Berean Academy secondary students participated in our annual Spiritual Emphasis time on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, September 28-30. The students would start each day in the gym with a fun time of team/group games which helped to get them woke up and the blood pumping. They would then move to the newly renovated chapel for a time of worship music and preparation for the message.
Pastor Doug Ingmire was our speaker for the week, and his theme for our students was "God loves you, and He will take care of you." Tuesday found him in Philippians 1:6, where he encouraged the students that the work the Lord has begun in them, He will complete. He used a visual of 3 chairs. One chair for the "Natural Man," one for the "Spiritual Man," and one for the "Carnal Man." He explained that we need to strive to be in the middle "Spiritual" chair, but we often bend to the "Carnal Man" chair in our lives. He asked the students questions.
"Can I trust God with my life?"
"Will He really care for me?"
"I know that God forgives, but my life is still a mess."
"Could He still love me?"
"Can God really help me change?"
On day two, he spoke from Romans 8:1, where he challenged students to not walk according to the flesh but according to the spirit. He explained what the words: Position, Power, and Posture referred to and encouraged the students to remember that Romans 8:1 says there is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus and that God is a forgiving God. Day three found Pastor Ingmire in Hebrews 12:14-16, where he talked about that God disciplines those that He loves and that discipline is not always a bad thing.
After the message time, our 7th - 12th-grade students moved to their discussion groups, where Pastor Ingmire gave them a sheet of questions and discussion topics from the day's lesson. After the students finished, they moved back to the chapel for a brief wrap-up time with our speaker.
It was encouraging to see the Lord move in and amongst our student body during worship music and through the message from Pastor Ingmire. Our prayer is that Spiritual Emphasis is not just three days but life-long, permanent changes made for Christ and His will for our lives. We always encourage our students to be sure that they live on their faith, not just their parents' faith. What a great time we had, leaving chapel each day feeling encouraged and blessed.