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The following devotional is a transcript of a video devotional that was originally recorded as part...
October 4, 2021
“The true way to be humble is not to stoop until you are smaller than yourself, but to stand at your real height against some higher nature that will show you what the real smallness of your greatness is.” -Phillips Brooks, Harvard Class of 1855

Dear CU Gloria Cornerstone Partners and friends of the ministry,

With a wonderful play on words, Phillips Brooks captured both the glory of being made in God’s image and the humbling, life-altering pursuit of knowing God. This week in our Bible courses in the second chapter of Philippians, we will encounter the jaw-dropping ‘Christ Hymn.’ This brush with greatness not only describes the nature and character of the Messiah, but as the grizzled Apostle Paul contends in the remainder of his letter that Jesus’ example had become the standard for us: the cruciform life.

October 4, 2021
Dear CU Nova Cornerstone Partners and friends of the ministry,

Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.
- Proverbs 19:21

His purpose fulfilled—that’s our heart’s cry!

Plans were made to ensure that newcomers and returning students were welcomed to Christian Union Nova for a strong spiritual and academic year despite the effects of a pandemic. Our Father has not only honored those plans, but He has heard all of our prayers and superseded every expectation. Glory to God!

October 1, 2021
Hello CU Caritas Cornerstone Partners and friends of the ministry,

Greetings from Palo Alto!

Fall quarter is underway at Stanford, as are our Bible courses! In our study of Philippians, we recently meditated on God’s all-encompassing and lovingly wise command for our thoughts and actions:

October 1, 2021
Dear CU Martus Cornerstone Partners and friends of the ministry,

Since the last update, we have closed out our Freshman Welcoming Campaign. Throughout the campaign, we were blessed to have had 100+ meaningful interactions with freshmen, and 35+ of whom were interested in our Bible courses. To close out our Freshman Welcoming Campaign, we were able to host a Fall Retreat where 34 students came to build closer relationships, grow deeper in their faith, and be challenged to live for Christ in greater boldness.

October 1, 2021
Dear Cornerstone Partners and friends of CU Lux,

God is at Yale. The Bible calls them signs; our students call them God sightings—everyday moments that remind us of God’s character. We think of them as events that cause us to give praise to God. Some are “wow” moments, and others are small in nature.

At CU Lux, we practice sharing God sightings during weekly gatherings in small and large groups or in one-on-one meetings. There’s never an awkward silence. God is seen in action all the time. Students testify that He is the I AM, the one who is present with his people at Yale:

September 3, 2021
“I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.” - 1:3-5 (ESV)

Dear CU Gloria Cornerstone Partners and friends of the ministry,

Thank you for your continued support and investment in what the Lord is doing on Harvard’s campus through Christian Union Gloria. By God’s grace and your prayers, we had a wonderful pre-retreat, where the upperclassmen students were able to reconnect in-person after a long time apart. Our times in worship and the Word were a delight, and the students came back to campus ready to welcome the incoming class of 2025 into Christian community.

September 3, 2021
Dear CU Nova Cornerstone Partners and friends of the ministry,

“…Unless the Lord builds the house, They labor in vain who build it;….” Psalm 127:1

The Lord is indeed building His house as students arrive on campus! The atmosphere is charged with excitement, a bit of overwhelm, and expectation as students share their feelings about returning to the “orange bubble” after almost two years of virtual reality.

September 3, 2021
Hello CU Caritas Cornerstone Partners and friends of the ministry,

Warm greetings from Palo Alto!

I’m sending a brief prayer letter this month since our family (which includes four kids age six and under) has just moved back to California! To say there is a lot unpacking and settling in left to do is an understatement!

September 3, 2021
Dear CU Martus Cornerstone Partners and friends of the ministry,

As we enter the Fall semester, there is much anticipation among CU Martus student leaders about how the Lord will reunite Penn students and spread the Gospel among the student body. I am living in anticipation as well as I begin my first year as the Ministry Director at Christian Union Martus. I am delighted to be called to do God's work at Penn!

September 3, 2021
Dear Cornerstone Partners and friends of CU Lux,

We are excited to congratulate and welcome the class of 2025 on their admission and arrival at Yale. Our upper-class students have spent the past few weeks preparing activities and creating a supportive atmosphere to welcome the incoming first-year students into our Christian community. A group of students met in the Pennington Center every day last week, writing 500 hand-written notes, which will be distributed across the campus to the freshman class alongside a selection of sweets and a copy of Luke’s gospel.

September 2, 2021
Dear CU Libertas Cornerstone Partners and friends of the ministry,

The end of summer is fast approaching! The nights are getting cooler, there’s a slight hint of red in the leaves, and Thayer Street is getting busier as students slowly return to campus. We eagerly await the full arrival of the class of 2025 and preparations are well underway to welcome them on campus. We are so thankful that God has opened the door for in-person learning and the opportunity to host events at the Judson Center. We can’t wait to gather the returning students together over shared meals and Bible study! This is a busy time for them; shopping classes, settling into new living arrangements, finding jobs, and reconnecting with old friends. But, even in the midst of all that, they always go the extra mile in greeting incoming freshmen and connecting them into the Christian community here at Brown.

September 2, 2021
Dear CU Lumine Cornerstone Partners and friends of the ministry,

What a year this has been so far, particularly for university students. Columbia University announced it will reopen for new students and returning students for the Fall 2021 semester. There are already signs of life on campus and in NYC as students are slowly coming back and moving on to campus.

September 2, 2021
Dear CU Vita Cornerstone Partners and friends of the ministry,

I hope you will be encouraged to know that your prayers for us for the start of the year at Cornell have been answered! During the first week of the semester that started last week, we were able to meaningfully welcome and serve over 40 new Cornell students. Many of them are finding Christian community with CU Vita and showing sincere interest in joining our Bible courses that start this week.

September 2, 2021
Dear CU Vox Cornerstone Partners and friends of the ministry,

The end of summer in Hanover is bittersweet. The summer term is over and with it go the warm temperatures and slower pace of life, but it ushers in the return of the full student body and the arrival of the Class of 2025. The bustle of a full campus will soon be a reality again and it will be wonderful to all be in person after a year and a half of discontinuity. Preparations are underway for both a welcome back for the upperclassmen and a welcome to the 2025’s. I am immensely grateful for God’s care and provision for the students and for me over the past year. I am delighted to see what He has in store for the CU Vox community in this new academic year. As always there is much prayer needed and I would ask that you join with me in praying for:

August 5, 2021
Dear CU Libertas Cornerstone Partners and friends of the ministry,

Thank you so much for your support and partnership with us in advancing the gospel here at Brown. This has been an incredibly difficult year for the students, but we are filled with joyful anticipation for the fall. We expect campus to be fully open, with minimal restrictions, and are eager to greet incoming freshmen with our welcoming campaign in September.

August 5, 2021
Dear CU Lumine Cornerstone Partners and friends of the ministry,

“This felt like I was back home.”

Those words were spoken by one of the football players after our CU Lumine Grilling/BBQ event at the ministry center on the last Sunday of July. We had over 30 students gather for one final summer event to celebrate what God did during our summer Bible courses as we studied the Gospel of John.

August 5, 2021
Dear CU Vita Cornerstone Partners and friends of the ministry,

As I write this, I pray with joy and thankfulness for you and your partnership with us in the gospel at Cornell. We are expecting great things in the year ahead, for the Lord to work according to His good pleasure and His covenant promises. His steadfast love endures, even to this day, in each of your lives and communities, and on the campus of Cornell University, where we and our student leaders are endeavoring to follow Jesus for the sake of His saving and sanctifying work.

August 5, 2021
Dear CU Vox Cornerstone Partners and friends of the ministry,

It’s been a rainy summer in Hanover, but it’s still been summer in Hanover. The summer term is always a memorable one for Dartmouth students. Typically it’s just the sophomore class on campus, but this summer the juniors, whose sophomore summer was canceled, are here as well. In addition to these two classes, there are several students here working and doing research, including the entire student executive team.

August 5, 2021
“For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith, so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again.” - Philippians 1:21-26 - Psalms 85:4-7 (ESV)

Dear CU Gloria Cornerstone Partners and friends of the ministry,

Thank you for staying connected by praying for the ministry through the summer. We have enjoyed a very fruitful summer season at Harvard, marked by the weekly Exodus Bible study, as well as the nightly student-led Prayer Corps. We are very excited for the fall semester, which will begin shortly in a few weeks. As we start to turn our attention to the fall semester, when the entire ministry will be studying together the Epistle to the Philippians, we ask you to join us in thanking God and in praying for the following:

August 5, 2021
Dear CU Nova Cornerstone Partners and friends of the ministry,

Thank you so much for your commitment to Christian Union Nova!

Though the Princeton campus is tranquil, these summer months have energized much thought amongst our CU Nova students in preparation for the 2021-22 academic school year.