Concerning Discipleship, Children, and Student Ministry

by Wade Overturf

As I thought about what I should say in my first article in the first ever Ouachita River Fellowship newsletter, the only thing that I could think about was sharing my heart for ministry.  The Great Commission tells us to "Go and make disciples", but we sometimes miss the true meaning of this phrase.  What Jesus was saying with this statement in Matthew 28 is that as we are living our lives we should be showing others around us what it means to be a disciple of Christ.  This, in turn, helps those who don't have a relationship with Christ more fully understand what happens to your life when God takes over control.

        If I could say one thing that sums up who I am and what I am about it would be that I strive everyday to be walking with Christ so that others can see Him in me.  My goal as Youth and Children's Pastor is
to pass this practice down to the next generation.  If we can instill this principle in the students and children at ORF then the difference that they can make is unbelievable. Please pray along side of me for the youth and children of Ouachita River Fellowship that God may use their lives in a mighty way!

The Beauty of Uncertainty

by Joshua Bland

A while back I got to have supper with one of my best friends. We met at Waffle House and enjoyed some time visiting, talking about whatever we needed to; no wives or crowds, just two brothers sharing each other's joys and burdens. I have continued thinking about our discussions and have become all the more impressed with something that I had been pondering for several days before: uncertainty is a beautiful thing.

When this thought first crossed my mind a week ago, I thought it to be madness. After all, if we're completely honest, uncertainty is quite possibly one of the most frustrating things in our lives. I cannot even begin to recount all of the times that uncertainty has pushed me to the limits of reason and character. I've done stupid things, said things that I've regretted, and more all because I have been bogged down in uncertainty.

But what if we looked at uncertainty from a different perspective? Instead of it immediately foreshadowing our own doom and destruction, what if we saw uncertainty as an opportunity to marvel at the character, grace, and provision of God?

Think of Abraham: God had provided a son to him in his old age, and some time later asked Abraham to sacrifice that same son (Genesis 22). Or take Joseph: sold by his brothers into slavery (Genesis 37:12-36), later put into prison in Egypt (Genesis 39-40). Another Joseph also comes to mind here: his fiancé becomes pregnant through no fault of his own and then an angel appears and tells him that the child is the son of the Most High (Matthew 1:18-25). For each of these men, uncertainty perhaps caused fear, hesitation, or doubt; with full assurance, in the same situations I know these would be things that would cross my mind. I would imagine that I’m not alone in this.

We could then look to the disciples. They walked for years alongside Jesus, seeing His earthly ministry. They had heard the message, seen the miracles, and distributed food from meager supply to the massive crowds. They had seen Jesus crucified, and with Him their hopes and dreams. Yet even as they hid away for their own safety (John 20:19-20), the plan of God was at work. The uncertainties of man were foreknown completely by God.

I do not wish to deny the power of uncertainty. It can be a daunting, overwhelming entity. However, since God is omnipotent and omniscient, uncertainty has no power over Him. We can trust, even in our moments of greatest struggle, that He has a plan. Through these times, God can lead us to greater faith and reliance on Him, to greater understanding, to greater humility; what beauty is found in the midst of uncertainty. If there is nothing else in the world to give reason, we can praise Him and find hope because “I know that You can do all things, and that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted” (Job 42:2).