Articles & Stories
Resources to inspire, challenge, and inform
The following was written by Sara Frank, the mother of Allison Frank. It details what God did in Allison's life through the faithful prayer of her parents, family, and friends. "A little over three years ago, our oldest daughter was diagnosed with juvenile dermatomyositis, a rare autoimmune disease that can attack the skin, muscles, and internal organs. At our first appointment with the rheumatologist, he told us we needed to start her on medicine right away.
What follows is a story from Brian Steere on how an act of kindness changed his life. “I met Matt Paddack, Relevant’s Worship Pastor, in November of 2015. A few months prior, my marriage was irretrievably broken, I had lost my job, I had no money, and I was unable to pay my bills for several months. I thought I was going to lose my possessions like my house and vehicles. Christmas was coming and I couldn’t even provide a gift for my child.”
For over two years I’ve had a lot of back and SI joint pain, sometimes severe, often just uncomfortable and annoying. Because this has been going on awhile, I started accepting this pain as something I might deal with for the rest of my life (often people do). As a physical therapist, in some ways I think I’ve gotten hardened by seeing and hearing stories of people having chronic back pain. Despite my efforts to treat it myself, it has never gone completely away.
If we’re being honest, pretty much everybody feels warm and fuzzy on the inside when we are the recipient of generosity, OR when we get to bless someone else. Unexpected generosity is especially powerful. It can change a person’s day….sometimes, their life. With all that's going on in our country right now, it's time to show some kindness to one another, don't you think?
This letter was sent to us during our inaugural year for Vacation Bible School (which we now call Summer Blast). Such a powerful story of how God transforms lives during this week for our children. Dear Relevant VBS Volunteers, I just had to write and tell you all thank you. I know this past week at VBS has meant many very late and stressful nights, busy days, time off work, time away from your children, and busy, hot, chaotic days with 100 young children!
It's been a fun couple weeks as we've heard TONS of stories about people using the Something Unexpected Cards! Below is a string of many of the posts we've seen on social media so far. Search for the hashtag #SomethingUnexpectedCards on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram to stay up to date on how Relevant folks are blessing others during this Christmas season.
Jameson and Harrison were both born 3 months early at 27 weeks. They weighed just 2lbs 3oz and 2lbs 4oz. They entered this world covered in prayer. Cassie was hospitalized when the boys were 23 weeks and she was able to remain on bedrest and carry the boys to 27 weeks. We spent our days in prayer that we would be able to carry the twins until they were viable.
