The Summer Beach Project has been integral to Campus Outreach’s ministry training since 1982. Although the length of projects varies, and the location shifts depending on the region, leadership has never wavered in its commitment to the importance of getting away for an extended period to focus on exponential spiritual development.
Panama City Beach has been a consistent host through the years. This summer, 224 students from eleven campuses stayed on one property. As staff planned, they trusted God to create a spiritual greenhouse effect on the project and, at the same time, to use it as a launchpad for the nations. A conscious decision to stick to “the basics” of the Christian life had incredible results.
The Wheel Diagram illustrates the “basics”.
Students learned how to spend time in God’s word using Observation, Interpretation, and Application. Anyone with a spiritual breakthrough would say it was rooted in deep Bible study.
Additionally, there was a significant emphasis on prayer. Students initiated an incredible number of improvised (not on the schedule) prayer times and left convinced that specific prayers get specific answers.
Evangelism training included teaching the theology of evangelism and training in three tools to help students share their faith: their testimony, the Funnel Tool, and the bridge diagram. This summer, students and staff led forty co-workers, tourists, and others to Christ, along with thirty-six students on the project.
Joe’s life was changed at Summer Beach Project.
At first, Joe never imagined himself as one of those students. In fact, by the end of the second week, he was fed up and ready to go home. A student leader spent time with him, looked at scripture, personalized the truth of the gospel, and ultimately led Joe into a new relationship with Jesus. Cole, the project’s student director and Joe’s fraternity brother, met with Joe throughout the summer, walked him through the book of Ephesians, and focused on his new identity in Christ. By the end of the summer, Joe had built a strong foundation and exclaimed, “I truly believe I am holy and blameless!” Excited to share, Joe and Cole went to Pier Park, where Joe took the opportunity to articulate the gospel and lead a man to Christ. The spiritual greenhouse of the beach project was a reality for Joe!
The Lord also actively worked in Cole’s life. No stranger to the topic of missions, Cole had never considered it as an option for his future. A recent graduate, he planned to take a gap year before starting Physical Therapy school. Then, when Todd Ahrend from The Traveling Team spoke to the project this summer, Cole felt the weight of missions. He couldn’t shake the thought that his upcoming gap year would provide freedom, but it also raised concerns about the limited opportunities he would have to travel overseas in the future.
He approached Mr. Ahrend, hoping to discuss the situation. Before Cole could say a word, Todd turned, looked at Cole, and said, ‘You need to go now.” Cole marveled at the obvious work of the Holy Spirit in this significant life moment.
Cole answered the call to “GO.”
His brother had already committed to doing missions for a month that summer, so Cole called him on a long shot that the team still had an open spot. A team member confirmed, “We have one space left.” The obstacles seemed mountainous; Cole didn’t have a passport, and any funding would have to be raised quickly. The Holy Spirit moved again, and a friend paid for an expedited passport. Students on the Beach Project joined Cole’s family and friends to raise all his funding in less than a day. He left three weeks after the project ended to help disciple new believers in Indonesia. He joined four others who left soon after the project; ten more have filled out applications for when they graduate.
It never gets old hearing how our Lord and Savior works in the hearts and lives of college students. What a joy to know faithful staff who trust God! What a joy it is to know a loving God who hears prayers and willingly turns the Summer Beach Project into a greenhouse for spiritual growth and a launchpad for the nations. These students head back to campus this month. Join us as we pray for them to continue faithfully in what they have learned.
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