Crazy Busy

Wow, life is just absolutely crazy busy right now! World Race training camp is in fully swing, the application deadline is tomorrow, plane tickets are being purchased, interviews are being done for students and leaders, and we are doing final preparations for new leader training April 2-5.

 

In the midst of all that is going on, God is stirring something in the hearts of many, others are working through areas of needed growth,  and the next season of world changes are being invested in, empowered, and sent to do God’s kingdom work. It’s a stressful yet exciting season to be a part of at AIM as we get to help empower a generation of radical Christ Followers.

 

On a personal level, Heather and I are doing well. For Lent, we have been going through the book “Love Dare.” Our thoughts about the book are mixed but our marriage has flourished due to the sacrifice, effort, and love being invested into each other.

 

Heather and I both had job interviews with the Office of Spiritual Development  at Baylor University last week. We are supposed to hear in the next few days if we will be given a formal job offer. If you can join with us in prayer about these jobs (or if God has something else in store for us) that would be great!! We trust fully that God will provide for us either through these jobs or through other opportunities.

 

God is doing something cool in the student ministry at Lanier Hills right now. There has been a student lead initiation to get real in their relationships and their spiritual journeys as we prepare for our mission trip to New Orleans (through AIM) July 4-10. It’s been a cool experience for Heather and I to help facilitate as needed and encourage the students in taking their faith and friendships to deeper levels.

 

Over spring break (April 7-14) Heather and I are going to visit England!! One of our supporters works for Delta and enabled us to get plane tickets at a very discounted cost. I am so excited for Heather to meet my friends and ministry partners, to visit the churches I worked in, and to be able to experience a place that is so close to my heart.

 

After spring break Heather and I are going to begin a teaching series on Wednesday nights called “I Am Third” (yes, I borrowd the idea from my dad). At the heart of this series we will be encouraging the students to realign their lives so that God is first, others are second, and that they are third. We are going to be providing them with lot’s of service projects and serving opportunities throughout the spring and summer to put this into practice in preparation for our trip to New Orleans.

 

I am a firm believer that our passion, desire, and call to missions outside of our home communities (whether going somewhere domestically like New Orleans or internationally) should flow out of our heart for and involvement in local missions, in our communities. In our ever changing world, the nations aren’t just found over-seas. The nations are found in the apartment unit below us, in our schools, at the grocery store, in the youth clubs, and (hopefully) in our churches. I try to live this out in my apartment complex and at a local youth club. It’s Heather and I’s desire for our students to catch this idea that missions opportunities are all around them here in Gainesville if they simply ask for eyes and a heart to join in with what God is already doing.

 

Helping build a different kind of tomorrow,

Chad and Heather (and Maeby too!)