Nathan Neighbors
Follower of Christ, Husband, Father, & Youth Pastor
Last week our students joined forces with Child Evangelism Fellowship of Spartanburg to lead an awesome Bible Club week at the YMCA. Each day we hung out with 45 kids. The CEF leaders & our students taught great Bible stories and proclaimed the Good News of Jesus. At the end of each club we gave the kids the chance to pray to receive Christ. This wasn’t some high-pressure tactic or old school turn-or-burn deal. The students simply told the kids that after the club they would be around if anyone wanted to talk about how to ask Jesus to be their Lord. Five of the kids who came for decision counseling made the choice to cross from death to life! I’m so proud of our students that I feel like jumping out of my skin. It’s awesome seeing our students take the message of Christ to places far away, but it’s even sweeter to see them telling kids from our own neighborhood. Here are a few things that I’m taking away from this week:
#1 – Students who are radically changed by Christ are passionate about telling others. Students simply need to be taught well how to share their faith and then given the opportunity to do. In addition, they need support, encouragement, and coaching each step of the way.
#2 – Child Evangelism Fellowship is a great organization. CEF does a fantastic job training students (and adults) to share the Gospel. They can also help churches get in doors that otherwise might be closed.
#3 – Simple can be powerful. These CEF Clubs are very simple. A typical hour looks like this: Welcome… Song…Memory Verse…Bible Story…Song…Missionary Story…Game and Wrap Up. There are no crafts. There are no high-end sound systems, lights or motion graphics. There aren’t even any cool gimmicks to get the kids to participate. It’s simply teenagers having fun with children by loving them and sharing the wonderful message of Jesus.
Yesterday we went tubing down the Green River in Saluda, NC with some of our college students from Morningside. It was my kind of trip – low skill, low risk, and a great time of fellowship with students. Check out the video recap of our trip. A Sunday afternoon tubing trip screams the need for a bluegrass worship song. Oh, and if you want to try tubing the river, I highly suggest: Wilderness Cove Tubing.
This week in the Neighbors’ household the roles are reversed. Ashley is in Orlando with a group of our teenage girls from Morningside attending the Blume Conference. This “girls only” event has been a great way for Ashley to further connect with the ladies in our student ministry, and a way for me to step back from the lead for a moment. During these days away from full-time ministry I’ve been keeping the home front going with our two boys who are full of life and energy (that’s code for: wild and crazy).
For several months leading up to this week Ashley has been saying, “You’re not going to know what to do without me while I’m gone to Blume.” Whenever she would bring it up I would laugh it off and pretended that I was going to be fine. However, on the inside, I knew it was going to be really hard without her. This week has given me a new appreciation of what Ashley does as the homemaker in our family.
From the very beginning God knew that man needed help. Genesis 2:18 says, “The LORD God said, It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” For some of you, that may seem chauvinistic, but it’s the truth. God made men and women to be together and to help one another in this life. It certainly is true for me. I don’t know where I would be without Ashley. She is far more than a “helper” to me. She makes managing our home, raising our boys, and serving in our church all at the same time look so easy. Heck, I had trouble this week just trying to go by the office for a minute with the boys.
One year before I answered the call to full-time ministry (back in 1993) I met and began to date Ashley. I didn’t know it then, but God’s provision was right on time. Even before He called me, He equipped me. The Lord provided the best part of my ministry – my wife!
Nathan Neighbors 