A Life Changing Nicaragua Mission Trip

#LifeStory [ 13 ]  August 24-31, 2013

On our 11th anniversary Elyssa and I went on our first BMDMI mission trip to Nicaragua.  Our team went to the village of Los Zarzales, where we saw about 3000 people in the village and surrounding area.  The people in that area were not as poor as others, but they were hungry for God's Word.  I helped with the youth service all week, while Elyssa served in the pharmacy.  I was amazed at how the teens would just sit and absorb God's Word.

The first night there, Frank Kirby (Chico), asked me if I wanted to preach at any of the adult services.  I said no because I was unfamiliar with how BMDMI did things and because I didn't know the people.  Chico asked me again the next day, but I turned down the opportunity again because I had no idea what to say.  What could I say to connect with the people?  What did they need to hear?

As the first two days went by, I had an opportunity or two to share the Good News of Jesus with the teens in the youth service, but the other person who did most of the talking liked to tell stories and rarely presented a clear or accurate presentation of the Gospel.  Also, the community was invited back every evening for a night service, but the messages always seemed too Southern Baptist and "churchy."  As time went by, I felt like God was telling me, "Cheyenne, the people need to hear the Truth, the Gospel explained clearly."

I started praying and asking God to give me boldness to preach the Truth, but I also needed direction.  I had no idea what to say, or where to start.  Then the Lord reminded me of Mark 1:15, "The time is fulfilled, the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the Gospel."  This is the simple message Jesus preached to the people when He started His ministry, and I felt like God was telling me that this is what the people of Los Zarzales needed to hear as well.

The Lord also reminded me of how I was raised on a farm and I could use that as a way of connecting with the people.  I needed to share my own testimony of how I came to know Jesus and explain clearly to the people the Good News as described in Romans 3:23, 5:8, 6:23, and 10:9-10.

So, on our last day in the village, Wednesday, August 28, I preached the Good News of Jesus Christ to a tent full of people.  The Lord gave me boldness and the words to speak as I proclaimed His Truth in a way that was easy to understand.  This was the highlight of my week!  When I stepped out in faith, trusting God to help me and provide me with the words to speak, He empowered me to preach the message He had given me from the start.  God used this to confirm in my heart that this is what He has called me to do -- to preach the Truth, the Good News of Jesus, in a way that people will be able to understand.  And best of all, 9 people trusted in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior!

I'm so glad my wife was there!  Her encouragement and support continually helped me to serve the Lord as He directs!

Kinley Trusts in Jesus

Not too long after Adalynn trusted in Jesus as her Lord and Savior, Kinley started talking about wanting to get saved.  She was five years old, but didn't seem to understand everything, so we told her to be patient and God would help her understand as she got older.  Every night we would pray with her and when she asked about it, we would explain it to her and prayed with her that God would reveal Himself to her.  Kinley has always loved babies, and she has a big heart for orphans. 

One night, while praying for the orphans, Kinley added to her prayer, "Jesus, please come into my heart."  Elyssa and I looked at each other, but didn't follow-up on it because we didn't think she was ready.  As time went on, Kinley turned 6 and was promoted to the Kidz Worship age group at church.  In Kidz Worship they give the kids an opportunity every Sunday to pray at the altar during the offering, and encourage them to talk to a leader if they want to know more about how to get saved.  One Sunday morning Kinley goes up to pray and tells Mrs. Mandy that she wants to get saved.  When Mandy talked to her, Kinley told her that she asked Jesus into her heart when she was five, but waited till now because her sister was six when she got saved.  Mandy said she understood the gospel and then prayed with her the "sinner's prayer."

The next Sunday we took her up front to share her salvation with the church; she didn't want to at first (she said she was embarassed), but she did go and clung to her mother's leg the whole time.  A week later Kinley was baptized, but she wasn't embarassed about that at all!  The Lord has given Kinley a very compassionate heart for orphans and I'm excited to see how He's going to use her to advance His kingdom!

A Call to Ministry

#LifeStory [ 12 ]  August 17, 2012
I am living proof that the Lord has a sense of humor!  He's calling me to full-time youth ministry!  Almost a year ago, at our church's last Global Outreach Celebration, Elyssa and I both felt that there was more to life than just teaching and serving in our church, but we didn't specifically know what.  I had never been on a mission  trip, but I found myself thinking it would be great if we could somehow plan a family mission trip.  We talked about going to Washington State for a week to help a young couple there plant a church, and started making plans and discussing travel.

But in January of 2012, our church's youth pastor of 10 years announced that he was called to lead the youth ministry of a church in Tennessee.  Our hearts were heavy as we cancelled plans for Washington, and committed to help work with the youth and keep things going until our church found another youth pastor.

Daniel, Micah, and I met with Brother Jimmy and Brother Wes to form a team of current youth leaders and they appointed me to lead and serve as the communicator to the pastors.  During this time, Brother Wes organized a Youth Leadership Team and a Youth Pastor Advisory Team.  Brother Jimmy announced to the church the process they would use to find a youth pastor, whether far away or from within our own church.

The question was who?  After several months, the youth leadership team was working well together, but we still needed a youth pastor who could tie all the loose ends together and give general direction, leadership, and vision to the ministry.  The more I helped with planning and leading the youth, the more I realized how much God had prepared me for such a time as this. Ten years of teaching high school students, leading fundraisers, organizing trips, and working with people is only a few of the experiences God gave me to help prepare and equip me.  The Lord had also provided me with two years of discipleship while in college, opportunities to work with three different youth ministries, and a love in my heart for teens.

But my wife, Elyssa, is the one who did a complete 180 degree turn.  All throughout our marriage, she served in the nursery and worked with small children, while I served in the youth ministry.  She didn't feel comfortable with teens, was slightly intimidated, and said she would never work with teens.  But as I started getting more involved in the youth ministry, she jumped in to help more and more.  Elyssa quickly built great relationships with the girls in our youth group, and the teens eagerly listened to her loving advice and encouragement.  Within a few months, Elyssa went from "I don't like teens" to "I love the teenage girls!"  And God has given her favor in their eyes, so she could make a huge impact in their lives.

As the months went by, I grew more and more in love with the youth.  I often found myself thinking about the youth pastor position, but would always talk myself out of it, mainly because I enjoy teaching and felt that the classroom is where God had called me to minister.  However, I also had several people mention to me that I would make a good youth pastor, but I usually brushed it off as nonsense while thanking them for the encouragement.

Within four to five months, the pastors found a candidate who was interested in the youth pastor position.  Elyssa and I had dinner with the amazing couple during their initial visit with church leadership.  We thought they were great people and looked forward to planning a second visit to see how they interacted with the teens.

About two weeks before the couple returned, Bryan called and asked if I had considered the youth pastor position. I told him I'd thought about it some, but jokingly needed the Lord to roll back the clouds and speak directly from Heaven.  I knew by this time that I would be a good fit for the position, but I also knew I couldn't do it without my wife being committed 100 percent.  So, I asked the Lord to work in my wife's heart first, which He had already started doing.  A few days before the amazing couple returned, Brother Jimmy also asked me the same question that Bryan had asked, but I brushed it off and told him I knew God had called me to teach, but wasn't sure about youth ministry.

With great excitement the amazing couple returned, and we enjoyed the time we spent with them eating, playing games, and so forth.  But the weekend had an awkward feel and we (church leadership and the amazing couple) quickly discerned that they were not the ones for our youth ministry.    During that same weekend, in the middle of the morning worship service, Elyssa felt the Lord tell her that we needed to commit ourselves 100 percent to the youth ministry and not wait.  On the way home after church she shared with me what she felt the Lord telling her.  I then mentioned to her that I had asked the Lord to speak to her heart first, and thus confirm through her the calling He was issuing on our lives.  So we started to pray.

That same evening, we returned to church for a reception for the amazing couple.  Before the reception got started, I was talking to Foster and Vicki, and they both expressed their appreciation and mentioned that if things didn't work out with the amazing couple, then their vote was for me.  As we drove home from church that evening, Elyssa and I talked and decided to call Brother Jimmy that night to ask if we could meet with him before church on Wednesday to discuss the possibility of me serving as youth pastor.  To my surprise he then shared with me the conversations between him and his wife, Janice.  While eating with Elyssa and I at the same table during the reception, Janice had pointed to me and told Brother Jimmy, "There's your youth pastor."  Of course, he then tells her how I had mentioned being called to teach.  But then later on, after the reception while they were driving home, Janice suggests that maybe the church needs to quit looking for a youth pastor and just wait for the Lord to work in Cheyenne's heart!  And of course if was only moments later when I called Brother Jimmy to ask about discussing it with him.

Isn't is awesome how the Lord works in our hearts?  Yes, I love teaching, and will miss certain aspects of it, but now I have an opportunity to give myself 100 percent to what He has prepared and called me to do - be a youth pastor!

The Journey: A Youth Camp to Remember

What we experienced at Youth Camp in 2012 left us all speechless and in awe of God's love and grace!  In the Spring of 2012, the church where Elyssa and I attended, the same church in which she had grown up her whole life, was starting to think about youth camp for the summer.  For the past 20 years the church had planned and organized it's own camp each summer, but as the previous amazing leaders stepped down or were called to serve elsewhere, the youth ministry needed new leadership to make it happen.

Bryan Freeman boldly volunteered to take on the responsibility of organizing and directing the plans for Youth Camp.  After weeks and weeks of planning, the time had finally arrived.  On July 22, the Sunday morning before we left, we had almost 70 teens signed-up to go, but when we left the next day, only 55 actually showed up to go.  We weren't sure why, but we took the 55, knowing God had brought the ones He wanted.

On that same Sunday night of July 22, I noticed before church that evening four boys from the neighborhood riding their skateboards on the church sidewalk.  I asked them if they wanted something to drink, then invited them to our Sunday Night Live event with the teens.  They returned at 6:00pm and joined us for worship and the lesson.  The focus of that evening's discussion was youth camp and how to make the most of this week.  The four boys got up and left in the middle of the lesson, but came back later asking about youth camp, what to bring, and how to sign-up.  Three of the boys - Greg, Darius, and Kyle - ended up going with us to camp!

What we experienced at Youth Camp in 2012 left us all speechless and in awe of God's love and grace!  The theme for camp was "The Journey" and all the lessons included counselor testimonies and Bible discussions about a relationship with Jesus and sharing with others your new life in Christ.  Day after day as people shared their testimony of how God changed their life, we saw more and more students put their trust in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior!

I stayed in the high school boys' cabin and watched God transform their hearts with His love.  These young men loved and accepted each other like never before!  They opened up, were real with each other, and willingly led by example, by a Godly example. 

By the end of camp, 24 students and 2 counselors had surrendered their hearts and lives to Jesus!  Six to eight more felt convicted and recommitted their lives to following Jesus.  God's love and presence fell on that camp like never before!

On the Sunday night after camp (July 29), we asked the students to share their cardboard testimonies and share with the church how God changed their lives that week.  The service was powerful, and ran an hour over because student after student continued to share what God had done in their life.  By the end of the night, 2 more students put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ!

Thank you Lord for your love and goodness!  Thank you for blessing us with Your Presence!  Thank you for teaching these kids how to love each other!  We give you, Lord Jesus, all the glory and praise!

2012 Youth Camp TEAM BIBLE STUDY

First Mission Trip

#LifeStory [ 11 ]

In July of 2012, I went with several others from our church on my first "mission trip" to Lake Providence, Louisiana.  Our team of four adults and nine students partnered with many others through Mission Serve to paint and put shingles on the roofs of 7 homes in this very poor community.

Before we left, I encouraged the adults and students to write out their personal testimonies and learn the "Romans Road" verses that are often used to lead someone to Christ -- Romans 3:23, 5:8, 6:23; 10:9-13.  Our goal was to serve the residents of Lake Providence by fixing up their homes and thus try to meet their physical needs as we show them the love of Christ.  I challenged our group to share the gospel, and if necessary, use words.

After we arrived, our group was divided in to separate teams to work on the various homes.  Only a few from my church worked on the same house as I, but we met and worked with a lot of other great people.  Living in the home was an older woman by the name of Naomi (I think), whose grandsons would come over and stay every day while their mother worked.  I really enjoyed watching our students play with the two boys (and sometimes up to 12-15 other kids from the neighborhood) and love on them as if they were the best of friends.

On the last night of the trip, we invited the community to worship with us and hear our camp pastor, David (an illusionist) speak.  He shared the gospel, and at the end of the night the two grandsons got saved as they trusted in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior!

The mission trip was a huge success, and our students got a first hand glimpse of how love can draw people to Jesus.  Hopefully, we can plan a trip like this every year for the teens in our church.  Thank you, Jesus!

Adalynn Trusts in Jesus

Adalynn Brooke, my oldest daughter, has always been a deep thinker with a vivid imagination.  For about a year she has been asking a lot of questions about God, Jesus, and salvation.  I love to pray with my girls as I tuck them into bed, and on this night of her momma's birthday, Adalynn ended her prayer by asking Jesus to come into her heart.  

The next morning, September 13, 2011, as Elyssa and Adalynn were pulling into Sharpe Elementary's parking lot before school, Adalynn was talking to her momma about how the devil will try to trick you.  Elyssa explained to her that though he might try to trick you, he can never have your heart if your heart belongs to Jesus.  Adalynn then told her mommy that she had asked Jesus to come into her heart last night.  So Elyssa talked to Adalynn for a minute to make sure she understood what it meant to be saved, and then they prayed together, right there in the car.  Elyssa said Adalynn was beaming as they went into school.  She told all her teachers and friends at school that she got saved that morning.

In the afternoon, when Adalynn came home from school, she asked me to come into the bedroom with her because she had something very exciting to tell me.  She then sat down on my lap, and with a grin spread from ear to ear, she said, "I got saved today!"  I am so proud of her and know the Lord is going to use her in a mighty way!

Real Life Lessons

I love teaching high school, but my favorite teaching moments are when I get to sit down and share with the students REAL life lessons.  These moments are usually sparked when a student asks a question or makes a comment, and I can see in the question an opportunity to share God's Truth.  Often I'll be sitting at my desk while students work, and those who are interested will gather in a tight huddle to hear and learn more.

High school students are stumbling through their teen years trying to figure out who they are and what they want to become.  They need people in their lives to show interest in them, to patiently help them walk through situations, and be there for them when they fall and need help getting back up.

Trouble with Heat

#LifeStory [ 10 ]  Elyssa and I were having trouble getting our furnace to work in our little home. At times we would turn it on and it would work for a couple hours or a day, and then it would quit. There were periods of time when we couldn't get it to turn on at all. Sometimes we would wake up in the morning and the house would be down to 55 degrees. The system was very unpredictable and this continued throughout October and November of 2003.

Then one night, after Elyssa and I returned home from spending the weekend in Sharpe (Elyssa's parents home), we walked into the house and noticed that it was super cold. The thermostat had bottomed out well below 50 degrees. So, before going to sleep, Elyssa and I prayed together that God would cause our furnace to work. He knew our condition and that we couldn't afford to repair or buy a new furnace. So we went to sleep trusting God to meet our needs. Later that night, I awoke around midnight, because I was hot and sweating. The Lord had caused our heat to kick on, and we never had another problem with it again!

Move to Kentucky

#LifeStory [ 9 ] The Lord led our hearts from Missouri to Kentucky, so when our first year of teaching ended, we packed our belongings and moved to Kentucky. We spent the summer with Elyssa's parents as we prayed and asked God to open doors in the direction He wanted us to go. He answered our prayers by providing us both with teaching jobs in the same school district, Murray Independent Schools, in Murray, KY.

The teaching job I landed at Murray High School was part time Technology Education and part time Information Technology (IT). I had no training in IT, so the district sent me to Lexington, KY, for two weeks to be trained in how to teach IT using the Cisco Networking Academy. I had to take two, 4 hour college courses in two weeks; I basically had to take and pass in two weeks the two courses I would teach. The time in Lexington was a blur, but Elyssa went with me and the Lord helped us through it.

We bought a small house in Murray, and lived there for two years, but our hearts were unsettled. We attended several different churches in the area before making Hardin Baptist our church home for about a year. During this time, I studied the scriptures and felt the Lord's Spirit leading me to be baptized by immersion. I followed the Holy Spirit's prompting and was baptized at Hardin Baptist while attending there.

Stolen Watch

#LifeStory [ 8 ] But it got personal when somebody stole my watch. On November 14, 2002, I was helping a student in my woodworking class when my watch became a nuisance, so I took it off, and laid it in front of the computer monitor where I was working. Seconds later, the bell rang, ending 7th period, so I had to go into the other classroom to start the next class. I totally forgot about the watch until late that evening when I cleaned out my pockets before going to bed. The watch had been given to me for my birthday by Glenda Russell, my mother-in-law, the month before. I remembered where I left it, and was determined to look for the watch in the morning, first thing, before my Friday classes started.

The next morning, as soon as I arrived at school, I looked for the watch, but it wasn't there. Now I was angry. I talked to the assistant principal, who told me that based on what he recently learned at an Admin Conference, I would never get my watch back. So, for the rest of the day I told my students that if they heard what happened to my watch to please let me know.

But the more I thought about it, the madder I got over the weekend. I knew it was probably one of four students in my 8th block class who could have taken my watch. When school started on Monday, November 18, I was determined to make that class do book work until my watch reappeared. Those students had taken my watch and I was demanding it be returned or nobody could work in the shop. So, the 8th block students did book work both Monday and Wednesday that week.

On Thursday evening, while reading my Bible, I read this verse: Luke 6:30, “Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back.” This verse was like a slap across my face! These students had taken my watch, and here I was demanding they give it back. At that moment, I got down on my knees, and I prayed, “Lord, you know who has taken my watch. You know how much that watch means to me as a gift from my mother-in-law. I'm sorry for being selfish and demanding back what has been taken from me. Lord, please work in the heart of the person who took my watch; help them to see that what they have done is wrong and give them a repentant heart. Help me to trust in You.”

The next day was Friday, a week after my watch had been stolen, and I allowed my 8th block class to work in the shop again. From that day on, I continued to pray and ask God to work in the heart of the person who had stolen my watch. I trusted God, knowing that He knew everything and was in control of all things.

On Wednesday, November 27, as I was giving a demonstration on how to use a machine, one of the secretaries from the office came into the shop and handed me a white envelope, which they had found behind one of the computers in the office. On the outside of the envelope, my name was written in big letters with a crayon, but on the inside I found my watch! The Lord is faithful to those who trust in Him!

New Wife, New Job, New Life

#LifeStory [ 7 ] My last two years of college were full of Bible studies, Campus Outreach meetings, weekend retreats,
conferences, outreach events, and a host of fun activities with my brothers and sisters in Christ. Throughout this time, Brian Lewis continued to disciple and teach me how to follow Jesus Christ.

An opportunity opened up for me to lead the youth group at a small, local church in Cape, so I did for a semester and enjoyed helping these teens grow in their relationship with Christ. Campus Outreach taught me how to love people, how to study the Bible on my own, how to share my faith and disciple others. My time with this college ministry reached a climax the summer I went to Panama City Beach, Florida, for 10 weeks of Summer Beach Project. I went with the intention of growing in my relationship with Jesus Christ (and I did), but I also met my future wife, Elyssa Russell there!

Wow, she was the most beautiful girl I'd ever seen! I ended up working most of the summer with her, and after several group dates, I knew she was the one for me. Before we left Florida I told her I was going to marry her, and thus began 13 months of courting and our engagement the following Spring. The Lord had plans for me I didn't know about, and He provided me with a wife who perfectly completes what I lack, the best friend and helper I was looking for. We were married on August 24, 2002.

We lived in a small apartment in Sullivan, MO, during our first year of marriage. We both worked at the public school in Cuba, MO. Elyssa worked with Special Education students in both elementary and middle school, while I taught the high school Industrial Arts (drafting and woodworking). We attended the same church as my parents in Union, and led the youth ministry in our church for almost a year.

I loved teaching high school!  I saw my classroom as a mission field and opportunity to reach teens. But it was a difficult area and our faith was tested. The teens were disrespectful, many hung out at the local teen club, and most grew up without any sense of morals or Biblical teaching. Two high school girls skipped school and formed a suicide pact, one girl would shoot her friend in the head, then turn the gun on herself (she shot her friend, but couldn't shoot herself). I had several in class who tested my patience, and several tools were stolen from the shop.

Delivered from the Storm

#LifeStory [ 6 ] As a new Christian, I still struggled with bad habits, but over time God continues to give me the grace and strength to rid my life of sin that has often tripped and tangled me up. His Holy Spirit set me free
from my selfish life of sin, guilt, and condemnation. Sadly, I lost some friends along the way, but God has delivered me from my life of alcohol abuse and given me a new purpose and reason to live – to know and love Him! (John 17:3)

About a year after giving my heart and life to Jesus Christ, the Lord used a situation to strengthen my faith in Him. In the Spring of 2001, while at home on the weekend from college, I left my parents house and headed across the 225 acre family farm in hopes of scouting for turkeys. I knew that a thunderstorm was headed our way, but thought I had time before it hit. I parked my truck at Grandpa and Grandma Koch's, then walked across rolling hills, woods, and pasture land to the back side, but didn't see or hear any turkeys.

The wind was starting to gust and I could hear the thunder in the distance as I watched the huge dark clouds begin rolling in. I turned around to head back, but as I climbed the big hill (where the old Ermin house used to be) lightning crashed nearby and huge rain drops started to fall. I dove for cover on top of the hill in the midst of some huge cedars that had grown close together. The rain started to pound down, but I remained mostly dry as I sat against the huge cedar trunk.

I remember thinking what an idiot I was to find cover on top of a hill, sitting against one of the biggest cedar trees, and the lightning seemed to be tearing up the hillside as it crashed all around me.
But the Lord reminded me of His sovereignty and power as I thought about how Jesus stood in the boat and commanded the wind and the waves to stop. I soon found myself singing out loud the hymn, “How Great Thou Art,” and began praising God, because I knew that despite my circumstances, He was right there with me and was in complete control of the lightning and rain.

I sat there for a few minutes hoping that the rain would ease up, but it only came down harder and the lightning continued to crash all around me. It was almost dark and I knew I had to get back home. So I prayed, and asked the Lord to cause the rain to slack off so I could run back to the truck. Within minutes, the rain suddenly stopped, so I jumped up and took off running! I ran down the long hill, through the cow pasture, and back up the steep hill toward the big barn (about 1⁄2 mile in distance). Within a few yards of my truck, the rain started to come down hard again, but I jumped in the truck before it hit. I sat in the truck for a few minutes and praised God for His faithfulness and grace! He had delivered me from the midst of a severe thunderstorm, and my clothes were still completely dry!

A New Creation

#LifeStory [ 5 ] Campus Outreach (CO) was cool, and had a lot of really nice people. After going to a few meetings, I met a few guys who befriended me, and I started hanging out with them at the meetings some. But they were different. These college students claimed to be Christians (just as I did) but they were different in the sense that they genuinely loved people and loved Jesus. They also had a lot of fun without alcohol or drugs, which was unique on a college campus.

Soon, they invited me to join a Bible study they were starting, led by Brian Lewis, the Campus Outreach director. This study used the CO Bluebook, which basically explored what the Bible taught about the Obedient Christian Life. God used His Word throughout the study to teach me what it meant to have a personal relationship with Jesus and submit to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. God used this verse to open my eyes: 2 Corinthians 5:17, “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!”

A new person? I grew up in church, learned the Bible, and therefore thought I was a Christian, but I had never become a new person. In fact, I had spent my whole life living for me! That night (sometime in the spring of 2000), as I lay in bed thinking about this, I poured out my heart to God. I confessed my sin and how I had been living for myself and pledged with all my heart to live for God and do His will – I wanted to live for Jesus! I thanked Him for dying for me on the cross and asked Jesus Christ to be my Lord and Savior.

That was the end of my old selfish nature.  I am a new person in Christ!  God's Holy Spirit transformed my heart and continues to give me a new love for people, and a heart to know and love Him.  I'm no longer judgmental and quick to "look down upon others."  My thought patterns were continually being challenged and renewed day by day, but I was no longer living in the power of sin!  I'm alive and truly free to live and walk in Christ's righteousness!

College Life

#LifeStory [ 4 ] As I finished high school, I took the advice of a family friend and made plans to attend college to become a drafting and woodworking teacher. I loved technical drawing and enjoyed building things from wood. Oddly enough, I was quick to judge people, and actually didn't like being around most people. So, looking back, I'm not sure why I chose to be a teacher.

In my first two years of college, I commuted to East Central Community College in Union, MO, and there I met new friends who liked to do the things I enjoyed most: fish gigging, partying and drinking. As I completed my first two years, I turned my sights on Southeast Missouri State University (SEMO) in Cape Girardeau, MO, to finish my college education. It wasn't my first pick, but my options were limited, so I went with the one closest to home that offered the degree I was seeking.

My first semester at SEMO was fun and as an independent (no fraternity for me!) I looked for opportunities to sneak beer into my dorm or hit the local bar with more new found friends. Meanwhile, when I did go home to visit and do laundry, an elderly lady at church encouraged me to check out a ministry on SEMO's campus. I didn't see much need because I was already meeting new people and having a lot of fun. Toward the end of the first semester, I did make it a point to figure out where this campus ministry, Campus Outreach, met and decided to check it out in the spring after Christmas break.

Can’t Find My Name

#LifeStory [ 3 ] As a child, my parents instilled in me the habit of praying before going to sleep at night.  In my teenage years I would lay in bed at night, often drunk from alcohol, and out of habit pray to God before going to sleep.  You see, I knew what the Bible taught, and would often ask God to forgive me for being drunk.  But there was no change, only an increased desire for alcohol to fill the emptiness I tried to hide.  Without any sort of purpose in life, alcohol was a version of fun that I could explore with my friends.

My reckless lifestyle produced several near death experiences, and at night I would lay in bed trying to imagine what it would be like to be dead.  I knew what the Bible taught about eternity, but all I could picture was emptiness and darkness.  I was frightened by the thought of being nothing, nonexistent forever and ever.

Then one night I had a dream.  I dreamed an angel of the Lord carried me to Heaven and set me down in front of the Lamb's Book of Life (Revelation 21:27).  This book is described in the Bible as the book that contains all the names of God's people who have been saved by the Blood of the Lamb.  As I stood in front of this huge book, I flipped through the pages, but could not find my name written anywhere.  When I awoke from my dream, I was puzzled. Not sure of how real the dream had been, I kept it to myself, but the Lord had my attention.  I set out to read the Bible from beginning to end, searching for answers and hoping to find something that would ease the emptiness I felt inside.  I longed for something more, but what?

Reckless Abuse

#LifeStory [ 2 ] My ninth grade year was a year of change as I road the bus to attend the consolidated Sullivan Senior
High School in Sullivan, Missouri.  I entered high school determined to be a good person; no cigarettes, drugs, or alcohol for me.  Unfortunately, my convictions changed toward the end of my high school years, and I began to abuse alcohol with my friends as we met for parties at creek crossings, at someone's cabin, or a house when the parents were gone.  Soon, the small lies turned into bigger lies as I tried to hide from my parents the truth of my late night activities.  Reckless driving, parties, property and mailbox destruction, poaching, alcohol abuse, wine making, and the list goes on.  But I went to church on Sunday and still thought I was a Christian.

Somewhere in the middle of my high school years, my family left the little country church I grew up in and became members of Trinity Presbyterian Church, in Union, Missouri.  The church was a little larger, definitely more conservative, and most of it's teaching was based on covenant theology and Calvinism.  The large variation of people in the church taught me to be more loving and accepting of those who are different from me.  However, did rinking always brought out the worst in me, and since the common view was that it's okay to drink alcohol as long as you don't get drunk, I continued to drink and abuse alcohol.

The Early Days

#LifeStory [ 1 ] The first of seven, I was born on October 5, 1978, to my wonderful parents, Stan and
Sue Koch. Dad taught me how to work on the family farm (chickens, goats, pigs, sheep, horses, and cattle) and in the family business, Koch & Sons Water Well Drilling, Inc. Mom taught me how to cook, sew, and care for animals. As the oldest, I often watched my siblings and loved to aggravate and play with them.

As a child I grew up in a small rural school and an even smaller rural church. For kindergarten, I enrolled at Spring Bluff Elementary school and graduated from eighth grade as salutatorian with 14 other students. My parents raised me in a small country church, Old Argo Presbyterian, in Japan, Missouri. Our church family enjoyed cooking apple butter, eating potluck meals, performing Christmas plays, and always drew a crowd with Vacation Bible School in the summers.

There weren't many kids in the church and my parents were often my Sunday School teachers. One year we watched a video series by Ray Vander Laan, who would teach the Bible to a group of people as they toured the Holy Land. Around the age of 13, I remember one particular session in which Ray presented the Good News, and emphasized the importance of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. I remember thinking, "That's what I want!", but didn't know how. You see, while growing up in church, I learned all the Bible stories, and could tell you a lot of stuff about God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, the Lamb's Book of Life, and many other stories found in the Bible. I thought because I went to church and tried to be a good person that I was a Christian, but I didn't KNOW God and soon my actions would tell a different story.