By: Natalia Rich/
This weekend, January 26-27, Howard Payne University’s Baptist Student Ministry (BSM) will be traveling to Highland Lakes Camp & Conference Center in Spicewood, Texas for a prayer conference, Abide, hosted by Texas BSM.
According to the TXBSM website, the conference, “Abide” is an unscheduled prayer experience for college students, high school seniors, and adults who work with college students. Abide is designed to be a time of retreat. There is an opening session on Friday night and a closing session on Saturday afternoon. Everything in between is up to the attendees’ discretion.
There will be various “Abide Encounters” to help students pray and connect with God. Options to connect with God at the conference include sitting by the water, spending some time next to the bonfire, having coffee with a friend, and listening to the quiet. Attendees are encouraged to pray for their campus and the world.
Bryan Pate, director of HPU’s Baptist Student Ministry, said he believes the weekend will be a great experience.
“I think the best part of the weekend is the lack of schedule,” Pate said. “There are plenty of opportunities for prayer, reflection, and meditation, but there is nothing that says you have to be here at this time. It really opens up opportunities for students to get what they need from the weekend.”
This weekend is meant to be a way for students to focus on God in the middle of a busy semester.
“I believe people are capable of so much more when they are intentional about their relationship with God,” Pate said. “When we are intentional about our time with Him, we begin to take on His heart for those around us and begin to see needs where we didn’t before or begin to understand our purpose in ways we didn’t before. When there are students who truly start to understand and see those things, you can expect lives to be affected in some way. Maybe not in some big way that becomes a big spectacle for everyone to see, but it’s just as important either way.”
BSM will be covering the cost for all students who are interested in attending and will be providing a van for transportation, but students may also provide their own transportation if desired. Students who are interested in attending the conference should contact Bryan Pate, at his email, Bpate@hputx.edu.
Photo of staff writer, Natalia Rich