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| The graduating class together with the full-time staff. |
I had the chance to mentor a young man who actually had already attended CEC many years ago - the five-year-old son of a young couple. Vicente is the first second-generation alumni, his parents having attended in 2011 (the 2nd year of CEC) together with this two sisters. Though he was young, he had fond memories of CEC and those who were leaders at the time (including our founding director who has since passed away, Howard.) This was one year before I started with CEC, so I didn't know them at the time, but since then as we've made trips to visit past students, I have come to know both his parents and Vicente himself over the past few years.
While having hit some struggles in his faith in the recent past, God placed it on Vicente's heart to return to CEC, this time as a student himself - something he had wanted to do since the very first time he came. One of the things that quickly became clear as I got to know Vicente more, was how God had been working on him even as a child - the convictions that he had even as an eight-year-old, for example - his desire to serve the Lord even at that early age. Though his later-teenage years had some bumps and bruises, he experienced a type of re-awakening during his time of CEC. The maturity in his faith - his genuine care and concern for others during the course, wanting to see others grow and step out in their faith - struck me as it is not something that one typically sees from a 20-year-old, let alone even others more advanced in years. Vicente was the first to begin clearing dirty dishes from the tables (we had to tell him at times to sit back and enjoy other people's company...) and also one of the first to cheer his fellow classmates on as they took on new challenges such as preaching for the first time.
He himself is a deep thinker, and this would perhaps at times get him into trouble, but it was during one of our conversations, and later as he prepared to preach for the first time on life in the Spirit, in Romans 8, that a palpable peace came over him as he grasped more deeply the life we have in the Spirit as opposed to the life (even the Christian life) tried to be lived in the flesh. This was just one example where it was exciting to witness the truths of the Word sink deep into his heart, taking root. Still a very young man who is discerning where God might take him, pray for Vicente as he seeks God's direction in his life.
Another student who comes to mind when I think of God's transformational work in the lives of the students over these past months comes from the same church, located in Tecuala, Nayarit - two states down to the south from San Carlos. We've actually stayed at Uriel's place a number of times over the years, his father being a pastor who has been deeply connected with CEC. Their home lies just off of the main highway that we take on many of our promotional tours down south. His father has plugged us into the local community to share about CEC with a number of the churches in the area. So, it was a pleasure to have these two, Vicente, Uriel, and, Uriel's sister, Karen attend this year.
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| Vicente together with Uriel (on the right). |
What struck me the most about Uriel was, being a very quiet and reserved individual, the transformation that took place as he opened up to the group around him and in taking on new challenges such as preaching for the first time. It was not only this, though, but also how God really was at work in his heart. He was heard to read the first half of the course simply because he was quite reserved, quiet, and guarded. As he shared later on, though, he was led to some points where he was tempted to leave. For many, in one way or another, the fact that you have to engage with the community around you (one of the priorities of CEC) can create moments of crisis, where you have to either respond or run. Some choose to run, but Uriel, guided by some people whom God had placed in his life, chose to stay and grow, experiencing an openness and brokenness that perhaps he had not experienced before. I had the chance of interviewing him in video at the end of the course (later I'll put together some highlight videos with some of the student's testimony...) and as Uriel shared about his experience of the course, he couldn't hold back the emotion as he reflected on God's work in his life. In his own words, he shared, "I thought I was OK...there were things, though, that one doesn't see until one is put to the test....I thought, 'I can change,' but it was impossible...yet something within me told me to just stay, to just continue on."
The transformation that came through the time, from beginning to end, was perhaps subtle, but at the same time, evident in so many little ways - like the steady growth of a tree. From engaging more freely and naturally with his classmates, to sharing his vision for ministry as he returns home to help serve more intentionally in his local church through things like preaching, the Uriel we met on day one became a very different Uriel on the final week. We are thankful for these glimpses into their lives, knowing that we only see a small amount of what God really does in their lives and hearts.
Now as the students find themselves in a new "classroom," one outside of the familiarity and relative comfort of CEC, we invite you to continue to pray for them together with us. One of the encouragements we send them away with is the promise of Philippians 1:6, which says, "He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." CEC itself was not the "magic ingredient" or catalyst for change in their lives, but God's work in them during this time - and He will continue to work in them as they continue to learn to yield their lives to Him.
Pray also for us as staff as we set out to plan the rest of this year including other conferences as well as trips to visit students and make new connections with churches. ¡Dios les bendiga!
