Valentine's

Valentine's

By Maryann Y

Every year, my mom and dad do something special for Valentines. They took us night-swimming in 2012 while they ate a quiet dinner by lantern light. I was always asking why I couldn't have the special food, or the Sparkling Grape juice, and for the 7th time in my life, (I'm 11) Daddy would try to explain that Valentine's is for married couples. I understand now that I'm older, but I still ask for the Sparkling Grape juice!

I think Valentine's is a great display of God's love. The couples are like the 'Righteous' in the Bible. I (and my siblings) are the "unbelievers," and though God still loves us, some things are for the 'Righteous,' like a life of eternity with God. So when I'm older and married, I'll probably tell my kids, "No Sparkling Grape juice!"

 In Christ,

     Maryann

LaFe Conference Experience by Amanda M.

 LaFe Conference Experience

By Amanda

I attend Florida Institute of Technology’s Intervarsity College
group in Melbourne, Florida. We have been enjoying reading 
and learning about the Bible for about 2 months. A few people 
got together and founded a Latin Bible study called, LaFe. Even
though I am not of that culture heritage, they welcomed me and I
found their culture so inspiring. Three leaders discussed going to
a conference and invited all of us to attend. So we decided to go
to the LaFe Christian College conference in Tampa, Florida. After
much prayer and discussions, I was able to go. The conference
was Dec. 27-31, 2013.

The girl leader of the group and myself had trouble getting
transportation to Tampa. A staff worker from the conference
arranged for another male college student to pick us up. So we
met the young man who drove us to and from the conference.

Instantly our personalities clicked and we couldn’t wait to
introduce our new driver friend to the rest of our group. The other
male leaders from Bible study were coming from different areas
and we were going to meet up in Tampa. One leader wasn’t able
to make it due to financial and airfare issues.

The group met up and we became very close spending most of
our time together. We talked, laughed, sang, and they tried to
teach me Spanish. There were 200 members and you could feel
God was in our presence at our conference. It was as if we had
known each other for years. We shared experiences regarding
emotions and relationships. My friend and I decided to honor 
God by fasting from dating. Actually, it is practicing a “True Love
Waits” commitment to God. Later we found out the guys agreed
on the same topic of a commitment to God.

We talked about struggles and family brokenness. Social injustice
is one of the main topics of our discussions. It made me realize
how fortunate my family life has been growing up in a Christian
home. We went to the mall on a free day and ministered to
others by handing out Bible verses to the locals. Every night we
had a different speaker. Each lesson brought new topics regarding
Christian life. We ate every meal together for those five days. We
grew so close to each other and to others in the area. Since
LaFe13 I have been reading my Bible more and investing more into
my devotion time every day! This experience has impacted my life.
My friends still come over and I feel really happy and inspired. I feel so
blessed to have attend this conference and more blessed to have these
important people in my life!