Thank You
I want to take a moment to thank all of you for your kind cards and gifts this past month. I appreciate it more than you know. It is such a privilege to know each of you, and I am very thankful for the opportunity to be here with you and to serve this student ministry.
Thank you isn’t a strong enough word to describe my heart toward all of you that volunteer in the student ministry, so I will have to make up a new word to describe this emotion...extremagratitude. So maybe that doesn’t really get the idea across either, ha. Seriously, I can not tell you all thank you enough for the countless hours of prepping for events, picking students up, preparing for small groups, and all the love you show our students. But even beyond all that, you mean a great deal to me personally. You have supported and encouraged me in unbelievable ways. Thank you for your patience and kindness towards me. You have poured yourselves into this ministry and I could not ask for a better group of volunteers. You are literally the best.
I am also extremely grateful for all of the parents of our students. I have learned so much from all of you over the past few years. I’ve watched as you have patiently loved your kids through beautiful times and difficult situations. I’ve listened to the deep love in your voice as you think through how to best engage the heart of your kid. It is such an honor to be apart of a ministry that has such engaged and caring parents. Thank you for all that you do and continue to do in the life of your student and for this student ministry.
De:Fined DNOW
In October we had our annual DNOW which is a weekend retreat focused on discipleship. This year we called the event De:Fined as we looked at how students define their identity. So many people define themselves using lies spoken to them by others or even themselves, rather than defining themselves by what the Word of God says about them.
We spent the first night looking at how lies work and how they can get lodged in our minds. Lanney Avis brought a moving word for our students about who Satan is, what his goals are, and how he lies. It is so easy to believe lies and many of students could immediately identify different lies that they had been believing. The students then spent the evening looking through their hearts to try to identify different lies they had been believing.
On Saturday morning Benson Avis took us through Isaiah 43 and showed us what is actually true in our lives. I love that Benson’s goal wasn’t merely to make the students feel better about themselves, but to show them how magnificent our God is and that our identify is found in Him. It is such a blessing to have leaders that love the Word of God and press our students to find their identity in Christ.
Saturday night I spoke with our students about how they use their words. We looked primarily at Proverbs 18:21 where Scripture tells us that the power of life and death are in the tongue. We are responsible and held accountable for the words we speak, and Ephesians 4:29 tells us that 100% of the words that come out of our mouths should be for building up. The only hope we have to use our words correctly is by remembering the Gospel and looking at others through a Gospel lens.
We could not have pulled this weekend off without all the volunteers who helped with food, transportation, host homes, stage design, set-up, clean-up, and literally countless other things. And a special thank you to the band for leading us incredible worship all weekend.
Much Love to you all,
Mark
