New Website: www.brianandmalisa.com

Hi Everyone,

Now that I’m married, I’ve got a new website- www.brianandmalisa.com that will have all of our combined prayer letters and updates. We hope you’ll take a look. You can even see our wedding photos.

God Bless,

Brian (and Malisa) Ellis

Help me trust in the Lord – I’m overwhelmed

It’s been great to watch Eric (with me at Thanksgiving above),
one of my supporters and friends,
grow in His relationship with God in the last few years.
My prayer is that each of you would continue to grow closer to Jesus Christ.
There’s no particular connection to the rest of the letter, just a fun picture!

 

I suppose it’s been a while since I’ve told you what’s going on in my personal spiritual journey. So here’s how you can be praying for me.

I feel overwhelmed thinking about this semester. I think for the first time in quite a while, I’m hitting the limits of my own abilities, so I’m tempted to settle for what I can accomplish in my own strength. But when I think about what it means to lead spiritually, that doesn’t seem right. Somewhere I’ve got to trust God, right?

I’ve been reading a book by Steve McVey called Grace Walk with some of my team this month. Here’s what he says: “You’ve probably heard all your life that God won’t put any burden on you greater than you can bear. Don’t mark me off as a heretic just yet, but I don’t believe it. I believe God will put heavier burdens on you than you can bear, especially when he is trying to bring you to the place of brokenness. God will allow the burden to be greater than you can bear so that you will finally allow Him to bear it for you. God’s purpose in the breaking process is to bring you to the end of your own resources so that you will be ready to understand that He is the only resource you need in life. As long as your own abilities are sufficient to rise to the challenge, you will never understand that He doesn’t just give strength. He is your Strength. In the breaking process, God has no intention of helping you get stronger. He wants you to become so week that He can express Himself as the strength you need in every situation.”

I like trusting in my own strength. I like performing. And that’s a problem. “Faith” is just a fancy Christian word for “Trust.” and so when I trust in my own strength, I’m putting faith in myself and not in God.

I’ve been reading a little in Psalms:

“Cast your burden on the Lord,
and he will sustain you” (Ps 55:22)

My only reply is Psalm 38:22.

Make haste to help me,
O Lord, my salvation!”

I thank you so much for your continued support. I feel your prayers and I need them. God Bless, Brian

Tara Leads a Life Group – Summer Project

I keep sharing about my summer in these letters because the students who were part of the Boston Summer Project have returned to campus as key leaders. Tara from Babson is no exception. Here’s what she shared about leading a “life group” bible study”

“What makes or breaks this group is not only our study of the Word, but whether or not the girls (in my case) felt comfortable to open up about who they are and their lives.

The first time I led the group, I was pretty nervous. While I was preparing the bible study, I felt God asking me to do something that I was trying to avoid. I have always felt the need to meet high expectations; so naturally, I wouldn’t want to tell others of sins I have struggled with. However God has really been working on my heart to admit to myself and to others how much we need Christ in light of all of our sins.

So I made the decision to share these struggles with my group, even though I wasn’t sure how they would receive this information. I have to say, this was one of the biggest blessings God has given me, because this group of girls was so supportive and understanding. As a result, all 3 of the other girls opened up about their struggles, and our bond of sisters in Christ was definitely strengthened.

I looked forward to our Life Group time every week, because I knew God would speak to us through the Scriptures and the other girls in my group would continue to share their hearts with everyone. These were definitely some of the great moments of mine on the summer project, but the Lord really helped me grow throughout the entire experience.”

It’s letters like that from students that make me realize why I’m doing what I do. It also makes me realize how thankful I am for each of you. I thank you so much for your continued support. God Bless, Brian

How to Pray

For the 16 students on the Boston Summer Project as they return to campus—that they would continue to lead by depending on Jesus Christ.

Gail’s New Confidence – Summer Project

Gail has always struggled with a lack of confidence and self worth. But, she says, it was “only because I wasn’t finding my identity in Christ alone. I found my identity in how I performed in school, work, and relationships. Not only was I a “performer” but a perfectionist. This faulty identity resulted in constantly feeling frustrated with myself for always falling short. This summer, God broke me of this identity when He gave me the opportunity to lead project as a co-director. When the staff left and we took over our jobs, I came into the position very aware of my faults and weaknesses. On top of that, God continued to reveal to me more of my faults and weaknesses! But the true blessing in all of this was that I realized how God’s grace covered everything that I lacked. It allowed me to see how much I needed Him. I realized that I could not lead just by my own strength. I needed to allow Him to work in me and give myself up to Him. Each day, I learned to become more dependent on the Lord. I started asking for His guidance when making decisions and asking and accepting His forgiveness when I made mistakes. I’ve been relying on who He created me to be (Ephesians 2: 1-10) not who I or others think I should be. I’ve been filled with His love so I can serve and love those around me, understanding what it really means to lead in Christ and be “light and salt of the earth” (Matthew 5:14-16).

Now that project is over and a new school year begins, I look forward to taking on the ministry God placed before me on my campus. I am ready to move forward with this new found confidence and self worth because it is He who gives my life purpose.”

It’s letters like that from students that make me realize why I’m doing what I do. It also makes me realize how thankful I am for each of you. I thank you so much for your continued support. God Bless, Brian

More than a Bike Ride – Summer Project

As part of the Boston Summer Project that I led this summer, we took our students to Acadia National Park for a weekend. One group went mountain biking with two leaders Geoff and Tara. Everything was going well until the afternoon. That’s when Carl got off his bike to walk it up a particularly large hill.

Carl hadn’t been on a bike for at least five years. I’m still not sure how he got placed in the mountain biking group. Geoff said it looked like he was afraid to petal. You get the idea. The leaders of the pack stopped and waited about 20 minutes for him to catch up. When everyone was finally there, Tara asked, “So, what just happened?”

No answer.

Geoff: “There’s clearly an elephant in the room that no one is talking about.”

Still nothing. Everyone in the group was in performance mode—trying to look good.

Geoff: “What needs to change?”

Jim: “Well, I think our good can get better and our great can get greater still.”

Geoff: “But what about your crappy?”

We’ve been using that line as a staff team for the rest of the project: “What about your crappy?” It helps us get behind the masks people wear. Since there’s no isolated behavior, the group dynamics we noticed on the bike ride continued for the rest of the project. In response, we chose not to give Jim any leadership role because he was always performing –so much so that he never realized it. The bike ride crystallized for me things I had seen but ignored and allowed me to have a “carefrontation” meeting with him before the staff left the project and I got to ask him, “Is there anyone for whom you’ve taken off all the masks? For whom you don’t perform?” The answer: a very quiet, sheepish, “No.”

Kim, one of our staff women, said, “You know, what I love about this trip is that “junk” comes up.” Now, change in character takes a long time, so I’m not sure how much movement we’ll see in Jim this fall, but I’m so thankful for our experience in Maine that brought about the conversation.

I thank you so much for your continued support. God Bless, Brian

Liza’s Story – Big Break

I just got back from two weeks in Florida for Big Break, our annual evangelism conference. It’s fun to see students share the gospel for the very first time. But rather than have me tell it, let me share a letter from Liza Pope, a freshman at Boston University:

I was impacted by the worship throughout the week. A room full of over 400 people stood together singing as loudly as possible praising our amazing God. A couple of times I was brought to tears because the words in the songs seemed to be directly addressing me and some of the spiritual questions or struggles that I had been going through that week. By the end of the worship, I felt so connected to God, ready to learn more about his Word, and I was eager to find out how I could honor and glorify him that day.

I was exposed to many Bible passages for the first time. The speakers during each session did a wonderful job not only interpreting God’s word, but also eliciting a clear idea of ways to apply His Word. One particular morning we discussed the parable from Luke 18:18-29. The speaker addressed the central place that money and materialistic items take in our society today. She explained, though, that ultimately, this parable was God teaching us that we should not get caught up in the things of this world. In the end, he says, the only thing that will matter is our faith in Him. God is the only thing that we can hold on to, and He is the only one that can meet all of our needs, financial or otherwise. This really struck me because I definitely let money and “things” hold too much importance in my life. These things not only cause frustration for me but for my friends and family as well.

A few nights later our team was eating dinner at a BBQ-southern style restaurant-a long standing tradition of the Big Break experience-and the waitress began telling one of our tables about her children. She explained that her two younger ones had been really sick on and off for couple of years. They had battled with pneumonia and various other viruses and illnesses for most of their lives. To make matters worse, she was unable to pay for any of the medicines that her children needed to get better.

After hearing her story, a few of the team leaders felt convicted to help this woman in any way they could. They found some verses from the Bible that they wrote down and offered to pray with her. And then, towards to the end of the meal, one our leaders came over to the other Boston Metro tables and asked if we would consider giving a $5-10 extra tip to their waitress. Everyone pitched in what they could, and by the end we had gathered $200. I had a limited amount of money left for the trip and still plenty of meals left to pay for, but I remembered God’s words from Luke and gave the few dollars that I had left to our waitress. I knew God was going to take care of me financially for the rest of the week, and it was clear that this woman needed money a LOT more than I did. When we gave her the check she burst into tears out of disbelief of the kindness of strangers. We reminded her that there was a God out there that loved her just as much as we did, and that our compassion and love was unequivocal to that of our savior, Jesus Christ.

We all piled back into the van, and people we were told exactly what had happened that night. Most of the girls, including myself, were brought to tears because of how appreciative this waitress was of our small gift, and also of the kindness and love that the team had brought to this stranger.

Later that night, our group met together in one of our condos for a mini-Bible study. We discussed Ephesians 4: 16-end. The passage explained wholesome and unwholesome words, and we talked about the importance of encouragement, the negative effects of sarcasm, and the repercussions of gossip. I felt really convicted after this discussion to be wary of the words I spoke, and motivated to give encouragement or compliments when I thought them.

For the rest of the week I not only noticed myself being more positive and trying to honestly affirm and encourage my teammates, but it was evident that the other people on the team felt convicted by the passage as well. For the remainder of our time together, people gave more sincere compliments, sarcasm ceased, and affirmations to one another increased. The team became tightly bonded and strong friendships centered on God were formed. By the end of Big Break, I felt left awestruck at the amazing things God does to our communities.

This trip really affected my walk with God. Spending 24/7 with a group of Christians allowed me to take a step back, and like a sponge, absorb to saturation what it is means to be a Christian. I learned that prayer is one of the most valuable ways we can improve relationships and ourselves with God. I pray a lot more now, and I really understand the importance of reading God’s word.

Since I have returned from school I have been praying A LOT more, trying to get into God’s word as much as possible, and I find myself really understanding what it means to surrender my life to God and live each day to glorify Him. Now, when I go to church, being there “fits” even better now, I feel even more convicted to apply God’s teaching from the sermon to my upcoming week, and I know ALL the worship songs. ☺

Overall, this was one of the most life-changing experiences I have ever had. Thank you so much for your financial support because without it I would not have been given this opportunity. I pray that God will continue to work in your lives, and that you continue to see what an amazing Father we have.

Love, Liza Pope

I thank you so much for your continued support. God Bless, Brian

It’s all worth it.

I thought this month I’d share the text of an e-mail I got from a freshman named Tony at Babson:

Hi Brian!!

This is Tony from Babson.

I just wanted to let you know that I finally got to sit down in Reynolds with “Sarah” today. She was the girl I told you about who kept challenging Christianity in my Rhetoric class, but seemed very willing to discuss religion with me whe I asked her.  

I kept the meeting very light, and started it off discussed random things like how it is living in Park Manor North, coming to Babson, etc…

Then I made my move.

 First, I asked her what she believed. She said that she doesn’t believe God or anything, but does take bits and pieces of different religions that she finds useful or interesting.

So after that, I turned to the small booklet you gave me. I had to very briefly explain it to her because she was peer-pressured into seeing “Borat” in Sorenson with all of her close friends in the middle of our discussion. Seeing that she was going to leave, I went through the whole booklet in about a minute, which didn’t go so well.

After thinking about it, I actually consider it a blessing, because the conversation starting to go into my own experience with God (which way I chose to live and why), which I wasn’t prepared to talk about and was starting to screw up. But things were going fine up until that point.

Before she left, I gave her the booklet, so she has the message with her. I know she’ll probably read it, because she seems interested in the whole topic of faith and religion.

I asked her if she would like to meet again, and she said that she was more than willing. We have a good friendship developing, so there is still a good chance I can get through to her.

I apologize for the length of this email, but I had to tell you about my first “sales call”. Do you have any thoughts or suggestions for the next time I meet with her?

I hope everything is going well on your end. See you tomorrow night if you can still make it with the snow we’re supposed to get. Keep warm.

God Bless,

Tony

Isn’t it fun to see Tony take his first steps to introduce others to Jesus Christ? If you ever wonder if your support (prayer and financial) is worth it, consider students like Tony. It’s all worth it!

Tony’s closing question to me: Do you have any thoughts or suggestions for the next time I meet with her? How exciting is that?

Fearless Boston Winter Conference

In early January, I got to help lead the Boston Winter Conference. Here’s a little update about what happened at the conference. If you want to download a PDF, click here.

“The end of a conference is really just the beginning.” ~ James White, Pastor of Christ Our King Community Church in Cary, NC, and BWC speaker

It is a disease that affects us all. It has the potential to take over your life and paralyze you. Thoughts of dangling from immense heights, incurable diseases, and loneliness all incite this emotion: fear. Jesus speaks directly to this issue when he says, “Do not be afraid.” He gave that command more than any other. He knows that all of us struggle with fear. His perfect love can make us fear less.

During the second annual Campus Crusade for Christ Boston Winter Conference, 285 college students converged upon the city to grow in their faith, build relationships, and give back. They arrived envisioning what their lives could look like without fear of failure or rejection, and were given the tools to make their hopes a reality.

Pastor Stephen Um started the week by speaking about the fearless love of the Gospel, how Christ’s perfect love drives out fear. He pointed out how success-driven our culture is and how much we fear failure, but reassured us that it’s okay for us to fail because we need to learn that our identity does not hang on such an idol. Nicole from the University of Maine Orono said her relationships would be the opposite of what they are now if she could fully trust God’s justification of her in Christ. “Trust would be a given. I wouldn’t have to worry about other people’s opinions of me, because I would know that what God thought, was of the utmost importance.” The students of the Northeast region learned this week that fear has one formidable foe: the love and forgiveness found in Christ.

Once we understand that God’s love frees us from fear, the next step in the journey is to risk confronting the sin under the surface. Conference speaker Liz Swanson encouraged students to courageously admit that they don’t “have it all together.” Shane Deike challenged the group to use what they have learned by sharing it with a world that is hungry for Christ’s touch. The Day of Outreach offered many opportunities for students to take risks in evangelism and fearlessly share the gift of Christ with others. These included sharing the gospel with people on the Boston Common, helping repair fire damage in the inner city, and handing out boxes of food to needy families. Jennifer from Brown University remarked, “I feel I have grown in compassion for people today as I’ve shared my faith with them.”

At the conclusion of the conference, students were excited to return to their campuses, not only to practice letting go of their fears, but also to help others do the same. For Nicole, attending a seminar which answered tough questions about God and taught how to share those answers boldly was very valuable. “A lot of people have questions about how a good God can allow evil to exist. This seminar taught me what the Bible says about this issue and equipped me to answer the questions my friends ask.”

Steve from the University of New Hampshire says he is ready to apply what he has learned here to point other people towards Christ. “I can help calm non-believers’ fears about God only through the Gospel—there’s no better way. During the conference I gained a lot of head knowledge, but on the last day something clicked. I don’t have to worry about my own sins or fear others’ opinions of me, because Jesus took care of that on the cross. God is so good.”

To live a fearless life, to “be strong and courageous” is not a new message for us; but to glorify Christ by facing what we fear most—whether that may be sharing the good news with our family, trusting God to provide our every need, or failing others and risking being rejected—this is our call to action. When confronted with what terrifies us most, may we hear the words of our Lord to Joshua: “Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” What encouragement! He is with us and His power rests on us. For when we are weak, truly, we are strong. Remember Beloved, His grace is sufficient, even for you.

“The topic of fearlessness didn’t resonate with me at first, because I didn’t realize I struggled with it. But as the conference went on, I realized I do struggle with fear of failure and disapproval. I never really saw those areas of my life for what they were before now.” ~Emily, Syracuse University

October 2006: I asked Christ into my life that night

“You read the bible two hours a day?” That’s what I was thinking when I first met Skylar, a sophomore on the hockey team at Babson College. This summer, Skylar was in Florida working at Universal Studios, where he met some Christians who introduced him to Jesus Christ. He started reading the bible on his own.

Skylar was halfway through proverbs when I met him in September. I shared an outline of the gospel www.twowaystolive.com.

I explained to him that ultimately, there are two ways to live. We can live as if we’re in control of our life, resulting in death and judgment, or we can live as if God is in control of our lives, submitting to Christ, depending on his death and resurrection, resulting in forgiveness and eternal life.

“I agree with all you’ve said, and I think I want to be a Christian, but I’d like to finish reading the bible first.”

“You know, Skylar, I’m really excited that you want to read the bible, and I encourage you to do so, but I’d love to tell you that you don’t have to wait. If you know that you’re a rebel against God, and would prefer to live his way, you can ask him to take control of your life today.”

I didn’t pressure him, though, and it was a couple weeks until I saw him next.

I got a phone call a couple weeks ago. “Did you hear about Skylar?”

“No.”

“Well, I asked him how he was doing on his bible reading and he told me he was almost done with the Old Testament [aside: he’s now through Romans]. I told him I knew you had talked with him about the gospel and I asked him where he was with that decision. ‘Oh,’ he replied, ‘I asked Christ into my life the night Brian shared with me.'”

You can imagine I was pretty excited to hear that. It’s really great to see God at work. I did so little. Just the last little push.

It’s like Paul’s line: “I planted, Apollos watered, but God made it Grow.”

I thank you so much for your continued support.

God Bless,

Brian

A Taste of Heaven

“It has been a week and a half since Summer Project ended. I find myself longing for the community that I was so blessed to be a part of for two months, within which there was not only love for God and one another, but accountability, responsibility, and a common vision to see the city set on fire for Him. I have often felt a similar longing for something greater, purer, and higher – a desire that good theologians have taught me is our desire for heaven. As C.S. Lewis said, “If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.” I dare say the community I experienced this summer was a taste of the fellowship we shall have in heaven – the church, united with Him.” -Sean (rightmost in this picture punching Heidi)