Grad Dinner

Last night we had our Grad Dinner (not to be confused with the RAD Dinner) where we celebrate our seniors, most of whom will be leaving us in the next week. We got to host 17 of our seniors for a semi-formal dinner. After serving up some filet  mignon, salmon and seasoned chicken (yum) John pulled out Oh, the Places You'll Go by Dr Seuss to read to the grads. It's sort of become his tradition to do so.

Afterward, John opened the floor up to the students to share how being a part of The Rock has made an impact on their lives. Here are some things they had to share.

"Without being a part of The Rock, I probably would have gone through college complacent about my faith."

"Being a part of The Rock has definitely helped me be more on fire for God."

"The Rock helped give me the opportunity to lead and take ownership of my faith."
"I always felt loved and supported by people at The Rock."


It was very encouraging to see younger guys and girls share about how God took a hold of their lives while in college. So many of them are now set up to make an impact for the Lord in their next communities, workplaces and mission fields. And this group is going places, whether it's the business field, a two-year African mission trip, teaching, or to Memphis serving as co-laborers with the Service Over Self inner-city ministry, they are going to do great.

It's one of the most bittersweet things we do, but as a campus church, it's in our DNA to make disciples and be at peace with sending them out to bring the gospel to the nations. I had five members of my canvas group there last night and, although I will miss their presence and leadership, I'm encouraged that they will do great in their endeavors and pray that they continue to live for the Lord.

Please join me in praying for our seniors as they leave us and go begin the next chapter in their journey.

Passing the Baton

2010-2011 Canvas Group Equippers

This week and next are the last two of the semester and I will be having some end-of-the-year chats with various students. One of those, Aimee and I had the other night with our equippers from this year, the student leaders who help make Canvas Group happen. The other was with the equippers for the upcoming school year.

You may remember them from my letters throughout the year. We had Travis, Zach, Ben, Brooke and Cassady over for a very nice lasagna dinner one last time on Sunday night. It was a time just to say thank you and to celebrate the year. Zach, Brooke and Cassady all graduating this year, we asked them to share some thoughts on why it is worth to keep investing in community and to keep growing as a leader at The Rock. It was cool to hear their responses and to in some sense, pass the baton to Ben and Travis, they younger equippers.

Now with three of these students leaving after this semester, we've been praying and seeking out a couple replacements for them. A few weeks ago, we approached two girls from another CG to serve as equippers with us this upcoming year. We asked two young girls, Erica and Margaret, to join us next year. Each of these girls is on fire for the Lord and have been asked to come over because of two things: they are passionate about reaching out to the dorms and if there is one area we are out of balance in, it's with younger girls.

We met with next year's equippers, including these two at Memorial Union yesterday to introduce them to the group and to start dreaming about next year. It seems like they will be a great fit and I am very excited to work with them.

Please be praying for us as we make the transition into absorbing these girls into our group. We have a few large goals for next year that I'll share with you another time. Pray that the Lord stirs in us a passion to be united in Christ and in purpose next Fall. It is going to be an awesome school year.

Take care,
Chris Swift

April 2011 Prayer Letter

Hey all,

I just sent out my latest prayer letter. In this letter, I highlight our Rock Appreciation Dinner, Staff Conference and Equipper Retreat. Also, good news about Aimee! She got a job in Moberly as a science teacher.

Thank you for laboring with me in prayer,
Chris Swift

RAD Thank You Video

Each year, we thank our student leaders at our Rock Appreciation Dinner. Here is a video we made to thank the students that you might enjoy!

What's Coming in April

It's Spring Break now, but we're on the verge of one of the busiest months of the school year here at The Rock. Here are some things hitting our calendar soon that you can be praying for.

Rock Appreciation Dinner
Each year, we Rock staff take a night to serve a nice dinner for all the student leaders in the church. It's a fun time to dress up (in costumes, of course. Our theme this year is Decades - we are the 20's) and celebrate the life of the church while thanking those who serve. Pray that those who serve us would feel appreciated and encouraged.


Equipper Retreat
Those who are looking to be a student leader in Canvas Groups next year will be taking a weekend away to dream about the fall and have a couple mini-workshops for building ministry skills. It's an awesome time to connect with those students who have caught the vision of bringing the kingdom to their campus. Pray that it would be a time for us to become more kingdom-minded and that new students would raise up as fully-devoted followers of Christ.


GCM Staff Conference
Missionaries from across the country will be heading to Ann Arbor, MI next week. I'm looking forward to seeing friends, hearing how the ministries are doing and being challenged in my service here. Pray that we would be refreshed and revitalized in our mission here.


Baptisms
Twice a year, The Rock has baptisms. Our next will be in a couple weeks. Please be praying for those students who have come to know the Lord to have the courage to share that publicly and participate in what the Lord calls us to after salvation. Also pray that we as a church would join in raising these young men and women up in the the faith as disciples.