The spring semester is underway here at Brown University. Students have already made it through their first round of midterms as they work hard to prepare for the ones to come. I wanted to take a moment to highlight one story that has encouraged me during these beginning weeks of the semester.
Tom, a senior who runs on Brown’s Cross Country and Track teams, has been growing leaps and bounds in his faith ever since coming to Providence nearly four years ago. He has matured to such an extent that he has decided to follow God’s leading in starting a Bible study with a couple of other friends, for Cross Country/Track teammates. His hope is that his non-believing teammates would feel compelled to come and learn more about Jesus through a study of the Gospel of John. It’s an amazing thing to see Tom’s face light up as he talks about his vision to reach his friends on the team for Jesus. Though they have only met one time so far, 10 teammates attended, one of them being a not-yet-believer, whom I hear was fully engaged throughout their initial study of John’s account of the wedding at Cana. Nothing brings my heart more joy than to see students growing closer to Jesus and, as a result, desiring to see others know and grow closer to Jesus as well. Praise the Lord!
Considering this and other ministry that’s happening on campus, would you join me in praying for the following:
Tom and the Cross Country/Track Bible Study
I would be remiss if I didn’t ask y’all to pray for Tom as he works tirelessly in preparing these Bible studies in John’s
Gospel. Pray that the Spirit of God would guide and direct him in preparation and during the actual study as he facilitates the studies and shepherds his friends. Pray for teammates who are coming and don’t yet know Jesus, that they would make a decision to follow Christ and trust Him as Savior. Pray for those attending that do know Jesus already, that they would only grow closer to Him and desire to make Him known across campus and beyond.
Veritas Forum Event
On March 1, several student leaders with Veritas Forum, in partnership with Brown University's Ethical Inquiry, a group associated with Brown’s Philosophy Department, will host an event titled, “‘Love Your Neighbor as Yourself’: Why You Should Love Absolutely Everyone.” The main speaker will be Meghan Sullivan, Professor of Philosophy at Notre Dame, who will argue for impartial love from a Christian perspective. She will be in dialogue with a Brown professor, and the event is meant to encourage dialogue around life’s more ultimate questions with a clear presentation of the gospel. Please pray for Dr. Sullivan as she prepares to not only present an argument for the Christian vision of love, but also clearly communicate the hope she has in Jesus. Pray for students, faculty and staff in attendance, that the Spirit of God would prick their hearts and respond to the truth of the gospel, perhaps for the first time.
Thank you for your continued love and support as we seek to make Jesus known here at Brown!
In Christ,
Justin Doyle
Ministry Fellow
Christian Union at Brown University
Please note: if you would like to receive regular updates on how to pray for Christian Union's work at Brown, please email prayer@christianunion.org.
