Monday, March 16, 2009

Spring is Here!

"So if you faithfully obey the commands I am giving you today--to love the Lord your God and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul--then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and oil. I will provide grass in the fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied." (Deut. 11:13-15).

The month of March has been wonderful! I turned a year older this month, and I had the opportunity to spend time with friends over my Spring break.

I've been thinking about God's provision for His people in these times of economic distress. It's interesting how easy it is to forget that we are dependent on God for everything--for rain, for the seasons, for our grain . . . .It is not until there's a need that we realize we've been counting on our prowess, or our jobs, or the government to provide. I pray you may seek God's face for all your needs as you "serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul" (Deut. 11:13).


First two pictures: Meghan (an SV volunteer) and I visited Brooke (former SV Plano staff) in beautiful Colorado this month. While in Colorado, we visited the famous Celestial Seasonings headquarters (second picture) and tasted almost twenty different flavors of tea! Third picture: Me with friends at the Dallas Arboretum. If you've never been there, just think: A huge flower garden relentlessly pointing to God's creative talent and unfathomable beauty.

Upcoming:
We have our annual March Madness basketball tournament coming up at the end of the month. Typically, the event draws over 100 students who are given the opportunity to have fun and also to hear a testimony and a presentation of the Gospel from one of their peers. Please pray for this month's basketball tourney--scheduled for March 25th. Ask that the Lord would open the hearts of students to receive the Word.

Two prospective Student Venture workers will also be visiting at the end of the month! Ruth, who is from Michigan, is completing Bible college this year and hoping to come onboard with Student Venture as an intern. Jacquelynn is coming in from Arkansas and hopes to join the SV Dallas staff team upon graduation this year. Please pray for a sense of peace and affirmation for them as they seek to obey God's calling on their lives.

GetAway, our summer conference, will be here before we know it. The students have begun recruiting their friends to attend the conference. The students will spend the next few months prayerfully inviting their friends and doing fundraisers to raise support to attend the conference. Please pray that God would provide financially for our students so they will have the opportunity to encounter God in a lasting, dynamic way at GetAway '09.

Thank you for your prayers and your support!