Rays of Hope

Meet Janice Brown as she tells us a bit about herself and the Altar Guild Ministry.

Earlene Utsey & Janice Brown

Tell us a little about yourself.
I am a server & educator by nature. These are the gifts God gave me and I am passionate about them. I love sharing with others about the goodness of God! I also enjoy gardening, quilting & entertaining.

What is your ministry's mission/vision statement?
Our mission is to ensure the sanctuary is prepared for service.

Who can participate in your ministry?
Anyone may participate in the Alter Guild.

How long have you been involved in the ministry?
The years have started to run together, but I think I have been involved with the Guild for about 5 years.

How long have you been leading the ministry?
For about 2 years.

What caused you to get involved and lead the ministry?
One of my best friends started attending HOPE, then Edgebrook Church, about 13 years ago & she remarked on how beautiful the communion service was. I began to visit, agreed and soon became a member. I had been a part of the communion service at my old church & was a little unsure of how to do so here. I sat back for years, but eventually, Earlene & I became friends through the HOPE Bible study when we were reading, The Purpose Driven Life. She had just became involved & through reading the book, I realized God was prompting me to get involved too. We both began taking on more leadership roles as needed & eventually we were asked to lead.

How has leading this ministry impacted your life?
Leading this ministry has helped me become more connected with our church as a family.

If you could speak to someone who is considering participating in the ministry, what would you say?
If God is leading you, please come! There is no greater joy than serving our God through serving His people!

If I were a participant in your ministry, what could I expect?
Expect to learn more about the purpose of the altar in the church & how to prepare it. We have about 4-6 meetings per year; in addition we are beginning a quarterly fellowship this year. Mostly, expect lots of love and support!

What kind of feedback do you receive from participants?
We receive positive feedback about being on the Alter Guild and valuable critical feedback on how to adjust our duties to make communion service better.

What is your most memorable moment as a ministry leader?
It has to be the day we were preparing for service & realized the cups we'd purchased were defective! Most of the cups were leaking, so as we were filling the trays, we began to see grape juice running everywhere. It took a minute to figure out what was going on, but once we figured it out, we prayed over the cups & God made sure we had enough good cups to make it through service. That was the funniest incident & we still laugh about it today.

Picture your ministry a year from now. What do you see? What has changed?
I see this ministry overflowing with members who are leading it to be more of a teaching ministry. People are learning more about the care of the church and the purpose of it's ceremonies.