BYX Nationals visits North Carolina State University

by Ministry Associate Tyler Rogers

Last week I had the pleasure of heading to North Carolina to visit our men at NC State. It was an incredible trip! When I arrived on Monday, I went to my hotel and settled in. Later I joined the men at a great Pizza Restaurant for a rush event! We had two huge New York style pizzas with several guys who were there attending the rush event. After the pizza we left and went to a really cool bowling alley. The bowling alley was really old school and didn't have any of the televized score boards. You had to keep score by hand. It was fun. There 15 of us total including 8 potential guys. Tuesday morning I woke up and began to meet with the men. I met with NC State Pledge Captain, T.J. Louie, NC State Chaplain, Miles Farthing, and NC State Secretary, Bradley Monroe. I also had lunch with current pledge Justin Sawyer and Bryan Mears, NC State President. Tuesday night we all got together to watch the Pack play UNC in the epic basketball rivalry. Unfortunately NC State thought the game was over half way throught the second half and stopped playing. We enjoyed hanging out and eating wings though. It was great.

Wednesday was another great day! I woke up early and had the great opportunity to meet with Campus Crusades for Christ Director Mike Mehaffie. We were able to discuss the purpose of BYX as well as how BYX and CRU could work together to further the kingdom of God at NC State. We also talked about some unique problems that could occur in the near future at NC State. It was great getting to share our hearts for the campus together. I also was able to meet with Falculty advisor Dr. Bradley Laile! Dr. Laile has such an amazing heart for the men at NC State and will be able to bring a ton of wisdom and support to the men at NC State. He will be such a blessing as he is able to meet with the officers and get involved with our chapter at NC State. Later that afternoon I had the opportunity to meet with NC State Vice-President, Nate Spain, NC State President Bryan Mears, and NC State Treasurer, Kyle Shepherd. All of the meetings with the officers were great as we discussed the future of the chapter.Wednesday night, I had dinner with all of these officers. After dinner, we headed to set up for the formal dessert night. We had great desserts and dressed up for the last rush event. That night we had the opportunity to interview 7 of the rushees. All 7 of whom pledged and now have become the Alpha class of Beta Upsilon Chi at NC State. I am going to list the names of all 13 men below so that you can be praying over these 13 men as they help bring BYX to NC State. The chapter is in great hands! These men are motivated and love the Lord. The love each other and are great servants. The future is bright for BYX at NC State. Wednesday night/Thursday morning was tied up with interviews until 2:30 a.m. Then planning for the bid and big brother ceremonies for the following night which lasted until 4:30 a.m. Just enough time for me to get ready and go catch my 6:00 a.m. flight! It was busy but SO awesome!!! GO PACK!

Officers:
Bryan Mears- President
Nate Spain- Vice President
Bradley Monroe- Secretary
TJ Louie- Pledge Captain
Kyle Shepherd- Treasurer
Miles Farthing- Chaplain

Pledges:
Justin Sawyer
Logan Sawyer
Will Jackson
Kyle
Daniel Ellis
Austin
Mick

Nationals Visits Kansas University

by Nick England
Ministry Associate

I arrived at DFW airport to depart for Lawrence. This was no ordinary Sunday, mind you. This particular Sunday was one which Brett Favre had scheduled a whooping on the Cowboys. Had I known this at the time, I probably would not have stood outside a restaurant at my terminal until the last possible second, watching America's Team draw near to half time. Leaving me to get on a plane where I would be cut off entirely from the world and more importantly, the NFC playoff. It wouldn't be until I was in Kansas that I would discover that the 2009 season would not be the year for Wade Phillips to hoist the Lombardi trophy whilst being showered by confetti.

I stepped outside the Kansas City airport to be met by a winter wonderland foreign to someone from Texas. The wind had a bite to it, men were wearing scarves and trench coats at no attempt of being fashionable but rather just plain functional. And to top it off, there was snow everywhere. President Todd Dorsey and Vice President Robert Vick rolled up to the curb to pick me up along with one of their chapter sponsors, Loren Hsiao. We drove to Lawrence, catching up about chapter business, KU basketball and Avatar. Really anything but the Cowboys game...Loren had recorded it to watch when he returned home even though the pilot on his flight was giving them updates periodically. A luxury which most likely evolved into a mosquito that just won't leave your ear alone.

We were dropped off at the hotel to change for dinner and the initiation ceremony that night. Brian Moore, another KU chapter sponsor met us there and we all drove to Free State Brewery for dinner. On our last visit to Lawrence, we were told the chicken pesto pasta was the best meal to order at Free State, which would be true unless you talked to Jason Hoyt. Jason had a bout with the pasta that left him ralphing in the hotel room all day. That chicken pesto pasta was belligerent, like an old man sending back soup at a diner. However, the majority of us ordered the chicken pesto pasta once again because we had heard it was so good...and it was. Following dinner, the founding fathers took their pledge test and we initiated the men. It was an incredible night, especially because in addition to Loren and Brian, we were joined by two other KU chapter sponsors, Will Pryor and Paul Hendrix. It was quite a sight to behold these men care so much about BYX and give their time and their hearts to initiate the founding fathers of the KU chapter. Following their initiation, we went to Munchers for some late-night cinnamon rolls and chocolate milk, perhaps the beginnings of a KU chapter tradition.

When I awoke on Monday morning, I started my day the best way anyone can in Lawrence, Kansas. I ventured to Milton's for some of their famous french toast, a delicacy to Jayhawks and a must for any visitor of their fair city. Todd, Chaplain Trevor Perry, Secretary Josh Charles, Treasurer Bryant Huether, founding father Ryan Black and I all ate breakfast that morning at Milton's over some great conversation about the future of the KU chapter. Throughout the day, I was able to meet with each of the officers as well as their faculty adviser to discuss more of the same. Then I met all of the founding fathers and some potential pledges at Bigg's BBQ that evening for some great discussion and incredible Kansas barbecue. I ordered the brisket, sweet potato fries and fried okra. Now, don't let Robert Vick fool you. Even though he is from Dallas, he has not become the most well rounded eater from his youth. He questioned okra and it's origin, believing it to be an ocean-dwelling species, perhaps a crustacean or mollusk. I assured him that it comes from a flowering plant and is hardly eaten without being fried. I forced him to try it which did not go as well as I had planned...he insisted it laid eggs in his mouth. Following Roberts okra abduction, we closed out the evening with an officer meeting to plan for the semester.

Tuesday morning I ate breakfast at First Watch with Todd and Bryant. We talked about where the chapter is headed and how the trip went. Afterwards, we said our goodbyes and Josh and Bryant drove me to the airport to return to Dallas. Upon my arrival at DFW, I stepped outside and it was a muggy 71 degrees.

BYX Ski Week

January 5th - 9th, 75 brothers from 8 chapters gathered in Keystone Colorado for some great fellowship and some great skiing. Our national staff arrived in Keystone on Tuesday afternoon and checked into to some great accomodations set up by High Point Travel in Dallas. We welcome the brothers in as they arrived and looked forward to some great times. The best part about the BYX ski week really was the fact that there really was no agenda, no time requirements, but only a week of brotherhood and unity. We crossed paths with brothers over dinner and on the slopes each day.

Wednesday January 6th, the staff headed to Breckenridge for the first day of skiing. We were on the slopes at 9:00AM and by 11:30 already starting to wear down a bit. The morning was slowed by our first injury on the slopes. Nathan Miller, BYX ministry associate, fell awkwardly and spent the remainder of the day in the clinic at the bottom of the hill with a sprained lumbar and some stretch

ed muscles. That ended his run on the slopes. On Wednesday afternoon, a good snow storm rolled into the area. The wind picked up and the snow was blowing pretty good. We ended our day about 3:00 because of the storm and headed back to Keystone.

Thursday was a much better day of skiing. The storms had left and it was a beautiful sunny day with no wind and fresh snow. Granted, it was still about 12 degrees outside, but it was beautiful. We stayed close in Keystone on Thursday and really enjoyed a great day of skiing. We were joined by Kansas chapter president Todd Dorsey for the afternoon. We again cut the day on slopes a little short so we could get to the conference room and set up the video feed for the BCS National Championship game. We had to set up the video projector, order the pizzas and pick up the soft drinks for the big game. We had some concern about whether we were going to find the right setup for the projector. After a little help from a Christian brother on staff at the hotel, we had everything set up for the big game. The brothers rolled in at 6:00 and we enjoyed an evening of food, fun and fellowship for nearly everyone. The only exception were the 13 Longhorn brothers who didn't have a great night, but none the less I think they enjoyed themselves.

Friday we drove over to Vail for another beautiful day of skiing. The weather was a cool 15 degrees, but the sun was shining and the snow was great. Vail is just one of those mountains that you can ski for a couple of days without ever hitting the same run. We picked up a couple of t-shirts on our way out and counted ourselves lucky that all of our extremities still worked as they should. All in all, we had 4 injuries on the trip. Nathan's back, a broken collar bone and a concussion by a couple of Vanderbilt guys, and a hyper-extended knee by a UNT brother. 4 injuries out of 75 18-22 year olds on skis is not to bad I guess.

We headed home to Fort Worth on Saturday January 10th at 6:30AM and arrived home about 10:00PM. It was a long trip, but a very enjoyable one for all the brothers and our staff. We are already making plans for BYX Ski Week 2011. The brothers enjoyed 4 nights lodging, 3 days skiing, lift tickets, and ski rentals for a low price of $300 dollars a brother. We are planning for even more brothers to come out and join us next year.

Year End Letter from Executive Board

Beta Upsilon Chi will turn 25 years old in 2010. We are shepherding the fraternity through a critical phase of its history. Even though BYX is 25 years old, our average alumnus is in his mid-twenties and going through some of the fastest changes life can bring. BYX has seen phenomenal changes in its twenties with its reach going beyond Texas all the way to the Atlantic Ocean at North Carolina State. Like the newly minted college graduate, there have been triumphs and letdowns, but God is at work among the men of Beta Upsilon Chi.

One of the great lessons we have experienced first hand over the last three decades has been the concept of compounding. The investment of a few has multiplied on itself each year and become something the founders never dreamed of. My life is one of the thousands that have been radically altered by BYX.

"Radically altered" might seem like a strong phrase. However, BYX stood in the gap for me in college when I might have made other choices and I have seen the investment of a few compound in tremendous ways. Consider the following story:

My new fraternity brothers encouraged me to check out a church. My parents came with me to that church and then my dad's brother with him. Other BYX brothers ended up leading my sister through her various student ministry groups. Those brothers stood in my wedding. We held each other up when tragedy struck among our parents and friends. I know what it means to be a part of a small group and to minister to other men. After hearing it from so many other BYX alumni, I now have a daughter and can understand what they mean when they say they want their daughters finding a man that was part of BYX in college.

In the famous words of Ferris Bueller, "Life moves pretty fast. You don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."

Life is moving pretty fast for Beta Upsilon Chi. One thing that has not changed is our reason for existence: "We are a Christian Fraternity whose purpose is to establish brotherhood and unity among college men based on the common bond of Jesus Christ."

If your life is one of those that has been radically altered by your time in BYX, stop and look around. Give thanks for those brothers that made the investment in you, and please continue to be a part of BYX. Here are some ways to do it:

1. Register on our website if you are not already, update your contact information and encourage your brothers to do the same. (Register Now)
2. Participate in alumni events at your university's chapter this year during Founders Week, Homecoming and other local events.
3. Participate in national events including our city alumni chapters and our national golf tournament in May 2010
4. Honor a brother and compound your investment. For as little as $15/month, you can cover the annual cost of one new fraternity brother among our chapters. Consider the story above and how that investment can compound for years to come. (Make a Tax Deductible Contribution)
   
5. Sponsor a chapter. We have several new chapters that still need sponsors to reach fully-funded and self-sufficient status. For a one-time donation of $1,000 or more, you can be a part of radically altering the lives of men at a new college campus. (Become a Chapter Sponsor)
   

Thank you for your prayers and support in 2009. We are looking forward to a great 25th year. Don't forget to stop and look around in 2010!


In one spirit,

Cody Dick
BYX Executive Board Member

Summit 2010

Brothers,

Many of you have begun to ask your ministry associate questions regarding Summit 2010. The when, the where, the how much. We greatly appreciate each of you in your efforts to plan ahead for next Spring.

As the officer retreat concluded, we began to turn our efforts towards the planning of Summit 2010 to get answers to your questions. We looked at distances from your chapters to Summit (Cedar Hill, Texas), particularly the safety issues and the costs of what it takes the average member to get to Summit. We ran thorough costs structures models that looked at equaling out the cost for the chapters traveling far and the chapters who are nearby. After taking into account the safety issues of have 9 chapters drive 1,000 miles or more for a 24 hour retreat, and looking at the cost structure of what it would take, the Executive Board of Directors, Advisory Board, and National Staff have come to the conclusion that Summit is no longer feasible given all the facts. Therefore, WE HAVE DECIDED TO CANCEL SUMMIT.

This has been a very difficult decision for us as we have all enjoyed having so many brothers come together for worship, brotherhood and unity in Christ. We are very concerned at what this decision will do to impact our "national unity" as a fraternity. We have spent some significant time thinking through this and we as nationals are working to implement some new ideas that will foster national unity. There are many ideas, but some of the include:

1) Founders Week Oct 3-11th (introduced at the officer retreat)

2) Brother Chapters (introduced in 2009)

3) Board Tour (we have paired each of our 13 board members up with two chapters a piece. They will be coming to your chapter in 2010 to share national vision, and meet face to face with you and your members).

4) Ski Trip 2010: We have 75 brothers from 10 chapters committed in only the 1st year. We plan on expanding the ski trip opportunity in January 2011.

Those are just a few of the things we are working towards in 2010 to promote national unity among the fraternity. There are more and as we develop them, we will begin to discuss them with you.

Thank you for your steadfast leadership in BYX. There are times as leaders that we are faced with difficult decisions. The decision to move away from Summit has been one of those difficult decisions. We pray that the Lord would continue to strengthen the brotherhood and unity we experience in Him. If you have further questions, please feel free to contact me or your ministry associate.

In One Accord,

Jason Hoyt

Beta Upsilon Chi, Inc.

Supreme Court Takes the Case

The Supreme Court of the United States agreed Monday to take a similar case to the BYX vs. University of Florida suit that we completed about a month ago. This is big news for all religious groups who have been dealing with universities on this issue. Here is the full story found at www.clsnet.org.

U.S. Supreme Court agrees to hear lawsuit against UC-Hastings
High Court will hear case involving right of religious student organizations
to determine their own leadership.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court Monday agreed to decide whether a public university can refuse to recognize a religious student group because the group requires its leaders to share its religious beliefs. Attorneys with the Christian Legal Society and the Alliance Defense Fund Center for Academic Freedom represent a student chapter of CLS, which Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco refused to recognize because the group requires all of its officers and voting members to subscribe to its basic Christian beliefs.
“Public universities shouldn’t single out Christian student groups for discrimination. All student groups have the right to associate with people of like-mind and interest,” said Senior Counsel Kim Colby with the CLS Center for Law & Religious Freedom. “We trust the Supreme Court will not allow Hastings to continue to deprive CLS of this right by forcing the group to abandon its identity as a Christian student organization.”

“Christian students have the right to gather as Christians for a common purpose and around shared beliefs,” said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Gregory S. Baylor with the ADF Center for Academic Freedom. “It’s completely unreasonable--and unconstitutional--for a public university to disrupt the purposes of private student groups by forcing them to accept as members and officers those who oppose the very ideas they advocate.”

CLS Litigation Counsel Timothy J. Tracey, now with ADF, argued the case Christian Legal Society v. Martinez before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit in March. The appellate court refused to reverse a district judge’s decision against CLS, so the case was appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Officer Retreat Weekend

On Friday night, all 25 of our chapters officers arrived at Mount Lebanon. We welcome the guys with some brother chapter competition. For example, Baylor & Texas Tech are brother chapters, TCU and Florida are brother chapters, NC State and Georgia are brother chapters, etc. We paired them up in January of this year to help facilitate the vision of BYX beyond just the school they attend. Our "Battle of the Brethren" used these brother chapters pairs working together to compete against other brother chapter pairs all weekend. Friday night we had 12 fun games such as Trivia, Best Rendering of the BYX Crest, paper airplane contest, singing of our national anthem, etc.. to get the brothers working together to accomplish goals. It was a great time had by all.

Saturday morning, we started with some worship lead by Drew Christman and an encouraging word from Executive Board member and Pastor David Daniels. David encouraged the men to understand the "Why we are Here" of BYX in foster Biblical community. After the first teaching session, we all headed out to the basketball court for our brother chapter dodgeball tournament. Dodgeball has become a staple event at BYX retreats lately and is always a great time of competition and fellowship. Here is the link to the BYX dodgeball championship between Texas
A&M/Auburn and TCU/Florida. It was a great match.

2009 Dodgeball Championship

After dodgeball, we returned to another teaching session on hazing. It is important for our officers to know what is appropriate activity for pledgeship and what is not. We outlined several guidelines for them to use in determining appropriate activity. We as BYX need to be above reproach in our treatment of our pledges. It is a part of our policy that our members need to serve our pledges as Christ came to serve. We answered many questions for them men, but overall they left with principles and questions to ask themselves with regard to all our activities.

The afternoon brought the first breakout teaching sessions. Nick England took the treasurers, Tyler Rogers took the pledge captains, and Nathan Miller took the vice presidents and walked them through their roles and responsibilities for next year. Each session took roughly 2 hours and each officer had the opportunity to dialogue with other leaders in their same role and ask their questions to the staff. During that time, I took the presidents, chaplains, and secretaries and walked them through our BYX Constitution that outlines the framework of how we do BYX.

Following the breakout sessions, each brother chapter competed in a massive game of Clue. The men were running around campus asking questions to board members in an attempt to narrow down the possibilities. Ultimately the A&M/Auburn team solved the puzzle and earned the most points.

Our evening session began with worship by Drew Christman, a talk on spiritual leadership by Chuck James that encouraged the men to be the leaders that God has called them to be and then a word from me on the history of BYX, and the vision of where we are going. In my talk, I outlined for the men how all of what we do can be traced by to the Gospel. Jesus has changed our hearts and given us a passion for brotherhood and unity in Christ. I outlined our three priorities as a national fraternity in 1) taking good care of our existing chapters 2) starting new chapters and 3) alumni association development. I explained how each chapter can take part in those three priorities. I was pretty excited about the word the Lord gave me to share them men.

The evening wrapped up with breakout session 2 with Nick England taking the chaplains, Tyler Rogers taking the presidents, and Nathan Miller taking the secretaries and walking them through their roles and responsibilities. I had the VP's, Treasurers, and Pledge Captains and walked them through the BYX Constitution.

Sunday was just a couple of hours of wrapping up. We gave them some time as officers to meet together and discuss some of the ideas they gathered from talking with all the guys and wrapped up some expectations for the coming year for the officers. We concluded the retreat with our final competition, "Are you Smarter than a Board Member". After several challenging questions such as "Who is the red ninja turtle?" and "What year was the Emancipation Proclamation made?", Mizzou ultimately won the this competition by knowing the address of Sherlock Holmes in London. In the end, Oklahoma State and UNT won the brother chapter competitions and took home a gift card for each officer team to Chili's. We concluded the weekend with the singing of our fraternity song and sent the brothers on their way back to their schools.

It really was awesome to spend such a great weekend with the 150 officers who will lead BYX in its 25th year in 2010. We as a staff are really looking forward to working with them soon.

BYX Board Meeting

What can I say about the weekend, but awesome. I arrived at Mount Lebanon encampment on Thursday evening late in preparation for the long weekend. I didn't anticipate the rain Thursday and Friday, but everyone arrived safely.

Friday morning at 7:00 am, we started our Executive Board meeting with Chuck James, Brett Williams, David Daniels, Wendel Weaver, Cody Dick and myself. These meetings can be pretty intense at times, but I always learn so much from the wisdom and decision making from these older brothers.

At 9:00AM, the national staff joined the board meeting until lunch. During that time we made some philosophy changes to chapters making announcements during chapter and those who are allowed to speak to our members at chapter. These are both changes that have been brought to our attention by our chapters and they have made great arguments for why things need to be changed some.

After lunch, our advisory board joined us for the rest of the afternoon. Loren Hsiao, Drew Christman, Jared Musgrove, and Dillon Barker have served on the advisory board for the last 18 months and we added David Pearson, Christian Pinkston, Kyle Kight, and Joshua Brown. That now makes 13 men who serve at the highest level of leadership in BYX. Each of our advisory board members are serving in specific roles from care ministry, fundraising, mentor programming, alumni relations, and public relations and marketing. I am more than thrilled to have so many men to serve along side. Each of these men have so many gifts and talents and the common theme is that they love Jesus and they love BYX. I really believe the Lord has some really great things in store for BYX in the next several years as each of us continue to serve together.

A Word of Encouragement

Mark 40:28-31
Do you not know? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth does not become weary or tired. His understanding is inscrutable. He gives strength to the weary, and to him who lacks might He increase power. Though youths grow weary and tired, and vigorous young men stumble badly, Yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary.

Last week, I was walking into the office and saw a hawk on the fence line not to far from me. It was pretty remarkable to see the claws on this animal. I walked into the office and told the guys that I thought I saw and eagle. They laughed and made fun of me for somehow confusing a hawk with an eagle. So where does one go when you are factually made fun of. The internet of course. I googled hawk and apparently the hawk is made up of a family which includes the "true hawks" (Accipiters) as well as eagles, kites, harriers and buzzards.

I also learned that these animals are widely reputed to have visual acuity several times that of a normal human being. This is due to the many photoreceptors in the retina (up to 1,000,000 per square mm for Buteo, against 200,000 for humans), an exceptional number of nerves connecting these receptors to the brain, and an indented fovea, which magnifies the central portion of the visual field. Wow, now that is focusing.

What is the point here? The point is what are we focusing on. Are we growing weary, tired, impatient and ready to move on, or are we focusing on Jesus with the intensity of a hawk or eagle. Scripture indicates that if we do place our focus there, our strength will be renewed and we will not get tired and weary as our strength is supplied by our Great God and King Jesus.

BYX Nationals visits Texas A&M

by National Associate Tyler Rogers

On Friday October 30 I left Fort Worth and headed south to College Station. I arrived at faculty adviser Sean McGuire's house where I would stay for the weekend. Sean was the faculty adviser for the UGA chapter when I was president there in 2008. He received his undergrad at A&M and his PhD at Georgia. Now Sean is an accounting professor at A&M. Sean and his wife Tara were great host and let me stay with them. When I arrived to A&M I decided that I would go to midnight yell practice, one of the many traditions that the Aggies hold so dear. You are suppose to have a date to yell practiced, so I called a friend of mine, Kaleigh Cook and we went to the Hall for some two stepping and then to yell practice. I was immediately impressed by the tradition and thought it was awesome.

On Saturday, Sean and I woke up and headed to campus to enjoy some tailgating a good day of football. The treasurer elect Helm Donahue's parents had a great tailgate set up for the guys and we really enjoyed some great food and fellowship. After the tailgate, Sean and I walked to Kyle Field and I experienced my first FIGHTIN TEXAS AGGIE football game. I thought it was so unique and really awesome. Now I can saw those horns off with the best of them. After the game, I met up with some friends and went to dinner. After dinner I went out with some BYX guys to celebrate Halloween.

Sunday I woke up and went with Sean and Tara to church. That evening Sean had the current and newly elected officers over for dinner. Tara made us some really great Chili and we had a ton of fun joking around. After dinner we had an officer meeting. The meeting was long but great. The men at A&M have really made a lot of progress in their infrastructural leadership development. They created over twenty opportunities for men to have a leadership role in their chapter. This is a huge step for the guys at A&M as they continue to engage and develop leaders through their chapter.

Monday I met with the newly elected officers. I also went to pledge meeting which was awesome. Mike, the pledge captain, had planned an open mic night for the pledges. It was so awesome to hear the pledges share their hearts and discuss what BYX has meant to them. They gave a challenge to their pledge class about setting a new standard of commitment. After pledge meeting, chapter went well. It was great to see the guys again. After chapter, most of the guys headed to Reed Arena to experience After Dark. It was great to experience such an amazing display of God's awesomeness with my brothers.

Tuesday, I woke up and had meetings with some of the current officers as well as had lunch with Sean and BYX alumni Travis Berry. My trip to A&M offered me nothing but hope, as I saw the improvements the guys were making. They really are moving full steam ahead in College Station. Gig'em Aggies!

BYX Nationals visits UNT

by Tyler Wilson, Ministry Associate

It was a great pleasure this past week to be with my boys just up I-35 at the Theta Chapter. We've tried to get together through the fall in addition to my visit (the guys even invited Lauren and I to one of their date parties, but unfortunately we were out of town), but outside of a few lunches with officers this was our first real encounter. The packed day brought a lot of encouraging conversations as I learned of the growing health and expansion at North Texas BYX.

The guys had just come off of a couple events that marked major steps for the chapter. For the first time that I'm aware of, they participated in the campus' Homecoming. Teaming up with Phi-Lamb and Sigma Alpha, they competed in the float competition as well as throwing a big tailgate. (For a funny story, ask Keith Cranford about tripping over other tailgates' power chords!) Several of the guys told me it was the most fun they've ever had at a BYX event. Within just a week of that, the chapter had a halloween open party that brought in over 100 people, all jammed into 1 house! The music was rocking, the food was in full supply, and the costumes were head-turning and hilarious. The organization and execution of the night was just excellent. Overall, these 2 events were great strides down the path of establishing our social identity as a fraternity that we've been working towards. More expansion with the Greek Community and Campus activities is still in order, but certainly these are wonderful steps.

Part of the reason for the increased success is owed to the VP, Keith Cranford's, efforts over the summer. He raised the stakes for the chair positions in the chapter, making them more established, adding to their responsibility and legitimacy as positions. This more developed structure is allowing the chapter to run more efficiently as well as empower the members to take ownership and lead. President Brandon Nase has had a vital hand in things as well with his drive to see Homecoming happen and his knowledge from his role as the SGA director of campus involvement.

In other news, the chapter is continuing to ride high off of their 9 pledges for the fall. Kudos to pledge captain Clayton Wilson as well as the members for doing their job in recruiting and striving to personally connect with each potential. The big group has brought plenty of new life for the chapter and pushed their numbers over the 25 mark. Pledgeship has been involved and exciting for the young guys who have blended in beautifully. Few chapters understand better how to create an environment of serving pledges and integrating them in with the members than North Texas.

Cell groups continue to be a high point for the Theta chapter, as the "through-the-week" fellowship and accountability has been evident. Another strong move this year has been in their chapter meetings, which have undergone continuous wrinkles to keep things fresh each week and implementing more tradition. Our time Monday night was very rich in brotherhood and unity, from the opening socializing to the closing time of worship outside (see picture below). It was a touching time to linger and talk with the men, as several of them have become very dear to my heart as brothers.

The past semesters at UNT have seen the bearings for the course set clearly ahead. Now, the ship is churning forward and making ground. With the major items being done well, the chapter can work to fine tune some of the supporting elements of BYX the remainder of the fall and into 2010. And I have confidence that the incoming crew led by Will Davis will have a smooth transition taking the helm, keeping the brotherhood and unity charging onward.

BYX Nationals Visits Auburn

by Nick England
Ministry Associate

The night before I left for Auburn, I found myself wide awake way past my bedtime wondering a couple of things. I just could not decide if I should dress up as Aladdin for their Halloween party or Garrett, their secretary. Tired and frustrated I packed some items for both and hit the sack. I woke up the next day, grabbed my bag and went to the airport. I boarded the plane with many of these thoughts still looming, however, I had a paper to finish for one of my classes. Needless to say, costume ideas were pushed aside during the plane ride. I arrived in Atlanta, met by their president, Clint and one of their members John. We ate lunch at the airport then made the drive to Auburn. It was great to catch up with the guys but all the while I was wondering, what the heck am I going to wear to this party? We got to Auburn and Clint and I went to his place/double wide trailer which I would make my home for the weekend. It was quaint with just a hint of white trash. There were no holes in the wall like you would see in the houses of normal college guys, which is good because if there were you'd be looking outside. Once we had dropped my things off we went to grab dinner before the party with Clint, his girlfriend Laura and another couple. (Can you say fifth wheel?) We all had a great time at Zaxby's before we went to go change into our costumes. Laura as Marilyn Monroe, Clint as JFK and I as Aladdin. Right before the party, however, we discovered that the place we were having the Halloween party was double booked. So after Clint and I figured out an alternative, we threw together another Halloween party at the last second thanks to some quick thinking and the graciousness of a couple who lived near Auburn. Their grace towards us was truly a magnificent representation of the Body of Christ.

The next day, Clint and I woke up early to get dressed up for the game and check on the tailgate. The men bought me a ticket and a game day tie to wear so I would fit right in. Auburn was playing Ole Miss that day, a game the Tigers thought they would lose. However, Auburn played better that game than they had all season and pulled out a win. After the game, we walked over to Toomer's corner to witness an Auburn tradition. After a victory, everyone who's anyone walks over to Toomer's corner to wrap the trees with toilet paper. To this day, the city of Auburn is the only city in the United States with a paid toilet paper clean-up crew. The men had set up a tailgate that day to commemorate what they refer to as their Founders Weekend. It was October 31, 2008 when they were officially recognized as the Omega chapter of BYX. So they began a tradition of a big tailgate for this game every year. The event was a huge success. BYX guys and their girlfriends showed up to eat some barbecue and cake while watching football on the projector they had set up. We left a little while later so that I could finish up my paper and so we could go to a haunted hayride. However, as with most haunted hayrides, it was a flop. The only thing haunting about it was how much they charged. All in all, it was a great Saturday.


Sunday was a little more relaxing. I had the opportunity to go to church with some of the guys followed by lunch at McAlister's - a personal favorite. The rest of the day was spent meeting with some of the officers which flowed into Monday as well. Over these two days I was able to meet with all of the incoming and outgoing officers over some good food and good conversation. It was very encouraging to see how well these men understand BYX and continue to do things well. We went to chapter that night which is held at the Auburn chapel. This chapel happens to be the oldest building on campus and an old civil war hospital. It is the perfect place for their chapter too meet. I had the privilege to encourage the men to continue to build their unity with one another. Their chapter is healthy and growing but we never want to forget to keep first things first. The men at Auburn are very encouraging. They understand what BYX is and they do brotherhood well. It was a blessing to be there for their Founders Weekend marking their first year of a great legacy.

BYX Welcomes Alpha Gamma Chapter

In March of 2009, Kane Moix contacted the national office about the possibility of starting a BYX chapter on the campus of the University of Central Arkansas. Kane, Blake Jacobs, Jeremy Flynn, Kyle Boyd, Jeremy Wilson and TJ Beringer began recruiting other men to join them in their endeavor throughout the spring 2009 semester. They began to meet for fellowship, to spend time in the word, and to pray for the possibility of starting BYX. During the spring of 2009 these men worked to complete our three-phase prospective chapter process. In September, Jason Hoyt and Nick England traveled to Conway to visit these men during Phase 3 and commence their training to be officers. After spending two days with these men, we have felt the Lord moving us to start the next BYX chapter at the University of Central Arkansas. As a result:

AS OF NOVEMBER 9, 2009 WE ARE PROUD TO ANNOUNCE THAT THE UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL ARKANSAS HAS BECOME THE ALPHA GAMMA CHAPTER OF BETA UPSILON CHI, MAKING THEM THE 27TH CHAPTER IN OUR FAMILY.

The University of Central Arkansas group of about 16 men is led by Senior Kane Moix. Kane will be the first president of the Alpha Gamma Chapter. Their officers are:

Kane Moix President
Kyle Boyd Treasurer
Blake Jacobs Vice President
TJ Beringer Pledge Captain
Jeremy Flynn Secretary
Jeremy Wilson Chaplain

BYX Nationals Visits LSU

by Nick England
Ministry Associate

I had to spend my Friday night avoiding people so that I could get in bed early. Let's just say it wasn't fun, but that's not what I was thinking about. I awoke early and left the house at 5:30 in the morning so it was no surprise that I was tired, but that's not what I was thinking about. I hopped on the plane for my 7 o'clock flight, buckled up, tipped my hat over my eyes and dozed off singing to myself, "operator won't you put me on through..." Next thing I know, we've landed in Louisiana's fair capital just in time to grab breakfast with James, LSU secretary. I had the pleasure of catching up with James over banana pancakes at Baton Rouge's prized diner, Louie's. After breakfast we dropped my stuff off at the house where some of the officers live and went to get ready for the tailgate. We ate some great food, watched football and played a couple games of washers. But that's still not what I was thinking about. Being an avid college football fan I had heard of the reputation LSU held...eerie things happen in Death Valley at night. I walked over to the stadium alone from the tailgate. Thankfully enough I was wearing my LSU gear. This was the first college home game I would go to where I wasn't cheering on my Sooners. Auspiciously enough, LSU played Auburn that night, one my other BYX chapters. However, there would be no dispute here, I was a tiger that night...an LSU tiger. The game was a blast! I got to learn what the students do at the games and see LSU really have a breakthrough in their performance this season. It certainly was a long day, but a great one. Louisiana Saturday night.



Sunday I attended church with Will, LSU treasurer. It was a great service and was followed by an interesting afternoon. Will and I wanted to go to lunch but unfortunately his car wasn't working...so just like I did in elementary school, we hopped on some bikes. That's right, Will and I rode our bikes a good ways to grab some great Cajun food for lunch. The rest of the day I was able to catch up with some of the guys and enjoyed going to the officer meeting followed by a great dinner with some of the officers.

Monday was a little busier. I met with the incoming officers and got to know the men who will be leading BYX this next year. They have a great group of officers who will lead the chapter at a pivotal time in their growth. Before chapter I had the opportunity of hanging out with a bunch of the members and pledges for dinner but this dinner was particularly funny. The men in BYX at LSU are known for their pranks and I was privileged to witness one of them. Fun was had by all and it ended up in somewhat of a "brawl" in the men's bathroom. After dinner we headed over to pledge meeting then chapter. It was great to see such a solid group of men who have been doing BYX for only a year. These men truly get brotherhood and unity.

BYX v. University of Florida Lawsuit Update

As many of you are aware, BYX has been involved in a lawsuit with the University of Florida for over 2 years. Florida had originally refused to recognize BYX as a Registered Student Organization because BYX admits only Christians to its membership. Ironically, the University attempted to take shelter behind its “anti-discriminati

on policy” while discriminating against BYX and claiming that its policy prohibited them from allowing BYX to register. We were initially unsuccessful in persuading the trial court on our position. However, we appealed our case to the United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit in Atlanta where our arguments finally got significant traction.

At oral argument, the 11th Circuit three-judge panel aggressively attacked Florida’s thin justifications for denying BYX access to student registration. Seeing the writing on the wall, Florida caved only a few weeks later, changed their policy, and recognized BYX as an

official student organization. Florida’s change of heart was likely motivated out of concern that it would suffer a damaging adverse ruling and be forced to pay BYX’s legal fees. After reversing its policy, Florida petitioned the 11th Circuit to dismiss the appeal since there was no longer a dispute and since they had given us every remedy we requested. On the surface, this sounds like total victory--and it is in this case.

However, the 11th Circuit’s dismissal of the case as moot undermined our effort at making Florida an example to other universities. They fought us for over 2 years and, at the last minute, when they knew they would lose, they caved to avoid an adverse ruling and legal fees. While good for our BYX guys at Florida, we would have preferred that the court give Florida the same lashing on paper that it delivered in oral argument to dissuade other wayward universities from similar unconstitutional behavior. Nonetheless, this case serves as a powerful example that the constitutional rights of organizations like BYX will not be marginalized by universities inclined to deny religious organizations access to student registration and university services.

So, a very long chapter in the fight for religious freedom is closed. Praise be to God, we won. Now, let’s pray for continued favor as our fraternity expands across the nation.

BYX Nationals visits Vanderbilt

by National Associate Tyler Rogers

On Thursday night, October 15th I flew into Nashville and met with a my pledge brother Jason Smith, who graduated with me from UGA. He is in divinity school at Vanderbilt. I spent Thursday night hanging out with Jason and his fiance Rachel. Friday I spent the day visiting Vanderbilt and really worked on some BYX projects, then met some friends of mine from Georgia who were in town for the Georgia-Vanderbilt game and went to see a movie with them.

Saturday, I woke up and got dressed in my game day clothes for the first time this football season. It was nice to be back in the SEC where sweater vest and coats and ties are the norm for a cold Saturday morning football game. The men of BYX at Vanderbilt were hosting their alumni for an alumni tailgate because they were celebrating their university's homecoming. I went to the tailgate and enjoyed getting to meet both new and old Vanderbilt guys. It was great to see some the older guys at Vanderbilt that I met during my tenure at Georgia. We reminisced on some of the times we spent together in Athens at the Loft, a dance hall of sorts in downtown Athens. Unfortunately, I was unable to watch the Dawgs beat the Dores on Saturday, because I had to drive to Knoxville for a wedding. I spent the rest of the day in Knoxville with some old friends.

Sunday, I woke up and had lunch with Jason, then headed to meet the officers at Vanderbilt for their officer meeting. I enjoyed watching these men lead and make decisions as they have continued the strong legacy of good leadership at Vanderbilt. The officers are doing such a great job leading the men there and continue to impress me with their mature leadership. On Sunday night I met back with the officers over dinner at T.G.I. Friday's. I enjoyed just spending time joking around and getting to know the officers.

Monday morning I started my one on one meetings with the current officers and those seeking a position. I started the day at 8:30 a.m. and met with guys from then until 6:30 p.m. I REALLY enjoyed getting to hear the guys' hearts for the chapter and hearing their ideas for the future. After finishing up the one on one meetings, I headed to have dinner with the chapter at 6:30 at Qdoba and was able to meet some of the men who are rushing BYX this semester. After dinner, I went to Chapter. Chapter reminded me of how rich the chapter at Vanderbilt is in traditions. Their founding fathers set the chapter up very well with a lot of strong traditions. During chapter, I was fortunate enough to listen to officer speeches. After listening to the speeches and meeting with the guys I am confident that the future is bright for Vanderbilt's chapter. I gave a talk on focusing on our commitments as men and how important that is to the future of our fraternity as well as the future of our families and churches. After chapter, I was fortunate enough to go with Vanderbilt founding father and current Advisory Board Member Dillion Barker to grab some food and talk. The discussion was great.

Tuesday morning, I began another long day of meetings. I met with guys one on one from 8:30 until 7:00. It was awesome meeting with so many guys. I was able to squeeze in 22 one on one meetings in my two days there which was awesome. I think meeting with the current and hopeful officers was definitely something worth while. After the meetings I left to go to the chapter's Crush Party. They had planned the party a while back and since I was in town they invited me to come, I just had to find a girl to crush. So I crushed my friend, and BYX groupie, Mary Catherine Alexander or MCA to those of you at Vanderbilt. The only problem was that MCA and her friend Sam had already been crushed by Nathan Presmyk, brother and presidential candidate. I met with Nathan and he was more than willing to share his crush with me so we were set. Each group of brother and crushes had to pick a theme. Nathan, Sam and MCA had decided to Kanye, Taylor Swift, and Beyonce. I didn't have anything, so I just went normal (a Taylor Swift Fan if you will...). We arrived at the Skating Rink and started skating around which was a lot of fun. Because I had met with so many of the guys there, I felt welcome. MCA and I enjoyed each others company and it was a lot of fun until the incidents started happening...

So here's the story... MCA and I were skating and she realized that she forgot to wear shorts under her dress, so if she fell it would be bad. I told her that if she started to fall just to grab my arm and I would catch her. Well that didn't work out so well. MCA started to fall and I realized that I couldn't stop her. As she fell I saw her dress starting to rise up, so I did what and gentlemen would do in this situation... I dove on top of her to cover her up. So here I am, the national associate for their fraternity, layin on top of a girl in the middle of a skating rink. To make things worse, the historian skated by with his camera. Click.Click.Click. We got off, I got good gamed by the President and we continued to skate off the embarassment. MCA thanked me over and over again. Things only got worse from here. Meanwhile, Nathan got a bad blister and he didn't want it to get worse and cause problems with his hiking trip the following weekend. So I had Sam and MCA to skate with. Sam and I decided to do some trick skating. Sam skated under my legs like a pro. I decided that I would do the same. Bad. Idea. As I skated under Sam's legs my head made it through but my shoulders clipped her knees causing her to fall backwards. As she fell my skates flew out from underneath me and I was headed for a collision between my face and the skating rink floor. I tried to stop the fall with my arms but they were caught by her legs so my face just planted right on the floor with a big thud. After laughing for a while we got up and skated away. At the end of the night, I had ripped jeans, a scabbed up knee, a large goose egg, bruised nose, and skinned forehead. Luckily for me, President Brett Johnson's crush and girlfriend, Vanessa, is in med school and had a bandaide on her. Needless to say, it was a fun night. After the Crush Party, everyone went to sonic and we spent time hanging out there.

Wednesday morning I woke up and headed to the airport and flew back to DFW. The men at Vanderbilt are doing well. I have always and continue to be impressed with the leaders this chapter produces. It is evident that they cover their decisions with wisdom and prayer. Be in prayer as the newly elected officers prepare to take office. The future is bright for our brothers in Nashville.

BYX Nationals visits Arkansas

by Tyler Wilson, Ministry Associate

This past week I ventured to NW Arkansas to spend some time with the Xi chapter. From the time I arrived at the airport with Cass Trumbo attempting to scare me to the solid conversation I had with chaplain Jordan Hurst on the ride back two days later, the entire visit was... good. Not the kind of good you say when someone asks you how you're doing and you mean to casually move along. But the good that stems from the Lord's goodness. The sweet, meaningful goodness that comes from rich and edifying eternal things.

Getting to see the officers was certainly one of the highlights. Through the past 10 months, these men have really become dear to my heart as we have walked through quite a bit together. They have been so excellent and faithful in their work and leadership, and yet carried themselves with so much humility at the same time toward me and their men. They have not been shy in coming to me for counsel, and have even prayed diligently for me together. Definitely mature beyond their years, and by their hearts have won my deepest respect. So needless to say officer meeting Sunday night was... good.

Monday saw plenty of great one on one meetings full of encouragement. Much of my time was spent affirming the things they have done and are doing as a chapter. Yet, there were still opportunities to tune some of the finer points of BYX, discuss their role in the chapter this next year and talk future leadership. Multiple members showed up over lunch to hang out and discuss BYX as well, which was a joy. Once again... good.

Coming into chapter meeting I was able to meet with the two guys running for president this fall: Taylor Hall and Hunter House. Both are great dudes and will be capable to handle the reigns. Chapter Meeting was nothing short of electric. Announcements and the Trumbo Show brought plenty of energy and laughs as we learned some "fratology" and geared up for the game of Big Bro/Little Bro Assassins the next 2 weeks. As I came to speak, I was able to first share with the men how exceptionally they are doing as a chapter in fulfilling the purpose of BYX. Cell groups, with the insertion of Littles into their Bigs' cell group have really progressed. Intentionality in chapter meeting abounds. Socially, the chapter continues to excel, putting on full throttle open parties, participating in step show, joining in their LifeSource philanthropy, and engaging sororities like it's their job. The dudes are definitely known on campus, and they're using that to spread the name of Christ. Pledgeship is absolutely rocking. As you mayhave heard, Arkansas is boasting a stout 80 pledges this fall, by far their largest ever. Cass and his crew have been hard at it to keep each of these guys involved and connected. So far... so good.

Here's a picture of the young men taking their first pledge test after chapter meeting:

So much more can be said about the health of BYX at U of A right now. Certainly they've encountered their share of problems and struggles. But the way in which they've responded to them is what has been astounding. There was no better witness to this than when an established member confessed some hard things to the chapter Monday Night. Never, and I do mean that word, have I seen such genuine repentance from a man over his sin. Without hesitation, the other 89 members rallied around him and pledged their commitment as brothers to walk through this with him. How is the Brotherhood and Unity in Fayetteville right now? Well, you might say it's as GOOD as it gets.

BYX Nationals Visits HBU

by Nathan Miller, Ministry Associate

We all love stories of redemption. Stories of people who were down and out, the odds were against them and they unexpectedly rise up and overcome the obstacles set before them and stand victorious. Well BYX at HBU is probably the best BYX-related redemption story that I can think of right now.

It was only a year and a half ago that things were looking pretty grim at HBU. Chapter membership was decreasing, morale was low, reputation on campus was poor and the chapter was placed on probation. Well, a new group of officers were brought in, some new passionate pledges joined the brotherhood and now the fraternity is growing and the future looks very bright at HBU.

I had the joy of going down there this past week. I made my way down to Houston on Wednesday night and met with about 15 of the guys at a local Chili's. We had an absolute blast just catching up and sharing what is going on in our lives. After talking and laughing for about 2 hours we left and I went to the hotel for the night.

I spent most of my day on Thursday in the Lakehouse Lobby meeting with current officers, potential officers and even some current pledges. I had a great time talking to them about BYX at HBU, BYX nationally, what God is doing in their lives and what their goal and vision is for the fraternity on their campus.

When it was time for dinner, Calvin and I headed to what I call China Town Houston for some amazing and authentic Asian food. After some amazing food and some great conversation, we headed back to campus for chapter meeting and nominee speeches.

One of the things that is noticeably different about BYX at HBU is the passion and energy in chapter meeting. Where before there was apathy and slight boredom, now there is pure excitement and passion. That passion carried over in our time of worship. I was blown away as I listened to the men sing "Revelation Song" about as loud as I've ever heard a group sing...it was a really awesome moment.

After worship, the men accepting nominations for officer positions took the floor and spoke about why they want to be an officer and then opened things up for questions. There were some great questions asked and the guys gave very good answers. After meeting with all of the potential officers and hearing them share their hearts and vision for BYX, there is no doubt in my mind that BYX is going to continue to grow and expand all over HBU's campus.

As I've said before, HBU BYX is a great story of redemption. They have an amazing core of young guys who believe in BYX and are determined to impact the campus in a big way. They have the 2nd largest pledge class of any group or fraternity on campus this semester and the men that are pledging are solid! Their chapter events are much better and their reputation on campus is amazing. Even the university administration is noticing the change in BYX and has reached out to them and is partnering with BYX in several ways. If things continue to progress the way that they are and the Lord continues to guide and bless them, I think it is only a matter of time before BYX becomes the largest fraternity on campus!

I am so proud of the guys down at HBU and you should be too. Please continue to pray that the Lord would continue to grow and bless the men on this campus and pray that the Lord would use the men of BYX at HBU to greatly impact the university and the surrounding area!

BYX Nationals Visits UGA

by Nathan Miller, Ministry Associate

The BYX Chapter at the University of Georgia is one that I have had the joy of working with for 3 semesters now and every time I go is such a great time...my visit from October 11-13 was no exception.

On Sunday, October 11th, I boarded a plane in Dallas and headed out towards Atlanta to meet with my brothers down in Georgia. After arriving in Atlanta I hopped in my rental car and after getting lost (thank you iPhone maps) I finally made it in to Athens at about 9:30 pm. I wasn't able to meet with the brothers because they were having a pancake fundraising dinner for the family of Scott Minear, the brother who was involved in a serious car accident over the summer. The event was a HUGE success as the chapter raised well over a $1000 to give to Scott's family...what a testament to the brotherhood, unity and fellowship that is taking place down in Athens, GA!!!

On Monday morning I left the hotel in what seemed to be a monsoon and made my way over to Jittery Joe's in the Student Learning Center. I spent the next couple of hours meeting with some of the current officers and some of the guys who were running for office for 2010. When it was time for lunch I was thrilled. You see, Athens has this amazing soul food place called Peaches and I absolutely LOVE going there. So Chris Laney (President) and Forrest Powers (active) picked me up and we headed that way. We pulled into an empty parking lot and were incredibly saddened when we saw a sign on the door that said "Closed for Columbus Day". Instead of sitting down and eating the best food of my life, I had to settle for eating Jason's Deli and then listening to Forrest rock out to "Party in the USA" by Miley Cyrus...ya...I know!

They dropped me off back at the SLC and I did more interviews until it was time for chapter.

At about 5:30 PM I walked into the room where they have chapter and sat in on the Pre-Chapter Prayer Meeting that they do every week. We took time to pray for the chapter, elections (which were that night), chair nominations and praised God for the amazing success of the fundraiser the night before.

After an amazing time of worship the officers passed out the ballots for the 2010 officers. After those were all collected I got up and addressed the chapter on the saving power and the beauty of the cross. Once my talk ended we circled up, prayed and sang and then we headed out to World of Wings for some cheap wings!!!

While we ate and enjoyed some amazing time of great food and fellowship, the ballots were counted and the winners were notified. I think it is safe to say that in the hands of the men that were elected, the strength and success of BYX at UGA will continue to grow and deepen!

On Tuesday morning I headed back to Jittery Joe's and met with a couple more of the men and then packed up and drove back to Atlanta (I didn't get lost this time) and I made my way back home to DFW!

As always my trip to UGA was a blast. The men down there in Athens simply get BYX. They have an amazing balance of social involvement on campus and spiritual growth and their unity and brotherhood is some of the strongest that I have seen. They continue to grow and next spring, depending on graduates and pledges, they should break the 100 member mark for good...God is so amazing!

Please continue to pray for the guys down in Athens and pray that the Holy Spirit will give wisdom and discernment to the young men that were elected to be officers for 2010. Also keep praying for Scott Minear. While I am pleased to report that he is recovering well and is in good spirits, he has a lot of rehab and physical therapy to go and I know that he would appreciate your prayers!

Go Dawgs!

Nationals at Mississippi State University

by National Associate Tyler Rogers

On Saturday October 10 I flew into Jackson, Mississippi and State's President Chandler Ragland picked me up. We headed to Starkville to catch the Mississippi State vs Houston game. We arrived and walked to the stadium. It was awesome to back at a college football game, especially a SEC game. Unfortunately, the Bulldogs were defeated by the refs in a close game against Houston, around the same time that my Bulldogs from Georgia were being beaten by the Volunteers in Knoxville. Needless to say, it wasn't a great day for either Bulldog Nation. After the game, the guys took me to a great pizza place in Starkville and we went back an apartment and watched football all day. The night ended with Alabama beating Ole Miss, and Florida slipping by LSU. We piled, and I mean piled (six deep), into Lee's beamer and drove to Taco Bell late that night to grab some food, and then I wound up sleeping in a ENO (an awesome hammock) in Chandlers living room. The original plan was to use the ENOs on campus and sleep outside, which would have been awesome, but the cloud that landed on Starkville would have soaked us, so we decided not too.

On Sunday I woke up and went to church with Chandler. It was great to be in a small church filled with older people who loved the Lord so much, and who loved on us so much. I got some great food there, and then went and returned to the eno in Chandler's apartment to take a nap. Later that day I checked into my hotel, and then went to First Presbyterian church with some of the guys. I got to eat dinner there with none other than Mr. Jesse English himself. Jesse was awesome to talk to since he was very instrumental in the foundational development of the chapter at Mississippi State. I rode with Shaun Pillai and Hunter Upton to the officer meeting, where we met. The meeting was an open meeting allowing the guys who were thinking about running for exec to come. So after meeting with everyone the officers asked the non exec members to leave and handed out the suprise Homecoming shirts they made for the brothers. After the meeting, I rode with Shaun, Hunter, and Caleb to my hotel, stopping to eat at Sonic on the way.

On Monday, I set up at the student center to meet with current and hopeful exec all day. The day flew by as I spent time listening and learning about Mississippi State's chapter and the men who are leading it. I also offered some structural ideas to the guys that went well. Later that afternoon, I met up with some of the actives at Abners to hang out and eat. After eating, I caught the end of the pledge meeting. This is one of the highlights of my trip. Toward the end of the meeting, one of the pledges announced that due to some family problems and school issues, he was no longer going to be able to do BYX. Immediately, three to four of the pledges hands went up. These guys asked how they could help him through this tough time. They said they wanted to walk with him through this. This was one of the best examples of our brotherhood that I have seen in a while. It was incredible. After pledge meeting, chapter started. I spoke on God's faithfulness, and though it may be hard now, God's faithfulness promises to see us through. I talked on how BYX facilitates that, and how our brothers are charged to commit to helping each other get through those times. After I talked, the men interested in leading the fraternity next year gave their speeches. They were a mixture of serious and hilarious. They were all great though. After chapter, I joined some of the actives at ZAXBY'S, my favorite fast food restaurant. There are only four of them in the entire state of Texas. Afterwards, I spent time sharing ideas and strategy with some of the guys who are running for office.

On Tuesday, I spent the morning and early afternoon meeting with officers and hopeful exec members. Again, it was great to listen and hear about the chapter as well as share wisdom with these guys. Afterwards, Chandler drove me to the airport to head back to Ft. Worth. The men at Mississippi State are working hard to continue to build a legacy that will last at the University. They have developed so much spiritually over the past year, and I think they do BYX so well. They understand the balance between spiritual and social stuff. They are legit, and as they would say... "Thats what's up!"