Village Church Puts Their Faith In Action

by Erin Albert

I have the pleasure of speaking to you today and hopefully jump starting our Faith In Action campaign. As you may or may not know, I have been suffering from a health problem since January of this year. While the doctors struggled to figure out how to fix the problem, I underwent several surgeries, a few hospital stays, a literal brush with death, and tons of medicine that made me feel completely horrible. During this whole ordeal, one constant in my life was the outpouring of love my family and I received from the Village Church. We were truly blessed to be recipients of this church’s Faith In Action.

One main way this church expressed Faith in Action was to rally around my family and make sure all of our needs were met. Following the surgeries and hospital stays, we received meal upon meal from this church. If you put together a combined total of all the meals we received over this 8 month period, it would probably equal about 5 months worth of food.  Recently, I underwent a major surgery that severely limited my ability to do anything, and my family literally would not have been able to function during that time without this church. We received meals for a full month until my doctors gave me the “okay” to begin cooking again. Now, keep in mind, I’d had several smaller surgeries and hospital stays prior to this major surgery, and our church family fed us each time. I remember telling my husband that I would try to make freezer meals before my major surgery because I didn’t expect the church to feed us yet again. Recently, our church had welcomed two new babies, and the members was already busy feeding those new moms. So, I tried to get some meals ready myself. Some ladies in the church caught wind of these plans and informed me that my family would be fed following the major surgery. I told them that I certainly did not expect them to feed us yet again. They told me to put a halt to the freezer meals and prepare to be fed! In this world, love like that is so rare, and the source of that kind of constant, unwavering love is Christ Jesus. I have been so humbled by how joyfully this church served our family over and over again.

Another way this church showed us Faith In Action was by providing support. In late March, I ended up in the hospital in a life threatening situation. My family and I didn’t even know how life threatening it was until after the danger had passed and our doctor expressed how concerned he’d been during that time. I was in the hospital for nearly 4 days. During that time, I received a whole host of visitors. Aside from my parents, all of those visitors were from this church. One church member searched in three different stores to try to find my favorite drink to bring me. When she couldn’t locate it, she selected my second favorite drink, my favorite snack, and a magazine (because I love to read). I was overwhelmed with emotion because this person knew me so well. She paid attention to the details of me. Through her selfless act, I felt the heart of Christ. Another family in this church planned to go on a long awaited romantic vacation at the time of my hospitalization. Instead of heading straight to vacation, they stopped in to visit me in the hospital, and they brought a game to keep me and my husband from getting bored. They didn’t have to do that, but they chose to. And in doing so, they expressed to us the selflessness of Christ. Another member of this church stopped by and prayed with me. Just like the Good Book says, “When two or more are gathered in His name, He is there,” and He certainly was there. I felt the peace and comfort of Jesus as one of His devoted servants lifted our family up in prayer. In addition, several members of the church called me faithfully every day to check on me and to let me know they were praying for our family. I can’t begin to express how grateful we are and how moved we are for that display of Faith In Action. Interestingly, our family wasn’t the only group touched by this outpouring of love. One of my nurses said, “Wow, you’ve had more visitors and phone calls than anyone else in this ward ever has. The other nurses and I have been amazed by all the visits and calls, and some of the other patients have commented on how nice it is. You must have a big family.” I said, “Yes, I do. I have a big church family.”

A huge way this church showed my family Faith In Action was through prayer. We have been lifted up in prayer so many times! When I was waiting to go into the OR for my major surgery, I remember having a moment of slight panic and fear. In that time, God allowed me to experience amazing sensation. I could actually feel and almost even hear the prayers of this church family. I felt Christ’s presence in that room so powerful that I wept. My poor husband thought I was weeping with fear, but it was joy. Thank you for praying for me that day; I know for sure you were. It’s funny, I don’t remember being wheeled out of the little room where I was waiting for surgery, and I don’t remember being wheeled into the OR. But I do remember a conversation I had with a nurse just before I went under. She took my blood pressure and exclaimed in shock, “Your blood pressure is completely normal. I can’t even begin to tell you how rare it is for someone’s blood pressure to be this normal approaching this type of surgery.” I remember smiling, nodding, and saying, “There are a lot of people praying for me.” That’s all I remember after that.

So, how does this relate to the upcoming Faith in Action campaign? Well, I hope you come away with these three main points in mind as we begin our study. First, you never know how much of a difference even the smallest of acts will make. You may think you’ve not accomplished anything for the Kingdom because the work you’ve done seems small or insignificant. However, you just never know how God will use what you’ve done to draw people to Him. Making a meal for a needy family may not seem like a huge deal, but it means the world to that family and lovingly communicates the heart of Christ. So, I encourage you to serve Him wholeheartedly in acts big and small, and He will take care of the rest. Second, the love of Christ has a noticeable power. People that don’t know Christ are often drawn to those who do. They can’t figure out why people would show such unyielding love to others. The nurses and patients in the hospital noticed our church family and noticed the light of Christ Jesus in each person that visited and called. So, let your light shine in this dark world, and it will be noticed. Finally, know there is power in prayer. As we begin this Faith In Action campaign, lift up the people we will be serving, lift up our church family, and pray for a powerful movement in Holly Springs. God wants to do a might work through you, all you have to do is ask and be open!

I also wanted to take this opportunity to thank you all from the bottom of my hearts. I don’t know where my family would have been during this time had it not been for each of you. Thankfully, it appears my health ordeal is over, but the impression of Christ’s love that you left on my heart will remain forever. Thank you, and we thank God for you!

-The Albert Family