Witnessing

The Walls Are Shattered

AD-16225 — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 20:05:07 +0000

Abi Christian

The Walls Are Shattered

Six months ago, Felicia, a sophomore at Alvernia University, found herself at a weekend conference, surrounded by ��ñ�� students praising God. Though not a Christian, Felicia had recognized God’s presence in the lives of those around her.

“I remember thinking to myself, ‘What am I doing here?’” Felicia wrote later. She had attended the ��ñ�� chapter’s winter conference after meeting students who sparked her curiosity in God. For her, going to church seemed a chore; she often wondered whether God existed at all. But these students were different, and she had a nagging doubt that maybe she didn’t belong with them.

No Fear
Felicia had met ��ñ�� staff worker Gretchen Greenawalt during freshmen orientation. As an ice-breaker, they jokingly did a few dance moves and chatted for awhile. Because of that initial connection, Felicia stayed in touch. In the following two years, she joined ��ñ�� students for meals, social events, and their 2010 winter conference.

Through these events, Felicia came to admire the freedom she saw in the way students worshipped God and the sincerity of their relationships with him. When the winter conference ended, she desired to know more about God. Over the next several months, she heard about the opportunity to spend a week in the summer studying the Gospel of Mark with ��ñ�� students from other schools.

With her parents’ encouragement, time off from work, and a gift of scholarship money, Felicia signed up for camp. There she learned about the brokenness of the world and its people, and about God’s plan for restoration of all of creation. Mid-way through the week, Felicia listened to a speaker explain how fear can hinder a relationship with God.

Felicia reflected on her own life. She was afraid of not belonging in the ��ñ�� community and felt guilty about her indifferent relationship with God. She could not worship freely the way her peers did because the sin and doubt in her life held her back.

As the speaker sat down, Felicia realized God could change her if she chose to let go of her fear and accept Jesus. When the worship band began playing, she cried aloud, “God, I’m ready!” and joyfully lifted up her hands in praise. “The wall was shattered,” Felicia wrote. “I knew I belonged there, and I had no fear!”

Jess’s Story
That evening Felicia excitedly told the other ��ñ�� students from Alvernia about her decision to follow Christ. “There were hugs and tears all around,” wrote Felicia. Students began to share what else God had been doing in their lives that week. Then Jess spoke up.

Jess had attended church most of her life, but when her dad passed away unexpectedly during her middle school years, she grew angry with God. Her family continued to go to church, but over the years, Jess felt distant and unresponsive towards God. In college, she met Gretchen and other ��ñ�� students when she co-led a humanitarian spring break trip to Ecuador. Gretchen invited her to join the chapter at a week-long retreat studying the Bible.

Throughout the week of the retreat, Jess examined Jesus’ life in the gospel of Mark. She saw the way students in the chapter actively responded to God. When she shared her doubt and pain with new friends, they listened and cared for her.

Now sitting next to Felicia, Jess explained that although she was not ready to follow Jesus, the community she experienced within the ��ñ�� chapter that week had nurtured her understanding of God’s love. When Jess finished talking, Felicia put her arm around her and prayed that Jess would learn to trust God with her entire life.

Taking the Plunge
The following day during their free time, Felicia, Jess, and their friends decided to try out the camp’s zip line. Jess climbed into the bulky harness, tightened her helmet, and stood at the edge of the platform. She was nervous of heights and battling second thoughts. But she was also determined. Gathering her courage and a taking deep breath, she jumped.

The ride was an exhilarating adventure down to the ground. For Jess, being able to risk leaving behind her fear of heights and taking the plunge represented her spiritual journey. She wanted to jump from her pain and distrust to living in a relationship with God, wherever that adventure might take her.

Since the retreat at Cedar Campus, Jess and Felicia have been warmly welcomed into the chapter’s community. The chapter is a recent plant, started three years ago, and staff worker Gretchen has seen students work harder this summer to stay connected and encourage each other after their week together. One student is participating in an intense urban program with ��ñ�� over the summer, and Jess has been organizing members to support and pray for her.

“These students are reaching out to one another, recognizing the need and excitement of having Christian community,” said Gretchen.

___

You can make a direct financial donation to support ��ñ��’s work at Alvernia University by following this link.

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Josh's Story

webteam@intervarsity.org — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 05:00:00 +0000

News

Josh's Story

During March, ten students from Johnson County Community College (JCCC) in Overland Park, Kansas, gave up their spring break to do a week of evangelism on other nearby campuses. They visited the University of Missouri-Kansas City, Maple Woods Community College, and Penn Valley Community College. The JCCC chapter was planted three semesters ago, and the chapter is committed to ��ñ��’s vision of seeing students and faculty transformed, campuses renewed and world changers developed. One of the students they met was Josh.

Troubled Background
Josh grew up in a family broken by the abuse of drugs and alcohol. He became an addict himself as a young teenager. He tried to get away from his problems and his parents by going to school in California. His time away was short lived; he was soon back in Kansas City and enrolled at Maple Woods Community College.

He was acquainted with ��ñ�� students and staff, but wanted nothing to do with God. Over the course of the second semester, Josh became more and more dissatisfied with his life. During spring break he opened up to his mother (who recently became a Christian) and she told him he needed to be right with God.

A Divine Appointment
When class resumed the following week, the JCCC students were out sharing their faith on the Maple Woods campus. A JCCC student named Colin and ��ñ�� staff member Jamie spent time praying that morning, asking God to show them that He would do something amazing at Maple Woods. Their prayers focused on John 4 (the story of the Samaritan woman). Less than an hour after they prayed for a divine appointment, Josh was at their Proxe Station (an interactive display designed to attract interest and initiate conversations that can lead to a gospel presentation).

In response to one of the the Proxe Station questions, Josh indicated that serving God was important to him. Jamie (who had met Josh before) started asking questions. Josh told Jamie about his background, the drugs, the bad relationships, and that he wanted to be right with God.

As Jamie responded with more questions, Josh showed some understanding of the gospel. Jamie shared more of the gospel message with him and asked him to admit, believe, and commit. Josh said that he had done the first two steps but wanted to know more about the last one. Jamie told him about what the JCCC students were doing on campus, and said that committing your life to Jesus meant following Jesus and sharing your faith with others.

Ready to Tell Others
Josh wanted to know when he could start following Jesus. Jamie brought together the JCCC ��ñ�� students and the Maple Woods ��ñ�� students to pray with Josh and celebrate his new life in Christ. Then she sent them out in twos to start spiritual conversations using question-filled balloons and to invite people to Bible study.

Josh and Colin went off together and found a whole new crowd of people to talk to. When they got back, they began inviting everyone in the cafeteria to a Bible study. At the end of the day, Josh asked to have copies of the gospel diagram and some balloons so he could continue, even after the team left. The next day, Josh came to the Bible study and brought many of his friends with him. He wants to learn to lead a study for his non-Christian friends on campus.

To learn more about ��ñ��’s evangelism activities, check out our evangelism website.

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Why Witnessing Communities

webteam@intervarsity.org — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 05:00:00 +0000

News

Why Witnessing Communities

Elyse, a freshman at Montana State University, gave her life to Jesus before Thanksgiving at an ��ñ�� Large Group meeting. Afterwards she began attending a small group Bible study. By February she had learned how to lead a Bible discussion group for non-Christians. And today she is a witness among her classmates of God’s transformative love through Jesus Christ. This academic year she hopes to participate in the missions plans of her local church.

Elyse’s transformation from a non-Christian to a dedicated follower of Jesus illustrates why ��ñ�� establishes witnessing communities on campuses.

A Marketplace of Ideas
Many students at liberal arts colleges and universities find themselves confused by the myriad of spiritual, intellectual, and cultural choices on campus. It’s understandable. Without a clearly biblical worldview, it’s easy for anyone in a marketplace of ideas to pick up some ungodly values and unbiblical beliefs.

For generations in the United States, our universities’ leaders believed in the existence of God and God’s laws in the world. Today on many campuses, God’s existence is questioned and his laws are mocked as irrelevant. Moreover, the intellectual credibility of people who believe in God is also questioned, resulting in Christians being marginalized in the academy.

An education that could lead students to appreciate the wonder of God’s creation and the meaning of human life, instead denigrates biblical truth and criticizes Christ’s church. The education that should lead students to mature adulthood—in body, mind, and spirit—instead leads many students away from God and the church.

Imagine the Possibilities
Imagine the influence that today’s students will have on the future of healthcare, Wall Street, government, and the media. Will these students, having been educated in the present academic culture that is skeptical about God’s existence, obtain educations that prepare them to make wise decisions for leading tomorrow’s world?

Imagine what this world would be like if today’s college students were motivated more by love for God and service to people than they are now compelled by a desire for money and advantage over competitors? Imagine their witness as a global community of Christians. And think of the hopeful possibilities for their children.

Of course, thinking it so will not make it true. But believing can be the beginning of action. What can we do? What can each of us do to further the kingdom of God?

Get involved. Participate in God’s global mission.

Communities that Witness
��ñ�� plants and builds witnessing communities in obedience to the church’s call to share the gospel with all people, regardless of their ethnicity and cultural background. But we do more than evangelize campuses. We also develop in our students the Christ-like character, vision, and leadership skills that will change the world for the better.

��ñ��’s witnessing communities work to see students and faculty transformed through a relationship with Jesus Christ, campuses spiritually renewed through the influence of our witnessing communities, and the world changed through our alumni’s servant leadership in their chosen professions, and through their ministry in the local and global missions of the church. That’s why we exist, and why we establish communities that witness to God’s love and grace through Jesus Christ.

“When anyone asks me what ��ñ�� is really about, my response is simple,” says president Alec Hill. “Our ongoing vision is to create strong witnessing communities on college campuses. This generation of students desperately needs to know Jesus Christ.”

Student Led Ministry
Students are at the heart of our campus ministry. Our campus staff members train student leaders how to design and coordinate many Intervarsity activities, such as large group worship times, small group Bible studies, and campus-wide evangelism programs.

��ñ�� staff and faculty advisors offer student leadership training through camps, conferences, and seminars. And our national offices provide students with resources for spiritual growth, community-building, and outreach through books and Bible studies published by ��ñ�� Press, inspiration found on our StudentSoul website, and instruction delivered in videos produced by our 2100 Productions media team.

��ñ�� offers college students opportunities to learn about the biblical gospel of Jesus Christ and nurtures Christian students as Christ’s disciples. We minister with students and faculty on campus through our witnessing communities.

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Witnessing

An Urgent Invitation

webteam@intervarsity.org — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 05:00:00 +0000

News

Katie Montei

An Urgent Invitation

Belief in Jesus should not be put off until tomorrow. This urgency for belief is the motivation for Can This Wait, a conference that the ��ñ�� chapter at the University of California—Los Angeles (UCLA) has hosted for non-Christian students for the past four years.

Every spring ��ñ�� students who have relationships with non-Christians are encouraged to invite their friends to Can This Wait. The conference is designed for non-Christian students: Christian students can only come if their non-believing friend comes. This assures that half of the students who come are non-Christians and creates an atmosphere of openness and welcome.

Who is Jesus?
At the conference, basic questions about Christianity are discussed, such as, who is Jesus? And what is Christianity? ��ñ�� students help their friends by making sure they feel comfortable and interacting with them in small groups that take place after each session. The weekend ends with a gospel presentation about the Great Banquet that Jesus speaks of in Luke 14. Students are given a personal invitation to join Jesus’ banquet table.

Scott Hall and Tracey Gee, the area directors for the Los Angeles area, have been thrilled with how successful the conference has been. “Can This Wait has thrived because by the time a non-Christian student is ready to say yes to his friend’s request to spend a weekend exploring faith, he is seeking God, and often he is receptive to the Holy Spirit and ready for an invitation to belief,” said Scott.

Friends Invite Friends
This year 24 ��ñ�� students each brought a friend to the conference. Twelve of the non-Christian students accepted the invitation to Jesus’ banquet. Before one young woman accepted Christ, she prayed with a staff about giving her life to Jesus. During the prayer she saw an image of Jesus inviting her follow him. She was so moved by this vision that she knelt, weeping, as she offered her life to Jesus.

Because of the fruit that UCLA has seen from the conference, the chapter decided to encourage other schools around Los Angeles to participate in the conference. This year only two other schools participated, but others are showing interest.

A Time of Transformation
The weekend is a powerful time of transformation for the non-Christian students. This year half of the students became believers, and the other half communicated to the staff that they left the conference feeling honored and respected during the weekend; the staff believe that many of them are close to becoming Christians.

“The conference this year was probably the most fun, the most profound, and the most significant conference I’ve been a part of in my 14 years on staff,” Scott said. And the significance carries over to the Christian students as well. ��ñ�� students at the conference grow in prayer for their friends, boldness in sharing the gospel, and discernment in seeing the Holy Spirit work in the lives of their friends — in big and little ways.

You can make a direct financial donation to support ��ñ��’s work in evangelism by following this link.

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The Power of a Personal Testimony

webteam@intervarsity.org — Fri, 22 May 2009 05:00:00 +0000

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Beth Seversen

The Power of a Personal Testimony

God is doing an amazing thing at the University of Rhode Island (URI). Twenty-five students came to faith on March 11, 2009 at a single event—a large group meeting.

The ��ñ�� multi-ethnic chapter called Origins is participating in a semester series on the Book of Acts. Students share “How God has Acted in My Life” at chapter meetings. Faith journey stories from new Christians have sparked student interest in the gospel.

Sharing from experience
Varsity football player Orlando Perez was encouraged by campus staff member Lisa Olson to share his story and give a call to faith at the weekly fellowship large group meeting. Lisa coaches ��ñ�� students when telling their stories to be genuine, not pushy, and to share from their own experience, “How God has changed them and how he wants to bring restoration to humanity.”

Orlando invited his entire football team to the large group meeting. Many other athletes were also in attendance. That night 25 students came forward, indicating they wanted to begin a first time relationship with Jesus.

Key to these conversions is the passionate way Orlando has shared his faith in Jesus all year with teammates, dorm residents and classmates. Although the chapter did spiritual surveys and proxe stations weekly throughout the semester, the most influential evangelism resource has been personal invitations, especially from the students sharing their faith journeys—like Orlando himself.

Lisa reports all of the students making a commitment to Christ on March 11th, have stayed involved in the fellowship. The reason for this is each of these students already were connected to someone in the chapter. Several of the students who came forward were Track & Field teammates of Meredith Hannon. Orlando and Meredith are now meeting for bible study with these new believers. Lisa sees her role as Orlando and Meredith’s coach.

Student passionate about evangelism
When asked what lessons she learned about evangelism, Lisa replied, “I cannot champion evangelism alone as staff. I’ve learned to pray for missional students who are passionate about seeing conversions from cynics and seekers who will become missional world-changing Christ followers. I pour my energy and resources into getting those students to the center of our fellowship to model, inspire and teach others.”

URI students are hungry to know God, and God is using ��ñ�� students to reach them. God loves and is pursuing each and every person on campus. Sometimes all that is needed for evangelism is for the students to tell their friends the stories of how God is acting in their own lives, thus creating a space for God to work.

^{Photo: Orlanda Perez (left), Lisa Olson (middle), and fellow student Nikola.}

^{This story and more stories of personal conversions on campus can be found at ��ñ��’s Evangelism web site. You can make a direct financial donation to support ��ñ��’s work in evangelism by following this link.}

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Defending True Christianity

webteam@intervarsity.org — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 05:00:00 +0000

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Jason Toman, Western Michigan University

Defending True Christianity

What image does the word “missionary” conjure up for you? Do you think of someone from Great Britain or the U.S. heading to remote islands, central Asia, or African jungles? Let me tell you about Jared, a young student from Kenya coming to study at an American university, a student involved with our International Student Fellowship.

When he came to Western Michigan University, Jared brought along his relationship with Jesus. Jared and I have recently been talking about him leading evangelistic Bible discussions with his friends. We call them GIGs, Groups Investigating God.

Then just a few days ago, Jared told me about a recent experience of sharing his faith.

A Library Conversation
I left our ��ñ�� leadership meeting and headed to the library. I was sitting at a computer in the lower level and next to me were two girls discussing the history of Christianity for their history exam.

I heard them say that Christians today are so fake, that we are hypocritical, selfish, and greedy, and the only real Christians were those around during the times of Jesus 2000 years ago.

I flashed back to what Chris was sharing at our meeting from the book Unchristian, and its statistics about how many Americans feel that Christianity is judgmental, unwelcoming, and hypocritical. I felt the Holy Spirit compel me to share something about real Christian faith with these girls, and I prayed to God for courage.

Listening to the Holy Spirit
I hesitated because I was scared of what they would think of me or how they would react. I walked out of the library, but as soon as I got to the first floor I felt the Spirit urging me to take the risk and talk to those two girls.

I went back, but fear overwhelmed me one more time and I retreated. I left the library and was walking outside in the snow when I felt the Spirit telling me to go back one more time. This time I decided to write down what I was feeling on a piece of paper and hand it to the two girls, but I discovered that they had left!

As I headed out to meet a friend for tacos I felt like I had really failed God. Then a most amazing thing happened. I was seated at the fast food restaurant and one of the two girls showed up to have some dinner. I knew that God was giving me a second chance to share with this girl.

I went up to her and at the risk of looking like a total idiot, I handed her the note I had written. She read it, and we had a pleasant conversation about Christianity.

How amazing is that! I told her that we could meet some other time and talk and she was open to the idea. Since then we have communicated online a number of times about the subject of true Christianity.

Jason Toman works with international students and with ��ñ��’s undergrad student chapter at Western Michigan University.

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Evangelism On The Rise

webteam@intervarsity.org — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 06:00:00 +0000

News

Katie Montei

Evangelism On The Rise

The ��ñ�� chapter at New Mexico Tech in Socorro, New Mexico, has been teaching its students to become more active in evangelism. Rod Pauls, the regional director and part-time staff worker at the school has seen the ��ñ�� students develop their evangelistic skills over the past couple years.

Because the leadership team has expressed excitement about evangelism the chapter is motivated and has already witnessed the Holy Spirit working through them; they have seen one student become a Christian and have shared the gospel with many of their friends.

Incorporating Evangelism
Last year the chapter began to discuss how to do evangelism more actively. Because they had not spent much time focusing on evangelism in the past, the students started incorporating it into the chapter slowly, deciding first to train their peers in how to lead a GIG (Group Investigating God, a Bible study for non-Christians). Leading Bible studies taught them how to have honest and open discussions with their non-Christian friends.

The GIGs gave students the confidence to take their evangelism efforts further this year. In September they hosted a Proxe Station outreach called Extreme Makeover. It focused on the question, “What would you change about yourself?” A display was set up on campus, and as students walked past, they could stop and post their answers to the question onto the display. They then had the opportunity to talk with an ��ñ�� member.

The Proxe station yielded about sixty conversations over three days, and the gospel was presented in at least half of those discussions. The experience was very freeing and exciting for the students – many students who were afraid of sharing their faith got over their fear after realizing that the response from their peers was mostly positive. The chapter felt so encouraged about the Proxe Station that it has decided to host another one this month.

In between Proxe Station events, the chapter hosted an event in the middle of December that it called the “World View Café,” in which the students gave away hot chocolate and invited their peers to talk about worldview issues. Once again, the chapter presented the gospel to many students.

Perseverence in Evangelism
Part of what impresses Rod about this ��ñ�� chapter is the students’ perseverance to pursue evangelism without a full-time staff worker to guide them. “I’m very encouraged with the different structures that they have in place,” said Don Paul.

Part of their persistence comes from their student leader, CJ. CJ is the chapter’s evangelism coordinator. He has a deep desire to bring his classmates to faith in Christ, and his enthusiasm spills over to the rest of the ��ñ�� leadership team. Rod said of him, “I’ve seen in him a desire to grow in his own faith, but also to see other students come to know the Lord. In his friendships with non-Christians he really tries to be the kind of friend that makes the gospel attractive to them.”

With student leaders like CJ helping to guide the chapter in evangelism, ��ñ�� at New Mexico Tech is being used by God. One student this fall has become a Christian, which has spurred on the chapter’s growing excitement about evangelism. The chapter is ready to invite more people into relationship with Jesus, and Rod expects that its evangelism journey is only beginning.

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A Hurricane of Help

webteam@intervarsity.org — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 06:00:00 +0000

News

Katie Montei

A Hurricane of Help

Hurricane Ike was the third most destructive Hurricane to ever hit the United States, ripping through Texas and Florida. Ike tore through the heart of Houston, knocking out the power in entire sections of the city, including the University of Houston. Because of the anticipated destruction, the University had closed its doors on September 11, the Thursday before the hurricane hit, and sent students home. The school didn’t reopen until the following Tuesday – and only then with non-mandatory classes.

Jeremiah Situka, ��ñ�� staff worker at the University of Houston, reflected with thankfulness to God for keeping the ��ñ�� students safe. Students returned to a campus that was, apart from tree limbs scattered everywhere, undamaged. ��ñ�� students were shaken by the storm, but otherwise unharmed.

The Effect on Students
Although no one in the chapter was hurt, several students came back to school having experienced the anger of the hurricane. Having felt the grace of God in avoiding the worst effects of the storm, those students returned to campus ready to serve those whose lives had been left in tatters.

One young woman, a key student leader in the chapter, is from Daytown, Texas, a town hit hard by the hurricane. While the University was closed, she went home, praying that her that her family and her friends from school would be kept safe. During the storm, over 30 trees toppled over in her yard; but not one tree caused damage to the family’s property, everyone in her family remained unscathed.

Another student leader was less fortunate. His apartment building in Houston had sustained so much damage that it was closed down. He was forced to find new housing. But even in worrisome circumstances, God’s hand was present. Not only was he kept safe during the storm, but within three days of leaving his damaged building, he found a new apartment to live in.

Both these students, along with Jeremiah and the other student leaders, responded to their own experience of the storm by returning to campus eager to reach out to the community around Houston. They began planning an event to serve the Sunnyside community, a neighborhood that had been devastated by the hurricane.

The Response
In leading up to the service project in Sunnyside, the ��ñ�� chapter responded first through prayer. In the first week back to school, the leaders, along with Jeremiah, decided that they should cancel their regular meetings to have a week of daily prayer and reflection. As students slowly returned to campus, many joined the prayer meetings being held every day.

During the week of prayer, and for the two following weeks, the students planned the outreach to the campus and Sunnyside. They created a Proxe station, a table display set up on campus to stimulate people’s thinking about social issues.

The Proxe station centered on the issue of devastation; it encouraged students to reflect and respond to the destruction that they had dealt with in their own lives. Jeremiah reflected that the students hoped to communicate “our ability as people ability to comfort others in their brokenness, just as God comforts us in ours.” The ��ñ�� students invited each person who stopped at the Proxe station to join them in helping to clean up the Sunnyside Community.

The Sunnyside Community, of which most of the residents are elderly, welcomed the help and cooperation of ��ñ��. For three weeks they had lived without power, which had been knocked out by the hurricane that had wreaked havoc. For an entire day, ��ñ�� students helped to clear the debris that covered the community.

The first yard the students cleared debris from was at the home of a woman who was over 100 years old. The elderly lady and her daughter had been praying that God would send someone to help remove fallen trees from her yard. When the students started working in her yard, she came out to greet them with gratitude and kindness, smiling, laughing, and making jokes.

Given the destruction around the neighborhood, student leader, Nicole Brown, was surprised by the woman’s attitude, stating, “She’s so full of life, it doesn’t seem like she’s more than 100, I hope if I live to be that age I still have that kind of joy.”

Although the Hurricane damaged many communities, and left many lives in ruin, the ��ñ�� students at the University of Houston held fast to the belief that God comforts us even when our world is in shambles, and with his direction, we can comfort others. Instead of allowing the hurricane to demoralize them and dampen their spirits, they took action – reaching out to their campus and community in need of comfort, hope, and restoration.

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God's Pursuit

webteam@intervarsity.org — Fri, 28 Dec 2007 06:00:00 +0000

News

Katie Montei

God's Pursuit

Francis Thompson writes in his poem, The Hound of Heaven, “Still with unhurrying chase, / And unperturbed pace, / Deliberate speed, majestic instancy, / Came on the following feet, / And a voice about their beat – / ‘Naught shelters thee, who wilt not shelter Me.’” He is rhyming about a God who pursues us relentlessly until we turn around from running and realize that it is he, after all, who we were seeking. It is this very Hound of Heaven that has been persistently chasing Bryton.

Bryton grew up in a family devoted to the Mormon faith. Her relatives, both extended and immediate, are all strong believers. But as she got older, she began to question the beliefs she had grown up with. Bryton’s doubt sprung from feeling unsatisfied in her relationship with God – it seemed to her that something was missing.

Unlike the person being chased in The Hound of Heaven, Bryton sensed and welcomed, albeit cautiously, the pursuing footsteps of God. She knew, in the same way that one recognizes that intangible feeling of love, that the Bible was true; but she had questions about the Book of Mormon. So she began reading the Bible avidly, discovering new things about Christ that were contrary to what she had been taught.

John chapter 1 especially caught her attention. Instead of Jesus being described as a separate person from God, as the Book of Mormon taught, John illustrates Jesus as being the Word who “was with God, and the Word was God…through him all things were made; without him nothing was made.” In that passage Bryton was captured by the truth that Jesus and God are one and the same.

With the truth that had taken hold of Bryton’s heart guiding her, she decided to share with her parents what she had been learning. They were less than receptive. In hopes that she might return to Mormonism, they asked her to transfer to Weber State in Utah in order to be closer to home.

But although her college changed, her heart didn’t. And she struggled with the rift that her new faith was causing between her and her parents. One of the hard sayings of Jesus comes from Matthew 10:37, when he tells his disciples, “Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me.” Following Jesus is costly, and Bryton was learning that first-hand. “My Christian heart was stuck in a Mormon home,” she said. It was hard for her to stay in her parents good graces without letting go of what she believed. So, to keep from trouble, she returned to the Mormon Church.

And so the Hound of Heaven continued to pursue Bryton, saying to her, “Whom wilt thou find to love ignoble thee, / Save Me, save only Me? / All which I took from thee I did but take, / Not for thy harms, / But just that thou might’st seek it in My arms.” Bryton loves and respects her parents, but she realized that she couldn’t deny what she knew to be true. It was only her faith in God that brought her peace, so despite what might happen with her parents, she once again turned towards God’s persistent footsteps.

Soon Bryton found a church where she met Mac Smith, an ��ñ�� Campus Staff Member at Weber State. He took a great interest in Bryton, and invited her to a Bible Study that met in her dorm on Tuesday nights. ��ñ�� provided Bryton a safe place to pursue a relationship with God and to find a community that supported and sustained her.

Before finding community in ��ñ��, she had doubt about whether she was doing the right thing; she didn’t want to disappoint her family, but God used her friends to affirm her decision and strengthen her faith.

Bryton’s story continues, but she has learned that God is ever faithful. In Romans 8: 31-32, Paul teaches that us that “If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all – how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” Bryton’s parents have slowly accepted her new faith and have come to the point where they simply ask that she find what she believes and live it with all her heart. “I am just so amazed with how God has provided me every opportunity to grow closer to Him,” Bryton said.

God pursued Bryton with the passion that he pursues us all. And when she stopped and turned long enough for the footsteps to reach her, the Hound of Heaven outstretched His hand and said to her, “Rise, clasp My hand, and come…Ah, fondest, blindest, weakest, I am He Whom thou seekest!”

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A Courageous Move: Part Two

webteam@intervarsity.org — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 05:00:00 +0000

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A Courageous Move: Part Two

It is hard to determine success after only a month and a half in any endeavor. At the beginning of September a portion of the ��ñ�� Chapter at the University of Wisconsin — Madison moved back into a dorm on campus, Witte Hall. But, as with any new venture, they have had to continue evaluating their success in accomplishing their vision. So far, the chapter has enjoyed a satisfying first semester.

A group of Christians all moving back into one dorm together is risky. And the students knew that going in. They could be stereotyped as being pushy about their faith, or as living in a Christian bubble; both are twisted outcomes of positive ideals. The ��ñ�� students do want to share their faith with others, and they do want to live in Christian community, but they want to do it with grace.

The presence of ��ñ�� in Witte has not been an obstacle for the chapter to overcome in building relationships. Spencer Montei, a senior at Madison said, “Most of the people around on our floor know that we’re Christians and that we’re part of ��ñ��. But knowing that about us hasn’t killed any relationships before they start.” In fact, having a visible presence in the dorm has led some students to get involved in the chapter.

One freshman student, in particular, had little interest in getting involved with a campus ministry coming into college. In recent years her faith had become stagnant, and by the time she entered college it was all but dead. She ended up living in Witte among the ��ñ�� students, who quickly took an interest in her. Since that initial meeting, the young woman has become a committed member of ��ñ��. The chapter has welcomed her involvement, but even more so they have celebrated her rejuvenated faith.

But in most cases, relationships take time, especially in a setting such as this. The ��ñ�� students have been slowly building friendships with their roommates. “Roommates are definitely hanging out with us,” Spencer says, “they’ll come to things ��ñ�� does, or come play Frisbee with us, or come to dinner with us. People are taking steps towards developing strong friendships with their roommates, but it takes time, and it’s still the beginning of the year.”

The gentleness that has to take place in the approach the chapter is taking means that conversions will probably not happen overnight. But the friendships that are made have the potential to plant seeds in students that may sprout in another season of life.

Perhaps the most positive outcome thus far has been the growth between chapter members. The community moving into Witte began the year by spending a lot of time together because of new student outreach. “We were going out together to hand out freezy-pops and lemonade to incoming freshmen. So right off the bat we were working together. When Christians are working together for a Kingdom cause, growth in the community is bound to happen.” Without forsaking new and old relationships with those outside the chapter, the community has devoted a lot of time to building each other up. They hang out together, eat their meals together, study together, and support each other in their respective ��ñ�� roles.

The adventure of living in dorms is really just beginning for Madison’s ��ñ�� chapter. And they are taking it as it comes, continually relying on God for guidance. Some bumps may lie ahead for the ��ñ�� chapter, but so far, in their estimation, the year has been a success.

“Hundreds of students from Witte don’t need to join ��ñ�� for what we’re doing to be a success,” Spencer said, “people are noticing us and some have joined our chapter, and those are all good things. But, we went into this without desiring numbers to be the criterion for success. Living together has been really great for our community – and in that sense it’s been 100 percent successful.”

Part one of this story

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You can make a direct financial donation to support ��ñ��’s work on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus by following this link.

News Keywords

Witnessing

Chapter Building