SHINE Release Event

On December 5, 2017 we celebrated the release of the 11th Edition of SHINE Magazine! It was a spectacular night of “Pearls and Grace” with beautiful spotlights of color blazing in the auditorium announcing the event—igniting the five senses for a sense-sational evening! It is evident from looking at the magazine that many months of hard work went into its creation. This was no easy task as this was the largest SHINE Magazine yet to be produced. It takes the combined efforts of the dedicated SHINE team (Gayla Bagwell, April Muniz, Shelly Smith, and Piper Green) and the creative writers (known as Diamond Girls) to produce and publish this beautiful magazine. SHINE welcomed our first male contributor, Brent Neiser! We are thrilled that it is now available for purchase at $10.00 per copy.

To celebrate this release, we started off with an array of delectable items created by Chef Justin Hopp for our eating pleasure. Some of the delicious choices were: fresh oysters and shrimp, and seared mini scallops and pearl onion pasta with white sauce—it tasted heavenly, and the baked potato soup was divine! The pearl theme continued with the desserts: the white chocolate dipped praline and the madeleine & marshmallow cookies were so beautiful. They were made with iridescent marshmallow inside a French shell cookie and tasted dreamy! The pearl truffle dipped in white chocolate, the poached pear pearls, and the vanilla bean caviar encapsulated the “Pearls and Grace” theme of the night.

The beauty of the “Gayla Event” was highlighted with teal, gold, and soft pink decorations in the lobby surrounding the delicacies that were served. To create a spectacular ambiance, carolers sang our favorite hymns to prepare our hearts for the Christmas spirit. After enjoying and feasting, we moved into the sanctuary for praise and worship. The SHINE singers ushered in God’s presence as they sang Tasha Cobb’s beautiful song Grace. His presence was truly felt in a special way.

Upon entering the sanctuary, our sense of sight was awed with beautiful designs and the colorful lights flashing across the auditorium. Every woman received a beautiful teal bag with an abalone shell and beautiful pearl bracelet to remind us of Christ our Pearl of great price, and His marvelous Grace.

This event touched the entire family—no one was left out! After praise and worship, the men (including the teen boys) were ministered to by Pastor Tim Bagwell in the Pulse Center. The teen girls were taught in the empowerment room by Lorraine Cordero, who, along with her husband Gerardo, are the new leaders for the Pulse youth ministry.

The elementary kids were treated to an “under the sea” experience with Annie Brown and Abby Green. The kids walked through a “sea” of jellyfish and even experienced their very own clam dig with real clams that contained a pearl! They had a “dive” experience, diving deeper in their walk with Christ—it was an amazing adventure!

The younger kids too, experienced an “under the sea” adventure. The kids left with a clam and pearl, and an aqua-colored gift bag with gummie fish, teal jellybeans, and bouncy spiny balls, each representing fun creatures found in the sea. It was a fun and busy evening for the whole family!

Of course, a Gayla Event always includes fabulous giveaways! The women in the audience were handed out a poem entitled “The Pearl,” and a wonderful story from Kendra Graham (the grandaughter-in-law of Billy Graham) “I’m Making Pearls In Here!” This was truly an entertaining time full of joy and excitement!

We were then entertained by live “vignettes” from the magazine that were insightful and inspiring. SHINE model Nathalie was beautiful as she modeled today’s “Boho and Trendy” styles. The outfits in Nathalie’s article were provided courtesy of Stein-Mart, who sponsored her layout. We learned how to make homemade body scrub to give as gifts this holiday season by Teresa Vigil, and Vicki Dorrell taught us about the importance of having good friends in our life through her “Fragrance of Friendship” vignette. Connie Pshigoda taught us the importance of the food we eat to stay healthy, and all the wonderful flavors God has blessed us with—that truly awakens our “sense’ of taste! Piper Green’s vignette was on the palm tree and the rest that God promises us when we abide in Him.

The theme and message for the evening, as well as for the 11th Edition of SHINE, was centered around “Pearls and Grace,” given by Pastor Gayla. She illustrated the revelation of God’s grace and Jesus Christ our Pearl of Great Price. She taught us how those things in life that irritate us are being covered in “Holy Spirit Nacre” transforming that irritant into a beautiful pearl! Because the clam can’t extract the irritant, it is covered in this nacre as a defense mechanism and encased making the pearl! To read more about Pastor Gayla’s message, order a copy of SHINE Magazine and read her article “Pearls of Grace” on page 70. It will encourage you as you face trials and circumstances that test your faith. She encouraged us with 2 Corinthians 12:9, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.”

It was a sense-sational night in which the Lord ministered to the ladies through all five of the senses He created us with; a night full of Pearls and Grace!