Today we held a memorial service at our church for an amazing 18 year old man who was killed in a car crash 6 days ago.

This young man, Max Allen was the rock of our youth ministry at the vineyard and he will be sorely missed.

The service or memorial was a celebration of all the wonderful things he brought to his family, friends and community. He was loved and cherish by many people and it is very sad that he is not with us anymore.

Max was very creative and designed the picture you see below for the upcoming Christmas party

But as our pastor stated, Max is well. Max has no more questions. He has gone on to be with our Lord and Savior…Our God.

This is the foundation of our Christian Faith. That when we die, we will live eternally with our God. This is the message and the ultimate message of the bible. Jesus came and bridged the gap so our sin would be forgiven and we, by the grace of God will go on and have life eternal.

Without this belief, our faith is nothing. This is the Rock upon which we stand.

Although the pain in our church, and especially the family and the youth, is difficult right now, the unity I witnessed today and what has been displayed over the past 6 days is quite amazing.

My daughter was close to Max as were many other teens. We have close to 100 teens in our youth ministry and all of them were touched by Max one way or another. Their strength and resolve through this time has been remarkable as we older adults have witness faith at another level through our teens.

Also through this time, more and more, I am beginning to really value time as the precious commodity it is.

No one knows if they shall have another day here. Most of us take so much for granted. Christians and non-Christians. The truth is time on earth is very very short and very precious. Let us not waste another day…As our pastor pointed out, LIVE…LIVE WELL…Max did. Max lived live to the fullest and he taught many of us just this aspect. Max was different and not afraid to stand out and be counted…he was willing to take risk and he loved the Lord.

Max…Although I did not know you well personally, I look forward to getting to know you on the day that I come home to be with the Lord.

Max, You are loved down here by many…as many said, you will be missed dearly.

Here is the story from the Sun Journal Newspaper

Durham teen killed in crash

By Daniel Hartill, Staff Writer

Published: Nov 15, 2009 12:00 am

DURHAM — An 18-year-old college student from Durham is believed to have been killed Friday in a fiery crash.

A combination of speed and driver distraction likely caused Maxwell Allen to swerve on Quaker Meeting House Road, about a half-mile south of Route 136, State Police Trooper Tyler Stevenson said. Allen’s 1999 Dodge Stratus veered into the oncoming lane and swerved back to the right, where it crossed the road and struck a power pole.

The force split that pole and two others.

By the time police reached the scene, shortly after the 8:20 p.m. emergency call, the car was engulfed in flames.  The extraordinary damage to the vehicle left several questions a day later, including the certain identity of the victim, Stevenson said.

“The investigation is leading us to believe (it was) Allen (who) was killed,”  Stevenson said. There were no passengers.

News of the tragedy moved quickly among Allen’s friends, including many teens who belonged to the youth ministry at the Pathway Vineyard Church in Lewiston.

Less than two hours after the crash, youth leader Kyle Gabri was notified.

“It was shocking,” Gabri said. About the same time he was told, leaders from the church reached out to Maxwell’s parents, John and Jill, and his older brother, John Jr.

“As a congregation, we stand 100 percent behind each other,” Gabri said.

By Saturday afternoon, at least 30 teens had gathered at the Foss Road church for a prayer session.

“We wanted to give the teens a chance to mourn and talk,” Gabri said. Reactions ran from hysterical to stoic as the youths dealt with the death of someone they knew.

Maxwell was known as a person who had a dry sense of humor that he shared freely. He even performed a stand-up routine at religious retreats.

“He was very, very funny,” Gabri said. “He was really loving and really honest.”

During the week, he studied media at Southern Maine Community College. On nights and weekends, he was taking on more work for the youth ministry. He often ran sound equipment during youth meetings and had designed a flier for an upcoming Christmas show.

“We were giving him more leadership opportunities,” Gabri said. His hope was to become a leader within the group.

Gabri and the teenagers found solace in their faith, he said.

“We believe that when you die you go to a better place,” he said. “He’s with the Lord at this point.”

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