When our team began planning out this school year, we heard God very clearly tell us that He desired us to teach our students in a deeper way than we have in previous years. So we spent the school year teaching kids spiritual disciplines—such as how to read the Bible, how to pray, how to worship, and evangelize—and basic theology, including faith vs. works, repentance, spiritual warfare, and the history of the Covenant. Embarrassingly, I can admit that I was hesitant to do so, as I was afraid it would scare kids off or be too deep and we would see no fruit.
However, today I want to share with you the work that God has done this school year!
We have met 191 students and built relationships with 145 of them;
103 students were involved in some sort of weekly programming;
We shared Jesus with 33 students who are not believers in Christ (that we were able to identify);
9 students began a relationship with Christ for the first time;
3 students got involved in a local church;
6 students shared their faith with their peers
We also have a team of 12 adults who are serving our students multiple times a week, as well as four adults who serve behind the scenes as part of our Community Support Team!
I am so excited with how God moved over these past nine months; each number represents a student, their family, and their eternity. I am so blessed to be a part of this ministry!
-Andrew Kiste, Thornapple Kellogg Campus Life Director