Submitted by philip on
By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer
LAFAYETTE – Many believers want to stay comfortable and remain in their boat of security.
But God is calling believers to do just the opposite. When that happens, God will provide and blessings will follow, Jordan Easley said.
“When God calls me to do something and I do it, I don’t have to have all the answers; I just have to have faith,” Easley told students during the recent Collegiate Evangelism Conference. “Faith pleases God.”
Citing Matthew 14:22-32, Easley said that Peter had the faith to get out of the boat and walk on the water to meet Jesus. Easley said like Peter before he stepped out of the boat, many Christians may not be sure what God is calling them to do.
“Jesus called Peter out of the boat and it was a call to the uncomfortable,” Easley said. “God may be calling us to be doing the uncomfortable as well.”
Easley said that human nature is to gravitate toward that which is comfortable. He said just as Peter did in the passage, believers are called out of their comfort zone and go against the status quo.
Whether the boat is silence in sharing one’s faith, changing plans for the future or something else, Easley challenged the students to do what God has called them to do, no matter how uncomfortable that call may make them feel.
“God does not want you to live a comfortable place and then die,” he continued. “He has called you to be zealous for the word of God. What is He calling you to do? What is the boat He’s calling you to get out of?”
Building on that, Easley told the students that if they have the gift of Jesus Christ, they should boldly share their gift to a lost world. He said that despite receiving a commandment from the Sanhedrin religious court in Acts 4:18 not to share the gospel, Peter and John did so anyway because Jesus told them to do so.
“Hell is real and the world is lost,” Easley said. “It’s time. These are the marching orders.
“The world we live in is a wreck,” he continued. “We live in a place where this world is self-destructing and running away from God. We have to share now.”
Easley’s messages were part of a two-day conference that included speakers, seminars designed to equip students with sharing their faith, worship led by All Sons and Daughters and a late-night fellowship. Nearly 800 students attended this year’s conference at East Bayou Baptist in Lafayette.
“This year’s conference was amazing,” said Louisiana Baptist Convention BCM state director Mark Robinson. “The atmosphere of worship and fellowship continued not only in the sessions, but during breaks.
“The students loved being around people from other campuses.” Robinson said. “I would say this year’s CEC was one of the most powerful I can remember.”
Some students like Tucker Attaway of LSU in Baton Rouge were attending CEC for the first time.
“This conference really brought me close to Christ,” Attaway said. “I’ve been looking for ways to get involved in my BCM all year and this was another way to connect with people.”
Others, like Dawson Shannon of Louisiana Tech, were eager to make a return trip to CEC. He attended last year’s conference at Calvary Baptist in Alexandria.
Shannon said that fellowship with other BCM students was a highlight.
“Everything about this was enjoyable,” Shannon said. “I really enjoyed the seminars too, plus getting to see friends from high school, mission trips and other BCMs was pretty cool.”
Katy Thomas, a student at University of Louisiana at Monroe, said the conference reinforced her belief that BCM emphasizes equipping students for missions on their campus and beyond.
“BCM is like a big family,” she said. “We all get to come together to praise the Lord and learn about missions.”
Joseph Dupree attended the conference for two years as a high school student but this year was his first CEC to take part in as a college student. In addition to the authenticity and passion for worship that he believed All Sons and Daughters showed, Dupree said he was challenged by Easley’s messages.
“I like how he said to ‘get out of the boat’ no matter how dangerous or uncomfortable things may seem,” said Dupree, who attends LSU at Alexandria. “We just have to trust God in those circumstances.”