William Carey Baptist Association
Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Mission News

MOTLOW BAPTIST COLLEGIATE MININTRY
2010-2011 School Year Report
 
  1. Monday lunches – these meals are provided by churches from the three supporting associations. The $3.00 requested donation goes to our BCM Student Missions Fund. We had an average attendance of 90, from which we raised $4,400. 
  2. Wednesday lunches – this meal is planned and prepared by the BCM Director. There is also a requested $3.00 donation, but the money received is used to purchase food supplies for the next week. After lunch the BCM Director or a student offers a brief devotional. Average attendance for the lunch was 79.
  3. Bible study – Thursdays, 1:30 p.m. This was a time of in-depth Bible Study. The average attendance was 12.
  4. We have two statewide BCM meetings, one in the fall and one in the spring. We had 7 students who attended the fall meeting, and 7 at the spring meeting.
  5. We participated in “Beach Reach,” a spring break ministry to thousands of college students in Panama City Beach, Florida, March 2011. In the mornings we provided a free pancake breakfast. In the afternoons we distributed tickets for the free breakfast and free van rides at night.  
  6. Hosted a lunch for the Men’s and Women’s Basketball teams on 8/2.
  7. We had four Tennessee BCM student missionaries in 2011. They served in Mexico, Nashville, at Bonnaroo, and at Horton Haven Christian Camp.
  8. The building continues to be frequently used. Unity Baptist Church, a mission of Grace Baptist in Tullahoma, meets there. Many other people and churches use it for various reasons.
  9. Over 250 Bibles, New Testaments, and Christian books were given away over the school year.
  10. Summer BCM: we served a lunch on Wednesdays, and averaged 28  in attendance.
  11. Randall Taylor has ably led the BCM at the University of the South, Sewanee, since 1989. 
  12. Director and two students participated in the Tennessee Baptist Convention’s GPS Project on 4/16.
  13. Additional activities of BCM Director:
  • Attended many Executive Board and Pastors’ Fellowship meetings.
  • Attended the meetings of the Sewanee BCM on a twice a month basis.
  • Did pulpit supplies or other speaking engagements on 11 dates.
  • Attended the annual meeting of the Tennessee Baptist Convention in November 2010.
  • Conducted one wedding for a former student.
  • Attended the TBC BCM Staff Conference in June 2011.
  • Attended the SBC Collegiate Ministers Fellowship in Fayetteville, Arkansas, July 2011.
  • Officiated at two funerals. 
Charles Nored
Baptist Collegiate Ministry Director
Motlow State Community College
 

 
 

Mandy Warden's Mission Trip to Australia 

     I want to thank you so much for your support and prayers while I was in Australia. It has been a whirlwind coming back from Australia and processing through all that I have learned and being able to share it with you. I loved Australia! God's presence was totally with me there and saying those words does not do God justice at all or even begin to describe His goodness. I went to Australia knowing that my life would be changed, but I did not realize how significantly.

     In Melbourne, my team's ministry took many different forms, from talking to someone on the airplane or talking to someone on campus. Also, the hotel where we stayed at was a huge mission field. I was surprised at how many people from all over the world stayed there.  My team and I became friends with many of the residents, and the next thing I knew we were having chats about God and Jesus left and right.  It was a blessing to see people crave for truth.  When I talked to a guy from England, Josh, he told me that there was something different about my team and I.  He said that he did not know what it was, but he liked it.  When I first met Josh, he told me he was atheist.  By the time my team left, Josh said his faith had grown in God.  We found that most of the trip consisted of planting seeds for Christ, because it was non-existent for the majority of people there.  I pray we made the people we met aware of God and know that they can seek Him out.

     The first full week there my team and I went to Student Life's Mid Year Conference (MYC)in Albury, Australia.  Student Life is the same organization as Campus Crusade for Christ in America.  It is just called Student Life, because "crusade" is a scary word to Australians.  MYC was a really good time for my team to bond in a safe Christian atmosphere, before we went out in the secular world and shared the Gospel.  It was really cool to see people from all over the world come together for a common reason that was to worship Christ.

     The second week we went to Monash University and did an outreach event called"If I were God, I would..."   We set up tables that had a poster board with that phrase and walked around the campus wearing sandwich boards asking people to finish the sentence.  The responses ranged from silly to serious.  While at Monash, I met a lady, Nivenka, that just had fourteen people in her life die within the past three months, and needless to say she was furious with God.  My heart broke for her.  She was such a sweet lady, and it was a blessing to love on her and encourage her to seek God.  After a long conversation with Nivenka, over the course of a few hours, she went from being very angry at God to saying she needed to apologize to Him.  My prayer is that God will put Christians in her life and carry the burdens of her heart.

     The three weeks we were there, my team and I went to royal Melbourne Institute of Technology University (RMIT).  Student Life was not yet an organization on campus at RMIT.  So my team spent time raising awareness on campus about Student Life and its mission statement and goals.  To inform people, we went around campus doing surveys, soularium, and hosted cookouts.  On campus, I spoke with a few people who had seriously never thought about God, spirituality, or what was the purpose of life.  I was amazed at how the culture is apathetic when it comes to spirituality and religion.  I am not going to short change God though.  He definitely was in our conversations and moved in peoples hearts.  Over the course of the mission trip five people came to Christ.  Praise Jesus!  In addition we left many contacts for the missionaries living there to follow up with.  Also, the last day for my team at RMIT, Student Life became a recognized organization on campus and had its first official RMIT Student Life meeting.  Now college students (or uni students as they say in Australia) can have an opportunity to come into contact with awesome Christian people as I have in college and grow in their walk with the Lord.

     

How to be praying for Australia? 

  • God would open up peoples hearts to hear and receive His word
  • Spiritual revival
  • God would send people to Australia to share His love
  • Keep a spiritual hedge of protection over the missionaries already there
  • Encouragement and perseverance for the missionaries already there
  • Student Life to grow at RMIT
     This is just a very brief outline of what God did in Australia.  Yes, Australia was awesome, but most important was the people there.  Thank you again so much for making this mission trip possible for me.  I am very grateful, and may the Lord bless you.  I pray that you feel God's love for you today, and know how great it is.  "The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love."   Psalm 145:8
 
     
Your Sister in Christ
 
  Mandy Warden