On Saturday, April 24, 2010 the Women's Ministry hosted their first annual Prayer Brunch. The purpose of the brunch was to fellowship and unite the women of Friendship Missionary Baptist Church (The Ship) and foremost to render prayers for the ongoing success of all of the women ministries of the church.
The event was given the blessings of Pastor Evans and the First Lady T. Evans and was chaired by the Women's Ministry Chairperson C. Pierce. The steering committee of the event planned a potluck brunch and delightful fare was shared by all. A list of items served included soft bagels and flavored cream cheese, zesty sausage casserole, spicy sausage and rice casserole, crispy bacon and cheese deviled eggs, chilled chicken salad, delectable brownies, fresh fruit trays, an assortment of cakes and beverages of choice.
More importantly than the food was the praise and worship service. A praise cd of selected gospel and contemporary favorites were played during the morning as the participants greeted one another and dined. The opening prayer and blessing of the food was offered by Missionary J. Howard. Prayers were offered by the Sisters of the Ship that petitioned God for favor in Guidance, Healing and Growth by R. Jones, R. Johnson, E. Tucker. We were led in song by Sis. R. Jenkins. Everyone joined in with songs of praises. Each sister wore a string of pearls which was symbolic of the scripture in Matthew 13:45-46 read by Min. M. Kendricks.
Our speaker was Min. M. Lang who cautioned us to remember the greatest two commandments 'Love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and all thy mind and all thy strength and to 'Love one another as I have loved you; Love thy neighbor as thyself.' What a powerful message!
Tokens of appreciation were given to our speaker and first lady and door prizes were randomly given to other attendees. Ladies from the Red Hat Society were our special invited guest. The Sister of Ceremony was Sis. V. Williams who artfully kept the program on target with love.
First Lady T. Evans offered concluding remarks that inspired the SOS to embrace themselves and one another. She reminded us it is okay to celebrate ourselves and that we should be kind to one another because we don't know each other's circumstances. Our benediction was given by Min, M. Kendricks.
We look forward to our next Prayer Brunch. Thanks to everyone who assisted in making this event a success through their prayers, monetary donations and many other acts of kindness. Special thanks to those SOS who came out to the planning meetings and assisted with the setup and clean-up of our venue. It is our prayer that God continues to shower you with blessings that you will not have room enough to receive them.
Photos from this year's event