Not Wasting My Summer.

     I have been very hesitant to write about how I will be spending my time this summer…mainly because it is something that many people will read about and say, “What a great person, good for her, she stayed a Christian in college. Kayla was always sweet, I think I’ll write her a check.”  I hate that whole process.  Telling people about my future “good” deeds, asking them for their hard-earned money (borderline guilt-tripping because I’m so “good”), and them writing a check because they were convinced. 

     That is not the way in which the church should support its fellow members.  Unless we know each other personally, and you have personally seen Christ in me and personally feel like supporting me prayerfully and financially will be a service to the Lord, I do not want your money.  Your money could go somewhere else, what I want you to hear (read) is one part of the story of God’s great faithfulness to me. 

     All my life, being a Christian was easy.  My parents were/are incredible examples of what seeking Christ looks like, nearly all of my close friends (aka “sleepover friends”), were all Christians that came from Christian families (and my church), and most of the girls and dance moms from my dance studio where I spent most of my time were Christians.  I was surrounded by accountability and love.  Loving Jesus and living for Him was easy to do, or to at least appear as if I was doing it. 

     The summer before my junior year of high school was when I began to take my faith in Christ much more seriously.  From those few months of my intense realization of my desperation for Christ, I have grown and learned and been drawn closer to God. 

     Now I am 3 exams and 10 days away from completing my first year at NC State.  I have been blown away by God’s faithfulness to me in this place.  Never before have I been more challenged in my beliefs and actions, but I have also never had the intimacy with Christ that we’ve developed as a result of the steadfast encouragement and Love that I’ve received because of Him this year. 

     This summer will be a time like no other.  I do not need to earn money and I do not need to be home.  I am getting older but I’m still young.  God has given me a heart for service and it is the way in which I feel like Christ is most served in me.  So this summer I am participating in The City Project, supported by my church at school, Summit Church. 

     There are about 30 college students who are participating, mostly all from North Carolina.  On May 31^st I will move into a house in inner city Durham, NC with a bunch of other girls, most (if not all) of whom are older than me.  We will stay there for 3 days and then travel to Queens, NY for 10 days to spread the Gospel to a Muslim community.  To help us with this daunting task…

How in the world am I gonna share Christ with people whose beliefs have been so fervently engrained into their minds?

     …our pastor, J.D. Geear, has published a book entitled, Breaking the Islam Code, that we will read prior to going to Queens.  Pastor J.D. spent 2 years living in a Muslim country and has heavily studied Islam.  He shares how to best reach these people in a compassionate, non-judgmental way, largely by drawing on parallels between our two faiths.  

     Upon returning to Durham, I will be taking a seminary class, Christian Philosophy, from a professor at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary during the mornings.  During the day I will be doing an internship with a ministry at the Summit (I haven’t found out yet which ministry I will serve).  And during the late afternoon/night I will be involved in serving the inner city community in which we will be living (details to come later).   

     After 5 ½ weeks of living in Durham, half of the group will travel to Malaysia and the other half (my group!) will fly to KENYA!!!!  Details about Kenya are becoming clearer as the beginning of the summer approaches, but what we have been told is that we will be serving alongside missionaries there to help build school(s), participate in feeding programs, visit orphanages and HIV/AIDS clinics, and build relationships with people who are stronger than I.  

     If you would like to support my service to Muslims in Queens, the people of inner city Durham, the people of my church that I will serve through my internship, the people of Kenya, and Christ’s work in me, then first, pray.  Pray that the people whom we will try to reach will have open hearts and that God will give us the strength we, as a City Project team, will need to effectively and humbly share the salvation and goodness that only comes from Christ. 

     The total cost for me to participate in this project is $4,500.  I currently have raised $3,030.  God will be faithful as He always has been faithful, and I have been given far more than I could ever need, but if you feel that giving to my participation in The City Project will be of service to the Lord, then please join me in my excitement of God’s work this summer!

     If you would like to write a check, The Summit Church's address is:

          2335-114 Presidential Drive

          Durham, NC 27703

     I am scared and anxious, but mostly excited for this summer.  I have never done something like this, by myself, not knowing anyone…but my trust in God is growing and my trust in myself is diminishing.  He is building His character, slowly but surely, in me and equipping me for the work He has planned for me.