“I must pray and change things!”  Judge Ilona Holmes rallied us to our feet as we celebrated with loud, heartfelt applause. Only the Judge could make us laugh and let down our hair—we will never again think about a pole in the same way!  Plus, her teaching encouraged us to have a stronger commitment!  She spoke to us about being strong, faithful, women of Impact—women who do not look back but always move forward with a clear sense of purpose. She gave us nuggets of truth, and precious guidance to help us to really love God and to be what God has called us to be.  AND, how to handle haters along the way!  Monday night the Judge christened us as Women of Impact!

Check out the link to the poem she read and the passage she taught from—you’ll enjoy coming back to this good soul food! 

What did you learn about being God’s Woman of Impact, and how did you use your purple gift bag to Pass It On? I’m interested to hear the nuggets and guidance you gained from our time with the Judge.  Please feel free to comment below!

Love,

Pastor Shyrl

Click Here for Poem & Scripture Text

We are only 3 days into this 21 days of Prayer and Fasting and the first thing I have to say is Wow!  There is an excitement and anticipation that is very hard to explain as we have started this time of fasting, prayer and seeking God.  I think for me the thing that is so different about this "fast" is that I have gone into it with a very clear purpose in mind.  I took some time to write down the things that I am believing God for over the next 21 days and this year. 

If you are looking for direction or just want answers from God about his will and direction for you and your family, I would encourage you to spend some time and write out what you are believing for.  Then each day after you read the devotions and scriptures, go to God in prayer about what you are seeking him for.

I know He is going to do awesome things in the lives of families!  I can't wait to hear about.

If you would like to participate in "Awakening, 21 days of Prayer and Fasting" you can click on the link below and read about it and sign up for the daily devotions.

Eric

Eric

Eric

 Eric

Praying in the Holy Spirit

Well, Easter 2009 came and went.......and we are still standing!

The services on Sunday were a great success as always!  I wanted to personally thank everyone who helped make it happen.  Family Christian Center has the best volunteers in the world.  From the setup and breakdown crew, to the users and greeters, and everyone in between.  I Thank You.

I wanted to share the video of the "Paid in Full" drama with you.  The cast did an awesome job and many lives were changed because of their faithfulness.

Click Here for the Video

See you all next Sunday!

Eric

Last week, I felt like I needed to study the word “wisdom”.  As I began studying “wisdom” in the Bible, I realized that all of the scriptures I was finding are vital for the body of Christ.  Then, I looked a little closer and saw some great truths for women in particular.  In fact, I started thinking about W.O.W:  Women of Wisdom.  The Bible is very clear when talking about women and the characteristics they should possess.  One of the most important is wisdom.

If you have never read Proverbs chapter 31.  I strongly encourage you to do so.  The entire chapter is dedicated to describing the Virtuous Woman.  My Women of Wisdom study actually began in this chapter, in verse 26.

**Recently, I have been studying in the Amplified Bible because I like extra description!  All of the scriptures listed are out of the Amplified translation.**

Proverbs 31:26

“She opens her mouth in skillful and godly Wisdom, and on her tongue is the law of kindness [giving counsel and instruction].”

So how do we begin to have wisdom so that we can open our mouths and Godly wisdom will be available?

Psalm 111:10

“The reverent fear and worship of the Lord is the beginning of Wisdom and skill [the preceding and the first essential, the prerequisite and the alphabet]; a good understanding, wisdom, and meaning have all those who do [the will of the Lord]. Their praise of Him endures forever.”

So, we must first have “reverent fear and worship of the Lord”, because that is the beginning and the “first essential” of wisdom.  Also, “good understanding, wisdom and meaning” belong to those who do the will of the Lord.  Do you want understanding and meaning in your life?  Seek out and do the will of the Lord! 

James 1:5

“If any of you is deficient in wisdom, let him ask of the giving God [Who gives] to everyone liberally and ungrudgingly, without reproaching or faultfinding, and it will be given him.”

I love that James 1:5 says that all I have to do is ask God for wisdom and He will give it to me liberally!  That’s not hard!  God wants us blessed in ALL things, including wisdom!! 

So, if we are seeking true Godly wisdom, we need to know what it looks like.  The following is my favorite scripture in this study!!  I encourage you to meditate on this scripture in particular.

James 3:17

“But the wisdom from above is first of all pure (undefiled); then it is peace-loving, courteous (considerate, gentle). [It is willing to] yield to reason, full of compassion and good fruits; it is wholehearted and straightforward, impartial and unfeigned (free from doubts, wavering, and insincerity).”

If we are speaking and acting in Godly wisdom, our actions and words should be full of “good fruits”.  Many times, we want to give our wisdom to others, but instead of building up and speaking with gentleness, we begin to nag.  That is not Godly wisdom.  According to the above scripture, God’s wisdom is full of love, and it is pure.  That means that wisdom should not be our opinion or our judgement - it should be of God, because He is the only pure One.  

This leads us women back to Proverbs 31.

Proverbs 31:11 & 12

“The heart of her husband trusts in her confidently and relies on and believes in her securely, so that he has no lack of [honest] gain or need of [dishonest] spoil.  She comforts, encourages, and does him only good as long as there is life within her.”

Doesn’t that sound like James 3:17?  Proverbs 31:12 tells us exactly how to treat our husbands, but it also sounds like a great way to treat everyone else -  including our children!  So, if we are following God’s Will for our lives (Psalm 111:10) and we are seeking God for His pure wisdom (James 1:5), we will be bearing wonderful fruits!  We will comfort, encourage, love, yield to reason, tell the truth, do only good and walk in purity!

Are you ready to see it all come together now?  As W.O.W., we will be praised...

Proverbs 31:30

“Charm and grace are deceptive, and beauty is vain [because it is not lasting], but a woman who reverently and worshipfully fears the Lord, she shall be praised!”

Psalm 111:10 says that the “reverent fear and worship of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom”.  Are you seeing what I am seeing?  If we are seeking God, we will be Women Of Wisdom.  We are called to a life of Godly wisdom, but we must choose to walk in what God has for us!

So, seek God and become a Woman Of Wisdom!  W.O.W!!

Pastor Leah Thomas

I am super excited about the revamping of our IGNITE Youth ministry.  As Leah transitions into the running of our Kingdom Kids children’s ministry, Eric & I have been presented with the awesome opportunity to focus on the youth of Family Christian Center.   

As a teen, I can remember what a BIG part my church’s youth group played in encouraging and strengthening my daily walk with the Lord. I can still vividly remember my zany youth pastor, “Brother Eddie,” doing everything he could to not only get, but also keep our attention on the things of God. He did everything from riding a motorcycle into the youth room to driving a bus with no hands (don’t even ask!).  While I am sure we will be experiencing all kinds of creative outlets in the new youth services, I can promise you I will never drive a bus full of your kids with no hands!   What I can promise you is that your teen will come away with a fresh understanding of who God is and how much He cares and loves for each one of us.

The focus of these monthly services will be a simple one…to get our youth on FIRE for God so they will spread His LOVE throughout their schools and communities.  As a way to help prepare both you and your teen for these services, I want to share with you what our vision is for the teens of Family Christian Center.  Through much time and prayer, God has laid upon our hearts this simple, yet powerful vision.  This vision will be shared and rehearsed with your teens starting the first week of our services.

While each service will be unique and inviting, we will focus on presenting intimate worship, fast-paced, practical application of the Word, and fellowship with other teens.                                                            

As April 5th is fast approaching, please keep our teens and these services in prayer. If you are a teen, please pray that when you come to IGNITE, you come with an open-heart and an open-mind to receive all God has for you during these special services devoted just to you!

Looking forward to seeing you on the 5th!

Pastor Angie Thomas, IGNITE Youth Ministries

ignite@familychristcenter.com

Either way I hope to see you soon.

Eric

We had a Great Super L.I.F.E. Sunday...

Be sure to Post your thoughts!

 Hey Ya’ll, 

 “We will, we will rock you…We will, we will rock you…”

The familiar words and stomping of the feet in the commercial stole my attention from the task at hand. It was my first time hearing the new Walmart advertisement pitching snacks for the upcoming football playoffs. Memories flooded back of high school and college pep rallies and feelings of being powerfully pumped and happily waving banners as we cheered for power and success—just what Walmart wanted instilled in my mind.

Near the end of service today, snatches of this song came back to me as I looked out at your faces. The Real Giving Stimulus Package had been placed in your hands. I stood up to watch you, saying to myself, “I’ve got to see their faces! Scott even did impressions of me at lunch about how excited I was to watch your response. The look of shock and awe was a powerful visual. Realization of what God was doing was shinning on your faces and I said to myself, “God, You’ve really rocked them!” 

I heard it in your voices as you exited the service.  “Wow, I’ve never been to a church that just gave away money like this!”  Even your “Happy New Year” salutations seemed brighter and happier. You were amazed and you were rocked! 

I love that look of awe and victory.  I believe you left our church today to go out into the world and demonstrate the fervor of the familiar words “…waving our banners all over the place!”  Our church family captured God’s plan, and God will use each one of us to bring His Real Love to this world.  What you experience this morning was from God—established in His anointing—His Banners are lifted high to give Him all the Glory.  It was an awesome sight that will move us forward in His Victory for Family Christian Center!  

I know in my heart that God has placed the $10,000 in good hands—in your hands—and it will bear awesome harvest in the lives of many who are desperate for Him.  I will be cheering you on in the month to come. 

Go Team! Wave the banner of God’s Real Love.  You’ve got the necessary gifts, and you’re fired up with His Real Giving Stimulus Package.  

Church, go out there and rock them!  

Love ya’ll,

Pastor Shyrl

You can go to it here: (The REAL Love Story)

When I presented the idea of an old fashion"pass the plate offering" everyone gave me a very confusing look. Then, when I said this was going to be an offering that would be given out to everyone they seemed even more confused!  After a few moments and much explaining, the concept began to sink in.  To me everyone's reaction was strong but mixed.  Some people were crying, some laughing,and some sat frozen (maybe they still didn't get it :) while others were overjoyed.

Whatever the case may be, I can't wait to hear the Stories that come from everyone as we get out and share the gifts of REAL Love.

I would love to hear what you thought about today's service.

Feel free to leave a comment or share your story of giving here.    (The REAL Love Story)

Talk to you soon,

Eric

This keeps ringing in my ears, so I wanted to share it with you on our new website. I trust our Father to bring it to pass! I believe God has ordained it for your family and mine and for our church. Isn't God good?

Also, God keeps reminding me that we are not exempt from the work that is required, as all this will be accomplished through the power of God working in each one of us.  Yet, I am reminded that as we labor and pray in faith we will experience the fulfillment of God's promises and plans. I must also tell you that it will not be small--God has big plans.  He is our great and mighty God, and 2009 is our year of BIG FAITH. 

All my love,