Be The Church

We had a great time last night hosting our Staff, Elders, and their spouses at our home for our first annual Christmas party! We had close to 40 people crammed in our home. It was awesome…I felt like a proud parent watching them interact and laugh together. This year has really brought us closer together as a team. Our Staff is amazing and I am honored to serve with Godly and dedicated Elders. These people are my spiritual family and some of the best friends I have in the world. Michelle worked herself crazy trying to keep up with the food and making sure everything ran smoothly. I couldn’t help but think what a great “first lady” she has become for Fellowship. Our church is a better place because of her and her special spirit. No one loves Fellowship more than Michelle.

What made me most proud yesterday were the people of Fellowship being the church to the community. Two of our Life Groups, Common Ground (Young Singles) and Men of I.C.E., blessed the Camden community with over 250 Christmas gifts and even more food baskets. They partnered with Pastor Keith Davis and the Evangelism Today Christian Church. ETCC is an inner city church that is doing some amazing things to reach people with the good news of Jesus Christ. We were blessed to have Pastor Keith and his wife Linda at our home last night to meet our Staff and Elders. I’ll tell you more about them soon.
Here is the cool thing, the God-thing, about yesterday. Our vision for our Life Groups is to be entrepreneurial. They are equipped to reach out and care for those in their groups and also team up to make a difference in our community. This drive for Camden was totally Life Group driven. Our Staff or Leadership had nothing to do with it. Thanks to great leadership from Brian and Kathleen Hasson and Lee White, Fellowship made a difference yesterday in the Christmas season for hundreds of needy families in our back yard. Not Russia, Moldova, Panama, or China, but just about 30 minutes from our church campus. Can I get a witness here! This pumps me up!

I hope you will be praying about what you can do to help us help others this year by giving generously to our Christmas offering. We are taking it today. You will still be able to give to it until the end of the year. Giving on-line is a great way to give or you can drop your gift in the offering today or at one of our services next weekend. Be sure to designate on your check “Christmas Offering.” Our kids at Fellowship have already raised over $300. This offering is not for our church, but for others outside the walls of Fellowship. We will be able to help our missionaries, and children in Russia, Moldova, and Camden. Last year we sponsored over 300 children in Russia! Please pray about what God would have you do. You don’t have to be part of Fellowship to contribute and all your gifts are tax deductible. Live to Give and Give to Live.