We were on Spring Break last week, so Noah spent the week traveling to visit current and future ministry partners and Ellie and I spent some time with family and friends.
All that to say, we missed our Friday update last week. I decided I would jump in and do a belated Friday update instead of Noah this week :) Here's an update on what God is doing in the freshmen women in our ministry!
There is nothing like the transformation of freshmen women in our ministry. It is amazing to think back to August and picture them-- shy, somewhat insecure, and overwhelmed. Some are walking with the Lord and looking for fellowship, others are just around- because they were invited, or had nothing else to do. (I like to say that when I was a freshmen, you could've invited me to go pick up trash with you, and I would've come. I was that eager to meet people, and that desperate!)
Now, these same women seem like totally new people. They have found their place at the U of I. They know how to get to class, they are committed to school, to their dorm friends, to their Bible Studies, etc. They are learning, growing and experiencing the work of God in their lives!
Yesterday I met with two freshmen Bible study leaders, and asked them for an update on some of the freshmen women. They proceeded to tell me about one girl who is going on a trip to Turkey with her business honors class. They will be visiting Ephesus, and so she decided to invite her classmates to learn about Ephesus with her in preparation for the trip. Thinking no one would say yes, she was shocked when 8 people said YES! She is preparing to teach them both the historical and religious history of Ephesus. Another girl is preparing to lead an IBD (Investigative Bible Discussion) this summer with some friends from back home. Another is on the track team and placed 5th at the Big Tens meet- she is totally God-honoring in her sport, and connecting with her teammates with a team Bible Study. I could go on and on....
I sat there with my jaw dropped, thinking, WAIT, are these the same freshmen I met in August who were nervous to just walk in the room? YES they are!! God is doing a work in these freshmen, and it is amazing! It is especially incredible as two falls ago we had zero freshmen women involved. Last fall, we had 1! This fall- we had 15+ women join our ministry. God is moving!!! Praise the Lord!
-Katie
All that to say, we missed our Friday update last week. I decided I would jump in and do a belated Friday update instead of Noah this week :) Here's an update on what God is doing in the freshmen women in our ministry!
There is nothing like the transformation of freshmen women in our ministry. It is amazing to think back to August and picture them-- shy, somewhat insecure, and overwhelmed. Some are walking with the Lord and looking for fellowship, others are just around- because they were invited, or had nothing else to do. (I like to say that when I was a freshmen, you could've invited me to go pick up trash with you, and I would've come. I was that eager to meet people, and that desperate!)
Now, these same women seem like totally new people. They have found their place at the U of I. They know how to get to class, they are committed to school, to their dorm friends, to their Bible Studies, etc. They are learning, growing and experiencing the work of God in their lives!
Yesterday I met with two freshmen Bible study leaders, and asked them for an update on some of the freshmen women. They proceeded to tell me about one girl who is going on a trip to Turkey with her business honors class. They will be visiting Ephesus, and so she decided to invite her classmates to learn about Ephesus with her in preparation for the trip. Thinking no one would say yes, she was shocked when 8 people said YES! She is preparing to teach them both the historical and religious history of Ephesus. Another girl is preparing to lead an IBD (Investigative Bible Discussion) this summer with some friends from back home. Another is on the track team and placed 5th at the Big Tens meet- she is totally God-honoring in her sport, and connecting with her teammates with a team Bible Study. I could go on and on....
I sat there with my jaw dropped, thinking, WAIT, are these the same freshmen I met in August who were nervous to just walk in the room? YES they are!! God is doing a work in these freshmen, and it is amazing! It is especially incredible as two falls ago we had zero freshmen women involved. Last fall, we had 1! This fall- we had 15+ women join our ministry. God is moving!!! Praise the Lord!
-Katie
