Evangelism & Discipleship Journal Entries

Week 1:

This week I realized something that was missing in my life. Thursday as I listen to Dr.

Bumpers talk about his testimony, I felt that I am in a similar place he was in. I find myself in a

position where I feel like an imposter. I know many things about Christ and His gospel, but I

don’t have an intimate relationship with Him. Dr. Bumpers lecture hit my soul hard, but my

pride tried to forget about its message. Right after the lecture I had the Accelerate Orientation

Dinner where Taylor DiRoberto discussed with the students the Accelerate about the problems

that may arise in our seminary education. These problems were from Helmut Thielicke’s A Little

Exercise for Young Theologians and B.B. Warfield’s The Religious Life of Theological Students.

As DiRoberto discussed the problems of your intellectual knowledge exceeding that of your

spiritual growth and a lack of love for those ignorant of theological topics I felt that everything

that he was describing was about me.

Thank the Lord that He called me out of this spiritual darkness! I feel that I have been

shown how I was completely self-centered on my own intellectual prowess and not focusing on

the cross in an actual relationship with my Savior. As soon as the orientation dinner was over I

sought to develop a closer relationship with Christ this semester through not only my studies but

also through diligent reading of the Word and prayer. God has shown me that I need to rely on

Him more and not myself. Without a intimate relationship with God I have relied on my own

strength and knowledge to get me through my everyday.

Week 2:

This week the Lord has shown me that I tend to rely on many other things in my life

instead of Jesus. I saw that I would tend to rely on my own knowledge or character to get me

through the week without consciously thinking about or acknowledging what ways God has been

there for me the entire time. I tend to go with my day without looking to Christ for my guidance

or my comfort, as a result I have been struggling with finding joy in my day-to-day events. I did

finally start reading my Bible somewhat regularly this week. I read through the book of

Philippians and have thought deeply about this letter. There are two passages in this book that I

felt God had convicted me about through this reading which were Philippians 2:1-11 and

Philippians 3:12-21.

As I read Philippians 2:1-11 I came to realization of the importance of humility in

the Christian walk. It says in verse four that we are to look not only at our own interests but also

for the interests of others. Paul then goes on to show how humility is central to Christ’s life on

earth. The stunning fact of Jesus’ incarnation and sacrificial death on the cross is

incomprehensible to me. Not only that but also that because of Jesus’ humility He was exalted

because of it is such a mystery to me. I pray that God gives me a heart of humility as I walk to

grow in a better relationship with Him and with those around me. The other passage that caught

my eye was Philippians 3:12-21. What God showed me in this passage is that I should stay

focused on the call that God has set for me and not on my own plans. Despite the works and

actions, you do in life it is not what should push us forward but the call of Christ. As I live out

the rest of this semester, I pray that God keeps that on my heart.
Week 3:

This week I have started a Bible reading plan that my church is doing. We are reading

through Mark. I have done my best to try and pray more often as I find myself forgetting often. I

intend on going out evangelizing with some friends whenever they go out soon so hopefully we

can do that often. This week I started quarantine with my roommate since our suitemate tested

positive of COVID. My plan is to stay busy with schoolwork and reading the Word.

This week the Lord has taught me to look at my surroundings and take in the world that

the Lord has given us. I find it awesome that God would be so generous to give us a place filled

with His craftsmanship. Not only in nature, but also in the people God has made that are in my

life. I pray that as I enter this period of quarantine that I can keep that in mind; although I am

trapped in a room for the next 14 days God is still good.

Week 4:

This week has been long but has ultimately been a blessing from God. I have managed to

continue my Bible reading while in quarantine. I have also found plenty of time to continue my

time in prayer. Although, since I was in quarantine, I did go evangelizing with my friends. But

from what I heard it was a good experience for them. I have been able to spend quality time with

my roommate and have hung out with him when I am not doing school which is a blessing (also

not testing positive for COVID was very good). I have also had plenty of time to work on school

which is another blessing from God

This week God has taught me that I can should seek God wherever the Lord puts me. I

have also been taught that reading the Bible is not only an important spiritual discipline, but it

can also be a great time for reading in general. I think that if someone looks at the Bible just as

something that should be read on Sunday mornings and Wednesday nights underestimates the

great treasures of wisdom in God’s divinely inspired Word. I pray that I continue meditating on

God’s Word during quarantine and continue when I leave.

Week 5:

This week I have left quarantine, which was a huge relief, I was starting to think that I

was going to go insane in there. I have been able to unite with my friends through quality

fellowship time both in the dorms and in the classroom. I have also been continuing my bible

reading but I have started to forget about it at points. I feel that I might be pushing it off to do

more schoolwork. Other than that, my prayer walk has been going strong.

This week God has taught me that I should rely on the Lord for my strength. Whether in

times of prosperity or in times of desperation I should seek the Lord, as He is my protector and

savior. Another thing that God has taught me during this week is that God is always there when

you call on Him. As I return to normal social life I have found it hard to continue my quiet time

with the Lord. So my goal this upcoming week is to try and solidify my Bible intake.
Week 6:

This week has been very productive school wise. I have been able to work on a lot of

school, but I have been failing greatly to open and read the Word. While this week was a good

week for my prayer life, it was not for my reading of the Word. I need to kick myself into gear to

read my Bible, I know the importance of it in the Christian walk, but I have slowly drifted away

from it. My plan is to work on my Scripture reading and rely on it for my daily renewal.

This week I have learned that God is good no matter what the circumstance. In the highs

and lows of life God is always there to help me in the situation no matter the circumstances.

After recent rising stress and conflicts with friends, I realize that I can call on God to give me the

comfort and strength to get through. I pray that I can rely on the Lord more throughout the

semester.
Week 7:

This week has been better for my continued development of the Spiritual Disciplines. I

have begun to slowly grow in my Spiritual Disciplines. I have started up my Bible reading plan

again, trying to catch up to where I am supposed to be. My prayer life is still going strong, which

is definitely a blessing from God. While my Bible reading and my prayer like is great, my

opportunities for evangelism seem to be very small. My plan for the next week is to take a break

off school and evangelize.

I have learned that God is very gracious to His children. I feel that I have been neglecting

to confess many sins in my life that have been deeply rooted in my daily life. I have confessed

my sins and I am exceedingly grateful for the Lord’s kindness and grace to me. I pray that I can

continue to confess my sins and learn to reflect on God’s kindness and grace often.
Week 8:

This week was a blessing from God. Reading week has allowed me to focus more on God

and to work harder on my schoolwork. The Bible reading that my church is going through has

moved from Mark to Romans, which seems like it will be a fun study. My prayer life has also

been going well, I feel that there might be sometimes that I can get distracted very easily but I

plan on fixing that. I have had a couple opportunities to share the gospel this week, and that is a

great thing! Although these people didn’t get saved, the seed was planted either way. My plan is

to stay strong the week I return to campus.

The Lord has taught me this week that I have been very prideful about my intelligence

lately. I never thought that I had a problem with pride, but God has shown me that I do indeed

take pride in my knowledge about the Word. I have taken the time to pray to God and ask for

forgiveness about this issue. I hope that as my theological education continues that this does not

become a reoccurring issue within me.

Week 9:

This week was a good week, despite some of its problems. My Spiritual Disciplines have

started to take a slow decline as schoolwork becomes a more pressing issue in my free time and

daily activities. I’m slowly starting to fall behind in my Bible reading, which has happened

before but I can start to loose my pace if I’m behind by a lot. My prayer life this week has still

been lackluster, hopefully I can keep pushing myself to make more time to pray. My plan for

next week is to set school aside and work on my disciplines for the betterment of my Christian

walk.

This week that God has taught me is His sovereign over His creation and that He is

personal. The Creator of the Universe is not only in control of every action that is done by

people, but is also willing to have a relationship with His creation. The sovereignty of God and

His love for His creation is a marvelous mystery that the Lord has shown me this week. I pray

that God gives me the strength to meditate on this truth more throughout the week.
Week 10:

This week has been one of the worst weeks for me spiritually. I have been not reading my

Bible at all recently. I have also not been praying recently. This week has been very stacked with

assignments and other responsibilities and I have been drenched in things that have taken up a lot

of my time. I feel that I have not been relying on the Lord’s guidance, and I feel very ashamed of

it. Since Easter Break is coming up I plan on taking this time to return to my spiritual disciplines.

I pray that God helps me and gives me the strength to follow him well.

This week has shown me that a Christian should rely on God for their strength. Many

times this week as I was working on schoolwork I felt awful, but I only look to Him when I felt

that it was a last result. God has shown me that I should rely on the Lord for all my struggles. I

pray that God helps me in this endeavor and that I can look to Him in times of trouble.
Week 11:

I have recently bought The Valley of Vision to help me with my prayer walk. My plan is

to read it both after my Bible reading and periodically throughout my day to pray as much as I

can. As for my bible reading, I have started to strengthen it by having an accountability partner

to make sure that I dig into the Word everyday like I should be. Since this is Holy Week, I

figured I would read through the crucifixion narrative in John. Having memorized this passage a

couple of years ago it was a great reminder of what I had memorized. As I am reading through

Spiritual Disciplines this week I intend to write down things that I find compelling as well as

things that I need to improve on in my spiritual walk.

This week God has taught me a few things. One thing that the Lord has taught me is that I

should strive to look to Him instead of my sinful habits. This week I made a major push for my

pursuit of holiness by installing Covenant Eyes on my phone so that I am not tempted by sexual

sin on my phone. I thank God for giving me the strength to win this hard battle against my flesh

this week and that He will be by my side as I continue this fight.

Another thing that God has taught me this week is that the Lord is gracious to those who

trust Him. This week I was accepted into both the Resound Network’s Summer Internship with

the SBC and Midwestern as well as Student Leadership for MBTS. I was a little worried that I

wasn’t going to be accepted into Student Leadership due to the number of other people who

applied and the fact that with the Christian Leadership that I took last semester that they

wouldn’t want me. Thankfully, God saw that He could use me in these upcoming opportunities

to serve the Kingdom. I am looking to latch on to His guiding hand as these responsibilities come

close.
Week 12:

This week has gone extremely well. Returning to begin fellowship with my friends in the

dorms was a great blessing. My schoolwork has not been that intense, which inturn has helped

me to focus on my Bible reading and my prayer time. God has helped me a lot with the

development of my spiritual disciplines. While my time in Scripture and prayer time has been

exceedingly well, it has not been the case with my evangelism. My plan is to get out

evangelizing within the next week.

The Lord has taught me this week that it is a blessing to have godly friends in your life.

This week I was able to return to campus and hang out with my friends. This week I realized

how much of a blessing that my friends have been to me. Whenever I didn’t have a ride

somewhere or when we went to QT to get some snacks but I wasn’t willing to spend my money

they would help me out whenever I needed it. I praise God that He has been so kind to me

through his providential care to bring these people in my life.

Week 13:

This week has been great for my spiritual walk. I have found the time to do more of my

scripture reading. I have also done fairly well in my prayer time. The times that I went

evangelizing I don’t feel that I was in the right place mentally when I went out. My plan for next

week is to stay on course with my Bible reading and daily prayer time.

This week God has taught me to seek forgiveness amongst brothers. Due to some

misunderstanding with some friends, I became fairly angry at them over something that I should

not have been angry at them for. I lashed out at them thinking it was their fault but in realty it

was my fault for not reading the text where it was explicitly laid out. I have sought forgiveness

and they have accepted my apology. I pray that God allows me to learn from this experience.
Week 14:

This week has been worst than the last when comparing my spiritual disciplines. I have

lost my pace when it comes to my Bible reading, I’m behind around 3 days at this point. My

prayer life is alright, I haven’t been praying as much as I was last week. I haven’t been

evangelizing with anyone lately which has made me a little sad. I plan to do better in my spiritual

disciplines in the next week.

This week the Lord has taught me to be forgiven. One of my friends recently has been

being rude to me while we hang out with our other friends. The last time he was being rude I told

him what I thought about his recent behavior. At first, he was defensive about his actions but

later apologized. I accepted his apology, and we have started to rekindle our friendship. I pray

that God gives me the strength to continue in my friendship with my friend.

Week 15:

This week has been a great week and a bad week at the same time. My school life and

spiritual disciplines have been great! But I am also sad that the semester is ending. The Lord has

taught me a lot this semester and I plan on continuing in my spiritual disciplines as the summer

rolls around.

This week the Lord has taught me that I can rely on Jesus when I get stressed. As this is

the last week before Finals week I have become super bogged down by assignments and other

projects that I have due next week. I have found comfort knowing that Christ is with me no

matter what struggles I face. I pray that I remember this not only next week during Finals but

also for the rest of my student semester.