Our goal is to reach the students at SFA for Christ, and one of the ways we do that is to teach them about who God is. A way we meet that need is having Bible Studies.
This is something our students have been stepping up big time on this year and leading. We host our Bible Studies in dorms so that they are easily accessible to any student who may want to learn about God, and our goal is to have a study in every dorm. Right now we are present in about half of the dorm, which is 6 different studies a week! Currently these are student lead which makes for great stories of faith, and stepping out of your comfort zone for the Lord.
One of our mens Bible studies are being lead by junior, Micah, and senior, Josh. This is a Bible study that they decided to start from scratch at the begining of the year. As the year started they had a couple guys who attended regularly, and they would have topical Bible studies, but this wasn't enough for Josh and Micah. They committed to praying for God to provide more guys, and that they would have and authentic community where the guys would be open and vulnerable with each other (which is not and easy thing to have with guys). After a few weeks of praying and trusting the Lord, they have began to see Him provide. They now have 6 guys coming weekly, and they are all reading a book about knowing God and following Him closely. I'm told this book stirs in depth conversation, and these men are challenging each other to grow closer to the Lord.
We also have a Bible study that exists for Greek students. The Greek population is relativly unreached, and is a very difficult community to get in to. We met a freshman last year named Colin. Colin is a go getter, out going guy who loves the Lord. He rushed a fraternity last spring for the purpose of building relationships with guys who don't know Christ. He has been instrumental in bringing guys to the Greek Bible study. I'm told that there are 4 guys that come faithfully and others who trickle in a out, but the most important thing is that relationships are being built within a community that is difficult to penetrate, and the Truth about what God has done for us through Christ is being spoken to these students. Just the fact that this exists right now is a reason to praise God.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
CRU Fall Retreat
This past weekend was Fall Retreat weekend for our students at SFA. Fall Retreat is a weekend long retreat, at Pineywoods Encampment in east Texas. It always at great weekend because it's cool to see what God does in some ones life, when you chose to focus only on Him for a couple days. It's also a great community building time for our students. Lots of great friendships are formed over this weekend, there is just something about a road trips with other like minded people.
The weekend started off well. 2 years ago we took 12 people to Fall Retreat, but this past weekend we had 35! It's great to see God at work! We brought in the campus director from LSU, John Boudreaux, to be the main speaker, and his main theme was living as Christians in a fallen world, and in Christian community, but not secluding yourself to the Christian bubble. The students were challenged to grow and make decisions this weekend, and they really connected with John. One of the coolest things of the weekend was men's and women's time. These are generally lead by staff but this year we had some leadership students step up and take the reigns. Women's time was lead by Lynn, Tiffany, Margaret, and Nicole. They lead a discussion time that centered around all things girls. How to have Godly relationships, what to look for in a Godly man, and how to be a women chasing after Gods heart. Men's time was lead by Brady and Josh. They talked about being God's man in this difficult culture, how they could be leaders on the campus, and had a separate session addressing the sexual temptation in a man's life.
This was a great weekend. The students had a great time, and most importantly connected and grew closer to the Lord!
The weekend started off well. 2 years ago we took 12 people to Fall Retreat, but this past weekend we had 35! It's great to see God at work! We brought in the campus director from LSU, John Boudreaux, to be the main speaker, and his main theme was living as Christians in a fallen world, and in Christian community, but not secluding yourself to the Christian bubble. The students were challenged to grow and make decisions this weekend, and they really connected with John. One of the coolest things of the weekend was men's and women's time. These are generally lead by staff but this year we had some leadership students step up and take the reigns. Women's time was lead by Lynn, Tiffany, Margaret, and Nicole. They lead a discussion time that centered around all things girls. How to have Godly relationships, what to look for in a Godly man, and how to be a women chasing after Gods heart. Men's time was lead by Brady and Josh. They talked about being God's man in this difficult culture, how they could be leaders on the campus, and had a separate session addressing the sexual temptation in a man's life.
This was a great weekend. The students had a great time, and most importantly connected and grew closer to the Lord!
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
It's October!
I find it hard to believe that today is the first day of October! It feels like no time since we were telling you school was starting in August! We are so thankful that the Lord is continuing to work and lives are being touched! The beginning of the year at SFA really went great, and they met so many new students, and saw many get involved with the ministry! Bible studies are in full swing, and meeting in dorms all around the campus, and our students are doing a great job leading!
One of the things that we are really excited about is our Fall Retreat, which is coming up this weekend, Oct 3-5. This is a weekend designed to allow students to break away from the normal routine, to be able to connect with the Lord, and build deeper relationships with other students. We are bringing in a speaker, John Boudreau, the campus director for Campus Crusade at Louisiana State University. Already we have almost 30 students signed up to go, and more who are still working out the details. Many of those who are signed up are new to or ministry! We are thankful that the Lord has provided these students and we are praying that God will reveal more of Himself to them as take this weekend away. We are also hoping that it is a great, fun weekend, and that there is significant growth! We will let you know more when the gang gets back from the weekend!
Vince and I are doing really great! The Lord is continuing to provide new people for us to meet, and share our ministry with, and it is such a joy for us! We are very much settled here in Allen, and thankful for our time here. We are also looking forward to a ministry conference we are going to in a few weeks. Things are just going really well for us! Other than that, there is not too much that is new going on with us!
Please be praying!
•For students who are still trying to make up their mind on the retreat- that they would come for the retreat.
•For those who come to Fall Retreat- that they would encounter the Lord and understand Him better.
•For our leadership students- that they would be prepared to effectively lead and serve the other students.
•For the Retreat speaker, John Boudreau, that he would be able to clearly communicate God's truth, and connect with students.
•For safe travel!
•For God to continue to provide new people for us to share our ministry with.
•For our traveling as we go to our conference in a few weeks.
One of the things that we are really excited about is our Fall Retreat, which is coming up this weekend, Oct 3-5. This is a weekend designed to allow students to break away from the normal routine, to be able to connect with the Lord, and build deeper relationships with other students. We are bringing in a speaker, John Boudreau, the campus director for Campus Crusade at Louisiana State University. Already we have almost 30 students signed up to go, and more who are still working out the details. Many of those who are signed up are new to or ministry! We are thankful that the Lord has provided these students and we are praying that God will reveal more of Himself to them as take this weekend away. We are also hoping that it is a great, fun weekend, and that there is significant growth! We will let you know more when the gang gets back from the weekend!
Vince and I are doing really great! The Lord is continuing to provide new people for us to meet, and share our ministry with, and it is such a joy for us! We are very much settled here in Allen, and thankful for our time here. We are also looking forward to a ministry conference we are going to in a few weeks. Things are just going really well for us! Other than that, there is not too much that is new going on with us!
Please be praying!
•For students who are still trying to make up their mind on the retreat- that they would come for the retreat.
•For those who come to Fall Retreat- that they would encounter the Lord and understand Him better.
•For our leadership students- that they would be prepared to effectively lead and serve the other students.
•For the Retreat speaker, John Boudreau, that he would be able to clearly communicate God's truth, and connect with students.
•For safe travel!
•For God to continue to provide new people for us to share our ministry with.
•For our traveling as we go to our conference in a few weeks.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
SFA and IKE
As many of you know, and many may have unfortunately experienced, Ike hit and was incredibly destructive. The hurricane left a trail of devastation, and some areas were completely destroyed. So many lives have been impacted, and we just want to let you know how Ike specifically impacted SFA and Nacogdoches.
I mentioned in the last post that Ike did hit, more specifically the eye of the storm went directly through Nac. Even though Nacogdoches is not a costal city, the storm was still incredibly strong when it hit. Nacogdoches lost power a few hours before the storm came through. Then, the storm itself left quite a mess. For a town in the middle of the Woods, trees were quite a problem. There were full grown trees everywhere, smashing cars, breaking windows, going through roofs. I talked with friends back in the area and they said even days after, the streets were still lined with huge trees and tree branches waiting to be moved. However, the most significant impact to SFA and Nac was the power outage. Though it is nothing in comparison to Houston, Nac lost power for days, and in some areas up to a week and a half. Our campus Director and his family (Scott and Heather Allen, Caleb, and Scarlet) were without power for almost a week and a half. There was little food at the grocery stores, and it was pretty difficult for awhile. SFA closed the campus for a day, but was able to recover power quickly to the campus itself. The Nac school district closed for a few days! But the Lord is GOOD and thankfully provided cool weather and enough food. Praise the Lord that things are mostly back to normal back in Nac, although there is still some repair that will need to happen. We are just still so thankful that it was not worse. Our students back at SFA posted some funny pictures, and we wanted to share a few with you. I love that they were able to have so much fun, even in the midst of the storm!
Our hearts and prayers go out to those who were significantly impacted by the storm, and if there are any specific ways we can pray, please let us know. Thank you again for your prayers!
I mentioned in the last post that Ike did hit, more specifically the eye of the storm went directly through Nac. Even though Nacogdoches is not a costal city, the storm was still incredibly strong when it hit. Nacogdoches lost power a few hours before the storm came through. Then, the storm itself left quite a mess. For a town in the middle of the Woods, trees were quite a problem. There were full grown trees everywhere, smashing cars, breaking windows, going through roofs. I talked with friends back in the area and they said even days after, the streets were still lined with huge trees and tree branches waiting to be moved. However, the most significant impact to SFA and Nac was the power outage. Though it is nothing in comparison to Houston, Nac lost power for days, and in some areas up to a week and a half. Our campus Director and his family (Scott and Heather Allen, Caleb, and Scarlet) were without power for almost a week and a half. There was little food at the grocery stores, and it was pretty difficult for awhile. SFA closed the campus for a day, but was able to recover power quickly to the campus itself. The Nac school district closed for a few days! But the Lord is GOOD and thankfully provided cool weather and enough food. Praise the Lord that things are mostly back to normal back in Nac, although there is still some repair that will need to happen. We are just still so thankful that it was not worse. Our students back at SFA posted some funny pictures, and we wanted to share a few with you. I love that they were able to have so much fun, even in the midst of the storm!
Our hearts and prayers go out to those who were significantly impacted by the storm, and if there are any specific ways we can pray, please let us know. Thank you again for your prayers!
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Things at SFA
Things are going well both here and back at good ole SFA!
God is really blessing us here in Allen! We have been really busy meeting with amazing people, and getting to share our ministry! God has been providing us a great ministry team so quickly, and we are already almost 40% of the way to reaching our goal! Praise the Lord! Also, I have gotten a job working part-time at the Gap in Allen during the mornings, and that has really been a blessing to us during this time. Come and visit me!
Please be praying that God will continue to allow us to meet new people that would be encouraged to hear about our ministry, and for us as we are still displaced from "home" for the next few months.
At SFA things have been off and running. This past week kicked off 6 new Bible studies and our freshman dinner which was a good success. The CRU weekly meeting had many students the past few weeks, and the first Impact meeting had more than 60 students their first night! Our leadership students are amazing and have been following up with many new students that they met from the many events during the first few weeks of school.
Please pray for the new Bible studies being started, for new students to trust Christ, and loves to be changed. Also, Ike did some damage to Nacogdoches, and the surrounding areas, so please pray for safety as they clean up the area, and that the damage would be minimal.
Please let us know how we can be praying for you and your family!
Many blessings, and we will have many more stories to share! Thank you for your prayers!
God is really blessing us here in Allen! We have been really busy meeting with amazing people, and getting to share our ministry! God has been providing us a great ministry team so quickly, and we are already almost 40% of the way to reaching our goal! Praise the Lord! Also, I have gotten a job working part-time at the Gap in Allen during the mornings, and that has really been a blessing to us during this time. Come and visit me!
Please be praying that God will continue to allow us to meet new people that would be encouraged to hear about our ministry, and for us as we are still displaced from "home" for the next few months.
At SFA things have been off and running. This past week kicked off 6 new Bible studies and our freshman dinner which was a good success. The CRU weekly meeting had many students the past few weeks, and the first Impact meeting had more than 60 students their first night! Our leadership students are amazing and have been following up with many new students that they met from the many events during the first few weeks of school.
Please pray for the new Bible studies being started, for new students to trust Christ, and loves to be changed. Also, Ike did some damage to Nacogdoches, and the surrounding areas, so please pray for safety as they clean up the area, and that the damage would be minimal.
Please let us know how we can be praying for you and your family!
Many blessings, and we will have many more stories to share! Thank you for your prayers!
Thursday, August 28, 2008
School is in Session!!!
The next few months we will be updating you on things going on back at SFA, as well as things with us back in Allen during the time we are raising out Ministry Team, and we just wanted to clarify the posts are 2-part, SFA and us!
Classes began at SFA on Monday, and Crusade is back in full swing! The first few weeks of college are such a critical time, especially for incoming freshman, and we try and fill them as full as we can in effort to reach as many students as possible with the gospel. Here is a glimpse at what has been happening back at SFA.
Last Thursday, Crusade staff and students helped move in the incoming freshman and returning students, carrying lots and lots of clothes and TV's up numerous flights of stairs! Over the next few days, they hosted an array of free events and meals to get a chance to meet students, and tell them about Crusade. Over the course of the next few weeks, they will be meeting individually with the students to share the gospel with them, and encourage them to get involved with our ministry. It is such an exciting time, and really high energy!
This week there was so much going on, all with the desire to meet/ reach students. Of the many thing, Crusade handed out free Chick-Fil-A sandwiches, Freshman survival kits, and lots of flyers advertising for our weekly meeting. On Thursday night, they had the first official weekly CRU meeting for the year and had 55 students come! God is good!! Next week, Bible studies will begin, and they will happen all over campus in the dorms throughout the week. Also, there will be a freshman overnight September 5-6 and hopefully lots of freshman will come and begin to build relationships!
As I am sure you can tell, this is a very important time. Statistics show that the first 6 weeks of school, and what a student gets involved with will be what they stay with during their college career. We desire that they are plugged in with a ministry that helps them grow, and have their own ministry on campus.
Please be praying for our staff team back at SFA- that our director would have encouragement, creativity, and passionately present Christ to the students, and for the rest of the staff team to be able to quickly return to campus. Pray for the leadership and servant team students- that God will provide new students for them to meet and share Christ with, and that their Bible studies and discipleship relationships would be strong. Please pray for the students they will encounter, that their hearts will be softened and they would be open to the Lord.
______
Vince and I are doing really well back here in Allen. We are feeling very encouraged by the people we are getting together with, and we are just loving reconnecting with people. I am going to start working during the mornings at the Gap in Allen so come and visit! I am so excited that the Lord provided just the right place and the right time for me to work some during this time.
We are sad the Olympics are over, but we enjoyed every glorious moment of Michael Phelps swimming events. Vince is as excited as ever about the start of the college football season, and of course the Cowboys season. If you want to see someone passionately enjoy a game, come on over, it's a fun party at our place every Cowboys game!
We hope and pray this finds you well, and we pray that you will find amazing favor in the eyes of the Lord as you seek and follow Him. Please shoot us an email if we can pray for anything specific in your life! We really want to pray specifically for you!
Well until we meet again, the Lord bless you and keep you!
Classes began at SFA on Monday, and Crusade is back in full swing! The first few weeks of college are such a critical time, especially for incoming freshman, and we try and fill them as full as we can in effort to reach as many students as possible with the gospel. Here is a glimpse at what has been happening back at SFA.
Last Thursday, Crusade staff and students helped move in the incoming freshman and returning students, carrying lots and lots of clothes and TV's up numerous flights of stairs! Over the next few days, they hosted an array of free events and meals to get a chance to meet students, and tell them about Crusade. Over the course of the next few weeks, they will be meeting individually with the students to share the gospel with them, and encourage them to get involved with our ministry. It is such an exciting time, and really high energy!
This week there was so much going on, all with the desire to meet/ reach students. Of the many thing, Crusade handed out free Chick-Fil-A sandwiches, Freshman survival kits, and lots of flyers advertising for our weekly meeting. On Thursday night, they had the first official weekly CRU meeting for the year and had 55 students come! God is good!! Next week, Bible studies will begin, and they will happen all over campus in the dorms throughout the week. Also, there will be a freshman overnight September 5-6 and hopefully lots of freshman will come and begin to build relationships!
As I am sure you can tell, this is a very important time. Statistics show that the first 6 weeks of school, and what a student gets involved with will be what they stay with during their college career. We desire that they are plugged in with a ministry that helps them grow, and have their own ministry on campus.
Please be praying for our staff team back at SFA- that our director would have encouragement, creativity, and passionately present Christ to the students, and for the rest of the staff team to be able to quickly return to campus. Pray for the leadership and servant team students- that God will provide new students for them to meet and share Christ with, and that their Bible studies and discipleship relationships would be strong. Please pray for the students they will encounter, that their hearts will be softened and they would be open to the Lord.
______
Vince and I are doing really well back here in Allen. We are feeling very encouraged by the people we are getting together with, and we are just loving reconnecting with people. I am going to start working during the mornings at the Gap in Allen so come and visit! I am so excited that the Lord provided just the right place and the right time for me to work some during this time.
We are sad the Olympics are over, but we enjoyed every glorious moment of Michael Phelps swimming events. Vince is as excited as ever about the start of the college football season, and of course the Cowboys season. If you want to see someone passionately enjoy a game, come on over, it's a fun party at our place every Cowboys game!
We hope and pray this finds you well, and we pray that you will find amazing favor in the eyes of the Lord as you seek and follow Him. Please shoot us an email if we can pray for anything specific in your life! We really want to pray specifically for you!
Well until we meet again, the Lord bless you and keep you!
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Where in the World are the Walsh's?
For those of you who have been wondering about where in the world we are, and what we have been up to, allow me to share!
After spending our first year of marriage in Nacogdoches, TX working with Campus Crusade for Christ, we decided to joining staff full time and continue to work for Crusade for the long-haul. We are super excited, and it has already been an awesome adventure. We got back a few weeks ago from our New Staff Training in Orlando, FL with Campus Crusade. Now, Vince and I are taking a few months back in the Allen/McKinney, TX area to spend some time building our ministry team that will sustain us for the years to come in ministry.
Although it is really hard to not be back at SFA for the start of the new semester, we have been really enjoying being back "home." Both Vince and I grew up in the area so it has been really nice to be near (or living with) family, and connecting with friends. Besides that there are stores other than just Walmart here... which I personally am loving, and Vince is hating.
We have been busy busy since we have been here! We have so loved getting together with our ministry partners from the past years, and hearing all about what is going on in their lives! We have been so blessed in getting to meet with them! Even though that is the majority of our time, we have been really enjoying a few other things around here. I have also been enjoying Wii Fit, swimming at the Natatorium, and taking Jonas, and occasionally Max, on long walks at Celebration Park (but I am so paranoid that keep my mace ready, even at 3 in the afternoon.) I just chopped off my ridiculously curly locks of hair and I am now sporting a new do- short, sleek (as long as its not raining) with sassy bangs. Totally different and I LOVE it! Vince has been working occasionally with his dad at their office supply company, and putting together and moving lots of furniture for new schools that are opening in about a week.
We both have been really enjoying the Olympics, and staying up waaayyy too late to catch it all. I find myself screaming and whooping at the TV, as if that really makes a difference, and just loving all of it. Vince keeps saying that the gymnastics "aren't really a sport" and wants to change the channel, but I eat it right up! Gymnastics and skiing are the only sports that I am good at, and I won't let him rain on my parade. But we, as with the rest of America, and likely the world, have been completely sucked in by the Olympics. What will happen in 2 days when its all done? Lets not go there.
Well I guess that is about it. We are in Allen. We are here for a number of months. We want to hang out before we head back to Nacogdoches (ie: the middle of no-where East Texas that even though we love, it will take 3+ hours to drive to get there...so see us while we are close!)
We are praying that this finds you doing well, enjoying your days, walking with the Lord, and enjoying His blessings!
After spending our first year of marriage in Nacogdoches, TX working with Campus Crusade for Christ, we decided to joining staff full time and continue to work for Crusade for the long-haul. We are super excited, and it has already been an awesome adventure. We got back a few weeks ago from our New Staff Training in Orlando, FL with Campus Crusade. Now, Vince and I are taking a few months back in the Allen/McKinney, TX area to spend some time building our ministry team that will sustain us for the years to come in ministry.
Although it is really hard to not be back at SFA for the start of the new semester, we have been really enjoying being back "home." Both Vince and I grew up in the area so it has been really nice to be near (or living with) family, and connecting with friends. Besides that there are stores other than just Walmart here... which I personally am loving, and Vince is hating.
We have been busy busy since we have been here! We have so loved getting together with our ministry partners from the past years, and hearing all about what is going on in their lives! We have been so blessed in getting to meet with them! Even though that is the majority of our time, we have been really enjoying a few other things around here. I have also been enjoying Wii Fit, swimming at the Natatorium, and taking Jonas, and occasionally Max, on long walks at Celebration Park (but I am so paranoid that keep my mace ready, even at 3 in the afternoon.) I just chopped off my ridiculously curly locks of hair and I am now sporting a new do- short, sleek (as long as its not raining) with sassy bangs. Totally different and I LOVE it! Vince has been working occasionally with his dad at their office supply company, and putting together and moving lots of furniture for new schools that are opening in about a week.
We both have been really enjoying the Olympics, and staying up waaayyy too late to catch it all. I find myself screaming and whooping at the TV, as if that really makes a difference, and just loving all of it. Vince keeps saying that the gymnastics "aren't really a sport" and wants to change the channel, but I eat it right up! Gymnastics and skiing are the only sports that I am good at, and I won't let him rain on my parade. But we, as with the rest of America, and likely the world, have been completely sucked in by the Olympics. What will happen in 2 days when its all done? Lets not go there.
Well I guess that is about it. We are in Allen. We are here for a number of months. We want to hang out before we head back to Nacogdoches (ie: the middle of no-where East Texas that even though we love, it will take 3+ hours to drive to get there...so see us while we are close!)
We are praying that this finds you doing well, enjoying your days, walking with the Lord, and enjoying His blessings!
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