When trying to decide how to best describe my situation in E2 ministry, I thought back to when I committed my life to Christ. I became a believer in 1996 when I was a freshman in college under the guidance of a staff member for Campus Crusade for Christ. What came to mind thinking about the past is the amount of time Clay spent with me before I finally put all the pieces of the puzzle together. We met for months on a weekly or biweekly basis until one day, it all clicked and the Holy Spirit revealed God’s plan to me. That was just the beginning- we met so many times over the next 3 years, discussing everything from basic salvation principles to whether we were pre/mid/post tribulation- all the things new believers (and college students) love to debate.
After I left school I sort of lost initiative and didn’t really grow spiritually, much less witness to others. Thankfully that period didn’t last long as I was soon blessed to be able to spend time with Hank, a person who spent countless hours with me and other men—even more so than Clay did and I was able to learn from him and use his example to get back into the Word. Because of the time I spend with him, (10+ years!) I learn more than I ever could on my own and using his example, I have been trying to do the same with others. Hank is probably tired of me and my questions by now, I would suspect.
Anyway, in all seriousness, I have been meeting with a guy for several years now- shared Christ, went through John, Galatians, some OT stuff, and now Romans. He is ready to now start doing the same for others. I also have an old friend who is starting to want to get together weekly- wasn’t so at first but the more we talk, the more he comes around. I also do a 3-man group sharing session and meet with Hank weekly as well. I don’t have a legion of followers (and I am not sure I would want that now), but the two guys I am meeting with now, the time we have, I am thankful for God for allowing us to learn from each other. Granted, it is not always easy- I work a lot and have a wife and 2 young kids who I’d much rather be with and it is hard sometimes to juggle all the responsibilities and make sure I have my time with my own family but I try.
I guess my point is this: While I pray often for more men to meet with, even though I only have one 2 Tim 2:2 man and potentially another, I believe time is the most effective tool in meeting with men and I am grateful for God providing me with both. One has to devote the time in order to enable other faithful men to teach others.
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