19 Jun Walk in Faith
Hi,
I am currently serving on the Clemson Summerlink team! I am a recent graduate who plans to attend Clemson University in the fall. I wanted to join SummerLINK in Clemson in order to get a jumpstart on finding a good Christian community for college and grow in my evangelism skills.
The Lord has called me to serve our church in various ways before, through Kids Ministry, but I have found a plethora of ways to serve our church and the universal church through SummerLINK. For example, we helped set things up for the June Members’ Meeting and are actively working on decorating and preparing to volunteer for VBS. Breaker Rock Beach will be flooded with SummerLINK volunteers!
We have also been able to serve our universal church by learning how to evangelize and learning more about God. During our first week of SummerLINK, we discussed how to create a 15-second testimony and how to use that as a segway to ask others about their story. Through our various Bible studies and our meetings with the staff of Crosspoint, I have been able to grow in my understanding of God, which will help me grow in our faith while also being able to better describe my wondrous God to others. During our weekly staff meetings, I have learned more about what our church believes about God. For example, this past week we talked about how our God is separate from what others believe because He is triune. This discussion of such a key piece of our beliefs was helpful in understanding how I can bridge that gap of understanding between different religions.
The Lord has graciously allowed me reflect and think about where I am not walking faithfully with Him. He is not a God that does not understand , He has walked my road and has done it successfully. He has graciously helped me understand who he is and has given me the ability to know him intimately. It is a beautiful idea that Jesus left his throne and walked in the wicked world and fully experienced this life. We serve an understanding God.
Though we constantly pray together, I ask that you also pray for us. Pray for our hearts to be humbled and softened to Him. It is our desire that we do not experience a peak in our walk with Christ during this time but that we continue to grow after SummerLINK has ended. Pray for peace as many of us are juggling jobs while also serving in SummerLINK. Pray for the people that we evangelize to on Tuesdays. Ask that the Lord grow the seeds that He is allowing us to plant and that many come to faith. Pray that we understand that we aren’t checking off a box when we evangelize but that our hearts are moved to want the gospel to go forth to the ends of the earth. Pray that we see our team as more than people we work with but as our brothers and sisters in Christ.
There are tons of things to celebrate and the first is that the Lord has brought us all together in the first place. It is a true blessing for me to be surrounded by so many believers that are willing to give their hearts and lives to the Lord. I feel that many of us are growing as friends and truly getting to know one another. Another thing is the fact that we have been able to evangelize and invite people in the community to hang out with us and even visit Crosspoint! The idea that the Lord is giving us an opportunity to surround people with Christian community sparks so much joy in my heart.
Although we have just started SummerLINK, I feel that we have had many impactful moments. The moment that impacted me the most was talking to Pastor Will after dinner. He allowed me to ask him various questions about the Bible and God. Although he couldn’t answer all of them with entire certainty because of how much we don’t know, he did his absolute best to give me an answer. The dedication that he had to helping me understand really moved me. It helped me see how much our pastors care about us. His ability to give me additional resources also helped me see his humility in the idea that he couldn’t explain it like someone else could. I thoroughly enjoyed our conversation. All my interactions with our pastors have been similar in the vein that they care deeply about what I have to say even if they don’t have an answer for me. By the end of the conversation I had with Pastor Will another student on the team began to talk to me about God and I feel as though I was able to better understand his thought process and God better.
I could think of a million more moments that are just as memorable. SummerLINK has helped me grow in my faith but also as a person. Every day I am challenged to be more vulnerable with my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ and walk with them in faith. The Lord has been so wonderful to me in bringing me closer to my church family and allowing me to hear of what he is doing in other people’s lives. I cannot wait to see what he continues to do for our team.
-ZL