God is producing Fruit......"Out of the Box"

: Our first trip to Downtown for Prayer that God would give us this location.

: Plans for “out of the box” began…….

The dream started among several people. Jeff and Terry Scott, Greg and Lori Huff, myself and several of the Youth of FUMC Hillsville. We have talked now for more than a year about having a place that Youth will look forward to coming to. A place to hang out, have Bible Study and get excited about going out into the World and do that for which we were created. It was only a few moths ago that the youth decided to redo the youth room in the main church building and wow, they did a great job. I would love to have an office that bright and refreshing.

Then we went to Macon Ga on a mission trip in July, we stayed at Christ Chapel Sportstowne and we were all impacted in a way that we never imagined. We were shown the greatest hospitality that any of us have ever experienced. We were in a building that serves as they meeting place that doesn’t look anything like a typical church. It was the best thing we have ever seen. It is attractive to many people who would otherwise not walk into a traditional church building.

One of the things we did in GA that we were most touched by is to give out Grace Bags in Piedmont Park in Atlanta. We packed backpacks with things like water, canned food, plain t-shirt and socks and we just handed them out to those in need. It was life changing for all of us.

All of this has led to a vision that God has given us to have a safe place for Teens to come and hang out with friends, have Bible Study, Worship God and just have fun. By the way, several of us are coffee drinkers as well and all of us love the coffee house theme. We all have a strong desire to get outside the church walls and do ministry in our own community as well as the World at large. We have a vision of a place where people can come as they are, there is no dress code that says you have to have a certain quality or type of clothing as long as it is respectful to you and those around you. Come as you are.

This has brought us to FUMC Downtown “Out of the Box”

Everyone is asking questions about the Downtown Center. I might also add that everyone is excited! Here are a few shots to let you see the work that is going into getting the roost ready for the people. 7 of us spent most of the day on Saturday shopping for and purchasing furniture for the location. The pictures you see here have several from the church that are pitching in to help.

This thing is really coming together fast and we believe it is God’s Plan. The power is on and the coffee bar is being built today!

Check back later for more on Downtown. Our letters should be on the store front windows real soon.

Ronnie

The doors open at 9am Every Sunday Morning for gathering with other Youth. There is Soda, Coffee and Breakfast Items for everyone.

Come as you are, jeans and a t-shirt work just fine. Every Teen is welcome.

Our phone number is 276-730-0002 and you can visit our myspace page: @ http://www.myspace.com/outoftheboxdt

Great fellowship, friends and Bible Study.

I am introducing our son Kyle to the Bishop and Kyle says, “I heard you talking real loud this morning at church”! The picture tells the story.

Ronnie

Wow, what an Awesome and Blessed Day. Homecoming, Downtown Dedication and SNL. God is at work in Hillsville and the lives of people at FUMC Hillsville. Just a word of thanks to everyone that has helped and you are MANY. I will not start to name names because I would leave someone out and that doesn’t need to happen. People have worked and God has blessed and this ministry is off to a HUGE start. Here are some of the pictures taken yesterday and people are sharing more. As they come in I will share them here. By the way, it was awesome having Bishop Swanson and D.S. Chuck Starks here with us for the opening of “Out of the Box”. There were around 100 people in attendance.

This is so much bigger than we are, it is a WORK OF GOD!

Ronnie