Blakney Support Team

We do not receive a salary from Chi Alpha. All of our income is from family, friends, churches, and businesses who choose to become a part of our support team. We have an account in Springfield, MO, where our money is collected and disbursed to us. We are regulated in what we can get, but we can only get what comes into our account. Some months are lower than others.

We are dependent on the generosity of others...Ultimately we are dependent on God.

It took me a little while to really come to terms with the fact that God was in charge of my finances when I was a teacher and received a calculated salary every month just as much as He is now when it is not the same every month. He's still God, and it all comes from Him.

Recently, we've been able to bless others because of what God has given to us. That is always exciting.

Yet, we are at a point where we need to fulfill the financial budget obligations that have been placed upon us by the national Assemblies of God office. We are accountable to them. They have set this budget in place for us so that we can live a modest lifestyle and have money to cover extra work expenses, health expenses - like our personal insurance plan, travel expenses...things that would be covered by a business if we were working for someone else.

We are closer to being at 100% of our budget obligations than we have ever been, but we are not there yet. We are in need of some more people to join our support team by giving financially on a monthly basis to help us continue reaching out to the students at the University of Louisiana Lafayette. The amount can be $500, $100, $75, $50, or whatever else you may feel led to give.


When you become a financial Blakney Support Team Member, you are investing into students who are changing the world. You have a part in their story. You are helping us teach them, challenge them, and empower them to live their lives for Christ and help others along with them.

We also need people to become prayer Blakney Support Team Members...to join with us by praying for us to have wisdom as we mentor students, to have creativity to reach out, and to have favor as we minister to others.

If you are interested in joining our team, please know that all contributions will receive a tax deductible receipt. It's a benefit for being a blessing to us!

Feel free to contact me at bri@lachialpha.org if you have any questions or you would like any more information.

There are also some links on the left side of this blog to connect you with more information.

We appreciate all of our current Blakney Support Team Members, some of whom have been with us from the very beginning. God has been so faithful to us through your sacrifices, and we hope that you have been abundantly blessed in return!!!

A Few Prayer Requests

Here are a few areas where we could use your prayers:

1. Bella has tonsillitis again. Poor baby has ran fever, and her tonsils are just swollen so much. I mean, they are huge all of the time, whether they are infected or not. She has a hard time eating and drinking, especially in the morning. Our pediatrician asked us to see an ENT, and the ENT said that our best option would be to have her tonsils removed. Please pray that God would heal her little throat and give us wisdom in this area. It's so sad to see her sick, but most days you couldn't tell if she was or not!



2. Please pray that we will get rest during this short break before summer school starts in June. We can definitely use the refreshment. Lee will still be going into the cafe, and there are things to get together for the summer...and it's time to start preparing for the fall. Please pray for wisdom and creativity as we seek the Lord on ways to reach more students on this campus!

3. Please pray for the students who will be returning home this summer. Some of them will be returning home for the first time as a new follower of Christ (and the only one in their families). This will be foreign for them and their families, so pray for grace, peace, and encouragement. We hope that they find a good church to attend during this time. We want them to continue to grow spiritually, and they definitely need our prayers!!

Thank you for joining with us in your prayers! We are making it on this adventure because of your prayers and the financial sacrifices you are making for us to minister to the students of UL.

Empty Desks

They did it!! They've graduated! They are moving on...

The semester is officially over. Graduation took place on Saturday, May 14th, and our graduate student and seniors walked across the stage to receive their degrees.

Some are now looking for jobs...

Some will be attending graduate school...

Some have already been hired and will begin working in their fields...

Some will be doing the Chi Alpha Campus Missionary in Training Internship to become Chi Alpha campus pastors...

All will continue to be missionaries...They will take what they have learned here about discipleship and will keep this as a part of their lives.

It doesn't matter if they are working to transform the marketplace where they work or the university where they studied, they are all going to continue to transform the world.

We are so proud of these students who have graduated. They have left an impression on the students who will be following in their footsteps.

We don't have too much time to be sad about them leaving...we are already planning how we will meet the 3,000 freshmen this summer who will come through orientations and walk onto our campus as students this fall.
We are looking for the next leaders who will become a part of Chi Alpha and continue with the challenge of transforming the University of Louisiana Lafayette by the power of the Holy Spirit. They may not even have a relationship with Jesus yet or want anything to do with God, but who they are today will not be the same person who walks across the stage in a few years from now.

The Best Is Yet to Come

we are celebrating finishing 4 years here at the University of Louisiana Lafayette Chi Alpha.

1. We are seeing our first class of students graduating. These freshmen who started when we started the internship in the Fall of 2007, and they are going to be receiving their degrees this May (and some in December too). Some of them are going to graduate school here at UL, some are staying around in the area to work, and a few are doing the internship to become Chi Alpha Campus Missionaries themselves.
We are soooooooo proud of all of these students for finishing strong. We know that they are going to continue reaching out to people and sharing Jesus with them wherever they go, whatever it is that they do...because they have learned from their time in Chi Alpha that this is a lifestyle...a way of living...it is discipleship.

2. We are excited about the future. We will have the largest group of leaders this coming fall that we've had in the 4 years we have been here. That is awesome! That means that our students are working hard to reach out to others. The vision for growth has been put out before them, and they are working to make it happen.

(this is the men's leadership from this year and the leaders for next year)

3. God has done so much in us and through us during this time here. There is still so much for Him to change in us, but as we continue doing what we are doing, we see His hand upon us. He is changing us to become more like Him. This is not always easy, but it is for our good.

It's been a great time of reflection for us as we look back on what God has done and where He has brought us. It's amazing to see the students' lives continue to change before our eyes as the Holy Spirit works in them. We have so much to be thankful for!!! And the best is yet to come...

Tony's Story...

It is Thankful Thursday again...and we're so thankful for Tony Jones!!

Tony Jones is one of our Chi Alpha students who will be graduating in a few weeks. Tony holds a very special place in the hearts of the Blakney family. He's originally from the Westbank of New Orleans - he graduated in the same class as my niece, Chelsey, from Belle Chasse High School. He has family from my hometown of Buras. I didn't know him back then, though. And today he's not the same person as he was at that time.
He came to college at UL, and seriously wanted nothing to do with God. He liked the things of this world.

He was invited regularly by Tyren to a Life Group (small group Bible study that meets in the dorms), and he regularly turned that invitation down. Tyren kept inviting, and eventually Tony accepted the invitation. That semester, Tony received Christ as his Savior and was water baptized as an outward way to show his commitment to following Jesus.


Tony is a story of redemption. He left the things of the world and has followed Christ wholeheartedly. He has also become an amazing discipler. He leads other men to the cross where they find Jesus. He pours his heart and his soul into the men he disciples. Tony, who wanted nothing to do with religion 4 years ago, now has a deep relationship with Jesus, and is called to be in the ministry.

We are so proud of Tony. We know that he loves us too...all of us, not just Lee. :) Not too long ago, he wrote this on Lee's facebook wall:

I appreciate you big daddy and all you do. I thank God that you sought his will in becoming a Campus Pastor and nothing you do goes unnoticed, and you can see the fruit from your love for college students and the men's leadership. You are always showing each and every one of us how to be a man and more importantly a Man of God just by simply living your life. Thanks for your wisdom, and I pray you continue to seek God for more to be able to pass on to others. I love you, man and do NOT stop doing what you are doing for God and UL Chi Alpha.

Tony is graduating this May, and he will continue to be at UL this fall to complete the Campus Missionary In Training internship like Lee and I did 4 years ago. He is going to do an amazing job. We cannot say enough how proud we are of him.

Thank you, support team members. Your prayers and financial sacrifices are helping us reach more students like Tony.

Summer Is Around the Corner...

I'm looking forward to the summer. We are not "off" like I was when I was teaching. If the students are in school, including summer sessions, we still have events taking place during the week. There will be a weekly TNL (Thursday Night Live) at 7 pm on Thursday nights...it will be at Cafe Chi Alpha instead of on campus in the student union. During the summer, staff and student leaders take turns speaking. It is more laid back, casual, and of course, there is always a fun time afterwards...which usually includes a volleyball game at our own sand volleyball court.
There will also be Life Groups which will meet during the summer for the students who stay around. These are also different than during the semester...and a lot of fun for all who are involved.

It is just a more laid back season of the year, with more time to dream about what we want to happen in the fall semester. We actually start dreaming before the summer, but during the summer it is the time to make those dreams a reality. We take the steps necessary to make our big events at the beginning of the fall semester happen.

Another thing that Lee and I get to do during the summer is meet students at New Student Orientation. We go to the student union for the New Student Expo, where the new freshmen can see many of the organizations on campus (to see the list of Student Organizations at UL click here.) This is one of our first opportunities to make a huge impression on the 3,000 incoming freshmen. Each orientation has about 350-400 students...and we have about 30 minutes during the expo for all of them to "Experience" Chi Alpha and that's only if they want to.
When Lee and I first did orientation, we met several students that we reconnected with when they returned in the fall. This was exciting for us. Not last summer but the summer before, I personally met 3 girls at orientation who are now student leaders in our Chi Alpha group. And we know that there are more...That's just exhilarating!!

So, for this summer, I'll be working with my babysitting crew at the Chi Alpha house, and I plan on being a part of orientation. This helps me feel a lot more connected to the ministry. I know that there are students who I will meet this summer who will be a part of our student leadership team in the future, and this gives me a unique connection to them. It helps me to have an idea of who Lee will be talking about when the fall starts up.

We are finishing up our 3rd year on staff...our 4th year of being here at UL...it has been an exciting adventure! And the best is yet to come...

Baptisms in the School Pool

A week ago, Lee as the men's discipleship pastor, and Kelsey, the women's discipleship pastor, baptized 9 students in the swimming pool at the Aquatic Center at Bourgeios hall. After our weekly Thursday Night Live (TNL) worship meeting, everyone headed over to the pool to see this take place at the end of the semester. There were 9 students who made the decision to follow Christ in obedience and take their relationship with Him a step further!!

This was Lee's first time ever to baptize anyone as a minister. I'm so proud...there are tears in my eyes as I type this.

I know he did a wonderful job.

I know that it meant a lot to him because some of the 5 guys who were baptized will be in leadership next year.

When a student gets in the water, he or she has a chance to explain why he/she has chosen to be baptized. They get to say that they have made a decision to follow Jesus and are following Him in obedience by being baptized and making a public proclamation of faith.

Then, each person getting baptized is prayed for by his or her life group leader. This is a very special moment...hearing those prayers, and this has been another proud moment of mine.

It's so neat for Lee to see someone who he is discipling who is discipling someone else knowing that next year, both of those guys will continue being discipled and then potentially disciple someone else. Amazing. That's how Chi Alpha grows...that's how the Kingdom of God grows.

*I have to say thanks to the photographers Heather P. and Lindsay C. for taking such great pictures.