Vision
James Harrison is known as the man with the golden arm. This name wasn’t given because James was some great athlete that had a barrel of an arm. Nor was he a skilled card player that was good at winning. James Harrison was the man with the golden arm because he was a blood doner that saved the lives of two million babies in Australia. Let me tell you his story.
When James was just fourteen years old, he became ill and had to have one lung removed. He was in the hospital for three months and required a lot of blood. After receiving almost two gallons of donated blood, James regained his health. From that time on, he determined he wanted to give back. And he did! As soon as he turned eighteen, James began giving blood and plasma on a regular basis.
Meanwhile doctors in Australia were strug- gling with a condition in pregnant women. They found that Rh-negative blood type in mothers, carrying babies with Rh positive blood caused a fatal reaction in the baby.
Doctors were furiously searching for a cure. And finally found it in James Harrison’s blood. They discovered that he was producing the anti- D antibody which turned this negative reaction off between the mother and baby. The medi- cal community believed this was a result of the blood James received when he was fourteen.
So, for over sixty years, James Harrison donated his life-saving blood every single week. Enough blood was given to save the lives of two million babies, including his own grandson!
I can only imagine how grateful these families are for a man who saved the life of their child. He will forever be a hero to them.
As I read this beautiful story, it made me think of another man who gave his blood, not for some but for all! Regardless of our past or present condition, he freely offers all forgiveness of sin and eternal life. What a gift!
Whether they be our neighbors, co-workers, family, and friends right here in the Crossroads or those across the world in the dark unreached villages of Indua, Jesus wants them to hear the good news – and we can help!”
Faith Family, thank you for continuing to give your best prayers, gifts, and service so others live blessed at home and beyond! Let’s make this a record year of saving lives! Let’s expect more in 24!
OUR NEXT GENERATION
FOR THE LORD IS GOOD; HIS MERCY IS EVERLASTING, AND HIS TRUTH ENDURES TO ALL GENERATIONS. – PSALM 100:5
Last year, a student in FFC had a desire to experience summer camp, but he didn’t have the resources to go. The weeks passed, and it didn’t look like there was any way he would have the funds. At the last minute, a leader within the nextgen ministry heard about the need. Without the student knowing, they paid his spot in full! You can imagine the student’s excitement.
The time came for camp, and he loaded up the bus along with the other students. He came with a heart ready to have fun and to experience God. And he did. He engaged in team competitions, connected with other students, and experienced God powerfully in worship and services. His life was marked by God. But God had another special surprise up His sleeve.
One night in worship, the leaders encouraged students to prophesy over one another as they felt led. Camp cre- ates a safe place for students to practice life in the Spirit. The young man whose spot had been paid had a word come up in his heart; but it wasn’t for another student. It was for the leader who had paid his way (Remember, the student did know who had paid it!).
In obedience, he shared the word with the leader. It was an on-time word that brought great comfort and en- couragement. As the leader would say, “It was like God was saying, ‘Hey, here’s some of the fruit of your investment.”
This is one of many stories of how God is working among the next generation. He is using nextgen leaders who are living generously toward those coming behind them; and he is empowering students to rise up in faith to bless, not only their generation, but everyone around them. He is orchestrating God-moments that are marking lives of both students and leaders; and we couldn’t be more thankful!
To all those who serve, give, invest, and pray for the next generation – THANK YOU! Words can’t express how grateful we are for all that you give. This side of Heaven, we may not see the full fruit of our investments. But we know that we’ll rejoice in Heaven for eternity over the seeds that were planted and watered so that God’s Church would shine bright not only in our lifetime but for generations to come.
SPARK KIDS CAMP
We can’t wait for our annual SPARK Kids Camp! Every year, our ffckids hear Bible messages that make God real; form life-giving friendships; and enjoy team competitions and CRAZY games! This will be an unforgettable
week in every child’s summer, as we continue building godly foundations for incredible futures!
Fast Facts:
Who: 1st – 6th grades
Where: Camp Zephyr in Sandia, Texas
When: May 27th – June 30th, 2024
How Much: $235 per student sponsored
Keyword: KIDS
IGNITE SUMMER CAMP
Ignite Summer Camp has always been a highlight for our students at Faith Family! Ignite is one way our students encounter God through Spirit-filled worship services, teaching, and ministry geared toward teenagers. They also have incredible fun through team competitions and games that leave them with lasting memories. Ignite is a great place for teens to experience God in a fresh way and develop lasting friendships!
Fast Facts:
Who: 6th – 12th grade students
Where: Camp Zephyr in Sandia, Texas
When: May 27th-31st, 2024
How Much: $290 per child sponsored
Keyword: YOUTH
OUR COMMUNITY
“KINDNESS IS THE LANGUAGE WHICH THE DEAF CAN HEAR AND THE BLIND CAN SEE.” – MARK TWAIN
A man from Cape Town, South Africa moved to New York after completing his law degree. He came from a close-knit South African community. He grew up with neighborhood picnics, stop-in visits, and neighbors who felt more like family and close friends. They looked out for each other, watched each other’s kids, and helped fix broken down cars. He recounted, “I was taught to build a longer table instead of a higher fence.” Why? Because in the words of his godparents, “Following Jesus starts with the house next door.”
When he moved to New York, though, he feared he wouldn’t find opportunity for close-knit community. He wanted his twin daughters to grow up the way he did. He drove through many neighborhoods before finding one that looked promising. He saw kids playing on swing sets, families going on evening strolls, and neighbors playing in their lawn. Still, he had doubts. This place certainly had potential; but how could he cultivate what seemed to form so effortlessly in his childhood?
Then, the thought came to him: “Neighborhoods don’t mix together by magic. Someone has to be the first to step out and open up.”
He decided he would be the first. He prayed, “God, help me to be the neighbor I want to have.”
He started with a housewarming party, inviting all of his neighbors to come enjoy food, play games, and get to know each other. Many neighbors came. He continued host- ing other events, like a marshmallow roast that gathered over 100 people! With time and investment, his neighborhood became what he had experienced as a kid; what he had dreamed of for his girls. He concluded: “Upstate New York is a long way from Cape Town, but I’ve learned that it’s not a place that builds community but the people. People willing to do something daring: Love their neighbor.”
Faith Family, thank you for being among those who do the daring thing. Thank you for being among the first to say yes to the needs of our neighbors – to students needing sup- plies; single parents needing resources; the homeless needing care; young moms need- ing shelter; and so much more. The conditions of our neighborhoods, schools, public institutions, and communities won’t be a result of magic or chance. Like the man from Cape Town learned, their condition will be determined by the willingness of people to be the first; to do the daring thing; and to follow Jesus by loving the house next door.
Pack the Bus
Pack the Bus is a community-wide effort to provide school supplies to hundreds of VISD children in need. Our dream team gathers to help sort, pack, and distribute school sup- plies to our VISD students. We are grateful for the generosity of our church family as well as our community partners who help make this project possible. We love seeing smiles on faces as students step confidently into their new school year.
Fast Facts:
Who: Area Students
Where: FFC NextGEN Center
When: August 2024
How Much: 100 backpacks at $25
Keyword: BUS
Faith Academy Christian School
Faith Academy is a Faith Family Church ministry that has been effectively educating students for over four decades. It is a fully accredited private Christian school with programs ranging from day- care to twelfth grade.
Faith Academy is devoted to partnering with families to provide a biblically based education in a wholesome, Christ-centered environment. Students are academically challenged while also having the choice to participate in a variety of extracurricular and enrichment programs. Faith Academy is fortunate to have a caring and knowledgeable faculty who set the tone for students to form positive friendships and strengthen their faith. We are eager to assist in nurturing and educating the next gen- eration to become everything that God intended them to be!
Fast Facts:
Who: Students of the Crossroads area and FA Teachers
When: Jan – Dec 2024
Where: Faith Academy
How Much: About $5,000 per student per year
Keyword: FA
Legacy Scholarship
Every year this financial scholarship goes to a student who is diligent and dedicated to furthering their education. Through it, students are empowered to pursue a college education and further their dreams toward their degree and profession
Fast Facts:
Who: High School Seniors
Where: Faith Family Church
When: June 2024
How Much: $1,000/student
Keyword: SCHOLARSHIP
The Plan to Expand!
Plans are in the works to add on to our Next Gen building! This new facility will serve two purposes. It will be a Sun- day morning sanctuary for the Spanish-speaking community of Faith Family as well as a place for our Jhigh and high school students to meet on Wednesday nights.
We’ve found that many adults in the Victoria area speak Spanish as their first language; and many of their children speak English. We want to serve these families well by helping them worship together. This new addition will enable our Spanish- speaking friends to have a Sunday morning worship service in Spanish while their children and teens participate in our English Sunday morning activities. It will be a win for both, and we couldn’t be more excited! We look forward to all of us being on campus every week to worship God together and to serving our growing next-generation ministries even better!
Fast Facts:
Who: Spanish-speaking friends and teens
When: Jan – Dec 2024
Where: Faith Family Church
How Much: TBA
Keyword: CAMPUS
Angel Tree
Every year, children in our area experience Christmas while a parent or guardian is incarcerated. At Christmas, the difficulty of this reality is felt even more, by children and parents alike. Angel Tree gives incarcerated parents a way to provide a Christmas gift and a personal message to their children as a tangible representation of their love. Join us in ministering to families in our community by help- ing provide a Christmas gift to a child in need.
Fast Facts:
Who: Children of all Ages
When: Nov. 1st – Dec. 8th, 2024
Where: Faith Family Church
How Much: $30 per child
Keyword: ANGEL
Single Parent Blessing
Giving is what Christmas is all about. That’s why we enjoy celebrating some extremely deserving people during the holiday season: our single parents! We’re grateful for the gift they and their children are to our church family and look forward to helping them have a Merry Christmas!
Fast Facts:
Who: Single Parents
Where: Faith Family Church
When: December 2024
How Much: $7500/75 parents
Keyword: PARENTS
Victoria House of Palms Phased-In
Phased In is a transitional living program for foster youth who have aged out of the system. The goal of Phased In is to teach basic life skills that will prepare these young adults for independent living. It provides housing, education, medical care, and helpful life skills in partnership with the church, community, and state of Texas. VHOP has been invited to become a Phased In home for young women who are pregnant or have children. We have a chance to help these mothers and babies experience what they’ve lacked most – family
Fast Facts:
Who: Phased in residents
Where: Faith Family Church
When: Jan-Dec 2024
How Much: $50,000 for staff
Keyword: VHOP
El Roi Community Outreach
El Roi is a local non-profit organization that helps those in our community struggling with home- lessness, addiction, and hunger. Their on-campus food pantry for children helps supply free food for VISD children at no cost. Those struggling with homelessness can receive free meals and hygiene packages that supply them vital necessities for two weeks. They offer transportation to rehabilitation facilities for those struggling with addiction, when they are ready to receive help.
Fast Facts:
Who: Those Who are Homeless
When: All Throughout the year
Where: Victoria, Tx
How Much: $25,000 to renovate bus that serve as care units for the homeless
Keyword: COMMUNITY
FFC Prison Ministry
There are hurting people who are looking for hope all through- out the crossroads within our jails and prisons. We have a trained team of people who regularly visit and share the Good News of Jesus. They provide Bibles, minister, and pray with them. Thank you for your support in helping us practice Mat- thew 25:39-40.
Fast Facts:
Who: The Incarcerated
Where: Jails & Prisons throughout the Crossroads
When: Jan – Dec 2024
How Much: $10,000 (to provide Bibles, curriculums, and travel costs)
Keyword: PRISON
UNREACHED FRONTIERS
Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days. Ecclesiastes 11:1
In 1921, a young couple named David and Svea Flood heard God’s call to be missionaries. After much prayer, they moved from Sweden to the heart of Africa to what was then called the Belgian Congo. They went to a remote village to live and prayed for a spiritual breakthrough. But there seemed to be none.
The only meaningful contact they had was with a young African boy who delivered eggs twice a week. Svea determined if this was the only African, she could talk to, then she’d lead him to Jesus. And she did! This young man became their only African convert.
In 1923, Svea gave birth to a little girl named Aina. Due to bouts of Malaria and weakness, Svea passed away, only seventeen days after giving birth. Broken-hearted and bitter, David Flood returned to Sweden but never again to ministry.
Meanwhile, little Aina was adopted by a wonderful missionary couple and brought back to South Dakota to be raised. They changed her Swedish named Aina to Aggie.
Aggie grew up and married a young preacher who later became the president of a Christian College. One morning in 1963, Aggie received a Swedish Magazine in her mailbox. She was stunned by a photo of a primitive grave in the heart of Africa with the name, Svea Flood on it.
The article was about a young Swedish couple who came to the Belgian Congo to share the gospel. It spoke of her mother’s death, her birth and the African boy that was led to Christ.
Aggie read how this young African boy gradually won all the students in his school to Christ. The children in turn, led their parents to Christ. Now there were 600 Christian believers in this
one village where there’d been none. Also, this young African man was now a prominent church leader over 110,000 Christians in Democratic Republic of the Congo. (formerly Belgian Congo.)
Aggie was deeply grateful that her parent’s sacrifice had not been in vain. In fact, it had been abundantly fruitful! We can never underestimate what our seeds of obedience will mean for eternity. Hebrews 4:12 reminds us that God’s word or seed is living and active.
Thank you for helping sow seed among the unreached villages of our world for over three decades. One day we’ll see all that’s been accomplished and rejoice together over the eternal fruit!
Hope for Israel
The crisis in Israel following the Hamas terrorist at- tack of October 7th has been devastating. Loved ones have been lost and livelihoods and homes destroyed, leaving many in great need of hope and healing. But we can help! FIRM is an organization within Israel that mobilizes the body of Christ to be the hands and feet of Jesus to those who are suffering. We can join with them as a church to help rebuild homes, lives and minister healing through trauma therapy and counseling. Let’s be a part of praying for and bless- ing Israel during this crucial time.
Fast Facts:
Who: Victims of Israeli War
When: Jan – Dec 2024
Where: Israel
How Much: $10,000
Keyword: HOPE
RUN
RUN is a ministry that focuses on rescuing, empow- ering and multiplying gospel movements in nations resistant to Christianity. Across the Middle East and Africa scores of children are being trafficked as child brides and trained as Isis soldiers. RUN is not only rescuing these children but placing them in Je- sus following families. Here they receive love, edu- cation, care, and crisis counseling for trauma. We can be a part of helping to redeem these precious young children from the clutches of the enemy. Our prayers and gifts can make an eternal difference.
Fast Facts:
Who: Orphans of War
When: Jan – Dec 2024
Where: Middle East/Africa
How Much: $15,000
Keyword: RUN
Missions Testimony
Khushi Sonu Chouhand comes from the Banchada community in the city of Neemuch. Khushi’s mother was a sex worker and conceived her through one of her customers. Khushi’s father left the family, and her mother continued in sex work. Before Khushi turned 12 and would enter prostitution, she was rescued through the House of Palms. Khushi has been there for five years now and is enjoying the godly environment and growing in her walk with God. She is currently in 5th grade and doing well in school. Khushi has a dream of becoming a doctor one day.
Significant Church Leaders Retreat
The Significant Church Network was founded by Pastor Jim to celebrate the significance of churches in America’s smaller cities and towns by offering support and encouragement to their hard-working ministry leaders. One way we do this is through our SCN Leaders Retreat. Once a year, pastors from all over our nation and beyond gather at the SCN Leaders Retreat to learn best practices, build ministry friendships, and enjoy a special time of rest and rejuvenation. Entrance into the retreat is offered to pastors entirely free and includes ca- tered meals, sessions with proven leaders, ministry resourc- es, and more. If you’d like to help sponsor a pastor to attend the retreat, you can do so by giving to this project. Thank you for your heart to support those laboring well in overlooked places.
Fast Facts:
Who: Pastors (In America’s smaller cities and towns)
When: January 29th-31st, 2024
Where: The Woodlands Resort in The Woodlands, TX
How Much: $500 per pastor
Keyword: SCN
You can give to any of these projects here.
Remember to use the key word to designate your gift to the project of your choice