Spiritual Emphasis Week Points to God’s Love, Grace, and Transformation
By Sammy Mull, Shield Co-Editor-in-Chief
During North Raleigh Christian Academy’s 18th annual Spiritual Emphasis Week, Reagan Jones, a student pastor from The Summit Church-Apex Campus, shared a message centered around the reality of God’s love.
Jones said that when he was 16, the Lord “radically changed” his life. From that moment, he said the way he lived his life and approached ministry has never been the same. He has now been with The Summit Church for eight years, and he and his wife have recently welcomed a baby boy into the world.
Spiritual Emphasis Week (SEW) is set aside as a time for students to gather in worship and focus on Bible study and what the Lord wants them to hear. Throughout the week, middle and high school students had the opportunity to attend five services, three during the school day and two on Monday and Tuesday nights. All NRCA families were invited to attend the evening services.
Having previously spoken at NRCA’s weekly chapels, Jones felt called to share the Lord’s teachings about His love with students. “It is the most simple doctrine in the whole world that Jesus loves you, but it is the one that we tend to have the hardest time believing,” he said.
Beyond understanding that Jesus loves them, Jones also wants students to realize that “the Holy Spirit is real and active and wants to move in their lives.” He explained how now is the time to make an impact for God, and that students do not have to wait until adulthood to be sent out and share the gospel.
Throughout the week, as he heard testimonies of students who have given their lives to Jesus, or even just encountering the presence of God for the first time, Jones said, “I’m a firm believer that God really does want to move in the lives of teenagers.”
Shame and worry are two of the biggest struggles Jones sees students wrestle with. He said those burdens often stem from failing to believe God’s love is personal. He talked about the reality of God caring for the birds of the air, but how people often do not apply that knowledge to their own lives. Jones said, "Those two things, like if we believe that He loved us, it would change how we live. I think that’s why I wanted to carry that message to NRCA because I think you guys know a lot of theology. You guys know a lot of spiritual disciplines. You’ve heard. You’ve read your Bible before. And it’s the most simple doctrine in the whole world that Jesus loves you, but it’s the one we have the hardest time believing.”
Spiritual Emphasis Week also affected Jones personally. “I think the Lord blew my expectations for what I thought was going to happen. I think it just reminded me that He’s still big and He still does really good things, and it has nothing to do with what I can bring to the table in a moment.” Throughout the week, Jones was reminded that sermons do not have to be polished or perfected for God to change lives.
After a week of preaching, Jones shared his hopes for NRCA and how he wants his messages to affect not only the students, but the entire school. “I feel every Christian has the face that we put on the front and then there are the things that are hiding in the back that are underneath the surface. I feel like if the gospel actually changes us, and a revival does break out in the school, it will happen when those secret things come to the light, and they’re met with grace and kindness and love and the gospel. I think that would be one of the things that I would love to see happen at this school.”
