It’s not a new idea. In fact, our heavenly Father has always encouraged his people to “pay it forward.” We don’t pay him back—we never could begin to do that! Instead, we give others what we have received from our Savior, trusting his generous heart will keep the blessings flowing into our lives. 

I thought about all this as I heard two CTA Customer Service Representatives tell the story of a CTA customer who has purchased, not one Bouquet of Blessings devotion book, but more than 100! This customer didn’t intend to give them to a large group—or even to several small ones. Instead, she touched one heart at a time, sending copies to others she wanted to bless.

Isn’t that what our Lord asks of us? Forgiven and accepted in Jesus, we nod in glad agreement when the psalmist says:  “Forget not all his benefits!”

 Our wonderful CTA customer gladly received God’s blessings and then became a blessing herself in the lives of those God brought across her path.

 Pay it forward today! And then look forward in great anticipation to the expressions of love that will continue on into eternally.

• Those volunteers at your church do so much. You want to remember them at Christmas with a meaningful gift. But what!?
• You work with a great group of professionals on your church staff. You want to share your respect and affection for them this Christmas. But how?!
• The teachers and Sunday school teachers, janitors, and teacher aides make an enormous impact on the families and young people of your church, parish school, and community. You want to encourage them all with Jesus’ love. But the budget won’t cooperate. So now what?!

Scenarios just like these led CTA to create and trademark the very first Ornaments of Faith® in 2002. Since then, they’ve become a year by year favorite of CTA customers. Are you among our fans yet?

Here’s what CTA co-founder, Steve Darr, says about these popular products:

The purpose of the Ornament of Faith® products is to provide unique and attractive ornaments to encourage the faith of believers and to plant the seeds of faith in pre-Christians.  We do this by combining traditional Christmas and biblical symbols designed in interesting and engaging ways and packaged attractively with a simple poem and corresponding Scripture. 

All these elements work together to share the truth about Christmas and the good news of Christ’s coming.  Ornaments of Faith® products include children’s ornaments, unique ornament Christmas cards, as well as a line of quality pewter –finished ornaments manufactured in the U.S.A.    

 It seems so natural now that a company like CTA would offer Christian Christmas ornaments, but seven years ago, it was unheard of—especially at a price under $4.00 per ornament. What set off the spark  that brought this idea into reality?     

Steve says:

We started very modestly with the Ornaments of Faith® line by producing a couple of unique designs in various types of materials.  We found that customers really seemed to appreciate the pewter-finish ornaments the most, and thus we have responded to that feedback by providing even more unique and purposeful designs that that could use to encourage the faith. 

Many customer have started collecting these ornaments and purchase them annually to give each Christmas. Our customers really seem to appreciate the value and the purposeful designs of the Ornaments of Faith® that our product development team creates each year.

Looking for a unique and meaningful gift for all those colleagues who mean so much to you and add so much to your ministry? Take a look at this year’s Ornaments of Faith® collection. You won’t be disappointed!

View a video about this year’s Ornaments of Faith®.

View a video about how one pastor has built a tradition around Ornaments of Faith®.

As a CSR for CTA, I recently talked with pastor who had just read, Grieving with Hope . . . Leaning on Jesus. He passed it on—to a family grieving the loss of a child several years ago. The family came back a few days later to say, in essence, “We so wish we had read this at the time of our child’s death!”

Grief seldom evaporates the day after the funeral! Many people continue to grieve for months and even years. Experts in grief tell us that individuals each grieve in their own way, following their own timetable.

Do you have friends who struggle with grief? When you act in faith, our Savior will step in to care for those whose lives you touch. It’s never too late to bring the hope of Jesus to those who are grieving.

Editor’s Note: CTA’s Grieving with Hope . . . Leaning on Jesus has become a best-seller in only a few months! It costs much less than most sympathy cards and it comes with an envelop for easy mailing.  The Christ-centered message coupled with four-color, eye-striking photos, make it a truly valuable ministry tool! Churches, Stephen Ministers, chaplains, and others will want to buy a case to have on hand.

I find this to be a very special time of year, yet another beautiful season God sends us to enjoy. With these changes, we also begin to see pumpkins and scarecrows. Whether we live in a farming community or not, we begin to hear talk about the fall harvest.

In my classroom this time of year, we talk about the differences between fall and summer. Although many of my kindergarteners prefer summer, talking about all the positive aspects of fall helps them discover God’s glory in every season. As they name their own fall favorites, cooler days, raking leaves, bonfires, and going apple-picking almost always find their way onto our class list. We talk about the harvest, and about how God has blessed us with food for the winter months ahead.

Children love pumpkins, especially carving them and decorating them. I teach that just as a pumpkin with a candle inside shines with light from one end of the neighborhood to the other, we can shine with the light and love of Jesus. He lives in us and that means his love radiates from us into the lives of all the people we see every day.

CTA has some wonderful resources to help reinforce this theme. Check them out on CTA’s Fall Festival pages or look for G.L.O.W. or S.H.I.N.E. products.

Happy autumn!

1. Use the addresses in your guest book from the last two or three months to create a mailing list and announce plans for summer Sunday school and VBS. Send a postcard or e-mail that lets people know what age levels are welcome, what the theme will be, and whether or not there is any cost involved.
2. Many churches have started charging a small fee for VBS. Could you spark people’s interest by offering them an amount off the fee when they bring a friend? There might be someone, or even a few someones, in your congregation who would be willing to pay the difference if it would spark attendance. For example, you might create a coupon that gives $1 off if two friends sign up together. Or make a coupon that members can give to friends offering 50% off the regular VBS enrollment fee.

• Children might enjoy handing out your congregational gifts on Mother’s Day (and there’s no doubt the women will enjoy receiving it from a child).
• If you’re associated with a pre-school or Mother’s Day Out ministry, order additional gifts for moms who are from your community but not affiliated with your church.
• Will Mother’s Day recognition gifts stretch your church budget? Invite a men’s group to purchase them for the ladies. In turn, might a woman’s group be interested in sponsoring gifts for Father’s Day?
• Suggest Sunday School children write a note or draw a picture to include with the Mother’s Day gifts.
• Have you included gifts for women who are homebound or in assisted living situations?
• Does your church partner with an area crisis pregnancy center? CTA gifts with a Christ-centered message might truly bless those moms-to-be.
• Pastors, are you using the gift’s theme and Scripture reference as a title and text for your Mother’s Day message?
• If ordering Be Blessed mugs, purchase extra to keep in your church’s kitchen or staff work room.
• The CTA gifts for women (and men) can be used year-round for hospitality or evangelism visits.
• Have you considered using the product’s theme for your women’s retreat?
• Is this the opportune moment to recognize the support ministry of your pastor’s spouse with a special gift?
• Have you considered coordinating your sanctuary’s Mother’s Day decorations with the colors of the gifts?
• Have gifts been mailed to women away serving in the military or given to family members to share upon their return?

What ways have you used (or will use) to make an impact as your celebrate Mother’s Day?

At our church we had more visitors than usual for Easter worship. We especially noticed a lot of families with young children. What happened at your church? Did you have more visitors than usual, as well? Did you hear any thought-provoking comments from your visitors? As you look back on your preparations for Easter, is there anything you’d do differently for next year? Click on “Comments” to let us know.

Most likely, you now have a visitor book with several names and addresses filled in by visitors on Easter Sunday. Here are some ideas for keeping in touch with them:

• Phone, E-mail, or visit them during the next two weeks to thank them for visiting and ask if they have any questions about your church or needs your church can help with. If you can’t get a visiting team together, send them a postcard. Here’s one you can use for free.  (Note that it has two pages to download–front and back; depending on your connection time, this may take a minute or two.)
•  Compile your visitors list into a mailing list and use it for publicizing VBS and special summer Sunday school events. CTA has a free GLOW (God Lights Our Way) postcard invitation you can print up and mail to them.  It’s generic enough to work for any summer Sunday school or VBS program. (Again, download times will vary.)
• Save your contact list for fall and use it again to let people know when fall programs will be starting up or to invite them to your fall festival.

Here at CTA, we’re always interested in what’s going on at your church. Let us know what’s keeping you busy and how you’re staying in touch with visitors!

One such comment came in this morning from a women who saw our Jesus Is the Reason for the Season Car Magnet on someone else’s car.

“I recently was out driving, and noticed one of these magnets on a ladies car. I had to follow her to find out where she got it. When I finally caught up to her, I asked her where she got it. She couldn’t remember. When I appeared to be dissapointed, she offered me hers. It’s nice to still find good Christian people in the world. I won’t be able to buy any of these this year because of finances, but I will certainly get some next year.”