Friday Night Sit and Soak

We have implemented what we are currently calling Friday Night Sit and Soak.  All it is really is an opportunity for encounter.  We play music from 7 – 9. A person can come and go and they please.  There is music, worship flags, study tables, bean bags, camp chairs, and GOD!  We had been doing this off and on for a number of months just among a few of us, but in December we opened it up to the community.  It is a great chance to set aside time just to be with Him, to love on Him, to worship Him.

I believe worship is the place of encounter.  And one cannot encounter the Living God without something changing.  Worship is the place where my life was changed and transformed.  Oh, I’ve got a bit to work on, but this is where my true growth started and this is where it will continue.  You see worship adjusts our focus to Him and suddenly we are not focusing on ourselves and our stuff.  There is a line in a Jonathan Helser song, God is Love, that says, “Look how small our fears are,  from up here, up here in His heart.  Look how small the enemy is, compared to our God,  compared to His heart.”   We suddenly have a new perspective and when we are side by side with His heart, our hearts begin to beat with His – we begin to hear His heart  - and our heart changes forever.

If you are in our community come join us.  You will never be the same!  If you are out of state or out of country – find a place of encounter.  It can be your home, your car, your church, anywhere.  But the point is to be intentional!   —Katie

Signs of Growth

It is January 21st and we have daffodils popping up! Some of them even have flower buds on them! WOW! I love this Alabama living! More important, there are also signs of new growth in our ministry outreaches!

Our Monday morning, Business Owners  Prayer has attracted two new businessmen. They are both Fort Payne natives and are very excited about what God has done in their businesses. Both have incredible testimonies regarding answered prayer. I am excited because I feel that once we get several ”credible witnesses”  established in this group, it will take off. By credible witnesses I mean someone the community knows and respects.

The other “sign of growth” is on the government front. Chris, Joyce, and I have been regularly attending the Fort Payne City Council meetings. Our purpose in being there is to pray for these men as they conduct the city’s business. In December, Councilman Watson, recognized us publicly, by thanking us for our attendance and expressed his gratitude that we care. This past Tuesday, he and the council President both came and talked with us after the meeting. Councilman Watson, who is a pastor, again thanked us and told us how important it was that we are there because when we come in, we usher in the presence of God. The Council President concurred!

We thank and praise God for these little signs of growth. They are encouragement to us.

Terry

Growing Community

January has become a month of new things as we walk in the new year.  One of these areas is in our Academy.  Last Thursday we had a full house as we began worship with 20 people-a mixture of children and adults.  The children are feeling much more comfortable with each other and with the adults. Chris has been coming to morning worship and he challenges everyone to particpate.  After worship it is fun to watch the children find their own workspace and  begin their work for the day.  We are seeing some of the newer children beginning to take more responsibility for their work. And most excitiing, we are seeing more smiles and hearing more laughter.

God is good and faithful as we wallk out what He has called us to do.  We see this as an opportunity to pour God into the lives of these chidlren and to ” encourage, equip, and empower” them for their future with the Lord.

with a smile in my heart,

Joyce

 

TWO YEARS!

Just the other day was October 20th and I remember that as the date God gave me that we would be moving tow years ago. At first I thought we would move to Alabama when we sold our house, but after the Pattersons were already here I wanted to know when we might move.  So I asked God and into my head dropped the date October 20! We felt that was from God and on October 20, 2009 we arrived in Alabama to make our new home.

Terry and I recently went back to Ohio to visit with friends and family and it was a joyful visit, but I have no regrets about leaving Ohio. In fact, I think we have been surprised how easily and quickly Fort Payne has become home. God is very good!

As I was relating this to Katie yesterday as we shopped and delivered food, she said October 20th also was the date last year when we finished the Mentone home makeover.  Wow, what a lot has happened in these last two years.  God has filled our days with ministry to this community.  He continues to prepare the way, having us make connections that lead us to further ministry.

Most recently, we have felt an explosion of the need of the people here.  Or maybe, it is because we, as a ministry in town, have become more well known, especially as people who help.  This week we  had a new request for a student to join the Academy, someone had their water turned off, someone couldn’t pay an electric bill and another family didn’t have any food.

There needs to be a transformation of our minds to realise that putting pennies in a little plastic loaf of bread in October for world hunger, doesn’t quite meet the need.  Our responsiblilty as God’s people requires more. As God has surely been changing me over these last two years, our minds need to shift into Kingdom mode from a worldly Christian mode. May the Lord open our eyes to see our neighbors, open our hearts to feel their pain, and open our minds to know we are the ones who God has placed here, or wherever you live, to be Jesus to those who need the help and hope of our Savior King.

Blessings to you,    Joyce

God is So Good!

Several weeks ago a couple living up the street from us had told us that they did not have a refridgerator or a stove. They have been in their rental house for six months without either appliance! I told them I would see what I could do.

I put out an email appeal to my business contacts explaining the situation and in less than 24 hours I had a reply from our former realtor. She said that she had a client who had moved to South Carolina and she had a refridgerator to give away. I went up to look at it, it needed some cleaning up but it worked fine . I then made arrangements with Chris to go get it.

On the day that we went to pick up the fridge we happened to stop at a shop to talk and the owner ask what we were up to, so we explained where we were headed. The owners father happened to be sitting in the shop, overheard the conversation and said, “I have a stove that you can have. Let me get it cleaned up and you can have it” This gentleman happens to own and operate the local appliance store! (Do you think this may have been a divine appointment?) So, Chris and I head up the mountain, pick up the fridge, come back home, and clean it up. By the time we are done with that, the stove is ready to be picked up. This is where God is so good - beyond measure - the stove is an exact color match to the fridge!

We delivered the stove and refridgerator and the couple are sooooo happy! The wife told us several days later about her first home cooked meal in over 6 months…fried green tomatos, fried potatos, chicken and dumplings…um, um, good!

An added benefit to the story, the couple came to church on Sunday! Both enjoyed the service and the husband recommitted his life to Christ! YEAH GOD! It is so much fun being in the center of what God is doing!

Terry

 

Father’s Day Part 2

Ok, so while I was jotting down my thoughts about the Ultimate Father, I began to think about how much Chris resembles God’s nature with our children.  So in honor to the wonderful father Chris is – here’s my TOP 10 reasons why Chris is the best father around….

1.  He is a man after God’s heart and God’s Presence.  He is never satisfied with where He is.  He is always pursuing more.  This is contagious in our household.

2.  He provides for our physical needs and with that being said, he is wise about what is a legitimate need and desire.

3.  He provides for our desires as well!

4.  He leads our children down a path I’ve seen few  truely go before us, not giving attention to the status quo, rejecting worldly ideas about what is “good wisdom”  or holds importance.  This path is called the WORD OF GOD.

5.  He sets the example for worshiping the King!  He worships in spirit and in truth.  So my children worship in spirit and in truth – well, learning how to anyway.

6.  He trusts in no man.  He trusts in God alone.  He prays for my children.  He prays for their healing, their salvation, their protection, their destiny.

7.  He believes in them.  He has vision for their future and He speaks that vision to them.  He believes in their destinies and invests into their destinies.

8. He lovingly trains and disciplines them.  He follows God’s heart for each one, never pandering to their childish ways, but keeping the expectation on the standard.  He is neither passive nor aggressive.  He is consistent.

9.  He is raising our boys to gentle men, but not sissys.  He is raising our girls to be sure about who they are, but not “independent”.

10.  He says he’s sorry to them when he’s wrong.  He is humble before them.

Sounds like THE Father to me.  Thank you Chris!  I certainly could NOT do this job without you!    Katie

 

 

Father’s Day Part 1

So we are not ones to really celebrate hallmark holidays – sorry.  However, I have some thoughts to say about this “Father’s Day” 

The Father showed His mighty awesome power to save yesterday.  At church we got to witness 3 salvations and 7 baptisms (another blog on that to come).  That is my Father at work in hearts around us.  One of the baptisms was my son Jonathan.  That is my Father at work in my 9 year olds’ heart.   My Father received our worship to Him.   My Father gave us a word through our pastor.  My Father made Himself known to us all at church.  My Daddy is a GOOD Daddy!  Now that I will celebrate!   Katie

 

THANK YOU!

Thank you to the special friends who sent our family these shoes!  We are thoroughly enjoying them and we will get their full life out of them.  I think these may be the first shoes we’ve ever had that we may grow out of before they fall apart:0)     THANK YOU!    The Pattersons

Kneeling before the glory of God

Yesterday Miss Melinda’s mortality was swallowed up by Life.  For me this is bitter sweet.  She was a very special lady to me.  Melinda was 98 years old. Melinda was one of the first people I began to deliver food to when we moved to Alabama.  She was the seed for what exists today.  When I first met her I was scared to be honest.  I had never really related to old people on any level other than my relatives.  I didn’t know what to say.  I didn’t know how to love her past her inablilites as an old person.  I didn’t know how to help her physically without stripping her of her dignity.  Sometimes I didn’t even know how to communicate with her.

     But she taught me how to do these things with the wisdom and strength from having lived for nearly a century.  She was the one who helped me.  I think she knew I needed the help.  As I think about her I am reminded of a book I read very recently.  In this book two monks are conversing but the main one was expressing how we are made in the image of God and we have God dwelling in us, so when we kneel to fasten someones sandals for them, or rub their swollen feet, or bathe them, we are kneeling before the glory of God.  How true!  We, as humans, are the glory of God revealed.  We are how He chose to express himself and His glory into His creation.  As I spent time helping Miss Melinda (and as she spent time helping me)  I was kneeling before the glory of God!    —Katie

 

Kingdom Incubator

You know how when you know something is going to happen – you know it is inevitable – but you don’t know what its going to look like or how it will play out – you know how you daydream about it?  Well, I do.  I kindof play out what I think it might look like or what might happen.  I don’t know if that is healthy or not.  If not – pray for me!

Well, it played out in reality last night.  We had our Wed. evening prayer service IN OUR OWN BUILDING!  We are renting, but for now, it is LivingStone Ministry home.  A little front office/entry area, a bathroom, a nice size carpeted room for services and school, and a really nice sized storage area – it’s amazing how many times I thought about what it will look like.  Will it finally feel like we’re not just playing church anymore in our living room? (yes Denise – I get it!) 

To be honest – it was cool, but not alot was different.  The people are the same, the music is the same, the fellowship is the same, the Spirit is the same, the presence of God is the same…(only now we have carpet when we kneel or lay on the ground).  It is home.  It is LivingStone Ministries.  It is truly not about the building.  We now have the room to grow some more.  Rodney calls what we are renting a business incubator.  So we are calling it our Kingdom incubator.  We are nurturing and growing a Kingdom culture with which the gates of hell cannot withstand, the spirit of religion will bow  its knee to, complacency and contentment will flee, strife and competition between the churches will at last trade for unity and partnering – we’re on our way. 

We are exicted!  Pray for us!  Rejoice with us!  You are our friends and family!   —Katie