Inviting and Serving
Our mission at GFC is to be a church of the community, on the move in the community, until we reach all the community for Christ.
What are members of GFC doing to accomplish our mission? Here are several examples of two things:
INVITING:
Pastor Dan’s wife, Beth, one of the leaders of Grace for Moms shares, “Grace for Moms has focused on being a welcoming place for moms in all walks of life.” Using a video-based discussion series, they talk about the difficulties of teaching family values to their children. The series offers ‘mom’ insights and real-life circumstances, while stressing that strength and help come from the Bible. The women who meet at Grace For Moms have conversations and build relationships around the table, giving the greatest opportunity for sharing practical ways on how God loves them, provides for them, leads and guides them as moms. Beth says, “The gospel may not be spoken each time we meet, but the hands and feet of Jesus can be experienced in a tangible way at each gathering.”
One church member and Grace for Moms leader expressed that community can sometimes be hard to come by. She said that Grace for Moms has had an impact on her sense of community and motherhood journey.
All the women are able to invite other women to attend Grace for Moms, and because of such invitations, more than six new moms have joined this year.
One of our Axios Youth group members felt led to invite neighbors and classmates to youth group. He said, “I want everyone to feel welcome and want others to know about Jesus. Because of his invitations, one young man and his brother attended a youth group meeting and liked it so much that they have now been attending for two years! Why do they keep coming back week after week? “It’s great,” one said, and the other said, “It’s awesome to come and worship the Lord with friends.”
One adult member of GFC invites guests, and some of those she has invited have found GFC very welcoming. Several have attended Sunday school or Wednesday night prayer meeting, participated in a ministry, and have become GFC members.
SERVING:
Quite a few of our members have become involved in City Gate, a local ministry to the homeless. This ministry has become important to one GFC couple, in particular. The man has been involved in City Gate for a few years. Then his wife signed up to provide a meal once a month to serve about 25 men and women. Then this woman, and different groups from GFC, became involved in serving the free lunch three times a year. This woman’s favorite Saturday lunch was “when we provided coats, hats, scarves, and other items to those in need. The people were so thankful.”
This year, this same woman helped serve Thanksgiving turkey dinners to 1,000 people. She said, “It was my best Thanksgiving ever!” She added, “I’m just a volunteer. This is my gift — to serve. I’m thankful that I am able to do this and, hopefully, impact the life of someone in need.”
One of the young families at GFC has felt the call of the Lord to serve in Stockton-On-Tees. They said, “What really pulled on our hearts, while we were there, was the negative outlook that people have regarding teenage boys and the issue of teen pregnancy.”
Many young boys are being raised in broken homes and don’t have a father figure. Some join area gangs. The husband and father of this young couple shared that he grew up around this mentality. He also said that raising a son himself, made his heart go out to these boys. He hopes to coach an after-school soccer club or other sport to have the opportunity to mentor vulnerable boys. His goal is to show the love of Christ, to show them that their lives have a purpose, and that there is a Father who cares for them.
Teenage pregnancy is also common there. The wife, of the above mentioned family, said her heart went out to these girls. She said, “I support them having children, but desire they have children in the guidelines of God’s Word. I want them to see themselves as having worth in God’s eyes, not just society’s eyes by fitting in — having babies as teenagers. She hopes to join a moms-and-tots group to share how God designed us or start a women’s ministry where young women and moms can realize their worth and come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.