Public Declaration of Personal Faith

Greg here.
On Friday afternoon Jincy and I made the short walk to Dunkin' Donuts to catch up. It has become the place we go about every 6 or 8 weeks so I can hear about her young faith journey and encourage her in her new walk. Jincy trusted Christ on March 17 last year. She shared about her growth and the ways she has seen the Holy Spirit work in her heart.

We also talked about baptism. Jincy was very close to a decision about making public her faith through baptism. She decided to take the next step of obedience. On Sunday afternoon she joined ranks with three other girls from our fellowship who all worship at the same local church and were taking this next step of faith together. The pastor allows someone who has been part of the faith journey to assist him with the baptism. I previously wrote about the honor of being asked by another student, Candace, to help with her baptism. Jincy asked the same of me and I was equally privileged to help.

Jincy, Candace, Monica, and Caylynn all publicly professed their faith and were baptized on Sunday!

Welcome Home Scavenger Hunt!

Greg left for Nicaragua on March 12th...on the 13th Caed and Abby started planning Daddy's welcome home party! Lots of ideas were discussed, including jumping out of a giant cake. They finally settled on putting together a scavenger hunt!

Here are some pics!

I am not sure who had more fun on the hunt, the giggling kids or Greg looking for the clues! The hunt ended with a Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge cake Abby and I made and decorated. Greg also brought back a few goodies for the kids from Nicaragua!

We are glad that the trip went well, but even MORE glad Daddy is back!

Nicaragua!

Hello All! We have had a busy week around here! Greg just returned from leading a group of AU students on a mission trip to Nicaragua. They had an amazing time, but don't take my word for it, go check out their blog!

Spring Break in Nicaragua

The kids and I had a fun time home, but were VERY ready for Daddy to come home yesterday!

Post to come with pics from their welcome home scavenger hunt they planned for Daddy!

Wait on the Lord

This semester I have been hosting a ladies bible study on Wednesday nights. There are about 18 girls that come each week to study the book of Esther. I love my girls, we have a blast together. Some nights we are just rolling on the floor laughing and others we are left in awe of how relevant the book of Esther is to our lives.

This week we look at chapter 5 of Esther. Now, I have to be honest. The part of the story where Esther has her 1st dinner party with the King and Haman has never made sense to me. You can almost feel the build up in the story. Esther has just survived the first hurdle without loosing her head...literally. She manages to charm the king into coming to dinner and bringing Haman along. The Lord has paved the way and she is skating right on through.

I can even imagine the amount of self control she has to muster just being in the same room with the man who is trying to wipe out her entire race. Then...the time comes. The king asks her about her request. HELLO...open door, why not just walk right through?

It was not time. Instead she asked them both to come back the next night.

I wish we could know what was going through Esther's head right then! Did she chicken out and not go through with it, did she feel in her spirit that something was off and decided to wait? Either way, the Lord's purposes were accomplished. A lot is going to happen in the next 24 hours for the King and Haman that will change their lives forever.

That is where out lesson left off. Esther making the decision that the time was not right, and waiting on the Lord.

Our time ended concentrating on Isaiah 40:31. We talked about how waiting on something is exhausting. We go through all the possible outcomes in our head until we are just emotionally and physically spent. BUT look at Isaiah 40:31.

31 but those who wait on the LORD
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.

There it is! I can't believe this has never "clicked" for me. Waiting on "something" (a boyfriend, a job, someone to change) IS exhausting.

BUT

Waiting on the Lord renews our strength!

I don't know about you but I could use some renewed strength. And soaring like an eagle? Yes please!

More Jubilee Reactions

Greg here. I asked our students to flesh out some of the key things they learned at the Jubilee Conference in Pittsburgh a couple weekends ago. Here are some sound bites...

Jubilee was definitely a life changing experience for me. I learned so much about myself, God, and what God wants from us as Christians. I learned that we can serve God in our everyday lives no matter where we are or what we chose to do with our lives in the future. God changes the world through changed people. As long as we accept God into our hearts and allow Him to work in us and through us, he can use us anywhere and in any type of setting. Jubilee also taught me that Jesus uses unlikely people to do incredible things.
- Sarah T.

I can confidently say that attending Jubilee was one of the best weekends I have had since coming to college.
I strengthened my relationship with God and I strengthened my relationship with other Arcadia students who were able to attend.
I really appreciate everyone that made a contribution that helped me get to Jubilee; it was a blessing that I was able to attend and I will be forever grateful of their generosity.
- Katie

Gideon Strauss led a discussion on how Americans, Christians included, get too caught up in fast politics.
…biblical politics should be able to cross party lines since there are Christians on both sides. Political theories may differ, but biblical values should largely be the same.
- Josh

I tore my ACL and some other things in my knee in November 2010. I've been unable to play basketball this entire season. So the Steeler's punter told us a story about how he had torn his ACL earlier in their season. He talked about the struggle of not being able to play especially during the Superbowl. Standing on the sideline, wishing and desiring to be there in a jersey with his name on the back, he realized right then the lesson God had been so long trying teach him. His identity lied in the Pittsburgh Steelers above Christ. God's message just overwhelmed me at this point as I thought about all the ways in which I had placed basketball before God and... all the ways I put more effort into my team than in my relationship with Christ.
- Ash

The weekend of Jubilee as a whole was a great experience! I was very interested in the breakout session related to the music industry and feel that its title was appropriate: A Career in Music: Calling or Oxymoron?
...our intentions of glorifying God and His holiness should be the foundation of our music.
- Jeff

After going to Jubilee last year I knew it was something that I had to go back to again. This year I learned so much about myself and who I am in God. One of the plenary speakers used the Hebrew word 'tselem' which means 'made in God's image'. This weekend really reinforced that God made me to be me and nothing should change that. God sees all of me and considers me beautiful because those scratches and dents have brought me closer to Him. I am first and foremost a child of God and my identity is with Him.
- Emily

Although this was my second time at Jubilee, I still had that “kid in a candy store” feeling. It really is overwhelmingly exciting for me to be surrounded by thousands of Christians that want to live so vibrantly for God.
... Dr. James Emery White... addressed issues such as “functional atheism” in our world and how we, as Christians, are fighting a war of thoughts and ideas. He spoke about how we need to read, read, read, and reflect so that we’re essentially “thinking God’s thoughts, after Him.”
- Niquelle

I will begin with a single word and move outward from there. Identity. I must be honest I still struggle with who I am but Jubilee made it incredibly clear to me that my identity lies in Christ. To the core of my being I am a child of God and that realization alone I know will be enough to sustain me in the hardest of times and it is what facilitates the joy that awakens my heart.
- Candace

I have been uncertain of future plans for a while, but after going to the session discussing Mathematics through the lens of faith I have a renewed sense of how my vocation can honor God.
...I have been affirmed in my desire to move forward to graduate school without feeling that I'm wasting 'Kingdom Resources' in the meantime.
- Dave

God broke my heart for what breaks His. I was heart broken for the people all across the world that are living in poverty and desolate conditions, but what could I do? I am just a young woman living in suburban PA after all. Combining my passion for serving God and healthcare, I realized that I could use my skills to fight the injustices happening right here in Philly. You don't need to go far to find poverty, just drive down Broad Street.
- Sarah K.

God is at work!

About Ashley

No, this blog post is not about me. It is about a student named Ashley.

Ashley trusted Christ as her Savior the summer before her freshman year in college. She is a deep thinker and feeler...and LOVES anything and everything purple. Ashley, like many students is trying to figure out how the Lord is going to use her gifts, talents and heart in this world.

Last year a couple who has served for many years with Trans World Radio hosted a pizza night for anyone interested in internships with TWR. Ashley was there that night, and she felt her heart tug. She applied this fall for the internship and was accepted... She tells the story so much better than I could...

I just read a blog post she wrote this week about her journey. I am just blown away by all that the Lord is teaching her. I know you will be blessed to read it.

Ashley's Blog is called A Separate Sky.

Afterparty fun

Just in case you ever wonder what we do at our weekly ACF "Afterparty"...

Putting pretzels up our noses...always a fun pastime!

Best Snow Man EVER

Ok, so I know Spring has Sprung...or at least we hope so. But I just discovered these pics while I was cleaning off the SD card. Enjoy.