Every day with Jesus is sweeter than the day before!  Sunday's anniversary service and fellowship picnic was just awesome.  We really enjoyed the day.  The best part was being able to sit and fellowship with each other -- and enjoy the family.  I see God at work in our fellowship, knitting the hearts of believers together with His love.  I also see Him at work in our families.  He is pouring out blessings on each and every one!  Many have testimonies of new jobs with better pay, homes sold and new homes purchased, favor on their jobs, favor in the marketplace -- prayers answered concerning friends and family members.  God is showing Himself STRONG on our behalf.  We expect our people to be some of the most happy, healthy, wealthy, wise, peaceful and LOVING people on the planet!  Because the Word of God is alive -- His Words are Spirit and they are LIFE to us -- and as we give place to the Word, seeking first the Kingdom of God, ALL these things are being added to us!  How wonderful it is to be a part of the household of God.  We are so blessed!  Pictures of the picnic are under Upcoming Events -- we had a blast!

Wow -- fall is definitely in the air in Brevard NC!  The trees are already beginning to turn, and the nights have been cool -- in the fifties!  This is one of my favorite times of the year.  We couldn't have had a better day than yesterday for water baptism in the river.  The water was a little chilly, but for those of us on the shore, witnessing these expressions of faith, the weather was perfect!  Check out the pictures and videos under RECEIVE JESUS.  Isn't techology just great!?!  The whole WORLD can witness as these adults and children gave an outward witness of what God accomplished in them.  New creations in Christ Jesus!  Hallelujah!

We're looking forward to an awesome baptism service tomorrow after church -- we plan to baptize two adults and four children -- maybe more!  The weather is absolutely beautiful today and is forecast to be clear skies in the 80's tomorrow - perfect for a river baptism!  Also, the Lord has a special message for you  tomorrow morning - you don't want to miss it!  How GREAT is our God!  

If you are going to be baptized, remember to bring a change of clothes for the river, some "creek shoes" and a towel.  If you aren't planning to be baptized, we hope you will make it a point to join us on the French Broad River to witness as these members of the Body of Christ are raised up to newness of life.  Looking forward to seeing YOU there!
 

During our time away this past week, we have been able to spend time in prayer together, seeking the Lord.  Sometimes, when we finally get quiet, He is able to speak to us, answering questions, imparting direction and fresh vision.  We began to think about the children who have been attending Spoken Word Church.  They are  precious, eager, hungry, and like sponges!  As we have been able to impart the Word of God to them, just like the adults, when you squeeze them, the Word comes out!  Praise God!  It is exciting.  Just recently we had a seven year old girl receive Jesus as Lord of her life.  She had never been to church before.  Does that amaze you?  It did us.  But the Lord revealed something to us this week we had not considered before.  Being children of the 50's -- we attended public schools before God was expelled.  Although I didn't grow up going to church, I learned the 23rd Psalm, the Lord's Prayer, and other Bible verses at school.  We always said grace at school before we ate lunch.  I grew up believing the Bible, knowing to pray to God, my Helper, and expecting Him to answer -- all from public school.  Children today have parents who didn't get that at school, and they aren't getting it either.  So if their parents don't know God, and they aren't being taught about God, how will they know?  I was reminded of two half-brothers who came to Children's Church a few years ago -- they lived with their mother, their fathers were long gone.  She didn't teach them about Jesus, and they didn't learn about Him at school.  When they came to us, neither of them knew who Adam and Eve were.  They didn't know about Jesus, His loving sacrifice on their behalf, or the freedom they could enjoy by making Him Lord of their lives.  Praise God, we were excited to share the truth with them, and they both were born again!  We realized this week just how important it is for the body of Christ to reach the children and youth.  If we don't reach out and apprehend them for the Kingdom of God, the enemy will quickly snare them, maybe for eternity.  So we have renewed our commitment to reach children.  During September, we will be renovating the small office space next to our church sanctuary to house our new and expanded children's ministry.  We are expanding our tents, strengthening our stakes and lengthening our cords.  We expect our children's ministry to increase as we add a 3-5 year old class and puppet ministry.  We will do whatever it takes to make sure children in our area know God and become all He created them to be --

Our recent trip to Pigeon Forge TN for the RMAI Southeastern Regional Meeting was awesome.  We were so encouraged and blessed by the word of the Lord Brother Tony Cooke shared with us during our meetings.  Our stay at the Inn at Christmas Place was wonderful -- the outings and food were the best.  But above all, we SO ENJOYED having the time to really get to know some of the pastors and ministers from our region.  In just a few short days we built relationships that felt like we had been friends for years!  Upon returning home, we pulled up some of their websites and we see how much we share in common in our vision and direction.  We are honored to be counted among those who have already spent many years developing ministries of excellence.  We look forward to growing these new friendships--next year's retreat is already on the calendar!