I hope you know the feeling of safety. If you don’t, you can. I don’t think many would be surprised to hear the world has gone a ways off its tilt since the beginning of time, and many probably even know that disaster could strike where anyone is at any moment (although a lot of us have the notion that ‘It will never happen to me’). The point here is not to be scared of bomb threats or rape but to have a place where you feel safe. Maybe you live in an area where there is a shooting at least once a week or you live in one of the top dangerous cities in the state, or maybe you may not live in an area of severe threat but you have a continuous, cautious and paranoid feeling. Being in a place of physical danger is no good, but what’s even worse is being in a place of spiritual misery.

The devil is on our backs every day trying to get us to cave in some way… to mess up and feel like we are too far to come to Jesus. You know that term, ‘Lies from the devil’? It couldn’t be more true. It’s easy for me to sit here at the dining table and type the words, ‘Don’t worry. Don’t let him win’ but that is no easy task. Life for every person, whether they realize it or not, is a spiritual battle, and we have got to fight for truth. (Please realize, people, when I say ‘fight,' I’m referring to the evil in the world, not the person. I’m not encouraging anybody to forcefully punch, kick, scratch, pinch, pull hair, stab, etc.).

One way to fight is to stick together with God-following friends. My senior summer, I started attending the Baptist Collegiate Ministries (BCM) on the Cameron University campus. My sophomore year (the first year of my sophomore year, haha) the BCM director, Danny Toombs, asked if we would write on a piece of paper what the BCM meant to us for a video they would post on Facebook. It didn’t take me long to add substance to a blank piece of paper. My word was ‘Safety.’ On campus, I felt the BCM was my safe haven. I considered it a home away from home, a place where I could gather with people who love Jesus and worship, where there were a bunch of like-minded people and friendly faces.

Please don’t be intimidated by people who love Jesus and follow in His footsteps. Luke 19:10 says: “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.” The lost has been everybody at some point. Before I accepted Jesus, I was lost. We do not have it all together; we go there to learn about the One who does. The BCM director, Danny Toombs, says: “We are just trying to live like Christ. The purpose is not to condemn, it’s to encourage.” At the BCM, the focus is to grow and go, ‘grow’ as in learn more about who Jesus is and how He helps us and ‘go’ as in spread this good news that Jesus loves everyone and wants them to accept Him as He has accepted all of us. Once people accept Jesus, they can begin to grow. The BCM is a great place to do this.

These past couple of days, I was an erupting volcano on the inside, but I tried not to let all my lava (stress, worry, doubt) burst. I’m just as messed up and in need of a Savior as you. If anyone reading this would like to go to the BCM at Cameron and has different beliefs, is not a Cameron student, is still in high school, or is old enough to be a great, great grandparent, please come! The purpose and focus is to reach young adults, but anyone who wants to come is welcome. This is something I love about the BCM, and this paints a picture of my Jesus. He wants everyone regardless.

Please allow me to give you directions to the coolest organization on campus (okay, so I’m biased).

Address: 2614 SW E. Avenue, Lawton, OK 73505

If you’re one like me, you’re not good at directions so you get the step-by-step direction of mental images. Okay, picture:

• Subway on Gore by the campus.
• At the light, before you reach the Subway, you make a left turn (this is if you’re coming from the right side of town, (East) ).
• Once you have turned, go straight, past Cameron Baptist on the left side, past the village apartments on the right side, and across the street on the left side, there is a tan building with a yellow sign.
• This tan building is your safe haven.

There are a couple of weekly events that go on at the BCM. Some things are...

• Monday nights: small groups (discussion groups – you can discuss if you would like or just listen), worship at 8:30, and someone gives a short message afterward. This semester we are doing a study called “Follow Me” by David Platt. The discussion groups are about the videos we watch. Small groups are really nice because we can open up and learn about each other and learn more about Christ.
• Wednesday lunches: did I have you at ‘lunch’? This lunch is free to students every Wednesday. Every Wednesday (unless otherwise posted) different church groups come and serve lunch they have prepared! How sweet is this! Lunch is from 11:15-12:45.
• There are also events that go on throughout the semester. You can stay posted at: http://cameronbcm.org/ or just come by and talk to our director, Danny Toombs.

I personally would love to meet you and help you feel welcome. You can e-mail me at Glory2Him@live.com if you have questions, and if you’d like somebody to walk in with you, I’d love to walk in with you. If you see me on campus, be free in coming up to say hi and/or talking to me about questions or concerns you may have about the BCM. Fitting in is not always easy, but the call of Christians is to stand out. So, know you fit and are welcome at the BCM and together, we can stand out and impact Cameron, Lawton, Oklahoma, and our world of water and land.