On the final stretch to BeachReach 2012

Hey everyone!
We got through the really bad storms safely last night. So we want to thank God and thank all of you that have kept up with us and prayed for us through the bad weather. At some points you couldn't see the car in front of you, it was that bad. But anyways, we have about six and a half hours left before we get to our condo and unload. Pray for safety for the bus and Mo and eight other guys that left this morning at five to get keys for vans and get some stuff to our condos beforehand! Here is a picture of the group as we left McDonald's in Gardendale! See you guys as soon as we get to Panama City Beach!
Psalm 125:1

On our way to Beachreach 2012

Look at our packed bus on the way to Beachreach in Panama City Beach! Keep this group and the late group leaving at 4 in your prayers as we are battling severe weather as we venture to Gardendale FBC for our overnight stay in Alabama on our way to Beachreach! Specifically pray for our drivers DR High and MO! Thanks guys, ill keep you updated throughout the week, with live photos and updates!

BeachReach 2012 The UTM BCM BeachReach Team is preparing for a GREAT Spring Break of Ministry. We will be traveling on March 3-4 to Panama City Beach, FL and will be doing ministry from March 5-9. Please be in prayer for the team as they build skills in building a bridge to sharing their faith. Our team is excited about how God will reveal Himself! This team of 50 is made up of students from Bethel U., UT Martin, and Univ. of Memphis. Please pray for safety, team unity, and mutual encouragement.

BeachReach Wrap up

YOUR PRAYERS MADE AN IMPACT!! Thank you so much for praying for BeachReach this year!



To explain everything that God did this past week would take days and days. God showed up and showed out through every aspect of BeachReach for our UTM students! In a very real way, God push our students to see Him in a way that gave them courage to share their journey of faith, trust in how God works everything out, and praise totally and completely to our Heavenly Father.



As far as a wrap up, BeachReach Week Two saw the following works of God:



Plates of Pancakes being served---5407

Pancakes served---16221

People transported on Van Rides---5835

Salvations---21



Our group saw the following:



191-people transported on our vans (we prayed with each person at the end of the ride)

6 salvations

1 rededication

Hundreds of spiritual conversations



One of the salvations was one of our UTM BeachReach students who God has been working on. She came forward during worship sharing that she wanted to make Jesus her Savior and Lord.

Please pray for Marah as she continues to grow in the Lord. Here is the list:

*Marah Vogt (UTM BeachReacher)---Salvation (Monday night)
*Carlos DeCampo (spring breaker from Chicago)---Salvation via Street Team (Monday night)
*Kaelyn ? (spring breaker)---Salvation via Van Ministry (Monday night)
*Frances Reed (Mother of UTM BeachReacher who accepted Christ over the phone)---Salvation (Tuesday night)
*Jenna Ouzts (spring breaker)---Rededication via Street team (Wednesday night)
*Rakeem Garner (spring breaker)---Salvation via Van Ministry (Thursday night)
*Austyn O'Dayer (spring breaker)---Salvation via Van Ministry (Thursday night)



Below are more stories from students:

This is my first year coming to Beach Reach. I was extremely excited when I first signed-up, but as the date drew closer, I became very nervous and worried that my testimony would not have an impact on any of the spring breakers down here in Panama City Beach. I had a nervous feeling in my stomach and anxiousness in my heart that I was going to fail. On Sunday afternoon when I was doing my quiet time before supper and worship, I unknowingly opened my bible to 2 Timothy 1:7-8 which says: “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-disciple. So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord”. This verse calmed every fear and doubt in my mind about walking the streets this week. My first two nights were filled with God centered and God filled conversations where we really planted seeds in peoples’ lives and grew closer in the Body of Christ. The most impacting night of this week so far was last night (Tuesday). We were waiting for a van ride with a group of 7 and a guy named Ian Dreger walked up and started talking to us. When the van got there they wouldn’t let him ride with them. My group and I then called him a van. While Whitney was on the phone with the command center, her phone died before they got our location. The crazy thing is her phone had a full battery which gave us more time to talk to Ian. Jason decided to call the command center back, but it took him close to 20 minutes to get through, which is another God thing that happened. Ian is of a Lutheran religion. When he and I were explaining our different faiths, he immediately opened up and began talking about how his last 3 weeks had been the worst weeks of his life. I asked him what had been going on in his life and he told us that he recently found out that his grandfather had 2 types of cancer and had spread drastically. He said that his grandfather had been his rock his entire life and taught him everything he knew. I automatically knew that was my opportunity to tell him about my mom having cancer and how it impacted my life to lean on God and not my known understanding. As soon as I told him about my mom he broke down and began crying telling us that all he wanted to do was see his grandfather again and spend eternity with him. I have absolutely no idea what I said to him, but I know it made an impact on his life. We talked for close to an hour and before he got on the van we prayed with him. Unfortunately, he didn’t come to pancakes this morning, but I know that Whitney, Jason, and I planted seeds in his heart and got him thinking about his life and his faith. I pray that God sends someone into Ian’s life to water the seeds that have been planted by us and the other BeachReachers he has come in contact with. Marcy Nethery

God has revealed Himself to me this week in the most glorious and most unexpected way: He has open up my mother’s heart and now she wants to accept Jesus Christ as her Savior. I texted her, offering her that opportunity, and God immediately entered her soul and cleansed it and later that night, she texted me back saying she would love to accept Christ. I can’t say enough how much this means to me and God’s kingdom, because my mother has been so heartbroken for such a long time. But now that she has taken Christ into her heart, I worry about her no more and now I also feel like I have finally planted my feet w/ God and we both will grow in Him together. It really is so amazing how these things happen and its such proof that the Lord certainly does work in mysterious ways. And also, I guess as a bonus, God presented me w/ the opportunity to minister to a young man who had the same background w/ his parents as I have. I have been transformed this week, and its about time. Praise be the Glory!!!
-Brit Reed

This past week was my first Beach Reach experience, and I freely admit that I was both incredibly excited and ridiculously nervous. I knew that the week was going to change me and that the Lord was going to do a great work in my heart. Though I wanted the change, I confess I was a little afraid. I had become so comfortable in my faith that I was hesitant to consider moving forward for fear of having to step out of my comfort zone. Looking back, I am so thankful that the Lord called me and that He provided me with the courage to be obedient.
During training for our trip, one of the things most heavily emphasized was depending on the Holy Spirit to speak through us. Students who had been to Beach Reach in the past shared how the Lord would provide just the words they needed at the right time. While this resounded in my heart, my mind was immediately whirling with thoughts of “But I can’t go into this unprepared! I’m always prepared; I can’t just not know what to say before the time comes!” I now see that when we tell God how much we can’t, He shows us just how much He can do through us. I saw this through a conversation I had with a young woman the last night of ministry. In the weeks leading up to Beach Reach, one of my main concerns was how to provide an argument for why God existed. I felt ready to tell people about the grace and forgiveness offered to sinners because of Christ’s death to individuals that acknowledge that there is a holy God. But for weeks I was burdened with how I could logically explain God in terms that someone with no faith in God could possible believe. And in that time, I didn’t receive any answers. It wasn’t until the last night of ministry while I was walking the streets of Panama City that I got my answer. I was led to talk with a young woman who was a former Catholic that no longer believed in the existence of God. Wow. Here I was faced with what I had feared most. But in that moment, I had absolutely no fear. I spoke with that young woman for about an hour explaining why I believed in God and why I had faith that He was active in my life. I answered questions that challenged my faith in practical ways. Prior to that moment, I know I couldn’t have so easily put into words what was in my heart. During our conversation, she never claimed to have an epiphany, and she didn’t reclaim her faith. But, she was receptive. I was actually able to see a gradual change in her as her questions changed from “How could such a God exist?” to “If such a God existed...” I am just so thankful that the Lord was able to use me, as unprepared as I was, to at least get her to reconsider spiritual matters. Praise God for the work He did in Panama City, and praise God for the work he did in the hearts of those who served.
Sara Shelton

One thing that really hit home for me this week was that I shouldn’t be afraid to share my faith. I have never really opened up to anyone before. I have always been afraid that I would be rejected or that I couldn’t answer a certain question someone tossed at me. This week God really showed me that I had no need to be afraid. He is always there to give me the things I need to say. It seemed that most of the people that I got to talk to this week were open about what I had to say. Nobody rejected me like I thought they would. It was amazing to see God work through me and use me in a way that I thought would never happen. Sometimes I would get discouraged throughout the week though because everyone seemed to be having such great conversations with people. I felt like I wasn’t impacting anyone, but God showed me that I don’t have to have a deep conversation to impact someone. I stayed faithful to him by helping people get van rides, and maybe that one conversation in a van lead someone to Christ. God was just so good to me this week and showed me that I can make a difference.

Megan Hummer

BEACHREACH STORIES & PICS

This is my third year coming to Beach Reach in Panama City Beach Florida. Every year God never ceases to amaze me with answered prayers and miraculous life changes in the spring breakers lives as well as my own. This year thus far has been a totally new experience. With my own personal growth and the growth of those around me it only makes sense that there’s different dynamics each year for this trip. Three big things I’ve learned or am taking back for this trip is this: First, The past two years I’ve come to Beach Reach with the same overbearing sin struggle. Both years begging for God to remove the bondage and chains of that sin and I’m proud to say that this year that struggle is no longer a part of my life and it’s an incredibly freeing feeling and it’s really cool to see the progression of that sin being removed from my life with Beach Reach serving as a marker. The second thing I’ve learned from this trip (and I’m actually stealing this from something I’ve heard from more than one person on my team) is that God hasn’t called us to “go and make new Christians” the command is to “Go and make disciples”. Not to lessen the importance of salvation but rather to realize that there are brothers and sisters out there who have fallen away and we are called to encourage, disciple, and mentor our fallen brothers and sisters. The third thing I’ve learned from the Beach Reach experience is to NEVER put God in a box or expect Him to meet OUR expectations. Because He WILL show up BIG (bigger than any box we could ever put Him in) and He will far EXCEED any expectations we think we have about what His plans are for us and the world around us. The verse I’ve claimed this year as my “Beach Reach Verse” is Ecclesiastes 3:11 “He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has planned from beginning to end.” God is continually in the process of drawing all men unto Himself and He does so by setting eternity in their hearts and I have seen that scripture come to reality right here in the streets of Panama during Spring Break! Glory to God, Glory to God forever -Veronica Kernodle

I had an amazing conversation with an agnostic guy. His name is Matt K. He was very open to discussing God, which really amazed me! It was my first deep discussion this week. We pretty much jumped right into God, and his beliefs. Matt, being agnostic, does believe in a supernatural being who created humans and the earth and such, he just hasn’t figured out who the Creator is. I explained to him my beliefs in God, the ONE TRUE GOD. He kept saying how do you know what you believe is right because no one can say they are right. But I told him that God hears me and answers my prayers and talks with me. That with God, our Creator, it’s much more than religion, it’s all about relationship. It’s not about good works, because there’s nothing we can do. It’s about God reaching down to us, and us accepting Him into our life as Lord and Savior and then wanting to glorify God with our lives. He was extremely in to the whole conversation and I recited Scripture with him. He said he does believe in the Bible and Heaven and Hell. At the very beginning of our conversation I asked him if he died and went to hell tonight would he be okay with that…and he said no, who would be okay with that. But then by the end of our conversation he said that if he died and went to hell he guesses he would have to be okay with that. It just breaks my heart, because he wants to physically see God-the only thing holding him back. I related God to the wind- you can’t see the wind, but you can feel it and see the effects of it through trees and such…just like you see God through people and creation and can feel His presence. He thought that was really cool and he said he never heard it put like that. I think he’s really questioning his beliefs, but he just doesn’t want to let them go..he’s holding on to the physically seeing God as the only thing holding him back. I loved that whenever his friends said that they were leaving and going back up to the hotel room, he said he wanted to stay and talk with me because he really liked this conversation. That was God moving right there. Also, at the very beginning of our conversation he said that he believed everything happens for a reason..that he’s in panama city for a reason. So I replied, well maybe that reason is so that you can talk with us. And to that Matt said, yeah, you may be right. I just love how God moved in our conversation. God never ceases to amaze me. Please be praying for Matt K. I gave him my number so that he could call me if he wanted to talk more some time later and so that he could call me if he came to pancake breakfast (which I am really praying that he does). He lost his phone in a taxi earlier this week…so pray that one of his friends let him use their phone. Matt told me he really enjoys talking about God and beliefs about God, but that he never gets a chance to because his friends never want to talk about it. So please be praying for Matt K. as God works in him. I can feel that he’s close to coming to know Jesus as Lord and Savior.
-Valerie Winters


Tonight God really showed His power and ability to set divine appointments! Starting out this night I was very discouraged and having a horrible night. I was set to work with Valerie Winters and Tyler Carr and I told them that I was having a hard night and that they would have to help me out tonight and Tyler told me that when we feel the most discouraged is when God is about to do something great and he was SO right! We were out at Sandpiper Beacon and it is out in the middle of no where pretty much and separated from the clubs and nearby hotels, but the second we got there, people came out of everywhere! We gave 2 groups van rides right off the bat and that was really encouraging! Then, as if that wasn’t enough encouragement, God sent a past beach reacher to encourage us and to pray with us even more! After that prayer, we had the two best conversations of our night! This is where God showed me His true power and detailed preparation of us! We came across this group of 4 guys from Illinois (Jake and 3 his friends). As we started talking to them he said he wanted to see just how good we were and said that he was going to say a random chapter of the Bible and that if we could say it he would quit drinking for 3 years. He picked Psalm 139, which just so happened to be the chapter of the Bible that my life group from last semester had chosen to memorize! Not only that, but then his friend (who claimed to be a Christian) said that the real test would be if we could tell him the location in the Bible of a random verse that he picked and that he would quit drinking forever if we could tell him where it was located. He picked the verse about the grass withering and the flower fading, which just so happened to be in 1 Peter, which is the book of the Bible that my current life group is studying! I asked if 1 Peter was right book and he said he didn’t even know, so I got out my Bible to show him and 1 Peter 1:24 says “ For all men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever.” My mind was blown when I realized that God had been preparing me for this very conversation over a whole semester ago! God allowed for those guys to pick the verses that God had been showing me the past 2 semesters and used them in miraculous ways. Our God is such a divine and all-knowing and powerful God! I am so thankful that I can call Him my Father!!!
-Brittni Brewer

Pics from the BEACHREACH TRIP!
Decorating the vans:

Student Testimonies

WHAT AN AMAZING DAY!! GOD IS DEFINITELY AT WORK! Tonight we had a young lady with our group give her life to Jesus!

During the week, I will have some students share BeachReach testimonies on the blog. Below are a few:

How amazing is our God!! Each year I come here I think I am aware of what is going to go down.
This year was the same even though we were bring so many first timers with us. Yet again I have been
proved wrong. In the short time we have been here God continues to just AMAZE me to put it in a word. To see people who were nervous (myself included), scared, or just unsure go out the first night and allow God to move and speak through them and calm their nerves and fears and fill them with courage and boldness is beautiful. Someone once told me that the more of God's people in a place the harder satan will attack. I'm sure you can agree with this statement. Fortunately for us our God is stronger and greater than anything satan can or will ever try. With over 400 people here and I assume thousands back home praying God is going to move in a mighty way in this city. I am so thankful I can be a part of it. This is not a "mission trip", it is it's own experience and no matter how many times I come here I end up going home with a new and refreshed picture of God. Praise Him!!!!!!
- Eric Wilson


I came on this mission trip full of fear. Fear of the spring breakers, fear for the safety of all the girls in our group, even fear that we would be physically and emotionally attacked just for what we are doing down here in what is called “Satan’s Playground”. I was put on a street team on Sunday night and we went through the strip twice before I broke down, cried, and let the fear overpower me. I felt like I had failed the ministry, even God Himself. But then I spent the rest of the evening in the prayer room and I prayed for strength and courage to keep going and to not let fear stand in the way of Christ. And what the Lord revealed to me is that fear is how the enemy attacks us when we do ministry no matter where it is. And as long as we know in our hearts that God protects His family, we have no reason to fear anything…or anyone.
- Brit Reed


“God is Good!” This is a phrase that I have thousands of times, but what is really amazing is that I have had the chance to see it, right here in Panama City. Yesterday, the enemy was attacking me unlike anything that I have experienced. I could not find my spiritual footing. My mind was moving faster than my body. I ate something that made me sick and spent the first night in my bed in my condo. I felt ashamed, discouraged. I thought I had failed God. “I lost the battle,” I thought to myself. I thought it was over. BUT GOD… God stepped in, touching my body, mind, and spirit. Now, I am stronger than before, ready to go out and spread the good news about my loving FATHER. God IS Good!
- Ke’Van Yarbrough


GOD IS GOOD! Please keep praying!

MO

Busy 2 Days!

Thank you all so much for keeping us in your prayers! It has been a busy two day of getting settled, preparing for ministry and doing ministry.

Saturday we arrived and got settled into our rooms. It went fairly smooth. After unpacking, the students had dinner and enjoyed worship. Following worship, we went prayer walking on the Pamana City Beach main road area. This is the largest BeachReach group in quite awhile. A total of 470 students and leaders.

Sunday was filled with training, handing out ministry info cards, and first night of ministry.

It was a good night for our group. We did vans and street teams. It was so good to see the excitement on the eyes of our students (over half are new).

I plan to put some pics up here in the next day. Thank you again for praying for us!

MO

And We're Off!!

On our way to BeachReach! Keep us in your prayers!

MO