January Prayer Letter

WE’RE PREGNANT!!

Meet our child, who we are for now affectionately calling, “McBaby.” We are so excited to go on this new adventure of parenthood! This child will the be the first grandkid for both our parents, first great-grandchild, and the first niece or nephew for our siblings, so everyone is thrilled for the baby’s arrival.

As of Jan 11th, we are ten weeks along making the due date August 8th! It was so fun to see the baby wiggling around and to hear the heart beating during the ultrasound! Both McBaby and I are doing well, although I have definitely experienced the nausea often associated with the first trimester. 

Denver Christmas Conference 

Have you every had the chance to sit in a room with 1,000 other people worshipping God? Ever set aside five full days to listen to Biblical teaching, spend time in the word/prayer, and fellowship with brothers and sisters in Christ? DCC provides exactly those opportunities to our students. Some give their lives to God for the first time, some recommit after wandering away for a season, others confess untold sin and experience new freedom, and many share their faith for first time. It is a faith stretching week and everyone leaves different than when they came. 

I was able to give a seminar to 100+ girls on fighting lies that women believe and it was very highly rated by those who attended. Davy led a team of 25 people as the production director of the main sessions. We are blessed to be a part of something like this. Please pray for continued passion as students go back to campus life. 

The ballroom during set up. All these chairs were filled during the conference.

It is an amazing experience to worship God with over a thousand people. 

Here I am giving my seminar talk. There were so many girls we ran out of chairs and they had to sit on the floor.

Our Ivorian friend Stéphane is studying to get a masters degree in Texas. Davy met Stéphane his first summer mission trip in Ivory Coast and they became great friends. He was able to come to DCC and we were SO overjoyed to get to spend time with him. Here our emcee is interviewing Stéphane on his "American experience." He admitted to being incredibly cold and enjoying McDonald's Big Mac's. 

Students are hanging up commitment cards. Students that filled out these cards chose to surrender their futures to God and go where he would have them go and do whatever he would have them do. 

Here are rows and rows of commitment cards. This is only one side of the stage. The other side was lined with cards as well. We are so thankful students are willing to give their lives to the Lord and be used for his glory.

Our SW MO student band got the chance to play this year at DCC. One of the members,Tim, told me his family watched the sessions online to see him play even though they are not believers. He is excited to engage in conversation about God with them now!

PRAYER REQUESTS

• We are at 67% of our monthly financial support goal.Thank you for praying and giving.

• Having a baby does increase our financial goal as we add the new expenses of raising a child. Please take a moment and pray both for the pregnancy and for the new monthly support needs!

• New Year’s resolutions and desperation brings many students to the feet of Jesus in the Spring semester. Pray they find firm footing in the gospel and that our staff find power in the Holy Spirit to handle to increased load. 

HOW CAN WE PRAY FOR YOU? FILL OUT THE FORM TO THE RIGHT AND LET US KNOW!

The first weekly meeting of the semester is Jan 15th.This is usually our largest meeting of the year.The hang out after the meeting will be at our house (probably 100+ students). Pray God brings lots of students to Himself this semester. 

DCC Live Stream Video

Davy and I are so excited to be at Denver Christmas Conference and we want to share it with you. Below is a link that will allow you to watch the main DCC sessions. You'll get to join us and 1,000+ college students as we worship God and dive deeper into our relationship with Him. Below is a schedule that lists the times of the sessions. PLEASE KEEP IN MIND WE ARE IN COLORADO AND THE TIMES LISTED BELOW ARE IN MOUNTAIN TIME. 

CLICK HERE FOR DCC LIVE STREAM

MONDAY 12/29

9:00 -10:30 AM - Paul Tripp
7:30 - 9:30 PM - Libby Swenson

TUESDAY 12/30

9:00 -10:30 AM - Paul Tripp
7:30 - 9:30 PM - Justin Stringer (our director at Missouri State!)

WEDNESDAY 12/31

9:00 -10:30 AM - Paul Tripp
10:00 PM - 12:30 AM - Nicole Lewis and New Year's Eve worship celebration

THURSDAY 1/1

10:00 AM -12:00 PM - Paul Tripp
7:30 - 9:30 PM - Rick James

For more information on the conference or the speakers please visit the DCC WEBSITE. We hope you enjoy experiencing a little bit of our job. We are thankful for your support and allowing us to invest in the lives of college students.

PRAYER REQUESTS

• Please pray for Davy. He is a main meeting producer and has a huge job making the meetings happen. He also got sick right before we came to Denver. Please pray for quick healing so he can focus solely on his job.
• Please pray for me. I will be giving a seminar for women only on Thursday at 1:30. It is about lies that women believe and how to fight them with truth from God's word. I'm really looking forward to this talk so please pray I am filled with the Spirit and that God works in the hearts and minds of the women that will be coming to my seminar.
• Finally, please pray for the MSU students that are here in Denver. There are 104 students here and our prayer is that God would rock every single one of their worlds. Please pray for them. 

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas friends! We pray that you enjoy this holiday season. Let's remember to rejoice in our Savior's birth. 

Please pray with us as Denver Christmas Conference is just days away! We can't wait to see how God uses this conference in the lives of college students. 

November Prayer Letter

Can I get an Amen!?

The numbers you see in the picture above represent what happened just last year through the ministry of Cru on college campuses. 230,000 new believers will be rejoicing around the throne with us in Heaven. 23,000 of our students were trained in how to share their faith. If you ever have the temptation to believe that America is lost for good, please rejoice with us in the fruit evident in these numbers. Lives are being changed. Eternities are being changed. Your investment plays a significant role in seeing it happen. Join us in giving thanks for God’s goodness this past year and pray for more in 2015!  

“I was settling for a life that was too small.”

Every November juniors and seniors all across the country gather to answer the question, “What’s next?” and “Am I willing to go where God leads?” Fifteen students from Southwest, MO traveled to Kansas City for this annual conference with Cru, called Beyond. Beyond challenges these upperclassmen to understand they are 100% sent, which simply put- states they are missionaries whether they enter the work force or go into vocational ministry. 

Allie, one of the women Melissa has discipled the past few years, attended this conference and it shifted her whole perspective on ministry in the work place. She says, “While I was there, God spoke through the speakers and challenged me to think differently. One speaker said, ‘Whatever you do, don’t live an ordinary life.’ When he said that, I broke down crying because I realized that was what my plans were: ordinary. I knew that I was settling for a life that was too small. I am confident in going forward as a teacher, but now I am seeking opportunities to spread the Gospel in my school. More than anything, I am now willing and open to do anything God is calling me to do, wherever that may be!”

We are so excited that Allie and these fifteen students want to surrender control of their futures. Pray with us that God uses them to impact the world! 

Allie just finished her student teaching and it is so encouraging to hear her passion for education. She wants to impact students academically, but more than that she wants to impact students spiritually. She is already brainstorming ideas to start a Christian club at her school that will help students grow and equip them to share their faith with their peers. 

Missouri State students at Beyond

MISSIONS SPOTLIGHT  

While we were in Oregon we were invited to be the missionary spotlight with the youth at Melissa’s home church. It was such a blessing to have children pray over us. Also, Davy’s 8-year-old cousin just accepted Christ and was baptized. She wants to be a missionary someday!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!  

We had the privilege of spending Thanksgiving in Oregon with Melissa’s family (pic: two brothers and a girlfriend). It was a refreshing time with family and lots and lots of great food.  We give thanks for you, our faithful support team, this November. 

Prayer Requests

• We are at 68% of our monthly financial support goal and have only 18 days left in our 100% in 100 days goal. Please pray the Lord provides in huge ways and that we get back to campus before the spring semester begins. 

• Denver Christmas Conference will take place Dec 28 - Jan 2. Davy is on the program team and Melissa will be giving a seminar talk for women.  Please pray for the planning and that God uses the conference to impact students.

HOW CAN WE PRAY FOR YOU? Please fill out the form to the right and tell us how. 

October Prayer Letter

Fall Retreat is a hit!

Imagine packing into a car with three of your best friends (or brand new friends if you’re a freshman!) and driving a couple hours to a camp in the woods for a weekend of peace and quiet after a hectic beginning of the semester. Imagine as well, standing with 175 other students (pictured above) from your campus worshipping God together during that weekend. That is exactly what Fall Getaway is- a retreat for students to connect with

God and each other away from the pressures and stresses of daily life. It also presents opportunities for deep conversation for students like Crawford, who opened up to other guys during Men’s Time about feeling condemnation for his past sexual sin. Through his tears, he was able to hear God’s love and forgiveness from the other men in the group who pointed him to Jesus’ grace poured out on the cross. Pray for Crawford and others! 

“Look what God has done”

“Remember when you sat me down and asked me to lead the men’s group? Look at how far God has brought me... I’m leading the high school ministry, facilitating the baseball team Bible study, serving the women of Cru, and pursuing community. Thanks for pushing me to face my fear and take steps of faith.”

CHANGED FOREVER

This is what Robert said to me (Davy) last week when we got together to catch up. Robert entered college with a desire to explore his freedom as an adult, but one of his good friends (a student leader with Cru) invited him to attend our first-of-the-year events. We got connected, I began discipling him, and eventually asked him to lead the manhood Bible study one night. He was so scared that first time, but courageously stepped up to lead. His growth since that point has been amazing and he is now one of our strongest student leaders in Springfield. Pray for him as he seeks to lead his peers into holiness! 

HOUSE PROJECTS 
In the two weeks we were home in Springfield, we finally got a chance to decorate and paint!This is a wall in our office.We want to keep our eyes focused on God’s heart for the world and pray for the believers everywhere. 

UPDATE ON JACOB 
Thank you for your prayers! Jacob’s broken neck is doing very well. He and Amanda got married and Jacob was even dancing at the reception. He is cleared to drive now and going back to classes. Praise God!  

WHAT'S NEXT?
Our annual Christmas conference is coming up! Students from all over the Midwest will come to Denver, CO from December 28th to January 2nd to worship God and grow in their faith

PRAYER REQUESTS

• We are at 63% of our monthly financial support goal and have 63 days left in our 100% in 100 days goal.
• We are now in Mtn View, MO living with Davy’s parents to raise support in his hometown. Pray for new contacts and a bulk of support to come from this trip.
• Our 1,000 student conference DCC is coming up in a couple months. Pray for students to sign up and for the team planning the conference. 

HOW CAN WE BE PRAYING FOR YOU? Fill out the form to the right and let us know. 

September Prayer Letter

Life Changing Small Groups

Tyler, a 6’9” sophomore basketball player at MSU leads the Bible study for the team. Nine of the 13 players showed up for the second study and continue to express interest. Andrew (a student from my Manhood Group last year) is hosting a small group for his fraternity and half of the members are showing up! Of the six main dormitories on campus, all have studies happening, and Freddy Hall has 40 students show up consistently, while Blair-Shannon has around 30 each week. Fourteen girls are attending Fall Getaway from the Freddy group! One Sorority passed around a sign-up sheet for interest in a house study and 55 girls signed their name! There is a study in all of the Sororities and eight of the Fraternities have guys leading groups weekly. Small groups were instrumental in our growth during college as well. Pray for them! 

“Davy! Have you heard about Cru this year!?”
It has been so encouraging to hear the freshman guys from my small group last year so excited about all that is happening with Cru. We had our largest meeting ever a couple weeks ago with 400+ students in attendance, our Fall Getaway retreat numbers are the largest they have ever been (30% more than last year!), and small groups have consistently maintained large numbers of students.

Students in the "Freddy" dorm Bible study hanging out after their weekly study. 

GOOD PROBLEM TO HAVE

Momentum is exciting, pushes the staff to their fullest capacity, and ensures all the credit goes to God as it is obvious He is multiplying the harvest past our abilities as people. Pray with us as 85 of the registrants for our fall retreat are freshman. An amazing figure, but it also creates new challenges as we give them a significant discount (strains the budget), and organizing rides is difficult since many don’t have 
friends yet. 

Ways you can pray:

• We are at 51% of our monthly support.We have 90 days left in our 100% in 100 days goal.
• Pray for Fall Getaway.You will hear the stories in next month’s letter, but pray now for many students to encounter God in a fresh way.
• We are back in Springfield (had been in Oregon the past six weeks). Pray as we settle into our home amidst the transition.
• Pray God would raise up new contacts to join our monthly support team here in Springfield. 

HOW CAN WE PRAY FOR YOU? Fill out the form on the right side of this page and let us know. 

FOLLOWING UP
Caleb was your average freshman walking into college. However, he filled out a survey with Cru and during follow-up, placed his faith in Christ. He and our director met the next day, he then went to a Bible study, and this past Thursday he brought four friends to Cru! 

DAVY’S BROTHER: JACOB
My little brother broke his neck in three places playing rugby a couple weeks ago. He is ok and not paralyzed in any way. He had surgery and will be in a brace for six months. He got married Sept. 26th. Please pray for speedy recovery and his marriage. 

WHAT'S NEXT?
We're so excited to share stories from Fall Getaway in our next letter. The next conference we hold is called Denver Christmas Conference. This will take place December 28th through January 2nd. Please begin to pray for students to attend. This conference is so life changing!

The Easy Button

This conversation happens quite often:

Friend: "So you have to raise money in order to go back to campus and do your job?"

Me: "Yep!"

Friend: "Isn't that really hard?"

Me: "You know, sometimes it is, but I wouldn't trade it for anything."

Friend: "Seriously? Why?"

Those questions Davy and I get asked are totally valid. It's not normal. Most people in the United States get a job and get paid by their employer. But our story is a little different. We got jobs with Cru and set out to raise our financial support. And yes, sometimes that is really hard. But I really do mean it when I say that I wouldn't trade it for anything (this is a recent development, by the way. God has really been working in my heart). Since all of you that read this blog probably won't get to sit down with us and hear why, I thought I'd tell you right here.

Davy and I are reading a book right now called The God Ask by Steve Shadrach. It's amazing. If you are a missionary, read this book. If you know missionaries, buy this book for them. In the book, Shadrach talks about the easy button. You know, the one Staples advertises on TV? In the book he lays out a scenario. If an easy button existed for missionaries and they could press it and have all their funding raised just like that, would they?

Shadrach says he asks that question to thousands of Christian workers and about 95% say, yes, they would press the button. His hope in writing this book is that the mindset would change. He's come to the conclusion that he wouldn't do ministry any other way. He NEEDS his support team. Not just their finances, but their prayers, accountability, passion, and encouragement as well.

This process is full of ups and downs. Yes, it does get hard some days. But when we get to sit down and share with people about God has changed our lives and the lives of college students... wow! Words cannot describe how fun and joy-producing that is. Even when people are unable to give, we got to sit down for a little bit and brag on how amazing God is. That fact always outweighs the hard days. If this life is about bringing God glory, we can do that sharing the Gospel on a college campus or sitting in a person's home talking about our ministry and financial support. Both aspects of our job are equally as worshipful to our Savior.

In addition to that, we remember what Paul says in Philippians 4:17: "Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that increases to your credit."

We wouldn't change this process because we would be robbing individuals of the abundant joy and blessing that comes from investing in God's kingdom. Not everyone is called to be in vocational ministry, but we are all called to give of the resources that God has entrusted to us. When we obey that call, God is pleased. We want others to experience the privilege of obeying God and fulfilling the Great Commission through giving.

Don't get me wrong, some days I don't want to pick up the phone to make calls or stare at my computer screen one minute longer sending out emails. As an introvert, it can get exhausting meeting new people. And inevitably talking about money can be awkward. This process is hard. Of course it is, or people wouldn't ask the questions I mentioned at the beginning of this post. Shadrach, found that many Christians consider vocational ministry, but are prevented due to finances. He says that Ralph Winter, founder of the U.S. Center for World Missions, estimates that as little as 1% of people who inquire about staff opportunities ever make it into a long-term ministry assignment. Shadrach believes this is, in part, because of the challenge of raising support. Luke 10:2 says "the harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few." It breaks my heart that the workers might be even fewer because raising support is hard and scary at times. I'm definitely not saying that Davy and I have it all together. We struggle with it too, but we've decided to trust God. No matter what. Even if that means this process takes years. Even if it gets really hard. We're going to walk by faith because we believe in what God has called us to and we want to be a blessing to others whether they can give financially or not.

Sure, there are days the easy button looks really nice, but no one that I aspire to be like (Paul, Ruth, Esther, Jesus, the list goes on) ever pushed that button. I pray that we will not ever be tempted to push it. I pray that we continue to give people an opportunity to be blessed through giving or simply hearing how God is moving on the college campus. Please pray with us in this process. The enemy undoubtedly will attack and attempt to hinder the mission. He'll make the easy button look so appealing. Pray that we remember the process is from the Lord and that it is His good gift to us and to the people we have the privilege of talking with.

I explain these things because I want our eyes to be lifted to Jesus. I don't say all of this so you think Davy and I are great, because we're certainly not. This is something we're in the process of learning ourselves. We just want people to be aware the support raising is NOT a necessary evil. It is a privilege and joy. Please remember that as you pray for and interact with the missionaries in your life. Please join us in celebrating this process and worshiping Jesus and His provision in the midst of it. May God get all the glory as we share about our ministry with others and as He brings in the support little by little.