Dear friends,
All praise is due to our faithful God who continues to bestow grace and favor on us as we do his work at Columbia University. Our staff continues the work of discipleship even amid various challenges, and we are seeing students grow in their commitment to follow Christ as we remain committed to them.
Dear Friends and Family of HCFA,
Thank you for your continued partnership in prayer for this ministry. As a staff team it is a huge encouragement to know that you all are invested in this ministry and lifting us up in prayer consistently.
Friends,
On March 15 we had the privilege of partnering with Aletheia Church here in Providence to bring Dr. Brian Miller, Research Director at Discovery Institute, to Brown’s campus to talk with students on “How Science Points to a Creator.” Dr. Miller, a physicist with degrees from MIT and Duke, presented a 45-minute-long lecture, which covered everything from cosmology to physics to biology in his attempt to show that science and faith are not at odds. His lecture was followed by a time dedicated to allowing the audience to ask Dr. Miller follow-up questions as they processed his presentation.
This month has brought much needed rest and peace here at Christian Union at PENN. This wasmmuch needed after the busy Fall and frigid winter months. After beginning the month with midterms, many of our students were able to get away to warmer climates with friends and family over spring break. They have returned with renewed spirits, energetic and hopeful for the months to come.
We celebrate the first full two months of the semester with many praises, thanks to your support in praying for us.
Greetings from the campus of Harvard Law School!
Students have returned to campus and are now deep into their spring semester studies. Milder temperatures in January have given way to recurrent storms in February blanketing the Harvard community in the bright white of winter’s colors.
It is with great joy and gratitude that I write to you with this report on the past month of ministry here on the campus of Princeton University. By God’s grace, we have seen our healthiest and most vibrant month so far this year; I’ll share some highlights in the space below.
Friends,
Spring semester is well underway here at Brown University, and we are keeping plenty busy with Bible Courses, our weekly lecture series, The Anchor, community and outreach events and much more.
Greetings,
We continue to see God’s grace in our ministry as we disciple students. One example of this is our winter conference which took place Jan. 20-22 at Spruce Lake. We were privileged to see students make strides in their walk with God. During one of our small group prayer times at the retreat, one young lady, who suffers from social anxiety and had never prayed before was taught by another student to pray. After she prayed for the first time, she was overwhelmed with joy and expressed interest to continue meeting with students to practice seeking God together.
Dear Partners in Prayer,
We covet your prayers as our student leadership has undertaken an enormous outreach effort--to reach every senior before he or she leaves Yale. At midnight on February 16, the email below was sent to the 1,322 members of the senior class. By 10am it had been opened by more than 1000 people.
Dear HCFA friends and family,
There has been a welcome stillness in Cambridge this past week as we have been covered by two snowstorms. My mind always runs to Isaiah, when God promises, “’Come now, let us settle the matter. Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.” What a provoking image of our good Father clothing us in the righteousness of his Son.
A student who’s been an engaged member of our freshman guys Bible course, and whom I’ve been privileged to meet and pray with regularly, recently said to me, “God is powerfully at work in my life, and I couldn’t be more excited about it.” This is from a student who experienced real challenges, both academic and personal, the second half of the fall quarter, but who by God’s grace has come back to Stanford this winter quarter with a renewed zeal for God’s word, prayer, and meaningful community with other Christians. Praise God for his work! Also, praise God for all He is doing in the lives of each student we have the opportunity to serve.
Dear Prayer Partners,
It’s hard to believe we’re already in week 7 of the term, with only 3 more weeks to go. The time has flown by quickly, but much has happened to make this term a very memorable one. There have been some ups and downs within the ministry as well as at Dartmouth. Please join us in praying for these requests:
Dear Friends and Partners of Penn,
The second semester is in full swing and the students are now preparing for mid-term exams this week and next. Incredibly, spring break is a mere 3 weeks away, and both students and Ministry Fellows are ready for a break.
Dear prayer partners,
We are well on our way into winter term and started off strong with our winter conference at Singing Hills Retreat Center. We were so pleased with the number of students who came, especially since we had so many freshmen (‘20s) and seniors (‘17s). As hoped, it was a restful time for the students, of hearing the word, spending time together in prayer, and connecting with new people in the ministry.
Winter Quarter is in full swing as Stanford students bear down for what typically is the heaviest course load of the academic year. Out from that lively rhythm we are calling our emerging group of freshmen to press in deeper with God and with one another as Christian Union Caritas -- Christian Union's ministry to the students at Stanford -- continues its first year. One of those freshmen, Isaiah, shares his experience so far:
Dear Prayer Partners,
Happy new year! Since you last heard from us, we’ve had time away from work with family to celebrate the Lord’s incarnation (what’s better than a Sunday Christmas?!) and spent time with all Christian Union faculty at our winter staff conference, pressing into the Lord in prayer for our campuses and nation. We are so grateful to minister at Yale with Christian Union and thank you for your partnership in this ministry!
Greetings from the campus of Harvard Law School!
With the arrival of winter in New England, the nights are longer and the periods of daylight shorter. Cooler temperatures mean more inside activities as student’s retreat to the Harvard Law School lobby with its glowing fireplaces and well-lit interior – a perfect place to study and prepare on a cold winter night.
As you read this report, the Princeton ministry faculty, as well as around 150 Princeton undergraduate students, will be away at Camp of the Woods in Speculator, New York, for the annual “Ski Safari” winter trip. We are thrilled with the response we have gotten from students for this trip, and are excited that many students who do not yet know Jesus as Savior and Lord will be joining us as well.
Friends,
I pray you had a blessed Christmas and New Year as you celebrated with family and friends. As we, the Christian Union ministry staff at Brown University, enjoyed hosting out-of-town family and enjoying the normal seasonal celebrations, all has been pretty quiet on campus. All this will be changing now as students have just returned to campus and began classes on Wednesday. Given that students have just returned, I don’t have much to share, but I would ask that you pray for this upcoming semester.
