Reserve your place today for the Cristabelle Braden Concert by clicking here.

HOPE SURVIVES CONCERT

Cristabelle Braden 

Winston-Salem,NC

March 5, 2017  6:30 PM

Fries Memorial Moravian Church

251 N. Hawthorne Rd

(336) 722-2847   frieschurch.org

The Concert is free with a love offering collected for Cristabelle’s

Hope After Head Injury ministry.

Reserve your place today for the Cristabelle Braden Concert by clicking here.

About Cristabelle

If there is one thing you need to know, it’s this: Cristabelle Braden offers more than music; she offers inspiration, hope, and sincerity. After suffering a traumatic brain injury at age 14, Cristabelle spent years in neuro-trauma rehabilitation therapy. She was told by her doctors that she may never graduate high school, be independent from her parents, or be able to go away to college. Since then, she has grown and overcome barriers that were never dreamed possible, including graduating from Lebanon Valley College in May 2015 Summa Cum Laude, releasing two albums of original music, and touring the country as a singer and speaker on brain injury.

Her main outlet after her injury was music. She never wrote a song before her brain injury, but only a week after, songs started to pour out of her. All of this has given her a great resolve to use her music to share her hope-filled story of rehabilitation from brain injury as a way to encourage and empower others going through similar circumstances.

Cristabelle has become very active as an advocate for brain injury. She has started an organization for brain injury awareness called Hope After Head Injury. Through her journey of recovery, she grew more and more passionate about TBI support and awareness. The idea for Hope After Head Injury came to her in 2012, and the idea continued to grow until she finally officially launched it in 2015, 7 years after her TBI.  Her goal through Hope After Head Injury is to provide a support system which focuses on the emotional aspect on healing from brain injury. She travels and speaks at rehab centers, support groups, and brain injury conferences as well as has a large social media presence where she candidly speaks about living with brain injury.

One of her videos entitled “You Look Fine: The Real Life Struggle of an Invisible Injury” went viral on Facebook and now has over 70,000 views (and counting). This led to her being invited to speak at conferences across the nation. In 2016 she spoke at the Brain Injury Association of Rhode Island Annual Conference, the Brain Injury Network of North Dakota Annual Conference, and the Brain Injury Association of Pennsylvania Annual Conference. For 2017, she’s already scheduled to speak and sing at the Mayo Clinic Brain Injury Conference, the Brain Injury Association of Pennsylvania, and Penn Medicine Mind Your Brain Conference. She is passionate about spreading awareness and does this through live concerts, public speaking events, online video blogs, and more.

Having a traumatic brain injury is not an easy road, but the knowledge that God has a plan for her life has empowered her to overcome adversity. Her hope and prayer is that she can impact the lives of others, whether it be through a lyric, melody, or a simple word of encouragement. Cristabelle has come a very long way and is now a focused young woman, walking in faith and ready to take on the world and share her music in the process.

www.cristabellebraden.com

Now send your Spirit upon us as we remember our baptism today, so that we may be renewed as living, growing, and active members of your church, rise to new life, be led and nourished by your word and sacraments, and share in your eternal blessings.

Amen.

Sunday February 12th, immediately following worship is a Town Hall Meeting to outline the congregations’ involvement during the transitional period.

I’d like to thanks the dedicated volunteers at Fries who “love on” our homebound members so well. Yesterday I went with Bob and Evelyn Sellers to serve communion with Jim R. in Salisbury. This afternoon, “Pete” Crater and Barbara Drum are assisting. Then Monday Mark Lamb and I will serve communion. Thanks go as well to George Lamb for sending out the CDs of weekly worship which are cherished more than folks would know. This past Sunday afternoon, Peggy Carter, Margie Lamb, Monroe Bowles, and I teamed up on a related “mission of mercy.” These are just a few examples of “behind the scenes” love in action.

We are communing with Christ when we commune with one another. The sacred nature of care for others is a wonder to behold.

O Come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant… as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior. We will offer with two Lovefeast and Candle Services on Christmas Eve. The first is at 4:00 and the second at 6:30. There will be a band prelude 30 minutes before each service. A nursery will be provided. Bring all of your family and friends. No one celebrates Christmas like the Moravians and especially like Fries Memorial!

“O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant…” our celebration of the birth of Jesus begins this Sunday, December 18, with our Children’s Lovefeast and Candle Service. We invite you to join us as we share a simple meal, called a “Lovefeast.” Lovefeast services became a part of the Moravian worship tradition after a special outpouring of the Holy Spirit on August 13, 1727. During a service of worship on that day, many doctrinal disputes and personal hostilities were laid aside, and a new spirit of love and fellowship prevailed. A simple meal was brought into the sanctuary where all continued to worship. Today Moravians around the world continue to share the Lovefeast to celebrate significant occasions.

A Lovefeast service is primarily a music service designed to convey a thematic message. The hymns and music in a Christmas Lovefeast tell the story of our Savior’s birth. A special part of the Christmas Lovefeast is the candle service, during which beeswax candles, trimmed in a red paper skirt, are distributed. These candles remind us that Christ said, “I am the light of the world,” and “you are the light of the world—let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.”

At our Children’s Lovefeast, the youth and children of our congregation will lead the service. The Children’s Choir will sing, the youth will serve as Scripture reader, ushers and “dieners” (those who serve the lovefeast). Please join us for this beautiful and meaningful service.

(Description is from Rev. Joe Moore)