|  Youth leaders in the town of Emmett, near Boise, have begun to meet together and plan monthly youth rallies. Called One Truth, rallies are held at different churches each month. In addition, each year Emmett holds a Youth Appreciation Day with free activities for children and youth including helicopter rides.
Also in Emmett, one pastor sent a report of prodigals returning to the fold. The pastor said, "I believe God was answering the prayers of people around the valley and the nation." | |
| | Prayer Takes Hold in Treasure Valley. From November until May, about 2,100 people have been prayed for by name through seven churches in the Treasure Valley, and at least 44 people made commitments to Christ. The prayer effort began after 60 people from 21 churches in the Treasure Valley (Boise, Idaho) attended a prayer-care-share training session with MAC Facilitator Larry DeWitt. Also in the Treasure Valley, 1,500 people participated in Seek God for the City (a 40-day prayer focus leading up to Easter). When one radio station learned of the Treasure the Valley vision, it started a 30-minute, daily, live, call-in time of prayer. Treasure the Valley is a Loving Our Communities to Christ partner. | |
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Prayer-Care-Share Transformation Beginning in Treasure Valley: At a recent Loving Our Communities to Christ gathering in the Treasure Valley (Boise, Id. region), the mayor of Emmet shared that the whole town was talking about how the Church served the city by caring for the yards of foreclosed houses. "This was a win for everyone!" comments LC2C coach Dennis Fuqua. One of the pastors at the meeting also shared about nine children coming to Christ. | |
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Churches Work Together in Treasure Valley: The Church in the Treasure Valley / Boise region is collaborating to take care of the community. June began LC2C partner Treasure the Valley's "90 Days of Blessing" in which churches take on service projects in the community. Prior to that, this spring a local, city-owned golf course was running low on money and needed help getting the course ready for a property maintenance company review. Several churches volunteered to get the course in shape, a tremendous blessing for the city. In addition, also in the spring, more than 30 church volunteers went to a local landmark - Table Rock - and cleaned up trash and sifted through the soil with hand-made sifters to pick up broken glass. They cleared about five boxes of glass and debris from the area. | |
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God at Work in the Treasure Valley: Youth leaders in the town of Emmet, in the Treasure Valley, near Boise, have begun to meet together and plan monthly youth rallies. Called One Truth, rallies are held at different churches each month. In addition, each year, Emmett holds a Youth Appreciation Day with free activities for children and youth including helicopter rides.
lso in Emmet, one pastor sent a report of prodigals returning to the fold. One story is of a man, Brent, who had asked God to show him He was real. A song about angels became stuck in his CD player, playing repeatedly, and when he left the room, on TV was the same music artist. The young man told his girlfriend he thought God was speaking to him, so she suggested they go to church. They arrived halfway through a sermon about the prodigal son, and Brent was convicted. He recommitted his life to Christ. "People in the church were crying that day," writes Pastor Lance Zagarus with the story, "and when Brent told them he would be back to church if they wanted him, they cried out, Yes, Brent, we want you.'" Brent stopped drinking, and told his friends of the change in his life. Pastor Zagarus said, "I had no clue who would hear what God put on my heart. I believe God was answering the prayers of people around the valley and the nation." The Treasure Valley is a Loving Our Communities to Christ partner region.
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| | Treasure the Valley, the LC2C movement in Boise, Idaho, is transitioning from "initial momentum" to "ongoing movement." Its new mission statement is: "God is for you. So are we." About 10 congregations have already launched a pray-care-share "go to the wall" effort and another 10 anticipate launching soon. "Go to the wall" refers to churches establishing a place onsite - such as a prayer wall - where believers write the names of those they want to see come to know Jesus. The believers commit to regularly pray, look for ways to care, and share the gospel as the Holy Spirit leads. Three of the participating churches are praying for a total of more than 1,000 people. One pastor writes about the joy of seeing more people become involved in praying for their neighbors: "The best thing is the number of people who are getting involved in the prayer aspect of pray-care-share." | |
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