Baby Steps

It has been over a year since we moved into our home, and we are continually blown away by how God is moving among the teens in our neighborhood. Last summer was full of hours of basketball, talking, and relationship building. Today, many of these relationships have grown into ones of consistent mentoring and discipleship. Tuesday afternoons are set aside for weekly one-on-one or one-on-two discipleship appointments. These time slots have become almost completely maxed out.

A few months ago, (I) Julia began meeting a young girl from our neighborhood who has been attending church faithfully since summer. In one of the first meetings, I asked her “what is sin?” to which she replied, “I have no idea who he is.” She was frustrated with herself for how little she understood. Since then, we have gotten to study together and talk through what sin is and how it affects our lives. We have talked about Jesus and the good news. 

This past Tuesday, it was humbling to see how God has opened her mind to grow in understanding as she walked me through the gospel message: Jesus died in place of criminals, and rose from the dead proving He is God. While her mind can now remember the truth, it has yet to break through to her heart. She remains uncertain if the Bible is trustworthy enough and if it really can apply to her life. I have challenged her (and myself) to look at where we are placing our faith. 

Pray with me that the Holy Spirit will work in her heart and mind to use what she has learned to bring her to a place of surrender and worship. 

Other prayer needs:

Caleb, myself, and the other leaders for faithfulness in speaking and living truth

Our young believers and those counting the costs of following.

More leaders – we specifically need a leader on Tuesdays who can do homework, play games, and interact with teens as they wait for their meeting.