"Jesus declared that the least amount of faith that he could give was greater and mightier than the largest amount of the power of the devil."

This past Sunday during ministry time a dear man who was visiting the service from work release was sharing his heart with the person who was praying for him. He shared that he was to appear before the judge in a couple of days for a hearing. He was very concerned as he had been separated by incarceration from his wife and children. A word came forth that "Someone unplanned would appear to speak on his behalf and God was going to use that to help him". Fast forward....three days later after the Wednesday service, the man shared the following: "I was sitting in court and I was just waiting to see who would come and stand before me and speak to the judge because God said He was going to do it. As I sat there, someone tapped me on the back. I looked around and it was my boss. He said to follow him. I walked out into the hall. He introduced me to an attorney that he had done a job for. The attorney asked me a couple of questions and then told me to follow him. We walked into the court and straight up to the judge. In a few minutes, the judge stated that my case was being given another chance. I was given three months to make financial restitution for what I had done and then I would appear again. I am now able to be with my family. God did what He said He would do." It was a moving experience to hear this man share how he really took to heart what had been prophesied over him and then he saw it come to pass. Let's pray for him to walk out this opportunity that has been provided for him. Praise the Lord!

I feel led to share a message Sunday that focuses on the core values we desire to see fully embraced by our church family to enable us to see the culture of Christ more deeply established in all we think, speak, and do. This is so vital and important for us as we move forward. Also realize that these are the same values that I believe can help us to have stronger families, marriages, businesses.....stronger lives. Please come expecting and bring a friend.

Mikki is scheduled to minister this coming Wednesday night. I am excited about her sharing as she always has a word that ministers to the hearts of people. Being a professional counselor for the past two years and in pastoral ministry for the past 29 years, she is uniquely equipped by the Holy Spirit to help people. Please be in prayer for her and for the Holy Spirit to bring healing to hearts as we gather together. Our mid-week gathering with our ARK family begins at 6:30 p.m.

In the coming weeks you will be hearing more and more about Life Groups at Grace House. We have several groups that are currently meeting, but we are stepping into 2013 with an intention of helping each of you to become more connected with God and others. We are happy to announce that Hillard and Charlotte Matthews will be helping us provide leadership and encouragement to those who lead our Life Groups. They have a lot of experience in small group ministry and certainly have a heart to help people connect and grow more deeply in the life of Christ. We desire to see new groups forming and new leaders emerging to lead them. Maybe it is on your heart to lead a group. We will share more details soon so stayed tuned....

Our own Carol England recently went on a mission trip to the Philippines. We all rejoiced in what she shared this past Sunday during the testimony time. Following is another powerful testimony of what she saw and experienced as she was there. I encourage us all to press into opportunities to server God through missions.

Franie Deaton, our Children's Minister, is helping coordinate a project for Angel Tree during this Christmas season. All gifts and donations for this project must be to Franie by TOMORROW, Saturday, December 8. You can contact Franie at 256-762-6923.

Our food Give-Away will be held one week from tomorrow on Saturday, December 15th. We ask that those who can help pack the boxes meet at the church at 9 a.m. The Give-Away will be at 10:00 a.m. The list, as we have it now, will provide food for almost 100 people. We are grateful to Larry and Wilma Bullard who is overseeing this important ministry. If you have names of those in our fellowship (ARK and Grace House) who need help in this way, please get them to us no later than this Sunday.

Our service schedule will remain the same on Sundays, but we will not be meeting on the following two Wednesday nights.

During part of our Sunday morning service on December 16th, our children will be sharing a special Christmas presentation with us. This is always such a blessing to see children working together to remind us of the wonders of the Christmas message. Remember to invite your friends to come and be blessed. 

Well the portable baptistry is working. It has been tested.....and.....no leaks. We look forward to our first baptism in our own facility. Please let us know if you desire to be baptized. 

We are very excited about the forthcoming School of Power and Love which will be hosted by The ARK and Grace House. Last year so many of us were deeply impacted by the incredible love, power, and anointing of being at this conference. I hope many of you will register and attend. It is life changing. No pressure, just receiving and being activated to do what Jesus did. Please take a moment and check out the details on The ARK's website. Link is below:

We have spent some time overhauling our website lately. If you have not checked it out, please do so. We have tried to simplify it. One new feature is the option to click on the Latest News image on the home page and be carried to an archive of all my weekly Pastor's Updates including the most recent. So you will always just be a click away from the latest news at Grace House.

We will be joining with The ARK during the entire month of January for a time of focused worship and prayer. Each day in January from 3 p.m. until 3 a.m. there will be worship and prayer going on in the worship center at Grace House. The ARK has hosted this the last few years for the month of January and it has always been a great time of seeing the body come together seeking God's heart. Everyone is invited to come and go as you please. There will be people scheduled to be present in these times as well. So there will be 12 hours of prayer each day of the entire month.

For over 4 years now, we have been meeting as a group of men to connect more deeply with God and each other. I invite any of you men to join us any Tuesday morning. We meet at Grace House at 6:30 a.m. This is a very informal, interactive, and open time around God's Word. I always enjoy leading this group. Come and join us. Contact me with any of your questions about this group.

Each Wednesday, beginning at 9 a.m., we have a faithful group of people who meet and pray. This is a time of intercession. prophetic decreeing, and engaging God's heart through prayer and worship. You are invited to join with the ladies who lead this time of prayer for our congregations, city, region, nation, and the nations. Contact Charlotte Matthews for more information.

We have an excited married couples class that meets each Wednesday night at 6:30 p.m. in the Grace House Children's Center. Bryan and Melissa Gregg lead this group and there is rich fellowship, an interactive style of Bible study, and an atmosphere of love and acceptance. If you are a 20 to early 40 something couple, jump on board and see your marriage enriched! Contact Bryan and Melissa if you have questions.

We are so excited about "Rooted" which is our ministry to preteens led by Allison Fisher. They are currently working on a human video which they will be sharing in one of our services soon. Each Wednesday they meet to study the Bible together and learn how to live a life rooted in Christ during this important transitional time in their lives. Our preteens are awesome.  All preteens are invited to attend this weekly gathering to build relationship with Christ and one another. Contact Allison Fisher with your questions.

Franie Deaton, who directs our children's ministry, does a great job of teaching our children truths that will help them build their lives on Christ and the truths of His Word. Each week's lesson is packed with object lessons, biblical truths, and lots of interactive fun. Our children begin the service with we adults at 9:00 a.m. and then transition to their own children's worship around 9:45 a.m. or so. See Franie if you have questions and to let her know if you would like to be one of her assistants occasionally. We also can use good helpers.

We have some awesome little ones in our nursery. Jesus instructs us to love these little ones and to create an environment where they are coming to him. Anna Laura Lawrence leads our nursery team. Please let her know if you would like to help with this important ministry at Grace House.

Our worship team does an awesome job leading us in worship week by week. If you have gifts and abilities in this area, and have been faithful in attending Grace House for a while, and are willing to meet with someone to help access your skill level, or if just would like to know more about our worship team, contact our Worship Pastor, Andrew Lawrence, and he will be glad to help you.

If you have a heart for missions, whether it is to go on a mission trip or to support those who are willing to go, stayed tuned for announcements about upcoming mission opportunities here at Grace House. Eighteen of us saw God do tremendous things in our lives and the people in Trinidad on our last mission trip. We are planning now for a possible trip to Carriacou this coming Spring. Sam Lerch is our point person for our missions trips, so contact Sam for more information.

Food is a staple for all our lives and some people have needs in this area, especially in these economically challenging times. We desire to help more and more people inside and outside of our congregation in this area. Larry Bullard is our point person in helping with this important ministry. We are building a list now of those who need help as well as those who would like to help in this area.

Jessica Clayton, a member of The Ark, is beginning a Wrapped in Love ministry. She will head up a small group to make easy 2-step blankets. She will teach a class at Grace House/The Ark on how to make these easy projects. Some of the blankets will be given to a new shelter in Sheffield called Heavenly Grace. The Huntsville police have also asked for us to donate for their domestic violence cases and rape victims that they often find unclothed. We will be a part of providing blankets for them to offer these women as cover when they go into these situations. Jessica said that we could help in three ways: monetary gifts, hands on making of the blankets, and actual donations of the fleece material for the blankets. If you'd like to be a part of this ministry, let me know or let Jessica know.