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I grew up going to church, but my family never invited friends to come with us. There was a big separation between church life and home life. So, inviting "weekday people" to church was a big stretch for me. I was so thankful for the Christmas cookie box invite opportunity to reach out to our babysitter.



The kids helped us make chocolate peanut butter balls and decorate them in sprinkles. They were so excited to present the cookies to our babysitter and I invited her to The Orchard. She was super touched by the gesture. We got a text later that night saying that the cookies were really tasty; she and her mom really enjoyed them. I'm not sure if she came to church or not, but it was great to show the kids that it can be fun and enjoyable inviting others to church.

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Ninhursag Avakian from The Orchard North Shore shared the following testimony about how she has seen God work in her life by calling her to serve. I serve with the middle school girls and the young adults both at the North Shore campus and at the all church gatherings. I have been so blessed to be serving in all three ministries and have been able to grow in each role. With the middle school girls, I have been blessed to see a student give her life to the Lord and get the honor of walking alongside her in her journey with Christ as her leader.

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