Springing into Ministry - on the Go

As most of you know Spring brings — yep — Spring Training — it also brings Soccer for the boys. Sometimes after practice or a game we stop at McDonald’s for a quick bite. That sometimes brings ministry opportunities. We would like to share how the Lord is working through us to make a difference as we meet former students. Here’s an example of one of those times:

Not much time goes by when a former student from one of our Campus Link Bible Clubs (which use to reach out to 3,200 students a month) comes up to us at Walmart, various local events, or somewhere and says:

• “Hey, aren’t you that preacher guy?”
• "Hey, aren’t you the one that comes and teaches the Bible at our school?”
• “Hey, you’re the Bible Man.”
• And so on…

No matter what they ask or say, it’s a wonderful feeling to be known as someone who shares the Word of God and has touched their lives in some way.

I would like to share about a contact with one such student at our local McDonald’s. Becky and I were sitting at a table outdoors eating our dinner while our three children were playing on the playground. There was a young man who began mopping the tiles around the nearby tables. As he did he noticed us and asked, “Aren’t you the preacher that came to my school?” “Which school did you go to?” we replied. As the conversation continued we found out that he was a student we had in elementary school and is now a freshman at the University of Tennessee in Chattanooga. Well, if that didn’t make us feel older. When we asked him why Chattanooga and not Knoxville (which is much closer), he said that honestly he wasn’t a UT fan (a Tennessean that’s not a UT fan? They exist?).

As we continued to talk with him and finish our meal, another student came up and began talking him. After a couple of minutes the second student realized who we were and said, “You come to my church.” I agreed and realized he was also a former camper at Galilee Bible Camp.

This is just one example of many, and as those contacts and opportunities continue to show up, we not only realize that those students have grown but so have we, because of them.

Touching lives—that is part of what being a missionary of AMF, and more importantly a servant for the Lord, is all about.

Kids' Korner

Spring Training (well actually May 8^th) will also begin again for Noah as he begins his first season of Little League Baseball. He still loves to play soccer but he is already excitedly anticipating the start (and Daddy too).

Noah and Josiah were both excited to get 2^nd place with their projects in their school science fair. They both moved onto the county level and each received a certificate of participation.

Josiah is also in a stage he will most likely never grow out of. I know I haven’t—even at my age and don’t plan to. Before you continue to worry anymore about what it is—it’s playing with Lego pieces. To build, create, imagine… ah...the life of a boy.

As for Emily, she loves being outdoors. She likes to watch birds and help Mommy do yard work. She loves to spend time with her brothers. She is also talking a lot more.

We are truly blessed with the “Little Ones” God has given us!

Spring Sprung?

Now the title of this article is not to be confused with a “Sprung Spring” — meaning a defective piece of coiled wire. Although I must say, even though Spring started three days ago, we did have sleet turning into snow flurries this morning. However, Spring has not sprung in the defective sense.

In fact, when we think of Spring, we think of new beginnings. Daffodils and other flowers begin to blossom. Trees begin pushing out new buds. The birds begin the sounds of the season — and so on.

For us it begins to “Spring” the start of some new things as well. Our Spring ministries have started at Galilee Bible Camp (GBC), including a new Quilting Retreat. It has sprung and blossomed along with our regular Spring ministries:

• Scrapbooking Retreat
• Ladies Retreat
• Men’s Outdoor Weekend
• Teen Retreat
• Super Saturday
• And More…

Our regular campus ministries are continuing to blossom as well. We have also been able to change our teen group into a weekly Bible club.

Here is an excerpt that Becky wrote for our AMF Monthly Report:

“What is the state of teens in the Southern part of the “Bible Belt”?

We have been ministering in TN for over nine years now, and I am still surprised at the lack of Bible knowledge. I was teaching a Bible lesson on the early life and temptation of Jesus. When asked who John the Baptist was, no one knew.

When I mentioned the Christmas story as an introduction, someone asked if that was the movie with…in it. They did not know why Joseph and Mary fled to Egypt or what happened to the boys two years and younger. They did know about Adam, Eve and the “apple”. But as we talked about the temptation of Jesus, some of their eyes were opened. We were talking about some of the temptations they, as teens, might encounter. One boy looked surprised and said, “Cheating is wrong, I do that all the time.” Later he asked if smoking was wrong.”

This was the first lesson in that new weekly Bible Club for teens.

As God provides, we pray that more opportunities continue to “Spring Up” and that His Word will go forth into their lives.