Kyle Barta Kyle Barta

Outside our cottage in Silver Bay, NY! Year 2 in the books! Hello! I wanted to update you on how things are going with the ministry and H2O Buffalo! We had an awesome end to our semester at UB and we

Tom Hogsed

Outside our cottage in Silver Bay, NY!

Year 2 in the books!

Hello! I wanted to update you on how things are going with the ministry and H2O Buffalo! We had an awesome end to our semester at UB and we were blessed and encouraged by what God has done in our church and in our lives. Towards the end of the semester, we gathered our members together to share stories about how God had worked in and through them this year.

Nathaniel, a student I spent a lot of time with in the Spring semester, talked about how he grew up with a foundation of faith but that it really wasn't until this year that he started to follow Jesus. That he had believed in Jesus, but really didn't make Him Lord in his life.

It is so fun to hear about these things in hindsight because oftentimes we're very close in proximity to these things while they're happening but the Lord is doing a lot more under the surface than we can see! Now, Nathaniel is totally on fire for God. He was trying to talk to his lost friends about Jesus and was talking to me one night because he was so grieved that they were far from God.

This summer he has been dialoguing with his lost friends about his faith and has still been 'fanning the flame' (2 Tim 1:6).

Nathaniel is not the only person with a cool story in our church. I have been so encouraged by what the Lord has done in so many people this year and we are praying for more and more fruit in our church and on our campus!

We had our first baby dedication this semester! This is Derrek and Katherine and their son Cedric! We also have another baby in the church but I am not the best at remembering to take photos 😂

Emylia got baptized this semester! She has a similar story to Nathaniel 😊

Lindsey's group for a scavenger hunt around the YMCA in Silver Bay!

Leadership Training (LT)

Every summer, different collegiate churches from our church network gather together for a summer program called LT. This is an opportunity for students to learn to "serve like Jesus with others." This year, Lindsey and I packed up our belongings and moved to Silver Bay, NY, for 8 weeks to help facilitate and participate in this program.

The program takes place at the YMCA in Silver Bay, where students will work 40 hour weeks and participate in the program designed to help them grow very rapidly in just one summer. I went to LT as a student and it was certainly the most impactful summer of my life.

Here, there are 25 students from around Michigan, Ohio, New York, and Virginia that are participating! This includes two of our own students: Divine and Tyreek. I can tell you that already each of them is growing dramatically in their walk with Jesus!! Tyreek was talking to me this about how he is learning that "God wants to use [him], too."

I'd just ask that you pray for these 25 students. We have found that the people that participate in something like LT return to campus with fresh zeal, ready to make disciples and share the gospel with the lost.

Additionally, Lindsey and I have the opportunity to rub shoulders with other leaders in our church network and I am grateful for the opportunity we have to grow in our own walks with Jesus. The longer I'm in ministry, the more I realize how vital it is that we are close with Jesus if we want others to be, too.

LTers working on what it looks like to tell their "grace story" (their testimony about how they came to know Jesus). This was part of an equipping time, preparing people to share the gospel with their co-workers this summer.

Summer Preparations

During the summer, we try to evaluate everything we're doing and discern what's working and what isn't. We do this so that when we get closer to the Fall Semester (I can't believe it's already almost July) we are prepared with a plan for how we are going to reach more people, make more disciples, and invite people into a deeper love for God this semester.

Would you pray for these preparations? Pray that God would give us great wisdom and discernment as to how we can improve, grow in boldness, and do whatever it is He is calling us to.

We are so grateful for your partnership with us!

With love,
Kyle and Lindsey

PRAYER REQUESTS:

Prayers for LT Students! That they would grow in their love for God and effectiveness in ministry! Especially pray for Tyreek and Divine - we need more members who are totally on fire for God.
Prayers for our summer preparations. That God would lead us in how we can impact more people for Him!
Prayers for a Lindsey and I to also grow in our walks with Jesus at LT!

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Kyle Barta - H2O Buffalo

196 Koenig Rd.

Tonawanda, NY 14150

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