIN US FOR AN HOUR OF PRAYER.

Directions to Billy Graham Library


2 Chronicles 7:14 : And my people, my God-defined people, respond by humbling themselves, praying, seeking my presence, and turning their backs on their wicked lives, I’ll be there ready for you: I’ll listen from heaven, forgive their sins, and restore their land to health.

Check out my video for a personal invite!

Mrs. Grammatico

Every once in a while, we cross paths with people who impact our lives. The past few blogs have been about some of those people in my own life. Well, I have intentionally saved the best for last. Webster defines the word, unconditional, as not limited by conditions; absolute. My bride is the epitome of the word unconditional. Nothing I did won her affection and it seems, as stupid as I sometimes am, nothing I do now can lose her affection.
On the day that we married on February 3, 2007, she read vows to me, but what set those vows apart from any other promise, was the look in her eye. It SCREAMED, "unconditionally Ryan"! She is the first person in my life that when she says she loves me, I believe it. Not that other people don't love me but that I really , truly, and earnestly believe it when she says it. She has taught me so much in these past years. She has taught me how to focus better, how to love better , how to be more compassionate, how to communicate better, how to parent better, and how to be a better friend and spouse. She stretches me, pushes me, hugs me, holds me, encourages me, prays for me, and is never scared to call me to the carpet for anything in my life. This woman has been the greatest gift from our Creator that I could have ever hoped for. Every night, we fall asleep with my arms around her and when we wake up, her arms are around me. EVERY TIME! That's what I'm talking about!
I can't get enough of her laugh. When i make her smile , I feel like I can do anything. I love sitting across a room and watching her interact with people, because I know that those people are better off now that she is talking to them. Hearing about her passions strengthens my desire to give her the world. She always puts other people first and if you know her then you know that this is true.
My wife has this habit of leaving me a card and telling me about little things in life, about her love for me and just how she sees us.
When my wife is quiet, she is beautiful. She has this strange way of saying a thousand things without uttering a word.
The coolest thing about her is the vitality that she brings to life. not just our life, but every life that she comes in contact with. It is mind blowing to me.
I am writing this because I wrap up this "who inspired me" blog point with the one person who has impacted me more than anyone else, and that person is, ladies and gentlemen.....Mrs. Ashley Grammatico. I love you, babe!

GOOOAAAALLLLL!!!!

I have taken a little blogging break to get my head right but now, I am ready to go! In this next installment of "You Changed My Life", we have Jonathan and Kayla George. These two knuckleheads were just a couple of newlyweds living in NoDa, enjoying life, until they invited me in as a roommate nearly 2 1/2 years ago. They opened up their home and more importantly their hearts to me. You see, I was in a very tough place in my life. I had been divorced for roughly about a year and I was stretched so thin on finances that when my lease ran out on an apartment that I was living in, I wasn't sure where I was going to turn.Well, that is where these guys stepped in. They asked if I was game to move into their finished basement(which I really enjoyed, I even had my own bathroom :)). I accepted and that's where the fun came in. I worked so much to try to make ends meet that I was beginning to wear down. And then, they did something really cool. They lowered my rent. May not be a big deal to you but if you were trying to pay child support, car payment, college loans, and trying to get out of credit card debt then this would be huge to you. A few months go by and I remember J, K, and I having a conversation and they decided to let me know that they weren't going to take any more rent from me at all. Free housing! I mean, seriously??
And money wasn't the only thing that they lent to my life. They quickly became two of the best friends that Ashley and I could ever ask for. I remember Kayla and I having a heart to heart about both of our messy pasts and how the future seems so much more brighter with Jesus in control. I remember Jonathan screaming at the top of his lungs when his fave futbol (soccer) team, scored a goal. I ran upstairs and thought he was hurt but in fact, he was jumping around like a school girl in love. Which by the way, Jonathan has taught me to appreciate soccer. I was of the mindset that soccer was for girls and boys who couldn't play football. but he taught me and showed me through countless games and convos that now I am a fan. Go Arsenal!! Needless to say, the thing that has always blown my mind about the maturity of this couple is that they are also our YOUNGEST friends. Their wisdom, heart, and compassion far outweighs their years of life.
These two are heading to Malawi in July to help bring relief to one of the poorest countries in the world. Jonathan is going to use his head and combine all three of his passions: Kayla, soccer, and Jesus. You can donate to their cause on their website. We are excited about Skyping with them, seeing what God does in their lives, and about seeing them come back someday and then seeing what God has in store for them next. But I end this love fest, with a HUGE thank you to the George's for loving me just because I am me!


PS---I had to hijack this pic from their website because finding a picture of Jonathan George is as rare as a Mickey Mantle rookie card. He is not a camera fan! :)

I Want To Be Tim When I Grow Up

OK, Tim may kill me for this!! But it has to be done because I seem to have no pics of him at all. So I did what any normal 4th grader would do, I looked online. I went to Goodsearch and here is what I found. But in all seriousness, I wanted to express who Tim Abare is to me. Tim has a story ,(like most of us do, or we wouldn't be here), a story that is cool , and very intricate. So detailed in fact, that I have a feeling that I don't even know the half of it. But his story is what seems to have led him to be who he is today. Tim went through a rough (underexxagerated) time in his life and through his dealing with issues and coming to a growing intimacy with Jesus, and also the prayers of an incredible wife., he overcame. I see Tim as a successful businessman, a father to out-of-this-world kids, a great writer,a devoted husband, , leader in his faith community Watershed, a humanitarian, and a follower of Jesus who has accepted who he is in this world. And that is who I want to be. Tim has given me counsel on various occassions and everytime he has, I have taken something away from it that has changed my life(close your eyes and picture....... :)). The scary thing about Tim is that we are, in my eyes, very much alike. I love my wife, Jesus, children, Brennan Manning and John Piper, and eating. We are both uncomfortable in public settings but come off as VERY comfortable. He and his wife are so different but that is what makes them incredible, just like Ashley and myself.

One way for sure that Tim has challenged me is by his families desire to give away more than they keep financially and of themselves. That's our dream as well. To get to a point where we can give , and give, and give and live, and live, and live.
All I know is that Tim has learned from mistakes in life and has allowed God to work deep within him to make the necessary changes to be who he is today! And that is who I want to be.

Rich?

I was reading this morning about what rich means. There were so many ideas in this world of what rich truly means but it got me thinking about my definition of rich. I used to put a monetary amount on it but after meeting the McCollums, I have learned that a dollar total doesn't equal wealth. Yesterday, Ashley and I went to North Point Community Church to hear Daniel and Jamie speak to Daniel's father's church about their hearts for global mission. But................Daniel threw the crowd a screwball. After Daniel and Jamie, both shared how God brought their hearts to a point of caring for the world's poor and hurting, Daniel then turned the message to a point of missional living. But the thing that really got me was when Daniel spoke of "Intentional Sacrifice". Defined, intentional sacrifice is when we invite discomfort and inconvenience on ourselves because we have chosen to follow Jesus down to a certain path. And that made me rethink about what we are up to as a family. We have been kicking around this idea of what it would like for the Grammatico family to move from the suburbs to a disenfranchised area of Charlotte to help bring some hope to hopeless situations. Well, none of this thinking and change of thinking would have been possible without the McCollums. We have walked side by side over the past 3 years and have seen each of our lives change. It is so cool when you see God doing the same things in your own life that He is doing in other peoples lives. I have watched as Jamie's smile has brightened up our days during rough times, as her love for my wife has grown Ashley in wonderful ways and how she has been an incredible bride to my main man, Daniel. And then there is Daniel. A guy who I have sat across from a lunch table and plotted to take over the world(for Jesus of course!), a guy who I have talked sports, love, religion, politics, and every other thing under the sun, someone who has helped position me as a leader and husband for a better way, and someone who has always taught me to think. I love these two people with all of my heart and I know without a doubt that we are a better family for having them in our lives.
PS----These two incredible people are giving up western living for a year and they are going to spend a year living in Blantyre, Malawi. You can read about it on their Malawi website. Read it and I urge you to give to their cause.