Our latest "Church Plant"

Greetings!  I'm so excited to write to you and inform you about all that the Lord is doing in our midst in upstate NY.  I'm experiencing God in new ways and we're seeing his love having it's effect on peoples lives.  There are so many testimonies of lives being changed and God is meeting the needs of many in our region.

Meet Michelle!  Michelle is my cousin, whom I love dearly.  I'll never forget the day we moved back to upstate NY and I ran into Michelle.  We immediately embraced one another and many tears were shed.  Michelle has always had a huge heart, but through many circumstances found herself broken and hurting.

I'll never forget one of the first things she told me when we reunited.  She said, "I've prayed and prayed that God would bring you here."  Well, here I was standing before her, now a resident in upstate NY.  Could God have heard her prayers?  Could he have answered her, as she cried out to him?  Does he really care?  Yes, he really does!  He loves us so much, he loves to restore us, he loves to rescue us and he loves to use us for his glory.



It was July 13, 2013 and it was the first of many outreaches the Lord has planted in my heart.  It was "Power in the Park," a free community cookout in the local park where we gave away free food, had live music and I preached the gospel!  Michelle was one of the people who responded to God's call that night.  I prayed with her and she surrendered her life to the King of Heaven that night.  From that night on, she has not been the same.  She's abandoned her former life of alcohol and drug use and has been clean for many months. I've seen her change before my eyes.  God is restoring every part of her life!  Not only is he restoring her life, he's now using her to restore the lives of others.

Fast forward.....

It's now the middle of December and a couple of weeks ago, I received a phone call from Michelle.  She said, "I was praying and I feel like the Lord is calling me to take care of single moms and help them feed their babies."  She said, "I started crying immediately and felt the Presence of God with me as He spoke."  Knowing that voice myself and having similar experiences when the Lord calls me to something, I knew that God was working in Michelle's heart and indeed was inviting her to join him in the great commission and in the ministry of reconciliation.  Wisely, Michelle didn't act right away, but rather she prayed and she continued to seek the Lord regarding this.  I knew about it and told her I believed that God would use her in this way.

Now, let me introduce you to another friend - Ronnie.  Ronnie has been faithful to deliver toilet paper and paper towels to The Village House of Prayer, often.  This has been a huge blessing, because it's one of those things that I don't always think of, so it was cool that God was prompting Ronnie to bring those couple of things.  I am very grateful for Ronnie and how he listens to the Lord.

Well, Ronnie walked in this week, but this week he didn't have his normal paper towels and toilet paper.  He had 3 or 4 larger bags, but I couldn't tell what was in the bags.  I said jokingly with a grin, "That's a lot of toilet paper, Ronnie!"  He chuckled quietly.  He said, "I'm not sure why, but the Lord wanted me to bring this to you today."  As I walked towards him, he opened the bags wide and in the bags were diapers, baby bottles, and several baby clothes.  He gave us over 100 diapers, two boxes of infant formula bottles and the clothes.  I immediately thought of Michelle.

I called Michelle immediately and told her the news.  She just started crying and laughing all at the same time.  It was a holy moment!  Michelle came up and picked up the items a few hours later.  She is excited about gathering all the different sized diapers and making them nice for the ladies who will receive them.  Michelle was obedient to God's voice and now he is using her to accomplish his purposes.  Now, she is "A Church Without Walls"

Be blessed and be a blessing!

Jimmy - I am "A Church Without Walls"