About My Father’s Business Outreach Ministries (a Grace Brethren Church)

Halloween is today .  Unfortunately, this is a day when we as a society have become trans-fixed on spiritual oddities that mock our beliefs as Christians.  Negativity is often times glorified.  Many of us have found ourselves compromising…allowing our children to dress up as murderers, demons, witches, and the like.  We also realize that in many instances, Halloween is a day for fun and limitless candy that our children really enjoy.  We want to shield our kids from the negativity associated with this day, by providing an alternative to the worldly usual.  So, on this coming Saturday we will be hosting that alternative.  Stay tuned for an exact time. 

TAKING BACK WHAT THE DEVIL STOLE!!  Not only is this our motto, but one of our active missions as a church family. 

In and through everything that we’re doing, we as a church family are praying for God’s grace to bring His people back to where they belong; not just to AMFB, but back to the truth of God’s word.  God brought us several visitors this Sunday and for that, we praise Him.  Pastor Joyce delivered an excellent sermon about standing for God and never ceasing to glorify Him.  He continued preaching from the book of Acts, finishing out Chapter 5.  In your struggles against sin, have you given him the complete victory?  Many of us have not because we keep trying to fight sin in our own strength.  Spiritual voids CAN NOT be filled by the flesh…ever!  Quit fighting against God and totally submit to Him.  We have to stand strong in Christ as did the apostles whom left the Sanhedrin.  Throughout all of our bodily, mental, spiritual turmoil and more, WE MUST continue fighting the good fight and proclaiming the great news that Jesus is Lord! 

Saturday was our once monthly Homeless Shelter Ministry at the Mitch Synder Open Door Women’s Shelter.  As expected, it was a wonderful and enriching time in Christ.  We praise God because a couple of the women were encouraged enough from our visit to join us in our Sunday service.  God is so good!

In Bible Study (10/25), Pastor Joyce explained that God has lead him to take a detour from the book of Revelation teachings.  We watched a video from the Way of the Master series. 

 

These videos focus on how to share your faith simply, effectively, and biblically…the way Jesus did.  In particular, Wednesday’s video examined Evolutionist theory and why this belief is not biblically accurate.  It was a very thought provoking lesson.  Although Pastor Joyce praised God for our tenure within the book of Revelation and all that has been learned as a result, he acknowledged that God is steering him in another direction to more aptly supply the spiritual need of his congregation.  The new direction of study will be titled Gospel Transformation.  Expect to be challenged folks.  Expect to be transformed! 

We praise God for what He is doing within our church; from the community outreach programs, to the touching Sunday School classes.  We’re watching God at work!  Isn’t it awesome? 

Choir rehearsal is scheduled to roll steady at 6pm this evening. 

Members with voices . . . interested in being a part of Behind The Cross (AMFB’s choir)?  They work hard for the Lord.  Come check them out in rehearsal this evening (and/or Thursday evening) at 6:00 pm.  See how they get prepared for their blessed Sunday ministry!

Sunday’s service was an awesome time!  The anointing was in the building folks!!  From the Praise & Worship songs, to the touched delivery of choir songs, to the emotional altar call and prayer that touched on everything from forgiveness, marriages, sickness, and individual walks with God, to the Preached Word of God titled Dishonor and Honor in the Church (Acts 5:11-25), and to the prayer in benediction; GOD WAS THERE!  He is always in the midst, but this Sunday, it appeared more evident to most.  We praise God for His power.

Children’s Church was also a blessing.  With many hands up, we see the eagerness that our children display in learning the word of Christ.

Saturday our Missions Ministry was held from 12:00-2:00 p.m.  Don’t forget that every 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Saturday from 12:00-2:00 p.m. is our Missions Ministry Mobilized. Come out and learn to share your faith without fear.  Want to know how to get involved in this?  Contact us at amfbgrace@yahoo.com.  Someone will get back to you promptly.  Don’t have computer access?  Call us on 202-548-7555.  Beat the streets for Him and be ye not ashamed! 

Friday evening was our once monthly Married Couples Ministry and night out.  This time, the location was in the home of one of our members.  They had a fun time in the name of Jesus, acting out marriage dilemma scenarios and situations, while getting biblical solutions, courtesy of Pastor and Mrs. Joyce

and Minister Eric Jones.  Marriages are not exempt from hard work.  Keeping prayer and the Word of God at the forefront of the relationship is key to continued success and/or healing emotional wounds.

I cannot urge you enough to come out and be a part of our Wednesday night Bible Study group.  God is doing wonderful things as more eyes are being opened by our in-depth look into the book of Revelation.  Last Wednesday, it was Revelation Chapter 5, Verses 6-14.  Pastor is going through The Revelation slowly…with a fine tooth comb, as to ensure an accurate understanding of this intricate and important book of the Bible.  He loves us and cares for our salvation enough to take the time out to meticulously prepare these lessons for all of us.  Don’t miss out.  It’s totally magnificent.

REMINDER:  This coming Saturday (and every 4th Saturday), is our Women’s Homeless Shelter Ministry.  We visit the shelter at 5:30 p.m., sing praises, deliver the Word of God to those who will listen, and feed them delicious home cooking.  This ministry is an unbelievably humbling experience.  Be thankful for all that you have and don’t complain because there is always someone who is travelling a tougher road.  God delivers through suffering and we are thankful for the lessons He teaches through the outreach ministries of the church.  If you never make it your business to be a part of it, you’ll never know how rewarding it will be for your spirit, your life, and your walk with Christ.  Want more information?  Contact: amfbgrace@yahoo.com, phone no.: 202-548-7555.

See you soon!

The support staff of blog.com has been notified of the visual discrepany (missing photos) that our site is currently experiencing .  We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, as we are in the process of locating and fixing the problem.

We can’t wait to see you at Bible Study tonight at 7:30.  God Bless and keep you all.

About My Father’s Business Outreach Ministries // 411 New York Avenue, N.E. // Washington, D.C. 20002 // (202)548-7555 // amfbgrace@yahoo.com

We’d like to send out a special thank you to Elder Mincey of Disciples of Christ, for eloquently bringing us God’s Word this past Sunday in Pastor Joyce’s absence.  He and our choir took a trip to Dublin, Ohio at Grace Brethren NorthWest Chapel where they were invited to minister in song.  We praise God for allowing our choir to be a blessing unto another flock and we rejoice that a faithful servant of Christ like Elder Mincey could deliver an anointed sermon unto us.  He preached from the Matthew 22:1-14; when Jesus told the parable of the wedding feast.  ”The kingdom of Heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son.  He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.”  After many refusals and wasted invitations, the King ultimately told the servants to invite anyone from the street.  Those people came in large numbers and appreciated the invitation.  Some weren’t dressed in wedding clothes, but they were glad to be invited to such a feast and celebration.  In the words of Christ, “Many are invited, but the chosen are few.”  Unfortunately, all will not be saved before it’s too late.  We as Christians need to stop feeling so invincible and accept the invitation to Christ while we still can.  So many people aren’t willing to sacrifice their own selfish wants in order to do as God asks.  End the end, we’re only hurting ourselves.  True indeed!

The Dublin, Ohio experience was as much a blessing for Grace Brethren NorthWest Chapel as it was for our choir and Pastor Joyce.  The last time many of us saw those from NorthWest Chapel is when they came to help us with the Travelling Carnival (click the August archive).  They are very dear to our hearts!  AMFB’s choir, Behind the Cross ministered in both morning services (9:30 & 11am).   Their Hispanic Music Ministry did two songs as well. 

  

Associate Pastor of Outreach and Missions, Martin Guerena spoke about the many missions programs they are spearheading nationally and internationally.  Senior Pastor Terry Hofecker spoke about the importance of giving and sacrifice.   See you again soon…our family in Christ. 

We are glad to have our Pastor and choir back home!

We pray for a productive week in Christ!                    

First and foremost, giving honor to God and praising His name for the many blessings he has and continues to bestow within our lives; what a privledge to call you our Lord!

Yesterday was our weekly day of rest, reflection, and restoration.  Keep in mind that this doesn’t imply a day off from God.  No church activities are scheduled on Mondays, but the body must remain steadfast outside of the church walls.  On Mondays (as every other day), continue to uplift the church, the children, the marriages, the Pastor, the entire body of Christ, and the lost, in prayer. 

Sunday’s service was titled, LYING TO GOD.  Pastor Joyce continued in the book of Acts, beginning at chapter 4 verse 32 and continuing through chapter 5 verse 10.  These verses deal with holding back from God.  This particular passage specifically addressed a husband and wife (Ananias and Sapphira) whom lead the apostles to believe that they were giving the total proceeds from the sale of land, when in fact they were holding back part of the money for themselves.  Not only were they lying to man, they were cheating the kingdom and therefore lying to God.  Upon being chastised for this sinful deed at separate times, they each fell and died at Peter’s feet.  They agreed to test the Spirit of the Lord and they had to pay an unfortunate price for it.

We in the church of present day have to learn from this amazingly poignant passage.  We make out our checks with the word tithe in the memo box, but are we truly tithing?  Are we giving ten percent of our income as God so stated in His word?   Granted, we are in the day of economic inflation.  Each person’s financial situation is different.  Some may not be able to give what others can, but by all means…give.  Your giving is a miniscule portion of what Christ has given you.  God knows our circumstance, he knows our situations.  You may be able to fool man, but how dare we test the Spirit of the living God.  We must have faith in the Lord.  We have to trust that he will never forsake us and we have to give according to that faith.  If we hold back from Him, what will he hold back from us?

After the sermon, Pastor asked for volunteers aged 15 and younger to summarize what they had learned.   It was a true blessing to hear a youthful analysis of the passage.  The few volunteers were brave and did a wonderful job.

AMFB wants to take this time to thank the individuals who help to run the Children Church each and every Sunday.

This is a very meaningful ministry.  It allows conducivity of learning for the adults during Sunday service, to not have to tend to their young children while receiving the word of God.  Not only is the Children Church overseer responsible for the children, but they themselves must miss the sermon while tending to these duties.  You are not unnoticed and we are thankful for your sacrifice.   

We look forward to the remainer of this week.  Our choir prepares to minister at Grace Brethren Church in Dublin, Ohio this coming Sunday.  We will miss them in our own Sunday service, but we are excited for their trip and pray that they are a blessing.

Last week’s Bible Study had a small turn out.  People, you DO NOT want to miss these teachings as we get deeper into the book of Revelation.  Unless God directs him otherwise, Pastor will pick up at Revelation chapter 4, verse 5.  You want to be prepared for what God has in store.  We are in the end times folks.  This teaching is not intended to be a scare tactic.  This is God’s word.  It is real and true!  Get out of it what you need to ensure your salvation.  Learn and apply it to your life while you still can.  Wednesday evenings at 7:30…out by 9pm; an hour and a half of your time.  We hope to see you all there.

About My Father’s Business Outreach Ministries // 411 New York Avenue, N.E. // Washington, D.C. 20002 // (202)548-7555 // amfbgrace@yahoo.com

** Check for photo additions by clicking on albums from time to time (top right)       

Choir rehearsal is cancelled for today.  They will resume their practices for singing praises on Thursday at 6pm. 

Bible Study is scheduled for it’s regular time of 7:30pm tomorrow evening.  We look forward to seeing you all there!

We’d like to congratulate our very own Deacon Jay Thomas and his wife Tinesha (Choir Director) on the birth of their third son, Kamryn.  

We thank God for his healthy arrival today at approximately 3pm .  He weighed in at 8 pounds, 7 ounces. 

This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoyce and be glad in it  !

Yesterday around 4pm, several of our men gathered to clean the church.  Hold onto your hats AMFB family, they also rearranged the sanctuary for a refreshing change of scenery.  We praise the Lord for all of their hard work.

Wednesday’s Bible Study was nothing short of enlightening, as Pastor Joyce resumed teachings in Revelation.  This time, we delved into Chapter 4.  Although the lesson was outlined to go through verses 1-8, we became entralled in a proverbial question and answer forum that only allowed us to get to verse 4.  This teaching is intense, interesting, enjoyable, and necessary.  We are so privleged to have a pastor as knowledgable in God’s Word as Stephen Joyce, walk us through such a complex book for our understanding and salvation sake.  We will continue where we left off this Wednesday October 4th at 7:30pm.

The choir has been consistent in their Tuesday and Thursday evening rehearsals.  They are preparing to be musical guests at Grace Brethren Church (NorthWest Chapel) in Dublin, Ohio on Sunday October 15th.  We are praying that God’s annointing continue to be upon them, as their voices may be used to touch people outside of the D.C. Metropolitan area.  We pray for their upcoming safe travel.

As we eagerly anticipate church this morning, we pray that God have his way.  From Sunday School to service, from Praise and worship to choir songs, from communion, to our 1st Sunday meals prepared by our Ushers, from sermon, to benediction, have your way Lord…have your way!

About My Father’s Business Outreach Ministries // 411 New York Avenue, N.E. // Washington, D.C. 20002 // (202)548-7555 // amfbgrace@yahoo.com