Easter praises from around the country

God did amazing things through Stadia plants on Easter Sunday -- marriages were healed, the lost were found, new believers were baptized. Here's just a sampling...

Crossbridge Christian Church - Tallahasee, Florida

Not only did Crossbridge Christian Church reach a record attendance on Easter Sunday, but a number of visitors asked to learn more about Jesus Christ. One couple in particular touched the hearts of Pastor Mark Michael and the entire congregation. Shawn, who had been away from God for quite some time, invited his unbelieving wife, Wendy, to embark on a spiritual journey with him when they first married. With Shawn's continuous prayer, Wendy has recently demonstrated an eagerness to learn about God's grace. She is also considering being baptized. "Our experience at Crossbridge has been real because here, there are real people with real problems who we can relate to and connect with," said Shawn. "It's refreshing to say the least…"

Highland Christian Church - Asheville, North Carolina

For Easter, a highly talented cast at Highland Christian Church produced and performed Godspell, an off-Broadway musical based on the Gospel of Matthew. At each show (Friday, Saturday and Sunday night), the audience was so touched that testimonies were pouring out. Godspell proved to be an amazing and successful outreach as tickets were sold out and local residents begged to hold the show for several more nights. On Easter Sunday, over 700 people attended church and 11 were baptized.

Hope Christian Church - Fairfield, California

When the leaders of Hope Christian Church decided to make the Easter service into a baptism service, they had no idea that the church would break the 200 mark in attendance, five people would step forward to be baptized and seven more would seek information on Jesus Christ. Pastor Dennis Murphy decided to change the service by adding another twist: "We had a fun relay race during the service. Men had to find the stuffed donkey in the crowd, build a cross and roll away a stone," said Pastor Murphy. It worked because "the crowd loved it."

Lifepointe Christian Church - Charlotte, North Carolina

Lifepointe Christian Church offered a free community Easter egg hunt and festival on Saturday where lead pastor Matt McGue had the opportunity to meet a lot of new people. One family that recently came to Christ told Matt that they changed their spring break vacation plans so they could attend Lifepointe on Easter. A total of 577 people showed up for the two services in the middle school cafeteria. Five of them were baptized.

Momentum Christian Church - McDonough, Georgia

Easter was the end of an intense week at Momentum Christian Church. From Palm Sunday to Thursday night, the church's building was torn up for a makeover. A permanent stage was built, floor to ceiling curtains were installed and an entirely new lighting system was added. "The coolest part of it was the volunteers all week. We had guys take off work, people bringing in meals and life groups serving together at night as we destroyed, designed, rebuilt and cleaned," said lead pastor Bart Stone. "Our people really stepped up. Then, to see it all in action on Easter Sunday was incredible." The end result was a full house of 465 guests learning about the "Easter (Resurrection) that changes everything."

New Community Christian Church - Braselton, Georgia

New Community broke its attendance record with 445 people on Easter. During the service, eight people came to Christ and the church received $9,800 toward their $15,000 goal. With an abundance of volunteers, New Community launched its parking team and toddler environment with great success. Guests were ushered from the parking lot to guest services with the help of the new volunteers. "They did an outstanding job," said Chris Hoffman, lead pastor. "It was an amazing day at New Community."

Restore Community Church - Kansas City, Missouri

Restore Community Church had a great Easter, concluding its series "Missing: Jesus," in which the church unpacked various misconceptions of Jesus Christ. Lead Pastor Troy McMahon said, "I was so proud of our team and how they took their game up a notch." As a result, Restore also set an attendance record of 663.