Standing over the battlefield, looking down, knowing that there was so much blood shed there and visualizing all the solders fighting makes you catch your breath. 

All I could do was just stand there in awe. I started thinking about all the people who were fighting and what they were fighting for. They believed in their cause so much that they were giving their lives for the cause. They were fighting to the death so that they would get the result that they wanted. 

Then I started to think why am I here?  I felt so small and insignificant standing on that battleground. I started thinking about my life and love for Christ.  I asked myself: "Would I be able to fight for what I believe in the way these soldiers for were?  Would I be able to fight to the death for Christ?"  The fact that I couldn’t answer immediately is not a very good sign.

It wasn’t until the last night of our orientation that I finally sat down with Christ and really hashed out my feelings about what I felt and sensed from that place. I started to break down. In the mist of my tears, I finally figured out what God was trying to tell me.  He wants all of me. The fact that he had to tell me through dying soldiers just goes to show you how stubborn I am. I had be able to be OK with the maximum before I could be OK with anything else. I need to surrender my life everyday for him—give my life over to his hands every day so he can use my life to bring glory to his name. 

“But for me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”  (Philippians 1:21)

Caitlin Campbell, a student at the University of Texas at Austin, is serving with Go Now Missions in Philadelphia.

We attended all three services and were able to hear praise to our God in three different languages. It was really cool, and know heaven will sound something like that—many different people praising our Creator in every language.

There was a guy named Nick there who talked to the pastor about being baptized. The pastor grabbed Andrew, a guy on my team, to talk to him about baptism since the pastor does not speak English very well.

We now have a new brother in Christ. He will be baptized sometime in the next month. So, please keep him in your prayers.

Also, please pray for the New England area, that God will soften the hearts of the people here and for the small but passionate and loving church here in Connecticut.

Derrick Thomas, a student at the University of North Texas, is serving with Go Now Missions in Connecticut and Rhode Island.

From the moment I got off the plane, I have been in numerous orientation meetings, two host homes, met a couple of dozen people, spent more and more time in the Bible, gotten to know my incredible teammates and learned from two passionate church planters.

But the adjustment to the busy schedule seemed trivial compared to our time getting acclimated to the altitude up here. We’ve suffered headaches, exhaustion, trouble breathing, nausea, dry skin and dry hair. Blame it on dehydration, but as our trusty team of four likes to say for every situation, “Just blame it on the altitude!”

Why did God call me to the Rocky Mountains for a summer away from family and friends? Initially, I thought his purpose was for me to build churches, help out some ministers, grow my leadership skills, maybe write a little bit, and spend some time in an environment that would be more challenging than back home.

But the more I learned, I found I had put God’s desire for how he wants to use me this summer in a box. I realized it during our orientation with the director of Longs Peak Baptist Association of Churches, John Howeth, who serves as our supervisor or as what he likes to refer to himself as a “coach,” through our time as summer missionaries. He reminded us of a simple concept: In all things, we should strive to just be at Jesus’ feet. While leading worship, making fliers, interviewing locals, coming up with creative outreach, serving the communities and being in God’s awesome creation are all good tasks to be completed, they are completed in vain if each individual on the team has not taken time to be with Jesus. How can we expect to be effective in this ministry if we are not taking time to humble ourselves before the One whose ministry was, and is, perfect? 

God called me to commune with him humbly at his feet, so each person I come into contact with will see the transforming power of the Holy Spirit and will want to experience it personally. The ultimate goal is eternity. We hope to be vessels of Living Water to the spiritually dry region that is the Longs Peak region of the Rocky Mountains.

Student missionary correspondent Amber Cassady, a communications student at Texas A&M University in College Station, is serving in Loveland, Colo., with Go Now Missions.

Although I don’t want to go home, there is definitely something uncomfortable about being here, and I’ve started to realize it’s not just because I’m nervous about what God is going to do through me. It’s actually because I’m nervous about the reaction I’m going to get from Satan while doing work that is counterproductive to the kingdom of hell. I tried to explain to them the indescribably dark feeling that came over me as soon as I got off the plane on Sunday afternoon. I’ve tried to shake it off the past couple of days because I know the rest of the girls on my team have already fallen in love with the city. I know I’m not there yet, and worry if I will ever get there.

Anyway, I was trying to explain this dark feeling I was having to the other team members when all of a sudden I felt a barrage of negative thoughts enter my head. I heard “myself” say that I shouldn’t be here—that it would be better if I were home because I can never do what we’ve been asked to do here.

At first I started to believe the words in my head, but then I realized these thoughts would never come from me, and would most definitely not come from God. That left only one option of someone who could put thoughts into my head—Satan.

When I realized this, I suddenly felt helpless and almost broke down crying in front of all of my teammates. I’m not usually a crier. Above almost anything else, I hate crying in front of people.

After sitting and wrestling with these thoughts for a few minutes and struggling to remain composed, I decided that I needed to address the problem. I sent a text to the girls in my group saying that we needed to talk as soon as we got home. I explained that I didn’t want to talk about what I was struggling with in a public place because I knew I would start crying.

I felt a little better knowing that I was going to be able to talk about it later, but I also knew I was going to have to wait at least three hours to address it with them. Plus, telling them that I needed to talk didn’t stop the verbal war inside my head.

Twenty minutes of internal battle had been raging before I remembered the authority I have in Christ’s name over Satan. It’s not an idea I’ve ever thought extensively about until I heard someone talk about spiritual warfare at Go Now orientation a week before we left for our trip. The speaker explained that since we are heirs to the kingdom of heaven, we have also been given authority over Satan because of Christ’s victory over him.

Suddenly the picture of me while under attack by Satan changed from bullied 2nd grader to Joan of Arc. After picturing this, inside my head I very firmly commanded: “Stop it! I know who you are, and I know what you are trying to do. But I know what God thinks of me, and you will not change my mind about that. In the name of Jesus Christ, shut up.”

As soon as I said the words to myself, I immediately felt a sense of peace rush over me. I was surprised at how much relief I felt and how quickly it came.

God is so good. The strength and power contained within his very name blows my tiny mortal mind. Experiencing firsthand the validity of something he has promised his children has grown my faith exponentially.

Juliana Pisano is a student at Stephen F. Austin State University serving with Go Now Missions in Philadelphia.

My flight to Tokyo was delayed four hours, so I spent an extended amount of time at customs, and I was two days behind the other 19 college interns I would serve with. I had special instructions to buying a bus ticket from a specific company, and then call in to my supervisor. But at 11 p.m., the bus I needed did not run. And there was only one train to Shibuya from the airport—and it was scheduled to leave in 10 minutes. 

After a very brief call to my supervisor to update her, I did something that I found was very Japanese. I ran for the train. With 15 seconds to spare, the doors closed.

I’m in a foreign country, cannot read the language, and Shibuya was nowhere on the map. But God provided. A young Japanese woman got on the train right after me. She helped me read my ticket, and after establishing we were going to the same place, started a purposeful conversation. She knew why I was there and in whom my faith rests. Afterwards, she offered her phone so I could call my supervisor. Then while I carried her bag up the stairs, she took me to the exit to meet my team.

In my time of need, God provided the man of peace—or more to the point, the woman of peace—to help me go where I needed to be. Pray for future contact with her so Jesus will be glorified!

Dan Black, a student at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, is serving with Go Now Missions in Japan.
 

My accent is not the only thing setting me apart from the people of Philadelphia, especially inhabitants of our neighborhood. I think my teammates and I are making the Olney neighborhood turn their heads quite a bit—four young white girls living in the heart of North Philly is definitely worth a double-take.

If you were to come up to me a year ago and tell me that I would be spending my summer in one of the most culturally diverse neighborhoods in Philadelphia, I probably would have called you crazy. But a beautiful Cambodian woman named Khan lives next to our house. Across from us is an older black woman. And down the street one way is a Ukrainian man. And that’s just a taste of the neighborhood’s diversity.

The weirdest thing about it all is that I never thought that I would be in this situation, and I especially never thought that I’d love it. I look at the people and get excited about the fact that I am going to have the chance to get to know them, share with them, listen to them and love on them. I get a huge smile on my face just thinking about it.

We are learning how to get around the city using the bus and subway system. While learning, we get to see pretty much all of Philadelphia. Sure, I’m excited about the sights, but I’m most excited about the people—just having the opportunity to see the rich diversity of the city everywhere and up close.

I have never had a love for people the way I love the people of Philadelphia. God has given me that love for these people. It’s crazy when you see God moving, but it's even crazier when you can feel God moving inside of you. I have felt it before, of course. Every Christian has, or else they wouldn’t be a Christian. But feeling him give me this gift of love, passion and service for these people is overwhelming. However if I’m going to be overwhelmed, the best way is to be overwhelmed with Christ.

I’m so excited about today and this summer. God is going to do some amazing things here in Philly, but he’s also going to do some amazing things in me.

Caitlin Campbell, a student at the University of Texas at Austin, is serving with Go Now Missions in Philadelphia.

I barely made it in time for the flight to Orlando from Atlanta, and I was one of the last people to board the plane. The last person to board the plane took the empty seat next to me. The flight attendant led her on the plane, carrying what looked like a dog-carrier. She sat down, took a cup of water from the attendant, and proceeded to wipe what appeared to be sweat and tears from her face. She looked like she had seen better days.Something told me I needed to talk to her. A casual question about her pet prompted an hour-and-a-half conversation about her entire family history, family problems, drug and alcohol problems, children problems, mental illnesses and medical background. By the end of the flight, I knew more about this woman than I do about a lot of my friends back in Austin.

I didn’t really know why I was chosen to be the one to sit next to her, and then she told me before we parted that she really needed someone to talk to. She told me she normally doesn’t like people, let alone open up to them. But she felt like I was someone she could talk to. So, I got to share with her about the strength God gives me and that I would be praying for her this summer. She loved knowing that I was a believer and being reminded God is our strength when we are weak and worn out.

Since then, our team continues to have random encounters with people all over Orlando—and usually from all over the world—who work here or live here for now. We have been able to take their prayer requests with us and lift them up as God leads us. It’s been so cool to see. God brings the world to Central Florida during the summer. Our team may get to reach someone of a different country that we may not have easy access to, and they can in turn take the gospel back home. God is so awesome.

We got a little taste of the mission field and how hungry people are for the gospel on Saturday night this past weekend. We went to an outlet mall to prayer-walk. We were instructed to only pray one prayer, “God, let me see what you see.” and then to listen. So, we all did that and God showed each of us amazing things.

There were so many people there from all over the world. I heard languages spoken that I’d never heard before. In fact, I heard very little English while listening and watching. The most remarkable and exciting thing that night was when one of our team members led an 82 year-old man from Italy to the Lord. God is so good.

Emily Gerloff,  a student at the University of Texas at Austin, is serving with Go Now Missions in Orlando, Fla.

One of my team members taught him English from the Bible and in doing so, had an opportunity to share the gospel with him.

Just the other day, my team had a chance to meet a local believer and encourage him. We could tell he really needed some encouragement and we feel that the Father really lifted him up. While we where there encouraging him he told us of about seven others who where reading the Bible. They were really interested in meeting with us weekly for study.

Please pray that these meetings will go well and that they will understand and believe.

Dustin Rhodes, a student at the University of Texas at Arlington, is serving with Go Now Missions in Senegal.

Over lunch, when we initially started meeting, she tried to explain to me how the system of Buddhism worked. Enthusiastically, on the back of one of her quizzes, she drew a tree with multiple roots to illustrate that there was one main god and the roots represented all of the other smaller gods. She tried hard to convey to me what going to temples in  Taiwan was like. I held back tears as she eagerly explained to me the details of Buddhism. The Spirit compelled me to draw a picture of the bridge illustration—showing Jesus Christ as the bridge between sinful humanity and holy God—on the same paper. She asked questions about it and kept the drawing.

Once, I asked what her priorities in life were and she said career and school. But she added: “I also want to resolve this restlessness in my heart and find out what’s important to me. Something in me needs to be resolved and I can’t figure out what and how to attain that.”

Over the past eight months God has provided opportunities for us to build a friendship, spend time studying the Scriptures together and talking about grace. She invited me to her apartment to learn how to cook Asian food. During our meetings, she often said she thought she would become a Christian eventually, but she had to figure out a bunch of stuff and start living her “real life” first. I proposed to her that if she came to Christ first, he would help her understand more about his character, and his Spirit would provide comfort, counsel and direction in life.

Another time, she said, “I think I’m half Christian.” We talked about what it meant to surrender your whole heart and life to following Jesus. I emphasized that it takes sincere faith that believes in Christ’s death and resurrection as the only way to experiencing a relationship with God.

One thing hindering her from submitting to Jesus was disappointing her mother. Also, she had a hard time believing in the personal and passionate love of Jesus for her individually. She said, “Sure, he would die for the world, but I can’t grasp why he would die just for me.”

One week this spring, she got sick during Bible study, and I took her home early. After caring for her, I waited until her roommate got home. Unexpectedly, the Lord used that time in a very powerful way. On her own she got out her Bible and started asking several questions. She was hungry for truth. She had heard that truth could set her free. She had seen Christians who loved her live in freedom, and she wanted the same joy and peace that defined their lives.

Friends continued to pray for her, and God continued to draw her. Through experiencing God’s presence among believers and hearing the stories of Jesus, the Lord captured my friend’s heart. The week before Easter, she prayed to receive Christ. When she talks about choosing Jesus, she lights up and can’t stop smiling. Her countenance has changed, and she describes how her despair has been replaced with hope. Her kind-hearted actions are no longer motivated to gain good karma or to win the approval of people, but to please the Lord. After making the decision to follow Christ, she called her mother. She patiently explained why Buddhism was not for her. She said she had fallen in love with Jesus and decided to follow the ways of the Bible. Miraculously, her mom was not upset and was OK with her conversion. Hallelujah, that was a huge answer to prayer!

Jane Owen is a student missionary correspondent serving with Go Now Missions in the Pacific Northwest.

Fifteen college students in the Northwest gathered in a friend’s apartment to pray for the 10 families in Haiti who would receive the buckets of food they put together. Each five-gallon bucket filled with various food staples has the makings of 100 meals and is meant to feed a Haitian family for a week.

After sharing a meal together, a group of students get ready to pray for families in Haiti before assembling food-filled Buckets of Hope.

Members of Resonate Church were eager to take a Spring Break trip to Haiti to minister amidst the devastation from the earthquake: however, such a trip was not practically feasible. The Lord made another way, though, for the church to be the hands and feet of Jesus to the poverty-stricken families living in Haiti.

A tangible way for the body of Resonate to serve Haiti was to join with other Southern Baptists across the country to assemble and pray over these Buckets of Hope. Southern Baptist in the Northwest, in Texas and everywhere are unified in their pursuit of missional living.

Baptist Disaster Relief teams have the ability to deliver and distribute these food-filled buckets into the hands of the people in great need of both physical and spiritual nourishment. The story of Jesus will be included in their language, and this story carries with it the transforming power of hope in Christ for those who believe. Pray for the families in Haiti to learn of God’s strong love for them and learn to live in trustful reliance on their Maker, who is their Sustainer.

Twelve Resonate small groups—called Villages—meet in homes weekly to share a meal and fellowship. Villages were encouraged to participate and assemble as many Buckets of Hope as possible. International Village, made up of students from various faiths and backgrounds, rallied around this cause and donated to help make buckets, too.

Students enjoy filling Buckets of Hope for Haiti in an assembly line operation.

One girl from China said, “It allows me to be apart of something bigger, and do more than what I could do on my own.” Each week these international students, who do not personally know Jesus, come to cook, eat and hang out. My friends and I read and study the Bible with them and they enjoy asking questions. They knew the buckets would be given in the name of Jesus, and they were excited.

Each bucket requires about $40 to cover the food contents and shipping costs. Predominantly made up of college students, the Resonate body was able to put together around 80 buckets of hope. Students inspired students as they sacrificially and generously gave towards a cause that fulfilled the mandate of Jesus to provide for the poor and care for the afflicted.

Jane Owen is a student missionary correspondent serving with Go Now Missions in the Pacific Northwest.

God opened doors for Resonate Church to partner with Redeemed Girl Ministries to host a “Girls Night Out” event for sorority women from the University of Idaho and Washington State University.

Between the University of Idaho and Washington State University, around 350 sorority women attended the Girls Night Out event, where they heard the gospel on their campuses. Marian Jordan, founder of the ministry and author of Sex and the City Uncovered, shared her story about when she filled her sorority years with boys, beer and material things. She emphasized that this lifestyle never ceased to leave her emptier than before. Her testimony exposes the emptiness of “hookups, hangovers, and heartbreak.”

Jourdan Burks, a singer/songwriter from Dallas, provided entertainment. 

The culture of this world promotes a life of momentary pleasure and self-satisfaction as the greatest attainable happiness. This culture-generated lie only leads to a vast amount of college women searching for love in all of the wrong places and putting their hope in things that cannot fulfill them.

Jordan spoke with passion and purpose. From a fresh perspective, she communicated the gospel to spiritually lost women in a relevant way. These students could identify with Jordan’s story. Many said her story was their story — that they were empty, felt worthless and longed for a love that would never manipulate or abandon them. Afterwards, the sorority women filled out connection cards with their information. This event dealt with real issues college women face. More importantly, it introduced them to the unfailing, stable and perfect love of Jesus Christ.

Sorority women show off their door prizes.

Many girls wrote significant messages communicating their need for prayer. The Holy Spirit certainly captured hearts and drew individuals to the Lord through Girls Night Out. Sixteen young women checked the box on the card that indicated they wanted to talk to someone about having a personal relationship with Jesus.

The women on Resonate’s staff and I have the privilege of following up with these girls who were bold enough to say they want to know Jesus personally. For follow up, we invited them to Resonate, and book clubs have been offered on the campuses to go through Jordan’s books. A handful of sorority girls’ hearts on these campuses have been ignited with a passion for more of Jesus. We pray it will set their hearts — and those campuses — ablaze with an outpouring of God’s Spirit.

Jane Owen is a student missionary correspondent serving with Go Now Missions in the Pacific Northwest.

To meet students’ needs on the cold, windy Washington State University campus, ministry teams from Resonate Church offer hot coffee, a warm cup of noodles and quick-energy granola bars.

We set up a tent, turn on the iPod, put up the “free” sign, and it becomes an instant party. Students walk to and from their classes—each one an image-bearer of Almighty God and a soul for whom Jesus died. As intrigued and hungry students stop by to grab food, we have an opportunity to interact with them.

The Resonate Team on the Washington State University campus.

One morning, after unloading everything needed to set up, I had no option but keep my car there because it was a passing period and I couldn’t park properly. God had a plan. Due to the delay in moving my car, a young man saw my Texas license plate and asked, “Are you from Texas?”

Naturally, I got very excited to claim my Texan identity, and God used it to bridge a gap. He was a transfer student from Louisiana. After discovering we were representatives from a church, he quickly told me he did not believe Jesus was the Son of God. Over a cup of noodles and throughout our conversation, he asked me: “What is the criterion for being able to read the Bible?” “What is the most sacred place on earth for Christians?” “What do you believe removes sins?” As he was talking to me, I asked God to give me the words to say and the boldness with which to say them.

Undoubtedly, Jesus did not want me to miss this opportunity. I was invited by this guy to talk about the power of Jesus’ death and resurrection and how God’s forgiveness and faithfulness had transformed my life. Surrendered to the leadership of the Holy Spirit, God gave me the words to speak. My new friend was listening intently and after a half hour he headed to class.

Hot coffee, a warm cup of noodles and quick-energy granola bars sound pretty good on a day like this.

But that didn’t mark the end of our new friendship. The next day, our paths crossed again. Then, the following evening, Resonate church sponsored a flag football game and hot chocolate party. As my new friend left the school library, he stopped by. I rejoiced in being able to introduce him to some of the Christian guys from Resonate. They had the opportunity to get to know him and give him a ride home.

Out of the 20,000 students on the WSU campus, I encountered my new friend on three consecutive days and was able to have deep conversations about Jesus with him. Even he recognized how unusual it was and that God must have a purpose. He showed interest in visiting one of the house dinner gatherings we hold throughout the week to dialogue about spiritual things. Walls that we sometimes believe are impossible to come down are nothing in comparison to the power and sovereignty of our God, who is mighty to save. 

Jane Owen is a student missionary correspondent serving with Go Now Missions in the Pacific Northwest.