staff & elders :: jessica lawrence

jessica lawrence, staff :: secretary

as a staff member, what is the one thing that comes up daily in your life that you would like prayer for?

more of Him, less of me

born: january 25, 1978, in cumberland, maryland

hometown: lake charles, louisiana

married: i'm married to matt lawrence, best husband ever. we were married on april 3, 2004.

what's your favorite thing about being married to matt?

i have the best husband ever. he can fix/do anything. he has a new found passion for raising chickens and a goat. i'm not gonna lie, i kind of like hearing the chickens outside of our window. the things that i do that drive other people nuts he thinks are cute... i think. he is amazing with angel and christal and is always quick to give me a new/different perspective on things. i understand Christ's love a little bit more since we've been married. did i mention i have the best husband ever?

kids:

we are foster parents and are in the process of adopting 2 little girls, angel - 9, christal - 7. we love having them in our home and are daily amazed at how much God is using these two little girls to refine us.

pets: 2 labs... zeke and ellie, 1 miniature snchauzer... ruthie, 1 goat... heidi, chickens... too many to name

siblings: i have one younger brother, doug eckard. that makes me the oldest. 1 sister-in-law, wendi & brother-in-law, kyle

if you and your siblings were on the cosby show, which of the huxtable kids would you be?

doug would definitely be theo. when we were kids he forever had a plan to get away with stuff.

i would be olivia. my job in my family, accoriding to me, has always been to make my family laugh and give "advice." and by advice i mean, i was really bossy... some things never change.

job/profession:

promotions assistant for K-LOVE & Air 1 radio networks. I get to go to alot of pretty cool events and talk with people about how K-LOVE or Air 1 have ministered to them. once again the Lord has blessed me by allowing me to be in ministry and have that pay my bills. i'm also the secretary for the ring community church and i love that even more!!

hobbies and/or hidden talents:

i like to read when i get the chance, but my favorite pass time is laying out.

passion(s):

over the last several years, i have become very passionate about social justice. it all started when i went to nicaragua and witnessed injustice first hand. there were families living at the local dump. children playing with other people's trash, getting their food from the trash. the highlight of the week being the day the dump truck came with new trash. it broke my heart. i was embarrassed at my ignorance and felt overwhelmed.

the Lord has been so gracious to show me avenues in which i can be involved in making a difference. i feel very strongly that we are supposed to take care of those who are weaker than us, whether by giving money, being involved in the government, or by supporting fair trade organizations. one day there will be no more suffering and no more pain, but until then i want to help ease the suffering.

one of the ways the Lord has most recently directed my passion for social justice is becoming a part of the foster care program. currently matt and i are fostering two little girls. our hope is to show the love of Christ to kids that have been in one way or another abandoned. there is such a need for foster parents in our state i would encourage anyone who's interested to pray about it and see where God takes you. it's definately a crazy ride!

on the weekends, i am most likely... working or doing something with the kiddos.

favorite Bible verse or the one that most explains where you are... why?

i have been camping out in romans 4 for a while now. there are so many things that relate to where i am, but one of the truths that makes me more excited than anything is found in verse 17... "the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were." i wasn't holy, but now He calls me holy. i hope i never lose sight of what God calls me.

favorite memory of the ring:

the 30 days of prayer leading up to our church launch... for years, we have 30 days of prayer every january, but this time it was different. it was a time of personal growth and corporate growth. i've never been so humbled that the Lord would trust His bride with a bunch of messed up people. i sure am glad He did. we mess up of course, but the grace that is given so we can move forward in, "leading people to a more intimate relationship with God for His glory," is nothing short of beautiful.

favorite memory of one of the other elders or staff members:

at one day, meg and i thought it would be real fun to work together. i was working for robert and josh at pbc, and bro. jim was trying to get meg to work for him. we dreamed of lunches together, seeing each other in the hall way, etc. it's really cheesey... i admit, but we're cheesey girls. who knew we would be working arm's length away from each other, and for the ring, no less!!

moment/how you knew God was calling you to be a part of the ring:

there's never been a "moment" that i knew God called me to the ring. it just fits. i guess it's kind of like being in a family. you know you're a part of your family, but you don't remember the day you were born into it. you've just always been in the family and to be in any other family just wouldn't feel right.