This is an invitation to pray, a call to pray, and a plea to pray…would you be willing to Pause & Pray every Thursday for Texas campuses, students, and BSM staff?
Count the Cost:
At the University of Texas, San Antonio a young man named Brian* is discovering what 
the gospel is, what Christ centered community looks like, and what life could be like if he was to become a Christ-follower. “Brendan first came to BSM at the beginning of last semester. Isaac* [a BSM student] met him and invited him to lunch. Brian was lost, very rough around the edges and kind of ‘salty’ but he enjoyed BSM. He kept coming to lunch, then started going to worship. You could see subtle changes taking place in his life,” Kevin Prather, UTSA BSM director explains. Brian now considers the BSM his community. Throughout the month of January it is obvious that Brian was responding to God’s work in his life. He is not yet a Christ-follower but is heavily involved in BSM and setting aside his Sundays to go to Church with students in the BSM. God is bringing Brian, a young man who was so far from Him, so close to himself. “Our students are continuing to invest in him…He’s in process, but so close right now. Please pray for him,” Kevin pleads. Brian is so close to becoming a Christ-follower and is one of those students who is going to ‘count the cost’ before he makes any significant commitment. Kevin is excited to see what God will do next in Brian’s life. He is confident that Brian will make that “leap and big decision soon.”
*names have been changed
Pausing & Praying with you,
Texas Collegiate Ministry Team
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Ways to Pray:
- Praise the Lord that He is found when we seek him with all out heart.
- Praise the Lord that Brian is seeking the Lord.
- Pray that Brian will make that “leap” and become a Christ-follower!
- Pray for the students at the UTSA BSM to continue to gather around Brian as he ‘counts the cost.’
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Staff Spotlight
Kristen Richardson
Campus: Baylor University
I went to college at…Mississippi State University for my undergraduate degree and Baylor University for a Master of Divinity and a Master of Educational Psychology-Community Counseling
Why do you invest in college students? Working with students is so energizing! I absolutely love talking to students about “calling” because I think that college is an amazing time to explore the many different ways that God has gifted them. College is a time to ask questions, make lasting friendships, travel and experience life in other places in the world…and so much more. In my college experience, I had many friends who walked alongside me, but I really wanted a person a little further on the journey to walk alongside me and that didn’t really happen for me at that point in my life…so, that has given me a desire to be that person for others.
What is your ringtone? Awake my Soul-Mumford and Sons
When I have 30 minutes of free time, I pass the time by…playing with my boys (Syler, Alden and Ryan :0))
What is one of your favorite quotes? “It suddenly dawned on them that the wildest dreams they’d ever had hadn’t been half wild enough.” Frederick Buechner
Who do you admire and why? My mother-in-law, Robbie Richardson. She is an AMAZING role model and woman of God! I LOVE her so much!!! She is always supportive and encouraging to me and knows how to just love me (and our family) well. I first met her when she was a Sunday School teacher to freshman students my 1st year of college, even before I met her son. Robbie also happens to have been in campus ministry for many years in Mississippi, so she can definitely relate to what it’s like being a mom and minister.
My favorite snack is…salsa and chips
The #1 song played on my iPod is…right now, “When you were born” by The Jellydot
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Ways to Pray for Kristen:
- Please pray for the family, Baylor faculty/staff and friends of the six Baylor students who have passed away since Christmas break began.
- Please pray for a student (“R”) who I have been meeting with on a weekly basis. She was a good friend of one of the students who passed away in February and has had a difficult time dealing with her loss. She is not a Christian.
- Please pray that I will find times of rest and renewal amidst busy days.
