Archive for ‘Daily Updates’

Quest Update 7/29

July 30th, 2008

All men are called by God to be leaders; unfortunately, many young men develop a severely skewed perspective on what leadership is, how it should be exercised, and who should be leaders.
Cpt. Keon Pendergast, the current commanding officer of ALERT Basic Training, taught two sessions on leadership. Drawing from Scripture, he dispelled several common myths about leadership and taught the students on the two most important (but also most often overlooked) aspects of true, Biblical, manly leadership: servanthood and love.


An integral part of Quest involves service to others. A key part of this service is the daily time spent washing the dishes after lunch.

Many times throughout the day, different teams have the opportunity to engage in recreational activities such as soccer, frisbee, or basketball.

Quest Update: 7/28

July 29th, 2008

Where Week One focuses on foundations, and Week Two focuses on character and purpose, Week Three delves into the practical skills men need to serve the Lord effectively.
Monday, July 28, focused heavily on teaching them about prayer. The students watched The Power of Prayer by Keith Daniels and then spent about an hour in prayer with their groups. This activity bonded the teams and allowed them to witness the power of prayer.

Update: Week One

July 23rd, 2008

Week One focused on building a solid foundation (in Christ) for the next three weeks of equipping and discipling. The students were challenged by the rigorous schedule, high expectations, and convicting sessions. Lives were impacted as these men opened up to the Lord’s work in their lives and decided that they wanted to change.

Dynamic speakers such as Bob Allison, Samuel Kordik, John Piper (video), and Paul Washer (audio) presented the truths of God’s word and defined the issue of transitioning into manhood as primarily an issue of surrender.

The students of Blue group learned First Aid and CPR; Red learned about canoeing, and the Green group studied auto maintenance and navigation.

The most challenging aspect of the program was the intense schedule. Days begin early at 5:30 am with about 45 minutes of physical training; this is followed by devotional time and a busy day. The day ends at 9:00 pm with a strict lights-out.

God has blessed tremendously with a wonderful team of solid leadership and He has moved among this group, opening eyes and softening hearts.

Day Four

July 18th, 2008

The first week focuses on establishing a solid foundation in Christ. Since our vision here starts with “Challenging young men to embrace a vision for Christ-centered manhood,” one necessary aspect of this foundation was to define what Biblical manliness looks like. The program coordinator, Samuel Kordik, taught a session on Thursday morning that took a look at what a real man is, how a man can be God-centered, and who God is.

To round out the first week, the Quest students had the privilege of attending three sessions with Dr. Bob Allison, the lead counselor for the International Center for Biblical Counseling of Texas.

Day Three: Update

July 17th, 2008

Wednesday, July 16, was a mostly routine day. Due to an exciting midnight hike, the students slept in an hour and then got up and did devotions. They studied Christ’s command to Love the Lord (Mark 12:30) and then went to the morning class.

ALERT Specialist Lorin Kaney taught on the care and usage of tools. With a significant background in aircraft maintenance and flight operations, Spc. Kaney was able to provide a broad overview of what tools there are, how to use them, and how to maintain them.

The class was interactive and the students learned the important lesson that tools should be used for what they are designed for.