Circuit Riders- Day 5

Messengers Track

Something so cool about Circuit Riders was learning what goes into a really great Gospel message. I learned to really think about what message I am trying to get across to the audience I am preaching to. We had the challenge to write a Gospel message in about 30-40 minutes. Reaching the audience is important for the Gospel to be preached. Multiple important pieces go into effectively communicating the Gospel as well as getting people to respond to the Gospel. We wrote our messages at a park. I wrote a message on the importance of being united as Children of God for my campus community. I got feedback that really surprised me. I think I realized that I often think I am selfish, but the feedback I had gotten was to make the message more personal to the challenges I have experienced. They said it is important to be authentic with our audience about how we were challenged in what we were preaching. My thinking that I was selfish really impacted the way I wrote the message, and I think that feedback really helped me address that thought. It helped me realize how I can use my own experience to point people to Jesus, and that is not selfish but connects truly to the hearts of people around me. 

While at the park during messenger's track, I heard one of the leaders talk about how they saw immediate community among the people in CR summer school this year. It was crazy because I came to Circuit Riders not knowing anybody. Last year, I had a few friends go. This year, no one I knew before Circuit Riders came. I think it is really cool how connected we were to Jesus, everyone in the school just desired to go deeper with him, and with that, we all instantly connected. I think it is really cool the instant community that formed through circuit riders. 

Carry The Love Track

The next track was the Carry The Love movement track which talked about prepping a great bible study message. The importance of leading a Bible Study comes down to fostering growth within the body of Christ. We should be asking ourselves how are we stewarding other people in their relationship with God. Living out the scriptures is important as a leader. It is important in leading a Bible study to recognize your role as a servant rather than elevating yourself. We need to recognize the needs of the people in our Bible studies and do our best to serve them. Something important with doing a Bible study is to make it achievable which could include the framework of SMART goals. A community that fosters growth strives not for perfection, but direction. When we go in the direction of Christ, we are going in the direction of following the one who is perfect. 

The next thing we talked about is living our lives as a catalyst of prayer, and developing a personal vision for prayer. To become someone who is on fire for God, we need to develop ourselves through spiritual disciplines such as prayer. We need to recognize in our lives that we will prioritize what we value most. When we value God above all else, our eyes are fixed on him and we are living in his will. Prayer is a way of connecting to our savior who lowered himself so we can enter his presence. In being heavenly-minded, which is made possible through prayer, we can see things from God's perspective. We can understand something greater than ourselves and our circumstances. Another important thing as Christians is to remember that God is in our public life and what we show to others, but he is also in our private life and what we enter into his presence with.

Beach bonfire

I was super excited for the beach. I realized that we were halfway through the school. The night was spent talking with people, enjoying smores, and going out to the Pacific Ocean! I enjoyed watching the sunset and I was ready to get back to the dorm as people started setting off fireworks. I was excited because the next day was Monday and that meant MONDAY NIGHTS!!!