Inside Out Magazine - Issue #3 by NDCC

RIDE OR DIE

Sabbatical Interview with

MEMBERS

DR. STACY L. SPENCER SHARING HIS HEART & PASSION

EDEN SQUARE U P D AT E FIRST LADY RHONDA SPENCER

GOING ALL

THE WAY

HUSBAND, FAMILY, CHURCH & LIFE

HELEN COLLINS COMMUNITY ADVOCATE

E X P E R I E NC E

E M P O W E R

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by JOHN SEMIEN

ver

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Pastor Stacy L. Spencer prepared for his annual sabbatical, his staff geared up for a major education and mentoring effort at New Direction Christian Church. While Pastor Spencer recharges his batteries this summer, his church is making a big push into the community to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ. In an interview with Inside Out Magazine, Pastor Spencer outlined his plans to finish 2016 with a church wide effort to take his dynamic gospel into the Hickory Hill community. He calls it a kingdom agenda, an effort to raise members to the level of disciples who can go out and make new disciples of Christ. “Jesus told his disciples when he was about to ascend into heaven, he said, ‘ It’s good that I go away, because if I don’t go away the Holy Spirit will not come’,” Pastor Spencer said. “Jesus envisioned his disciples being empowered and preaching the gospel in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and other parts of the world. “I’m not likening myself to Jesus, but I am likening myself to a leader who wants his people to be empowered.” Pastor Spencer made reference to the dilemma Moses faced when he first led the Israelites out of Egypt and they began seeking his guidance in settling their problems. Moses found himself dealing with conflicts and other problems from sun up until sun down as the people waited in a long line for a chance to present

M o s e s’ father-in-law, Jethro, warned him that he needed to delegate authority to other people to help him hear the disputes of the people. “What you are doing is not good and you are going to kill yourself and the people,” Pastor Spencer said, quoting Jethro. “What you need to do is take capable men in tens, fifties, hundreds and thousands and gather them together so God can take his spirit and put his spirit on them so they can help you handle all the cases that you are seeing and give the difficult cases to you and that way Moses you will be able to handle the strain.” “There is a strain that comes with ministry,” Pastor Spencer said. “There is a sacrifice that I have paid and the people have paid for the last 15 years and in order for us to take this church to the next level, it’s going to be more than just Stacy Spencer’s personality. It’s going to have to be the people being empowered and the Holy Spirit coming down on the tens, the fifties, the hundreds and the thousands. Each one of those groups represents people who lead on a different level. The tens represent elders, the fifties represent lay pastors and other leaders in the church, the hundreds represent facilitators in small groups and the thousands are the average members,” he said. Pastor Spencer said his prayer is that everybody in the congregation at New Direction Christian Church be filled with the Holy Spirit and step up into a leadership position. He said the church received a grant which is making his sabbatical and special training for church members possible. “Whether they are inside the sanctuary or out there on the street corner witnessing to the people in the Ph oto gra ph y:

DISCIPLESHIP, HIS SABBATICAL & MOVING FORWARD

their cases to him.

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GOING

ALL THE WAY HUSBAND, FAMILY, CHURCH & LIFE

by FIRST LADY RHONDA SPENCER

t the age of 22, my daddy walked me down the aisle of a Louisville, Kentucky church to join in holy matrimony to my husband. To most women, getting married and melding their lives with a man is one thing- but for me, my husband was no ordinary man. God called him into ministry, which meant I had to accept the reality of sharing him with the world. That meant I had to be ALL IN. The scripture that comes to mind is Ruth 1:16: But Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God.” If you are a wife, then God has called you to a wonderful position – whether you are married to a minister, blue-collar worker, doctor or engineer. However, there are times when being a wife can be difficult and overwhelming. The struggles of life can obstruct our desires and occasionally, our abilities to live out our Godly calling as wives. I would always have to remember our commitment to be all in. Marriage is not a conditional contract. It is a covenant promise that, “In spite of the challenges, I’m all in.” I have learned in my roles as wife and mother are

to perfect the dance that best fits each relationship within my family, to master the movements that make each relationship work. Stacy and I have a goal to first develop our relationship with God as a couple and as individuals. We work to keep our marriage strong and be covenant lovers. Making a commitment as a couple to be all in gives us what it takes to care for our children and the congregation the way God intended. As a wife, I desire to be a supportive helper to my husband. Women make two mistakes when it comes to supporting our husbands. The first is that we fail to leave. Ruth had to leave her people and unite with Naomi’s people. We have to leave our family of origin, their culture, their ways. Of course, some of the good things we take with us, but we must find new ways with our husband. The second mistake is that we forget to cleave in order to become one. This means, I have to make a commitment to adjust to my husband as he adjusts to me. I have to be all in emotionally, spiritually and physically. In a culture that continues to try to redefine “submission,” I have found it essential to submit, to yield and follow my husband’s lead. He often sees things from a different angle than I do. And I am obeying God, as God speaks to my husband. In turn, continued on page 7

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FIRST LADY RHONDA & PASTOR STACY SPENCER

Photography: Antoine Lever

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PICK LOVE SEPT 2-4

P R E S E N T E D

B Y

featuring

Amy LaVere, Dead Soldiers and more. ROCKFORLOVE.ORG E X P E R I E NC E | O W E R | E N G AG E | Page page Full4 bleed 8.625 ExM P11.125 RFL10.Ad.6.23.16.indd 1 Full page with white border 10 x 7.5

6/23/2016 10:14:17 AM

Interview by ARIEL HARRIS

PA S T O R

STAFF FOCUS Pastor James King served on staff with us from 2013 to 2016. We wanted to interview him about his time at New Direction before he moved to Chicago. We wish him and his wife Jackie the best on their new journey! You are the Pastor of Discipleship at New Direction. Why is discipleship important to you? Someone personally discipled me and they helped me go through and understand stages of my own spiritual development. I understand the process and the time it took for someone to help me understand the relationship I have with God. I understand its value and want to do it with other people. What is your education background? I attended undergraduate school at Wayland Baptist University in Plainview, Texas, the home of Jimmy Dean Sausage! I studied marketing with an emphasis in promotions and sales. Then I attended Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, which is where I met Pastor Spencer. There I studied the masters of divinity track and Christian education with an emphasis on youth and family counseling. What has been the best aspect of your job here at New D? Working with an amazing staff. They have a unique combination of passion for their work, care for the congregation, and commitment to have a great time while doing everything. I really enjoyed working with the people who volunteer and serve in ministries. I have a special

JAMES KING appreciation for the media ministry because they are the people that when things go right, people don’t say much. But when things go wrong, everybody notices, so there is a lot of pressure to work in the media department. What are some things you got to be part of while at New Direction? When I was in charge of [media and] programming, I really enjoyed doing the set designs because I feel like some people need a song, [or] to be around other people, or to just have an environment that is right. I feel that when we are able to provide that experience and environment on stage that’s appealing to other people’s eyes, this helps to open the worship experience at New D. Another would be the new disciples process. I love all the things I got to do with the new members group. I liked being able to walk with them, and being able to grow through that process because it’s very important to know what it means to be a member. Every member should go through it. I loved seeing them get involved with Empower U because that is a key process for engaging with the community. What do you enjoy doing outside of work? I picked up playing the guitar about five years ago and have recently included the ukulele. I spend as much time as I can with my wife Jackie. We like to just eat. I really like to watch science fiction

movies. My favorite science fiction movies would include all the Star Trek, Star Wars, and James Bond movies. I also love watching Netflix shows such as House of Cards, Orange is the New Black, and Idris Elba’s show, “Luther”. Tell us about your family. I’m married to Jacqueline. We are newlyweds. We got married September 29, 2015. I have a daughter named LaKeisha who lives in Tampa, Florida. She is the apple of my eye, and makes me so proud all the time! What do you want the congregation to know about you? I really support and believe in Pastor Spencer’s vision for the church and for bringing God’s kingdom here on Earth. I’ve come to understand that God wants us to enjoy this life he has given us. And one of the best ways that we can glorify God is by enjoying the gifts of life, love, friendship, and worship. What will you miss most about New Direction? I’m for sure going to miss the volunteers that I serve and the staff that I work with. n

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A Tenacious

COMMUNITY

HelEN COLLINS

Advocate & Ambassador by JOHN SEMIEN

elen Collins does not have a fancy office in city hall, but she has more than earned her unofficial title of Mayor of Hickory Hill.

The longtime community activist is one of the first residents called when something is wrong in Hickory Hill, a southeast Memphis neighborhood that is fighting its way back from a host of problems that include high crime and pockets of poverty. Collins said she makes an appointment to talk with politicians who run for public office that has jurisdiction over Hickory Hill. Collins said she asks the politicians about their agendas and about how they can best help Hickory Hill. “Anything having to do with Hickory Hill, if it exists I have a task to try to fix it, because this is my home,” she said. “I want the residents of Hickory Hill to think of it as a place they can be proud to call home.” Collins has worked on various jobs including stints as a Greyhound bus driver and at Crump Elementary School. Today she is a full-time community advocate. “My work is wherever God leads me,” Collins said. “So far, everybody I’ve worked with has been elected.” Collins is the mastermind behind Single Moms Matter, a support group for single mothers, so that they can get together and discuss their issues. She said a local politician told her it sounded like “a bunch of women gossiping.” “It’s gossiping for you because you don’t have a need for it,” she told the politician.

Collins said she also works with police to help single mothers and is an ambassador for the Ridgeway Precinct. One of the most significant projects for Hickory Hill is the announced construction of Eden Square Town Center, a comprehensive community development model that will include Power Center Academy Middle School, a performing arts center, a wellness center, housing and retail. The planned development will be constructed on the western most side of the Hickory Hill community, which was once a blighted and abandoned 394-unit apartment complex. Pastor Stacy Spencer has described the development as an “oasis of hope” for the community. Collins said Eden Square is “a great thing” for the community but more work is being developed in the apartment areas behind the development if its purpose is to be realized. “In order for Eden Square to do what it needs to do we need to go behind Eden Square,” she said. continued on next page

A community blog promoting faith-based EVENTS l ORGANIZATIONS l JOBS Send your infomation to info@faith901.com

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Collins said Eden Square will be targeted by criminals if something is not done to remove the criminal element from among the disadvantaged apartment dwellers behind the development. “I see Eden Square as being a temptation,” she said. “The criminals will attack Eden Square.” To work on crime within the community, Collins said she will be meeting with community and political leaders and other stake holders to come up with a plan for other projects that can help improve the community. “We’re at a point right now there’s been a lot of promises from people who say what they’re going to do,” she said. Collins used surgery as a metaphor for the changes that need to take place for Hickory Hill to improve and become a better place to live. “We’ve got to sit down and get ready for surgery.” “We’ve got to decide where to remove, replace and repair” Collins said. “The body cannot be functional if the limbs are not functional with the head.” She said she reaches out to businesses that have moved out of Hickory Hill to urge them to come back to the neighborhood whenever possible. A member of New Direction Christian Church, Collins said God has given her a purpose. “I believe my purpose is to make sure people’s souls are being saved by any means necessary,” she said.n

GOING

ALL THE WAY

on many issues and typically reach compromises that work for both of us. A solid marriage is one that’s able to support and nurture all members of the family. When we had our first son my mother came to Memphis to help for a while. I was comforted because I did not know what I was doing, so I thought. My mother decided to cut her stay short and I felt an overwhelming feeling of fear. I later asked my mom why she decided to go back home so soon, and she told me, “You are made for this. You no longer needed my help. God will continue to equip you.” The pressures of caring for my spouse and son caused me to ask God and myself each day if I was modeling an attitude of service and a heart of compassion and sacrifice for my family. What I discovered after I crossed the threshold of fear and insecurity was that God had already programmed me with everything I needed. You only discover that when you are all in. As a wife and mom these are some of my principles for being all in: • Protecting my time with my husband • Lifting my husband and family in prayer • Encouraging my husband and being his #1 cheerleader • Making our times together fun • Loving my boys so they know what is real love • Giving attention to each child as they needed it, sharing special times and doing things they individually enjoy • Providing spiritual training, cultural opportunities and creative outlets appropriate to my children’s ages, abilities and interests • Being proud of each child whether or not they excelled as long as they put forth their best effort • Helping my children understand there are different seasons of life that require adjustments • Teaching my children that life isn’t always fair, to be themselves, and God will give us what we need when we need it and when we have the ability to handle it. n

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hether fervent prayer with a repentant jail inmate or teaching new members class, Stella Hollis has dedicated her life to spreading the gospel. Hollis, 66, has taught a wide range of classes at New Direction. She represents the church as a volunteer chaplain at Shelby County Jail East. She visits the sick, taught new lay pastors and a bible class at a senior residential facility. “The satisfaction I get from that is first of all to think that God would trust me with his gospel and trust me with his people in light of all of my imperfections,’’ she said. “The fact that a perfect God is using an imperfect me.” Hollis was one of the Mississippi Boulevard Church members who followed Pastor Stacy Spencer when he struck out to form New Direction 14 years ago. “I wasn’t as active at Mississippi Boulevard because I couldn’t see the need. The need was there but I couldn’t see it.” Hollis is a Memphis native and a graduate of George Washington Carver High School. She attended the University of Memphis and Creighton Bible College and is a retired trainer/auditor at AETNA Insurance Company. Hollis said she looks at volunteer work as “the opportunity to get to love others.” Hollis is not married and has no children, but is mother to many at New Direction who affectionately call her mother. “I do love them,” she said. “New Direction flows through my blood.” Hollis advises church volunteers to look to the bible

MEMB

for inspiration. “If I were you I would take Jesus’ command in Matt. 28:19-20 very seriously because he is speaking to you. Now what are you going to do?” n (Interviewed by: John Semien)

eaching and working with children takes patience, energy and imagination. It also takes a humbled support person who can make copies and do other essential paperwork duties that allows the teacher to concentrate on the lesson. Volunteer Georgine Christian is the go-to person for clerical support in the Children’s Ministry at New Direction Christian Church. The 68-year-old former educator said that there is not much she hasn’t done to help make the children’s ministry program a success. “I basically do whatever they want me to do,” Christian said. “Anything to help build the church. I know something needs to be done and I just do it.” Christian has attended New Direction Christian Church since 2003. When thinking of working as a volunteer she was immediately attracted to the children’s ministry. Christian had taught history and science to 7th and 8th graders in Shelby County Schools for 35 years before volunteering. “I know they needed help,” Christian said. “Working with the children , I knew I had something to offer.”

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Christian describes herself as an “all around helper” for the teachers in the program, doing clerical work, making copies of material and doing just about anything the teachers need to help them get their lessons across to the children. “I try to make it easier for the people who are actually working with the children,” Christian said. She said the most rewarding part of her volunteer work is seeing the end result of her efforts. “Seeing the project to the end and seeing that it comes out successful.” Christian said she is totally committed to New Direction Christian Church and that her volunteer work will continue. “I am not going anywhere,” she said. “I’ll be right there. That’s my church and that’s my pastor.” n (Interviewed by: John Semien)

hen Pastor Spencer takes the pulpit on Sundays, there are prayer warriors who are his helpers in setting the atmosphere, friends and protectors in a campaign to bring the gospel of Jesus Christ to citizens of Hickory Hill. They are the armor bearers who assist Pastor Spencer as he travels from place to place spreading the gospel. These special volunteers can be seen handing the pastor his bible before he speaks or a glass of water or a towel in the heat of a sermon. But the job involves so much more. “As armor bearers we have to be in constant prayer

for him at all times,” armor bearer Wilson Crawford said. “When he gets up to preach, that’s all he needs to do. He doesn’t need to be thinking about anything else.” Crawford said his duties include picking up Dr. Spencer at his home when he needs to be transported to an appointment, praying for Dr. Spencer and his family and protecting him from harm, a role that has taken on dangerous implications in an age where church shootings are becoming common place. He performs any other duties the pastor needs done, and added, “We are not his entourage. We support him.” Crawford has been Dr. Spencer’s armor bearer for 14 years. He began serving at a critical time when he decided to strengthen his faith and to more closely follow God’s word. “I was wanting to change my life,” he said. He has also found time to serve in New Direction’s men’s ministry and student ministry. “For me it’s the spiritual growth and having a better sense that I’ve been chosen to go out and disciple,” he said. “Now I see God can use me to pray for others and help lead them to Christ.” n (Interviewed by: John Semien)

ee Dee Ragland knows first impressions matter, especially at church, and that is why she is a team leader with the first impressions ministry at New Direction. “I just love making others happy. I love the ministry because I love putting smiles on other people’s continued on page 14

community, because our agenda going forward is a kingdom agenda where all disciples are making disciples. My hope this summer, through the Lilly grant, is not only that I go away and get better but the congregation as well, because of this grant, they will be trained. Ministry will be equipped, empowered to be leaders of the tens, fifties, hundreds and thousands, and when I get back I will have an army of people who have been invested and they are ready to run,” Pastor Spencer said. P a s t o r Spencer said this is a golden opportunity for members who only attend services o c c a s i o n a l l y, who are not really involved, to become engaged in the work of the church. Pastor Spencer said his goals will take the efforts of every church member working to make Hickory Hill and Collierville the communities they need to be. “We need people who are going to make disciples and make a difference,” Pastor Spencer said. “I believe it was Stokely Carmichael who said you are part of the solution or part of the problem. I want every member to be empowered to help make this church 10 | Page

Photography: Antoine Lever

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DISCIPLESHIP, HIS SABBATICAL & MOVING FORWARD: A SIT DOWN WITH STACY SPENCER

by JOHN SEMIEN

what God meant New Direction to be. That is a church making disciples who make disciples and change the community.” Pastor Spencer said churches start in infancy and then go through the phases of adolescence, prime, maturity, reminiscing, bureaucracy and sometimes death. “New Direction, after 15 years of ministry, is in the maturity cycle,” Pastor Spencer said. “This is where we redesign, we look at who we are, what our agenda is and connect to where God is and take it to another level.” Pastor Spencer said he wants his church members to be “all in,” a poker term that means putting all of your chips down on a hand you think is a winning hand. “It is a great risk to put all of your chips in but if it is a winning hand the dividends outweigh the risks,” Pastor Spencer said. “This summer we’re taking the risk of letting the pastor get rest and the congregation get empowered. Who does that? Allows their pastor to go away for three months to rediscover what makes his heart sing? Who does that, allows the congregation to get poured into, to get training, leaders and facilitators coming into the city of Memphis just to pour into our church because we are saying we’re at a crucial juncture after 15 continued on page 11

years of ministry. We don’t want to decline, we want to go up.” Members who are all in give their time, talents and tithes to the church and are committed to working toward the goals set by the church to evangelize the larger community, he said. “Time means service, time in worship every week, attending service,” Pastor Spencer said. “Hebrews tells us do not forsake the assembly of yourself together as some are in the habit of doing. As the time is drawing near for his return we have to be faithful to encourage one another.” Members who are all in also serve the church with their talents, he said. “Each of us has a talent, a gift, something that we do well that we need to give back to the church. The tithe, he said, should be given with a joyful heart. “Paul (the apostle) says every week, when you are all in,

you make up your mind what am I going to give ahead of time, so when I get to church it’s not a grudging thing,” Pastor Spencer said. “When you are all in, you take care of your house, you take care of God’s house.” Pastor Spencer said he will be leaving the church in the capable hands of his staff, who include pastors Karen Todd, Jerrod Gunter, Shamichael Hallman and Owen Dixon. He called the preachers, “some of the most amazing communicators on the planet.” “I am quite confident that the congregation will be in good hands every Sunday, because I have sat and listened to these folks myself, and they are some of the greatest, most innovative preachers and teachers you have,’’ he said. Pastor Spencer said there will also be local pastors and facilitators, counselors and physicians who will talk to the congregation about how to become emotionally, spiritually and physically healthy.

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Corey Mayhorn Danielle Porter T: 901-255-2745 6423 | Summer Gale Dr. | Memphis, TN 38134

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E D E N S Q U A R E U P D AT E B Y A RI EL HA R RIS

he groundbreaking ceremony of the Eden

Rendering of PCA Academy

Square Town Center took place in May of 2015, and over the last year there has been

tremendous progress of the 43-acre project. The development of Eden Square is currently being constructed on the most western side of the Hickory Hill community at the corner of Winchester and Mendenhall. A once blighted and abandoned area formerly known as the Marina Cove Apartment complex, is now becoming ground to a comprehensive community development model that will include Power Center Academy middle

The Performing Arts Center

school, a performing arts center, a wellness center, and nine affordable homes through Habitat for Humanity. Phase one of the Power Center Academy is scheduled to open this Fall to accommodate 400 6th-8th grade students per year. The most notable dates in 2016 for the Eden Square Town Center include Saturday, September 17th when the ribbon cutting and grand opening of the Power Center Academy Middle School and Performing Arts Center will be held. Classes for

PCA Middle School

the middle school students begin August 2016. Habitat for Humanity plans to have a ribbon cutting ceremony for the nine affordable homes in Eden Square towards the end of Fall 2016.

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RID

NEW DIRECTION faces,” she said. Dee Dee’s job is to position greeters at the doors and work with the hospitality team to prepare the coffee and snacks that are available in the lobby before every Sunday worship experience. She said it’s also her job to make sure the greeters “give everyone happy faces!” “Overall, I love my first impressions team!” said Chief Operating Officer Danielle Porter. “Dee Dee is always willing to help, even before someone asks her. She rolls with the punches and handles last minute situations extremely well. She has even managed to get her whole family involved with the first impressions ministry.” Dee Dee said her commitment to the team is part of her commitment to God. “I do what I do because when God puts me in a position to do something, I feel like I cannot fail. I have to go over and above. When I tell you that I will do something I’m going to do it.” n (Interviewed by: Ariel Harris)

orking with children is a call Antionette “Tricey” Taylor answers around the clock. Once she finishes her day job as a Shelby County Schools teacher, she often begins her responsibilities as the New D Kidz program director. “I make sure the children have an epic worship experience,” she said. “I do what I do because I have a true passion and love for children.”

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Her dedication to the children’s ministry at New Direction comes from seeing the troubles children experience at young ages. “I know what they go through in today’s society, and I want God to use me as a vessel to help the kids get through tough times.” “Tricey has been a very dedicated, faithful volunteer,” Children’s Pastor Owen Dixon said. “She has been in the ministry for over 6 years, and whenever I need her she’s always there.” Tricey said she wants to help children so they can take her influence and begin a positive cycle in their lives. “I want them to see the light in me so that they can be a light for others.” n (Interviewed by: Ariel Harris)

ccording to Youth Pastor Jerrod Gunter, the best way to define what Rochelle Blakely does as a New D Youth volunteer is by answering the question, “What doesn’t she do?” because of her consistent leadership and devotion to the ministry. Blakely joined over 13 years ago, working with students was not part of her plans. “To be honest it’s not something I signed up to do,” she said. But after taking a gift assessment she realized that

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working with students was part of God’s plans for her. “I took the spiritual gifts assessments and always ended up with kids.” A determined focus on youth is what drives Rochelle. Pastor Jerrod said she is tied to purpose, not personality. “When I started as a youth pastor (in 2011), the majority of the leaders that were left,” he said. “‘Chelle was one of those that stuck with me.” Blakely serves as executive team leader and creative administrator. She is the initial contact for parents whose children participate in youth ministry activities. She also leads Partner with Parents – a program launched to make sure parents “get involved with youth ministry instead of just dropping them off.” She secures chaperones for activities, and meals (cooked by parents) for students every fourth Sunday. “When you’re building relationships with kids, you need to build relationships with parents,” she said. Her loyalty to serving young people and keeping families connected starts with her own family. It’s what brought her to New Direction. “I started going with my son because he was always visiting (with his aunt) when they were having service at Ridgeway Middle School, and I joined at Ridgeway,” she said. “It’s just who I am.” n (Interviewed by: Brandi Hunter)

tephanie Peterson is a student of the Word committed to teaching advocating the new class of spiritual and community leaders. “It’s my second full-time job,” she said. “A good leader has to make other leaders.” As a New D Youth executive team member and a coach for small group leaders, Peterson loves helping people understand the gospel. One of her students is now the New Direction youth pastor. “She is an answered prayer,” Youth Pastor Jerrod Gunter said. He met Stephanie in 2007 after asking God to help him find a church “where there are some young people who love You for real.” Stephanie has been a member of New Direction for 11 years. She was the youth choir’s bible study leader when Pastor Jerrod moved to Memphis in 2007. “I went to choir practice just to hear her preach,” he said. “I lean on her a lot for truth. She’s very connected to what Christ wants for his people.” Her love of the Truth is why she leads New D Youth Student Advocates, a leadership program to train students to disciple their peers. “A lot of students think the bible is so intimidating,” she said. “That brings me joy… when a young person realizes that God is speaking to them.” n (Interviewed by: Brandi Hunter)

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DISCIPLESHIP, HIS SABBATICAL & MOVING FORWARD: A SIT DOWN WITH STACY SPENCER

“So if I were an average member I would not miss a Sunday, I wouldn’t miss a week, because something special is happening this summer that hasn’t happened in 15 years,” Pastor Spencer said. “And I’ve got a feeling, when we come back for our anniversary, it’s going to be phenomenal, it’s going to be Pentecost.”

PUBLISHER

Dr. Stacy L. Spencer, CAO

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Dion Paul, Marketing Manager

ADVISORY BOARD:

New Direction Direct Leadership Team

MANAGING EDITORS: Brandi Hunter John Semien Arreon Park

“We’re all going to be in one place, on one accord and everybody is going to be poured into,” he said. “There is going to be an explosion like you have never seen.” n

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS & EDITORS: Pastor Karren Todd Pastor Shamichael Hallman Barbara Pruitt Brandi Hunter Ariel Harris

PHOTOGRAPHER: Antoine Lever

LAYOUT & GRAPHIC DESIGN:

New Direction Christian Church

Inside Out Magazine is a publication of New Direction Christian Church 6120 Winchester Road| Memphis, TN 38115 All rights reserved. No material in this issue may be reprinted without the written permission of the publisher. Entire contents copyright © 2016.

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