We are so encouraged by what God is doing through our freshmen outreach efforts this fall and by the way that our leaders are seeking the Lord and helping shepherd the incoming class by teaching them the Word of God, praying with them, and welcoming them to Cornell in practical ways.
Last night I spoke with the father of one of our freshmen, Ethan, who is from California. He is so thankful for our ministry and described how happy his son is to have found our community. Rides to church with upperclassmen, fellowship and meals at the Mott Center, and his Bible course have been the highlight of his year and have made his transition to Cornell, which is a long way from home, one of the best experiences of his life. We have met an amazing group of new students during these first few weeks of the semester and already have over 20 freshmen attending our Bible courses.
Our student leaders have been seeking the Lord and experiencing the power of God’s Word in their Bible courses. Several of our leaders have started praying with me for revival and spiritual awakening on Monday mornings at 7:15 am. We are praying not only for CU Vita, but for the other ministries on campus, the churches, and their leaders, covering the week ahead with prayer, crying out to God to awaken, save, and sanctify his people in Ithaca for the glory of His Name.
Last night I led our upperclassmen men’s Bible course and one of our juniors, Jason, who came to faith last year, was blown away by how “big” our salvation is, seeing in Hebrews 2 that Jesus not only forgives our sins and brings us into a right relationship with God, but also secures for us a glorious eternity, ruling and reigning with him in the world to come. Another senior, Josh, is learning about the gospel for the first time in our Bible course and appears to be growing in his faith week by week! On the women’s side, there were 17 Cornell athletes at Liz’s women’s athletes Bible course on Tuesday night. God is certainly in our midst, at work by His grace! Please continue to pray:
- For our freshmen and new students, that they would continue to feel welcome and develop solid relationships within CU Vita, grow deep in their faith, and be motivated to serve Christ at Cornell.
- For our staff, that we would be strengthened by God’s grace and empowered by the Holy Spirit for the work of the ministry, teaching, mentoring, and leading our students well.
- For our student leaders, that they would experience the joy of faith and wisdom, love, and strength as they dedicate their time and talents to the building up of the body of Christ at CU Vita and across Cornell’s campus.
- For Cornell, that God would pour out His Spirit and that many would come to faith and awaken to the glorious realities of Christ and the gospel.
Thank you for your partnership and prayers!
Jim Thomforde
Interim Ministry Director
Christian Union Vita
