To call the One Year Challenge a “challenge” has always felt strange to me. A challenge implies that some sort of dare or hardship is involved. And while I agree that the OYC was challenging at times, I would much prefer to call it the One Year Adventure. Like any adventure: it was exciting, risky, full of unknowns, full of mountaintops and valleys, with the overall quest to do great things for God.
Brian Mackie, Lyndsey Bickel and I all came to Nashville to do the OYC from very different backgrounds and motivations, but we all had the same dream to see God use us in his kingdom. The Greater Nashville Church had put out a call last spring to assemble a team to strengthen the church of over 400 members. In a city with 1.7 million residents and an expected growth of 1 million in the next 20 years, the harvest is very plentiful and the workers are few. From this call, the three of us were hired for the OYC and two staff couples were hired: Kendall and Makenzie Albert and Titus and Shayla Walelo, for campus and teens respectively.
It is an amazing thing to see a church so eager for change, and to see them rise up together to spiritually and financially support seven new staff members. And not only did they put their support into new staff hires, but Nashville also bought their first church building in the spring of 2015, and we’ve seen amazing growth from the blessing of a steady place to meet during the week. The faith of the congregation has been so inspiring and has allowed the changes they wished to see really take place!
And change is exactly what we began to see in our campus and teen ministries. Having been a member of the Nashville campus ministry for the past four years, I’ve been so encouraged to witness great and amazing growth, not only in numbers, but also in the faith and character of our campus students. Due to the leadership of Kendall and Makenzie Albert, Brian Mackie and Lyndsey Bickell (both OYC), our campus ministry grew from 12 students to 30 students in their first year. We now have active campus Bible talks at Belmont University, Lipscomb University, Tennessee State and Middle Tennessee State Universities. In addition, several of our students spent this summer as missionaries to help strengthen the campus ministries in Quito, Ecuador and Lima, Peru. The campus is continuing to grow in numbers, but even more steadily in their unity and their desire to do great things for God.
The Youth & Family ministry, where I have been privileged to serve, has seen an incredible paradigm shift. Terry and Sue Folker, lead couple of the Greater Nashville Church, had a dream of building a ministry where parents of teens would be more invested in their child’s growth. Together with the Folkers, our Youth & Family leaders, Titus and Shayla Walelo have inspired parents to a greater level of involvement in their child’s spiritual walk. The ministry now hosts quarterly Parent-Teen Devotionals, which assist the family in their spiritual connections and provides an avenue of teaching and instruction for parents and teens alike. I’ve witnessed parents becoming more involved in their teen’s Bible studies, which has served to strengthen their family relationships. In addition to these positive changes, it became obvious that there was an opportunity to influence families at the small group level, called Life Groups. In the spirit of “it takes a village to raise a child,” the Folkers and the Walelos selected and trained volunteer teen workers, placing them in each Life Group which included teens. In this small group setting, relationships are being built and specific lessons are taught by the teen worker. As a result, parents and teens are reaching out to other families together, having a spiritual impact in their schools and community. I have been part of two different Life Groups, and love what God has allowed me to see. Several teens are now studying the Bible, and two boys and one girl have been baptized this year. I’m able to form relationships with parents of teens, and work as a team in helping their daughters’ walks with God. This has been an incredible opportunity.
Working with the teens and campus ministry is just one of the ways OYC participants can serve the church. We were also put in charge of three events this year: 2014 Christmas celebration, Easter service, and planning the 2015 Southeast Singles Retreat. Each of these opportunities taught us so much about working as a team in God’s kingdom as well as gaining skills that has matured our leadership. It was such an honor to be entrusted with these tasks. It was also very encouraging for Lyndsey and I to also help Sue Folker plan two all-church women’s events. I now have a better understanding of how important prayer and planning are in ministry details!
As the year is coming to a close, I think we are all feeling extremely humbled and honored to have been a part of such a huge transition in the Nashville church.
We have been so grateful for the awesome training that comes with doing a OYC, and I think we can all agree that we received so much more than what we could ever give back. One of the biggest things Brian learned is how to be effective in ministry and how to use his influence. By learning how to build relationships and have purpose in everything he does, he was encouraged to help other brothers be more effective in ministry, and even go on to the mission field in South America. Lyndsey was very encouraged to learn more about God’s faithfulness. Through the pruning that comes with doing a OYC, she was able to really grow in her relationship with God, see so much answered prayer in her life, grow in her relationships with other sisters, and grow in her vulnerability. Personally, I think the biggest thing I have learned is how humbling it is to serve in the kingdom of God. When you go into a OYC you want to know all the answers right away, but you quickly realize that you need a deep dependence on God to really learn how to do anything. I’m so grateful that the OYC has simply taught me how to seek advice, be constantly in prayer, and to constantly be in the Word.
I think it is awesome that our theme for the year in Nashville is “Compelled” because that is exactly what I think anyone choosing to do a One Year Challenge should feel: compelled by Christ to do awesome things for his Kingdom. If I could spend my life doing the One Year Challenge, it would be a life well spent. It’s been an amazing year. I pray that many churches consider hiring One Year Challengers, and that many students choose to find a church to start their adventure.
