Fore! [by Amanda]

The Lord works so mysteriously! Over the last few years, I have seen Him use golf balls on several different occasions. This Sunday, I saw Him work again through another random golf ball during our Club 121 game night.

We had just put pizza on our plates and were looking for a place to sit, when we spotted the open couch. As we sat down the girl I was sitting next to spotted a random golf ball on the floor. Since she had heard that Jonathan had proposed to me using a golf ball, she started asking me questions about our relationship.

For the next several minutes, I had the pleasure of sharing about God’s providence in drawing Jonathan and me together. As she asked questions, I talked about God’s ongoing work and how our marriage has been a refining process in my life. I enjoyed telling her how our faithful God uses those moments of trial to mold us more into Christ’s likeness. At the end of the evening, she came up to me and thanked me for our conversation. She even asked if we could talk again sometime later.

I went home so encouraged! In many ways, it has been a real struggle to connect to the students at Louisburg, but the Lord is faithful. He continues to reinvigorate us and fill us with hope when we need it. I have no idea why there was a golf ball on the floor that night, but I do know that the Lord used it to open a door that had not been opened before.

Happy St. Patrick's Day,

Breakfast

by Amanda

It’s 7:15 on a Wednesday morning. Carly is a freshman at Louisburg High School. As she sits next to me, she says, “Do you know what the special is for today? I sure hope it is biscuits and gravy!”

For the past several months, 8-12 students from Louisburg High School have been meeting each Wednesday morning at a local restaurant to fellowship with one another and study God’s Word. The owner has graciously offered the daily special FREE of charge for all those who come.

Jonathan and I have been leading the group through a study on the Character of God. It has been encouraging to see the students grow in their understanding of who God is. Last week, we talked about what characteristics of God are the most comforting to us. Several of the students mentioned the different characteristics found in Psalm 33. This Psalm reveals that God not only sees all the things we do, but God understands and knows our motives.

It is amazing how God is using this study to teach Jonathan and me. We have been reading a book in preparation for parenting (it is never to early to start). In this book, the author constantly reminds us that our heavenly Father doesn’t just care about what we do, He cares about our heart’s motive. As we parent, we need to reflect this concern with motive as we train our child(ren). It is an exciting challenge to help our child(ren) understand that all actions should flow out of a heart of obedience to a God who knows our motives.

Merry Christmas,

Jonathan and Amanda

Night Strike

Twenty feet above my head police lights blink so bright the stars are covered over for an instance with flashes of red and blue. In the woods, 100 feet away I hear the faint sound of three kids singing, “Mary had a little lamb,” and a man on a mega phone yelling, “You in the blue, you’re through.”

Is this a strange dream? No. This month at one of our Club121 outings we played a game for which YouthFront is famous….. a game called “Night Strike.” Students look forward to it every year at camp. So, when they heard we were planning it for a Club121 outing, they were ecstatic. Over 80 students attended this particular Club121 event. We’re excited to see so many people involved in the area. We want to see Louisburg become a place where Jesus is talked of fondly on the street corners and where students pray and seek God’s will together during break times at school.

Pray for us.
Jonathan and Amanda