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Coming together for fellowship
hayes
Pastor Richard and Opel Hayes - photo by Submitted / Coastal Courier
Although his church has only established since April 2006, Pastor Richard Hayes has a desire to see the community of believers come together for a time of fellowship. Consequently, he is hosting a Family of Believers’ Fellowship at 1 p.m. Dec. 1 at Brewton Parker Auditorium in Hinesville.
“The Family of Believers Fellowship was birthed out of my experiences as a young preacher. As I’ve traveled to various churches, I’ve noticed the increased separation between those bodies of believers that are proclaiming the love of Jesus Christ. Whether it be race, appearance, congregational size, past hurts or present fears, the body of Christ has become more and more segregated,” Hayes said.   
“While we never acknowledge this division, our common enemy attacks our various groups and weakens the family as a whole. So, the Family of Believers Fellowship will be an atmosphere for God’s Family to come together and worship on One Day at One Event and have One Praise to enjoy one another’s company with a spirit of unity and brotherly love,” he said.
Hayes is the founder and pastor of New Day Outreach Ministry in Hinesville.
“It started as an in home bible study. The ministry is in its baby stages, but God has been preparing me for quite some time,” Hayes said. Prior to becoming a Pastor, he served as a minister, deacon, praise and worship leader, and held various other positions within the church.  He was ordained as an Elder in 2000.  Hayes noted he played a key role in the development and coordination of the Bishops’ World Ministries, Inc., which is a fellowship of churches throughout the southeastern United States.
Hayes was born in Frankfurt, Germany, and raised in Pine Bluff, Ark. He came to Hinesville while assigned to the military. He served 10 years in the U.S. Army as an air traffic controller, and is currently an air traffic controller at Mid Coast Regional Airport in Hinesville.
His vision for the church is to provide a balanced atmosphere of ministry, fellowship and outreach for the body of Christ through structured teachings from the Word of God.
“We also strive to usher in the Spirit of God to experience His presence through worship and praise,” he said. “At New Day Outreach Ministry, we believe that the family provides a training ground for propelling you towards your destiny. Family is about relationships; the ministry works towards building relationships. We build relationships by spending time fellowshipping and learning our brothers and sisters so that we are able to communicate positive influences and encouragement.”
New Day Outreach Ministry is actively evangelizing at Devine Trinity Personal Care Home and the Hinesville Senior Center. Also, they evangelize through their online Web site at www.newdayoutreachministry.org and any other opportunity they have to spread the gospel.
“Young people inspire me to be real in everything I do. Our youth suffer in areas that we’ve never had to deal with in such a broad scope. On a regular basis, they face drugs, abuses, neglect and various other things, yet that still doesn’t stop them.”  
Hayes noted we hear a lot about the negative things our youths are doing. But there are a lot of good children doing good things in this community that we never hear about. “This sincere realness that they display inspires me to do more than just take on a title, but to serve through preaching, teaching, and reaching no matter what your background may be.”   
“As a young man, my father and I didn’t have the best of relationships. But I recently had the opportunity to preach a revival in a small town in Southeast Arkansas. As I ministered I noticed my father in attendance and could visibly see my father in tears as God repaired and restored our relationship, which is great even now.”
Hayes is the vice president of the Liberty County Kiwanis Club. He is also a member of the Snelson-Golden Middle School Leadership Council and a member of Bradwell Institute and Snelson-Golden Middle School PTO.
He is an October graduate of the Hinesville Citizens’ Police Academy and class President.
Hayes will receive a degree in business administration from Columbia College in March of 2008.
He has been married to Opel S. Hayes for 12 years. She is a native of Cordele, Georgia, and they are the parents of three children (Marcus, Leah and Richard II).
The Hayes family resides in Hinesville. Pastor Hayes enjoys spending valuable time with his family and supporting their activities and goals. He loves playing with his toddler son is also developing his novice keyboard skills    
The New Day Outreach Church Family invites you to come and be a part of the Family of Believers’ Fellowship.
For more information, call Pastor Hayes at 977-6725 or 977-6724.
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