Team: Players, Coaches, Owners, Fans

Go Giants! Go Yankees!

Now I know many of you are from Pennsylvania, Maryland and even Queens and consequently can’t stand my opening line, but have you ever thought about why?  Sure, Jerry Swierczek, you may argue it’s about pure talent… but even when the Phillies lose? Or how about you Rick Lockhart? The teams you cheer for are solely because they are located in the place where you’re originally from, but my friend Tommy Waters supports teams from a whole different state. So why do we support the teams we do?

My answer is simple, common, & without really good reason – I’m from New York, born and raised in the Bronx, so I support the teams who represent my community.

Some of you may tease later but in all honesty, these teams have no real eternal value. Yet so many around the world put so much money, time, and even prayer toward their achievements. How about us, the body of Christ?

As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. 1 Timothy 6:17

Who do we glorify with our riches, prayers, attire, and time? Ourselves? Our favorite sports team? Our God? I was recently challenged with looking at my life to see what my heart truly gives attention and glory to.  What or who do I promote?

Being a full-time missionary is like being the field coach of a team.

I recently was hit with this concept of being a coach to student leaders who are leading ministries on their campuses. They are the players on the field, I am their coach, and you are all part of the team after the same goal. God owns it all. Some of you pray and some of you invest financially but together our efforts help advance God’s team through college students in New Jersey to reach the world!

Whatever role you play, first I want to say thank you. Without you, this may very well be impossible. Next, I want to challenge you to increase your investment in this team and support of God’s work. Maybe through prayer every week at church or through financial gifts, whatever the Lord wants you to do.

God has placed me as a coach. Will you continue to support this team?

Don't dismiss what you can't see...

Interesting time at Kean today.... 
....Especially consider I had just told my directors that "nothing is happening at Kean". Literally. I said that. (Now if you're a Kean student, please remember I'm fallen!) I mean with all things considered I guess I shouldn't say "nothing" because God is always doing something whether we we see it or not. However, in my defense, this Fall started off very slow because despite the best efforts from the Kean Cru leaders to plan for "freshmen week" (where freshmen get all of our attention & love), nothing happened. We couldn't book rooms for our events, freshmen were already so busy with moving in and attending seminars, and none of the upperclassmen were on campus yet to help promote things. Needless to say, I was growing discouraged.

Problem? Pray!
When I'm feeling low, I remember our verse of the year: 1 Thessalonians 5:17 which says "Pray without ceasing". So I began to pray... A lot. Every day that an event was cancelled, I prayed. I prayed at home. I prayed in the car. I prayed on campus. I prayed with the students. I prayed with faculty. I prayed with my staff team. I just prayed. Today, September 12th, is the 3rd Wednesday residents are on campus and the second week of classes. Wednesday nights are the new times for our weekly meeting/Bible study where all the students get together for a little worship, opportunity to hear from each other and from a speaker who speaks from scripture. Even though we are two weeks into the semester, we have not been able to book a regular room for our events or meetings and so students have a difficult time finding us on campus.

Lost? Seek Vision!

Leaders pray at Kean

This week, I decided to have a leadership meeting with all the Kean Cru leaders to help cast vision for them, encourage them, and give them a bit of training that will help them better plan outreaches in the future. :)  I sincerely enjoy this part of my job so much! I want to see students "get it"! I want to see students grow deeper in love with Jesus and understand the honor and opportunity they have to respond and then execute well the plans God has for their lives! Out of 13 leaders, 8 were able to make it to the leadership meeting today while others were in class or work. Towards the end, I was confident that some may have been convicted while others were motivated to see change. We started the meeting with 35 minutes of prayer and then talked about the need and their roles on campus (this was mainly in preparation for Friday's statewide planning meeting at Rutgers University). At the end of this meeting, I asked how and when was this evening's activity/outreach happening. The September flyer they created earlier said there would be man-hunt tonight. One student responded with a mellow tone that he doubted anyone would come, so we should just cancel and no one else said anything, so that's just what was decided. - Nothing Happening.

Jersey Metro Team Vision Video

This video shows the mission and vision of the Jersey Metro Team of Campus Crusade for Christ.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dc9SY0jPHlQ

Our mission is to help build spiritual movements everywhere so that everyone has an opportunity to hear and respond to the Gospel by knowing someone who truly follows Jesus.
Our vision: By all possible means, let us advance God's kingdom by making Christ fully known on every campus, influencing the state and ultimately the world.
Our goal as a ministry is to win students to Christ, build them up in their faith, and send them out into the world to have an impact for Christ wherever the Lord takes them.