Welcome to the Victory Blog

I live in Pennsylvania and have been here all of my life. I am now 32 years old and ever since I was 19, I’ve considered my parents to be my best friends, but they were first and foremost my parents. I grew up a Christian believing that relationship with God is better than religion. My dad read the bible every day, my mom did her devotion every day, and we attended church every Sunday.

I just finished watching the sermon that Pastor Colleen did on July 10th. I have a moment that I seized; it was small, but it had a big impact in my life. Eight years ago on May 10, 2003, I got married. Before my husband and I tied the knot, my mom-in-law asked if there was a chance that we could hold off the wedding for another year. Something was telling me not to postpone the wedding and to go ahead and do it in 2003 instead of 2004. So we got married. I took that moment and did what God was telling me to do.

We got back from our honeymoon on May 20^th, which was a Tuesday, and we saw my parents on Saturday May 24^th. My dad came home five minutes before we left, and again something told me to go and say hello and I love you to my dad before I left. I did what I felt God wanted me to do. Those three words I spoke to my dad were the last words he heard me say, because God called him home Sunday May 25^th. He had just come back from church and was not feeling good, so he lay down and was reading his bible when he had a heart attack.

I am so glad I listened to God when He gave me those moments—one for my dad to walk me down the aisle on my wedding day and two for me to tell him just how I felt about him. I thank God everyday for my parents. Growing up, my dad did not want a family because he did not want to end up hurting them because his parents got divorced and his brother and sisters got divorced. He is the only one that stayed married, and he died knowing that he made the right choice in seizing the moments that God gave him.

I visited your church on July 17th with my husband, my mom and my mom in-law, and now I am home in West Chester, PA happy to know that I can stay connected with my in-laws and the church they go to through this website. Thank you for the opportunity to share and be a part of your internet congregation.

______

We want to hear about what God has done in and through you at Victory. Whether long or short, complex or simple, your story is worth hearing, and there are others who need to hear it. Won’t you please consider sharing your story with us? If you’re willing to do so, please go to our homepage, victoryatl.com and click the Share Your Story quicklink, write your story, upload a nice photo (if you can) and click submit. It’s that simple. Now, don’t be shy. God’s given you a story for a reason! Share it today!

We invite you to join us for:
21 Days of Prayer and Fasting
January 8th-28th, 2011

The Power of Prayer & Fasting

As we enter into a new year, it’s time to honor the Lord with our annual 21 Days of Prayer & Fasting. For many years, as a church, we’ve set apart at least 21 days in the month of January to pray and fast for breakthrough in our personal lives, in the body of Christ, in our nation and in our world.

If you will be joining us, we’d like to send you an encouraging and informative email each day during the fast. These emails will serve to strengthen your spirit as you deny your flesh and will also inform you of the needs we will be praying for corporately each day. If you’re interested, you can subscribe here to receive these daily sources of inspiration.

Or, you may download a PDF version of our 21 Days of Prayer & Fasting Daily Study Guide here.

Types of Fasts - You may choose a “Daniel’s Fast” – a diet consisting of fruits and vegetables, or you can participate in a total fast, consisting of water only, or a liquid fast of fresh juices. Other ways to participate include fasting from television, radio, internet, or anything that you recognize as having control over your life. Fasting is something the entire family can participate in to varying degrees – each person in their own way.

About Fasting - It is much easier to fast while active. Fasting will cause hunger pangs initially, but you will get the energy you need from stored fat in the body. If you are under the care of a physician, please seek his/her advice regarding the level of participation that is best suited to your physical condition.

Why Fast? – Fasting is the most powerful spiritual discipline of all those discussed in the Bible. Through fasting and prayer, the Holy Spirit can transform your life and produce incredible results. Prayer alone is mighty, but when combined with fasting it produces a powerful force against which hell cannot prevail.

Filling Ourselves during a Fast - The secret to being filled with the Spirit of God is first to empty ourselves. Through fasting, we empty ourselves of food so that He can fill us. Food is man’s greatest carnal impulse. Fasting helps you to master this appetite. When you can control the strongest appetite, you can gain control of the other carnal appetites as well. Your appetite acts as a prayer alarm. Instead of eating to satisfy your cravings, you pray. This keeps you focused all day long. We replace pleasures of the flesh with spiritual pleasure. Psalm 34:8 says, “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him!” Taste is a trigger which sets off certain physical and mental reactions or connections. When you taste the Lord through fasting and prayer, it triggers various reactions in your heart.

Best Ways to Prepare Physically for the Fast – While hunger pangs and weakness can be expected, you need not dehydrate, faint or get sick while fasting. There are several ways to prepare yourself physically for a healthy fast:

Days before the Fast

• Stop eating foods that are high in caffeine or sugar.
• Begin drinking more water than usual.

Day before the Fast

• Eat something small every two hours.
• Avoid foods with caffeine or salt.
• Drink plenty of water.

Final Meal before the Fast

• Plan your final meal early enough in the afternoon so there’s no rush to finish before your fast begins.
• This final meal should contain high carbs and low salts.
• Don’t eat too much, but drink plenty of water

Good Advice for Ending Your Fast – After 21 days of fasting you may be tempted to “jump right back in” and eat some of the foods you’ve missed. However, it’s much better to ease back into your normal eating habits rather than suffer from an upset stomach by loading it with foods it’s not ready to digest. Here are some healthy ideas for ending your fast:

• Begin with the simple B.R.A.T. diet – Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, Toast
• Begin with brothy soups and avoid heavy carbs and proteins
• Eat something small and light every two hours; drink plenty of water

Additional health benefits of fasting:

• The body goes through a natural detoxification process, allowing for the release of poisons and toxins from the system.
• Energy is diverted away from the digestive system due to its lack of use, and instead is routed toward the metabolism and the immune system. This allows for a swifter healing process.
• One becomes more rejuvenated due to an improved immune system, as well as the increased production of hormones.
• The body begins to use its fat stores as an energy source, which positively affects one’s cholesterol levels, blood pressure, and weight.
• Going without food imposes a mild stress on the cells of the body, causing the cells to respond by growing stronger and increasing their ability to cope with more severe stress. This causes one to become more resistant to sickness and disease.

And don’t miss PASSION 2.0 – an amazing evening of passionate worship and in-depth teaching from the word – each Wednesday during the fast -  January 12th, 19th & 26th – beginning at 7:30pm in our Atlanta Campus main auditorium (V1)! Let’s take it to another level! Click here for more info.

Each year since 2003, during the first weekend of October, churches across metro Atlanta have partnered together to serve the community during Compassion in Action Weekend. Well, this year was no exception. In fact, it was a big win for the body of Christ in Gwinnett County, and for Victory as well!.

For Gwinnett County, because over the course of this weekend, some 2,560 believers from over 100 churches came together to serve on 108 different outreaches throughout the county. Participants did everything from mowing lawns to painting a rooms, clearing brush, distributing food, beautifying local schools and parks, visiting nursing homes and detention centers, and much, much more.

And, this was a great weekend for Victory because of those 108 outreaches, 24 were facilitated by Victory. And of the 2560 participants, 1,108 came from Victory. These were men, women and children, young and old, of all races reaching out to their neighbors and others to show the love of Christ. How awesome it is to see the body of Christ serving our community in this way! So many people were blessed…and not just those on the receiving end of these loving acts of service. As one Victory volunteer said, “This was the first time we volunteered as a family. It was powerful in more ways than one. It was really important for my children to experience. We loved it!”

Were you there? We’d love to hear about your experience. If you’d like to tell us about it, click to Share Your Story. And don’t forget to do this anytime God does something in or through your life as a part of Victory so others can be encouraged as well!

Unite 2010 Recap from Victory Videos on Vimeo.

“I’m 69 years old. I was diagnosed with cancer in the 3rd stage. I said, ‘I’m alright.’ I lied. I was screaming and hollering and saying, ‘God, why me?!’” ~ Gloria

Watch this powerful Story of Victory and healing!

Hey! Has God done something amazing in your life as a part of Victory World Church? Please help encourage others in their faith – Share your Story of Victory here!

Over the last four months since the catastrophic earthquake decimated the impoverished island nation of Haiti, many people from Victory World Church and others in our community, have generously given of their resources in an incredible way. Here is a synopsis of the things that God has accomplished thus far (as of May 12th, 2010) through this outpouring of compassion:

• We have sent 27 people to Haiti in three different mission teams, with more on the way.
• Provided $800K of relief for $40K investment on trip 1
  • Delivered full day’s ration to over 150,000 people
  • Delivered over 38,000 gallons of water
  • Provided wood for Canadian Navy to build 2 shelters for 96 orphans
• Had a role in the building of 6 more shelters for 288 orphans
  • 4 shelters built by Canadians using wood we provided
  • 2 shelters built by team 3 using wood Canadian Navy provided
• Provided mattresses and pillows for 240 beds for orphans (trip 2 and 3)
• Provided sheets and pillowcases for 96 beds for orphans (trip 2)
• Provided Medical Relief
  • Dr. Donavan Christie saw hundreds of patients (trip 1)
  • Progressive Medical saw hundreds of patients (trip 2)
• Sent by 20’ container #1: Over $25K worth of clothing, food, and medical supplies. Items were distributed by team 2 to two orphanages and one displaced persons camp
• Sent by 40’ container #2: Over $82K worth of clothing, food, water, medical supplies, tents (420), tarps (300), generators (3), and construction tools. Items were distributed by team 3 to two displaced person camps, an orphanage, a TB hospital, Operation Hope and Grace International
• En route by container #3: $272K worth of goods is on its way now [1800 tents, $80K in medical supplies, 40’x60’ tent (temporary church and school for orphanage) food, and clothes]

And here’s a closer look at our work with the orphanages:

After the January 12, 2010 earthquake in Haiti, Victory World Church and International Crisis Aid (ICA) first responded by providing food and water to an orphanage in Leogane, Haiti that once provided a home for up to 100 children, a school for 400 children and a church for the community, but which had collapsed in the earthquake. Thankfully, none of the children were in the buildings during the earthquake. However, since that time, they had been sleeping on the grass under thin sheets, and their food would have lasted just two more days when Victory World Church and ICA arrived.

That night ICA President Pat Bradley said, “As we walked in, we found the kids singing Bible songs. It was music to my ears! At the same time, it was the worst destruction I’ve ever seen. Everything is completely leveled. No one has been to help them yet. No one would have found this place. Most of the children are very young — around three to ten years old. These are children were orphaned before the earthquake, and now, the little they did have is also gone.”

We believe God took us to Haiti to find this orphanage. Over the next few days, as the number of children quickly increased to 100, ICA was able to secure enough food, water, powdered milk and blankets from the US Marines to last several weeks at the orphanage. The Canadian Army led the debris clean-up and assisted with distributions. Today, most of the debris on the compound has been cleared. This was the first of four orphanages Victory World Church and ICA assisted.

With the assistance of the Canadian Navy, we have already completed four shelters for more than 240 children at four different orphanage compounds. The first two shelters were built at what we have come to call “Our Orphanage” — the first compound Victory World Church and ICA discovered. As this number continues to grow, ICA is planning to rebuild the one orphanage for 100 children, school for 400 children and church in its entirety. If funding allows, the goal is to enlarge the compound to allow for more orphans to have a home.

More info about this orphanage

• The orphanage was founded and built by a Haitian businessman who used the profits from his business and very few donations from the community to build the compound over time.
• The orphanage sits on approximately 3 acres of level land.
• The average age of the children at the orphanage is 10 years old.
• There were originally 50 girls and 35 boys in January, but the number of children is growing due to the number of new orphans displaced by the January earthquake.
• The average length of time the children have lived at the orphanage is more than 4 years.
• ICA and the orphanage director are working with a professional construction engineer for site preparations and to design the new compound.
• ICA plans to use concrete blocks that are made to be hurricane and earthquake resistant, providing a safer facility for the children. ICA is in conversations with businesses that specialize in this type of building materials.
• There was a fence surrounding the compound which will need to be taken down and rebuilt.
• ICA intends to build the orphanage using both experienced construction worker volunteer teams from the U.S. and Haitians. We believe it is important to involve the local Haitian community in this project. The Haitians will be paid labor.
• This orphanage will provide a safe home for at least 100 children who are orphaned or whose parents are unable to meet their basic needs. It will also serve as a school for at least 400 children from the community. The orphanage has been and will continue to be a Christian orphanage where the children are brought up under Christian principles and the Word of God. ICA’s goal is to raise these children to be the next generation leaders of their nation, rather than adopting them out of the country.
• In the future, and as funding becomes available, ICA intends to implement vocational training programs at the school, which will not only teach the older children trades they can eventually start their own business from, but that will also provide sustainability for the compound. Before the orphanage collapsed, they had a bakery which was just starting to produce some income for the operational budget. ICA plans to rebuild the bakery in time. In addition, ICA plans to obtain a Cement Block Making Machine which will allow us to make blocks for the orphanage and also sell them to the community.

Thank you!

It was such a pleasure and a privilege to have John Maxwell, one of our dearest friends and long-term mentors, speak this past weekend as we continue our 20th Anniversary celebrations. The word he brought was, not surprisingly, excellent. I’m not going to repeat it all here, beyond the few key points which follow, so I strongly encourage you to watch it, listen to it and/or download it from our website. If you were there this weekend, you know this message is worth hearing again, and if you weren’t there… well… what are you waiting for?! You don’t want to miss this!

For now, here’s a small sample of his challenging, yet uplifting message:

• What we do on the outside is a result of who we are on the inside. Everything happens from the inside out
• When you’re better on the inside than you are on the outside, and when you’re bigger on the inside than you are on the outside, over time, your influence will be greater on the outside.
• Conversely, if we’re bigger and better on the outside than we are on the inside, our influence will become less on the outside.
• The first person you lead is not someone else, it’s yourself. If you wouldn’t follow yourself, why should anyone else?
• There are four basic levels of getting better on the inside than on the outside:
  1. The Give Me Stage
  2. The Use Me Stage
  3. The Search Me
  4. The Make Me Stage

If you want yourself as an individual, and Victory as a church body, to have increasing influence in our world, you need to get the truth of this message embedded in your spirit. Listen to it and meditate on it. And as John said in his message, if we’ll continue in this path, over the next 5-10 years, it’s going to be unbelievable what God is going to do through Victory. We haven’t seen anything yet!

KING OF GLORY, HAVE YOUR GLORY!

This was the theme that played out on July 26th, at Thirst, a special service dedicated to seeking the Lord through powerful prayer and purposeful praise and worship.

Even before the service began, the atmosphere was positively charged with excitement and anticipation. People young and old from all walks of life made their way into the sanctuary. This was not going to be a normal service – evidenced by the lively and talkative crowd. Expectation was in the air!

The service began with praise and worship. Voices and hands were lifted high, praising the Lord for His glory. As we worshiped in song, many followed the example of David and worshiped in dance. “David danced before the Lord with all his might…” (2 Samuel 6:14 NRSV).

We took time to send up special prayers to the Lord. Prayers for our children, teens and teachers. God is certainly raising up a generation that is on fire for Him, to prepare the world for His return! Praise the Lord!

We prayed over marriages, and Pastor Colleen prayed specifically for the wives – that they would take their place as women in their marriages and submit to their husbands.

Those called to the mission field were prayed for, as well as all of us as missionaries in our everyday lives – to our neighbor’s, co-workers and everyone with whom we come into contact.

A final prayer was given for all of the unemployed, specifically that they would receive jobs within the week ahead.

Through all of this praise, worship and prayer, we gathered as the body of Christ to seek the Lord. This was our thirst for the Lord, and we know that He is the only one who is able to quench our thirst!

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they will be filled” (Matthew 5:6 NRSV).

- Alex Hogan

(Click on photos to see entire gallery.)

In case you haven’t heard, throughout the summer, Fusion, our 20-somethings ministry has left the building and is taking it to the streets, engaging the community as Jesus would! Just because they aren’t having formal services doesn’t mean they’re just kicking back for the summer. No, through Fusion small groups and social justice projects they’re sharing Jesus with our community in real and practical ways, reaching out to neighbors, helping people in need and shining the light of God’s love into dark places. Check out these video blog posts highlighting some of what God’s already been doing in and through them:

And that’s not all! Check out the Fusion Blog to see what else is has been going on.

Plus, the summer’s only half over! There’s a lot more to come!

Two and a half years and over fifty thousand dollars and we are finally debt free except for our mortgage. To some it might sound like no big deal, or to others it may seem like bragging, but to Torrey and me, it’s the most significant hurdle we have overcome, and it was only by the grace of God.

Three years ago, I was barely able to pay my bills, let alone tithe and give to others. I was 34 years old and had almost $25,000 in credit card debt. Not a proud moment in my life, but it’s the truth. When Torrey and I decided to get married we knew it had to be by God’s rules and not our own. That included our finances. What had to happen was a heart transformation that would put my total trust in God for his provision and blessing.

So I sold the car that I loved and started driving an older car that had belonged to my mother but was paid for. God put the idea on my heart to ask a dear friend if she minded a roommate until I got married five months later. I had never had a roommate before so this was new to me, but she immediately said, “Yes!!” I paid very little rent as Torrey and I saved to pay for our wedding in cash.

While we were engaged, Torrey and I attended the Crown Ministries (www.crown.org) class at Victory. (Click here for class registration and info.) This was more than a financial stewardship class. It was a heart-transforming lesson on what the Word of God says about how he desires for us to handle all that he has given us to manage; time, money, our jobs, future children, investments and so much more. This was the foundation.

First and foremost, we faithfully and cheerfully tithed and put ourselves on a budget and did not stray from it. We made sacrifices that were sometimes hard, but we never went without food, shelter or the basic needs. We sacrificed travel, entertainment, eating out, and new clothes and, sometimes, we ate peanut butter and jelly during the last week of the month when the food budget was gone. If something came up and it was not in the budget, we did not buy it.

But God was always there. We have had a lot of fun in these last few years. I have won tickets to concerts and sporting events, and people have given us tickets to events and blessed us in many ways. We were able to have people to our house to eat on many occasions. Our hearts’ desire was to go on a mission trip to Mexico, a first for both of us. We were left with only three weeks to try to raise the money and a few days before the trip, we were blessed with the exact amount we needed to go, plus a little spending money. We also found that things were going well for us. Our cars did not break down. We were not sick and things around the house were maintained and in good shape.

Now we are following the sound financial advice of Dave Ramsey from his book Total Money Makeover. This is a book that provides sound, common sense advice with a Christian value system. A theme in his book is “If you will live like no one else, later you can live like no one else.” Our goal is to be “supernatural sowers” in God’s Kingdom, as my husband says!

We don’t know the plan that God has for our life yet, but we want to be ready to carry it out when we are called. Our journey so far has shown us that God is faithful, and being obedient to His calling reaps huge rewards for the greater good.

Amy and Torrey Edwards

We want to invite you to join us for 30 Days of Prayer and Fasting beginning January 2nd. If you’ve never fasted, now is the best time, as this is a joint venture! In the New Testament, Jesus made mention of when we fast – not if - telling us that this should be a regular discipline in our lives. Also, we encourage you to join us each Sunday evening at 6pm in V1 for a time of Corporate Prayer and Worship. When we fast and pray together, tremendous breakthrough is released, and we’re excited to see what God will be doing through this fast. Won’t you join us?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In order to help you in this venture, we’ve compiled this information:

Types of Fasts - You may choose a “Daniel’s Fast” – a diet consisting of fruits and vegetables, or you can participate in a total fast, consisting of water only, or a liquid fast of fresh juices. Other ways to participate include fasting from television, radio, internet, or anything that you recognize as having control over your life. Fasting is something the entire family can participate in to varying degrees – each person in their own way.

About Fasting - It is much easier to fast while active. Fasting will cause hunger pangs initially, but you will get the energy you need from stored fat in the body. If you are under the care of a physician, please seek his/her advice regarding the level of participation that is best suited to your physical condition.

Why Fast? – Fasting is the most powerful spiritual discipline of all those discussed in the Bible. Through fasting and prayer, the Holy Spirit can transform your life and produce incredible results. Prayer alone is mighty, but when combined with fasting it produces a powerful force which hell cannot prevail against.

Filling Ourselves during a Fast - The secret to being filled with the Spirit of God is first to empty ourselves. Through fasting, we empty ourselves of food so that He can fill us. Food is man’s greatest carnal impulse. Fasting helps you to master this appetite. When you can control the strongest appetite, you can gain control of the other carnal appetites as well. Your appetite acts as a prayer alarm. Instead of eating to satisfy your cravings, you pray. This keeps you focused all day long. We replace pleasures of the flesh with spiritual pleasure. Psalm 34:8 says, “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him!” Taste is a trigger which sets off certain physical and mental reactions or connections. When you taste the Lord through fasting and prayer, it triggers various reactions in your heart.

Best Ways to Prepare Physically for the Fast – While hunger pangs and weakness can be expected, you need not dehydrate, faint or get sick while fasting. There are several ways to prepare yourself physically for a healthy fast:

Days before the Fast

1. Stop eating foods that are high in caffeine or sugar.
2. Begin drinking more water than usual.

Day before the Fast

1. Eat something small every two hours.
2. Avoid foods with caffeine or salt.
3. Drink plenty of water.

Final Meal before the Fast

1. Plan your final meal early enough in the afternoon so there’s no rush to finish before your fast begins.
2. The menu of this final meal should contain high carbohydrates and low salts.
3. Do not eat too much in the meal before the fast, but drink plenty of water

Good Advice for Ending Your Fast – After 30 days of fasting you may be tempted to “jump right back in” and eat some of the foods you’ve missed. However, it’s much better to ease back into your normal eating habits rather than suffer from an upset stomach by loading it with foods it’s not ready to digest. Here are some healthy ideas for ending your fast:

1. Begin with the simple B.R.A.T. diet recommended for upset stomachs – Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, Toast
2. Begin with brothy soups and avoid heavy carbs and proteins
3. Eat something small and light every two hours and drink plenty of water

Here are some questions we have received about this fast and our answers to them:

Q. Can you provide us with the additional scriptures on fasting as well as the types of fast?

A. Here is a good online resource that lists all the major scriptures on fasting: http://www.dianedew.com/fasting.htm

Q. Are we supposed to fast continously for the 30 days or do we break at some point in the day for example after 6pm?

A. The direction of your individual fast is completely a personal decision between you and God. For the Victory 30-day Fasting and Prayer, there are no set rules regarding which types of fast you choose or how long you fast during the day. Many people choose to follow the Daniel Fast for 30 days or split their fast up into four separate weeks of different fasts such as water only, fruits, Daniel fast, etc. Some are being led to Media fasts or other types of fasts depending on what God is trying to do in their personal lives. The main objective is that as a church we are joined together in fasting and believing God for strength and blessing for our church, our families, our nation and our world this year.

Q. I am married, is sex allowed during the fast?

A. Regarding sex during a fast, as a married couple you are allowed to have sex during a fast unless both you and your spouse are in agreement to abstain for a certain period of time. Essentially, one spouse cannot call a sexual fast without the agreement of the other spouse. However, a sexual fast doesn’t necessarily have to coincide with other types of fasts.

Q. I was wonder if I may participate in the 30-day fast even though I’m not a member (yet)?

A. Absolutely, we welcome your participation and partnership with us in the season of fasting.\

Q. Do we have a daily Scripture or prayer focus? What about a booklet like we’ve had in past years?

A. No, we as a church did not feel directed by the Lord to limit our prayers to specific topics each day. Instead, let us encourage you to ask the Holy Spirit to lead you according to His will. It’s amazing how the Lord harmonizes the prayers of His people when they are seeking Him. To get a sense of what is going on in the church as a body, let us also encourage you to take part in the Thirst services each Sunday evening at 6pm (if you’re not doing so already).