A Group Set Apart

While down in the South, Randa and I made a roadtrip over to see some friends in Gulf Shores, AL. 150 college students living there as part of the campus ministry, Student Mobilization, (check out http://www.stumo.org/ to learn more) They are holding full-time jobs during the day time, then spending nights and weekends growing in their faith and leadership. Just a year ago I was in Destin, FL with this same group- my life will never be the same.

Spending nearly every day with large groups of people, I have to question what was it that causes this group of people to be so different. There was an evident difference in these people-they were glowing with joy. We saw it even during the few hours that we got to visit them. Nearly every action, every encounter could be characterized by these three words.

Desire. Urgency. Submission.

But if from there you seek the Lord our God, you will
find Him if you look for Him with all your heart and all your soul. ~Deuteronomy 4:29

Desire

When a song like "Chariots of Fire," generally used to pump-up for a football game, comes on to prepare for campus prayer you simply cannot help let out a shriek of excitement. People jumping on tables, dancing around, screaming, all from a graciousness for the opportunity for them to come before the God of the Universe in prayer for each other and Kansas State University---amazing.

In the entire environment is a desire to invest in other more, to memorize more scripture, to read more of His word, to share the Gospel more, and a desire to know the Lord of our lives more. It's a burning desire that rattles their bones to know Christ more and to make Him known.

At that time many will turn away from the faith,
and will betray and hate each other. ~Matthew 24:10

Urgency

There is no time wasted. Even in everyday conversation they immediately jump to questions that cause you to be vulnerable and open to share. The spirit is so present as there are discussions about how to be a more holy being everyday, wondering how one person shares the Gospel compared to another, and even the invitation to share your testimony with others.

Going to India for mission work next summer or to go into full-time ministry are discussions happening daily. These conversations were such a reminder that there are billions of people in this world who have yet to make the decision to follow Christ and millions who have never even had the chance to read or reject the name of Christ. For these people it's not a question of if they are to serve Christ, rather it's where---Awe-inspiring.
They live out the reality that no one is guaranteed tomorrow, why waste a moment in bringing others closer to our Savior.

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the Devil,
and he will flee from you. ~James 4:7

Submission

If one were to go around the room of Kaleo participants, nearly every person would be able to share something that they gave up in order to come. Scholarships were given up, family support left behind, jobs turned down, reputations altered, relationships ended----all for Jesus.

And everyone of them would share that their sacrifice was worth their life.

It's such a beautiful thing to see men and women living in communion with each other wanting nothing more than to spur one another on to love and good deeds. The men want to serve the women as the creations they are, and the women desire to empower the men to be the warriors God made them as---breathtaking.

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Many of these people are friends of mine and all of them are brothers and sisters in Christ. Each of them are desperately seeking to be bound with Christ even more. Join me in praying for these people as they spend their last 3 week in Gulf Shores, then as they return back to campus or to their post-graduation plans to Glorify God more.

Pray for them to

*Continue to Grow in Wisdom for Christ

*Be Bold with the Gospel

*Witness all they've seen this summer

When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God. "Sovereign Lord, " they said, "you made the heaven, and the earth, and the sea, and everything in them." ~Acts 4:24