Marry the Church

Derrick and I have had the great honor of becomming part of the International Church of Nacogdoches (formerly known as First Assembly of God / aka The Dream Center of Nacogodoches). Pastor Dennis graciously invited us to speak there yesterday morning about Chi Alpha at SFA. The church fully believes in and supports the mission of Chi Alpha on campus - they are absolutely amazing! We shared a ton of stories about all the Lord has been doing on campus and then Derrick preached about living for something bigger than ourselves...
Towards the end of his sermon, he told everyone how he had not slept at all the night before (which was 100% true... trust me!) - the Lord had been speaking to him. The Lord was saying that it's time for some of us to "marry the church." What does that mean? It means that for better or worse, I'm going to commit my heart, my life, my hands in this church - I will LOVE this church.

I have had an inexpressible prayer lurking right at the top of my heart for the last few weeks, but it had not fully surfaced. You know the feeling? You want so badly to pray something that is stirring in your heart, but you have no words. I have rested the last few weeks in the knowledge that before a word is on my lips, the Lord has heard my prayers. But when Derrick said those words Sunday morning, that surface prayer came bursting full-force into my mouth: LORD, WE NEED STUDENTS TO MARRY CHI ALPHA! A group of students to be built by the Lord into a foundation for His mission on this campus. We know the group is far from perfect, or even ideal, at this stage... we are not looking for students who pretend it is so. We are searching for students who will look honestly at the group, see all its flaws and beauty and potential and potential downfalls... and LOVE it! For better or worse, in sickness and in health - with their lives, the hearts, and their hands.