Prayer Partners,
We are so thankful that we get to serve alongside faithful supporters and prayer warriors who have diligently lifted us and our requests to the Lord! Many prayers were again answered from last month’s prayer requests. (Scroll to the bottom of this post to read how the Lord has continued to answer our prayers.)
The college ministry at City on a Hill is up and running and Emily and I are continuing to meet neighbors and those in our community. We are now in the process of continuing to build those relationships. The month of October is a very busy one with both events and individual dinners with other couples or students. Overall, please pray for endurance, strength, and rest when we can for Emily and I over this next month.
Over the next month, please also be praying for the below:
1. A culture of community at our October apartment outreach
On October 20, Emily and I will host our second apartment complex outreach! We are praying that more of our neighbors will attend and that the culture of community will continue to grow at Colborne Place as we love and serve our neighbors.
2. Vision casting for the mission team with a partner church
Emily and I have the privilege of hosting a mission team with a potential partner church. We will use this week to cast the vision and prayerfully convey the burden of the lost in the city of Boston. We are excited to show off this great city to others as well as to share the vision of seeing those far from Christ in Boston coming to faith in Jesus Christ.
3. Intentional outreach and follow-up opportunities from the College Party
Emily and I are surrounded by college students and in Boston there are over 80 colleges and universities. College students make up approximately a quarter of a million people in this city. Last Friday we hosted a college party to reach and love such a huge part of Boston’s population. Many of these students live far away from family so Emily and I pray that our apartment will become a home away from home for many of these students. We also pray that our home will be a safe place to discuss the gospel with those unfamiliar with the Christian faith or for those still learning what it looks like to be a Christian.
4. Truth and faithfulness at our weekly Community Groups
Community groups meet each week and require faithfulness and consistency of its members as well as a willingness to grow and be discipled in the truth. Emily and I praise God for the students that are currently involved in our group and are greatly encouraged by our discussions on Scripture passages, such as Titus 3:4-8. We pray that these weekly meetings will continue to grow in numbers and eventually multiply but, most importantly, we pray that each attendee (Emily and I included) will grow in a greater love for Christ and a pursuit of holiness through our conversations.
5. Develop friendships through upcoming dinners
Events are just one way Emily and I can meet a large group of people at one time to either get them plugged into the life of the church (like our Sunday College Lunches) or to foster a culture of community (like our monthly apartment outreaches). These events create opportunities for Emily and me to then build relationships one on one with the people we meet. Throughout the month of October, we have at least one dinner each week with neighbors or students. Emily and I greatly look forward to this intentional time to develop friendships and show the love of Christ in our home.
Because God saved us, “not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy” (Titus 3:5a), we have the privilege, responsibility, and opportunity to extend this mercy and love to others.
“The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people.” Titus 3:8
Answered Prayers
Last month, we asked you to pray over several things and we have seen the Lord answer those requests in big ways. (Read through September’s post again to see how the answered prayers relate to the original requests).
1. Through the apartment outreach last month, we have had the opportunity to meet and discuss spiritual things with a few of our neighbors. Our apartment manager also has asked us to create a community Facebook page so that we can continue to bring our neighbors together! We look forward to the doors that will open through these outreaches and opportunities to love our friends and neighbors through the gospel, serve them as Christ served us, and pray that God will work mightily in the lives of those around us.
2. Our college community groups continue to grow! We have 10-12 at each community group, which is an amazing start. To give you a frame of reference, many of these groups (especially for college students) can start with just 4 or 5 people. We have been blessed with faithful attenders and an open dialogue about what Scripture says. Each group has been able to walk through passages of Scripture and pray openly together as we seek to grow in truth and love of the gospel as a group.
3. College lunches were a great success! Not because of numbers, but because of relationships formed, intentional conversations, and the opportunity to serve college students by providing them with a free lunch. While we did have 15-25 students come to church service and lunch each week, these lunches allowed us to have gospel-centered conversations concerning college life, the Bible, identity in Christ, and much more. Through the church services and these lunches, many college students have found their church home at City on a Hill.
“And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.”
1 John 5:14-15