October 2014
Please note: if you would like to receive regular updates on how to pray for Christian Union's work at Cornell, please email prayer@christianunion.org.Dear partners in prayer for Cornell,
This autumn we hold our breath as greens turn red and gold. With the change in fall color comes a new season for ministry at Cornell. Praise the Lord who answers prayer! Thank you for interceding for us.
God is blessing the ministry of Christian Union, allowing us the privilege of developing godly leaders at Cornell. From my vantage point as the new women's ministry fellow, these students are already well on their way to becoming the kind of leaders equipped to transform culture. They are increasingly characterized by humility, courage, a devotion to God's Word, and elaborate displays of brotherly and sisterly affection for one another. Most of all, they are learning to passionately seek God in the day-to-day.
In this academically and socially intense setting, time is the most precious and scarcest commodity. But the student leaders involved with the ministry pour their time out like perfume on the feet of Jesus. As a recent example, they gave their last three days of summer to plan an enormous welcome for freshmen. The first month of school, our students created and hosted daily events to welcome and orient freshmen to the campus and the ministry and met with them one-on-one in the name of Christ. We now thank God for the freshmen who have enrolled in weekly Bible courses and have become involved in the ministry in other ways, especially those who have joined the worship team and participate in community service every chance they get.
In September, Christian Union hosted a fall conference at which students gathered together to hear in-depth Scripture teaching, to worship and fellowship, and to seek God for a revival on campus. Some fasted beforehand, and then we all feasted on Scripture. After the evening teaching times, they stayed up to pray into the morning hours. By God's grace, five students have made decisions for Christ this semester. Join us as we prepare for an even greater harvest!
The size of this ministry has grown exponentially since it was launched at Cornell three years ago. To keep up with the growth, Director of Undergraduate Ministry Jim Thomforde has added two additional Bible courses for student athletes, formed two student leadership teams, and now he is joined by two new Christian Union faculty members.
Jeff Ballard and his family come to Cornell from Indianapolis. After earning his MDiv at Trinity Evangelical Seminary, Jeff served as a certified Biblical counselor and trainer of counselors at College Park Church. Anna Shea taught at a Christian school and served on the board of a healthcare business in California before moving to Cornell. She earned a masters degree in Theology in History from the University of Edinburgh. Both Jeff and Anna consider ministering to students at Cornell the occupation of their dreams.
There is fervor for Christ this fall semester; we believe it corresponds to the fervor of your prayers for us. Every week, ministry fellows guide students as they probe Hebrews and pray for each other. Students are living out what they learn in every context of their student life: They make dinner together on Sunday nights where they bring roommates and engage in spiritual discussion. They reflect on their faith in poetry and short stories. They sacrifice time and sleep to discuss the Bible with students of other faiths. They pursue internships with an increasing awareness of how they can impact their fields for Christ. Some pursue research for social justice such as ways to make food production more economical and healthy for developing nations. They want to follow God's call on their lives in the little ways, too. They volunteer at a food pantry on a Monday night even though they have an exam the next day. They confess to one another, seek out accountability with their peers, and spur each other on toward love and good deeds.
Thank you, our prayer fleet, for running alongside us in this race. Pray these students will continue to follow the Great Fore-runner, Jesus Christ, who offers them immeasurably more than they can ask or imagine. Pray for students to come to know the Lord, for freedom from anxiety and sexual temptation. Pray for the Gospel to fall on soft hearts. And pray that Jesus would make Cornell a city on a hill where Christ's light shines.
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