The Virtual Pew News

Thursday, March 31, 2011

The Virtual Pew News # 25, Ministry, Ministry, Ministry

Welcome to The Virtual Pew Newsletter, a lot has been happening but with that said, I hope you take the time to read through the entire newsletter.

As many of you know, the web site for The Virtual Pew has been down. Long story made short, I had the web site for the book, The Keystone Kid put up and thought I had someone to do the site for The Virtual Pew for me. It hasn’t been done but not for the lack of trying. I am back at the place; I need someone dependable that can develop a simple web site, linking to various blog pages and a message board. Something that I can manage, update and change on a regular basis would be great. Either someone who can develop this site, train me on doing the site, or donating an appropriate program to do the site is much needed. Can you help with this particular need? Truth is, since the books publication, I receive daily communications related to abuse, and related to the ministry related to The Virtual Pew. This is an area of need that you can contribute to in one of the above mentioned ways.

I realize it may be possible that you haven’t been to the web site for The Keystone Kid. The url for that is www.thekeystonekid.com I am pleased with the book and it has been doing well. As is the case in many things of the sort, I haven’t seen the royalty checks as of yet, but am aware of a good number of books being out there, either via hardback, paperback, or e-reader versions. I continue to schedule speaking engagements to share the story of what God did for me in either short presentations in as little as 5 minutes where I have the book available, to longer presentations where I speak and share the story for upwards to 45 minutes. There are other topics I am available to speak on. The book is available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other major retailers, either on line or via ordering through the store. You can also go to Friesen Press and order various versions suitable for various e-readers, including, Sony, The Nook, and more. Amazon has the Kindle version available on their web site.

The book is critical for me now as I have made a decision related to Mosaic Church, the brick and mortar church I pastor. I am reminded of a verse of scripture that states that if a church or ministry can, they should pay their pastor twice their worth. In that same passage though, people forget where it says, if paying the pastor creates a burden on the body, then he is to receive no salary. I have urged Mosaic to relocate to downtown Wichita. In order to acquire the space, since we lost funding from The Church of God, I have voluntarily given up my salary until the church can afford it. Don’t get me wrong, I pray that there are times the church can pay me some, but it really isn’t that big of a deal. Even when the church can afford it, it is still my hope, desire, and prayer that we obtain additional salary from contributions to The Virtual Pew, speaking and so forth and use the money from the church for various other ministries. The truth is, most of the money coming into The Virtual Pew, (albeit minimal) actually goes back out to direct ministry, whether assistance to the homeless, or some other form of direct ministry and help.

You can of course help in a variety of ways by donating either to The Virtual Pew, or to Mosaic Church. I will share addresses for those at the conclusion of the newsletter. Now for those who are curious, the last 2 months I have received nothing from Mosaic, the month prior to that $800 and the month prior to that $600. Of course I also pay my own expenses including mileage. Last month via The Keystone Kid and speaking, I received approximately $500, and the month prior to that, $400, and the month prior to that, $2,700 which enabled me to focus more on Mosaic without having to work on booking myself out to speak. I expect there will be months where larger amounts come in, but all in all, it is clear, God continues to meet our needs. I am also expecting a royalty check from Friesen Press this next month, I am not certain how much that will be but I expect it to be less than $500. I do by the way; have a good supply of books available, both in hard back, and paper back that you can order directly off of the web site or through me. The prices for those are $20 for paperback, $30 for hardback. I have donated a good number of books out, (over 20) and have a few people who have ordered books, with the promise to pay, that have not paid for their books.

Also in the works, not far from completion is the short movie The Long Walk. Currently Rob Cassels, Sam Eakins, Darrell Thompson, and Mark Childress from The Rob Cassels Band are finishing up the original score for the movie. It looks tremendous at this point and we are going to be submitting the film to various film festivals. We will also have a product available to market which will include commentary by the Director and myself, possibly others, it will also include a brief interview with me of what has happened since the book, a interview with a couple who have gone through their marriage whose life was impacted by abuse, and an interview with the pastor who led my mother to Jesus. There is editing and work to be done on the special features of the DVD to be made available for purchase. Pray for all of this though, pray that it will be accepted into film festivals, viewed by those who need to see and hear the story and be touched by the power of forgiveness. Also pray as we seek to shop the short to major companies in order to raise funds for a feature film. For those who have seen this work, they are impressed, and many have stated how God is clearly involved in the project. That will confuse some as the short itself is a variation of the story in The Keystone Kid, and it is not a clearly overt ‘Christian’ project. There is even rough language and difficult situations in it. However, with the special features, and the discussions which will take place at film festivals, it will be clear of the role of Jesus Christ in the story. We will also be listing the Short on Kickstarter at Amazon where individuals can contribute to help support the project financially and get perks for their donations and support.

Now as to Mosaic Church, the brick and mortar church I pastor. I alluded earlier that we had relocated. Mosaic has a unique history. In its early days, (prior to my arrival) Mosaic met in an arts community of Wichita called Delano. It had an effective impact on the community but eventually the church moved to a school. After 3 school transitions, the church was ready to dissolve. I came on board and shortly thereafter we relocated to a community that seemed to fit our current needs. As we came close to outgrowing that facility I recognized the need to get back to the mission God had called us to. We had seen tremendous success in two areas of ministry that our people seemed to support and we were seeing it impact others in the community. The two areas were ministries to the homeless and the arts community, specifically the filmmaking community. We decided to look for property in the downtown area. Gay Quisenberry, who was the manager for Rich Mullins assisted us in the quest. We located a building downtown that had sat vacant for 10 years. A long story there, but after 3 months of issues, we finally moved into the facility.

The Downtown Mosaic location encompasses approximately 6,000 square feet. We are less than 1 block away from the largest homeless gathering in the city of Wichita and less than 2 blocks from the center of Downtown. We have a month to month lease on the property. There is a rumor that an outside agency made an offer on the building, but it is only a rumor. We will counter offer on anything that is actually offered. So far, all indications are this is a rumor. We continue to move forward knowing that God will provide. We have had 2 services in the building, and this last week, we had our first pot-luck meal since moving out of the location on George Washington Blvd. We had over 40 in attendance if counting the approximate 10 homeless individuals who showed up. Our desire is to have other churches, businesses, ministries, and individual’s partner with us. We need groups to provide food on a weekly basis on both Saturday and Sunday to reach out to the homeless. We feel strongly of the need to find a way to fit everyone from the downtown community, including the homeless into a physical brick and mortar church where they can fit in and are a part of the family of God. We desperately need other groups to partner with us. Please pray that the churches of Wichita would come together to do the work of God together.

One of the other things we are also exploring at this point is the possibility of developing a clubhouse concept, (based on the Fountain House Model) for the homeless. Here, as opposed a day shelter, we would assist in the development of what we call the Work-Ordered-Day and assist in helping persons obtain affordable housing, and appropriate jobs through a Transitional Employment program that helps in relearning work skills. We need volunteers for this program, and after some commitment, we will be able to get funding. The operation of the program will help the homeless regain their life, not just sustain their condition.

Mosaic is also allowing the use of our space for various groups including: Novus Orsa a group that originally helped us with our homeless outreach. A part of the Vineyard Church in Wichita they assist in helping young homeless persons obtain housing. Others using our facility include, Axis Four Films an Independent Film Company, The South Central Kansas Film Co-Op, and Gay Quisenberry. Gay is also helping us with events, including concerts, theater, grants and more.

My wife Mary Jane teaches at Derby Middle School and is in the process of looking at retirement. We don’t know where that will take us, so please pray for us. I realize the blessing I have in my wife. Also pray for our son Nathan. Some of you know the complexity of that request, I will simply say, it is our desire for our son to return to the God who loves him. We want him to dedicate his life to the King of Kings. We keep our granddaughter Aaliyah every weekend and we are blessed to do so. She comes to church with us and we realize the importance of our time with her. Our daughter Marathana, and our son in law Brett are expecting their first baby, a little boy in June. She works at Hesston College in Hesston Kansas, just north of Newton Kansas where she lives. She is the Director of Communications for the college and is actively involved with her husband in their church. We still have our White German Shepherd, named Kersey and just adopted a little Yorkie named Buster. They both bring some joy into our lives and our granddaughter loves them.

I continue to write, and lately, it seems like I have done a lot of movie reviews. Some of them I can recommend others I can’t. I can say however, I have tried to review each movie with the intent of you learning something that you can share with someone whether you have seen the movie or not. I always do my reviews as a seed that can point people to God.

I continue to covet and value your prayers for the work God has called me to. It is an honor to know that some of you have partnered with these ministries over the years; I suspect there are people who have touched that we don’t know about. My faith tells me that some day we will. I am aware of people who have been touched, come to know God and in a relationship with him because of this ministry. For those of you offering prayers of support, and/or financial help, I thank you.

God bless you and remember; God is good all the time, and all the time God is good!

Links of interest follow the signature,

Mike Furches
www.thekeystonekid.com

You can follow me on Twitter at Mike Furches or The Virtual Pew and friend me at Facebook at Mike Furches. Also, don’t forget about the Facebook page for Mosaic Church, The Virtual Pew, and The Keystone Kid.

When A Homeless Man Worships
http://thevirtualpew.blogspot.com/2011/03/when-homeless-man-worships.html

Tangled
http://mikefurchesreviews.blogspot.com/2011/03/tangled-blu-ray-dvd.html

Teenage Paparazzo
http://mikefurchesreviews.blogspot.com/2011/03/teenage-paparazzo.html

Last Tango in Paris
http://mikefurchesreviews.blogspot.com/2011/03/last-tango-in-paris-blu-ray.html

Walking on Water
http://mikefurchesreviews.blogspot.com/2011/03/walking-on-water.html

The Wildest Dream
http://mikefurchesreviews.blogspot.com/2011/03/wildest-dream-following-george-mallory.html

Siren
http://mikefurchesreviews.blogspot.com/2011/03/siren.html

Step Off, AKA Battle the Movie
http://mikefurchesreviews.blogspot.com/2011/03/step-off-aka-battle.html

Night Catches Us
http://mikefurchesreviews.blogspot.com/2011/02/night-catches-us.html

The Eagle
http://mikefurchesreviews.blogspot.com/2011/02/eagle.html

The Best Slide Guitar Player I Ever Knew: A Suicide Story
http://thevirtualpew.blogspot.com/2011/02/best-slide-guitar-player-i-ever-knew.html

Waiting for Superman on DVD
http://mikefurchesreviews.blogspot.com/2011/02/waiting-for-superman-on-dvd.html

To see the video posted below click on the video. If the video isn’t at full scale or doesn’t show up, click on the following link:
http://vimeo.com/21571470

Untitled from Mosaic Church on Vimeo.

Click here to read about, and order the book, The Keystone Kid

Click here to follow The Virtual Pew on Twitter

Mike Furches on Faceboook.

Click here to visit Mosaic Wichita, the Church in Wichita Kansas where Mike is the pastor.

Click Here to Go to The Virtual Pew Daily Verse and Read The Bible in a Year Passages

Click here for booking information to have Pastor Mike come speak or perform, from speaking to music or magic, something for all groups.

You can also Help The Virtual Pew by shopping on our web site or at Amazon, click here to shop at Amazon and help The Virtual Pew, it won't cost you anything extra, but we get a small percentage of the purchase.

Click to visit with Pastor Mike regarding any of your needs. He will respond to each request personally, and if need be refer you to one of our other pastors.

Click to visit and join the new group The Virtual Pew, at MySpace. Become a part of a different kind of Christian group, check out the page for more information,all welcome, including those who are not followers of Jesus.

Click to visit the Virtual Pew Website and become a part of that ministry.

Click to subscribe to my blog

Click to visit and join our sister group at MySpace Hollywood Jesus.

Click to visit Mary Jane Furches' new MySpace Page

Now for those that do not know, make sure you check out the numerous articles and blogs by checking out the archives. If visiting The Virtual Pew or MySpace they are archived on the left hand side of the page. Scroll down to where you see newer or older listed under archives and then click there. There are hundreds of postings so make sure to check out the archives. You can also contact me for a free e-book pre edit version of The Keystone Kid at mike@thevirtualpew.comYou can visit http://www.thevirtualpew.com/ and on the front page down on the left side you sill see our store. Your purchase provides needed funds to The Virtual Pew. If you do not see something to purchase you can click on the search engine, (do not put anything in the search box at this time). You will be taken to Amazon where you can search for anything you desire. Hopefully you will consider a gift to The Virtual Pew.

Now I get asked this quite often, Can we repost your blogs or articles? The short answer to that is, what an honor that you would ask, and by all means, spread the word.Here is our contact information

The Virtual Pew
6441 N. Hydraulic
Park City Kansas, 67219

Click on the following links to learn more about The Virtual Pew

Donations to The Virtual Pew

The Virtual Pew

The Virtual Pew Blog

Personal Furches Web Site

Mary Jane Furches MySpace Page

Mike Furches MySpace Page

Mike Furches MySpace Blog

Hollywood Jesus

Reviews With Mike

The Virtual Pew Sermons

The Virtual Pew News

MySpace Hollywood Jesus Group

MySpace The Virtual Pew Group

The Virtual Pew Live Radio Web Page

To Subscribe to The Virtual Pew Live Feed

Friday, February 12, 2010

The Virtual Pew News 24, Book & Movie on the Way

Greetings, I figured it was time for an update regarding the on goings in the Furches Family, The Virtual Pew, and Mosaic Church.

It is likely obvious to the faithful that things may have appeared to be slow and not as much going on with The Virtual Pew lately due to the lack of postings. The truth is, nothing could be further from the truth. Let me explain.

Over the last few months a lot has been going on that has kept us pretty busy, including increasing some of the work with the Homeless in the area. This has been a tremendous ministry that is ongoing. Imagine having a homeless person thank you for a coat because they were afraid of dying I the freezing conditions, or another that is now living independently that you are helping understand the concepts of salvation and taking to church. Of course there is the need for some of these to provide Bibles and The Virtual Pew has done that. We have planned for February 27, our next big outreach where we will again take food, hot beverages (hot chocolate is the favorite) and of all things at their request, socks and shoes. Of course we need donations of each of those items. The Virtual Pew also purchased for Mosaic a larger coffee pot which allows us to make larger quantities of Hot Chocolate, Coffee, and Mocha. At Christmas we provided over 150 coats and items of winter wear, plus over 150 gifts that went to needy families. It was wonderful to see the community come together for all of this and we have an angel of a friend from another church who has also been helping out with some of the finance and cost involved. We will continue to accept designated donations for this ministry of which 100% of the designation will be used. We plan in the next three months to work at doing this on a weekly basis, and we would love to have a downtown facility to host the church, do a daily homeless outreach, provide housing for my wife and I, plus have overflow housing for the homeless. A note on this, I have never seen it like it is now. The majority of homeless that we are doing ministry to are not mentally ill. That is not to say there isn’t a large population of this group on the streets, there are, but the majority of people it seems as if we are ministering to are individuals who have fallen on bad luck, from loosing their jobs to having their homes foreclosed on. Of course working with this and providing some needed manpower is the fine folks of Mosaic Church, Chris, James, Mary and Mary, Adam who was at one time homeless as was Robert, Richard, his daughter and many, many others from Mosaic and other churches who have donated items and money. Associated with this ministry, we will also be making the purchase of 2 nice Bibles this week to give to individuals who have been a part of this ministry.

The Virtual Pew has also been busy, along with Mosaic at continuing the ministry of The Mosaic ARC (Abuse Recovery Center.) We continue to see and speak to individuals that have gone through physical and sexual abuse. While we had an anonymous contributor for some time, those contributions have stopped and we are again providing services without the ability to reimburse one of the persons helping with the counseling. We still provide the services for whatever the person can afford to contribute and outside of the first meeting never mention the need to contribute. I give all moneys donated for the services I provide back to the church which covers the overhead of the meetings. I receive a direct salary from the church of $1,000 per month, and when money is available after designated ministry contributions, and available funds, I take a maximum of $300 per month from The Virtual Pew. It was nice to have 2 months, December and January, where I was able to draw that salary. I have not been able to draw a salary for the month of February, and normally not for an additional 7-8 months of the year. We do have a couple of people who are tithing and contributing to The Virtual Pew on a monthly basis and this allows us to continue the ministry work we do and for those individuals from Ohio, Florida, and occasionally other locations, we are extremely grateful and want you to know God is using your contributions.

The Mosaic ARC program is something I value as I get to see the help this program provides. We would still love to present in the Wichita area for no charge, and around the country for expenses to present on the subject of physical and sexual abuse. I must challenge the church on this issue, please make an effort to educate your people. I just spoke at length this week to an individual who had a church small/cell group tell him that God caused the abuse in their life to happen so he could use it. Please understand the serious mistake of this theology in that you are saying God uses and causes sin so he can accomplish his purpose, but you also have no idea how much you can turn others away from God with this message, it is devastating and the truth is, God is so perfect, so holy that he don’t make sin happen. While he can turn something which was meant for evil and use it for good, it is a totally different concept than saying God caused it to happen. I unfortunately run into this type of issue on a regular basis and I pray the church would show compassion, and be a part of helping the person recover from this horrible sin perpetuated to and on them, not make it worse.

There is more about what is going on with our ministry but I will share that after the information regarding Mosaic Church here in Wichita.

I am amazed at how God is blessing this church. We are continuing to grow and if everyone is there we are at capacity for our 50 or so seats. If we continue this trend over the next few months we will be discussing among leadership the need to go to two services. We also have contributing needs related to the facility. There has been heating and furnace issues since we moved into the facility. We have received in the past resistance from the landlord to fix those problems and many of those problems which I don’t think we should have been responsible for we had to fix. One such example is this last months gas bill of over $750. I am confident that there are other units in the facility that we are paying for due to the issue related to the furnace problems. I am praying that another facility would either open up, or that God would work on the heart of the landlord to fix this problem. I personally would like to move towards the purchase of a facility that could seat upwards of 125, (in a coffee house style set up with tables) and then that facility be used as a daily outreach ministry, provide housing for my wife and I, and overflow or emergency housing for additional needed staff and the homeless. There is a huge need for this in the downtown Wichita area and our numbers and ministry would grow over being in a better environment, but ownership is going to be of incredible importance. The primary purpose of the facility would clearly be ministry and for this to happen, we would need help from individuals in the community and across the country who see the need for this type of ministry. Be in prayer about that as it is important to be accountable for the finances God has provided. While we receive $1,000 a month from our sponsoring agency, that will cease in the late fall, early winter of this year.

Mosaic has other good news, the tutoring program continues to grow and we are presently close to capacity for the students we can see without additional volunteers from the church and community. Currently we have 4 committed volunteers to help out, but we set as capacity 10 students with this number of tutors. Currently we have if everyone is there, 10 students. We will not be able to accept more students unless some of the present students either leave, or we pick up additional teachers.

Mosaic is also doing a Sunday school, movie themed class. So far we have been averaging 10 students and are presently doing a study from the movie The Book of Eli. We plan to use other movies at the completion of this study as well as music and more.

We also finally have a worship leader at Mosaic. Chris Marshall has been coming to Mosaic for sometime and participating on the worship team. The worship team and I recognized his ability in this area and granted him leadership. There has already been a noticeable difference for the team and for the church.

There is more going on at Mosaic and the above are but a sample of that. If you want to subscribe to the Mosaic mailing list announcing upcoming events please respond to this email and ask for that subscription.

Now as to The Virtual Pew and my ministry; to the pleasure of some, to the concern of others two major things have been going on that is taking up a bulk of my time. Both of those are in relation to the story of The Keystone Kid. We are in final negotiations for a movie to be made by Tiroma Films out of Tulsa Oklahoma. I will be meeting with them for the final meeting within the next month. Currently review of the manuscript has been taking place for the writing of the screenplay. I have had assurance from Tiroma that 2010 is going to be the year for The Keystone Kid.

Many are also aware of the book The Keystone Kid. Here is the good news; another edit of that book is taking place to get it ready for publication. So far, with almost half of the book done, there has been a reduction of approximately 55 pages, and some 17,000 words. I personally believe it reads much better, and is certainly shorter than it originally was. On the publication of the book, due to time constraints and the advice of several others, I am likely going to self-publish the book. Despite having great reviews from those who have read it, the national coverage of the stories, there are still some serious time constraints. I am looking at what appears to be the best company available and the book will be available in both paperback and hardback, and the good news, also available with electronic media such as Kindle and Apple’s ipad. The company is also going to provide a national advertising campaign for print, radio, and television and I will be providing support for the book. There will also be insurance coverage on the book to encourage major companies to carry the book.

Now with both of the above areas, there is going to be some costs and fundraising that is going to have to be done. This is actually the case in most situations, especially related to independent film and self publication. That said, don’t be surprised if in the near future you hear about more issues related to this. While some have already helped with some of the initial costs related to the film and the book, we are close to being ready to see the fruit of these two efforts. I could say a lot more for now, but will for now, let the interest and thoughts perk.

That is what is going on for now, and I certainly thank each of you for the prayers, financial support, and encouragement. I am blessed to see God work every day, and while I personally have rough days and tough times, I still know how good God is and I am continuing to move forward, hopefully you are as well.

Blessings and always feel free to contact us at any time.

Mike

PS as a reminder, any designated funds that come into homeless outreach, or Mosaic ARC are given back 100% to those particular ministries. We do honor all designations.

We also want to encourage folks to look at some of the movie reviews, interviews, and controversial articles as of late from The Virtual Pew, if the below links don't work go to original link at The Virtual Pew.

Avatar Review talked about in national press, controversial.

My Interview with Santa Claus

Legon Movie Review Some in Hollywood Still Don't Ge It

The Book of Eli, Some In Hollywood Do 'Get It

My Interview with Dr. Tony Campolo On God and The Arts

Leap Year, Movie Review for Valentines Day

The Waltons Movie Collection DVD Review

Transfer Growth in the Church, Are We Breaking Jesus Heart (Very Controversial)

To view the following, just click on the video, if the video don’t appear, click on the link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGNKN2EpKNE

Click here to follow The Virtual Pew on Twitter

Mike Furches on Faceboook.

Click here to visit Mosaic Wichita, the Church in Wichita Kansas where Mike is the pastor.

Click Here to Go to The Virtual Pew Daily Verse and Read The Bible in a Year Passages

Click here for booking information to have Pastor Mike come speak or perform, from speaking to music or magic, something for all groups.

You can also Help The Virtual Pew by shopping on our web site or at Amazon, click here to shop at Amazon and help The Virtual Pew, it won't cost you anything extra, but we get a small percentage of the purchase.

Click to visit with Pastor Mike regarding any of your needs. He will respond to each request personally, and if need be refer you to one of our other pastors.

Click to visit and join the new group The Virtual Pew, at MySpace. Become a part of a different kind of Christian group, check out the page for more information,all welcome, including those who are not followers of Jesus.

Click to visit the Virtual Pew Website and become a part of that ministry.

Click to subscribe to my blog

Click to visit and join our sister group at MySpace Hollywood Jesus.

Click to visit Mary Jane Furches' new MySpace Page

Now for those that do not know, make sure you check out the numerous articles and blogs by checking out the archives. If visiting The Virtual Pew or MySpace they are archived on the left hand side of the page. Scroll down to where you see newer or older listed under archives and then click there. There are hundreds of postings so make sure to check out the archives. You can also contact me for a free e-book pre edit version of The Keystone Kid at mike@thevirtualpew.comYou can visit http://www.thevirtualpew.com/ and on the front page down on the left side you sill see our store. Your purchase provides needed funds to The Virtual Pew. If you do not see something to purchase you can click on the search engine, (do not put anything in the search box at this time). You will be taken to Amazon where you can search for anything you desire. Hopefully you will consider a gift to The Virtual Pew.

Now I get asked this quite often, Can we repost your blogs or articles? The short answer to that is, what an honor that you would ask, and by all means, spread the word.Here is our contact information

The Virtual Pew
P.O. Box 17731
Wichita, KS 67217

Click on the following links to learn more about The Virtual Pew

Donations to The Virtual Pew

The Virtual Pew

The Virtual Pew Blog

Personal Furches Web Site

Mary Jane Furches MySpace Page

Mike Furches MySpace Page

Mike Furches MySpace Blog

Hollywood Jesus

Reviews With Mike

The Virtual Pew Sermons

The Virtual Pew News

MySpace Hollywood Jesus Group

MySpace The Virtual Pew Group

The Virtual Pew Live Radio Web Page

To Subscribe to The Virtual Pew Live Feed

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Santa for Hire

Mike as Santa has been featured in the Wichita Eagle and on a nationally televised Wichita State University and University of Tennessee Basketball game was called the "Best Looking Santa and Suit I have ever seen" by national ESPN broadcasters.

Prices go up the closer you get to Christmas but Mike is also available for the 1 man play, The Real St. Nick & Jesus which looks at the history of what is known as the Coke a Cola Santa as well as the historic history of the real St. Nicholas. Prices for the performance varies.

Mike has also been the "Official Santa" Of various sports teams in the Wichita area.

His photo of the Snow Globe Santa has also reached and touched people around the world.

When booking a Santa for your event, the old adage is true, ‘You Get What You Pay For.’ Mike Furches is someone you will feel safe with around your children, in your business, home and around your loved ones. There are reasons for that though, just consider the following:

Mike Furches is:
Qualified Mental Health Professiona
Qualified Case Manager
A Mandated Reporter
Licensed & Ordained Minister
Nationally recognized and Known for his work advocating for the Abused
Pastor of a Local Church
Former Member of a Presidential Task Force
The Leader in a Nationally Known Ministry
Director of Wichita Homeless Outreach
Much More

His experience includes:
30+ Years of Experience
Author of Original Play on the life of the Real St. Nick
Hundreds of hours of research on the Real St, Nick and legend of Santa Claus
Avon National Convention
The Biltmore House, (The largest privately owned residence in the United States)
Dillon’s Grocery Stores
Sysco National Headquarters
Wichita Public Schools
Derby Public Schools
Rainbows United
Santa for the Homeless
Much More

Special unique features of Mike Furches presentation:
The suit, it is an original made high quality suit

While it may not seem like a unique feature, consider this, Mike is a trained actor and plays up the role when visiting with children

He is also a trained worker with youth, he knows when and how to make children smile and especially for small children who are afraid of Santa, while he can’t guarantee the happiness of a child, he can promise to work at getting that photo opportunity.

For many presentations he travels with an elf which makes the job easier for you.

He can also speak in sign language for those children or parents who need this.

Many adults who have seen Mike have stated, “He really is Santa isn’t he.”

Mike Loves this Character, he really does have a passion to portray the real spirit of St. Nicholas.
Much More

The truth is, Mike Furches loves the character of Santa and a portion of all monies earned go directly to providing Christmas presents for needy families in the area through Mosaic Wichita Church in cooperation with the Nationally Recognized and Known Ministry Mike Directs, The Virtual Pew. A portion also goes to support the homeless outreach for Mosaic. One can find out more about Mike by visiting www.thekeystonekid.org

Rates for Mike Furches are as follows:

Prior to 12/1 - $60 per hour
12/1 – 12/5 - $70 per hour
12/6 – 12/20 - $75 per hour
12/21 - $150 per hour
12/22, 12/23 - $150
12/24 - $200 per hour

Please note, hourly charges are billed for any time over 30 minutes and payment is due at time of services. Mike does offer some services for reduced or free fees to non-profit and charity events.

For information on booking Santa for your event, contact us at either mike@furches.org or 316-807-8034 or 316 258- 3952, (if calling this number please leave a message.)

To Read About Santa's Visit with the Homeless in Wichita, Click Here.

You can support the work of Mike with the homeless and poor by visiting here, 100% of all designated gifts go to the designated cause, with 0% of those designated funds going to salary.

To see the video with Mike in the National Santa for the Homeless Day, a worldwide outreach started by Mike, click on the following video, if the video doesn't appear, click on the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGNKN2EpKNE

Wednesday, December 09, 2009

The Virtual Pew News 23, Merry Christmas

It is that time of year when most ministries are soliciting donations. A few of those donations have come into The Virtual Pew and I want you to know we are so grateful for those. We want to be clear though, from the outset, that even the smallest contribution can make a huge difference to this ministry. For those that know this ministry, you know we allow specific designations where those designated gifts can go directly to the area of need you request. Those individuals will also know that we make every effort with the contributions to make the Christmas season a special season especially for children in need, more about that later, but first a quick break down of contributions over the last year.

So far over the last year The Virtual Pew received in contributions a total of $5,502. Of that, $3,420 went out to direct ministry, including gifts to children, assistance in living expenses for individuals, counseling expenses and more. We also received $350 in contributions to The Virtual Pew for the Mosaic ARC program of that, 100% was given to Mosaic to help cover expenses for the Mosaic ARC program as well as contribution of salary to another individual who is helping with the counseling for Mosaic ARC. Therefore of a total of $5,502 given to The Virtual Pew, $3,770 went to direct ministry, and $1,732 was used for expenses to travel to Tennessee for my mothers funeral, and other ministry related expenses such as printing, travel, phone and so forth. Hopefully this helps show the significance of the contributions given, and the reality that the overwhelming majority of contributions are given out to direct ministry.

Now as mentioned earlier you can designate gifts and those designated gifts will be used for the ministry request via 100%.

Christmas Giving for Families and Children, 100% of designated goes specifically to the area you request.

Here we have adopted several families to give to, with the economy the way it is, it is very difficult for some families.

Let me tell you about one of the families, one is a lady who has had a very difficult life including being prostituted out in the past, having 3 small children and very little income. This family is active in a church and is making the effort to walk with God. This family also had a child commit suicide several years ago. For this family we need the following types of gifts.

For the mother – clothing sized extra-large, basic gifts.
For the husband – Clothing, large, - extra large, basic gifts
Boy Aged 6 - clothing for a husky sized 10, toys, this child likes army related toys.
Boy Aged 3 – clothing sized 4 toddler, toys, this child likes sports related items, trucks, cars
Girl Aged 5 – clothing sized 6, she likes princess related items and baby dolls.

Another family

Girl Aged 3 – clothing sized 4 toddler, a coat, boots size 11, any other clothing items, likes interactive games and puzzles
Boy Aged 2 – he likes push and pull toys and toys you put things in. This child also likes music

Another family
Boy Aged 14 – Clothing Adult small, all kinds of clothing, he also likes cars and artistic types of gifts, including drawing, art and more.

Kids involved in Mosaic Tutoring program, we are looking for one gift per child, either clothing or learning related.

Ages of children in tutoring program are as follows:

16 year old boy
13 year old boy
10 year old boy
10 year old girl
7 year old girl

We are also seeking donations and contributions for the Mosaic ARC program which we help sponsor. The Mosaic ARC program is a program that provides recovery services for persons who have been physically and sexually abused. These services are provided despite ability to contribute for services. Currently we are seeing 3 people face o face, and provide phone counseling to 2 people. There are ongoing costs to this and 100% of designated gifts go directly to Mosaic.

General Contributions to The Virtual Pew. The Virtual Pew has ongoing costs associated with this ministry, from computer and web site maintenance, to supplies for the persons we are serving, costs of materials, printing, and minimal salary assistance. This ministry was featured last year in Dr. Charles Stanley’s In Touch Magazine and has done wonderful work with literally hundreds of direct contacts per year, and thousands of contacts via internet ministry. From our writings to our direct communication and interaction in social networking sites this ministry continues to grow.

Much is going on with our ministry, so much has happened in the last year, from the death of my mother, to the involvement with Tiroma Films out of Tulsa Oklahoma who is working on making a movie on my life. I am pleased with the things God has done, but nothing gives satisfaction like the daily interactions I am blessed to be a part of. From the counseling of sexually and physically abused individuals, to the encouragement in escaping sinful lifestyles and making the effort to get ones life back on track, free from such influences as drugs, gangs, abuse, sexual addictions, occult activity and more. We are also excited about the new ways we are opening up discussion with others who are outside the Christian circle, whether with individuals who are Atheists, Homosexual, or others.

God is still good, and we continue to see ministry take place. We see relationships strengthened, and people rededicate their lives to Christ on a regular basis. We also have the joy of seeing people make commitments to Christ, not just in a flash pan way though, but in a way where disciples and committed followers of Jesus come about.

I thank each of you who are receiving this for your prayers and support of this ministry in the past. The next year looks to have another bright future but will also have additional needs, especially once we start raising the funds for the movie which will provide hope to thousands who have experienced abuse in their life. I get to see the joy of the ministry, others have been blessed to also see the results of this ministry, ministry which wouldn’t take place outside of your generosity.

Now as is always the case. I appreciate the gifts, but want you to know, if you pray and feel the desire to give to another ministry, by all means do so. I have no problem with that, but truly seek to contribute to a ministry where your contribution will be used wisely and in the way it is needed. At The Virtual Pew of course we don’t have to maintain any jet airplanes, we don’t have to pay any large salaries, that is unless you figure the $700 or so in salary that I personally brought in last year a large salary. But pray about it, I challenge you to remember those Jesus instructed us to love and serve, the homeless, the widow, the person in prison, the sick, the needy, the orphan and the widow. While I am sure Jesus may be in many larger ministries, I am certain he is concerned and compassionate about ministries to the poor, his word indicates so, and I challenge you to support those ministries.

Blessings to all, and to all a very Merry and Wonderful Christmas,

Mike Furches

The following is a video we put together for my wife. It is the song titled The Secret of Christmas. It also features some old family footage and some we have spent Christmas with over the years who otherwise wouldn't have had Christmas. The song is in the middle of the video and has a great message. Just click on the video to watch and if the video don't appear, click on the following link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HcTXhANrOcI

Wednesday, September 09, 2009

The Virtual Pew News 22 Mosaic Joint Venture

To all of my Mosaic and The Virtual Pew Friends and Family, time for the weekly update; please note this is going out as a national newsletter due to the needs of our new Tutoring program and Mosaic ARC, Abuse Recovery Program. Please read all of the way through as a movie link is attached and one I would encourage everyone to watch.

First to dispel a rumor I heard last week, yes there is a camping trip for Mosaic to Fall River. Some of us are leaving on Friday, and we won’t be back until Sunday evening. Of course if anyone wants to come at this late notice, that is perfectly fine and you are welcome. Some have suggested possibly coming down for a single day, Saturday, of course, that is also welcome. Now the big rumor I heard, someone said we were not going to have church on Sunday that simply is not true, we are going to actually going to be having church, albeit limited at Fall River, and we are also going to be having church at Mosaic. There will be a time of worship and sharing just as always. We have the tag Chris tag team taking on the responsibility and blessing of doing this, so, please, if not on the camping trip show up, enjoy and worship.

A few other things to make mention of, don’t forget; On Wednesday, we have tutoring classes from 4:30 – 5:30 and will be sticking around a little before and after to do some community outreach and painting in the ARC room. We want to complete this room, have it up and going by October 1. We still need to furnish the room and the following is some things we need in order to fully furnish the facility.

For the reception area:

Television Stand
Television (we have priced several flat screens which would be optimal, with a built in DVD player for between $300 for a 27” and $400 for a 32” at Wal-Mart. This is to go in the reception area and be for parents awaiting children in tutoring, or friends or family with individuals receiving counseling for the Mosaic Abuse Recovery Center.
Magazine Stand
Several appropriate magazine subscriptions
Book Case
Appropriate books
Wichita related art work

For the Mosaic Arc Office

Locking file cabinet
Computer desk
Computer with appropriate memory and appropriate larger screen to be used in other events where video can be used in counseling or teaching sessions, (computer needs a DVD/CD player)
Appropriate computer speakers
Computer 3 in 1 printer
2 comfortable nice matching chairs
1 nice office chair
1 matching love seat
Larger book shelves
Appropriate books & Videos related to abuse, recovery, so forth
Appropriate lighthouse art work, or art work emphasizing recovery.
1 nice floor lamp
Journaling note books to be given to individual receiving recovery services

The above services for Mosaic ARC officially begins October 1, so the sooner we receive these items the better. We are currently getting ready to paint the room and are soliciting donations. We are also seeing our first person and have had requests for further meetings in the future. Currently Debbie Elwood nor I receive any salary for this work which is provided on an as you can pay basis. Contributions to support this service are greatly appreciated. How important is this service, I want to leave a link for you to watch a documentary movie; Searching for Angela Shelton. We will be using this documentary and resources to help out with our program. An ironic bit of information, I went to school with one of the Angela Shelton’s in the movie from Erwin Tennessee, my wife’s hometown. I have been in contact with another Angela Shelton who is also from Erwin Tennessee and she was abused as well. To top it off, I have also received encouragement from the filmmaker, Angela Shelton in the documentary encouraging us in this service.

When watching the movie, I want you to notice the comment about how one individual couldn’t afford the services and therefore wouldn’t get the help. I am also going to include some quotes below the quote to insure you of the importance of this program, first though, the link to the movie where you can watch it for free.

http://www.snagfilms.com/films/title/searching_for_angela_shelton/

Please note the stories have been edited and names have been withheld for obvious reasons.

Mike

I just wanted to write to you to let you know that I was sexually abused by my father who was an alcoholic. I got pregnant at the age of 14 (not by my father), had a son and when he was one and a half I found out he had leukemia. He only lived to be 5 and died in 1987. After that I started on a horrific journey of choosing man after man that was just like my father. They were all drunks, druggies, and very violent. My 2nd ex-husband nearly killed me, beating me and leaving me in a river. I have endured a lot of pain in my life. I became an alcoholic and was addicted to prescription pills. I had 2 more children, a son 21 & a daughter 23 now. I practically raised them alone. I tried to commit suicide 3 times in 2006 and thank God I didn't succeed. Then 2 years ago I was so depressed and lonely that God sent a wonderful man to my front door and invited me to church and I went, 4 months later we were married. I have been happily married and serving God every since. I thank God everyday for the life lessons He has taught me and the people He has sent into my life. I pray that if there are others out there, being abused, they will seek help and tell someone! I never told anyone, it has been a long road to recovery but I am getting there.

Please pray for me to continue on the right (God's) road to recovery. Thank You

Dear Mike,

Thank you so much for responding to me and my spilling my guts to you. I had just finished watching the movie and was just very emotional because I could relate to so much.

I've not shared my abuse story with a lot of people because when I was growing up that was just something you didn't talk about. I have lived here in Erwin most of my life, I know there has been a lot of female abuse here in this town. Most men here are very jealous, controlling, and violent. They feel very insecure or threatened if they don't have full control over their girlfriend or wives. I guess it's all a trust issue. I think the work God has called you to do is great. I have always felt in my heart that if there is at least one person I have helped today in anyway then today has been a good day! I hope my story will give someone hope that there is help for them if they will just tell someone they are being abused. Anyway, thank you so much I hope we can keep in touch. God Bless you and your family and your ministry!

There are many more comments, but I just wanted to give a taste of things that are happening. There are also included 2 attachments, one a flyer for tutoring and the other for the Mosaic ARC program. I am asking you to copy and post those flyers at your work place, church or wherever. If there are those around the country that would like to specify a gift for these programs please feel free to do so, make the checks out to either Mosaic Wichita or The Virtual Pew and designate on the check that it is for either the ARC Program or Tutoring program. Your contribution will be tax-deductible and greatly appreciated.

The following is the link to the film, Searching for Angela Shelton, just click on the link:

http://www.snagfilms.com/films/title/searching_for_angela_shelton/

Click here to follow The Virtual Pew on Twitter

Click here to visit Mosaic Wichita, the Church in Wichita Kansas where Mike is the pastor.

Click Here to Go to The Virtual Pew Daily Verse and Read The Bible in a Year Passages

Click here for booking information to have Pastor Mike come speak or perform, from speaking to music or magic, something for all groups.

Click to visit with Pastor Mike regarding any of your needs. He will respond to each request personally, and if need be refer you to one of our other pastors.

Click to visit and join the new group The Virtual Pew, at MySpace. Become a part of a different kind of Christian group, check out the page for more information,all welcome, including those who are not followers of Jesus.

Click to visit the Virtual Pew Website and become a part of that ministry.

Click to subscribe to my blog

Click to visit and join our sister group at MySpace Hollywood Jesus.

Click to visit Mary Jane Furches' new MySpace Page

Now for those that do not know, make sure you check out the numerous articles and blogs by checking out the archives. If visiting The Virtual Pew or MySpace they are archived on the left hand side of the page. Scroll down to where you see newer or older listed under archives and then click there. There are hundreds of postings so make sure to check out the archives. You can also contact me for a free e-book pre edit version of The Keystone Kid at mike@thevirtualpew.comYou can visit http://www.thevirtualpew.com/ and on the front page down on the left side you sill see our store. Your purchase provides needed funds to The Virtual Pew. If you do not see something to purchase you can click on the search engine, (do not put anything in the search box at this time). You will be taken to Amazon where you can search for anything you desire. Hopefully you will consider a gift to The Virtual Pew.

Now I get asked this quite often, Can we repost your blogs or articles? The short answer to that is, what an honor that you would ask, and by all means, spread the word.Here is our contact information

The Virtual Pew
P.O. Box 17731
Wichita, KS 67217

Click on the following links to learn more about The Virtual Pew

Donations to The Virtual Pew

http://www.furches.org/donations/index.html

The Virtual Pew

The Virtual Pew Blog

Personal Furches Web Site

Mary Jane Furches MySpace Page

Mike Furches MySpace Page

Mike Furches MySpace Blog

Hollywood Jesus

Reviews With Mike

The Virtual Pew Sermons

The Virtual Pew News

MySpace Hollywood Jesus Group

MySpace The Virtual Pew Group

The Virtual Pew Live Radio Web Page

To Subscribe to The Virtual Pew Live Feed

Phone Number to Call During The Virtual Pew Live Show, (Please never call prior to the start of the show) - (646) 716-8587

Phone Number to Call During The HJ Live Show, (Please never call prior to the start of the show) - (646) 716-8853

To Subscribe to The Virtual Pew Live Feed -http://www.blogtalkradio.com/feeds/thevirtualpew

To Subscribe to HJ Live Live Feed –http://www.blogtalkradio.com/feeds/hollywoodjesus

Monday, August 17, 2009

The Virtual Pew News 21, Visit Those In Prison!

Today I am back on my regular routine, a lot has happened and this copy of The Virtual Pew Newsletter will have a lot of things to address, I hope and pray you take the time to review it. It will have updates regarding my life, the life of Mosaic Church in Wichita, and onogings related to The Virtual Pew.

The summer has been rather crazy, let me see if I can paraphrase for you in short notice the events of the summer so far: my son left home, he is with his girlfriend, they plan on getting married next May and they are expecting a baby. That said, God calls me to love my son, and his girlfriend, that don’t mean I agree with everything, but it is what it is. We are all called to love!

Next up, my daughter quit her job to finish her graduate studies and work as a graduate assistant at Wichita State University, shortly thereafter, due to the economy her husband lost his job and now times are going to be challenging. She is smart enough to have saved money for the mortgage payment for their house for a year. To hear her husband state it, “We have the house payment, but don’t know if we will have electricity or not.”

My wife had surgery on her foot and leg, this put a kink into things, I spent much of the summer home with her, helping take care of her, it was good, but at times stressing.

Then we found out our landlord, in the house we had a lease option to purchase on, filed bankruptcy. We are still in limbo here until it goes to court. Long story there, but oh boy, you can only imagine.

We had to put our little dog down, seems he became to aggressive, killed 11 chickens in 2 days, bit me, snapped at a little boy, and well, the Humane Society don’t rehab dogs like that

My wife got a band together; we played a number of concerts in June, and have more coming up. We opened for a band named SHEL from Colorado and was blessed to spend some time with that family over the summer, friends last forever.

My mother died. I made it home to be with her prior to her death, it wasn’t easy, and some friends helped make this trip possible. Apparently some people sent gifts that never got to us. If you were one of those making a gift, please let us know, some of those are obvious, others not since we never received some of the gifts. I don’t know what is up but we want people to be aware. We also received a kind gift from friends at Hollywood Jesus that allowed my wife to visit and be there with me for the funeral. Without their generosity, this wouldn’t have happened.

Then we have a movie company, TiRoMa films out of Tulsa that has committed to making the movie on my life. Right now they are reviewing the manuscript of The Keystone Kid, will work out a script and go from there. This is exciting.

We also provided through The Virtual Pew’s wrestling associations scholarship monies to various individuals in college. Two of those recipients, James Fox and Gage Deere are previous recipients of these small scholarships, but others have also benefited and we hope this aspect of our ministry continues. Thanks to those contributing to help make these opportunities available.

Now there have been other things going on, like at Mosaic. The church continues to stay alive, while we are running out of funding in October, we have hope of getting additional funding as we essentially went through a relaunch in June. While the church was funded for 3 years, only a year of that has been with me at the helm. For the first year there we built relationship and learned to love each other. After a year we started the regrowth process. We started this during the end of June, and it has been doing well despite the 3 weeks I had to spend in Tennessee helping my sister with my mothers’ estate. Mosaic needs additional funding to keep things going. We are at a vulnerable stage bu things look positive if we get that little bit of help over the next year.

Mosaic is starting a Abuse Recovery Center in October of this year. I and another individual at Mosaic, Debbie Elwood is starting this program. I have extensive experience as a director of Mental Health Rehabilitation programs and extensive experience in counseling. Debbie has her Masters from Emporia State University and has experience in counseling. This program will be a recovery center for persons of all ages who have been physically and sexually abused. It will be provided on an as you can afford basis and will be largely funded with outside contributions. Mosaic could use your help with this venture; NOW! For now, Debbie or I will be receiving a salary. We hope the program builds to where it will supplement financial needs of the church, plus provide additional salary needs for myself and a full-salary for Debbie. This is a dream of mine and we’ve already had some interest expressed from around the country. My story with abuse is fairly well known and we hope this opens up doors for ministry.

The article in Dr. Charles Stanley’s magazine In Touch, June Edition, opened many doors for ministry. I have provided counsel to an individual on the PGA tour, encouraged women and men across the country, spent time on the telephone, via letter, and face to face with people touched by my story. I want to offer a special thanks to Dr. Charles Stanley, but also Lisa Baker who wrote the story. While we have had no additional income come in, there has been a lot of ministry taking place. I want to touch on just a small sample of that ministry, and in this small sample, encourage you, and motivate you to do your part.

One of the areas I was not expecting to occur was the amount of email, letters and so forth I would get from prisoners or people incarcerated who found out one way or another about the story.

Let me explain today’s activities, at least as of 11:15 AM. I woke up, took my wife to car pool to work with a friend, and then went home to do The Virtual Pew updates. I showered at 8 PM (woke up at 6 AM) Then left to go visit a prisoner in work release whose family put us in touch with each other. Ended up getting to the work release program and the facility would not allow a visit. I then drove to the post office, picked up the mail, two letters today from inmates, one in Kansas, and another in Texas.

I drive straight to the coffee shop where I set up office a couple of days a week and started reading the letters and then writing letters of response to those inmates. I just finished, and will spend the rest of the day trying to do a little sermon work, some visitation, and then the writing and posting of this newsletter.

I want to share something that is consistent with the letters and contacts I am getting from inmates and specifically the two letters this morning.

The first thing mentioned in the letters is usually; (especially with a first letter) is how grateful they are to hear from someone. It seems as if they hear on occasion from all kinds of bad influences, but never from Christians. If what is stated is true, and I believe it is, Christians have little to do with inmates and often times Christians even hurt them due to their lack of concern. Apparently many of the inmates have hopes, and want to walk with Christ, but they need to know they are loved from those on the outside who are willing to help them in this journey.

This morning I thought of something, Jesus tells us to visit those in prison, now we have easy access to do this via letters. Now that said, nothing replaces a face to face, and for those I can, I attempt the face to face visits. This morning I told an inmate in Beaumont Texas I would visit him when I received designated funding to do so. I told him, I don’t have much money, but maybe someone will help fund this trip so we can spend 4 hours together on a Saturday and Sunday. He is doing what he needs from his part to help I am doing what I can, and hopefully you will do what you can.

I thought of something else I hadn’t thought of before. Jesus commands us to visit those in prison. Most of us don’t do it. I wonder what the response of Jesus will be for those who not only don’t visit those in prison, don’t write letters and when asked, still turn their backs on the very people God has commanded us to love. We know some want those letters, those visits, now we have them asking and some of us; including at times me, make excuses as to why we can’t do it. What would Jesus tell us in those situations?

Today I want to provide you information on one inmate who has made his requests public, listen to some of his words first though:

“Two things caught my attention with you Mike; One is we’ve had similar childhoods and like you, I have greatly been neglected by the Christian Community. I placed an ad on the internet where I used the name a “Gay Ad: and pictures of me. The mail used to pour in, but this new ad, Christian has not received one response. You can read it at": Click here to see the post from Gary

Gary went on in his 4 page letter to me, all hand written all seeking out a relationship with someone who knows Christ. He poured out his heart, but after spending 11 ½ years in prison. He was incarcerated again in 2004 for a 25 year sentence. He don’t have much more than time on his hand. Here is a captive audience who wants to hear more about Jesus, more about how we can share in life, and yet, not a single Christian has responded to his request. I am grateful he saw the article in, In Touch Magazine, I am grateful because I want to be used in a ministry that still reaches out to The Lost, The Last, and The Least. Why? Because Jesus has told me to, he has told you to, the question is will we be obedient.

Despite what some have said, the lies, the hate spewed at times towards this ministry, we continue. The rewards from a financial perspective are few, the rewards from a spiritual basis though, they are many, and thankfully daily. To know God chooses to use this ministry, to use me, and yes to use you in regards to the prayers you have offered and for some the financial support is an amazing place to be. I find joy in being in that place, not because I have done anything, but because Christ does it through me. Will you allow yourself to find a place where Christ can do something through you? I pray this is the case, because God is not good some of the time, God is good all of the time!

I have new friends, new family, I pray God doesn’t allow me to forget them. You can meet those people as well. I encourage you, write an inmate today, and become a part of their life. If you can’t do that, I would ask you to consider helping this ministry do that, if you don’t feel comfortable supporting this ministry, find a ministry you can support. I know God will meet our needs, of course that means some have to listen to the call of God.

I have another request outside of the regular requests though. We need ongoing support for our ministry, both in finance and prayer. I am asking for something special today, can you help make it possible to have a personal, face to face visit with Gary in Texas? It will require lodging in Beaumont Texas, (I am not opposed to staying at someone’s house) and I am not opposed to speaking while there to help with funds. But gas, would be needed, possibly some lodging down and back for the trip. I would also ask that help be provided to help pay someone to speak at Mosaic in my absence, I like to see to it that if possible, we can bless the speakers who fill in. This trip would take 2 days there, I could speak along the way, and 2 days back. It is close enough to my uncles’ house in Florida I could hop over and spend some time in the Panhandle of Florida or other locations near that Western Panhandle and speak in that area. I could make a week long trip or more out of it to speak in various places and share about this ministry. The intent though, is to spend face to face time with Gary. I told him this morning I would make the request. Maybe, just maybe, some will see the importance in a single, solitary soul seeking to see God.

Now I am asking something else, can you write to Gary, let him know you are different than other Christians who have ignored his pleas. He doesn’t need someone to preach to him, put him down; he needs someone to share the love of Christ. I will share the addresses and names of other inmates as I get permission, but a good place to find inmates to correspond with to write to can be found by clicking here.

I ask you to do more, do more than most Christians who sit on their duffs and make excuses, do more to share the love of Christ with the very people he has called us to love. Do more to be the church, to be the bride that Christ is proud of cherishes. If you are already doing these things, great, remind others to do their part.

If willing to write Gary, his address is as follows:

Gary Raleigh #1268593
Stiles Unit
3060 FM 3514
Beaumont TX 77705-7635 USA

Thanks and God Bless all,

Mike

PS on a side note, remember, there has been tons of videos, reviews, articles that have been done over the summer. Check some of them out at the following links.

District 9 Movie Review

GI Joe, The Rise of Cobra Movie Review

Up Movie Review

Harry Potter, and the Half-Blood Prince Movie Review

Are There Dogs in Heaven? Includes New Video

I Hate This Crap

Last Update, Goodbye Mom

The Last Conversation with My Mom

I Could Say A Lot of Things But What I Will Say Is

You Tool! Whose Hand Controls You?

The Boss Lets His Light Shine

50 Years of Lessons, My Birthday Wish

Of course there are many more in the archives, but these will help you get started, and beware, a lot more coming up in the next weeks.

Now the following is a couple of videos of a sister church who is helping Mosaic be the church that God is calling us to be. Hopefully the videos inspire you, hopefully they let you know why it is that Mosaic, and The Virtual Pew are both ministries that I love. Just click on the video, if the video don't appear, click on the link.

Saving Private Joe
http://www.tangle.com/view_video?viewkey=8defb0e80306183ea536

It's Never Too Late: The Don Kirk Story
http://www.tangle.com/view_video?viewkey=5bb4394ec1a7fdc15cf4

Click here to follow The Virtual Pew on Twitter

Click here to visit Mosaic Wichita, the Church in Wichita Kansas where Mike is the pastor.

Click Here to Go to The Virtual Pew Daily Verse and Read The Bible in a Year Passages

Click here for booking information to have Pastor Mike come speak or perform, from speaking to music or magic, something for all groups.

Click to visit with Pastor Mike regarding any of your needs. He will respond to each request personally, and if need be refer you to one of our other pastors.

Click to visit and join the new group The Virtual Pew, at MySpace. Become a part of a different kind of Christian group, check out the page for more information,all welcome, including those who are not followers of Jesus.

Click to visit the Virtual Pew Website and become a part of that ministry.

Click to subscribe to my blog

Click to visit and join our sister group at MySpace Hollywood Jesus.

Click to visit Mary Jane Furches' new MySpace Page

Now for those that do not know, make sure you check out the numerous articles and blogs by checking out the archives. If visiting The Virtual Pew or MySpace they are archived on the left hand side of the page. Scroll down to where you see newer or older listed under archives and then click there. There are hundreds of postings so make sure to check out the archives. You can also contact me for a free e-book pre edit version of The Keystone Kid at mike@thevirtualpew.comYou can visit http://www.thevirtualpew.com/ and on the front page down on the left side you sill see our store. Your purchase provides needed funds to The Virtual Pew. If you do not see something to purchase you can click on the search engine, (do not put anything in the search box at this time). You will be taken to Amazon where you can search for anything you desire. Hopefully you will consider a gift to The Virtual Pew.

Now I get asked this quite often, Can we repost your blogs or articles? The short answer to that is, what an honor that you would ask, and by all means, spread the word.Here is our contact information