Hello Faithful Prayer Warriors, and Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Matt and I have successfully arrived in Orlando, Florida for our 5 weeks of new staff training. Our time here will consist of two weeks of orientation, two weeks of two theological classes, and then a week of training in ministry partner development (support raising). We are excited! Matt will be fulfilling the role as the worship leader for one of the worship teams that will be ministering to the new staff, and senior staff running the training. I just found out today that I will be a small group facilitator, and I'll continue to learn more about what that will entail.
Our May prayer letter is coming, our hope was to include a student's testimony which is taking longer than expected, but it's worth the wait, you can trust me :). I hope all is well with you as the beginning of busy summers for all begin I'm sure. You are all in our thoughts and prayers.
Actually that is one of the reasons for this blog post! Matt and I both felt led to start praying for a partner every night at dinner, so please share with us any prayer requests that you would like Matt and I to be lifting up for you in prayer. We so appreciate your support whether it be through prayer, financially or both. We hope that this system will be able to connect us on a deeper level, in a way that allows us to serve you as our fellow brothers and sisters. I'll be facilitating all the prayer requests, so please send them to rebeccamjohnson48@gmail.com.
Secondly, Matt and I are still trusting God to complete the needed funds for this training. Please be praying if you feel that God is asking you to give to this special need. I look forward to talking to you all and seeing where life has brought you since we last connected.
God Bless and WARM wishes from sunny Florida :),
Rebecca
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Monday, April 30, 2012
God's Hand at Work
Hello Faithful Prayer Warriors!
I just wanted to give you an update that Brittney came on Thursday and LOVED it! She wasn't able to stay for the whole time but is going to come back next week! God is working in miraculous ways and I'm am so enjoying watching Him act in students' lives.
On Friday we had the third meeting of the Justice Bible Study that I started this semester. After two weeks of foundational preperation of looking into what the Bible has to say about justice and our role in God's plan we set out to talk to students about their beliefs about justice, injustice, and what they think to be God's reaction to both topics. There were three of us total on Friday, so I sent the two students out do the survey with the students. They spoke to three individuals and got their perspectives on justice/injustice and their belief of God's reaction to them. Our desire is to collect information on where the student body is at with questions like: why do bad things happen to good people, etc. This semester we are trying out the survey and improving the questions to best suit UMASS Dartmouth and the need we are trying to meet. The students seemed encouraged by what they had done, one said she could see how she could have gone into the gospel! This is our goal in all conversations; if God opens the door we need to be ready to walk through it. "But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect" (1 Peter 3:15).
We'll be going out again this Friday! Please pray for opportunities to share the gospel during our justice discussions with the students. Also pray for wisdom as we continue to develop this justice survey, with the intent on sharing the gospel through a topic that the campus feels strong about. Thank you so much for your prayers. To God be all the glory and praise!
God Bless,
Rebecca
I just wanted to give you an update that Brittney came on Thursday and LOVED it! She wasn't able to stay for the whole time but is going to come back next week! God is working in miraculous ways and I'm am so enjoying watching Him act in students' lives.
On Friday we had the third meeting of the Justice Bible Study that I started this semester. After two weeks of foundational preperation of looking into what the Bible has to say about justice and our role in God's plan we set out to talk to students about their beliefs about justice, injustice, and what they think to be God's reaction to both topics. There were three of us total on Friday, so I sent the two students out do the survey with the students. They spoke to three individuals and got their perspectives on justice/injustice and their belief of God's reaction to them. Our desire is to collect information on where the student body is at with questions like: why do bad things happen to good people, etc. This semester we are trying out the survey and improving the questions to best suit UMASS Dartmouth and the need we are trying to meet. The students seemed encouraged by what they had done, one said she could see how she could have gone into the gospel! This is our goal in all conversations; if God opens the door we need to be ready to walk through it. "But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect" (1 Peter 3:15).
We'll be going out again this Friday! Please pray for opportunities to share the gospel during our justice discussions with the students. Also pray for wisdom as we continue to develop this justice survey, with the intent on sharing the gospel through a topic that the campus feels strong about. Thank you so much for your prayers. To God be all the glory and praise!
God Bless,
Rebecca
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
April Prayer Letter
Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah
the prophet, and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?” And he said, “Well, how could I,
unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
Imagine for a moment a student alone in his dorm room. He has
recently come to faith in Jesus Christ and is excited about this new life.
However, doubts keep creeping into his mind – challenging his new belief and
leaving him without answers. Even if he has a Bible, he doesn’t know how to use
it yet, but perhaps he opens it and finds comfort in reading the Bible. As the
doubts continue to flow, however, he begins to wonder what he can do. He
decides to visit Everystudent.com, a website of Christian articles, because the
address is on the side of a water bottle he got at a campus giveaway, or
because he clicked on a Facebook ad linked there, or because it’s on a business
card he got. He begins reading articles about faith and doubt, sin and
forgiveness. While he learns much, he still isn’t satisfied. At the bottom of
the article is a link to ask questions – it brings him to an e-mail form and he
nervously types in his questions and submits it. The e-mail gets sent to a Cru
staff member or student volunteer on or close to his campus, who can then not
only answer his questions but meet with him and connect him to a Christian
community on campus.
Internet evangelism has an increasing role in Cru movements. It aids us with netting the Christian students and curious seekers out there who are isolated and too shy to reach out. We can see when a UMD student visits the site– and when they ask a question we get a name. If we get to meet them, then it’s a God-given opportunity to be a part of the process of “grafting them in” to the body of Christ.
One of the strong truths of the verses above is that Christianity is extremely difficult if not impossible to practice in isolation – without “someone to explain it to you”. Please pray that God will continue to use us and tools like everystudent.com to find and connect with the isolated students struggling to survive. With your prayers and support, may we see this student and countless others become members of God’s eternal family!
-Acts 8:30-31
April 18, 2012
Dear Ministry Family,
 |
| “See this 2-minute video answer to a tough question.” An Eye-catching picture and engaging caption can serve as a Facebook Ad that links to an article or video at Everystudent.com that only costs us cents per click! |
I ask you to imagine this because it has just happened at
UMass Dartmouth. I received an Everystudent.com e-mail just last week. I felt
so excited when I realized it was someone I had never met before. I e-mailed
him back with some answers to his questions and also a request to meet in
person – hoping to get to know him. He
hasn’t responded yet, but we’re praying for him and the chance to meet him!
Internet evangelism has an increasing role in Cru movements. It aids us with netting the Christian students and curious seekers out there who are isolated and too shy to reach out. We can see when a UMD student visits the site– and when they ask a question we get a name. If we get to meet them, then it’s a God-given opportunity to be a part of the process of “grafting them in” to the body of Christ.
One of the strong truths of the verses above is that Christianity is extremely difficult if not impossible to practice in isolation – without “someone to explain it to you”. Please pray that God will continue to use us and tools like everystudent.com to find and connect with the isolated students struggling to survive. With your prayers and support, may we see this student and countless others become members of God’s eternal family!
Grateful to
serve,
Matt &
Rebecca Litchfield
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Quick Update :)
Hello Faithful Prayer Warriors,
I just wanted to send you a quick note to update you on the current status of the relationship with the student I mentioned in March named "Brittney". This week I sent a second e-mail, after getting no response from the first one I sent awhile ago, asking her if she was still interested in coming to the Christian Fellowship student group. I heard back from her yesterday and she said that she will definitely be there and that she can't wait to meet new faces. Praise God! I'm so happy that God has given us another opportunity to spend time with her!
Please be praying that Brittney is able to come as planned and that she would experience God's love in a way that would redirect her to be His child. Thank you so much for your faithful prayers. I look forward to updating you after Thursday's meeting.
Your Sister in Christ,
Rebecca Litchfield
I just wanted to send you a quick note to update you on the current status of the relationship with the student I mentioned in March named "Brittney". This week I sent a second e-mail, after getting no response from the first one I sent awhile ago, asking her if she was still interested in coming to the Christian Fellowship student group. I heard back from her yesterday and she said that she will definitely be there and that she can't wait to meet new faces. Praise God! I'm so happy that God has given us another opportunity to spend time with her!
Please be praying that Brittney is able to come as planned and that she would experience God's love in a way that would redirect her to be His child. Thank you so much for your faithful prayers. I look forward to updating you after Thursday's meeting.
Your Sister in Christ,
Rebecca Litchfield
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Wrestling with Simplicity, Introduction
A convergence of ideas has occurred in my mind recently.
Our team, as a form of development and bonding, reads a chapter of the book Authentic Communication by Tim Muehlhoff and then we discuss its implications for our ministry during staff meetings. (Excellent book by the way, well worth the read!!)Well, several weeks ago we talked about an idea presented in his book that if we intend to make an impact on people then what we do needs to have low predictability while retaining high information. Muehlhoff suggests that we need to act, speak, and present our perspective in a way that challenges the assumptions made about "our kind" while still offering valuable information about who Christ actually is and what we actually believe. As you may know, I am always a fan of low predictability, so this idea naturally got me thinking.
The next marker on the way to the convergence happened in a conversation with some of my students. In talking about evangelism, the Four Spiritual Laws came up (not surprising amongst Cru members). The students suggested that the booklet they had all learned to use was too simple, and that it wasn't working well with students. They liked internalizing it so that they had a basic road map of the Gospel in their minds, but they felt they needed something more for the students they shared their faith with.
A couple of days later, I remembered a study I learned about in Sociology class. The study looked at social groups and the commitment levels and/or responsibilities placed on members to see the correlation between the two. Researchers assumed that a low-level commitment at entry level increasing over time would make for the most loyal membership in a group. The study found, however, that a range of higher commitment levels actually had the best chance of producing loyal members, implying that people actually preferred a sense of buy-in or strong commitment to a group their joining.
Finally, this past weekend, I read Epic by John Eldredge (another FANTASTIC book, while we're at it!). The book presents the Story of God and shows how all the stories we love mimic this one, great Story. In four sections he presents the Gospel message in terms of story elements like hero, villain, battle, struggle, hope, victory, and happily ever after. The presentation moved me immensely - I felt so inspired and motivated to live for God and to "play my role" in the story! I wanted to join in battle to win human hearts for God, despite it sounding much harder than the generic "go out and share your faith" kind of exhortation.
These four things have converged in my mind. So far the I can only say that I think the Four Laws is too simple for today's generation. Not that they aren't true, but that they're a model of presentation, parts of a story rather than a story. And that, I think, is the issue. Would you rather read a textbook on the parts of a narrative or a narrative? Which one would move you and become a favorite on your bookshelf? Stories move us because the parts are woven into a whole and built into a moving symphony of ideas, while the textbook teaches us to understand a story and even retell it, but is not a story itself.
So, over the next few days, I'm going to try and think and write and post about this. About balancing simplicity of truth with beauty of composition and trying to contextualize the "basics" of the Gospel in a way that moves those I share it with. Maybe I'm wrong to be thinking this way - let me know your perspectives! But before you toss out my ideas completely, consider the following: If story isn't meant to be a part of our efforts, then why did Jesus speak mainly in parables?
Our team, as a form of development and bonding, reads a chapter of the book Authentic Communication by Tim Muehlhoff and then we discuss its implications for our ministry during staff meetings. (Excellent book by the way, well worth the read!!)Well, several weeks ago we talked about an idea presented in his book that if we intend to make an impact on people then what we do needs to have low predictability while retaining high information. Muehlhoff suggests that we need to act, speak, and present our perspective in a way that challenges the assumptions made about "our kind" while still offering valuable information about who Christ actually is and what we actually believe. As you may know, I am always a fan of low predictability, so this idea naturally got me thinking.
The next marker on the way to the convergence happened in a conversation with some of my students. In talking about evangelism, the Four Spiritual Laws came up (not surprising amongst Cru members). The students suggested that the booklet they had all learned to use was too simple, and that it wasn't working well with students. They liked internalizing it so that they had a basic road map of the Gospel in their minds, but they felt they needed something more for the students they shared their faith with.
A couple of days later, I remembered a study I learned about in Sociology class. The study looked at social groups and the commitment levels and/or responsibilities placed on members to see the correlation between the two. Researchers assumed that a low-level commitment at entry level increasing over time would make for the most loyal membership in a group. The study found, however, that a range of higher commitment levels actually had the best chance of producing loyal members, implying that people actually preferred a sense of buy-in or strong commitment to a group their joining.
Finally, this past weekend, I read Epic by John Eldredge (another FANTASTIC book, while we're at it!). The book presents the Story of God and shows how all the stories we love mimic this one, great Story. In four sections he presents the Gospel message in terms of story elements like hero, villain, battle, struggle, hope, victory, and happily ever after. The presentation moved me immensely - I felt so inspired and motivated to live for God and to "play my role" in the story! I wanted to join in battle to win human hearts for God, despite it sounding much harder than the generic "go out and share your faith" kind of exhortation.
These four things have converged in my mind. So far the I can only say that I think the Four Laws is too simple for today's generation. Not that they aren't true, but that they're a model of presentation, parts of a story rather than a story. And that, I think, is the issue. Would you rather read a textbook on the parts of a narrative or a narrative? Which one would move you and become a favorite on your bookshelf? Stories move us because the parts are woven into a whole and built into a moving symphony of ideas, while the textbook teaches us to understand a story and even retell it, but is not a story itself.
So, over the next few days, I'm going to try and think and write and post about this. About balancing simplicity of truth with beauty of composition and trying to contextualize the "basics" of the Gospel in a way that moves those I share it with. Maybe I'm wrong to be thinking this way - let me know your perspectives! But before you toss out my ideas completely, consider the following: If story isn't meant to be a part of our efforts, then why did Jesus speak mainly in parables?
Monday, March 26, 2012
Evangelism Story and Prayer Request
Hello Ministry Family,
I just thought I'd drop a note to tell you about a cool thing God did today and to send along a prayer request. This afternoon, I met up with Katelyn, a fellow Cru staff member, to do some evangelism on campus at UMASS Dartmouth. We met to pray, and we decided that our goal was to have one good conversation that went past the basic survey that we were asking. We thought in order to achieve this we would probably need to plan on speaking to about four different students, hoping that at least one of the conversations would take off. Little did we know that God was about to show us how much He is in control, and we are just to be obedient and go out to share our faith and He'd take care of who we talked to and the end product of us going out.
God sailed past our expectations, we never thought the first student we talked to would be such a long and fruitful conversation. We spoke to a freshman girl on campus for about an hour. We started by doing a picture survey, called soularium, which was created by Campus Crusade students on a summer project in NY. She was so open to share about her past, present and future goals as we worked through the survey asking her questions about what her current life situation was like, what she wished it was, her description of God, her spiritual background and what she hoped her spiritual journey included. Katelyn was able to share with her about having divorced parents, and create common ground with her there. The freshman girl was a joy to talk to, and I'm currently learning to follow the Holy Spirit's guiding while creating a positive environment for trust building with the students instead of forcing the direction of the conversations towards a decision about Christ every time, because they honestly might not be ready. Unfortunately we did not get into the presentation of the Gospel, but both Katelyn and I were able to tell a little of our testimonies about why we were on staff with Cru Ministries (which did include, God and His Son Jesus and God's role in our lives and decisions). Also as we were parting ways we invited her to the student group on campus, Christian Fellowship. She said that her grandmother is a Christian, so she is open to it and really wanted to stop by. We also exchanged e-mail addresses :). When we sat down with her she was reading a book about finding healing, and I hope that in God's time she'll find it through her Savior Jesus Christ. For now lets call her Brittney, so that I can refer back to her later. Please keep her in your prayers. I really hope to see her this Thursday.
College is a time where so many decisions are made. For Brittney she is on a path trying to figure out her path to inner-healing, and future total enlightenment. Our goal as Christians is to meet them where they are at and answer their questions on the road to the cross. We covet your prayers so much. Thank you for making this all possible. Please keep Matt and I in your prayers. Pray that we continue to get time on campus evangelizing to the precious students that God wants to bring into His family.
To God be the Glory,
Rebecca Litchfield
I just thought I'd drop a note to tell you about a cool thing God did today and to send along a prayer request. This afternoon, I met up with Katelyn, a fellow Cru staff member, to do some evangelism on campus at UMASS Dartmouth. We met to pray, and we decided that our goal was to have one good conversation that went past the basic survey that we were asking. We thought in order to achieve this we would probably need to plan on speaking to about four different students, hoping that at least one of the conversations would take off. Little did we know that God was about to show us how much He is in control, and we are just to be obedient and go out to share our faith and He'd take care of who we talked to and the end product of us going out.
 |
| Soularium |
College is a time where so many decisions are made. For Brittney she is on a path trying to figure out her path to inner-healing, and future total enlightenment. Our goal as Christians is to meet them where they are at and answer their questions on the road to the cross. We covet your prayers so much. Thank you for making this all possible. Please keep Matt and I in your prayers. Pray that we continue to get time on campus evangelizing to the precious students that God wants to bring into His family.
To God be the Glory,
Rebecca Litchfield
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
March Prayer Letter
Hello All!
I regrettably forgot to post our last newsletter on here! I am so sorry to those of you who only look for electronic updates! Here it is!
God Bless,
Matt
Jesus spoke
the Great Commission before ascending into heaven to a crowd of people
including His most devoted followers. The Savior of the world had spent
thirty-three years on earth, three of which had been fully devoted to ministry
and Gospel-planting. He had spoken to countless crowds full of thousands of
hungry souls. Often, though, I have wondered what (other than His divine
omniscience) gave Him the confidence that some of that final crowd would listen
and obey. How did He know the mission would move forward? Or, more
appropriately, what had He done to ensure it?
I regrettably forgot to post our last newsletter on here! I am so sorry to those of you who only look for electronic updates! Here it is!
God Bless,
Matt
And Jesus came up and
spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on
earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in
the name of the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to
observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end
of the age.”
- Matthew 28:18-20
March 1, 2012
Dear Ministry Family,
.jpg) |
Two young men that Matt meets with
- no stripes are not a required dress
code to meet with Matt.
|
Acts answers
this question, as do the Gospels, by simply pointing to a small group of men
who Christ had invested higher levels of effort in. These men, selected by
Christ, appointed by the Father (Mark tells us Jesus prayed before calling the
apostles), and eventually filled by the Holy Spirit had caught the “full fever”
of Jesus’ vision and were the first “operatives” in Jesus’ global mission.
Three years had shown them His character, His heart, and His intent for the
world, and by the time of His ascension they had made His vision their own.
Reading this
out of the Gospels has driven us to make discipleship an ever-increasing part
of our role on campus. Meeting with students, caring about and pouring into
their lives, teaching them, wrestling with the Truths of Scripture, showing
them Jesus vision and helping them realize that they, too, can aid in advancing
it, and showing them how God has specifically equipped them is – I believe –
one of the most powerful parts of Church Age life. I am one believer, and even
on my most sold-out, fired-up days I am still just one person. But, if a
portion of my time is given over to meeting with even two students regularly
and helping them see why I’m sold out for Jesus’ vision and why they ought to
be as well, then I’m multiplying myself, making three where there was one.
 |
Two of the Christian Fellowship girls
that God laid on Rebecca’s heart,
with Arnie, the university’s mascot.
|
Pray for us
about this area called discipleship, please! Pray specifically that God will
show us who to meet with, how to reach out to them, what to work on, and,
ultimately, that God will bless our efforts by turning those students around
and having them do the same and select others to pour into. I (Matt) currently
meet with seven college men who I love working alongside and devouring Scripture
with – pray that I can effectively meet their differing needs and care for
their lives individually. Rebecca currently meets with three college women and
is praying about three more whom God has laid on her heart. Pray for the launch
of these new relationships as well as the continued deepening of the ones she
has. Also, please pray that God will continue to help us balance this part of
our job with the others, such as evangelism, training, etc.
Thank
you for your efforts to empower us with spiritual and physical resources. You
truly have freed us up to do this work and it blesses us so much to have you
serving with us. May God continue to bless your faithfulness and continue to
guide all our efforts for His Kingdom.
Your Fellow Laborers,
Matt & Rebecca Litchfield
Monday, February 27, 2012
Praise and Glory to God for His Gracious Providence and Answers to Precious Prayers
Faithful Prayer Warriors,
Thank you so much for lifting up this ministry in prayer. I hope you had a chance to listen to John Piper's talk on prayer and that you found it not only an encouragement, but also a catalyst for your prayer life. It's been about a month since I listened to it, and I feel that I could probably listen to it over and over and still get a renewed sense of drive to pray more. As promised I wanted to update you on what has happened this past week, that I can only give God the glory for, so thank you for your prayers.
I have to have a moment of honesty with you all. I failed at praying each and every night and morning for this ministry, life can get away from me, and that's why I'm so grateful for God's grace. This past Thursday, Matt was unexpectedly asked to speak, and he spoke of God's ever abundant grace, that like a tree, he planted us along this every flowing river of grace. You are God's gracious providence for this ministry, when myself or Matt forgets to pray, we rejoice in God that we have you! This is by no means an excuse for Matt and I not to pray, just God's provision to ensure this campus gets prayed for on a more regular basis than any of us could achieve on our own.This week Matt and I have seen God's hand at work! We have seen students show a new level of vulnerability as they admit that only through God's strength can they do what He has asked of them. We have seen students recognize spiritual warfare in their lives and seen how God has used these revelations to start them on the path of fighting back against the enemy, again in His power. God provided for the Girl's Bible study on Wednesday night when, the student leaders had a scheduling conflict and God laid a message on one of the student leaders heart to share that was not in line with the Bible study content, but led to fantastic discussion and a further outside conversation that I'll be having with a student. Also on Wednesday, God gave a message to Matt for Christian Fellowship's main meeting, that was refreshing and what the students needed to hear. Following his message students were given the opportunity to write on the board where they needed God's grace in their lives. Praise the Lord the students are giving up areas to walk in God's strength instead of their own. I myself began talking to students about the Bible study that I'll be starting soon about God and Justice, and already I have four interested students! There is no doubt that God is hearing our prayers!
Please continue to lift up this campus and ministry. Pray for the students that God will meet them where they are, in their vulnerabilities, struggles, accomplishments, and any other places God may have them. Please also pray for guidance for Matt and I as we try to follow God each day, living out what He has for us to do. May we be filled with His Spirit and wisdom as we prepare and meet with students. May this ministry be one that is fully operated by God through you our partners and us, as through prayer we are united on this battle front fighting for God's will in the lives of college students.
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Spiritual Warfare and God’s Sovereignty
I’m so excited to share with you what God is doing. This week
I met with some students. I asked them how their breaks were and how they were
currently. This one question launched us into a deep conversation about where
each of them was spiritually and where they were struggling. I would like to
take you back in time to better explain this God moment.
When I started with Campus Crusade I was passionate about discipling
girls and being their mentor, a wonderful asset that was not available to me as
a student. I also had a strong desire to reach the unreached on campus. However
as training began, I started to notice myself hesitating and relying on Matt a
lot. I didn’t know why I seemed to be struggling. I soon realized that I was
questioning my faith. My time in college was mostly spent pouring out. I loved
where God had placed me and that I was able to make a difference for Him,
however I slowly had begun to struggle with doubt. The only partnership I had
was with my fellow leaders on campus, whom I didn’t want to burden with my
questions because they had their own problems, with no weekly discipleship
either.
This past semester, it hit me that my job was to share the
gospel and how was I to do this if I couldn’t even assure myself that it was
100% true? I wanted to know that I knew, that I knew that Jesus was real and
that I had asked Him into my life as my Savior. I realized that I had shared my
faith in college without an arena to handle the difficult questions that arose
as a result of talking to non-believers. I’m a full supporter of looking into
these questions but alone, I felt helpless, and alone was exactly where the
enemy wanted me. Matthew 7: 7 states, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek
and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you”. That is exactly what I sought out to do. With
the support of my coach in Campus Crusade, I set out to answer the questions
that I had been avoiding in the past. Praise God that He is sovereign. For He
graciously met me right where I was, and today I can firmly state that I know,
that I know that Jesus is the way the truth and the life and that I have been
God’s since that moment as a four year old, I gave my life over to Him. Looking
back I can testify that He has always taken care of me.
Bringing us back to the present day, I’m not saying that I
still don’t have thoughts of doubt, but they don’t shake my inner core and
cause anxiety anymore. It was with this
testimony that God used to meet the students where they were at with a word of
caution. They all are very active with
our group, attending as much as they can and leading so much in our ministry.
When they began to talk about the spiritual attacks that they all felt they
were under, I asked how their personal spiritual walks were going. I encouraged
them to not put it on the back burner like I did in college. Matt and I
treasure their personal roles in our student ministry and praise God for them everyday,
however if they are doing all they can for the ministry but not steadily
growing themselves and worse possibly backsliding, Matt and I are not doing our
jobs. I explained that we wanted them to own the ministry and to follow the
passions that God has given each of them for specific ministries, but to not
forget about their personal walks, and that is why Matt and I are here, to take
on the tasks they can’t do (in addition to many other things) so that the enemy
doesn’t have a foothold in their busyness. I love each of these girls deeply,
and nothing angers me more than the enemy messing with them. I once was in
their shoes, and I pray that God will use me to help them now.
Every morning, I wake up trying to figure out my schedule and
what my tasks are for that day. It has been hard to adjust to being in charge
of my own schedule, and I’m still learning. However I can often feel like I
have failed if I don’t meet the expectations that I set out for that day. But
after this week, God has showed me that my job is to do my best, but ultimately
He is in charge of what my day includes, some of which I may not know the
purpose of for a while. Back when I was
at the end of my own struggle with doubt, I wrote in my journal, “My faith was
affected in college and I don’t want that to happen to others. Satan is taking
souls, we need to fight back. I love college students, I want to help them and
I see the danger they are in. I see the need and I’m willing to fill it.” How
cool is it that two months ago, God gave this to me in a quiet time, and I’m
now seeing this come to fruition in a tangible way this week!
I come to you our ministry partners to lift up the campus in
prayer. These students that I just shared about are not the only ones subject
to the backsliding that can occur in one’s faith during college. Pray that Matt
and I will be led by the Spirit on a daily basis, and not try to do this
ministry out of the flesh. To live in God’s abounding power instead of feeding
into the enemy’s lies. Together may we
pray for the freedom of the students on campus. That those who know the Lord
would be encouraged and those that don’t may we pray for the promises of the
new covenant over their lives. That God will begin to stir in them a longing to
know Him. May we pray for protection from the enemy over the territory that has
been gained for the Glory of God from the enemy.
Below you will find the link to John Piper’s talk on prayer. I encourage
you to listen to it. It is 45 minutes. But my prayer is that it will rejuvenate
your prayer life.
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
A Simple Thought
One of the main pieces of my ministry involves discipling college men. When I disciple them, I often have ideas of what we could study to help them further in their faith journey, but I always ask them what they would like to study both so I can gauge my reading of them and so I can hear if there's something that would be more valuable to them.
I did so with a young man who's new to my discipling roundup this semester, and he suggested we study how to study Scripture. What a simple-yet-elegant idea! Soon after reading his suggestion (we had been communicating over Facebook) I realized that while I studied Scripture every day, I had never had formal training in HOW to study Scripture, and thus had little ability to teach someone else how to study Scripture.
Hours of asking others' wiser perspectives and surfing the internet and praying I decided upon Grasping God's Word: A Hands-On Approach to Reading, Interpreting, and Applying the Bible by J. Scott Duvall and J. Daniel Hays. The book arrived yesterday, and only ten minutes into reading the text I found myself asking: Where has this information been my whole Christian walk? I had already learned so much that I had never heard before about observing, interpreting, and applying.
This morning, the young man and I met and talked about how so few Christians have been taught these principles that we're embarking on learning in a useful and powerful way - and we wondered why? People with a new job get job training for a significant chunk of time, freshman college students get introductory classes that teach them how to study and the fundamentals of their major. Why is it that the most major decision any one person can make in their lives comes with little to no entry level training on how to study the source of growth and development for their lives?
It seems like a simple thought in the form of a question. It also seems like a convicting question to me as a teacher of Scripture and a mentor to Christian college students. I'm passing the question on to you mainly because it's what I'm thinking about today. Maybe it's something we all need to be thinking about.
I did so with a young man who's new to my discipling roundup this semester, and he suggested we study how to study Scripture. What a simple-yet-elegant idea! Soon after reading his suggestion (we had been communicating over Facebook) I realized that while I studied Scripture every day, I had never had formal training in HOW to study Scripture, and thus had little ability to teach someone else how to study Scripture.
Hours of asking others' wiser perspectives and surfing the internet and praying I decided upon Grasping God's Word: A Hands-On Approach to Reading, Interpreting, and Applying the Bible by J. Scott Duvall and J. Daniel Hays. The book arrived yesterday, and only ten minutes into reading the text I found myself asking: Where has this information been my whole Christian walk? I had already learned so much that I had never heard before about observing, interpreting, and applying.
This morning, the young man and I met and talked about how so few Christians have been taught these principles that we're embarking on learning in a useful and powerful way - and we wondered why? People with a new job get job training for a significant chunk of time, freshman college students get introductory classes that teach them how to study and the fundamentals of their major. Why is it that the most major decision any one person can make in their lives comes with little to no entry level training on how to study the source of growth and development for their lives?
It seems like a simple thought in the form of a question. It also seems like a convicting question to me as a teacher of Scripture and a mentor to Christian college students. I'm passing the question on to you mainly because it's what I'm thinking about today. Maybe it's something we all need to be thinking about.
Friday, February 3, 2012
February Prayer Letter
Hey All!
Here's our prayer letter that went out this week:
Here's our prayer letter that went out this week:
“He said ‘No; rather I indeed come now as a captain of
the host of the LORD.’ And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and bowed
down, and said to him, ‘What has my lord to say to his servant?’ The captain of
the LORD’s host said to Joshua, ‘Remove your sandals from your feet, for the
place where you are standing is holy.’ And Joshua did so.” – Joshua 5:14-15
Dear Family,
This story in Joshua has
always bewildered me. God finally gets the Israelites across the Jordan and
into the Promised Land. They set up camp within sight of Jericho – their first
enemy. Before Joshua even has a chance to ask God “Now what?”, God tells him to
circumcise the whole army. Did I mention how close they camped to Jericho? As
if that weren’t enough, Joshua goes to survey the city as the troops heal and
runs into none other than Christ Himself. Surprised and probably psyched by
God’s clear show of support, Joshua seeks counsel from Him about what He would
have him do. Christ (as the “Angel of the LORD”) answers Joshua and befuddles
me: “Take your sandals off, this is a holy place.” Exactly at the moment where
Joshua seeks a battle plan – a map with forces and strategies or blueprints for
a war machine – Christ gives Joshua an opportunity to worship Him and spend
time with Him. And this is exactly
what January has been for us.
Our month
started with the high-octane, labor-intensive Epicenter Experience, a 4-day
conference in Albany, NY with 300+ students from across the
Northeast region. I (Matt) worked in the Prayer Journey – a room filled with
Scripture, activities, and décor meant to lead the students into deep prayer
time with God. Rebecca spent the week as Book Store manager – having planned
the inventory and ordered new books ahead of time – selling books to students
and managing the finances of the store each day (a job which she loved!). We
both spent our free time working with the 22 UMD students who attended –
processing God’s leading, helping them strengthen their testimony
presentations, preaching the Gospel around Albany with them, and teaching them
about God’s Word and Will. We watched students come to Christ, surrender their
lives in new ways, and find their hearts burning with passion to preach the
Gospel to their campuses. We left Albany with them ready to change the world.
 |
A student reflecting on Eph.
3:14-21
& “planting her tree” at the Prayer
Journey station I designed
|
Two days later I found myself
all dressed up with nowhere to go. The Monday after the conference I realized
three weeks sat between me and the start of the semester. Three weeks without
students, meetings, Bible studies, or times of evangelism. I sat with my Bible
that morning and asked God, “now what?” He spent those three weeks just as He
spent that time with Joshua. He showed up powerfully in our study times, spoke
to us in prayer, wrote His Word on the tablets of our hearts and grew in us a
passion for His mission. He laid on Rebecca’s heart the desire to lead a bible
study on suffering and God’s view of justice, which she has been preparing for
ever since. He led me to a deeper understanding of His Scripture and to teach a
study on His view of our relationships with each other. He has taught both of
us much about the other and has strengthened our marriage richly. He showed up
when I stood there in my battle armor and gave me a chance to worship Him.
Choosing to do so was the best “prep time” we could’ve had!
 |
There’s nothing quite like a roomful of students
passionately worshiping God! Can you spot
Rebecca and the UMD students?
|
Today is the first day of the
semester – and we’re more sold for God’s mission than ever before. Now that
we’ve had our three weeks of adoring Him and learning about Him, we’re ready to
take the enemy by storm – in His strength – and introduce UMass Dartmouth to
the most astounding Being in this universe. God has the victory already, so
please be praying that God will begin even now to show us the fruit of His
labor.
In His Service,
Matt & Rebecca Litchfield
Monday, January 30, 2012
Storytelling in an Inattentive World
We, as believers, have been left on this earth with the Commission to make disciples of all men. We have been left as witnesses to the salvation offered by Christ, heralds of God's grace, ambassadors of the Kingdom of Light in a land that knows nothing but darkness. We are storytellers telling two stories - ours and Christ's - hoping that their collective weight intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually will convince others of their worth and veracity.
But we live in a world that prefers 140 characters at a time as opposed to the great, lengthy novels of old. We live in a society that sacrifices the good taste of a home-made meal for the convenience and speed of a microwavable TV dinner. We live in a world so impatient that people (including myself) record TV shows so they can fast-forward through commercials, even though it's an additional monthly cost to do so.
How do we fulfill our Commission when our main method - storytelling - is in contradiction with the pace of our culture?
In our last letter, I wrote to you about a 3-minute testimony and how we were helping our students write them about their own journeys with Christ. The premise behind a 3-minute testimony is that it packages the Truth of the Gospel, starts and ends within a short amount of time, and it catches people's attention. It's that last part that makes this tool so effective. When people start asking questions wanting to know more, then you know you have their attention, and now you're no longer in sales pitch mode but rather honest conversation mode. In case you had any interest in this tool, I wanted to give you some steps for making one for yourself.
First off, here's an example by one of the students who came to the conference with us:
Simone Gundersen from CCCNEHQ on Vimeo.
Powerful, right? Well, here are some of the tips I've gathered on how to make one these - I challenge you to try! If you do, I'd love to read it! If you figure something out in writing it, let me know!
1. "How do I start?" Every good story has a Beginning, a Middle, and an End. Where were you and what was life like before you knew Christ? How did you encounter the Living God and come to believe His Word as Truth? what has God done in and through you since you trusted Him for your salvation and you began to walk in the Spirit?
1A. Now, more than likely, thinking about answering those questions gives you a whole list of stories, moments, and trains of thought that you need to sift through. If so, move on to tip #2. If you don't have good answers to these, most likely you grew up in the church and the traditional conversion story doesn't seem apparent in your life. However, there must be a moment where your walk with God started, right? There also must have been times where your life was difficult, right? Tell us that story and answer us this question instead: why did you stay with God all this time? why do you still trust Him? If you still feel lost, talk to a close friend who knows you well and can help you pick out the compelling parts of your story.
2. "How do I pick which stories to tell?" Filtering is definitely the difficult part of this process. Here's my best advice: pray about an image, or a metaphor - maybe even one from Scripture - that speaks to salvation and matters to you. For example, my story centers on the idea of the scales of good and bad, and how that distorted my view of God until I learned about Jesus and about faith and grace. Simone centers her story on the "need for a Savior". What image or metaphor can you center your testimony on? Once you pick one, then pick only a few stories that center on and illustrate this idea.
3. "How do I end it?" Your testimony needs to end by putting the ball in their court. At the end of her story, Simone challenges her audience to recognize their need for a Savior, no matter how "good" they think they are. Make a challenge or ask a question that pushes the audience to take the template of your story and try to apply it to their own lives. It's this twist that puts them in a place to consider where they are at in relation to Jesus, and where they want to be. If you put an image or metaphor into the story, look for a question connected to the image. For instance, Isaiah tells us that the redeemed are white as snow while Jesus calls the Pharisees whitewashed tombs. If either of these images works in your story, you could ask if your listener(s) is/are a white-washed tomb or white as snow. Make it simple, short, and clear. Leave no room for middle ground because in God's world there is no middle ground.
4. "How do I use it?" Practice it. Don't memorize it word for word, but become really familiar with it. If it doesn't fit, work on it until it feels comfortable. Then, start telling it. If you finish and people seem unaffected or disinterested, feel free to go no further. You've told them about sin and Jesus and redemption and sanctification and how it all worked for you. You can't make them accept it. Should they want more, however, then keep talking as the Spirit leads. You'll never know from the get-go who's ready to kneel at the cross of Christ and who isn't. Let God figure that part out.
As I said, if this is helpful or interesting to you, let me know! I've enjoyed using it and I hope you find it empowering.
God Bless!
But we live in a world that prefers 140 characters at a time as opposed to the great, lengthy novels of old. We live in a society that sacrifices the good taste of a home-made meal for the convenience and speed of a microwavable TV dinner. We live in a world so impatient that people (including myself) record TV shows so they can fast-forward through commercials, even though it's an additional monthly cost to do so.
How do we fulfill our Commission when our main method - storytelling - is in contradiction with the pace of our culture?
In our last letter, I wrote to you about a 3-minute testimony and how we were helping our students write them about their own journeys with Christ. The premise behind a 3-minute testimony is that it packages the Truth of the Gospel, starts and ends within a short amount of time, and it catches people's attention. It's that last part that makes this tool so effective. When people start asking questions wanting to know more, then you know you have their attention, and now you're no longer in sales pitch mode but rather honest conversation mode. In case you had any interest in this tool, I wanted to give you some steps for making one for yourself.
First off, here's an example by one of the students who came to the conference with us:
Simone Gundersen from CCCNEHQ on Vimeo.
Powerful, right? Well, here are some of the tips I've gathered on how to make one these - I challenge you to try! If you do, I'd love to read it! If you figure something out in writing it, let me know!
1. "How do I start?" Every good story has a Beginning, a Middle, and an End. Where were you and what was life like before you knew Christ? How did you encounter the Living God and come to believe His Word as Truth? what has God done in and through you since you trusted Him for your salvation and you began to walk in the Spirit?
1A. Now, more than likely, thinking about answering those questions gives you a whole list of stories, moments, and trains of thought that you need to sift through. If so, move on to tip #2. If you don't have good answers to these, most likely you grew up in the church and the traditional conversion story doesn't seem apparent in your life. However, there must be a moment where your walk with God started, right? There also must have been times where your life was difficult, right? Tell us that story and answer us this question instead: why did you stay with God all this time? why do you still trust Him? If you still feel lost, talk to a close friend who knows you well and can help you pick out the compelling parts of your story.
2. "How do I pick which stories to tell?" Filtering is definitely the difficult part of this process. Here's my best advice: pray about an image, or a metaphor - maybe even one from Scripture - that speaks to salvation and matters to you. For example, my story centers on the idea of the scales of good and bad, and how that distorted my view of God until I learned about Jesus and about faith and grace. Simone centers her story on the "need for a Savior". What image or metaphor can you center your testimony on? Once you pick one, then pick only a few stories that center on and illustrate this idea.
3. "How do I end it?" Your testimony needs to end by putting the ball in their court. At the end of her story, Simone challenges her audience to recognize their need for a Savior, no matter how "good" they think they are. Make a challenge or ask a question that pushes the audience to take the template of your story and try to apply it to their own lives. It's this twist that puts them in a place to consider where they are at in relation to Jesus, and where they want to be. If you put an image or metaphor into the story, look for a question connected to the image. For instance, Isaiah tells us that the redeemed are white as snow while Jesus calls the Pharisees whitewashed tombs. If either of these images works in your story, you could ask if your listener(s) is/are a white-washed tomb or white as snow. Make it simple, short, and clear. Leave no room for middle ground because in God's world there is no middle ground.
4. "How do I use it?" Practice it. Don't memorize it word for word, but become really familiar with it. If it doesn't fit, work on it until it feels comfortable. Then, start telling it. If you finish and people seem unaffected or disinterested, feel free to go no further. You've told them about sin and Jesus and redemption and sanctification and how it all worked for you. You can't make them accept it. Should they want more, however, then keep talking as the Spirit leads. You'll never know from the get-go who's ready to kneel at the cross of Christ and who isn't. Let God figure that part out.
As I said, if this is helpful or interesting to you, let me know! I've enjoyed using it and I hope you find it empowering.
God Bless!
Thursday, January 19, 2012
January Prayer Letter
Here is our January Newsletter:
Dear Ministry Family,
Happy New Year! My how the
holidays came and went so quickly! We pray that God lavished each of you with
precious family time, sweet time celebrating our Savior, and plenty of laughs
as we closed out 2011 and launched this new year. Our holidays were spent back
with our two families in Holden, MA, and then we had our own small New Years’
party before heading out to Albany, NY for our week-long winter conference with
the students. But before the holidays we had to wrap up the semester with the
students and what an ending we had!
Preaching the Gospel and
telling our life story to non-believers is and always will be a central effort
of our ministry. A large part of our training entails learning how to use
different tools and learning how to read the tone and progress of a spiritual
conversation so we can learn how much to say and how to carry a conversation
over multiple meetings with a student. A growing portion of our weekly schedule
is dedicated to going out on campus – together and with students from our
ministry – to preach the Gospel to other students. Our main difficulty with
this at the moment is that the student body seems completely uninterested in
what we have to offer, so please pray
that God will show us how to effectively present His Truth in a way that will
powerfully impact students and that He will care for the seeds that have been
and will be planted.
May the passion to preach the
Gospel catch fire at UMass Dartmouth, at colleges and universities across the
country, and in your hearts as well! God has left us here to be storytellers
and we are each a small part of the Greatest Story ever told. Pray for us as well, now that we clearly
feel the Lord’s leading to commit ourselves long-term to this ministry working
on college campuses and begin the process of applying to join staff. Thank
you for your prayers and for joining us on this adventure! We pray that God
continues to bless you and strengthen this partnership!
Serving with you in Christ,
Matt & Rebecca Litchfield
P.S. – Two housekeeping
matters: 1) Some of you might prefer an e-mail copy of this letter rather
than/in addition to the hard copy. We’re happy to send you either or both!
Please just send an e-mail to matthew.k.litchfield@gmail.com letting us know if you want to add/change to e-mail
format.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
What's in a name?
Hey All!
So, you may or may not be wondering about the name of our blog and I'd thought I would take a moment to share my thoughts in picking the name - some came before I suggested it and others came afterwards.
The first - and most literal - reason stems from the fact that our ministry is at UMASS Dartmouth, a school made almost completely of concrete.
The second comes from the intent of the blog. Some of you have asked and/or are wondering about what happens in our lives on a more day-to-day basis. For others, the idea of what we're doing is a new or very different idea. Some of you just like hearing stories. Regardless of the reason, we can fit only a small window of what God is doing in our letters and we want to show you more, if you're looking for it. So, here we will offer more concrete information and day-to-day stories that never make it to the letters.
As I reflected further on the name, however, I realized that it also reads as a highly tongue-in-cheek name since we know that there's so much about our ministry that isn't "concrete". First, Spirit-filled ministry of any variety must always be growing, stretching, reaching, going - hence the Bible often uses plant/trees imagery for our spiritual walk, and that is the very opposite of concrete. Second, college ministry must always shift and change so that it can reach students where they are. There was a time where "one size fits all" was the motto of organizations like Cru, but now we have developed an athlete ministry, a Greek (fraternity/sorority) ministry, and others reaching students through arts, academia/intellectual, and even the internet! Jesus challenges us to go to all nations, not expect them to come to us, and achieving that on the university campus involves consistent flexibility and a willingness to change modes to keep the Gospel in contact with the students - meaning our ministry must be anything but concrete in how we go about it.
My prayer is that through this blog you'll see our ministry go from practicing widespread tactics of college outreach to a ministry designed specifically to transform UMASS Dartmouth into a Bible-believing, Gospel-preaching, Jesus-following, Spirit-led body of believers. May what is - out of newness and inexperience - somewhat patterned and modeled continue to become more dynamic, powerful, and compelling.
Thanks for joining us on this wild ride - you're a vital part of this journey and a valued companion for the road.
Blessings!
So, you may or may not be wondering about the name of our blog and I'd thought I would take a moment to share my thoughts in picking the name - some came before I suggested it and others came afterwards.
The first - and most literal - reason stems from the fact that our ministry is at UMASS Dartmouth, a school made almost completely of concrete.
The second comes from the intent of the blog. Some of you have asked and/or are wondering about what happens in our lives on a more day-to-day basis. For others, the idea of what we're doing is a new or very different idea. Some of you just like hearing stories. Regardless of the reason, we can fit only a small window of what God is doing in our letters and we want to show you more, if you're looking for it. So, here we will offer more concrete information and day-to-day stories that never make it to the letters.
As I reflected further on the name, however, I realized that it also reads as a highly tongue-in-cheek name since we know that there's so much about our ministry that isn't "concrete". First, Spirit-filled ministry of any variety must always be growing, stretching, reaching, going - hence the Bible often uses plant/trees imagery for our spiritual walk, and that is the very opposite of concrete. Second, college ministry must always shift and change so that it can reach students where they are. There was a time where "one size fits all" was the motto of organizations like Cru, but now we have developed an athlete ministry, a Greek (fraternity/sorority) ministry, and others reaching students through arts, academia/intellectual, and even the internet! Jesus challenges us to go to all nations, not expect them to come to us, and achieving that on the university campus involves consistent flexibility and a willingness to change modes to keep the Gospel in contact with the students - meaning our ministry must be anything but concrete in how we go about it.
My prayer is that through this blog you'll see our ministry go from practicing widespread tactics of college outreach to a ministry designed specifically to transform UMASS Dartmouth into a Bible-believing, Gospel-preaching, Jesus-following, Spirit-led body of believers. May what is - out of newness and inexperience - somewhat patterned and modeled continue to become more dynamic, powerful, and compelling.
Thanks for joining us on this wild ride - you're a vital part of this journey and a valued companion for the road.
Blessings!
Friday, January 13, 2012
Greetings!
Hello!
Matt and I are so excited about adding a new form of communication with you all. In addition to our monthly newsletters, we will be posting stories and prayer requests through out the month that will hopefully glorify God through the encouragement and support that will be shared results of this blog. I'm so excited to share with you exciting moments from our discipleship and evangelism times with students, training and anything else that the Lord lays on our hearts to share. We would also like to encourage your comments, hoping that this will help you feel that you are on campus with us! I'm getting more and more excited as I write this, realizing that pictures can also be shared from all of our events. Here is to our future ministry communication!
Love and Blessings!
Matt and I are so excited about adding a new form of communication with you all. In addition to our monthly newsletters, we will be posting stories and prayer requests through out the month that will hopefully glorify God through the encouragement and support that will be shared results of this blog. I'm so excited to share with you exciting moments from our discipleship and evangelism times with students, training and anything else that the Lord lays on our hearts to share. We would also like to encourage your comments, hoping that this will help you feel that you are on campus with us! I'm getting more and more excited as I write this, realizing that pictures can also be shared from all of our events. Here is to our future ministry communication!
Love and Blessings!
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