Please find below Rob Stouffer's notes from the Mid-service comments this past Sunday. Prayerfully reflect, pray and engage our students.

Almost 4 years ago, the elders asked me to give specific shepherding care to our student ministry. I have come alongside an amazing group of fellow lay leaders who care deeply for the gospel and deeply for our students. They desperately desire our students to embrace the gospel and see gospel transformation in the lives of our junior and senior high school aged students.

In any given week, we have 16 different adults who are involved in teaching and discipling relationships with our students. These are not simply chaperones – these are men and women who are disciplers. Each is investing in the lives of our students.

Not many churches have a testimony of so many lay leaders committed to coming alongside parents to shepherd and disciple student’s hearts. I simply say - To God be the Glory for this commitment by our church.

On this upcoming Friday afternoon, 5 leaders and 28 high school students will be departing for to a weekend long ministry conference in Hutchinson KS. I’d like you to pray for us – pray for our leaders and for our students too.

First, I’d ask the church to pray for our students, in particular this upcoming week as they prepare for this time of teaching and as they honestly reflect on their spiritual standing before our Holy God.

Secondly, when they return from this retreat, I’d ask that you intentionally engage with at least 1 student. Ask them what they learned, What the Lord taught them, what teaching session was most impactful, etc… Ask them how you can specifically pray for them.

Students are an integral part of this body. They don’t have to graduate high school for the church to recognize them as part of our body. We never want the student ministry to be viewed as an island or as separate from our body as a whole. As students come to a saving knowledge of Christ and are baptized, they are members of the church just as you and I. Until that point, our students represent a mission field. So I encourage you to join the student leaders as we labor to model and proclaim the gospel to these young people within our church.

Let’s Pray

Father, we want to glorify You by pointing the students in our midst to the transforming power of scripture and the Gospel in partnership with their parents and the teaching of our elders.

We want to create a culture of discipleship that fosters a growing knowledge of and love for Christ. We desire our students to develop a love for the church and for their lives to become increasingly more Christ-like as they grow toward adulthood. We want to see students live lives for the purpose of glorifying you. Help us as a church to do that intentionally and well.

Help us to be singularly driven and motivated by The Gospel. We want gospel thinking to pervade all areas of student lives, the ministry, and this church

We pray that our students would see the sufficiency and centrality of scripture in all aspects of their lives. Moreover, we pray they would understand and confidently trust in the Sufficiency of Christ. That He is all they need regardless of what messages this world tries to tell them.

We pray that our students would see their role / position in the larger body of Christ. We pray our students would grow and share our love for the church

We ask for saving grace to be evident in our students and spiritual fruit to be evident and growing in their lives - demonstrating gospel transformation in students professing belief in Christ and that He is Lord of their life.

We pray that discipleship relationships, where consequential conversations regularly happen, will grow and expand across our body. I ask that you stir a passion in new folks who want to invest in our students by developing meaningful gospel-centered relationships with our students.

We pray that you will be gracious to us to allow us to witness students becoming more like Christ. Thinking more like Him and seeing this world through a biblical lens. Help them to see and make the God connection in all things.

Help our students to be others-focused. Give them a zealous desire to serve others within the church and outside of the church, not for personal recognition but for Your Glory.

Ultimately, we desperately pray for the students to independently desire the things of God – separate from any of us, separate from their parents. That they would own their faith as their own. And they would pursue and cherish You more than anything else in this world.