"Though your beginning was small, Yet your latter end would increase abundantly." Job 8:7 NKJVWe completed our 4th Annual National Strip Club Outreach & XXX Ministry Training yesterday here in Fort Myers, FL & with great joy & excitement we are pleased to share with you that 3 strippers prayed to receive Christ in the club last nite! The power of God showed up in our adopted club in which we've been doing outreaches in for 6 years. The outreach team had the opportunity to pray with over 1/2 the employees, new & old! It was the best outreach we've ever done and the team was even greeted by the owner who came back into the locker room to hang out with us to eat the yummy meal of fried chicken, Puerto Rican rice & beans, spinach salad, fresh veggies & dip, snowflake rolls & delicious lattice apple pie.
The gift bags were made up of NKJV Bibles, elegant velvet & gemstone purses, bracelets & black ribbon rhinestone watches, books on Anger, Depression & the 7 Steps to Forgiveness, the Father's Love Letter, 'He'll Do it Again' CD, as well as various beauty items. Demonstrating community & ministry partnerships, the above items were donated by the following respectively:
The Pink Cross Foundation
The Alabaster Girls
Pastor Gaspar Anastasi of Word of Life Church
The Father's Love Letter
Stacy Angeloff (Word of Life worship leader)
A national beauty supply store
After we set up tables with red table cloths, confetti sprinkled across them, lit a Yankee Candle & put out a vase of long stem red roses (for the ladies to take with them), we put out the food & the team personally served every employee. Then we pulled out the gifts and they all took them. They were so excited, telling us how thankful they were for all we were doing for them.
Within minutes the team embraced opportunities to pray for the ladies as they started opening up to us. At one point the manager came out of the locker room while 4 of us were holding hands & praying, he simply smiled at me indicating his approval. We heard stories of domestic violence, desperation, hopelessness, pregnancy, intense desires to get out, lesbianism, how they used to serve God and were backslid, drug addictions, supporting their boyfriends, single motherhood, trying to make ends meet, etc. from hurting women that had been working from 1 nite to over 15 years.
At one point two team members went to the bar area to talk with the bartender who had asked for us to come speak to her. Within a couple of minutes of arriving the bar emptied, then the club emptied out giving us greater opportunities to minister to every single employee! The bartender who has worked there for over 6 years even commented that not one employee complained about us being there & how grateful everyone was for us coming in. We were even told by some of the ladies that we were such a blessing to come in that we didn't have to bring the food & gifts, but they would like us to just visit more often!
What is even more incredible was the night before, we stopped by to touch base with the manager & ask him permission to come last nite, after he hugged me & I introduced him to another former dancer who was with me, he told me to show her around the club literally saying, 'It's your club, show her around'. To God be ALL the glory!
To read the manager's quotes from the Fort Myers News Press regarding the 8/31 story on Beauty From Ashes: CLICK HERE
To read the Fort Myers News Press Editorial done on Beauty From Ashes on 9/3: CLICK HERE
To donate & partner with us advancing the Kingdom of God: CLICK HERE
To schedule a Strip Club Outreach: Reach, Rescue & Restore Victims of Sexual Exploitation and Trafficking Training or for more information: CLICK HERE
Thank you so much all your prayers! They are vital to the favor, divine appointments and milestones we experience. I especially want to thank my husband, a mighty man of God, that pushed back the forces of darkness from the parking lot last night for almost 4 hours while we were inside. Together we are better & are making a difference!
The gift bags were made up of NKJV Bibles, elegant velvet & gemstone purses, bracelets & black ribbon rhinestone watches, books on Anger, Depression & the 7 Steps to Forgiveness, the Father's Love Letter, 'He'll Do it Again' CD, as well as various beauty items. Demonstrating community & ministry partnerships, the above items were donated by the following respectively:
The Pink Cross Foundation
The Alabaster Girls
Pastor Gaspar Anastasi of Word of Life Church
The Father's Love Letter
Stacy Angeloff (Word of Life worship leader)
A national beauty supply store
After we set up tables with red table cloths, confetti sprinkled across them, lit a Yankee Candle & put out a vase of long stem red roses (for the ladies to take with them), we put out the food & the team personally served every employee. Then we pulled out the gifts and they all took them. They were so excited, telling us how thankful they were for all we were doing for them.
Within minutes the team embraced opportunities to pray for the ladies as they started opening up to us. At one point the manager came out of the locker room while 4 of us were holding hands & praying, he simply smiled at me indicating his approval. We heard stories of domestic violence, desperation, hopelessness, pregnancy, intense desires to get out, lesbianism, how they used to serve God and were backslid, drug addictions, supporting their boyfriends, single motherhood, trying to make ends meet, etc. from hurting women that had been working from 1 nite to over 15 years.
At one point two team members went to the bar area to talk with the bartender who had asked for us to come speak to her. Within a couple of minutes of arriving the bar emptied, then the club emptied out giving us greater opportunities to minister to every single employee! The bartender who has worked there for over 6 years even commented that not one employee complained about us being there & how grateful everyone was for us coming in. We were even told by some of the ladies that we were such a blessing to come in that we didn't have to bring the food & gifts, but they would like us to just visit more often!
What is even more incredible was the night before, we stopped by to touch base with the manager & ask him permission to come last nite, after he hugged me & I introduced him to another former dancer who was with me, he told me to show her around the club literally saying, 'It's your club, show her around'. To God be ALL the glory!
To read the manager's quotes from the Fort Myers News Press regarding the 8/31 story on Beauty From Ashes: CLICK HERE
To read the Fort Myers News Press Editorial done on Beauty From Ashes on 9/3: CLICK HERE
To donate & partner with us advancing the Kingdom of God: CLICK HERE
To schedule a Strip Club Outreach: Reach, Rescue & Restore Victims of Sexual Exploitation and Trafficking Training or for more information: CLICK HERE
Thank you so much all your prayers! They are vital to the favor, divine appointments and milestones we experience. I especially want to thank my husband, a mighty man of God, that pushed back the forces of darkness from the parking lot last night for almost 4 hours while we were inside. Together we are better & are making a difference!
As the Word says and we declare, the BEST is yet to come!
In Him & His fire,
Julie
Pastor Julie Shematz
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