Defying the Odds

I want to relate a God story about us, something God did through a number of families at Red Mountain who acted together without much talk among ourselves about what God might be up to. For over a decade now our Church family has supported a pastor of a church in a small town in Mexico. Each Christmas we help Pastor Ramon and his Church reach out by providing gifts for them to give to the children of their community in Jesus’ name.

When Pastor Ramon approached us with the names this year, he apologetically informed us that the number of names was considerably more than we had ever been given. The Elder who oversees our outreach efforts, Keith Braun, responded in faith in our behalf and said "Yes!" to Ramon’s request. I’m glad he did...now! But the reality was that in a year of dismal economic forecasts we were presenting our congregation with something bigger than we had ever tackled with respect to this project. We were doing this alongside a desire to provide an increased number of gifts to young moms, and an increased amount of food to a local food bank. Everyone involved held their collective breath to see what the Lord would do through you. An incredible story unfolded in the weeks ahead.

First, against all odds, all the names provided by Pastor Ramon were quickly spoken for. This happened with very little by way of announcement from up front, and no special appeal. Second, for the first time, all those who took names followed through, buying gifts, wrapping them, and returning them to us for delivery. So in the worst economic climate we have ever encountered, more people got involved and followed through more thoroughly than at any other time! That’s a great story of how God is working in our collective soul.

Healthy faith is not reckless, but it consistently brings about a reality that defies the odds. This kind of responsiveness is a sign of a faith community that is listening and that will be blessed. Thanks for being part of the movement!

Bob Fox

HIS Plans, Not Ours

Relationships are challenging whether it’s in a marriage, parenting, or between family and friends. That is why the Marriage and Family Ministry of Red Mountain Community Church serves as a resource to help or provide hope and direction to families.

I want to share a story from a couple from our church as they looked for God’s plans to rebuild their family. I hope this story will encourage you to invest in your own family by attending a one-day STRONGFAMILIES Seminar we are hosting on January 10. You will receive the tools for applying Biblical principles to become an intentional parent.

Tony Curtisi, Pastor of Marriage & Family

When we step back and look at the path of our lives, it is amazing to see what God had planned for us. Kristen and I met through a mutual friend at Westernfest, which became the start of our journey together.

We both came from large families with God at the center. We married our high school sweethearts never imagining they would end in divorce, leaving us both very lost and unsure of our futures.

As we began our first conversations we shared the hurt, surprise and emptiness that came with our divorces. The Holy Spirit began to move our conversations into much more productive directions. We recognized the love of our Lord, the strength of our families and the hope for our futures.

I had been through RMCC’s DivorceCare program and suggested Kristen might look into it to, which I can share she was reluctant to the idea as I know personally the first step through those doors is challenging. Since I remember being numb to hear what was being shared, I decided to attend the class again with Kristen, which helped us discover we had even more common ground. We made a choice to not let our divorces be "the story" that defined our lives. In the following couple of years we began attending church together and looking into other programs offered at RMCC.

With a planned wedding in August of 2006 we decided to first become a part of the Blended Families group to better understand the unique challenges of blending a family. It has blessed our marriage as we keep God first at home and with our children.

We now facilitate DivorceCare together never imagining when we became divorced that we would be able to use this experience for our Lord and be able to share a story of hope and love with others. God is using our divorce for His good. What we could only see as a tragedy in our lives, ended up being a gift for our future.

You know that mutual friend I mentioned; well that person has since disappeared from our lives. We believe God used her as an angel to bring us together and in that union is now using us to further His kingdom. Through Christ, we have found our identities in Him and give Him all the glory for it!

We rest in Jeremiah 29:11 for out lives. "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope."

Frank and Kristen

Sing to HIM

As I lead worship in KIDS Church and KIDS Rock each week, I am amazed at the connection the children have with music.

It is more than just the music, it’s their heart. Some of these kids are a part of the KIDS Praise team. A few times a year they get to share in leading worship with the adults and the band as a part of the church community.

We have been helping our KIDS Praise team understand what worship is; something deeper than just singing on stage. They are learning that we have been created to worship and that we need to tell everyone about who Christ is in our lives. The kids "get that"; they are growing in understanding that when they help lead worship it is just about them and God. It’s not about the other people in the room, or the rhythm of the music, but a personal moment with God. They are learning that both music and singing are powerful ways to connect with Christ; they want to pursue that and grow more in Him.

Have you ever taken the time to watch the expression on a child’s face when they are experiencing something great and fun? That is what it is like when we are in rehearsal with KIDS Praise. We walk them through the songs that we are learning, and look up scripture that speaks about songs of praise, and about praising God. "That’s what I want to do" they say, or "Ms Sarah, did you know that God is really big and we need to worship Him."

We are encouraged by the fact, that as we move through this season with KIDS Praise that they are discovering that worship is not just an event to attend at KIDS Church or KIDS Rock or even Summer Explosion. It is personal and a way of life- profound, practical and one that will last them their lifetime.

"Sing to Him. Sing praise to Him. Tell of all His wonderful acts. Glory in His holy name. Let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice." ― 1 Chronicles 16:9-10

Sarah Herrman, KIDS Music Director

God Answers Prayer

First off we want to thank all of you who bought a Christmas gift for the teen moms and their children. At Red Mountain Community Church we look for ways to support missions throughout our community and the YoungLives organization is one of them. Tonya McDermid attends RMCC and is also a mentor for teenage mothers who are involved in YoungLives. She has written this story and she hopes it will encourage you as we move into a new year of showing the love of Christ to others.

Keith Braun, Elder/Head of Missions Committee

This Christmas I have especially felt convicted by God to cut back my overspending of Christmas gifts for my family. This stemmed from witnessing God answering my prayers through the lives of teen moms. There are so many people who have lost hope this Christmas; I just wanted others to be blessed like God has blessed us.

I think others at Red Mountain Community Church must be feeling blessed too and wanted to give to others that are in a difficult place right now. I saw God answer my first prayer as our church members bought 135 gifts for teenage moms and their babies, which they received at our Christmas YoungLives gathering on December 9th. We were able to bless 82 teen moms and their 93 babies from four different Mesa and Apache Junction high schools.

These are not your ordinary teenagers; these are girls typically between the ages of 11 and 19 who are pregnant or are new moms and most often live in poverty, in broken or abusive homes. Money wouldn’t go to buying a Christmas gift, most likely for only the essentials. That’s why these gifts and the unconditional love they represent were the answer to my next prayer, for them to see Christ.

I want to share a few stories that warmed my heart and reminded me how personal of a God we serve. God showed Himself clearly to teen moms that evening.

Shawna is a young mom who has had nothing but hard times in her life. She carries such a chip on her shoulder and many are afraid of her. When she got her gift, I thought for sure she would have something negative to say. Instead she began to cry as she was overwhelmed by knowing that someone cared. Never had I witnessed her cry. Shawna had requested shoes for her son but as she opened the box, she saw "the perfect shoes for him and toys too." She kept repeating "these people who don’t even know me bought gifts for us." The hardened wall of her heart came down. I think that one act of kindness gave her the hope she needed to see things in a different light.

Another teen mom, Kayla, received a special gift too, a gift only God could have known was needed to make her Christmas special. Kayla is an 18 year old teen mom and is married to her baby’s father. Her and her husband had decided 2 days before that they could not afford to buy a Christmas tree. A donated Christmas tree was raffled off during the evening and Kayla’s name was called. She was giggling with excitement when she learned she would receive a tree that someone had donated, complete with decorations!

Brooke is an 18 year old teen mom who, after receiving "the perfect winter jacket" for her 8 month old daughter, talked about her experience that evening, "I almost started to cry when they were talking about God" and when I asked why, she said, "I don’t know. I just never knew much about Him. I didn’t grow up that way."

God answered prayer and continues to answer prayer! After this awesome experience of seeing God in action, I gained proper perspective on gift giving this Christmas. Seeing God so personally involved in the lives of teen moms that evening and seeing the hope it gave them blessed me beyond measure. I am so thankful for the generosity of RMCC.

Tonya