- Opportunities to reach and connect with our Incoming Freshmen.
- Opportunities to speak this summer to share our ministry with other churches.
- Student Leadership Team.
- Revival for our students.
- Spiritual Awakening for our campus.
- Opportunities to reach our International Students.
- Financial Partnering for our family and our ministry.
- Wisdom and direction for our vision.
- Continued health.
- Personal opportunities to reflect and for spiritual growth.
- That we will strive daily to represent Christ and reveal the Cross to our students, faculty and staff in everything that we do and teach.
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First Baptist Church
Woodsfield, Ohio
New Beginnings
Baptist Church
Texarkana, Arkansas
Dorcas Sunday
School Class
Roseland Park
Baptist Church
Picayune, Mississippi
Dean & Crissi Cirelli
Monroe, Louisiana
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As we prepare for our Freshmen Orientations through the summer, and for all of our ministry and missions projects through the Fall and Spring semesters, we are in critical need of supplies. We have streamlined our purchases so that all of our items can be purchased at either Walmart, Hobby Lobby or Sam’s Club. We use plenty of copy paper, printer ink, blank CD’s, Poptarts, Hot Chocolate, etc. Here is how you can help: Go to either of these stores, put your financial gift on a Gift Card (any $$ amount is a blessing!), and mail the Gift Card to us. The Gift Cards you send will purchase these much needed items for our ministry. Our address is located at the bottom of this Newzletter. Your Gift Cards are a highly effective way of furthering God’s Kingdom!
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Welcome to college ministry life on Ohio's Northcoast! Wow, what an amazing year we have just completed! It seems literally like yesterday that everything kicked off for us in the Fall Semester. It has been a wonderful whirlwind of a year that has seen God move in miraculous ways on our campus.
We kicked the year off with a major Servant Evangelism Project on the 1st weekend of the semester. Over 30 of our students came in early last August to help our incoming freshmen move in to their dorms! It was an all day project that proved so successful for our ministry. We not only helped the freshmen, we had things for all members of the families as well! We also set up a 'block party' atmosphere inside our Student Center with Cotton Candy, Popcorn, Water and Popcicles. We provided free coffee to the parents at our local coffee house and we had personalized color sheets for all lil sibs! I am so proud of our team that weekend!
We stepped WAY OUT-OF-THE-BOX for 2 different outreach projects that were absolutely amazing! We held a campus-wide dances, one for Homecoming and one for Valentine's! Our vision was to provide students with a safe, non-threatening and non-alcohol environment so they could celebrate these two events. Both were HIGHLY SUCCESSFUL! So successful, that we are already planning on making them annual events!
Each semester brought us a missions project that we were able to partner with 2 other churches in our association. During the Fall Semester, we worked with the East Fremont Baptist Church during their Laundry Mat Ministry Project. In the Spring Semester, we were on mission with the Port Clinton Baptist Church as they were preparing for Easter. We helped them passing out door-hangers throughout their community. Our team was able to get doorhangers put out in over 3/4 of their entire community! We had a great time!
Now that the smoke has cleared for the semester, we averaged almost 80 students each week in large group worship; and almost 50 students each week were involved in one of our student-led Small Group Bible Studies! We had over 50 students involved in ministry/missions projects; 2 students accepted the call into ministry; 3 students accepted Christ as their Savior, and 3 other students came forward for baptism.
Now, we plan for next Fall...should be incredible!
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On the personal side, it's kind of bittersweet for me to see our collegiate year come to a close. We've spent many weeks working with our students and I really hate to be separated from them for some four months. Yet at the same time, I'm ready for the break myself. Having to work full time during the day at a local pharmacy, then spending long hours each night in the ministry can soon take it's toll on someone. During the school year I put in an average of
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90 hours a week in both our ministry and my secular job. It is our sincerest prayer that God will provide enough financial support that I can spend full time in our collegiate ministry.
I do have several events lined up during the summer that I'm excited for! I'll be participating in a 'round-table' of sorts meeting with other Collegiate Directors in July that will take place at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. And in August, we'll be taking many of our students on a cross-country road trip to Glorieta, NM for College Week! Now that should provide stories for years to come! I'll also be leading a breakout session for other Collegiate Directors while I'm at Glorieta. I'm so looking forward to meeting and brainstorming with others that are on the front lines of collegiate ministry.
I'm hoping that as the dust clears from this semester, that I'll be able to spend some time writing. I've got a couple of projects that need some of my quality time, so that is definitely on my priority list for the summer.
I have several unread books that are in my library, that I plan on diving into this summer as well. If you have a book suggestion for me, please let me know.
I am also praying that God will open up opportunities for me to speak during the summer, in hopes of sharing about our collegiate ministry.
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Warmer weather is here, the flowers are blooming, the birds are singing and that means Denise is a happy camper! Being cooped up all winter with our crazy amounts of snow, we're EXTREMELY thankful to see the arrival of spring! |
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She was really glad to see the end of the snow! Denise loves to be outside, working in her yard. Then in the evenings when I get in from working at the pharmacy, she and I love to sit out on the front porch, with sweet tea or coffee, and enjoy the sunsets.
Denise stays super busy throughout the fall and spring semester keeping Tabitha and me on schedule! And THAT, let me tell you is a monumental task! Honestly, I do not feel as though I could accomplish anything if is was not for her! She keeps me straight and on point! In addition to everything else, she oversees the office management of our ministry. She. Is. Amazing! I am so very blessed that God chose her for my mate!
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PRAY. Pray your guts out! We are in need of serious Prayer Warriors that truly believe in our vision, who know that God is wanting to unleash His mighty power on our campus and who are ready to see revival break loose in this incredible generation! We need you to lift up our family, our students and our ministry on a regular basis before God asking Him to do the extraordinary, as only He can do.
SHARE. We need you to help us get the word out about our ministry. We would love it if you would forward this to all of your friends and family…your Sunday School class….your church members…everyone you can think of! At the bottom of this newsletter you can also recommend this Enewzletter, or share it on Social Networks like Twitter and Facebook or several others. Get the word out!
GIVE. It’s just that simple…give. Denise and I are proud to serve as MSC (Mission Service Corp) Missionaries for the North American Mission Board. As MSC, we are responsible for raising our own financial support. Our heart is to have enough financial support to devote full time to our collegiate ministry and church plant. That’s where you can help! We are asking for families, Sunday School classes, Churches or businesses to pray about being one of our financial supporters. No dollar amount is too small. If your church is interested in coming along side of our ministry as a financial partner, your church’s gifts can be mailed to: The River Church, 201 North Twp Rd 15, Tiffin, Ohio 44883. Checks can be made out to: The River Church.
If you and your family, your Sunday School class or Small Group, or your business would like to give, you can CLICK HERE to make online tax deductible donations. All gifts are precious to us, and we are truly blessed by your heart. With your support, we can devote more and more time to sharing the gospel with the students on our campus. Our vision statement is simple: ‘…impacting our campus, one student at a time.’ Thank you so much and may God bless you in advance of your gifts.
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