The church has left the building

Dear Friends,

God has provided an incredible opportunity to serve Him in New Orleans. The Lord has blessed me so much and I want to be a blessing to those I come in contact with on a daily basis. I'm posting this to ask for prayer. That is the most important thing you can do for me and my team. A tangible blessing He has provided in my life is my girlfriend, Cindy. She went to New Orleans last summer and decided to actually do what she learned. She sold her house in comfortable suburbia and moved to Harrisburg to develop relationships with her neighbors. This has encouraged me in so many ways because God has challenged me to live out what I'm learning and this is a real example of that.

Here's the letter that I sent out to my supporters.

I am asking for support for a team of young adults from the Evangelical Free Church of Hershey, (a.k.a. EPIC) who have been called to travel to Trinity Church in Covington, Louisiana to minister to those affected by Hurricane Katrina.

I did not go last year, but 22 of my friends did. Last year the EPIC team spent a week in Louisiana, and they had the opportunity to minister in several different ways. From gutting houses, to picking up trash, to challenging each other and growing as at team, each day we had new opportunities to be the Lord’s hands and feet, and to see how He has “shown up” in the midst of this devastating situation.

This year, we have again been given the opportunity to travel to Covington and again serve the people living in a post- Katrina reality. Almost two years into Katrina’s wake, New Orleans and many of the surrounding communities are still in a serious state of need. While much progress has been made in the “gutting out” and cleaning of people’s homes, there is much that needs to be rebuilt - physically, emotionally, and most of all spiritually. This July 6th-15th EPIC is
returning to Trinity as a team of 20 (11 returning from last year, and 9 new members), and although we have no idea what kind of tasks lie before us, we are excitedly anticipating what the Lord has in store for us!

My team thanks you in advance for your support, and your willingness to serve “along side” of us.

In His Service,
Nate

Micah 6:8

He has showed you, O man, what is good.
And what does the LORD require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8 (NIV)

My desire is to transfer what I know in my head to my heart. Oh, Lord Jesus, teach me how to totally depend on You every moment of my life. I live for You alone!

So what's the "big news"?

As promised...the big news is that God has provided a wonderful girlfriend. Just when I told God that I was giving any future relationship into His hands He provided Cindy. My desire is that every moment we are focused on our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He must be first in our lives and then everything else fairly naturally follows. First priority is my relationship with my Savior. I desire to be the spiritual leader of this relationship. I urge you to pray for us in this journey to be completely devoted followers of Him. Will you praise our Savior with me?

Rest and peace

This weekend I laughed more than I have in a LONG time. I am so thankful. God is teaching me the connection between getting physical rest and having God's peace.

Many times I come back from a retreat on an emotional "high." This is not the case for me this time. I seek to apply what I learned and have it transform my thinking and my actions. Pray with me and ask our Savior for wisdom on how to "be still," and how to live for Him every moment of my life.

God gave me an extra blessing this weekend that I will share at a later date. (I know I'm so mean :o) ). You'll just have to come back to my blog in a few days and I'll let you know when it's not "April fools day."