SANTEE -- This holiday season, Santee's Fellowship of Praise will be one of 10 sites nationwide to present "The Miracle of Christmas," an event that will feature the testimony of Gigi Graham, daughter of the Rev. Billy Graham, and praise by contemporary Christian recording artist and dramatist Pam Pierce.
The event, produced by Franklin, Tenn.-based Girlfriends of Faith evangelical ministry, will be held at 7:10 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 2, at the church.
"Although I'm not certain about all the particulars about 'The Miracle of Christmas,' I think it will involve elements of the Girlfriends of Faith's 'Amazing Trust' 2008 theme," said Marti Stubbs, missions director at Fellowship of Praise. "I saw Gigi in Columbia last April. Her testimony is very powerful as she talks from her heart about growing up in the Graham home, her father and her late mother."
Stubbs said Fellowship of Praise, a non-denominational congregation, was offered the opportunity to stage the concert when the tour was being planned earlier this year. Along with Graham, Pierce has been featured on TBN, Daystar and The Family Network for her music and drama. Stubbs says Pierce's testimony encourages people, especially women, to look beyond their circumstances and know that God is always in control.
"It's important for us to reach people that don't come to church on a normal basis," Stubbs said. "The whole point is so that people can come to the knowledge of Jesus Christ and make a difference in their lives. While the concert speaks to women, both men and women will find 'The Miracle of Christmas' a good way to start the holiday season."
"The Miracle of Christmas" will also be seen in Atlanta and Augusta, Ga., Phoenix and Tucson, Ariz., Lexington, Ky., and Tallahassee, Fla.
Girlfriends of Faith began in 1999 as a music ministry with Pierce in an effort to encourage, equip and draw women closer to the heart of God. The ministry's Web site says it has transformed thousands of lives across the country through music, concerts, speaking, special events and special Christian television productions that have been aired across the United States and around the world. The ministry's 16-city "Amazing Trust" concert tour has drawn some 100,000 women this year alone. For every Girlfriends of Faith event, women are encouraged to invite their "girlfriends" -- neighbors, co-workers, mothers and daughters -- who do not go to church.
The organization also features Dana Scott, sister of Rachel Joy Scott, who was killed in the 1999 Columbine High School massacre in Colorado, and Cheryl McGuinness, whose husband, the co-pilot of Flight 11, was killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Both women have shared their experiences and testimonies during the "Amazing Trust" tour.
Limited tickets are available for $20 each by calling 803-854-2298. The church is situated at 8280 Old Number Six Highway in Santee, one mile west of Santee National Golf Club.
T&D Correspondent Shirley Upton contributed to this report. Discuss this and other stories online at TheTandD.com.