CG: sister2sister project update

Staying warm, CG girls?  

Me, too!  I'm sipping a hot mug of coffee and listening to the song Stay Amazed:

"Forever You will stand. Your kingdom has no end. Oh, Holy God I stay amazed. You are so much more than words could ever say.  Oh, Holy God I pour out my praise...on the One who never ceases to amaze me. " 

Our next CG is THIS Friday 7pm at Connection Church...our focus: sister2sister project.   We're collecting items and by faith filling 1000 bags for My Sister Song ( a ministry for women in strip clubs).   We are collecting lip gloss, nail polish, individually wrapped chocolate, lighters and dangle earrings.   

Big SHOUT out to Metro South Church,  Rivers of Living Water and Calvary Baptist Church for taking this sister2sister project back to their churches and promoting it!    AMAZING!

As if that wasn't blessing enough...guess what was delivered today?     

Someone donated 500 lighters to sister2sister project.   Is our God amazing or what?     This particularly touched me since I know for some of us buying lighters has been a source of inner conflict.  Here is my heart on this issue:  I trust the women of My Sister Song (who gave us the list of items) completely.  They are the ones who have been trained specifically to minister to the women in the strip clubs.   Secondly,  the gift bags we are putting together will no doubt show these women who are so far from God they are loved.  But you know what those lighters will show them?  They are accepted.   And they need to feel accepted before they'll receive love.   Just like you and me.  And I don't know about you but I remember where I was when Christ accepted me.  It was a rainy Wednesday night.    

 Where were you ?

Proud of OUR CommonGround Girl!

Hi Girls!   There is starting to be some good buzz about the upcoming CG event on January 28th.  To say we are beyond excited and trusting God like crazy would be an understatement.  More to come next week on that event.

As this Friday is winding down and I am sure most of you are getting ready to get your "weekend on" ... I wanted to take a few minutes and publicly share how proud I am of our CG worship leader,  Christa Alberts. 

When God began to stir in us thoughts of women coming together from all denominations of Christian faith to not only worship but take His love from the pews to the pavement -- Christa was one of the first to say, "I need to be involved with that...count me in!"   And she has been a CG fixture right in the trenches with us.   Trusting God as he orchestrates a movement of women we could not begin to imagine.

Our CG Girl leaves to record her first worship CD in a few weeks and I can't be more proud of her.   She is trusting God like crazy as He pulls her out of her comfort zone.    Christa shared today on her FB page the following:

"A little over 2 weeks till Boston:) I have been told I need to get the word out..so here goes... I am recording a CD. Almost all songs are originals. I wrote a few and my very talented friend Sonia V wrote a lot of them. She is also my Producer..so I'm in great hands:) 

I am surrounded by amazing people who stepped up to help me in many ways...you know who you are:)  There is no way this could be happening without your help!  I am so thankful for the opportunity. I have amazing musicians playing and amazing family and friends supporting me! Feeling VERY thankful today:)  Thank you God for giving me this opportunity:)

My prayer is that these songs will touch other people's lives and point them to the one true God...just as they have done for me!  That hope might be restored, and God's love will be evident through this project.  I will be giving updates as we go, on the progress and what amazing artists are playing.   The hope is that the CD will be done early Spring.

Christa is a vital part of things at CG.  We are so very, very, very proud of her.  Would you join me in beginning to pray for Christa today?    Please pray for the following:

• 
  
  Health for everyone involved..a lot of people have been sick lately.   


• 
  
   Mostly pray that this will be what God wants and will be pleasing to Him. 


• 
  
  Wisdom for Christa.


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  That the focus will be on God and not me, or who's playing etc.  


• 
  
  Christa desires excellence with the proper focus:) 

THANK YOU, CG girls!   Ain't nothing like a girl who loves God. 

:)

Tami

PS-  Christa's worship CD will be available for purchase at the CG event in the spring!

Merry Christmas, Girls!

Worship Leader Announced for CG Jan 28, 2011!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!   Or not.  :)  Ever feel the need to take whiffs of  suntan lotion as you watch the snow fall?  I'm just NOT ready!  How about you?

We have some exciting news...two parts actually.  Our CG worship leader, Christa Alberts is making a worship CD!  We are so proud of her and we'll be making it available at CG events starting in the spring.   It is highly likely that Christa will be out of town recording her CD in January.   Christa and I put our heads and hearts together and are pleased to announce the worship leader for our CG event on January 28, 2011... Brittany Ball.

Brittany Ball, 26, is the wife of Bryan Ball, the Director of Student Ministries at Connection Church.  Born and raised in Macomb County, Michigan, Brittany and Bryan, along with their puppy Porkchop, moved to Canton in the summer of 2010.  Brittany is a graduate of the University of Michigan and is currently employed as an elementary teacher in Macomb County for Romeo Community Schools.
 Brittany has been leading worship with her husband for the past four years.  She has been singing in church since she was three years old.  Brittany's main influences include Kari Jobe, Christy Nockels, and Hillsong United.  She hopes that God speaks to you through the songs chosen for that night the way that He speaks to her through them.

  (You can check out Brittany singing the National Anthem here!)

sister2sister project

We're sensing that God is taking off  CG's training wheels and will be stretching our faith in 2011. 

CG girls are you ready???

Mark your calendar for Friday, January 28th - we'll be gathering for our next event and yes....we will be taking the love of God from the pews to the pavement.   Details?  I'm glad you asked:

For our outreach spotlight at January's event we'll be partnering with a fantastic ministry, My Sister Song.  MSS is a faith-based outreach and support group for women in the sex industry in the Detroit Metro area.  Their mission is  helping women understand their great value to God and their ability to impact others around them for generations to come through their stories. 

Girls, check this out...



Did you notice the gift bags the women of MSS were taking with them to the clubs in the video? 

Girls, this is how we are going to take God's love from the pews to the pavement...with sister2sister project!

CommonGround will be purchasing a 1000 bags for January's event.  Yes, a 1000!  Training wheels off,  no?

We're asking that you bring in 5 items (dangle earrings, nail polish, lip gloss, lighter, and a piece of individually wrapped chocolate).  Now don't be shy...get your churches, youth groups, workplace, soccer moms, involved with this dynamic outreach.   A church contacted me last week and said, "We'll be in for 100 of each item."  Another church called me today and said, "We're bringing 25 earrings. "    Don't you love it?  

Churches linking arm-and-arm to show girls who are far from God that they matter.

Takin' it from the pews to the pavement!

We're still basking in the afterglow of such an amazing CommonGround gathering on Friday, October 15th.  If you were in attendance, you know what we're talking about it!  

It was A M A Z I N G !!

Our spotlight was "Meeting the Need Providing the Feed"  with the hope  to provide ODM Food Bank with a bunch of can goods to help with the holiday season coming up.  CommonGround Girls did not disappoint!   Many families were touched by the women of CG.   That is pretty sweet!

CG girls, if you are looking for a place to serve in our community this holiday season...please consider serving at Open Door Ministry in Canton, Michigan.  ODM provides a wonderful opportunity for you to serve on Thursday nights from 430pm - 8pm.  You can't go wrong with continuing the conversation that started at this CG.   

In the next few days, I'll be sharing with you about sister2sister project for January 2011.  If you have a heart for women who are far from God...you won't want to miss the next post!  Stay tuned !

Here are some highlights from the last CG: 

• 120 women gathered


• 20 different churches were represented (all time high for CG)


• 1056 items were collected to meet the need by providing the feed!

[caption id="attachment_338" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Steve & Jackie Darr fit all that food into their van! "][/caption]



(photo credits:  Autumn Thornsberry &  Kim Ryan)

Meet the Need – Providing the Feed

CG girls!  

I did a double take when l just glanced at my calendar.  Its O C T O B E R 1st already!   Can you believe it?

Crazy.

We're getting ready for our sixth CG in just 15 days!    We're pretty stoked about helping Open Door Ministry fill their pantry with canned goods for the winter months.   ODM is a local food bank in Canton, Michigan who feeds over 350 families each week.  Yep, you read right -- FAMILIES.   That's a whole lotta folks!    God has been using ODM to meet people right where their need is -- the dinner table.   Will you help put food on the table for many families in our communities?   

We invite you to Meet the Need & Provide the Feed with us on Friday, October 15th at 7pm at Connection Church.    We'll be celebrating God with dynamic worship from Christa Alberts and our CG band, and then we'll have some fun at an after party complete with a Coffee Bar (free Starbucks!), appetizers, and GIVEAWAYS!   You'll see some new faces and catch up with some old friends.  

Our giveaways won't disappoint!  Smart CommonGround girls will be sure to fill out a registration form as soon as they walk into the event!   That could be your ticket to win it!!

• Have you tried Tastefully Simple products yet?   Delish, sisters, DELISH!  Dalina Stephens, a TS consultant has graciously donated a basketful of Tastefully Simple Product.   You can check out the Tastefully Simple Product Line right here!!


• A hot pink winter scarf with $10 Starbucks gift card! Who wouldn't want to show some pink love while sipping a pumpkin' spice latte?


• Gable Chiropractic (Belleville, MI) is donating a free examination, Xrays if necessary, and 1st adjustment !

I've been at a conference this week on having a life of service.  I've really enjoyed the sessions on outreach to the community.  I have to be honest...I've had a blast bragging on this fantastic group of commonground girls from a bunch of different churches who gather together to worship their God, and who are jazzed about  taking His love from the pews to the pavement.  Yeah, that would be YOU!

We believe that 2011 will be an unbelievable year for CG girls!   We're getting direction to trust God for Big Things in 2011.   We're going to be stretched, challenged and encouraged to love who God loves.    Are you ready?

We'll see you in just 15 days.  Invite some friends, grab some cans/boxes of food and let's do this!!