September 11, 2000

FOCUS 2000:
tudents urged to steps of faith
___By Dan Martin
___Texas Baptist Communications
___DALLAS--Like a parent urging her child to take his first step, God is delighted when his children take their first steps of faith, Texas Baptist college students were told Labor Day weekend.
___"Each person who is a follower of Christ is engaged in a lifelong process of learning to

SHAHLA MAJEED, a member of First Baptist Church of Highlands and a student at University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, makes snow cones at a ministry event in an apartment complex near Cornerstone Baptist Church in Dallas.

walk," said Rene Rochester, who works with at-risk teens in Austin. "Although it is a spiritual walk, it is not much different from learning to walk physically."
___She was one of several inspirational speakers to address a crowd of 2,500 students attending Focus 2000, an annual meeting featuring worship, fellowship, teaching and ministry. Baptist Student Ministries of the Baptist General Convention of Texas sponsors the event.
___"Mothers and fathers do not merely watch as their child sits up or takes a step for the first time," Rochester said. "They cheer them on and grab the video camera because they are so excited."
___God does the same thing, she said. "He may not grab his video camera, but he is delighted when we take our first steps in faith and then as we continue to learn and grow."
___She paralleled the spiritual growth of the students with the physical growth of a baby.
___"Babies do not jump up and start to talk on a certain day. Each child is unique, and each child's development is different from that of every other child in the world. It is a lifelong process. As we grow, Christ becomes more of a reality in our lives," she said.
___Students got a chance to put their feet to work, as more than 800 fanned out across the Metroplex to participate in a variety of ministry and evangelism projects.
___In the Oak Cliff section of Dallas, a trio of hot, sweaty, water-swigging students could be seen walking and talking to a Hispanic man. It was 109 degrees in Dallas that afternoon, but their focus was on telling him about how to find eternal comfort in Jesus.
___Holly Stokes, Kirk Bickham and Trias Weatherspoon of East Texas Baptist University were doing street evangelism in northern sections of Oak Cliff when they met Juan, who spoke little English.
___Nevertheless, Stokes was able to present the basic concepts of Christianity to him. She found out he lives in Hillsboro but comes to Oak Cliff each weekend to visit family and friends.

STUDENTS shared their faith in Dallas during Focus 2000.

___"We need to find a Spanish Bible to give him," she said as the group headed toward Grace Temple Baptist Church, which had enlisted their help in doing street and door-to-door evangelism.
___In another section of Dallas, students from San Jacinto Junior College in Pasadena were doing door-to-door witnessing and handing out information from Second Baptist Church.
___Pastor Joe Smith had church members on hand to help the students get out into the neighborhoods. They handed out tracts and an invitation to attend an upcoming revival.
___In what was once called the "War Zone" of near downtown, students from several schools and First Baptist Church of Highlands helped Cornerstone Baptist Church minister and witness in an apartment complex.
___The students played with the children, sang, visited residents and handed out snow cones and popcorn to the residents of an apartment complex a few blocks from the church.
___"All the feedback we have gotten from the students has been very positive," said Joyce Ashcraft, coordinator of the Focus event for Baptist Student Ministry.
___"It was intended to emphasize evangelism, and it was a great experience for the students to go out and do direct evangelism in this setting so they can go back and do evangelism and ministry on their own campuses," she added.
___In the conference sessions, students were encouraged to take their enthusiasm for ministry back to their dorm rooms and campuses.
___"Preach the word," said Greg Matte of Breakaway Ministries in College Station. "Do not merely seek to keep people happy. If the word is preached, everything else will fall into place."
___Preaching God's word is not merely for the chosen few who will be pastors someday, but for every believer, Matte said.
___He also exhorted the students to return to their campuses and be people who listen and care for others.
___"Be people who are willing to take extra time to cultivate relationships so that the kingdom of God may be advanced. Fulfill the ministry God has given you with your friends, family and the world."
___With additional reporting by Becky Holt, communications intern for Baptist Student Ministries of the Baptist General Convention of Texas
___

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