Killing the Giants

If you were to dedicate one week of your life to sharing the Gospel what would it look like? For you personally, what are the fears, distractions or hindrances – the Giants - that prevent you from doing so? Those are two of the questions we asked ourselves during Killing the Giants week at North Myrtle Beach Summer Project. Then, knowing that God is on our side, we made it our objective to overcome those giants and share Christ with as many people as possible.

A Clean Slate

Cat, one of the students on Summer Project, tells this story about her experience with Killing the Giants week: “I went out sharing Friday night with a reluctant heart, feeling an obligation to go since it was Killing the Giants week. We wandered Main Street for a while, initiating without a lot of success, when we got into a conversation with a high schooler named Julie. God blessed me with an awesome conversation. I have never had a stranger share her story in such depth and with such openness before. The first thing she did was hold out her wrists and show us the scars running all of the way up her arms. She shared with us how she came from a large family, and was in an out of foster care for certain periods of her life, and her struggle with depression. She had a spiritual background, but openly admitted she was far from the Lord. She knew a lot of the decisions she was making were poor.

It was amazing, because you could tell the conversation we were having and the questions we were asking were making her see the hand God has had in her life. She told us she had attempted suicide multiple times, but by bizarre circumstances survived. And we were able to connect those circumstances with God’s pursuit of her as His child. She excitedly shared that she had recently moved to a new town with her sister, and was hoping to make a new start in a place where she didn’t have a reputation. We shared with her the truth that just as she had a clean slate in her new environment- perfect and clean, that is same way God sees her when she believes in the work of the cross. We ended by praying with her. I was so blessed to have the opportunity to encourage her, and point out how God has been seeking her in her life. I stand amazed by God’s grace towards me in allowing that conversation, and to Julie, in the way He has loved her, and how I know He will keep pursuing her.”

Praise the Lord that He has made each one of us clean and given us new life! I hope you all had the opportunity this month to celebrate the freedom that we have as Americans and, even more importantly, the freedom that we have as believers in Christ. I would love to hear what is going on in your lives. Please let me know if there is any way I can be praying for you or joining with you in praising God for what He is doing. Thanks again for helping to make my ministry possible!

What Students are Saying about NMB 2010

Every summer students have the opportunity to take the good news of Jesus virtually anywhere in the world with Campus Crusade projects. North Myrtle Beach, SC, where I am spending my summer, is a project with 92 students, mostly from the Upper Midwest. Below is a taste of what some of them are saying about their experience so far.

“The moment I stepped out of the van into the muggy air of North Myrtle, the pace of my life has sped up significantly. My summer is full of new people, a new job, outreach, and growth. I am constantly interacting with people, whether it be my roommates, my co-workers, by Bible study, my Impact team, or people on the beach. I am surrounded by truth. My discipler pours it into me, speakers speak it, the Word breathes it into my life… I am challenged to be uncomfortable in the complacent areas in my life and step out in faith to change them.” Cat

“Here on project, God has been teaching me a lot. He has shown me different areas of sin in my life and he has shown me abundant grace. I am really learning what it means to submit my life fully to Christ, finding my satisfaction in Him. I’m excited to see how God will continue to work this summer. He has already done so much here.” Mike

“I’ve been so incredibly blessed to be on a project with so many amazing brothers and sisters in Christ. They have already taught me so much about the Lord and have encouraged me so much in my own walk with Him through the fellowship we share. I am being broken daily by the Lord, and am starting to walk with Him through it and being able to see what it means to really walk with the Lord. I hope and pray that I continue to be broken and that in my brokenness I continue to run to the Lord and His Truth. I pray that God would wreck my life this summer (in the best way possible) and keep growing me into the woman he created me to be.” Michelle


“So far, God has really been showing up in outreach. On our first official outreach night, I went out with another student, Dan, to talk to people on the beach. We got into a conversation with a guy who said that he believed in Jesus but was confused about certain things. We went through a survey with him and through a booklet about how to know God personally. He participated in the discussion and began understanding things he hadn’t understood before. When we asked if he wanted to pray to accept Jesus into his life, he said yes!!” Cassie

Thanks for helping make it possible for these students to grow in intimacy with God, share the sweet truth of the gospel with tourists on the beach, and build deep friendships with other believers. I am so grateful for your support!

BIG BREAK 2010

Come March, college students from across the globe flock en masse to the stunning white sand beaches of Panama City Beach, Florida. Many arrive with the primary intent of partying at what has been billed as the wildest and craziest spring break destination in the world. Yet, amid the beer bongs, ping-pong balls, and all that is in between, thousands of Campus Crusade students from all over the country gather with a different mission. As part of Big Break, a one-week mission experience held annually by Campus Crusade, these students receive the opportunity to spend the week growing in their walk with God, exploring biblical truths and learning how to share their faith with others.

In addition to talking about Jesus on the beach, this year Big Break students engaged with other spring breakers and asked them to help pack over 1 million meals for victims of the Haiti earthquake. This is the first time the Big Break conference partnered with GAiN, the humanitarian aid ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ. The goal of the partnership was to bring students off the beach, have them pack meals, and establish an atmosphere where the gospel can be brought into conversation during that packing process.

Jordan’s Story
Jordan, a freshman from the UW-Madison (the second student on the left in the picture below), tells this story: “My realization and response to follow Christ as my savior came back in early July of 2008. I was visiting my brother out in Ocean City, New Jersey. I was lost and broken, having one of the toughest times of my life, and Jesus came to my rescue... It would be hard to describe all the things that God has shown me this year, and I have been extremely blessed.

Two weeks ago I was lucky enough to go on Big-Break in Panama City Beach, Florida. I felt anything but ready going out sharing; I had fear and felt inadequate to share the great news of Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 2:1 says differently, that I’m not called to know a lot, but instead just to know my savior. I was able to witness two people come to Christ, and when I think about them I can’t stop smiling. God used me, someone weak, to do things that I never thought I could. It was so encouraging to walk up to someone who had already been shared with along an eight-mile stretch of beach. To be used to share the Gospel with college and high-school partiers opened my eyes, God is moving always. Praise Him.”

Praise the Lord for the ways that He is moving through Jordan and other college students! Thanks being part of His work through your prayers and support!

Executive & Entrepreneurial Forum (EII)

Imagine an event gathering the sharpest, most ambitious unversity students in America and impacting them with the message of Christ. Picture a room filled with athletic team captains, presidents of entreprerial clubs, mulicultural organizations, Fraternities, Sororieties and more. Last month, just such an event, called the Executive & Entrepreneurial Forum, was held at the UW-Madison. I had the privilege of serving as the cooridator for the 2010 Madison EII Forum, which is an annual event held at universities across the region with the goal of reaching the most influential student leaders on campus.

Literally every seat was full at this dinner Forum as more than 75 students gathered for the event. Three sucessful Christian business excutives partnered with Campus Crusade to sponsor the Forum. Each of these executives addressed the the students, sharing their businesses successes and failures and their faith journey. The last executive to speak also shared the gospel with students, explaining to them how they could know God personally.

As a result of the Forum, 12 students indicated a desire to hear more about how they could know God personally or how they could get involved with Campus Crusade. One student who was impacted powerfully through the event is Jay. Jay and a friend of his had the opportunity to meet with two of our executives the morning after the Forum. As Jay began explaining his current life situation, it became obvious that God had arranged this meeting. One of the exectives pointed this out to Jay, telling him, “You know, God brought you here today.” In response to that statement, tears began streaming down Jay’s face, and he simply replied, “I know.”

The next morning Jay sent an email to one of the executives with this message: “I believe that I 100% was supposed to be right there in that place hearing that message from God and from the type of people God knows I would be attentive to. It is amazing that you all are genuinely compassionate about helping people and it radiates through your personalities and passion about the topic. I genuinely hope I can continue to stay in contact with you and that I may reach out to you as a mentor. I believe I am just beginning my life journey and good people you can talk to are hard to find and I honestly feel God placed you in my life; I will do my part to listen and stay in touch. Thank you, Jay”

There is no telling the tremendous impact that can be made through influential young leaders like Jay as they are transformed by God and equipped to influence the world for Christ. Thanks for your partnership in raising up laborers for Christ!

Capturing the Heart of God

A few weeks ago, I began discipling or mentoring four sophomore girls (pictured in this blog). Already, it has been such a privilege to watch these young women grow in faith and to witness what God is doing through their lives. In my very first meeting with one of these women, Roberta, she told me an incredible story of how God has used her in the life of her roommate, MJ, an international student from South Korea. Throughout the first semester, Roberta developed a friendship with MJ and began looking for opportunities to share the hope of Christ. Roberta quickly discovered that MJ was an atheist and that she struggled with feelings of emptiness. The rest of the story is best described in Roberta’s own words:

“MJ and I were sitting in our room. It was 2 in the morning and I was typing on my computer. As I was working, I become horribly burdened by MJ's emptiness. Even more, I felt convicted by the Spirit to talk with her. I was overwhelmed by a deep sense of urgency, and yet I came up with every reason why I should not talk with her. After all, it was late and I wanted to go to bed. And too, she was sitting on her computer watching television and I did not want to disturb her. I got ready for bed and came back to the room to journal. As I journaled, I felt even more compelled to talk with her, however, and God gave me a burst of courage to timidly stammer: "MJ, do you believe in God?" As I expected, MJ responded with a resolute no, to which I expressed understanding, as I too had questioned the existence of God. I proceeded to share my testimony and explained how it deeply burdens me to see people attempt to fill emptiness with emptiness.

I explained how Jesus fills my heart completely and has changed my life--so much so that I came back to the dorms so I could share Him with others. MJ and I kept talking and the conversation naturally transitioned into the Gospel. I used a "Knowing God Personally" booklet, and when we got to the prayer to accept Christ the conversation drifted… I sat down next to her and asked, "So, MJ, you want to accept Jesus?" She said yes, and I proceeded to pray. After I finished praying she was quite silent. Eventually she spoke up and explained how she had felt something in her heart when I prayed …and as we continued to talk, I saw God's sovereignty further displayed. "You know," MJ said, "It is weird that you asked me about this tonight" "Why MJ?" "Well," MJ responded, "I was actually having all these thoughts about God and wondering how people believe in God." "You mean you weren't actually sitting in your bed watching television" I asked. "No..." "Are those thoughts normal for you MJ?" I asked. "No..." As would be expected, we were both left in deep awe of God, who had clearly orchestrated our entire conversation.

I feel incredibly blessed that God allowed me to partake in His incredible plan to redeem the world, and I rejoice that He uses redeemed sinners to call other sinners to Himself! I rejoice, moreover, that people both support and serve in campus ministries such as Campus Crusade for Christ. I can wholeheartedly say that God has used Campus Crusade in very powerful ways in my life. In fact, without Campus Crusade, I do not believe I would have moved back into the dorms as a sophomore, known how to share my faith with a non-believer, or captured the depth of God’s heart for the lost. God truly uses this ministry to win new believers to the Kingdom, build them to spiritual maturity, and send them to the world!"

I also rejoice, with Roberta, that God has brought each one of you into my life and has enabled you to be a part of my team, to join in this mission of winning, building and sending college students. May we continue together in our pursuit to capture God’s heart, and may we be filled to overflowing with His incredible love!

Christmas Letter

The last several weeks, since I reported to UW-Madison, have been pretty exciting to say the least. Here are a few quick highlights:

I arrived at Madison in the midst of a unique outreach designed with the objective of using the internet to tell our friends and the world how Jesus has changed our lives. Students launched a website to which they posted their changed life stories. More than 120 different stories were posted to the site and then shared via email, blogs, and Facebook. The response was amazing! In the first two weeks alone there were 12,465 visits to the site. Each story ends with a link to EveryBadger.com which shares the message of salvation and answers hard questions that students may have. 244 people clicked on the link to EveryBadger.com! …You can read some of these incredible stories for yourself at uwsi.wordpress.com.

Here are a few appetizers: Tyler: “In that moment I felt more broken, empty, and afraid than I have ever felt in my life. The pride and self worth that I had spent a lifetime building up came crashing down around me. But it was in that moment, with my knees on the dorm room floor, that I asked God to rescue me. Through the pain, I could see that the life I was living wasn’t the one God intended for me. I could see that I wasn’t really living at all. It’s hard for me to describe for you the peace I felt that night. I realized for the first time that God accepted me and loved me just the way I was. My life was valuable because the Creator of the universe died to save me. And he didn’t die just to save me; he died so that I could have a relationship with him.”

Gabby: “When I was about 14, I gave up on God. .. I remember sitting in my room in almost-physical pain because I was yearning for something that I felt did not exist. I wanted meaning greater than myself, and I was angry at God for abandoning me. I will always remember what I prayed with angry tears that night, “God, if you exist, MAKE ME LOVE YOU. I don’t. I barely even have the desire to. But I am desperate and so if you are real, come find me because I have no more strength to look for you anymore.” …And He did. …. After I gave my heart to God...I became friends with some other American girls my age who loved God deeply and showed me what it meant to live in Jesus’ love. I experienced joy like nothing I had ever felt before. My life didn’t get easier on the outside by any means, but on the inside I had peace. Jesus had pursued and found me just like I had asked Him to!”

As we celebrate the birth of our Savior, this time of year opens up some great opportunities to share the Good News of Christ. Many girls involved with Campus Crusade took advantage of this opportunity by hosting what we call Christmas Study breaks. They invited all of the girls in their dorm hall to gather together and share Christmas memories and traditions along with delicious homemade goodies. Then, one of the hosts shared about how she finds Christmas meaningful because of the best Christmas gift of all - Jesus Christ and his offer of salvation. Through these Christmas gatherings, several girls indicated that they wanted to accept this gift and make Jesus their Savior.

One of these girls is an international student from China (I’ll call her Sue) who has been checking out a Campus Crusade Bible study for a little while now. Sue has already begun meeting with a Campus Crusade staff member for follow-up and will be attending our Christmas break conference (TCX) with about 1800 other college students in Minneapolis, MN. There are about 130 students from Madison attending this conference from December 28-January 1. Please pray for God to use the conference to change many lives!

November Newsleter

Ready to Embark

Following God day by day, wherever He leads, is always an adventure! It’s a journey filled with twists, turns and forks in the road. Currently, I am getting ready to embark on a new and unexpected adventure. You are getting this month’s newsletter early because I can’t wait to share this exciting news with you! However, before I get to the big news, I’d like to share a few things that God has been doing in my life.

Last week, I had the opportunity to attend a Campus Crusade conference in Michigan. It was great to reconnect with other new staff members that I met over the summer and to receive encouragement from individuals in the same ministry. I also benefited from the financial training that we received at the conference.

Another session at the conference was on vision and calling. It reminded me of one of my favorite quotes, “If you want to build a ship, don't drum up people to collect wood and don't assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea” Antoine De Saint-Exupery. What a great reminder for me to continually focus on the big picture or mission behind everything I do!

Headed to the Capital

In my last letter, I shared with you that my fiancé, Adam, and I have decided to postpone our wedding. In light of this, for the time being, I will be going to the University of Wisconsin Madison to begin working part-time for Campus Crusade there. I am so excited about this new adventure. I can’t wait to dive in and beginning ministering to students there.

You may be wondering what this means for you as my ministry partner. Even though the location may be different, the mission is not, and I still need your prayers and financial support to make my ministry possible. Thank you for your willingness to come along with me on this journey and to be part of what God is doing in the lives of college students.