The Fund-Raising Banquet

Last Tuesday, Kyle and I headed to Houston for InterVarsity's 12th Annual Gulf Coast Fund-Raising Banquet. It was so encouraging to see one of my students, Cody, share her testimony with nearly 180 people. She shared about her journey, from alienation from the church to joining an InterVarsity Small Group and a GIG to deciding to follow Christ! I got to see old friends and meet some Old Ags. Plus, I think we had some of the best food we've ever had at the banquet from Facundo Cafe. It was a great night!

We acted like Fools!

On April Fool's Day we fasted and prayed. Then April 2-15, we chose to be fools for Christ, to share the gospel with 2+ friends and invite them to respond. Here are the stories I've heard so far:

David got to share the gospel with a friend just a few minutes after we left dinner to begin our fast. A coworker from the summer before called him out of the blue. The guy was going through a hard time; a couple friends had been in a car accident. He had noticed David's actions and attitude the summer before, and knew David was a Christian. He wanted to know how he could become a Christian too. David shared the gospel with him and prayed for him to receive Christ!

Hannah, who's been meeting with Jason in a GIG for months, got to lead him to Christ too! They studied 2 passages: John 8, where Jesus doesn't condemn a woman for sin, and a passage from Romans, which states God hasn't come back to fix everything because he's giving all of us a chance to decide. They talked and she asked, "Where do you see yourself at this point?" He said, "I'm ready to jump in."

Cody befriended Matt from her strength training class. Matt just got back from being deployed in the Navy and is 29 (a lot older than the traditional A&M student). Recently, he expressed interest in the Bible. He is a "cultural Christian", but not devoted solely to Christ. He's agreed to "prep Bible materials" with her for her Small Group, which she is hoping will lead more into a GIG.

Seth, a freshman, invited Ryan to a movie night outreach. Ryan has been very open and impressed with the Christian faith. He attended one of our Small Groups this week and the students spent 3 hours talking about the gospel with him.

Finally, I got to meet with Kim, an international student from England who's been hanging out with us all year and asking lots of questions about Jesus. We had fun talking about her year in the states and what she's expecting as she heads home in a month. At the end of our meeting, I asked if she'd be open to studying Scripture together, and she said yes!

It's been quite a ride! Students seem to have gotten energized by this experience. Please pray that this will raise the evangelistic temperature of our fellowship.

A New Brother?

Hannah, a student leader, has been leading a GIG with a friend she's known for years. A GIG is a one-on-one meeting to study the Scriptures in a low-pressure environment, where her friend can ask as many questions as he wants. And he has been. The big question on his mind: If God is just, why isn't life fair? Why doesn't he take care of the good people? How can you really believe he's in control? And he had plenty of others. Because Hannah knows him well, she's been able to pick Scripture that she knows could help him see the truth that he struggles to believe.

He recently messaged her on Facebook:

I'm feeling really good about God right now
it really sunk into me the other day about how I'm not perfect, and how I don't have to be
and that Jesus is the path to making that ok
It made me smile really big
I figured I ought to tell you
since laboriously trying to get that through my thick skull seems to be your thing lately

He's been saying for weeks that he understands, but doesn't "get it." A few weeks ago, he told Hannah he finally gets it! We think he's either on the verge of deciding to follow Christ or he already has. He still has plenty of questions and doubts, but many of them are the same I hear from Christians. It's usually not a good idea to ask someone, "Have you decided to start following Jesus yet so I can stop evangelizing you?" So please pray for him to commit and grow close to God!