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Greetings!
We hope this finds you well, and pray that the Summer has been blessed for you so far! Around here, we are scrambling to get ready for the arrival of a new school year...and a new baby boy (due Sept 10th!)! Needless to say, things are about to get a little crazy, so please pray for us:-)!
Besides that, thank you for taking the time to read and pray about what God is doing at Stanford. We hope you are blessed by it!
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Class of 2015
In just over a month 1,700 new freshmen will join the Stanford community for the first time. They'll enter Stanford as teenagers, but will leave Stanford 4-5 years from now as adults, destined to become market place leaders, professional athletes, husbands, wives, and parents themselves. Without fail, these four years will be among the most foundational and pivotal of their lives. Decisions that they make, even within these first few months, will affect the rest of their lives and beyond.
Statistics tell us that more than half of those who professed faith upon entering college will abandon their faith by the time they leave college. For many, that decision happens within the first couple of months. Knowing the challenges, temptations, and loneliness that will characterize each of their experiences, we ask that you would please join us in praying for this year's incoming freshmen class:
- That those who believe would be strengthened in their faith and find a fellowship where they can grow as a disciple of Christ
- That those who don't know Christ would experience the emptiness and brokenness of life apart from him, and begin to hunger for God
God loves EVERY ONE of them so much, and we pray that they would all have an opportunity to come to know Him during their time on campus.
Thank you for joining us in contending for the students at Stanford!
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Graduating Seniors
Just four short years ago, this group of seniors (half of whom are pictured above) entered Stanford for the first time much like the uncertain freshmen that we described earlier. For most of them, if they knew Jesus at all, it was on a theoretical level, founded on an inherited faith that was yet to become their own. Over the past four years, we were privileged to watch as each of these seniors chose to make Jesus the center piece of their reality. It is TRULY amazing what God can do in a person's life in the span of four years.
Now, walking with this group as they transition into the world beyond Stanford, we are reminded that it is not only (or even primarily) for a student's time at Stanford that we desire to see them grow, but for the lives they will lead beyond this place. This group alone contains graduates who will go on to be doctors, lawyers, teachers, physicians assistants, professional athletes, entrepreneurs, rocket scientists, and business men and women. The miracle is that each of them will do so as a devoted disciple of Christ. They will forever effect change on their places of work and families to come.
Please join us in praising God for that!!
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Outdoor Adventures
Experiences outside of our comfort zone, especially in places where the beauty of God's creation is evident, create opportunities that are ripe for asking the larger questions of life. As we do each year, we again took a "Dude's Backpacking Trip" to Kibbie Lake and a coed trip to Arroyo Seco.
Kibbie Lake
During the time at Kibbie Lake, the 19 guys who made the trek got to experience snow, hail, wind, sleet, sun, and rain. Even for experienced packers, the conditions were intense! People were wet, cold and hungry...and had never had so much fun in their lives! As it turns out, adverse conditions have a way of bonding people together like sunshine and comfort cannot. One of the guys who came on the trip is not a believer, and had never been around the Cardinal Life community before. At the conclusion of the trip, he sent us a letter saying: "Freshman year at Stanford has been awesome, but no experience comes close to this last weekend at Kibbie Lake. The friendships I grew and made over the trip will stay with me for a long time. Just wanted to say thanks!" We trust and pray that God will work through those friendships to make Himself known to this student, as well as to the other guys on the trip who don't yet know Jesus! Arroyo Seco 
_________________________________________________________________ t Thank You! We continue to be humbled by the people that God brings around KFM in support of the ministry here at Stanford. Whether through your prayers, your giving, or your time, your partnership with this ministry has been indispensable. God has truly done some great things over the past 5 years...and we trust that we've only seen the beginning of what He wants to do. Thank you for your continued investment in seeing God's kingdom come in the lives of students here at Stanford! Much Love, The Kingdom First Ministries Team |
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Summer Fellowship
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As in years past, there was a great group of students who stayed in the area this summer. We continued to meet each week with the group that was around, and were reminded of what a great time the summer can be for a student's faith. With schedules that allow for a bit more margin, this summer has served as a rich time of spiritual refreshment for many of them.
As the students shared each week about the things God was teaching them, it was awesome to watch the hunger in each of them grow. Now, as we prepare for the coming school year, we are excited to see how the momentum and hunger carry over, and we pray that it would be contagious within the larger community this fall!
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Prayer Requests
| Baby on the Way!
Please pray that the rest of Natalie's pregnancy would be healthy, and that the baby boy in her belly would continue to grow healthy and strong. Pray that God would sustain us as we balance the beginning of the new year with the new addition to the family! Preparations for a New Year Please pray that God would guide and direct us as we prepare for the new school year. In particular, pray that we would effectively communicate to student leaders the vision that God has given us for the campus, and that He would grip their hearts with an increased passion for reaching their classmates for Christ. Etc.. As always, please pray that the fire of God would be present in our personal lives as we meet with students this week. Pray that our capacity to care for the students would increase, and that our personal hunger for God and His Word would grow, setting the tone for the entire group. Thank you, and God Bless!! |
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Kingdom First Ministries
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www.kingdomfirst.org
325 Sharon Park Dr. #702
Menlo Park, California
94025
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