Grace Notes

Thoughts

Is it a Setback or a Catapult? (By Sarah Hancock)

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“How would you sum up what God has been teaching you recently in one sentence?”

That’s a question I was asked this summer.

I thought for a moment and said: “The very thing that feels like a setback in ministry is often the very thing God is using to increase our ministry.”

This past summer was full of setbacks, mostly related to mold. We’ve been dealing with mold at our house, mold at the Bright Lights office, sickness and health struggles related to mold, and house remodeling needs. I am not sure how all these things are going to work for the furtherance of our ministry, but I am reminded of a situation that happened nearly 11 years ago …

It was November of 2015. I was working on my book, Speak Truth in Your Heart, and I was really wanting to focus on it without distractions during the fall months. Then Dad made an announcement at the Bright Lights office. “I just got off the phone. It looks like we are going to be hosting company next week! A group of students from a Bible college is coming to do a one-week-internship with us, working with our ministry and church.”

What?!! I thought. What about my plans to work on my book?? I was tempted to complain, knowing this would take a lot of work to organize and accommodate. (Sometimes my dad doesn’t realize how much work something is going to be when he says yes!)

But the Lord impressed on me that if this is something Dad thought we should do, I should support him wholeheartedly. We ended up having a wonderful week with these students. We formed great relationships, and saw the Lord work through the various outreaches and events in encouraging ways.

However, looking back ten years later, I can now see that the Lord worked in even bigger ways that particular week.

1) There were two unique conversations that week that turned out to be perfect illustrations for the book that I was writing!

2) I met a young Chinese woman who was a brand new Christian at one of the outreaches. I started discipling her, and now ten years later, she and I continue to have regular Bible studies and she has become a dear friend. I was even matron of honor in her wedding!

3) That same week, I also met a young man named Chance at one of our outreaches. He was an atheist and the leader of the secular group at the University of Iowa. We had some great conversations with him. Though I don’t think he has come to Christ yet, he is the one who introduced our family to a man named Eric Macdonald, who is the one who introduced me to my husband, Andrew! But that’s another story. 🙂

… As you can guess, I am very thankful for those students who spent a week with us in November of 2015! It felt like a setback at the time, but the Lord used it in huge, life-changing ways!

I can’t see the full picture of our current season of “setbacks.” I don’t know how the Lord is going to work it all together for good. I have seen a few glimpses of His working, but I certainly don’t know the whole picture yet. But I know that the very thing that feels like a setback in ministry is often the very thing God is using to increase our ministry. We can trust Him!

What is a situation in your life right now that feels like a setback? How can you trust the Lord to use it as a catapult for His glory?

Testify Training Camp

Seeing Fruit from Years Past (By Sarah Hancock)

“What’d you get?” a young man named Trevor asked me at the Iowa State fair.

“It’s a beef brisket sandwich,” I replied.

After chatting briefly, I said, “I’m helping with the Noah’s Ark booth.”

“Oh! Someone from your booth actually witnessed to me two years ago, and I’m a Christian now!” Trevor said.

That definitely got my attention, and I was curious to hear more.

“Really? That’s so encouraging!” I exclaimed, “When did you become a Christian?”

“Well, that talk at the fair got me thinking about spiritual things,” Trevor explained, “… and then two months later I trusted in Christ as my Savior.”

Trevor told me that he is part of a church now and also has joined a campus ministry. He said he loves to evangelize, and his coworker (who had been part of the original conversation) got saved two months after he did. Praise the Lord!

Later I learned that Tony Ramsek was the one who had originally shared the gospel with Trevor. It was an exciting meeting when Trevor came over to the booth to talk to Tony.

“Do you remember me?” Trevor asked him with a smile on his face.

“I’m sorry,” Tony replied. “I don’t think I do. Can you remind me how we met?”

Trevor laughed.

“You shared the gospel with me several years ago.”

After reminding him of the details of their conversation, Tony did remember! In fact, he even had a picture from when they met. (Of course, they had to get another one this year – see below.) What a special encouragement it was for Tony to see fruit from a conversation from years past!

Trevor’s story is an encouraging reminder that God continues His work even if we never see the person again. God’s Word goes forth and does not return empty (Isaiah 55:11). God’s Word bears fruit and multiplies (just as Trevor is now sharing the gospel with others!)

As I Corinthians 3:6 says, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.”

Uncategorized/Witnessing Stories

Surprise Meetings (By Josiah Moffitt)

I am unskilled in music but decided to try guitar lessons anyway. I would have quit the guitar lessons earlier, but the Lord was opening up many opportunities for the gospel with my teacher, Ben.* We spent a portion of each lesson discussing the gospel and spiritual things.

One day, the guitar lesson before me was running overtime. As the student came out, I was surprised I recognized him. I had witnessed to him downtown Cedar Rapids a week earlier at the St Patrick’s Day parade!

“Hey Cameron*! How are you doing?” I asked him, “Did you read the tract I gave you?”

A week before, when a friend and I had been at the St. Patrick’s Day parade handing out tracts, we approached a group of bored teenagers. Cameron and his friends listened politely, answered a few questions, and then I had asked for their names and thanked them for taking the time to listen. My friend and I had prayed for them by name, and I expected I would never see them again.

Yet here was Cameron again—just waiting for his mom to pick him up after his lesson. We had another five-minute conversation going over the gospel. After Cameron left, the guitar teacher, Ben, said, “Cameron needed to hear that. He is causing all sorts of problems at home.” This opened up another opportunity to talk about the gospel with my guitar teacher. During that lesson, I think we spent 5 minutes doing guitar and 40 minutes talking about what Jesus did on the cross.

Over the course of the guitar lessons, I had many gospel conversations with Ben. When his mother was on hospice, I gave him 10 copies of an evangelistic book, One Heartbeat Away by Mark Cahill and 10 copies of Afterlife by Warren Henderson to give to his family as they visited his mother. He was so thankful for the thoughtfulness and said his family appreciated the books. He only returned two books to me because he gave away the rest.

The Lord orchestrates conversations and opportunities in ways that we cannot imagine. He brings us in touch with those who need to hear the gospel.

While I grew up knowing the gospel and wanting to reach the lost, it wasn’t until I took a class on personal evangelism in my college years that I began effectively sharing my faith. That is one of the reasons I enjoy seeing people come to our Testify camps and get equipped to share Christ so that they also can put into action their desire to reach the lost.

If you have been considering coming to Testify, we encourage you to take the step and sign up! No previous witnessing experience is required.

Being together with a group of other believers who have a heart to share the gospel, and knowing you are not doing it alone, is truly an awesome experience! Testify is always such an amazing time of seeing the Lord open doors for gospel conversations, and seeing Christians grow in boldness and confidence.

“and I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ” (Philemon 6).

*Names changed for the sake of privacy.

Bright Lights Local Group

Celebrating 30 Years of Bright Lights (By Sarah Hancock)

There was a knock at the door. It was the night of our first Bright Lights meeting, and the very first girl had arrived! She was a little shy, but she seemed happy to be there. I welcomed her inside, wondering how the evening would go. I was a little nervous myself as more girls arrived and began to fill our living room. But mostly, I was excited about what the Lord was going to do.

That night I told the girls what Bright Lights was all about. “This is not just a group for fun and games,” I explained. “This is for girls who really want to seek the Lord. The Lord wants to use you now—while you are young!”

In the months that followed, it was very encouraging to see these girls growing in Christ and taking the lessons seriously. I found that they were hungry for truth. They enjoyed learning, and they wanted to grow deeper in their relationship with the Lord and serve Him more. That was the beginning of Bright Lights—in June of 1996. Since that time it has been exciting to see how God has worked in these girls’ lives, using them in many different ways as they have served Him. Some have gone to the mission field, some are raising godly families, some have represented Christ in a secular workplace, and many of them have continued to disciple others.

Sadly, people often seem to have the expectation that the teen years will be trouble. For example, when a three-year-old is throwing a fit, someone might say, “You think this is bad—just wait till she’s thirteen!” When teens act in irresponsible and foolish ways, people often dismiss it with, “Oh, they’re just being teenagers!” Or a parent might say, “I have a teenager now! Pray for me!”

Young people often have this attitude also. They think, “Right now is a time to have fun and to do whatever I want. I can take life more seriously when I get older.”

But this is not the perspective we find in God’s Word! In fact, listen to Paul’s instruction to Timothy: “Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity” (1 Tim. 4:12). Wow! God expected Timothy to be an example to the church in his youth. This was a high calling, and it is God’s desire for each of us as well.

We praise the Lord for blessing Bright Lights with 30 years of ministry! Our local group in Cedar Rapids is still meeting (pictured above), and there are 854 Bright Lights groups that have started in 18 countries. Over the years, we have held 136 live Bright Lights conferences and 14 online conferences. Not only have these conferences encouraged many young girls and moms, but they have been wonderful training opportunities for our staff. We give God the glory for how He has multiplied our five loaves and two fish, and for the MANY people He has raised up who have served in and supported this ministry over the years!

May the Lord continue to raise up young woman around the globe who stand for truth, share the love of Christ, proclaim the gospel and shine their light in this dark world! “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 5:14–16).

Uncategorized/Witnessing Stories

Handing out the Price of Liberty tract

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Tips for Handing Out Tracts

• Be confident!
If you are bold and unashamed, people will be more receptive. Be confident. Look them in the eyes. Assume that they are going to be really happy to receive it. If you are comfortable, they will feel more comfortable too. Treat it like a gift you are giving them, because that’s essentially what it is.

• Be joyful!
Smile. Be warm and friendly. Remember the great privilege you have to share God’s truth!

• Plan in advance what you are going to say.
“Our nation is celebrating 250 years. Here is something about the price of liberty for you to think about.”
“Happy Fourth of July!”
“We’re passing these out today—here’s one for you!”
“Here is something for you to read about the price of freedom.”
“Here is a gospel tract for you. This message changed my life.”

Questionnaire for witnessing with the Price of Liberty tract

I (Harold) use 4 easy questions. It is especially easy if people are sitting around in little groups waiting for fireworks to start. But it can be used anytime, anywhere with either a group or individual. Here’s how it goes.

“Did you get one of these?” I say, as I hand them a tract.
“It’s about the price of liberty.” They almost always take it and say thank you.
“Would you be willing to take my 4 question freedom quiz?” “Um . . . sure.”
“Question 1 – What year did our founders sign the Declaration of Independence?” (1776) Believe it or not, few people get this right.
“Question 2 – What freedom do you value the most?” (Most people say the freedom of speech or the right to carry a gun)
“Question 3 – Who said, ‘You shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free’? (Few people know the answer but they guess and are very curious to hear who it is. The answer, of course, is Jesus. See John 8:32.)
“Question 4 – This is the last question – Since Jesus said the truth will set you free, what is that truth that will set you free?” (This is a real stumper for most people but they almost always want to hear the answer.)

After I give a brief but clear explanation of the gospel they usually agree with it. I say to them, “You have heard this before, haven’t you?”

They often say they have, and I explain that what I am doing is clarifying it for people. I say something like this: “I’m helping people understand it clearly because it requires a decision. Eternity is at stake. It needs to go from the head to the heart. Many people know the facts but they have never asked God for forgiveness. They have never asked for eternal life.”

If I am talking to just one individual and if they have been receptive, I usually ask them if they have ever asked God for forgiveness and made the decision to trust in Christ to save them.

Newsletter

God’s Faithfulness (By Harold Mally)

It was 10:00 am. My phone rang and it was Nickie. I knew she was leaving at 9:00 am, taking a group of Bright Lights girls to volunteer for a conference at the Ark Encounter. I could think of no reason she would call unless there was a problem.

“Hi Nickie. Is everything okay?”

“The van isn’t running right,” she said. “It sort of died and then started running again. Or maybe it wasn’t shifting right. It’s weird. I don’t know what’s going on, but it’s running alright at the moment.”

I thought for a second. She had a 500-mile trip today but hadn’t left town yet. She was still picking up the girls who were going with her.

“Pick up the girls and come back to Marion and meet me at L&L (our local auto shop). I’ll get there first and give Mike a heads up so he knows what to check.”

Mike was ready when Nickie pulled in. He found two problems. The transmission fluid was low and there was a loose cable to the battery. I had cleaned the battery posts and tightened the terminals, but there was a secondary cable that had apparently gotten loose that I hadn’t noticed.

We were so happy with a quick pit-stop and such easy fixes. Nickie was able to hit the road with peace of mind. And I had peace of mind too.

We were reminded that we had experienced God’s protection yet again. It’s hard to count the number of times God has protected us by arranging our breakdowns in convenient places. We have had flat tires in front of tire shops, alternator trouble twice near Christian owned shops, electrical problems in our driveway instead of the middle of nowhere, a brake fluid line break the day BEFORE we left (instead of being unable to stop somewhere in heavy traffic), a battery explode as we came to the welcome sign of our home town after a 2,500 mile trip, and a dozen more such examples of traveling protection.

It’s not that God keeps us from all car trouble, but He has allowed it when and where we can get help. And of course God protects in countless ways, not just traveling mercy.

As we know, God’s faithfulness is evident in every area of our lives. We have many pressures, stresses, and traumas of life that are bigger and more troubling than vehicles. Disease, disappointment, distress and disasters of all sorts are ever confronting us. But all these things are reminders to thank Him for His faithfulness. And also they drive us to Him and to His Word. What Scripture do you go to when facing life’s trials (big or small)?

• “David strengthened himself in the Lord” – when he thought he had lost all (1 Sam. 30:6).
• “I am with you to the end of the age” – Jesus is ever near. He will not abandon us (Matt. 28:20).
• “My God shall supply all your need according to the riches . . .” – Paul commends the Philippians for their generosity and gives them this promise (Phil. 4:19).
• “All things work together for good to them that love God . . .” – God is powerful and we can trust Him to carry out His good purposes (Rom. 8:28).
• “ Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace . . .” – We have a great High Priest representing us (Heb. 4:16).

Uncategorized

A Shattered Dream (By Harold Mally)

All during my college years at Taylor University, I volunteered for Youth for Christ. The YFC director was a young man named Earl Bailey. He helped me in many ways in my personal walk with Christ. He and I became great friends and he was a big encouragement to me. When Rebekah and I got married, we asked him to perform our ceremony.

Earl had a desire to go to the mission field and felt specifically called to Borneo (a large island in Southeast Asia). He was excitedly preparing for this work. But something happened that hindered his plans and changed the course of his life. He was diagnosed with MS and became greatly incapacitated by this illness. For the rest of his life he would be limited in what he could do, and he was always in pain.

All the doors that had seemed wide open suddenly slammed closed. What was God doing? He didn’t know.

Though limited, there was still something he could do—he could preach. So, instead of going to the mission field, he started a radio ministry. Before long he was on a large network of stations world-wide. People would send him letters with questions or letters of gratefulness for his teaching. He would get letters from all over the world. He had so many letters!

One time when our family was visiting him, he painfully hobbled over to his desk and pulled a stack of letters from a drawer.

“Guess where these are from?” he said. “They are from Kalimantan.”

He went on to explain: “For the longest time I wondered why I got so many letters from this place called Kalimantan. I didn’t even know where that was. Then one day I was talking to a friend and asked if he knew anything about the country of Kalimantan. My friend said, ‘Oh, that used to be known as Borneo.’”

With tears in his eyes, Earl told us, “God did use me in Borneo, but by a different way than I ever expected.”

What Earl saw as a hindrance was actually God’s way of accomplishing something even greater. Through his radio ministry he was able to reach far more people in that country (and other countries) than he would have if he had actually gone to Borneo.

Earl is with the Lord now, but the Lord’s work continues on—in Kalimantan and around the world.

This story of my friend Earl reminds me of Paul’s words to the Romans, “Now I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that I often planned to come to you (but was hindered until now), that I might have some fruit among you also, just as among the other Gentiles” (Romans 1:13).

It’s interesting to me that even though Paul had a good desire to establish the saints in Rome, he was hindered from actually getting there. (It makes me feel better that I’m not the only who gets hindered. I’m in good company with Paul.) Paul did eventually get to Rome, but in God’s time and in God’s way (arrest and a Roman escort). Nothing hinders God. God gets all His work done according to His perfect timing and in His way.

There’s a good side to Paul being hindered. It is because of this that we have the letter to the Romans! Paul never stopped praying for the Roman church to be strengthened in their faith (Romans 1:9-11). God answered Paul’s prayer, but He accomplished it in a different and better way. God used Paul not only to establish the Romans, but to establish us. Paul did get to go to Rome but not before he put the gospel in writing for Christians of all time to read. God hindered Paul for a reason.

Do you have goals that are being hindered, like I do? Let us move ahead with faith and prayer for the Lord’s time and the Lord’s way.

Uncategorized

Redirecting My Thoughts (By Grace Moffitt)

I was in our church’s nursery during the service, trying to get a large snarl out of my daughter’s hair, when a thought came into my mind. “If ‘such and such a friend’ had two little girls my girls’ ages, she’d probably bring them to church with two perfect French braids in their hair every Sunday.”

Rather than worshipping the Lord, I listened to that thought and began feeling discouraged at my failures.

So often when I feel discouraged as a mom it’s because I’m comparing myself to someone else (or an imaginary supermom). I’m allowing thoughts like, “Other moms would have this child potty trained by now,” “Another mom would have this behavior managed better,” or “Another mom would have this part of her house better organized.”

These thoughts aren’t energizing and life-giving. Rather, they sap joy. They make me a less patient Mommy.

The Lord told Peter, “You follow Me!” Jesus didn’t want Peter’s eyes on John. He wanted his eyes on HIM (John 21).

Jesus is the One who knows me through and through. He knows what kind of a week I had. He knows what is uniquely challenging in my life. He knows how I’ve grown! He is compassionate. He is understanding. He is patient.

In that nursery on that Sunday morning, I needed to redirect my thoughts and “Turn [my] eyes upon Jesus, look full in HIS wonderful face…” !

Is He disappointed in me that my girls came to church with tangled hair and dirty crocks … again? No. Who am I coming to church to see after all? Am I there to worship Him? Then what else matters? May I mother my children for His approval. Not another’s. Not even my own.

“Am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ” (Galatians 1:10).

(Written last summer but sharing now because it’s still relevant. 😊)

Newsletter/Thoughts

Jesus Changed My Perspective as a Mommy (By Grace Moffitt)

I’m not one of those moms who has everything down to a science.

Often lunches around my kitchen table with my five, three, and one-year-old look like this: the children are cranky from hunger, so I rush them to the table to eat. Once I get their cups filled, dish out and cut their food, provide ketchup/butter/whatever condiment is desired, I start to take a couple of bites from my plate. About this time, requests are being made for seconds and napkins, which I try to distribute without stepping on all the food baby has thrown on the floor. I sit down to eat again, but by this time, baby is finished eating and is whining to get out of his high chair.

I look hopelessly at the food on my plate while I get him all cleaned up and hope he might play happily while I eat. But then there is the question: should I eat first or finish cleaning up the avocado bites on the floor before others track it around the house, or should I start spot-treating the ketchup on Maranatha’s shirt?

After lunch is over, the dream is that I might be able to clean up, do the dishes, and prep for the next meal without having to break up too many sibling conflicts, but that is hit or miss depending on the day.

I know what I am describing is familiar to mommies worldwide, though I’m guessing most of you are more efficient than I am at staying on top of things with littles in the house. (I was relieved when Josiah told me, before we were married, that he likes having a little chaos in his life, haha!)

Being a mommy of little ones means a lot of menial serving. And I haven’t even begun to talk about the diaper blowouts, potty training, and house organization (none of which are my strength either, haha!)

One evening while pondering the many menial tasks of motherhood, I told my husband, “I think I’m going to try to meditate on Jesus’ nature of a servant when I am serving my family.”

About an hour later I turned on a Nancy Demoss Wolgemuth podcast and guess what it was on? It was a series of meditating on the person of Christ, and this particular episode was—guess what?—“His servanthood.” I took that as a thumbs up from the Lord!

Jesus’ servant nature is one of the most astonishing traits that He has. I think it will baffle us in Heaven that Jesus isn’t merely sitting on the Throne receiving praises but He is STILL serving! (As if coming to die on the cross for us wasn’t enough!!) He told us about this in Luke 12 when He said, “Blessed are those slaves whom the master will find on the alert when he comes; truly I say to you, that he will gird himself to serve, and have them recline at the table, and will come up and wait on them.” (Luke 12:37)

I simply cannot get over this verse. It shows us that Jesus isn’t just serving because it’s the right thing to do, but because it’s His amazing nature of love. He WANTS to serve. He LOVES to serve. Because He is love. I want to be like Him!!!

I also think of the model of a righteous woman given in 1 Timothy 5:10 which says this: “…having a reputation for good works; and if she has brought up children, if she has shown hospitality to strangers, if she has washed the saints’ feet, if she has assisted those in distress, and if she has devoted herself to every good work” (1 Timothy 5:10 NASB).

Notice it doesn’t say “If she has a meaningful career, large Instagram following, or prestigious position in a ministry.” Nope, rather, if she has (drumroll) … washed the saints’ feet.

I think that joyfully approaching the messes at home with our little ones is good practice for the broader ministry of “washing the saint’s feet.”

Now that the Lord has impressed this on me, I have something I can turn my thoughts to when I start feeling weary of all the serving: I meditate on Jesus’ love of serving and then I get a little tinge of joy that I’m becoming more like Him.

Wouldn’t it be amazing if our children developed not merely a “coerced performance of duties,” but a love of serving because they saw a love for it demonstrated by their mothers who find joy in imitating Jesus?

Testify Training Camp/Uncategorized

Testify is Expanding! (By Grace Moffitt)

One evening Josiah and I were discussing the idea of expanding Testify to other states besides Iowa.

As I thought about it, I told him, “If Testify is going to expand, I think it will be because God’s miraculous hand puts the pieces together.” (That’s what happened ten years ago when the Testify ministry began.)

Shortly after that comment, we received an email from our friend Jon: “Would you consider running a Testify at the Kansas State Fair this year?”

Hmm … is this the first piece coming together? we wondered.

“Yes we would,” Josiah wrote back. We had already been praying about expanding Testify to new areas.

The following day, Josiah and I were chatting in our kitchen, and an idea came into Josiah’s mind. “Where is Kansas Bible Camp?” he asked me.

“I don’t know,” I replied.

This is a camp we are both familiar with that is affiliated with our church circles. We knew it was in Kansas, but we didn’t know where. Josiah looked it up.

“It’s in Hutchinson! 13 minutes from the Kansas State Fairgrounds!” Josiah said in surprise.

We were amazed. If we could use that camp, we could replicate the original Iowa Testify which is held at a small camp 10 minutes from the Iowa State Fairgrounds. Is a second piece falling into place? If you’ve been to Testify, you know the logistical hurdles and how significant it is to have a camp for lodging close to the fairgrounds!

We called our friends who run the camp and, not only was the camp available on those dates, but they were excited about this evangelism training opportunity and enthusiastically on board.

Wow, the pieces really seemed to be coming together!

At the same time, we were making contacts in Minnesota. That’s a different story, but we have seen the Lord work in bringing details together for four Testify camps this summer! We’ll have two in Iowa, one in Kansas, and one in Minnesota.

We don’t know what the Lord is going to do, but seeing His answers to prayer and His provision reminds us that He is “up to something”! He has plans. We are excited to see how it all unfolds.

I have seen over and over that believers desire to share their faith with neighbors, coworkers, and strangers, but they often struggle to get those conversations started. Testify equips people to initiate natural conversations about eternal matters and then communicate the gospel with clarity.
It is a great joy to see people leave Testify infused with new courage and enthusiasm about witnessing. This courage is created not simply from classroom teaching but from getting real-life practice at the fair and seeing God work! Nothing is more exciting.

You can find more information about the camps here. Please keep this ministry in your prayers and share about the camps with anyone you know who may be interested!