Event

Jesus the Matchmaker

Springtime means one thing for many couples… It's time to plan a wedding.  What happens if all the details don't fall into place?  What if the pieces don't fall into place where you want them to?  Maybe Plan B was God's original intention.  I want to share with you how God works all things together for good. One of my best friends (also named Jonathan) was getting married to his fiancée, Nikki. Jonathan was a roommate in college.  I wish I kept a book of quotes because every word out of his mouth has the power to drive away boredom and the blues.  I've never laughed so hard as I did with Jonathan.  We continually discover that Nikki is a great catch for Jonathan.  She is well rounded, very talented, and can do almost anything.  It's wonderful when you can celebrate the spouse your friend marries.

Jonathan had asked me to be a groomsman in his wedding.  I was honored but, unfortunately, I had to decline.  Our friends had been planning a conference for many months that we had committed to.  It was scheduled right in the middle of the wedding.  I was conflicted and didn't want to hurt my friend.

Months passed and the conference was cancelled.  Thankfully, we were able to attend the wedding but I was not going to be a groomsman.  Jonathan had found a replacement but I was happy to be able to celebrate with them as they were wed.

Over a year after Jonathan and Nikki had been married, we met up with them.  They were telling us about their two friends who were getting married.  One was a bridesmaid in their wedding.  The other was a groomsman…The same groomsman who filled my space!  They met at the wedding, fell in love, and tied the knot a few months later!

Had I been a groomsman, they may have never met.  For months, I had felt bad for declining the invitation to be in the wedding party.  That is, until I found how Jesus turned it around for the benefit of a man who met his wife.  Sometimes, Plan B was actually Plan A all along.

If you're planning a wedding, my encouragement to you: Don't sweat the details. Don't lose sleep. Press in and pray.  God works all things together for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28). That means you!

Jonathan Fawcett

Jonathan and Nikki

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Fun

It was the beginning of a new semester and every campus ministry is going all out to make sure students get plugged in.  Since meeting rooms on campus couldn’t be scheduled until classes began, Immersion Church needed a meeting space that was close to campus.  Our friend, a local television personality, offered his television studio for the first couple of Sundays.  This was a huge blessing – one we will never forget. Our friend unlocked the studio for us early one Sunday morning.  As we were setting up the sound equipment, he began to tell me that he hurt his leg in a skateboarding accident.  When I first met our friend, he was showing me photos of himself skateboarding.  In person, he always looked very professional.  In the photos, he was wearing a helmet, shorts and knee pads.  It didn’t seem feasible and I wasn’t sure if he was pulling my leg.  It wasn’t until later, I saw a video featuring him skateboarding.  Mind blown.  Now, his leg was injured and he expressed his fear that he may never be able to skateboard again.

I asked if I could pray for his leg to be healed.  We prayed and continued setting up the sound equipment.  This meeting, along with the others held in the studio, were phenomenal.  Our friend Staci ministered one Sunday and, at the end of another, a student was born again and baptized in the Holy Spirit.

The following week, he unlocked the studio and began telling me that he skateboarded that week and pulled some big tricks. “It’s really kind of a miracle,” I remember him saying.  His leg was healed!  Sometimes, we can blame the pain on our fun.  But Jesus wants us to have fun and do things we enjoy.  We don’t have to earn the healing, strive for the healing, or beg and plead.  There’s so much more we want to do to pay our friend back for his kindness in helping us launch another year of ministry at Appalachian State.  I believe one day we will.  Generosity like he had shown us is rare and made a lasting impression.  Had he not opened his studio for our use, I may not have had the chance to pray for his leg and maybe skateboarding would have become a thing of the past – nothing more than a fond memory.  But God…

Jonathan Fawcett

Sqrambled Scuares

Turn-or-Burn Birthday

It was a beautiful autumn day and happened to be my 23rd birthday.  What better way to start the day than going onto campus, shouting at students, picketing, and telling them they are all going to hell?  Well, that wasn’t how I started my birthday.  However, there was a group of turn-or-burn preachers occupying Sanford Mall outside of the Student Union.  Each time they come to ASU, they make a scene, start fights, stir dissension, and exchange heated words with students.  There was an absence of love, joy, and peace in their message and salvation was determined by good behavior rather than our righteousness being obtained by the finished work of Jesus on the cross.  While many believe it is their holy duty to change the minds of these hellfire and brimstone preachers, my friends and I decided to take another approach. Rarely will you ever change someone’s mind.  I like to let Jesus do that Himself.  How?  His goodness draws men to repentance.  His power yields fruit bearing witness of His goodness.  We leveraged the message these men were presenting as conversation starters with students.  We also didn’t “steal” from their audience.  Those who were engaged in the heated exchange were hot-tempered and looking for a fight.  Those outside of the ring were more approachable.  The Lord told me he had given us the angel of Victory as we went out.  Here’s what happened:

A couple of ladies on Appalachian State's female rugby team were passing out leaflets, advertising an event or game they were having.  One of them had a brace on their wrist.  My friend, Aaron, asked what happened to her wrist.  It had been sprained.  Aaron lightly touched it and simply said, “Wrist, be healed in Jesus’ name,” and removed his hand.  Almost immediately, she took the brace off and began turning her wrist to and fro.  Without us asking, her teammate confirmed that her wrist was unable to do that.  Just as a camera was being mounted on a tripod to capture footage of the preachers, Aaron grabbed the attention of the cameraman and told him that the real Jesus was doing miracles.  He glanced at us and the rugby players without saying a word and turned back around to complete the task he had started.

(If local or mainstream media don’t pick up on the stories, it could be, like this cameraman, they do not want to.  That’s why I encourage you to capture the healing on your phone or camera.  Document what The Lord is doing and give the world some good news!)

We later approached a student who broke his toe on a slack line (imagine a tightrope a few feet off the ground, tied between two trees).  This young man was not a believer.  We told him about the miracles we saw earlier that day and he let us pray for him.  His broken toe improved drastically and he was very shocked.  It may be hard to comprehend why some don’t receive all of Jesus right there on the spot, but sometimes we plant seeds and let the Holy Spirit take over.

Our other friend, Brennen, along with Aaron, saw someone on crutches and shot towards her to ask how they could pray.  This student was a runner and had ongoing issues with her knee.  They prayed for her and she hobbled off on the crutches.  Some would pose the question: Why didn’t God heal her?  The next time Brennen saw her, she was off the crutches and told him that there had been no pain since the day he and Aaron prayed for her.  Even if we didn’t see her throw her crutches down and cut cartwheels immediately, the truth remains: Jesus healed her!

The day ended with some mysterious aviator sunglasses (A birthday gift from Jesus?) lying on the top of my car, followed by a surprise party and a delicious cookie cake created by my amazing girlfriend at the time (Her name is Keeli... Maybe you’ve heard of her!).  The cake represented a revelation I had at the time: God’s love and power is like a train on its tracks.  Love is the way but without God's power you don't have a vehicle to get you there.  The power of God working through us is only effective through love.  I’ll never forget that birthday.

Jonathan Fawcett

23rd Birthday Surprise

My friends, Brennen Smith (center) and Aaron Wallace (right).

Birthday Cake

Landmark

Friends,We are excited to announce an event taking place Friday, March 1 from 7pm-9pm in the Whitewater Lounge of the Student Union on Appalachian State's campus.  Campus ministers, local pastors, current students, alum, and residents who have been praying for revival and transformation to come to ASU are invited to pray as we worship with our friends, BJ and Lisa Sullivan.  Watch the video to learn more about Landmark: [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGoqyMUgAO0?rel=0]

We will see you Friday, March 1st as we launch into 40 days of prayer and fasting.  Until then, Instagram this photo, tweet it, post it as your Facebook profile picture and help spread the word...

Landmark Instagram

We love you and look forward to making a scene with you for the Kingdom of God.

Jonathan & Keeli Fawcett

Presence

October 25, 2006 is an important date.  That was the day Keeli and I first met.  She invited me to a prayer meeting being held in the Student Union on Appalachian State's campus the next night.  It was that night I saw passion in students I never saw up until that time.  The big shocker was that students were praying in tongues.  Being baptized in the Holy Spirit as a junior in high school, I had never been around a group of students this large that were desperate to see transformation on their campus.  After the prayer meeting, we went to a restaurant called Dos Amigos.  Ironically enough, a friendship was formed between two people. Sitting at the dinner table, I shared with Keeli's father, Kermit, about my vision to host a conference on campus telling others about the baptism of the Holy Spirit.  Why?  Because I had been raised in a Christian home, went to church all of my life, surrounded myself with friends that love Jesus, but never even heard of the baptism of the Holy Spirit until my junior year of high school.  How many others were out there like me?  How many have been robbed of receiving the greatest gift a believer could receive because they never heard of it (like the believers in Acts 19:1-7)?

When I shared my vision with Kermit, he announced it to the entire table.  I remember making eye contact with Keeli.  We didn't wink at each other or make eyes at one another, but I remember noticing that this had her attention.  Kermit encouraged me to meet with her to plan this out and see it through.  It also helped that everyone else at the table was counting on action being taken.  Accountability at its finest.

From October to March, we planned, prepped, fasted, prayed, and advertised.  We called the conference "Presence: Out of Apathy... Into Power".  It was a different time.  Back then, everyone pitched in.  Their efforts to ensure this conference was a success has not been overlooked or forgotten.  Everyone did their part, from the worship team and video/sound crew to the prayer group from Asheville and graphic designer who created the posters and fliers students distributed.  It was the Body of Christ in its purest form.

200 were in attendance, including students from twelve different campus ministries.  That night, eight students were baptized in the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues for the first time.  The eight that received the baptism of the Holy Spirit were significant, but what happened afterwards was beautiful.  Hundreds of people have since been baptized in the Holy Spirit.  Not just at conferences or church meetings, but in everyday life.  If we went to lunch with someone, we would lead them in the baptism of the Holy Spirit.  If we carpooled with someone or gave them a ride, they were baptized in the Holy Spirit.  If we hung out in dorms or apartments, people would get baptized in the Holy Spirit.

Never deduce what is meant for everyday life to a church meeting.  Don't always expect a preacher, pastor or Bible study leader to do it for you.  You have influence.  When you live a life of testimonies that point to Jesus, you can easily have people's attention, stir their hunger, and lead them to receive the Lord, the baptism of the Holy Spirit, and do so simplistically.  The Spirit of God is not on break during your life outside of a church meeting.  He is alive, ready for others - everybody - to be baptized in the Holy Spirit.  As I like to say, being baptized in the Holy Spirit has nothing to do with your salvation, but it could have everything to do with someone else's.  This baptism makes heaven tangible on earth for you and those around you.  This baptism empowers you, the believer, to do the works that Jesus did and greater.

Jonathan Fawcett

New Endeavors

This is a blog but it is comprised of testimonies of the Lord's power at work.  Why?  Because this generation, like every other before it, needs the tangible power of God to believe.  Joshua 24:31 says: Israel served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him and who had experienced everything the Lord had done for Israel.

What happened during the days of Moses and Joshua?  Signs and wonders.  When we forget what the Lord has done, human nature has proven to revert to filling the natural hunger for God with idols.  This is why David said in Psalm 77:11-12:

I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago.  I will consider all your works and meditate on all your mighty deeds.

God has called us to accomplish many tasks and we are rising to the occasion.  Our desire is to be instantly obedient to what the Lord has called us to do.  In the midst of it all, we ask for and welcome your prayers - the prayers of faith!

What can you be praying for?

Fall In Love 2012 - This beautiful autumn weekend in Boone, NC will be an event filled with students and passionate believers from around the country learning the fundamentals of power evangelism.  Hands on training (including treasure hunts and prophetic evangelism) will be included.  Pray that all who attend get stirred with boldness and confidence to lead others to Jesus through the demonstration of the Holy Spirit's power.  Pray also for those who will be encountered in our outreaches.

Immersion ASU and UNCG - Students at Appalachian State are learning about and experiencing the Holy Spirit, grace and the kingdom of God.  As we pastor Immersion Church on ASU's campus, pray for the students we minister to.  Pray that they would daily be aware of the opportunities for them to be missionaries on their campus.  As our good friend and former intern, Richard Lambert, continues to network and meet students on UNC Greensboro's campus, pray for abundant favor with students, faculty and staff as he establishes an Immersion plant on the campus of UNCG.

Something More School of Ministry - As SMSOM launches, pray for the students.  Pray they would see an increase in the supernatural power of God in all they do and that many lives would be transformed because they are hungry for more.  Pray for us as we teach the classes.

Experience - Appalachian State has been the home of miracles on campus for the simple reason that we have purposed to be laborers in the harvest field rather than only praying.  Our desire is to host students from around the nation to train and reveal the nature of Christ when encountering unbelievers outside the four walls of comfort (much like "Fall In Love" but more frequently).  The Holy Spirit is the Comforter... probably because we will be in uncomfortable situations.  As believers, we must return to the basics of the Great Commission.  When we go into the world, signs and wonders confirm the message we bring (Mark 16:20).  Many are hungry and the Lord has prepared a feast before us but many don't realize how to indulge in what He has prepared.  Our desire is to give experience to those who are hungry so that, everywhere they go, they will know how to live full and bring guests to the table!  As details come together, we ask that you pray for hunger to stir in the students who want nothing less than transformation on their campuses... and that they find us!

Thank you for your agreement, prayers and support.  You are a blessing to us.

The Fawcetts