JENKS—Momentum 2013 gathered more than 550 Baptist Collegiate Ministry (BCM) students from around Oklahoma on Sept. 6 to celebrate God’s goodness throughout their lives. Students were welcomed at Jenks, First with volleyball, football, Frisbees, a DJ, and lots of friendly faces.
After a time of worship with the band We Were Fiction, students had the option of attending four different breakout sessions. They were challenged with “A Biblical Approach to Dating,” “Sex and Culture,” “Listening Evangelism” and “Does God Exist”?
Stephen Black taught the “Sex and Culture” breakout session and shared, “Never has a generation had such a barrage of moral issues on a daily basis. There is a lowering of standards that is rampant in this culture.” He then encouraged the students to be aware of how technology can be used either to open the darkness portal or for God’s glory.
Oklahoma Baptist University assistant professor of philosophy, Tawa Anderson helped students answer the questions “Does God Exist?” and “Can you be a Reasonable Christian?” Anderson has a passion for contemporary Christian apologetics. He shared with students that “people in our society have the perspective that Christianity is irrational. We then need to share with those people reasons and evidence that God exists.”
College senior at Oklahoma State University, Zach Gleason, said his favorite aspect of Momentum was that it is “a chance for people coming into college to really connect with BCM.”
For the second year in a row, a special offering was taken for DaySpring Villa, Oklahoma’s only state-certified, faith-based program, located in Sand Springs, for those seeking a safe place to escape the horrors of human trafficking. The attending students gave more than $2,300 to help the victims.
After hearing about the work of DaySpring Villa last year, Sarah Nalley, a graduate student at Northeastern State University, felt called to work on the mission field to help the women and children impacted through trafficking. She said, “Since last year, I’ve been on mission to work with human trafficking victims. I’ve gotten to meet people with the same drive and passion. Because of Momentum, I have found God’s calling on my life.”
Karla Malthaner, a senior at the University of Central Oklahoma, said, “(During) my freshman year, I started going to BCM. I’ve met all of my closest friends there. I’ve grown and gotten to help plan mission trips. It’s been fun having a community to be with through all the ups and downs of college life. I’ve gotten the chance to see a lot of cool things happen.”
Newly-named BCM state director Cris Lowery said, “My favorite part of working with college students is their enthusiasm to do something, to make a difference in the world where they live.” Lowery shared that, at the end of the event, the students “expressed their appreciation to their BCM leaders. There is a great connection between these leaders and their students.”
Suzanne Lillard works closely with all 37 BCM campus directors. She said, “I’ve invested my life for 42 years in ministry to college students. I couldn’t find a better return for my investment of time, money and love than this! I love being able to intersect with (college students) at the most critical stage of their life when they make the major decisions: who God is to them, what they will do because of that relationship with God, who they are, who they will make as life-long friends, what they will give their life to and what they will do vocationally. College students challenge me to think creatively, listen closely and care deeply.”
Throughout Oklahoma, BCM is found on 37 colleges and university campuses, impacting the lives of thousands of students. BCM teams on all campuses have the same objective, “To find a way to impact every life on every college campus in Oklahoma.”
