What an incredible experience I’ve had thus far at Mississippi State University! God has given me plenty of opportunities to grow and serve. Just last year I was serving on the Campus Crusade for Christ media team. This year I’ve been able to join a fraternity of Christian men, also know as, Brothers Under Christ. And all the while during the summers of my time in college the Lord has blessed me with the opportunity to serve at Pine Cove Christian Camps in Tyler, Texas.

After much prayer and guidance the Lord has led me to my current areas of study: Finance and Economics. With these two majors and additional training I hope to become a leader in the mission field of business. I have come to know that the business world can be quite cutthroat, and respectable leaders are few and far between. As history has proved to show time and time again that the decisions of business leaders not only affect the firm and employees but the overall well being of an employee’s family.

The CEO of Pine Cove, Mario Zandstra, stated recently that “the future of ministry will not be limited by money or opportunity, but by the lack of leadership.” The Lord has put it on my heart to become a leader in this often over looked mission field. I desire to be a light, and lead those around me in way that brings Him the most glory. However, I have come to realize that maturity in Christian leadership cannot be found in a couple of books or a semester class.

The Lord has faithfully led me to a program at Pine Cove that desires to be the vessel in which the Lord will use to build those leaders. This 8-month program is called, the Forge. This upcoming fall and spring I will be joining the Forge class of 2009, which only consists of 16 men and women. Since the Forge only accepts a small number of students, I feel very blessed in having this opportunity. The Forge will provide an intense, challenging environment yielding a variety of opportunities for me to grow. For a more complete picture of the Forge, I encourage you to visit Pine Cove’s website at www.pinecove.com/forge.