First Fruits Friday - Embrace Grace

Seneca is very excited to partner with the Embrace Grace Bible Study! Our volunteer Spiritual Director, Dorothy Bryant has been incredibly proactive in getting this Bible Study going in our community for our clients and other women in the area. This week she shares about the Embrace Grace program, and the blessings that have come from it! 

God has shown up in big ways at our local Embrace Grace ministry! Embrace Grace is a 12- week Bible study and support group for pregnant, single women.

St. Andrews Presbyterian, with the support and encouragement of Seneca, recently started an Embrace Grace group in Columbus, GA!

The group has 4 brave women who chose life and have been faithfully attending weekly meetings. They have begun supporting each other with encouragement and resources. More importantly, they are learning about how much God loves them, forgives them, and wants to set them free from what has been holding them in bondage (we all have things that are holding us back from living fully and completely). Already, we have seen God in action!

One of our brave mommas has been wanting to complete her college degree, but with four children, it has seemed like an impossible goal. The Lord brought “Mama Scholar” to my attention when I was volunteering at Seneca one day. I had never heard of it, and researched a little deeper. I made a phone call and learned that Mama Scholar is a joint venture between ProLove Ministries (Pro-Life Advocate Abby Johnson’s ministry) and Embrace Grace.

If a woman has participated in Embrace Grace, or is currently enrolled, she is eligible to apply for a flexible scholarship! That evening at Embrace Grace, I let our participant know about this opportunity and gave her the contact information for Mama Scholar. This mother was speechless and just started weeping. That a whole organization would care about her dreams of completing her degree so that she could better provide for her family was unexpected and overwhelming. That’s what God does though! He shows up and overwhelms us with his love!

Another participant in Embrace Grace shared some of her struggles which included an abusive relationship that nearly killed her and was the lowest point in her life. She shared that she knew God got her out of that situation, because if He hadn’t led her out, she would be dead by now. But even knowing that God had saved her life, she was still resistant to opening her heart to Jesus and accepting His perfect love and presence into her life. She said she just wasn’t ready. But God kept pursuing her - gently and lovingly.

At our meeting last Tuesday, the lesson was about breaking chains of bondage and how Jesus wants us to live free. The participants were asked to write some things that they feel held back by/trapped by/chained to. Each participant then paired up with a leader. The participants shared and the leaders prayed with them, and our mighty God broke through chains of bondage for every woman there! The participant who “wasn’t ready” became soft-hearted towards the Lord and revealed her intense tiredness and deep pain which wouldn’t go away. I asked if she was ready to trust Jesus to hold this pain for her. With tears in her eyes, she said “Yes, I’m so tired of doing this life on my own. I’m ready for Jesus. I need Him”. She accepted Jesus that night and boldly told the whole group about her trust in Jesus! Please pray for the brave women in Embrace Grace who have chosen life! Their lives have not been easy, but they are now all taking steps of faith and trusting God.

Each of these 4 women are now Seneca clients, as well. As leaders of Embrace Grace, we are so thankful for the support Seneca gives our participants! When a woman has needs such as housing, she can contact Seneca and get the resources she needs. Seneca’s partnership with our local Embrace Grace ministry allows our Embrace Grace leaders to spend more time building relationships with the participants and pointing them to God every chance we get.

What do you think???

Do you want to know more about Embrace Grace?

Could your church also offer a 12-week Embrace Grace study to pregnant, single women in the community?

If you are curious or being promoted by the Holy Spirit to consider this ministry, please look into Pro-love Church to learn more!  Also, please contact Dorothy Bryant with any questions you may have. I would love to meet with you to show you how easy it is to incorporate Embrace Grace at your church this Fall!

*Seneca and our community NEED more churches willing to offer the life-giving ministry of Embrace Grace.*

Oh, and your church gets to give the mommas a big baby shower at the end!!!