Connect is back!

Last night we gathered together for Connect at 7:00 p.m. It was the first time in a couple months that we had Connect due to our 10 month Connect schedule and we were ready! Sister Jessica and team put together great offerings for adults, youth and children all focused on the subject of Love. Sister Vanessa taught the adult class about the Greek meanings of 'love' and how Christ is looking for us to give this love to Him and to our brothers and sisters! I have such a great time hearing the insights of the Overcomers and friends of the ministry who attend Connect. We have some great minds in our midst. From the profound, instigating insights of Dad Jones to the sincere reflections of brand new Overcomers, Connect provides us with an opportunity to hear multiple voices and to learn and to grow from whatever stage we're at in our spiritual development journey. It was a great start to February and phase 2 of the blessings, glory and favor of 2012 at Victory Life! I'm looking forward to diving deeper into the Word at Connect, every Wednesday at 7:00 p.m. from February to November! If you happen to be checking out this blog, take a couple minutes and let us know what you got out of Connect this week!

Exodus

In our discussion of Exodus this week in Connect, we tried to answer several questions. We had great responses with life changing applications for our own lives. Questions and responses are highlighted below. Add your responses and comment on our responses!

What can we learn about leadership from Moses' example?

• Anyone can be a leader. God enables us.
  
• Leaders follow God's instructions/obey God.
  
• Leaders respect God.
• Leaders lead by example and do what is right.
  
• Leaders respect and care for the people they are leading.
  
• Leaders pray for their people/advocate for their people.
  
• Leaders are persistent and persevere.
  
• Leaders are sometimes isolated.
  
• Leaders are content in serving others and serving God regardless of other people's opinions.
  
• Leaders don't compromise what God told them to do.
  
• Leaders realize their role and function effectively within that role.
  
• Leaders surround themselves with people who will hold them up as Aaron held up Moses' arms/staff when he became week.
  
• Leaders can't be everything to everyone.
  
• Leaders are humble.
  
• Leaders are responsible for the people they lead.
  
• Leaders must be totally dependent on God.
  
• Leaders are anointed.

What have we learned about God's nature toward His people while reading Exodus?

• God is patient and long suffering.
  
• God leads by loving example.
  
• God has emotions.
  
• God has high expectations for his people.
  
• God will never call you to do something that you cannot do.
• God desires intimacy with his people.
  
• God speaks to us.
  
• God can/will change his mind for us.
  
• God honors his promises and we need to remind him of his promises to us.
  
• God is faithful.
  

How are we like the children of Israel? What lessons can we learn from them?

• We don't take heed right away.
  
• We often don't internalize God's instructions so that they guide our decisions.
  
• We need deliverance.
  
• Many of us don't know our own identity.
  
• Many of us are living beneath our privilege.
• Many of us have a slave mentality.
  
• Many of us believe the labels that are put on us and consequently live out those labels.
  
• Many of our prolong our process/"How long will you make your process?"

What did we learn about the Holy Spirit in Exodus?

• The Holy Spirit guides leaders around the other leaders with special anointing to meet needs.
  
• The Holy Spirit gives us gifts that may not be common.
  
• The gifts that the Holy Spirit gives us may be the first time that we have seen that gift seen. Your anointing may be the FIRST.
  

We also discussed wisdom as it is discussed in the first five chapter of Proverbs, but we'll have to hold off on that discussion for a future blog. We have plenty to meditate on already! Looking forward to reading your posts and revelations! Don't miss Connect next week. We will continue with our plan of reading the Bible in the year. See the website for our reading plan and jump on the bandwagon. It's not too late to start!

Pictures from the Christmas Party

We decorated Christmas cookies, played carnival games, painted decorations, got our faces painted, ate some snacks, redeemed tickets for prizes and played family games! Some just enjoyed watching :-)

As you view the pictures of the Christmas celebration held for the children, take time to thank our wonderful volunteers. Many gave their time during a week of final exams! They were a wonderful group to work with and made the time enjoyable for all. At times I didn't know who had more fun, the children on the adults. Thank God for fellowship and generosity at VLife!

Youth Connect

We had such fun in Youth Connect this week. We started off with a hilarious game of "Ha!" You'll have to join us to find out how to play and enjoy this game with us. We then cut up bananas and tried to put them back together with tape, staples, glue, etc. It didn't work! We discussed how we need to think about the consequences of our actions/decisions before we act because we can't fix our mistakes once they are made. But never despair, we learned that "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23 NIV). We also learned that the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 6:23 NIV). Thank God for the hope that He gives us. These scriptures are our basis for our lessons in October. We'll earn more prizes by memorizing and reciting these this month. We ended our session playing Bible Blink and Uno and enjoyed pizza and pop delivered by Pizza Hut! Come join us on Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m. in the Life Suite!

Images From A Sunday At Victory Life Christian Ministries

Here are some images I shot that I wanted to share from our Sunday (Sept. 19) service at Victory Life Christian Ministries in Big Rapids, Michigan.

Check out the latest images of V-Life:
























Sunday church service at Victory Life Christian Ministries is an important time for people of all ages and backgrounds to come and strengthen their relationship with God.

























Victory Life Christian Ministries hosts a regular church service at 1 p.m. on Sunday and hosts Connect (Bible study) Wednesday evening at 7 p.m.
























Pastor Razel leads us during yet another moment of deep worship at Victory Life.
























People of all ages join in during Sunday church service at Victory Life Christian Ministries. There are plenty of opportunities for kids to enjoy church services at V-Life.
























Pastor Razel leads us in song during a moment of worship at Victory Life Christian Ministries in Big Rapids, Michigan. Church service begins at 1 p.m. on Sunday afternoons.















Here is a wide-angle shot of a nearly packed house at Victory Life Christian Ministries in Big Rapids this past Sunday.

Connect Revelations

Connect August 25, 2010

KID'S KONNECTION was taught by Brother Mike. The theme for the activities was "Love God by Trusting His Care". The elementary/preschool memory verse was found in Matthew 22:37 where "Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. The Bible study focused on David and the concept of shepherding. The children learned that we need to trust God as our shepherd, just as David did. They enjoyed puppet play, a craft and snack!

YOUTH CONNECT was facilitated by Brother Jake. Their discussion centered on the grace that is extended to us. One example presented involved the dinner that the pharisees had in which they invited "a-list members". Jesus explained that the crippled, poor, etc. should be invited instead. (Luke 14) The grace that should be extended to these is similar to the grace that God extends to us "non-a-list members". What a timely discussion to help our youth guide their interactions in light of peer pressure that they may encounter when returning to school.

After a time of warm worship, Pastor Razel led the ADULT CONNECT session, which focused on the "Portrait of Jesus Christ". The time together started out with attempts to describe "why Jesus is such a big deal". We discovered Jesus as the Messiah and the Christ: the anointed one; the expected deliverer. We began to explore Jesus in both the old and new testaments of the Bible. The discussions got extremely animated at times; what a great time!

Thank God for the wonderful teachers who volunteer their time and resources to this wonderful ministry. Don't miss your blessings; join us at Connect!

Connect Announcements

• Connect is cancelled for September 29, 2010 for quarterly staff training.

• Staff training will be held at Victory Life Christian Ministries on Wednesday, September 29, 2010 from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. We will learn about personalities, ours and our students, which will help us to facilitate discussion and activities in our Connect classes.

Introductions

Greetings,

This is a blog from the Christian Education Ministry of the Victory Life Christian Ministries. Our goal is to inform you of current and upcoming programming and provide you with inspiration through the written word.

Connect is our midweek service. During this time, Wednesdays 7:00-8:00 p.m., a variety of sessions are offered. We rotate through a variety of sessions, which may include topical Bible studies, book discussion groups, recreational activities which promote Christian fellowship, activities to promote physical, financial, emotional and spiritual well-being. The activities target interests of overcomers of all ages: six months to eight years in Kid's Konnection, eight years and up for Youth Connect and adults of all ages.

For the week of August 18, three classes were offered during Connect:

• Pastor Razel taught on the topic of "Failure and Redemption". The adults in the class received and shared revelations regarding the cleansing, pardon and rewards of God.
  
• Brother Jake taught the youth about the "Parable of the Lost Son". They then unscrambled limericks reflecting the memory verse about rebellion.
  
• Sister Tracey presented stories and activities around the theme of "Love God by Making Good Choices" during Kid's Konnection. Their story was based on 1 Kings 3: 1-15 when King Solomon had a dream and God told him that he could ask for whatever he wanted. King Solomon asked for wisdom. They then determined if people made good or bad choices.
  

Come out for the August 25 Connect classes and learn more. We have classes for all ages!

We're looking forward to part two of our financial freedom series with Bro. Bobby. It will cover credit and loans and will begin in October.

Feel free to suggest future topics that you would like to discuss in Connect or titles of books for our book discussion groups during our Connect times.