Today around six o'clock pm, 150 UofM students will arrive at the tiny campus of Spring Arbor University for the next week. And alas, LT 2011 begins...
Some of these students have never fully accepted Christ in their lives. Some have never made their faith their own. Others are scared. Scared to give up things in their lives they don't want too, scared to fully surrender to a God that they do not know. Some students have addictions, horrible pasts, shame that no one knows they struggle with. Some students are coming who have seen the truth and life that the gospel brings and are fired up to begin a program where their faith will continue to grow and are pumped to see God do incredible things in their lives and in the lives of others. Holy cow. This is big eh? Not to get arrogant here, but UofM is filled with bright, driven and ambitious students- if all 150 students could grasp the magnitude of the gospel, the power of Jesus Christ, and grow a fervor for the great commission- we could see some serious change in our world people. This is legit. This is also war. Ephesians 6:12 states, "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."
Last year around this time I remember thinking-, "Man, I want to live an epic life." I read a book that said plain and simply, "Our lives are epic." Think about what Paul told the churches at Ephesus. We are struggling and fighting against the forces of evil! This is bigger than any Lord of the Rings movie-we are in a war. God for some reasons has placed us in the most epic battle of all time and we get to fight for the winning side. We get to fight for the most high, good and righteous king! Jeeze, that gives me goosebumps, it's epic.
Now, make no mistake about it, all 150 students plus all the staffs and interns are broken people in need of a savior. Thank God that Jesus Christ took our shame, pain, and sins, bore them on the cross and raised again so that we could be right with God. mmmhmmm, the truth of the gospel- I need that everyday.
Anyways, the madness begins today which is LT. This week again has been busy. More planning, more organizing, calling different people, making preparations, setting deadlines etc. All the staff and interns have worked well over 40 hours this week, and the kick off retreat hasn't started! But hey, I sincerely feel so blessed to serve, and ready to fight for the Saints of God- it's awesome, it's a war, and it's epic. Here's a jist of what kick off retreat will be. It's a week long and filled with community and teachings. We will hear several sermons that will challenge us spiritually, we will spend time in our life groups (guys and girls separate) and share things in our past that many have never shared before (bringing darkness into light, it's a beautiful but difficult thing to do). We will also build community by spending a lot of time in our new life teams(guys and girls together) by playing different games, eating together and spending time with one another- loving each other as brothers and sisters of Christ. We have one day where we will spend 8 hours just with God. Alone. Wrestling with what the Lord has put on our hearts. We will worship like we have never worshiped before (worship at LT is legit : ). There will be laughter, there will be tears, there will be life change and also painful struggles. It's an epic way to start off LT- Kick Off retreat 2011 people, boom! So with that I have some prayer requests for you all.
-LT: Pray for unprecedented things to happen. A lot of these students are going to feel uncomfortable. They are going to be challenged in ways they have never been before and God will convict them in ways they have never felt. Pray for their hearts, pray for their faith. Hebrews 12: 5-6 states, "And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lost heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as sons." God will refine the hearts' of these students this summer, He will begin and continue to make them more like Christ, to grant them freedom and bring life to the full. But it will be tough at times. Sanctification is no easy process and it's a continual one. Pray for these Saints as they enter into something that may seem extremely foreign to them.
-The Mission: Pray that the hearts of everyone at LT, Staff and students alike may have a heart that burns for the great commission: Matthew 28:18-20, "Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you, to the very end of the age." If all of us can grasp this truth- this could be a game changer folks. The gospel is the ultimate X factor in life. I've seen it change lives- it's changed mine.
-Spiritual warfare: As I've already stated, we are in a war not against flesh and blood but against the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms. With so much at stake for the Kingdom of God, Satan, will be gunning for us. We need God and prayer. We need you all to be praying against Satan's tactics. The tiny campus of Spring Arbor University is in his "cross hairs" and he will dispatch his legions of demons to try and destroy the freedom and truth that will be brought to these students. Pray against that. Pray for protection from our Lord.
-Staff/Interns: Pray for God to speak through us. Pastors will be giving talks, staffers and interns will be interacting with students and leading life groups and new life teams. Pray that God may use us as He sees fit. I tell you what, I can plan all I want too and be as organized as I can be. But God changes lives. He transforms hearts, and I need Him to lead me in order to lead others. Pray for the spirit to dwell in all of us as we try and bring his word to students and disciple them in the way of Jesus Christ.
-Pray that God's name may be glorified.
-Myself: As I said, I need God to help me lead. I need Him to use me and speak through me. Pray against anxiety and nervousness that I will inevitably feel. Although I am fired up to serve and lead his Saints, pray that my heart may be engaged for what He has in store for me this summer.
-My family: I love them so much. Just say a prayer for the LaFleur family if you get a chance.
And so it beings (haha )..it's going to be an unprecedented summer. I can't believe LT is already here. God has done so much already, and I can't wait to see what He has in store for LT this summer. Thank you all for reading and for your prayers. Again, we need your prayers, I cannot stress that enough.
Before I leave you should know that not one day has gone by that I haven't thought about Africa and those boys. One of them just got arrested the other night. Pray for him. It breaks my heart.
One of my team members, Amanda (who is also an intern with me this summer for LT) who went on the Africa trip made a video of the trip, I thought I'd share it. Enjoy and God bless!
click the link: Kenya 2011
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