Ribbon Cutting at California Mercy Ministries Home

Mercy Ministries' first West Coast Home is officially open! On Saturday, November 7th, staff, residents and friends gathered together to celebrate a huge milestone in the 26 plus year journey of Mercy Ministries at the official dedication and ribbon cutting ceremony of this beautiful new residency in Lincoln, California. Following the ceremony, Buzz Oates and his entire family accompanied Nancy Alcorn, as guests gathered around for the cutting of the ribbon and to join together in a prayer of heartfelt thanks and dedication, giving all the glory to God.

Following the ribbon cutting, guests had the opportunity to tour the new home and greet other supporters at a reception inside. A big thanks to the many volunteers and staff who worked tirelessly to make this celebration a reality.

Special guests, Austins Bridge provided music for this event. http://www.austinsbridge.com

Christian Country Music Artists, Austin's Bridge Perform at Mercy Ministries

Up and coming Christian country music artists, Austin's Bridge http://www.myspace.com/austinsbridge, perform October 21st for the girls and staff at Mercy Ministries in Nashville, TN. The band, made up of Jason Baird, Toby Hitchcock, Justin Rivers, will be performing at the Mercy Ministries California Home Official Dedication and Ribbon Cutting on November 7th from 5 - 6:30 pm.

This November 7th event is free of charge, but reservations are requested. To reserve your seat contact: Brittany Wallace at 916-644-9600 or bwallace@mercyministries.com

The event will be held at the Mercy Ministries Lincoln home:
1896 McClain Dr.
Lincoln, CA 95648
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Group1Crew Partners with Mercy Ministries at Questapalooza 2009

Last weekend Blanca, lead singer from Christian hip-hop group, Group1Crew shared her testimony at Questapalooza in Lexington, KY. She also discussed the groups' new partnership with Mercy Ministries. To find out more about Group1Crew, visit http://www.group1crew.com. For information on Questapalooza, visit http://www.qpza.com. And to find out more on Mercy Ministries, visit http://www.mercyministries.org.

Wellness Physician Dr. Josh Axe teaches health seminar at Mercy Ministries - Nashville, TN

Chiropractor and health and wellness coach, Dr. Josh Axe, shares with Nashville residents the value of gaining victory in our health so we can live our lives to the fullest potential. He begins this four week seminar by encouraging residents to make professional, personal, recreational, spiritual, and health goals. To learn more about Dr. Axe or his radio show visit http://www.exodushealthcenter.com.

Dr. John Townsend shares an incredible teaching about relationships at Mercy Ministries

Dr. John Townsend, author of Boundaries and Changes that Heal impacted residents at the Nashville home with a lesson on relationships. He explained how believers need to relearn how to ask for their relational needs to be met. To learn more about Dr. Townsend or his books visit http://www.cloudtownsend.com.

Special Guests at Mercy Ministries – Dr. Neil Anderson and More!!

Nashville residents and staff had an incredible week of teaching and encouragement with several very special guests. Last Wednesday, it was a privilege to have Dr. Neil Anderson, well-known speaker and author of “The Bondage Breaker,” “Victory Over the Darkness,” and many other books, take time away from his busy counseling and speaking schedule to offer his incredible wisdom insight and wisdom to our girls and staff.

Dr. Anderson shared with the residents and staff about the power of forgiveness. Having had to forgive for some tragic events in his own life, Dr. Anderson explained that even after tragedy, there is life and hope and God doesn’t have to fix our past - He frees us from it. He shared that forgiveness is more about finding freedom for ourselves than it is about the other person. Check out this video clip from our awesome and powerful time with Dr. Neil Anderson:

To learn more about Neil Anderson and his many resources, visit his website at www.ficm.org.

Then on Thursday, residents were excited to hear from Karen Philpott, former Marketing Director for Mercy Ministries and author and speaker, Leighann McCoy, who pastors at Thompson Station Church alongside her husband Tom McCoy. Both of these ladies have a huge heart for Mercy Ministries and we are excited to continue building a relationship with this awesome church.

Karen Philpott had an impactful time with residents when she shared a powerful message from her heart on the power of prayer. Leighann continued this intimate discussion by passionately illustrating the undeniable worth each person has as a child of God. Residents and staff were impacted in a powerful way!

Here is what a few of the girls had to say about these very special visitors:

Ashleigh said, “I always thought that I had to get myself right before I could forgive people, but it’s the other way around. I love when Dr. Anderson said, ‘You forgive in order to heal,’ because I can begin to let go of bitterness and let God do the judging.”

Michelle said, “God is going to keep telling me the same thing until I believe it. I loved Leighann’s message about how God gives me power to act in His image and if I seek Him I will find Him.

Caitlin said, “One of the biggest things I am working on is staying in consistent prayer continually throughout my day so that I can learn and not feel helpless or insecure. I plan to journal more so I can listen for what God is saying to me.”

Check out these video clips of our time with Dr. Anderson, Karen and Leighann.

Special thanks to Dr. Neil Anderson, Karen Philpott, and Leighann McCoy. We are so honored and grateful to have these very incredible people take the time to pour into our girls and staff.

COLMANblue visits Mercy Ministries

Christian artists, COLMANblue visited the Nashville, TN Mercy Ministries home recently. Chrissy Katina and Kristin Schweain, formerly of the Dove Award-winning group ZOEgirl, as well as Kelli Trontell, 2007 Top American Idol Songwriter, blessed the Nashville residents and staff by leading worship and sharing their hearts at the home.

For more information on COLMANblue, visit http://www.colmanblue.com.

BarlowGirl Day at Mercy Ministries California Home

Two weeks ago, sister rock trio and Mercy Ministries’ partners, BarlowGirl, performed a private acoustic set for visitors at our brand new California home. Guests were thrilled to experience the band’s powerful sound and bold message of faith and hope in Christ live in our new West Coast facility – soon to open this fall! Barlow Girls, Becca, Alyssa and Lauren also showed their love and support for Mercy Ministries’ by taking time out to meet and greet fans and visitors from the local community, including representatives from several area churches who attended the event to learn more about Mercy and find out how they could get involved.

Higher Ground Visits Mercy Ministries

Residents were also absolutely thrilled to enjoy a special private concert from Higher Ground, a dynamic gospel trio that not only makes amazing music, but touches hearts in a deep and personal way. Wayne Hilliard, Eddie Combs and Travis Adams were excited and honored to be able to share their musical talents and personal ministry with our girls and staff. The girls especially loved their song, Woman in the House, that spoke of Gods special design for women through their faith. Even more than the incredible music, was the way the men connected with our girls with their contagious and joyful personalities!

To learn more about Higher Ground Ministries visit their website at http://www.hgmin.com.

Mark Hankins visits Mercy Ministries

Mark Hankins and his wife Trina visited the Mercy Ministries Nashville, TN home this month. Teaching about fighting from victory rather than for victory, Mark shared with the girls that in order for faith to change things, we have to acknowledge every good thing that is in us in Christ and see our identities in Him. Mark shared many hilarious personal stories from his childhood, all of which kept the girls laughing and on the edge of their seats. The girls and staff were incredibly moved by Mark and Trinas passion and ministry.

To learn more about Mark and Trina Hankins check out their website at www.markhankins.org.

Always Sisters, Forever Brothers Conference Highlights

This weekend the young women in the Mercy Ministries Nashville, Tennessee home had an opportunity to go the Always Sisters Forever Brothers Conference hosted by CeCe Winans. This video clip shows just a few highlights of this weekend, including Nia Allen & Anthony Evans, NFL Coach Tony Dungy, CeCe Winans, The Katinas, Nancy Alcorn, the Chenaniah Dancers and Kimberly Daniels.

Point of Grace performs for Mercy Ministries and Run for Mercy winners

Dove award winning artists, Point of Grace performed a private concert at the Mercy Ministries Nashville, TN home. This amazing concert was the grand prize for the marathon runner who raised the most money through Run for Mercy. Run for Mercy is an annual event designed to raise funds for Mercy Ministries homes. To learn more about Run for Mercy, visit: http://www.runformercy.org. To learn more about Point of Grace, visit: http://www.pointofgrace.net.

Singer and Author, Karyn Williams shares with the residents of Mercy Ministries Nashville, TN

Singer and author, Karyn Williams visited the Nashville Mercy Ministries home last week. She shared several songs from her recently released CD, "Taking Me With You" and also talked about her new book, "The Takeaway". Joining Karyn was Dove Award winning artist, Brian White who played and sang back up with Karyn. To learn more about Karyn Williams, visit her MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/karynwilliams. To learn more about Brian White, visit his MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/brianwhiteandcrowdoffaces.

Jaime Jamgochian Visits Mercy Ministries

Christian music recording artist and host of the "Modest is Hottest" teen girl conferences, Jaime Jamgochian recently spent time with the residents at the Mercy Ministries home in Nashville, TN. Jaime talked about how she came to know Nancy Alcorn and about her involvement in leading worship at Mercy Ministries. To find out more about Jaime, visit http://www.jaimejam.com.

Mercy Graduate Impacts Thousands of Lives through Missions!!

Amy Lambert, a 2005 Mercy Ministries St. Louis graduate recently traveled to Kibera a slum in Nairobi, Kenya to share her testimony. During the first night, roughly 5,000 people assembled to listen to Amy's testimony. She shared how she was there in love and not in judgment, how Jesus had reached down and touched her and saved her from a life of drugs, addiction and sin, and how He had now sent her to Kibera to do the same for each of them. To read the full story, click here.

Below is a video of some of Amy speaking—so powerful!!

Recording artist, Niyoki visits Mercy Ministries in Nashville, TN

Gospel music recording artist, Niyoki spent time with the residents of Mercy Ministries in Nashville, TN. She blessed the girls with her song "Joy" from her album "Rest". For more information on Niyoki, visit http://www.niyoki.com.

Nancy Alcorn visits the new Mercy Ministries home in Lincoln, California

We wanted to let everyone know that we are getting very close to the official opening of the new home in the Sacramento area – we are so excited!!! We hosted a fundraiser at the home last night, and we had such a great time. Three graduates from the California area shared their stories, and everyone was so moved. We thought you might enjoy getting a glimpse of the new home and our special event there last night. We also thought you might like to hear from these three awesome young women…check it out!

Kari Jobe visits Mercy Ministries

Kari Jobe gets real with the girls at Mercy Ministries and shares a few songs too!

Mercy Ministries California Home Tour

Selah Hirsch, director of development at Mercy Ministries, gives us a tour of the soon to open Mercy Ministries Home in Lincoln, CA.

Private Concert with Natalie Grant!!

Graduate Gives Mercy a Voice

Nicole graduated from Mercy Ministries in 2006. Nicole has a heart and desire to share to love of Christ with others and give back to other young women who are dealing with life-controlling issues. She became very involved with her local church as the youth assistant for her youth group. She said, “I love pouring into teen’s lives and showing them who they are in Christ!” She was able to speak on an eating disorder panel at the College of William and Mary and her testimony is included in one of the Mercy For books, Starved: Mercy for Eating Disorders.

Recently, Nicole’s church was looking for someone to share their testimony to the entire congregation. After seeing the change in Nicole’s life when she returned from Mercy Ministries, they knew Nicole’s testimony was evidence of a life changed by the transforming power of Christ. Soon after, another local church invited Nicole to give her testimony at a women’s breakfast. We are so proud of Nicole and we would like to thank her for giving Mercy Ministries a voice!

Playoff Special!...In House Rivalry – Something’s Gotta Give!!