A MUCH needed update.

Wow, I sort of forgot to update this thing.

So long story short, about midway through the summer...after a lot of battling and a whole lot of praying...I decided to resign from the support raising process...therefore post-poning full time ministry in NYC.

Gosh it was such a hard decision. One that still hurts my heart. But I knew it was what needed to happen...and that God had other plans for me. And man has he been faithful. I ended up getting a full time job in Wilson NC. I have moved there, and am working for a video production company. It has been so amazing to work in what I went to school for. I am learning so much! My long term goal has always been to work with video production AND missions...and I feel like this is a step towards that. I am blessed to have good friends in the area, amazing roommates, and one awesome place to work.

I feel like God is not done with my desire to eventually be in NYC. I have no idea what that means or what that will look like. What I do know is that I am right where I need to be...even though it was the last thing I expected, I am thankful, and I will not stop serving Him!

I want to thank every person that was involved with this whole STINT process! The months that I was preparing to do ministry in NYC were challenging, and I thank you all for you support!

Thankfully, my friend Katie did in fact raise all of her support and is currently serving with Campus Crusade in NYC...ministering to those amazing students!!! I am so very proud of her, and miss her so much. Please continue to pray for her, and Campus Crusade's ministry in New York City...God is doing big things! It is so encouraging!!!! Oh that they would see many come to know Christ this year!!! Big prayers for that big city!!!

With hopes to return

~Megan

New York City Metro Team Video

NYC Metro Team Video

This is a promo video for the Campus Crusade NYC Metro Team...which is where I have been assigned. Check it out!

Today's Encouragement

Colossians 1

Interning in NYC beginning this fall!

Hey everyone! I have officially been placed to intern with Campus Crusade for Christ in New York City! I am excited to have this opportunity to minister to the students of New York City! This basically means that I will be a full time missionary to the students of New York and will get to invest in their lives!

The need is so huge! In a place that is populated by over 8 million people, 1 million of those are college students, spread out around 144 different colleges.

My heart is to reach the students I encounter with the love of Christ! Coming to them, meeting them where they are, and giving every student the opportunity to respond to the gospel. My previous experience in the city has been that people are just waiting for someone to give them a glimpse of hope! I believe that a personal relationship with Christ is that hope! Someone needs to tell these students! This will happen through building relationships, outreaches, starting Bible Studies, and discipleship.

In order to make this vision a reality, I have to raise support. I need to build a team of ministry partners who will support me in prayer, as well as financially. If you would be interested in becoming a part of my ministry team I would love it if you could email me your contact information. I would love to talk to you personally about this amazing opportunity.

How you can reach me: 910-448-1986 Email:melloyd4@gmail.com

This blog goes back to posts from my ministry this past summer. If you continue reading, you will be able to see some of what went on and why I feel the compelling need to go back! :)

8 months later and its still where I want to be!

If you are reading this blog for the first time, I hope you will continue reading past this post. Perhaps it would give you some insight into why I am so obsessed with New York City and why my heart longs to be there so badly!

Yes, its been around 8 months since Project and I am just now updating the blog with our stats from the summer. We gathered all of this info one of the last days...this is just what was recorded...annnd its pretty awesome!

715 Conversations were initiated.

526 Spiritual conversations

254 people heard the Gospel

15 people placed their faith in Christ (at least)

1,700 Bibles,cd's,water bottles were handed out with info on how to know God personally....this in no way sums up every person we encountered or how the Lord used our team to impact His Kingdom for HIS glory! This summer changed my life and will forever grip my heart! To all of you who supported me, thank you from the bottom of my heart!!!!......fast forward to the PRESENT.....

When I left for New York last summer, I had no idea that I would fall in love with that city. I have never been to a city bigger than Atlanta, I grew up in a small town, and even went to school in a small town. Despite my doubts, I adjusted really well, and fell in love with the City and its people. God gave me a huge passion for what Campus Crusade does there. Ever since my third week on Project I knew that I could see myself doing ministry in New York for a year. The second I left I wanted to go back...and that has not changed, in fact the desire has only grown. This past fall I began praying about going on Staff with Crusade for a year (this is what Crusade calls STINT or an INTERN) in New York. I can not express to you the urgency I feel to be there. I think about it all the time!

So I finally applied on March 1st! The weeks since then have been tormenting. I realized that if I did not get accepted, I wouldn't know what to do...I have wanted this so bad, for so long. As time drug on, I questioned why God would give me such a huge desire for the city if I wasn't supposed to be there. I guess you could say my frustration also came from just being in a place of "waiting". You see I have just moved home because I couldn't find a job. I have been waiting on Crusade, waiting on direction, and opportunity.

This past Tuesday and Wednesday were rough...I was trying to be patient but failing. I was tired of waiting. I wanted to know so I could move forward or move on. Oh what a sad story it is when we tire of waiting on the Lord. I realized that no matter how agonizing it was, God had me waiting for a reason! I found so much comfort in knowing that He knew what was going on and I had a feeling that things were about to fall into place.

Today when I got home from work I had an email from Crusade. Letting me know that I have officially been accepted to Intern with Campus Crusade starting this fall. I am beyond excited, and astonished at how amazing God's timing is! This was worth the wait. God is so faithful!

However the wait is not over...if anything its about to get more intense. You see just because I have been accepted does not mean I automatically get to go. Just like many of our worlds missionaries, I too have to raise support. Not sure the exact amount but I hear it is around $44,000......yeah, thats a lot! Every time I say the number out loud I feel like I just punched myself in the chest. Support raising is not comfortable, and that much money scares the mess out of me. But God is so much bigger than that number. IF he wants me there, I will be there and thats all there is to it. These next couple of months are going to be crazy. With Caswell starting up soon and me beginning the support process.

If you are reading this, I hope you will pray for the process I am about to enter into. That whether I go or not, that God will be glorified. To whichever, there is a purpose. I pray that I raise the support and get to go but the truth is that God is good, even if I don't. Pray for the students of New York! The city with millions of people yet it feels dark and empty. Pray for Crusade's ministry with the students of New York. There are over 1 million college students in New York City, and out of the 100+ colleges, you might be lucky to find a single bible study in 12 of them. The students of New York need to be reached with the reality of the love of Christ.

My heart is all in...ready, set, go...lets see what happens...

"If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen."-1Peter4:11 (however, all of chapter 4 is pretty fantastic!)

Ephesians 3:7-9

less than the least

~Megan

Recap

So my beautiful 5 year old Mac Power Book G4 has gone to computer heaven. I really don't think there is anything anyone can do. I am pretty sure it was hard drive failure...so sad times, but it served me well. With that said, I have not been able to blog as much (so sorry) but I am borrowing my roomates computer so I can update.

Wednesday was our last day on campus :( it was hard to say good bye to the people we had become close with. We also had some really neat conversations. Aaron, Matt, and I were a team and we were just handing out bibles in the cafeteria when we came to this table of two guys and two girls, we asked them if they wanted some free bibles and they said why not. Then they just started asking all of these really great questions...we didn't even have to bring up spiritual things, they did it for us. Most of them had a Catholic background but they all said they weren't that "religious". We talked for such a long time with them and went through the gospel and the KGP with them. They were so interesed, one of the girls even said that she wanted to pray to recieve Christ later by herself. It was such an amazing conversation, we talked with them for so long and it was just great! It was hard saying goodbye to Kingsborough, im pretty sure I'll be back at somepoint though...New York has a part of my heart now.

Thursday was an office day. We did stats and organized all of the contacts that we have gathered the past 5 weeks and sorted through all of the surveys. It was really cool to see how many people my ministry team alone talked to. God uses the insignificant, that is for sure! I am excited to hear what the stats are for the campus track and the entire project, it really puts things in perspective. Later in the day I actually got to see my good friend Joey Waters, who was in the city for the day with the Deep Impact staff. I only got to see him for like 10 minutes but it was so good, a familiar face is so comforting this place, even if just for a few minutes!

Friday we had our last outing with our international students. Our Chinese friends cooked for us...they cooked hot pot for us which is spice and you put raw stuff like fish and veggies in a boiling pot of spices and it was soooo good! seriously the best and most authentic Chinese food I have ever had.

The fam came in this weekend, it was so cool to be able to show them the city...even though I don't really know my way around as well as I thought. I wanted to take them to yogurt land so bad and then I couldn't find it. It was bad and I was so sad because yogurt land is so good! But we had fun and I think they enjoyed the city, even though it prolly overwhelmed them a bit. They all really enjoyed Central Park. I LOVE YOU FAMILY :)

Please be in prayer for my Sunday...Aaron and I are taking Chris (the guy that came to Christ at Kingsborough) to church tomorrow and after that we are meeting up with some other students from Kborough to go to the art show that is put on by the Arts Track...it is designed to be an outreach tool so please pray that God will provide some productive conversations. I am excited about Church because I am going to Grafitti Church, the Baptist State Convention helps support that church so I am excited about going. And the art show is going to be awesome, so yeah tomorrow is going to be way fun. Anyways hope you enjoyed the run down, until next time!

"If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" ~2 Corinthians 5:17

Today was a typical Tuesday morning.  We met at the space, prayed, gathered our supplies, and my team headed out to City Tech in Brooklyn.  We were able to get into the college again this week, which was such a blessing.  We decided to split the girls and boys up so I went with Tay and Jenny.  For the first "soularium attempt" Jenny stayed behind and handed out free books/bibles/water bottles while Taylor and I approached a girl.  We asked her if she would take our picture survey.  We went through Soularium with her, she said she believed in God but didn't understand how so many people said that they felt him or how he helped them in troubled times.  So I asked her if she thought it was possible to have a personal relationship with him...she responded with an "I don't know".  At this moment, while still conversing with this girl I hit Taylor on the leg, which was me saying "quick get out the KGP"...so she did and home girl rocked it. P.S. this girl is 19 and since being on project has become one of the most bold people I have ever met, its great!  Anyways so Taylor goes through the KGP with her and we get to the part with a diagram of two circles...the circle on the left has the self on the throne and Christ is outside of the circle...the circle on the right has Christ on the throne (inside the circle) and self is at the foot of the throne...in other words Christ is in your life and in the center of your life.  We asked her which circle she thought she was in...she said, well I guess I am in the middle.  I took this opportunity to chime in and ask her what she thought about thinking of it as a pregnancy...your either pregnant or your not, there is no halfway pregnant.  She quickly responded saying that she was definitely the one on the left but wanted to be the one on the right.  Taylor then showed her the model prayer of what you can pray if you want to receive Christ.  She took the KGP and right there she accepted Christ into her heart...it was really really cool!  We got to give her a Bible and I got to share with her one of my favorite passages in the Bible (2 Corinthians 5) and I read to her the part of being a new creation.  That because we accept Christ into our lives we no longer have to do it on our own, we don't have to strive for unattainable perfection to try to turn our life around because Christ comes in and does it for us...changing us from the inside out, and making us a new creation.  She smiled and we talked for a while before she had to go to class.  This was our last day at City Tech and it was so amazing that God let us be a part of that...I am still speechless!

After lunch we got to share with two girls who were already believers.  It was so encouraging to meet them!  We have met several people who are believers and we are hoping that there is enough interest to start a Bible study there in the fall.  The Lord has totally been at work at City Tech and he is so not done!

Tonight we had Bible Study at Ansley's house.  She cooked Lasagna for us and some pretty tasty chocolate cake.  It was so nice to get away from the city and have a home cooked meal, in a real house!  Bible study was just as refreshing and comforting!  We had some great discussion and the Lord really encouraged my heart through that.  We also laughed a lot :)

Tomorrow is our last day at Kingsborough and of our campus ministry.  This makes me so sad, I feel like I have just gotten to know the students there and now we have to leave!  But God is in control and who knows maybe I'll end up back here for a year and get to re invest in those people (yep that is something im going to be praying about for the next couple months) but regardless I know God has done so much! I am so thankful to be a part of it and I can't wait to see what tomorrow holds.  PLEASE PRAY that God will use is in many significant ways...please specifically pray for our friend Constansza who many of us have talked to and whom I have become friends with...we really wanted to see her come to Christ or at least some significant progress in her thought process before we left.  But we at least want to be able to say bye to her and give her some resources (like a case for Christ...we have been carrying one with her name on it for like a week now).  PRAY for Kingsborough!