Cedarville Magazine, Spring 2014

AddMission Your Life andMinistry APPLY TODAY cedarville.edu/onlinebible online Bible Program vision for our current ministry. We want to share life with students and minister to them up close. Under Mark Irving’s leadership, I learned the art of “focusing on a few” — facilitating small-group discussions, writing Bible study guides, providing a listening ear over coffee or pizza, and serving together. We’vemodeledmuch of our of youthministry after Discipleship Ministries’ multiplication approach. As with Discipleship Council, we train both our adult and student leaders to minister to smaller groups of students. Our young-adult ministry is also built on building community and sharing in each other’s lives. Our home has become a place where we regularly discuss the Word, share both struggles and victories, and our students know where to find the dishes (and food) in our kitchen. I often wonder how different our ministry would be if I had not experienced intentional relationship-building as a member of Discipleship Ministries. I’m eternally grateful for the desire instilled in me at Cedarville for being “passionately insignificant” for the cause of the Kingdom. I am confident it will follow me wherever the Lord takes us. Andy Johnson ’14 is a ​biology premed major from ​Lowell, Michigan. He is a member of Discipleship Council. Michael Brittan ’15 is a mechanical engineering major from Mattawan, Michigan. He has been a Discipleship Leader for two years. KristinWright ’14 is a nursing major fromLong Grove, Illinois. She has been both a member and a team leader of discipleship small groups. Megan (Bartoletti) Johnson ’06 and her husband, Adam, lead the youth and young adults at Martinsburg Grace Brethren Church in Pennsylvania. There she applies what she learned as a Discipleship Council member. What We Pray About Kristin Wright ’14 Discipleship Ministries has had a profound impact on my college experience. My favorite part has been the opportunity to hear others share testimonies about their journey with the Lord (we call this a “life map”). I have had several opportunities to share my life map, but one experience stands out. After sharing my story with nine other leaders, the group circled around me, thanked the Lord for my journey, and prayed words of blessing over my future. I walked away unspeakably blessed by this gift — the power of encouraging prayer is hard to articulate. Discipleship Ministries has taught me so much about prayer. As a leader, I don’t always know how to address the challenges that my team of girls face. But I have learned that when words fail me, God provides ultimate hope. God’s Word promises that the prayers of the righteous “avail much” (James 5:16). Regardless of the circumstances, I can rest on the encouragement of that promise. As I have sought to develop my prayer life, I have learned how much the Lord delights in giving good gifts to His children. He loves to answer our prayers to grow in righteousness. I am overwhelmed to know that the God and Creator of the universe not only knows my future — He walks with me, guides me, and joins me in the journey. How We Live It Out Megan (Bartoletti) Johnson ’06 Last night our home was overrun by teenagers and college students. It was loud. It was messy. It was a late night. And we loved every minute of it. There’s no need to check our sanity; it was just another night in youth and young adult ministry. After graduating from Cedarville, I married my husband, Adam, and joined him in his youth ministry adventure. It’s become increasingly evident howmuch the Cedarville experience has shaped both our hearts and ministries in the last eight years. Howard Hendricks said, “You can impress people from a distance, but you can only impact them up close.” My involvement in Discipleship Ministries at Cedarville formed the heartbeat and