Teaching Jesus, Changing Lives...

By Meredith Carpenter

What is one thing that no one can ever look cool doing? 

This was the ice breaker at our Tuesday night Bible study last week and the answers were hilarious. They ranged from brushing your teeth to walking out of a port-a-potty, and we all laughed until we cried. Though these questions are just for fun, it has been great seeing our students become more comfortable with us as a staff. 

For the past few months our numbers have been spectacular. We have had around 30 kids at our Bible Study. . .when we used to have only 8! At the Rising, our Thursday night event, there have been up to 90 students in attendance. But what has been most encouraging recently is not the super high numbers, but the low ones. Each of us as a staff have been intentionally investing in five students. We work to understand their lives, their families, and their performance at school. Through focusing down on five students each we have been able to be attentive to their needs as we speak Scripture into their lives and pray with them when times get hard. It has been a rewarding process of discipleship. 

Another number that was encouraging was the number 35. Last week when we told our students that we would not be hanging out at the Kennel after the worship service, we watched over 50 students walk out the door. But 35 stayed. 35 students resisted the peer pressure to leave and made a statement that they were there to learn more about Jesus Christ and how He can impact their lives. It was perhaps one of the Rising’s finest moments. 

Here at AYM we are not about numbers, we are about lives changed and transformed by the power of Jesus Christ. But we are also grateful that so many students walk through our doors and that we have the chance to speak truth into their hearts, (as well as have fun).