My name is Andy Woodard, and I am delighted to introduce myself to you. I've been hired as the new executive director for CU New York effective Monday, March 25th, the year of our Lord 2024.
I'm excited to share with you three things that brought me to Christian Union: first, the strategic vision for investing in key leaders by encouraging them to seek the Lord with their whole hearts; second, my own personal benefit from the ministry of Christian Union and Matt Bennett. I received and observed the power of this ministry to transform lives firsthand. Third, the mission of Christian Union is to wholeheartedly seek the Lord to bring about a great awakening in New York City.
Before I was hired, during the interview process while speaking with the COO, he said that the responsibility of the executive director is, in part, to wake up every day thinking about revival in New York City. This responsibility is really exciting to me! While we know that unless the Lord builds the house, they who build it labor in vain; we also know that the Lord has told us to draw near to Him and He will draw near to us. He has told us that if his people, who are called by His name, will humble themselves and pray and seek his face and turn from their wicked ways, He will hear from Heaven, forgive their sins, and heal their land. So, we do have responsibility and personal agency in this matter, and as such, I am honored and delighted to join this wonderful organization to pursue these ends.
To provide a brief overview of my background: I grew up in Florida, living in a town called Dade City for the first 18 years of my life. It's about an hour north of Tampa. My dad was a pastor, and my mom ran a few home-based businesses through the years. I have one older sister and two younger brothers. I lived in Greenville, South Carolina for five years before moving to New York City in 2014. Since moving to New York, I've worked for several different churches and been involved in church planting for approximately the last seven years. I've been able to establish two self-supporting churches during that time, and I intend to continue at my current church, as this position with Christian Union is very much in alignment with my calling and role as a pastor.
I look forward to meeting as many of you as possible, as we partner together in this ministry to which God has called us. If you're in New York City, I'd love to grab coffee or lunch. Please reach out. If you're not in New York City, I'd love to connect whenever and wherever possible. Let me know. Also, let me know how I can pray for you. I would ask that you pray for me as I adjust to this new role. I would also ask you to pray for effective outreach to the Christian Union Universities' alumni as they move to New York City in the coming weeks and months. Lasty, please pray for additional Cornerstone Partners to support our mission.
In deepest appreciation,
Andy Woodard
Andy.Woodard@ChristianUnion.org
Executive Director, Christian Union New York
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