staff & elders :: megan kelly
megan kelly, staff :: ministry teams
as a staff member, what is the one thing that comes up daily in your life that you would like prayer for?
that i would see with His eyes, hear with His ears, respond with His wisdom and compassion, and love with His heart.
born: march 15, 1976, in west paducah, kentucky
hometown: west paducah, kentucky... heath high school... GO PIRATES!
siblings: brother, jp; sister, kristi; and stepbrother, dave. i am the baby.
if you and your siblings were on the cosby show, which of the huxtable kids would you be?
jp is the oldest and is a mix between sandra and theo because he is absolutely brilliant but really cool and loved by all.
kristi is for sure denise because she is a free spirit, who was always 10 steps ahead fashion wise and was way cooler than anyone else in her class.
i am rudy because they loved me and hated me all at the same time. i'd be super sweet one minute and getting them in trouble the next... but the bottom line is that i idolized them and wanted to be just like them!
hobbies and/or hidden talents:
um, brandon hays tried to teach me to play the djembe when we were in mexico. i wish it was a hidden talent, but i kind of stunk.
playing bejeweled... i just got to level seven three nights ago. i play two games of it every night before i fall asleep... weird; i know.
impersonating brian fellows
passion(s):
my passion is people: the weary, the oppressed, or the ready and running.
knowing the true answer to every circumstance is Jesus Christ, it is my greatest passion to point people toward Him and watch Him do His thing.
for the weary: reminding them of the hope they have through Christ Jesus.
for the oppressed: acting on behalf of them as Christ would have us do.
for the ones who are ready and running: spurring them on and pointing out the things God is doing so that they'll be more aware of His activity in their life and run harder.
i have had people do this for me and I can only pray to be used the same way in the lives of others.
when driving in the car by myself, i am most likely... singing at the top of my lungs, deceived into thinking i am whoever i am listening to at the moment.
favorite Bible verse or the one that most explains where you are... why?
psalm 66:10-12... "for you, o God, tested us; you refined us like silver. you brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs. you let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance."
it's kind of a life verse God used to encourage me when we were working in the shelter after katrina.
i've begun to relate life in general to the different parts of the verse, knowing that until we get to heaven we will experience the trial, hardship, and testing. but the place of abundance, i believe, is not only what awaits us, but the fact that we have Jesus Christ gives us abundant life right now. so it pushes me to have an "abundant attitude" in the midst of the other times... even while it's still really hard.
favorite memory of the ring:
back when we were still a college ministry, we had our first ever weekend-o-fun that consisted of a night of prayer and a day in the park. at the night of prayer, we had way more people show up than we expected, and we prayed for so many different things.
it is my favorite memory for a couple of reasons...
several of us prayed specifically for one girl's sister to come to know the Lord. her sister called the next morning at 8 and said, "angel, i need Jesus. can you tell me how to do it?"
we had a time to pray for our elders, and everyone gathered around them at the alter. so many of the things we prayed that night have come to pass and have shaped us as a church.
favorite memory of one of the other elders or staff members:
crazy late night off-the-road golf cart time at crossings with reaux
making up characters at seminary with josh
when kenny helped me get my finances in order
taylor's constant discipleship
working 2 feet away from jess every day
moment/how you knew God was calling you to be a part of the ring:
when i worked at crossings in 2000, i got to meet rodney, dru, t, joe, and josh, who were all elders at the time. hearing their passion for the church and the ministry they were a part of intrigued me. the great things about it, the hard things, the things that were not working, the things that were.... i just loved it.
and when they said they thought the ring would be a church one day, i was blown away. and i began to pray for it because it seemed like such a dream... but a dream i really wanted to be a part of. obviously, as i prayed for it, my passion for it grew. and after some persuasion and opinion from the ever persistent baton rouge people, i even prayed about moving here. God gave me a real loud and specific "NOT YET." so i kept doing what i was doing until He told me to move to Louisiana.
in september of 2000 i have an entry in my prayer journal begging God to send a girl to the ring to do women's ministry. i prayed for her calling, her strength, her convictions, and her integrity.... so excited about "the girl" God would send. i bet God was chuckling the whole time knowing i was praying on my own behalf. i just didn't know it. so as of december of 2002, i got to start walking out this portion of His calling on my life to serve Him and His people at and through the ring community church.
anything else?
God has used, and continues to use, my parents as His primary means of discipleship in my life. my mom is my cheerleader, the one who speaks God's truth into my life when i am listening to circumstances instead of His voice. my step dad is the voice of reason, peace, and assurance that God's sovereign hand is going to take care of everything. they pray for me and the ring constantly, all the way from good old kentucky, and help me keep His perspective.