Passing the Baton

Dear GSM Students and Parents,

I wanted to take this opportunity to share with you about an exciting movement we are getting ready to start within our student ministry! But before I get to that, I'd like to share a little bit about me and my story and why this movement is something I am passionate about.

As an 11 year-old, I was diagnosed with a rare chromosome abnormality/disorder called Turner's Syndrome. It affects stature and internal development of girls as a result of a missing or damaged set of chromosomes. In 98 percent of cases where a damaged or missing set of chromosomes exists, the fetus will naturally abort itself.

As a 12 year-old I learned I fell into the 2 percent that don't; God has me here for a specific and special purpose.

My paternal grandmother, who grew into an enormous spiritual influence on my life during her own battle with cancer, spoke with the greatest amount of love and confidence over me, telling me the Lord would use my life in mighty ways. (I may have heard that before she said it, but I don't remember it before she said so.) I am not sure I'd be where I am today without that being spoken over me.

I watched my grandma when she prayed. Her passion in prayer was something I have rarely seen matched. She often declared the Lord's faithfulness and agreed with anyone in prayer more than anyone I know. She loved talking with Jesus!

Before she left this world to be with Him, I asked my grandma to pray for me. To give me the heart and passion for prayer that she had. I told her I wanted to pick up her mantle and carry it for my family, because I had begun to see the power prayer has.

Recently, I've been reading "Unstoppable" by Christine Cain. She uses the concept of passing a relay baton. Christine outlines the importance of passing on our faith to the next generation. As a GSM volunteer leader, and an aunt to four beautiful kiddos, I'm doing my best to live that out!

More than 25 years after my grandma speaking those encouraging words over my life, I'm excited to share an opportunity God has given me to now pass the baton I was given.

Under Conner Chalfant's leadership in GSM, at the Carmel Campus, we are forming teams for students to be a part of with the intention of guiding students into ownership of their faith and their ministry. We are praying this will take students to a new level in engaging their faith.

As part of that initiative, I'm going to lead a group of students in the area of prayer. We are going to be praying for the needs of students and their families, for their schools, and for our student ministry. We also are going to practice stepping out in faith to help meet some of those needs we are praying over.

I've been asked to pray BIG things! It's humbling and exciting at the same time! What a great thing for us to recognize that without God's Spirit and His mark on GSM, we will accomplish only so much -- and it won't last for very long. But with Him, and by asking the Lord to do what only HE can do, we will see some amazing things happen in our students' lives.

We'll see God move when we purify our hearts, when we make them singularly focused on our Heavenly Father, and surrender to him and his ways. Jesus said in Matthew 5:8 the blessing of a pure heart is the promise of being able to see God. One of David's most famous Psalms (51) is a desperate please for the Lord to create in him a clean/pure/undivided heart.

Students often share with me that the biggest hurdle and struggle for them in growing in prayer is that they can't physically see or audibly hear God. I'm asking Him to show these students how they CAN see him with eyes of Faith and with pure hearts!

in Him, through Him, for Him,

Angie