by Ben Meredith on December 31, 2009
The prayer Journey is a room we’ve set up for students to have yet another space to Encounter God. Holly Thomas, one of the folks giving leadership to the prayer journey, had this to say about the Prayer Journey:
Want to experience the conference more fully? Incorporate what you are learning at Encounter into your time with the Lord.
The Journey allows you to meditate more fully on the theme of the conference: Encountering Christ the Truth. It’s called a journey because it is set up in a way that moves you along a path from a garden to the wilderness to the cross and a celebration of what is to come in eternity! Get away and spend some time with the Lord and be reminded of Christ the Truth!
On the sidebar of this page, I’ve replaced the video that normally sits atop the page with a live feed of a dedicated twitter account where students and staff have been anonymously updating, sharing their experiences from the Prayer Journey. (click the title “The Prayer Journey” if you don’t see that feed)
by Ben Meredith on December 31, 2009
Pete Selent, one of the local staff here in Greensboro, has helped give leadership to this year’s “Day of Outreach.” I got a chance to hear from him about the exciting things going on today. Here’s what he had to say:
The day of outreach has been an integral portion of Encounter in the past, and this year we are excited to combine both acts of compassion toward the Greensboro community and service alongside the local church as part of Encounter Compassion 2009. Students will be passing out Holiday Care Boxes containing a variety of food items to residents in lower income communities.
We are also partnering with 8 local churches to impact their communities through New Year’s Eve parties for area children, surveys of a community where a church will be planted in the spring, as well as painting the interior of an elementary school that has an ongoing partnership with a local congregation.
Along with each of these projects, our students are equipped to engage those with whom they interact in conversations about spiritual matters. We are eagerly anticipating how the Lord will reveal Himself as students take steps of faith to share Christ with the Greensboro community.
Pray with us that God would schedule some divine appointments for our students and staff today. We can’t wait to hear what He planned for today! Also, pray against head colds.
by Ben Meredith on December 30, 2009
No matter how much planning we put into a conference like Encounter, God is bound to show in ways we could not have anticipated. So, wise planning and scheduling includes space for him to do just that.
We plan space in the schedule, and we plan space in the physical layout of the conference. Our primary physical feature at the conference designed with this in mind is the Global Village. We put distinct attention into giving students a place to process what God is saying to them.
Make no mistake, we use the space to recruit as well. We have stations set up around the room for students to have their questions answered about summer projects, going on staff with Campus Crusade, and other opportunities. But we don’t push the promo angle of the Global Village, we push the social angle.
Students can engage with one another, process with one another, and enjoy hanging out with one another. Tonight there’s an Open Mic Night, and students will be singing, doing slam poetry, and I’m praying God raises up a serious yodeler. A guy can dream.