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It’s is absolutely amazing for me to be a part of God’s great hand at work in and through the ministry of New Vision Church. It is so encouraging to see the life and energy of the people within our ministry.

Just a quick report and praise! Our Honduras mission team consisted of 16 people – 6 adults and 10 middle and high school students who served in the city of Siguatepeque for 7 days doing a student camp. Our team led the music, all of which they learned in Spanish. They organized dramas in Spanish as well. I had the privilege of speaking everyday at camp and organizing all of the wacky games and fun time. We had such a GREAT week and lives were changed for the kingdom of God in our group as well as the students from Siguatepeque. Here is a quote from their pastor, Will about the experience of camp from his group: “We had a great service. I asked the youth to share testimonies and they were amazing. I found out a lot that went on with them that I did not know. For example, Deyvis was going to go home after the first day because he had a bad tooth. But in his morning shower he prayed that if it was God’s will for him to stay that He would take the pain away. Deyvis says that he was instantly healed! Wow. There were many other things shared as well. Our worship was freer and deeper than ever before. I am just in awe of all that God has done with these young people over the course of one week.” Thank you for your prayers and support for our Honduras mission team.

Not only in Honduras but we had a team of 6 from our ministry serving for 4 days at the Atlanta FEST event at Stone Mountain Park the week of June 16th through 19th. They were working behind the scenes assisting in every way possible and wherever they were needed. I want to say, “THANK YOU” for the willing spirit and serving heart of this team.

Not only in Honduras and at Stone Mountain but we have a team of 11 serving this week, June 23rd through 27th in Villa Rica, GA for “River of Life” . For these 5 days our students and adults will be doing repairs on people’s home, doing yard work, painting and doing whatever needs to be done to impact the lives of those in the community. They will be joined by 100 other students from all over for this week. Robbie and the guys from House of Thomas will be leading the music for worship every night of the week. Remember to pray for our students and adults and let’s thank God for another opportunity to serve and bless the lives of others here at home and around the world!!!

This weekend, I will be leaving Saturday for my vacation.  Thank you for allowing me the time to get away and enjoy some relaxing time with my family. You will NOT miss a beat as far as the worship experience is concerned. Dr. Len Turner will be with us again. Len was with us about this time last year and what a tremendous blessing he was. You will not want to miss worship this weekend with Len. Len’s ministry is being used of God all over the world and we at New Vision want to be a blessing to his ministry. So, this weekend, you will be asked to give a love offering above and beyond your regular offering so that we can support Len’s ministry and be a blessing to his work everywhere God continues to open the doors for him.

Remember, that the weekend of July 3rd and 4th we will have  a special time to celebrate God’s blessings to us as a great nation and I will begin a new series entitled, “Are We There Yet?” With all that’s going on within our own Nation and around the world, are we seeing the end of times coming closer? Are we as some have said within the media, “At Biblical Proportions”? We will look closer at Biblical Prophecy and what Jesus teaches us about those days. Pray for me as I prepare for this new series and make sure you do all you can to attend. Remember our summer schedule has been adjusted – Saturday is still @ 6:30 PM and now Sunday is only @ 10 AM.

I’m am so grateful at the servant spirit and giving heart in whatever way possible of so many of you who make up the family we call New Vision. Our food closet is overflowing and you still continue to bring in more food. We are already distributing food to those in need. If you are one of those, or you know someone who is, give Denise a call in the office and we’ll make sure we do all we can to meet that specific need.

Mark your calendar for our next Friday night Fuel, our monthly prayer night here at New Vision. It will be Friday, July 2nd beginning @ 7 PM. I want to thank Jada for coordinating this event every month. 

I’ll see you on the weekend of July 3rd and remember to pray for me and the family as we enjoy our rest together.

I love you and thank God for you daily,

Alan

During our SURVIVOR series we have heard and seen the truth from God’s word that we are overcomers and not survivors. I love the definition from urbandictionary.com that closes out with this statement about overcomers -> “The true definition of an overcomer is a warrior.” Just a reminder of this fact, “God never intended for you to life your life hoping you survive, He created you, purposed and planned your life that you overcome!” Remember what Jesus said in John 16:33 -> “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in Me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” I hope that throughout this series you have made HUGE strides in claiming your overcomer life. Don’t settle just hoping you survive but in FAITH claim that you can and you will overcome!!

The past weeks have been great within our ministry here at New Vision and we have some great weeks coming up. Our Annual RisenFEST was a tremendous blessing and a GREAT time for our community. We had over 950 in attendance this year and we raised over $2500 for Haiti. We will be sending a financial gift for the Hands and Feet Project in Haiti for $3500 that will be used to minister to orphans and help rebuild orphanages that were destroyed during the earthquake. We had over 100 volunteers from NVC serving in all capacities during the event. I want to thank each and every one of you in a HUGE way for the long hours, the hard work, the patient spirit, the loving spirit and the “whatever needs to be done” spirit you had to help make this event such a tremendous time. We’ve already seen many families and individuals attend our ministry because of our impact in our very own community and as soon as we get the report from Audio Adrenaline from their Hands and Feet Project and what our gift has been able to do in Haiti, I’ll give you the update.

I want to thank you for your support, prayers and encouragement for our Student Ministry and their mission trip to Honduras that is coming up June 4th – 12th. They have enjoyed serving you at the pancake breakfast and the spaghetti supper and don’t forget that this Sunday, May 23rd; they will be doing their last Pancake Breakfast to raise more funds for the trip. Now remember, your gifts to Honduras are not for our Students who are going, they have already raised the almost $1000 per student for their trip, but your donations go to help the kids from the Siguatepeque area to attend the camp our students will be leading. The cost per Honduras student for camp is right @ $100 for the week including their meals. So the reason for the breakfasts and the dinner is to raise enough support so that 25 Honduras kids can attend the camp. I hope you will do all you can to attend the breakfast this coming Sunday morning beginning @ 8:15 for the 9 AM crowd and beginning @ 9:45 for the 10:30 crowd. If you can’t attend the breakfast but you want to give for the Honduras trip, just put on the outside of your envelope “World Missions Honduras” and your gift will go exactly where it needs to go. Also, we are collecting school supplies for Pastor Will’s church in Honduras to give out to the local schools there and this is the list he sent me: Pencils, Spiral notebooks, Elmer’s type glue, rulers, protractors, crayons and markers. There will be a box in the back of the Auditorium this weekend for you to put these supplies in. We need to pack all these items so your last day to bring them in will be Wednesday, June 2nd. Our Students are learning their songs and skits, all of them, in Spanish and are working really hard so that this camp and this experience will be one they know will make a difference for the kingdom of God. We have 16 going so be sure to keep all of us in your prayers! Our students will be sharing with you about their trip during our Saturday and Sunday worship experiences the weekend of June 12th and 13th.

There are also about 15-20 of our middle and high schools student who will be serving during the “RIVER OF LIFE” Camp June 23rd – 27th in Villa Rica, GA. We had a group go last year and serve and they were excited about the chance to do it all over again. The “RIVER OF LIFE” Camp is students from all over Georgia, meeting in Villa Rica for 5 days and being involved in community projects, i.e. cleaning people’s yards, repairing things around the homes of others, painting, etc. Our very own House of Thomas will be leading the music for the week of camp. If you need more info contact Bridgette Holmes at jpholmes@bellsouth.net. She needs some more adults who can go and there is always room for more students to be involved.

On Friday, May 8th we cooked over 200 hamburgers and hotdogs for 8th Grade Day at Bennetts Mill Middle School. On Monday, May 17th we cooked over 200 hamburgers and hotdogs for their end of school year band concert at the Villages Amphitheater and so many teachers, parents and staff we grateful we were so willing to serve them. On Sunday, May 15th we provided the train for the kids @ the City of Fayetteville “Taste of Fayette” event where Ray Potts shared with me that for 5 hours they drove that little train around and around and around and around, you get the picture. Ray said that it was about 5 kids every 3 minutes for about 500 kids in that 5 hour period who rode the New Vision train. I love it when God continues to give us ministry opps here in our community and in our schools, don’t you? Our next Ministry Opp will be 5th Grade Day for Peachtree City Elementary School on Thursday, May 27th. We will be providing and cooking over 200 hotdogs. We are providing the chips and drinks and paper products and desserts. Now here’s what I need from you, DESSERTS!!! Need some cookies, brownies, rice krispie treats either bought or made, doesn’t matter. Everything has to be ready to serve by 11 am and if you can serve on the 27th contact Denise by calling the office @ 678-817-5777 or email @ denise@newvisionc.com.

Remember, beginning Friday, June 4th, Jada Cofield will be leading our New Vision prayer nights. That’s the day our students leave for their Honduras mission trip so I hope you will come out and spend some time in prayer with your New Vision family for our Student trip. Jada’s passion is to have our New Vision Prayer night every month possibly the 1st Friday night of every month. We will be giving out more details later but be sure and mark your calendar for the 4th. I’ve got a special prayer request – many of you already know that my son, Joshua is in Costa Rica for 14 days on a medical mission with students and faculty and doctors from the University of Georgia. They are going into remote villages to administer medical need and to run clinics there as well. Please keep him and his team in your prayers. He will return on Wednesday, May 26th.

God is no doubt blessing us here at NVC and it’s because we are faithful in all the things He entrust to us. My prayer again is that we together will claim the overcomer life and that God will then entrust us with even more and bigger ministry opps for His glory and His kingdom.

Pastor Alan

We have had a tremendous 2 weekends at New Vision with our new series: “SURVIVOR”. Easter Weekend, our kick off for “SURVIVOR” was a HUGE weekend with a great crowd and a great spirit. We had over 400 in attendance and we baptized 3 people -> Tracy Burks, Daniel Mullis and Jessica Costello. I want to say a HUGE “THANK YOU” to so many of you that found your place and served so faithfully during our Easter Weekend. This past Sunday, we had the blessing of celebrating baptism again when Alan Teasley baptized his son Evan. I pray that we continue with God’s spirit moving in the life of our ministry and we baptize every weekend because God is changing the lives of people and He is doing it through the life of New Vision.

I want to say a HUGE “THANK YOU” for everyone of you who supported the Student Ministry Pancake Breakfast. As you already know, our middle and high school students are going to Honduras, June 4th - 12th leading a student ministry camp in  Siguatepeque. Your donations this past weekend total right @ $900 for their mission trip. Remember, the students are raising the support they need for the trip which will be close to $1000 including airfare, lodging, meals, transportation, interpreters BUT they are also raising the support to bring the students from the Siguatepeque area to the camp. The cost per student from the area to attend the week long camp will be around $85 each. So your donations this past weekend were voted on by our students to be used for the Honduras students and not for themselves and their personal cost!!!! So as of right now, 9 of the students from that area will be attending our camp. Our goal is to have 25 from the Siguatepeque area to attend the camp our students and adults will be leading. We will be doing another Sunday morning Pancake Breakfast in May and we will be doing a Spaghetti Supper for the Saturday night worship as well to help raise more funds. I want to encourage you to be praying for our students and adults as we prepare ourselves and everything needed for our trip in less than 2 months.

RisenFEST is less than a month away. Last year we had close to 1200 people attend our 1st annual RisenFEST. This year on May 8th, we will be hosting an even bigger FEST with guests: Audio Adrenaline, The Waiting and House of Thomas. I want to encourage you with everything I can to do several things: 1st of all, pray, pray, pray for RisenFEST ’10′. As you already know, this year’s event will be to help the orphans and people of Haiti. So our goal is to have the entire event covered in cost so that we are able to give as much financial support as we possibly can to the needs in Haiti. 2nd thing you can do is: GET INVOLVED! Last year’s event took many of you serving to make it such a HUGE success and I know we can count on you again this year. If you want to GET INVOLVED, be sure and be at the meeting with Robbie on Tuesday, April 13th @ 7 PM at the building. 3rd thing you can do is to take as many sponsor packets with you and give them to any one and everyone you can who may be willing to financially sponsor the event. Business owners, your employer, family members, friends and yes, even total strangers. All you have to do is contact Robbie @ robbie@newvisionc.com or Denise @ denise@newvisionc.com and they can get you one of the sponsor packets. The more packets we get out and the more financial support we have, the opportunity we have to raise what we need for the event and for Haiti. The 4th thing you can do is to tell everyone everywhere about RisenFEST ’10′. We will have more publicity cards and posters this weekend at worship so make sure you pick up enough to get the word out!  The 5th thing you can do is to give financially above and beyond your regular giving to help support the event. There will be extra envelopes in the seats and on the table in the cafe this weekend so that you can give specifically for RisenFEST. Just mark on the outside of the envelope in the “OTHER” line RisenFEST ’10′. With RisenFEST we have the opportunity to reach our community and reach children and adults in the devastated areas of Haiti.

We will be on our 3rd weekend of “SURVIVOR” this coming weekend, April 17th and 18th and we will be picking up the cliff hanger from this past weekend looking at the life of Gideon. Remember how he was fighting for his survival but God took him from being a survivor to becoming an overcomer? God can do the same thing for YOU! Take some time this week and read again where Jesus says what He does in John 16:33 and do what He tells us to do, “TAKE HEART!” You are NOT a survivor, you are an OVERCOMER!!!

I hope to see you either Saturday at 6:30 PM or Sunday morning at either 9 or 10:30 AM.

Alan

As we get ready to celebrate another Easter weekend, I wonder what difference this weekend has made in your life. Just take a moment or two and ask yourself, “What does Easter mean to me?” Is it all about the “Church Thing” that so many have attached to the Easter Holiday? Is it “Spring is in the air” because Easter is here? Or is it, “Just another month away and the kids will be out of school and then summer time”? What does Easter mean to you? Another great question for you to ask yourself that will help you with the Easter question is, “What does Jesus mean to me?” To understand the true meaning of Easter, you’ve got to understand the true person of Jesus Christ. To experience the joy that comes with the celebration of Easter you’ve got to have an experience with Jesus Christ. Without Christ, there is NO Easter Celebration. Easter is about Celebrating the resurrection of the Lord of Lords and the King of Kings, Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Christ died a cruel death on a wooden cross for one reason – to be the payment for the sins of the world, yours and mine. So that your debt and my debt because of our sins would be PAID IN FULL. Then they took His beaten, scarred and lifeless body off of that wooden cross and they buried Him in a borrowed tomb. But just as Jesus said he would, “In three days, the Son of God will rise from the dead” that’s exactly what He did.  At that moment, on that morning, He conquered death, hell and the grave so that you and I could live life everlasting and life more abundantly. He died that you might have LIFE. He rose again so that you would live the life He died giving you, in the POWER and VICTORY of His resurrection!! Is that what Easter means to you?

This Easter Weekend, April 3 and 4, I will begin a series entitled, “SURVIVOR”. Because of Easter and what Christ did for you – you are not a survivor – YOU ARE AN OVERCOMER!! You don’t have to live your life day by day just hoping you will survive somehow and some way, you can live your life knowing that you have already overcome! God’s purpose for your life is NOT that you hope you survive – His purpose for you is that you OVERCOME! Jesus said in John 16:33 – “I have told you all this so that you may have PEACE in Me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have OVERCOME the world.” So what does that mean to you and to me – He overcame so that you could too! He did it all for YOU! I hope you will make plans and bring family, friends and new acquaintances with you this weekend. We will have our 3 weekend worship experiences at our regular times: Saturday @ 6:30 PM and Sunday @ 9 AM and 10:30 AM. We will be baptizing 1 person, Tracey Burks in our 9 AM worship and 2 people, Daniel Mullins and Jessica Costello in our 10:30 AM worship.

Mark your calendars for the 11th of April. Our students who will be involved in our Honduras Mission Trip in June are raising financial support for the trip. They will be treating you to a delicious pancake breakfast with all the fixings. For the 9 AM worship time, breakfast will begin around 8:15 and be done by 8:45. For the 10:30 worship time, breakfast will begin around 9:30 and be done by 10:15. The breakfast is FREE but donations for the Student Ministry Honduras Trip will be greatly appreciated.

Look forward to our worship together this Easter Weekend. I’m expecting GREAT things from God,

Alan

Just wanted to let you know of all that took place and how God was so GREAT while myself, Rose and Jada were ministering and serving in Nakuru, Kenya. We had a tremendous 10 days teaching and leading in the churches surrounding the Nakuru community. We taught in the Subuki Valley Church on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday both morning and afternoon. Then on Sunday morning, we had worship together with 6 churches total gathering @ the Subukia Valley Church. On Monday and Tuesday we did the same thing all over again at the church in Kabazi. The people were absolutely wonderful. They took very good care of us and loved on us. They wanted you to know that they send their love and their prayers to you and will continue to pray for the ministry of New Vision Church and our country.

We have a GREAT opportunity to minister and serve right here in our very own community this coming Saturday, March 20th with our motorcycle ministry. We will be serving again for the ABATE Cherry Blossom Ride our free coffee and donuts. The ride will kick off from the Grove Bar and Grill in Locust Grove there near the Tanger Outlet. Rick Ford and Mick Vanbuskirk are coordinating this ministry opp so if you need more info you can contact them or contact Denise in the office. A group is going to meet @ the building around 6 AM Saturday morning to make the coffee and load the van. The group will be leaving the building NO LATER than 7:30 AM on Saturday. If you want to ride in the van or if you are going to follow on your motorcycle, please be @ the building on time. If you are going to meet the group @ the Grove, then please be there NO LATER than 8:30 AM.

The arrangements are in place for our Mission Trip to Honduras for our middle and high school students and adults. There will be a very IMPORTANT meeting this coming Sunday, March 21st @ 7 PM in the KidZONE room at the building. If you are interested in the trip to Honduras taking place Friday, June 4th through Saturday, June 12th, YOU MUST BE PRESENT @ THIS MEETING. If you have any questions at all, contact me by email @ alan@newvisionc.com or by calling the office @ 678-817-5777.

Our next Membership Class will take place this Sunday, March 21st @ 5:30 PM in the KidZONE room at the building. If you want more information about the purpose and future of New Vision or you’ve been wanting to become a member, plan on attending our membership class. Please contact Denise @ the office NO LATER than Thursday, March 18th to register for the class. We will be serving lite refreshments for the class and it helps to know just how many will be attending. If you have any questions about the membership class or about membership at New Vision, feel free to contact me by email or by phone.

Our Annual RISENFEST is just over a month away. This year’s event is going to be HUGE. We have moved the date to May 8th so that we will not conflict with other Easter Weekend activities and also hoping that the weather will be even better than it was last year. Our 1st RisenFEST last year brought in attendance over 1200 people and I believe this year’s will be even better and bigger. We are making this year’s FEST one for Haiti. We will be joining ministries with the band “Audio Adrenaline” to help impact the lives of orphans all throughout Haiti who were devastated with the earthquake several months ago. This is going to be a HUGE outreach for our very own community and a HUGE outreach for us as New Vision to impact lives here at home and around the world for the kingdom of our Lord. Start praying NOW! Start getting involved in RisenFEST 10′ NOW! Robbie is organizing a meeting for this Monday, March 22nd beginning @ 7 PM with a light dinner; pizza, chips and drinks; for those who were team leaders @ last year’s RisenFEST and for ANYONE who wants to serve for this year’s FEST. If you have any questions, contact Robbie @ robbie@newvisionc.com.   

On Easter Weekend, Saturday and Sunday, April 3rd and 4th, I will begin a new series entitled, “SURVIVOR”. It will be a 6 week series of complete encouragement as we look at examples from the bible both men and women, both young and old, who were overcomers in every area of their life because of their commitment and faith in God and God’s commitment and faith to them.  I know we all feel like we are barely surviving from one day to the next but God’s word says to you and to me in John 16:33 -> “I have told you all this so that you may have PEACE in Me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have OVERCOME the world.” God’s purpose for you is not that you survive but that you overcome! Make your plans to join us beginning Easter Sunday and bring friends and family with you.

I want you to know that I thank God for you DAILY and what a blessing YOU ARE TO ME as we serve together for the purpose and glory of our Lord Jesus,

Alan

As you know, myself, Rose Lowe and Jada Cofield leave TODAY, Monday, March 1st for our mission trip to Nairobi, Kenya with our dear friend, Edward Mwangi and his ministries in the Nukuru area. We will fly on Delta to Amsterdam leaving Atlanta @ 5:30 pm; arrive in Amsterdam on Tuesday morning, March 2nd. In Amsterdam we will have a 2-3 hour layover until we fly KLM Airlines to Nairobi. We should arrive in Nairobi around 10 pm on Tuesday evening and Edward will pick us up there at the airport and then we will drive 3 hours to Nukuru, check in the hotel only to have about 4 hours of sleep until we start teaching and leading around 9 am. 

This is the sketch of the schedule that Edward emailed me, so you and pay close attention to it and give it your prayer time -  On 3rd, 4th and 5th You will minister at the Subukia Valley Church. The time schedules are as I had given you before. 9 -1(Teachings) 1 – 2 (lunch) 2 -4 (teachings). AT for we break for you to return from the rural area to town for resting and supper.On 6th you will rest and visit lake Bogoria and Lake Nakuru National park. On 7th all our six churches will meet together for service at Subukia Valley church. 8th and 9th, you will minister at Kabazi church. Kabazi is made up of one main church and three small ones. S. Valley is made up of one church and a small one. All the churches are in the rural and the members are expecting to hear from you people.

Pray for our travel plans and arrangements. Pray for our ENERGY to stay up as we minister. Pray for our voices to hold up. Pray for our safety and health. Pray for the people that we will be ministering with and to. Pray for Edward and his ministry that God will bless it in such a way that many lives, many lives, will be changed in the Nukura area and surrounding villages.

I will do my best to blog every day if internet access is available. I will also use Facebook and Twitter and if I can get pictures I’ll post them as often as I can.

Remember, to support Rick Ford with your attendance this weekend. Rick has felt so led of God for months now to share this message that God has laid on his heart for you. He shared portions if it with me and it will be a HUGE blessing for you and you can be a HUGE blessing for Rick by being there to support him. God has been so good to us and our ministry @ New Vision with the people He continually brings to us and the calling He has placed on each one’s life. This past weekend, we baptized again. In our 10:30 worship on Sunday, we baptized Alex Walker. Alex is one of our students involved in our student ministry and is a great young man and a great leader for our students. Ray Potts called me Sunday night to let me know there were over 40 students and adults participating in our regular New Vision Paint Ball games. He said it was great seeing everyone show up just to hang out and play paint ball together. It’s a regular thing, usually on Sunday afternoons. If you want more info, or want to participate, just show up. Contact Ray @ wrpotts@msn.com and in the subject line put PAINTBALL, that’ll get his attention.

I’m so blessed to serve along side of you with the purpose and calling God has placed on us as New Vision Ministry. I love you and I’ll stay in touch while in Nairobi and I hope you’ll FB or email me as well with your prayers for me, Jada and Rose and we’ll see you the weekend of March 13th and 14th to share about our trip.

Alan

We had a GREAT Valentines Day weekend @ New Vision Church. We had 35 couples spontaneously renew their wedding vows during our weekend worship experiences. Remember that this coming weekend you will be able to pick up your Wedding Vow Renewal Certificate in the Cafe. Remember that spontaneity adds spark to your relationship so keep that spark going.

We kicked off our 2nd semester of the Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University with our information meeting this past Sunday night. We have 40 people signed up to go through the class for the next 13 weeks. If you did not make the information meeting, you can start the class with us this coming Sunday, February 21st @ 6 PM in the auditorium. You will need to be there NO LATER than 5:45 to receive your membership kit. Cost for the FPU Membership Kit is $90 that you can pay over the 13 weeks. Or schlorships are available for $50 for the kit and you can also pay that over the next 13 weeks. If you did not sign up and want to attend beginning this Sunday, you will need to contact Denise in the office @ 678-817-5777 as soon as you possibly can. Our 1st semester ended on Sunday, January 24th with 38 people completing the class. If you need any more information about Dave Ramsey, you can go to Daveramsey.com.

I want to give a HUGE word of PRAISE to your giving spirit and how generous you are to help with the needs of others. If you were present at one of our worship experiences this past weekend, you heard me share with you about our Mission Trip to Nairobi, Kenya to serve with our pastor friend, Edward Mwangi. Myself, Rose Lowe and Jada Cofield will be leaving on Monday, March 1st and returning on Saturday, March 13th. I shared with you about Edward’s email back to me and his need for a laptop computer that would be such a HUGE blessing to his ministry. I asked you if you would be willing to give so that we as a ministry could be a blessing to Edward. You gave as you always do and we were able to collect over $1250 for a laptop on the spur of the moment. So a HUGE “THANK YOU” for your continued giving spirit and I know we will continue to see God’s blessings poured out on us for our commitment to our Relationships Squared Motto -> “LOVE GOD - LOVE OTHERS” “SERVE GOD - SERVE OTHERS”. Remember to pray for Rose, Jada and myself as we prepare for this trip. We will be teaching everyday we are in Nakuru. I will be teaching pastors, Jada will be teaching on prayer, Rose will be teaching the ladies and all of us will speaking to the members of several village churches around the Nakuru area. Pray for our safety during our travel and our stay in Nakuru. Pray for our health and energy. Pray for our voices and our words to be that of God and His words to the people and pray for all the people we will be ministering with and to while we are there. We’ll share our stories with you when we return on the weekend of March 13th and 14th. I hope to post pictures on the website or on my facebook page from Nakuru. If technology allows, I will blog as much as I can so that you can stay in touch with all that we have going on.    

Remember to pray for our middle and high school students and adults who will be leaving Tuesday, February 16th @ 4 AM for our Ski Trip to Snowshoe Ski Resort in W.V. We have 39 going this year and we are going to have a blast! But remember to pray every day for our safety as we travel up and travel back home and while we are all over the mountain skiing. Pray for our “Hanging Out” time that our students will grow closer together in their relationship with one another. We’ll be back late Friday, February 19th.

I want to remind you of something I shared with you several years ago and I throw it out every now and then. You ready? “If you are EXPECTING Great things from God – You’ve got to be ATTEMPTING Great things for God!”

Alan

I want you to know just how GOOOOOOOOD our God is to us and for us. Many of you just completed our 21 Day Fast with a new anticipation for the path that God has in store for you and your future. I want you to remember what we looked at this past weekend – God requires NOTHING of you He has not already GIVEN. God has provided EVERYTHING you need to fulfill His plan for your life right NOW. I know God has called you to something great and I believe many of you are experiencing that level of living now. I also believe that many of you are right there and your next step is that new level of living for God.

It is such a tremendous blessing to see what God is doing through the people of New Vision. If you were @ our 10:30 Worship Experience this past weekend, you will remember that we brought Kim Williamson and her husband Shawn down to pray over them. Kim had gotten the news that she has cervical cancer and the doctor shared with Kim that her concern was that the cancer had spread beyond her cervix and would create more of a problem for her. We gathered around Kim and Shawn and laid hands on them and prayed for them in faith believing that God was bigger than this disease and that through our faith and our prayers and in the name of Jesus, God would heal Kim. Just less than an hour before this blog, Kim called me and said she had received very encouraging news from her doctor. She told me that the doctor had told her that after today’s test she was not as concerned as she was before because she doesn’t think the cancer has spread outside of the cervix and that with a small procedure instead of intense surgery they would be able to get it all removed! God heard OUR prayers. You gathered around Kim, laid hands on her and prayed in faith believing that God would hear from heaven and answer your prayer – and HE DID JUST THAT!!  Just take a moment right now and give God praise and remember to continually pray for Kim, Shawn, her sons, her mom and her entire family.

On the weekend of January 16th and 17th, on the spur of the moment I asked you to pray for Haiti and pray about giving financially to the great needs of so many people there. Just in that one weekend, as you walked out of the auditorium you gave right at $500 and added to the $800 we already had in our budget for disaster relief, we are now able to send $1300 to help minister to the needs of the  people in Haiti. Take a moment and give God some praise right now!

Within the past month, we have had the privilege of baptizing 3 people, 2 of them, the past 2 weekends and one of our students is waiting to be baptized this coming Wednesday night at our Student Worship Experience. Those baptized were Brian Rodriquez, Matthew Weller and Casey Palicki. What a blessing it was this past Saturday night to see Scott Palicki who was baptized almost a year ago @ New Vision to baptize his own daughter Casey because of her decision to trust Christ as her personal Lord and Savior. We are seeing children, students and adults commit their lives to Christ and follow His passion for their lives. Take another moment and give God some praise right now!  

This past Sunday night we just completed our 1st Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University, where over 35 people stayed faithful to the course and completed their studies. You should hear the stories and testimonies of these people and how they’ve truly understood these simple biblical truths to set them free from their financial stresses. Our next Dave Ramsey FPU will begin on Sunday night, February 14th with the informational meeting and the 1st class takes place on February 21st. We already have 28 people signed up for our next course. If you haven’t signed up, you can on the church’s website or you can go to www.daveramsey.com and register there.

Just a reminder to our Middle School and High School students about our Wednesday night student worship. We are right in the middle of our Middle School vs High School Iron Man/Iron Woman competition. Winning team gets a Friday night movie night and all you can eat wings. Don’t forget also students if you are going on our 2010 Ski Trip to Snowshow Resort, our final meeting before our trip will be Monday, February 1st @ 6:30 PM. Your final payment is due and you must have a parent or guardian present with you. Remember to pray for our students and our ski trip. We have 37 going this year so be sure and lift them up in your prayers for safety and a HUGE amount of fun!

This year the Superbowl takes place on Sunday night February 7th. We will have our annual Superbowl Party in the auditorium and watch the game on the 2 big screens. Make sure you bring enough food for you and your family, drinks and desserts. Our Superbowl parties are always a ton of fun and during the commercial breaks we will be drawing for great prizes for children and for adults. We will start showing up and laying out all the food around 5:30 PM. I hope you’ll come join us and bring someone with you.

Rose Lowe, Jada Cofield and myself leave on March 1st for our mission to Nairobi, Kenya Africa and ministering with our friend Edward Mwangi in his village of Nukuru. I will be training pastors in message preparation and in sharing their faith. Rose and Jada will be leading bible studies for women and teaching them. Pray for our trip, it’s getting closer and there is still a lot we have to get done; also, if you feel led of the Lord to give financially toward New Vision’s mission to Nariobi, just put your gift in an envelope and mark on the outside in the “other” line - Africa mission.

Continue to bring those family and friends with you every weekend. Just this past weekend we had right @ 350 in our worship experiences. I will continue our series, “Management 101″ again this weekend with a message entitled “Implementing the Principles” I pray you will come ready to experience God in all His fulness and Glory.

Alan

Read Revelation 21 and 22 and claim your inheritance as a child of the King, a follower and believer in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord of your life! Claim that victory NOW! It’s yours NOW!

   O, dear God, my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, may I NEVER be the same again. Not because of what I’ve done, but because of who you are. Not because of who I am, but because of what you’ve done! I claim victory and the abundance you give to those who will follow after your will, your way and your word! I’m not looking back; I’m always looking up! Praise the name of Jesus! I am a masterpiece created by YOU for your purposes may I commit to following after you from this day forward! Thank you, dear Lord that you love me the way you do! Hallelujah!

You made it. I want to hear your stories and victories during your 21 Day Fast so be sure and email me or see me and share them as soon as you can no matter how big or small you think they may be.

Alan

Day 20: Read Daniel 11: Do NOT be afraid to see and claim the future the Lord has just for you!

Read Revelation 21 and 22 and claim your inheritance as a child of the King, a follower and believer in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord of your life! Claim that victory NOW! It’s yours NOW!

Alan