Aaron Proffitt

I know that it has been a month since I last blogged, and I apologize to those who have faithfully clicked on my blog the past 30 days only to see the same post from late July. I really find the blogging thing to be a thorn in my side. It takes time to sit down and come up with something creative to write, and lately time (and energy…and creativity for that matter) is something that I have not had much of. But I will try to at least write a few posts here and there to keep aaronproffitt.com alive. Right now it’s barely breathing.

The latter portion of the summer has truly been incredible.

On August 11th, a team of 12 from our church plant here in Tampa went to Southern Mexico to visit one of my very best friends, Mark Huffman. He and his wife Abby felt God’s call to go on the mission field two years ago and they found themselves in Chiapas, Mexico. Over the past 2 years, they went ahead and started the very first international Aletheia Church. Our team had the privilege of working alongside them for a week. We had an amazing trip encouraging them, connecting with their people, meeting new people, and evangelizing (6 people entrusted their lives to Christ while we were there). I came back overwhelmed with joy to see that one of my boys was really doing a great job for Jesus.

Since we got back on the 19th it has been nose to the grind here in Tampa. We are gearing up for what is shaping up to be a very awesome fall. Our creative team has come up with some incredible ideas and our volunteer army is working hard to connect with the USF students. In fact, right now, we have a team on campus that is handing out icee pops and invite cards to the students. On Monday we did the same thing and in total ended up handing out close to 250 icee pops and over 350 invitations to Aletheia. And along the way, we got into some sweet discussions about faith. In fact, one young freshman, a computer engineering major heard the truth, and right in the middle of one of the busiest parts of campus, grabbed my hand and prayed to receive Christ. This happened right as the rain started to descend. I keep telling people that was for the dramatic effect!

This Sunday we will officially launch our fall services. I am beginning a new sermon series on the book of Ruth called: A Story of Redemption. Our team has come up with some amazing creative elements and last night, 9 of us were in my garage doing some painting. It was a glorified arts and crafts time. Not my favorite thing to do but I think the end result is going to be awesome. We have high hopes for this new series and this new semester. There is a lot of momentum heading into this next school year. We have busted our tails this summer and I really think we’re going to take the next steps of growth in the coming weeks and months.

It also just so happens that this week, Aletheia Tampa will turn 1 ! Can you believe it!? I can’t!? It actually seems like it’s been 2 years. I’ll be honest, there were times when i was ready to pack it in but thank God for His faithfulness even amidst my frailty. 1 year ago we launched our Sunday evening services. Only 3 months ago did we launch our morning services. Many people base the inception of their church off of when they launched Sunday morning services. So technically I could say that we are only 3 months old as a church. But I won’t do that. We’re 1 year old! Praise Jesus!

I can’t wait to see what God does in year 2. We made it through what I feel is the hardest year. And it was hard, don’t let the birthday celebration antics cover up the truth. Our crew toiled, sacrificed, and at times put in a lot of work for not a lot of tangible results. But through it all, God was honored, people were saved, lives were changed, and a church was built.

I’m ready for year two. I’m ready to see God move. I’m ready to see Aletheia Church be used as God’s vehicle to bring glory to our Savior!