Wrappin' Up

The last month has been so fun and encouraging...and fast, of course.  With the school year coming to a close, many of our one-on-one studies are finally wrapping up.  That means students who have spent the year learning and discovering what it costs and what it looks like to be a disciple of Christ are making decisions about whether or not they will serve Him all of their days.

To God's glory, we've witnessed a flurry of baptisms in recent weeks.  There is no experience more joyful, and humbling, than to watch God work in people's hearts and to know that He uses bums like us to bring reconciliation between Him and His children.  As Paul expressed, it is truly through God's mercy that we have this ministry! (2 Corinthians 4:1)

For me, the greatest joy of all is to see the impact that our student leaders have made on their peers.  Many of them are mentoring and studying the bible with other students for the first time, and I am so, so proud of the job they have done with that this year.  I can't put into words the excitement I feel as I watch one of these 19 or 20-year-olds baptize another into the Kingdom of God.  I hope you share my joy, as you have also played a critical role in that, be it through your prayers or financial support to allow our staff to invest in these young leaders.  Please join with me also in praising God for these commitments!

I also wanted to mention a little bit about our annual Help Us Help the Homeless event on campus.  This is the 5th or 6th year in a row we have built a box house at the entrance of the school and manned it for a 24-hour period.  We ask the students in our ministry to volunteer for one hour slots, with the goal of raising supplies and monetary support for the Samaritan Inn, Collin County's only homeless shelter and program.

The program is very successful, and the event on campus is a way for us to bless the community and meet lots of students that stop and ask about what we're doing.  Here's a picture of the house this year.  Keeping with tradition, we had a crew of guys spend the night in it.

In May, we'll be taking a group of over 50 students to a campus ministry training conference in Bellingham, Washington.  This is a huge undertaking and logistical challenge, but God is good and has used this training in powerful ways to raise up workers for the university harvest.  I'll have more for you about this in my next blog, but be praying for us!

With more love and gratitude than I can express,

Casey