Our Year-End Update 2012
Dear Friends,
Merry Christmas!
As you know, growing community and impacting our culture through Hollywood is a huge undertaking. It has been another incredible year for Epiphany Space and this would not have been possible without your support and encouragement through prayer, wisdom and resources. Thank you.
2012 has been a full year.
LISTENING GROUPS
Twice a month at our home in Burbank we offer our listening group, a place to learn how to hear God’s voice, practice the prophetic and spiritual gifts, and partner with Holy Spirit in releasing or receiving healing. Our core group is made up of individuals from several churches and provides a safe place to bring friends who need an encounter with God.
In February, we beta tested Epiphany Space’s eight-week Artists Listening Group, where artists also learn how God inspired artists and inventors of the past, and how to creatively partner with Holy Spirit in their lives and art. We were graciously hosted by Hollywood Prayer Network.
INNER HEALING PRAYER
Inner healing prayer comes in two varieties: scheduled and “drive-byes.” Over the last year, we met with nearly 50 scheduled, many in partnership with Ecclesia, Grace Community Church and Pray North State.
God knows how many “drive-byes,” for they happen all over the place. So many, in fact, that in 2013, Melissa will co-lead formally training and equipping a team from Ecclesia to become inner healing prayer ministers.
COMMUNITY NIGHTS
This fall we launched Community Nights, a monthly gathering for potluck and fellowship. These are currently hosted in Bren and Melissa’s home but our vision is to host them in our future co-working space. See below.
EQUIPING LEADERS
The listening groups, individual meetings and healing prayer sessions provide an organic environment to encourage, equip and strengthen individuals as leaders in market place ministry and care to the body of Christ.
Jake Thomas and Erin Brown Thomas, joined Epiphany Space as leaders. They are passionate about the work we are doing in Hollywood. They have invested time, energy and resources in us and in co-laboring with us to care for the community. We are delighted to have them!
EPIPHANY SPACE PROMO
In May we began working on a promotional video for Epiphany Space along with a documentary about the lives of artists in Hollywood. The financial expenses have been minimal due to overwhelming support and in-kind donations of artistry, equipment and locations.
Special thanks to Erin Brown Thomas (Director extraordinaire), Daniel Warren (Editor/amazing intern from LAFSC), Jake Thomas, Chris Kresbach, Patrick Duff, Jeremy Schieffelin, Emily Morton, Lauren Brown, Constance Beverly, Joel Plosz, Wes and Amanda Llewellyn, Los Angeles Studies Film Center and all who offered their time and stories to make this possible. We expect to release the promo in early 2013 and will continue to work on the larger documentary.
TESTIMONIES
“I tear up quite often when I reflect about our listening group and the challenges and growth and wonderful opportunity to communicate with God together. Also, thank you so much for speaking words of truth to me regarding identity and beauty. God is really doing a magnificent work of healing and transformation in my life!..Thanks for seeming fearless even when you might not feel fearless!”
“I feel happier and lighter. I believe a lot of that is thanks to you. I’m grateful to God both for His healing and for His providing such a wonderful friend to be the instrument through which He sends that healing. 
”
“After expressing concern about the persistence of emotional pain over a situation, Melissa offered me healing prayer … Melissa kindly walked me through two healing prayer sessions and helped me to practice discerning God’s voice. She encouraged me to take things to God and to believe that He would answer. One of the most important things she taught me about the answer was to accept it with an open heart and hand, even if it turned out my discernment was wrong. Having this prayer with her has helped with my ability to process difficult situations, especially the disappointments and rejections that come with working in a place as competitive, and sometimes isolating, as Hollywood.”
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Many of you are receiving this letter because you believe in God’s call to impact Hollywood.
Our Mission: To equip artists to partner with God in life and creativity.
Our Vision: To cultivate artists through encouragement, healing prayer and the development of spiritual and creative gifts. To meet artists’ practical needs by providing affordable work space, collaborative space and encouragement space in Hollywood. To support ministries reaching artists through our facilities.
We are now seeing the fulfillment of many elements, especially our spiritual component. For 2013, we need your help in two ways:
- Financial provision for Bren and Melissa to continue our work and ministry in Los Angeles. This can come through full or part-time work for Bren, funding and production of any number of his film projects, or creative and financial support through Epiphany Space. We were directly impacted by your prayers and support this summer and temporary freelance work opened up for both of us. Thank you!
- Creative partnerships and funding for a larger location. Much of our work this year has taken place in our home (a 2-bedroom apartment), at a friend’s apartment and in a meeting room at another ministry’s office.
We regularly receive requests for co-working and collaborative space, and need additional space ourselves! Temporary or permanent, we need a place for independent artists to bring their laptops/tools and work in community with one another and be encouraged in their craft and faith.
This next step of raising funds and launching a physical space is both thrilling and terrifying. God’s provision is essential. Your prayers, financial support and connections are greatly appreciated.
Our heart is to bring healing to artists, which impacts their art and in turn impacts culture. A physical space will provide a larger platform to bring God’s love and healing to artists.
Please pray for us as we continue to seek God’s direction and timing. Thank you so much for supporting us in providing the much needed ministry of Epiphany Space in Hollywood. Please let us know how we can continue to support and pray foryou.
Abundant blessings and grace,
Melissa Gibson Smith
President and Executive Director
Epiphany Space, Inc
445 East Verdugo Avenue, Ste. T, Burbank, CA 91501