FACTWeekly Update

Week of Sunday, JULY 14, 2024

WELCOME! Our heartbeat is to Connect to Christ, Grow with Others, and Engage the World together as Family. We gather to be disciples totally committed to Christ, becoming like Him in supreme love for God, selfless love for others, and sacrificial love for the world as we go locally, regionally, and globally. We hope you participate today with an expectation to encounter the Lord and a desire to celebrate the wonder of Jesus. It’s all about Him!

New (or New Again)?

We’re glad you are here. For information about Next Steps or Prayer, scroll to the bottom. Would you please take a moment and complete the Next Steps Card (button below) so we can start to get to know you? For information about FACTkids ministries (including Sunday morning Kingdom Kids), FACTyouth, or general FAQs about First Alliance Church, click here.

News & Information

In addition to the next steps given that are part of each opportunity, you can also stop by the Welcome Center or contact the FACT Office.

Summer means different schedules, longer daytime hours, and (maybe) more free time, but it doesn’t mean you stop growing as a biblical, loving, Spirit-filled disciples.

Connect to Christ with RightNow Media, personal spiritual disciplines, and consistent Sunday morning participation on-campus or online.

Grow with others by exercising intentional hospitality this month with food, prayer, and talking about who Jesus is to you.

Engage the World by being neighborly or serving a community agency. Love as Jesus loves.

What’s your next step this summer?

FACT Giving

June 2024

Monthly Needed Income for General Fund = $36,514
Monthly Received for General Fund = $37,342 (2% over budget)

Monthly Needed Income for GCF = $8,432
Monthly Received for GCF = $8,713 (3% over budget)

July 7, 2024
Received for General Fund =  $12,638
Received for the GCF = $4,173

FACTFAMILY NEWS

Risk Management Training (RMT)
It's time for Risk Management Training again. This year we will be doing all Risk Management Training (RMT) online. Anyone planning on working with kids under the age of 18 must complete Risk Management Training. 

• Risk Management Training (RMT) will open on July 15.

• Please keep in mind that you must have this completed before your ministry begins.

• Please leave enough time for a background check to be completed (plan on 5-7 days). This also needs to be complete before your ministry begins.

• If you are under the age of 18 or this is the first time you've done RMT at FACT, you will need the name, phone number, and email address for 3 references.

When you are ready to begin, go to factoccoa.com/risk. 

Ministry Opportunity: Become a Mentor
Do you have a heart for kids, a listening ear, and enjoy engaging with students? Serve as a mentor in the school system! Mentors are paired with students who would benefit from an extra layer of adult support or 1-on-1 interaction. Mentors are consistent, trustworthy adults who meet with students for up to 1 hour/week during the school year, providing ongoing encouragement to the student. For questions or for more information, contact Emily Sprowls, Mentor Coordinator: mentor@stephensfamilyconnection.org.

Back to School Prayer & Pie
Mark your calendars now for an evening of ‘Back to School Prayer & Pie’ for our faculty, staff, and students as school begins, Wednesday, July 31, at 6:30 pm. Bring a pie to share and stay for pie and fellowship after prayer.

Loss of a Spouse
Are you grieving the death of a spouse? Or do you know someone who is? We will be holding a Loss of Spouse Seminar, Saturday August 24, 2024, 9:30-11:30 am at First Alliance Church Toccoa. You can get more information and register at ToccoaGriefShare.com.

New Discipling Communities are coming this Fall! If you are interested in facilitating a group starting after the Summer, please reach out to Pastor Luke. The Discipling Community can be focused on the study of scripture, prayer, fellowship, or anything else that involves living out the deeper Christian Life together!

We are also now looking for Discipling Community Hosts! There are those who would like to lead a group, but do not have the space to host. If you're interested and able to host a discipling community in any capacity, please reach out to Pastor Luke!

IW of the Month

Jon and jessie ritchey

1. Jon had a wonderful week of training with the students in Paraguay. This training program is going through some transitions which we hope will strengthen it for the 2025 training year.

2. Please pray for several of the Departments of Missions of sending countries that are dealing with some very complex issues. These are AM equivalents that are hammering out policies, budgets, and priorities that fit their particular cultural context.  Pray that we would have wisdom and discernment as we serve as consultants for them.

3. Continue to pray for us as we prepare the Scarrow's home for sale while balancing out our current work load.

4. We celebrated the engagement for our son, Justin, to a wonderful young woman named Rachel this past week.

5. Continue to pray for the Latino cross-cultural workers that are returning to their sending churches in these days. Pray for rest and encouragement.

Monthly Prayer Focus

PRAY FOR New People

Pray for the Lord to bring new people who don’t have a church community to visit and become part of FACT because each of us, through connections where we live, take the opportunity to invite others with boldness. Pray that as new people come, their hearts and minds would be ready to hear and respond to Jesus through relationships. Pray that we, as a congregation, would be eager to welcome new people no matter where they are in life and freely show Christ’s love and grace. Pray that we would be aware of new people each time we gather, that we would use our existing relationships to incorporate new people, and that we will work together to make a positive, Christ-like first impression. Pray that our attitude would be to draw in people as we seek to make new biblical, loving, Spirit-filed disciples of Jesus of all ages.

Also, please pray for God's provision during this last month of our fiscal year. Can you be a part of helping FACT finish the year in a strong financial position?

All of Jesus for All the World
Alliance Ministries

WEST AFRICA

An Alliance team requests prayer as they work with local churches in their church-planting efforts. "Displaced people continue to move into our cities, and many are open to the gospel. Pray for several groups of believers meeting in outlying areas of our city and for those who are securing properties for churches."

SPAIN

Continue to pray for believers who are preparing for upcoming baptisms at Alliance churches. Pray, too, for the spiritual growth of the 16 believers who were recently baptized at the Barcelona Alliance Church. Pray that their testimonies will have lasting impact on their family, friends, and associates.

Do you have questions about First Alliance Church Toccoa? Take some time to explore FACToccoa.com or call or contact the church office.

If you are ready to take a next step to Connect, Grow, & Engage together as a part of First Alliance, let us know via a Next Steps Card, visit the Welcome Center if on campus, or call or contact the church office.

Are things going on in your life? Is God challenging you and you would like to talk to someone? Following the service, some of our elders and their wives are available for prayer in the Prayer Room (off the lobby near the restrooms). You can also Request Prayer if joining online.

You can submit Prayer Requests via a Next Steps Card, by contacting the church office, online at FACToccoa.com/prayer, through the FACT App, or by calling the church office. When you need prayer, we’re here for you.

Giving is one of the ways we respond to God in worship. We are able to gather & go locally, regionally, and globally through the consistent, generous tithes and offerings given. Here’s how you can give:

• Check/Cash in a Giving Box or mailed in

• Online via FACT app or this website.

• Text Give to 706-567-7379

Online options are safe, secure, and can be used to set up automated giving.

There’s an easy way for you to subscribe (or unsubscribe) to the various FACT e-newsletters. Visit FACToccoa.com/newsletters to subscribe to FACT news (weekly FACTs You Can Use and occasional other updates), prayer requests, men’s opportunities, women’s opportunities, FACTyouth Parents Update, or Married People Monthly.