Hello, friends!
Yesterday was another day at Lincoln and another fun story!
A few weeks ago, I told you about Mix It Up Day and meeting R randomly when she stopped by my table to sit and eat lunch with us. We had a great conversation and I told her about the bible study that we normally do at 2pm on Wednesdays. She normally has class at 2pm so last week, I asked her if she wanted to do a GIG with me, which is what we call our non-Christian bible studies. She agreed and we set up for yesterday @ 3pm after she got out of class.
Her big questions are about finding her calling in life. She wants to do something great but she also wants to make sure she isn't making the wrong decisions. I decided that we could spend time studying the life of Peter, from his calling, to his mistakes, to his redemption, to his leadership.
The first thing that I like to do when I start Bible studies with non-Christians is ask them how close they are to Jesus. I take an index card and draw an arrow across the center. A little bit to the right of center I put a cross, signifying the point where someone would consider themselves a Christian. I ask students to put themselves somewhere on the spectrum, then put the date at that spot. I tell them that my hope is that by the end of our bible study series, they will be closer to Jesus then before, even if they don't decide the follow Jesus.
I wanted to break the ice a little so I said, "of course, if you wanted, you could decide to become a Christian right now!" fully expecting to get a chuckle then moving on with the bible study. Instead, the response I got was, "is it really that easy?"
R's understanding was that first you needed to pray a prayer (true), then get baptized (there are disagreements as to how necessary this is), then get your life right (false) before you can call yourself a Christian. I was able to explain to her that it's actually the opposite; first Jesus makes us right, then we start to act right as a response to him changing our lives. I asked her again if she wanted to become a Christian today and she said yes!
We prayed together, then went through the Bible study. She really responded to the idea of God having a calling for her life that may be in line with the gifts she's already been given. It was a good day.
Please join me in praying for R. Pray that she will continue to grow in her faith and that she will grow in her sense of mission on campus.
Have an excellent day!
~Adam
Thursday, November 17, 2016
Thursday, November 10, 2016
A View of the Election from Lincoln...
Hello, friends!
For as long as I can remember, politics has been a passion of mine. I'm sure that Mama can confirm that at some point when I was little, I said I wanted to be President of the United States when I grew up. (NOTE: I will officially be eligible for that office in 2020. =0).) My degree is in Political Science, and before I signed on with InterVarsity, I had a job offer as a congressional aide in Missouri's first district, held by the honorable William "Lacy" Clay. Politics is part of my life-blood and this election season was no different. In fact, I actually spent my election day working as an election judge for Boone County, MO. I helped set up the polling place at 4:30am, worked until 7 checking in voters, and helped tear down the polling place and count the votes until 8:30pm that night.
Wednesday, to say the least, was unexpected and surreal. I have lots of thoughts about the election, about the candidates, and what Tuesday says about our country as a whole. I considered using this space to articulate those thoughts but decided instead to share about my day at Lincoln yesterday.
I normally go to Lincoln on Wednesdays, so this was nothing new. If I'm not out with a proxe station, I'm inside the cafeteria, talking to students and trying to insert Jesus into the conversation as much as possible. Lincoln is a historically Black University so I knew going into the cafeteria that there would be some processing that would need to happen. The following experiences really happened. I post them here because while we can argue politics and strategy all day long, we cannot argue with experiences. These are things that people are really feeling. You may disagree with their feelings but you cannot say they aren't real.
1) A Full Prayer Box. I normally put the prayer box outside the cafeteria every week I'm there. It's just a little brown box that says "FREE PRAYER" on it with some cards and a pen. Every week, I'll get between 8-12 cards. The requests range from the specific ("Please heal my mother's cancer") to the general ("LORD, help me") with all points in between. Most don't put their names and that's OK. Yesterday, when I went to go check on the prayer box, it was jammed packed, and more than one person wanted me to pray for our country.
2) "Is Trump the Anti-Christ?". When I got into the cafeteria, I went to fill up my water bottle and one of the food service workers (a middle-aged White woman), asked me what I thought of the election. When I told her that I was surprised, she asked me if I thought Trump was the Anti-Christ. I told her I didn't think so, but I could be wrong, but I hope I'm not.
3) The Alpha Comes to Talk. Alpha Phi Alpha is one of the fraternities on campus. As I was sitting with a student, eating lunch, one of the Alphas pulls up a chair right across from me, and says that he needs to talk about the election. We talk for about 20 minutes about his thoughts, fears, frustrations, and hopes moving forward.
4) Voting Your Values. When I'm at Lincoln, I usually connect with a local pastor who leads a church on campus. We have had great partnerships and one of the IV students attends his church. As we were eating lunch, he told me about the series he just finished at church about Voting Your Values. We had a great conversation with his students (who joined us around the table) about how neither party or platform aligns perfectly with what Jesus taught.
There are so many things that I can glean from a really rich and full day at Lincoln. This election rocked the campus in a profound way. I've NEVER had people come up to me before and want to talk. This election is what did that. I've NEVER had so many prayer requests. I've NEVER had such in depth conversations about politics. As I listened to these students, read their prayer requests, tried to help them process, and generally tried to figure out my own feelings, I kept coming back to this thought:
Politics isn't a game. It's real life. These students are really scared. They are really hurt. They legitimately don't feel like the rest of the country cares about them. They want to know how a man who can say the things that he has said and do the things that he is done, can be trusted to be "for them." I don't know how many people who voted for Trump had conversations with people of color about their vote but my guess is that many didn't. I believe that a few more conversations like the ones that I had at Lincoln may have changed a few minds. Maybe it wouldn't have done anything. I don't know.
Voting for Trump or for Clinton does not make you more or less of a Christian. Voters have their reasons and everyone has the right to vote. You make your decisions. My one request is this: if you voted for Trump and are now happy that we will be the next president, please think of Lincoln students before you fire off that Facebook status or tweet. Remember that politics isn't sports and people are legitimately dismayed and afraid. Remember that empathy is the only thing that will lead to a healing of the deep divisions in our country.
Have an excellent day!
~Adam
For as long as I can remember, politics has been a passion of mine. I'm sure that Mama can confirm that at some point when I was little, I said I wanted to be President of the United States when I grew up. (NOTE: I will officially be eligible for that office in 2020. =0).) My degree is in Political Science, and before I signed on with InterVarsity, I had a job offer as a congressional aide in Missouri's first district, held by the honorable William "Lacy" Clay. Politics is part of my life-blood and this election season was no different. In fact, I actually spent my election day working as an election judge for Boone County, MO. I helped set up the polling place at 4:30am, worked until 7 checking in voters, and helped tear down the polling place and count the votes until 8:30pm that night.
Wednesday, to say the least, was unexpected and surreal. I have lots of thoughts about the election, about the candidates, and what Tuesday says about our country as a whole. I considered using this space to articulate those thoughts but decided instead to share about my day at Lincoln yesterday.
I normally go to Lincoln on Wednesdays, so this was nothing new. If I'm not out with a proxe station, I'm inside the cafeteria, talking to students and trying to insert Jesus into the conversation as much as possible. Lincoln is a historically Black University so I knew going into the cafeteria that there would be some processing that would need to happen. The following experiences really happened. I post them here because while we can argue politics and strategy all day long, we cannot argue with experiences. These are things that people are really feeling. You may disagree with their feelings but you cannot say they aren't real.
1) A Full Prayer Box. I normally put the prayer box outside the cafeteria every week I'm there. It's just a little brown box that says "FREE PRAYER" on it with some cards and a pen. Every week, I'll get between 8-12 cards. The requests range from the specific ("Please heal my mother's cancer") to the general ("LORD, help me") with all points in between. Most don't put their names and that's OK. Yesterday, when I went to go check on the prayer box, it was jammed packed, and more than one person wanted me to pray for our country.
2) "Is Trump the Anti-Christ?". When I got into the cafeteria, I went to fill up my water bottle and one of the food service workers (a middle-aged White woman), asked me what I thought of the election. When I told her that I was surprised, she asked me if I thought Trump was the Anti-Christ. I told her I didn't think so, but I could be wrong, but I hope I'm not.
3) The Alpha Comes to Talk. Alpha Phi Alpha is one of the fraternities on campus. As I was sitting with a student, eating lunch, one of the Alphas pulls up a chair right across from me, and says that he needs to talk about the election. We talk for about 20 minutes about his thoughts, fears, frustrations, and hopes moving forward.
4) Voting Your Values. When I'm at Lincoln, I usually connect with a local pastor who leads a church on campus. We have had great partnerships and one of the IV students attends his church. As we were eating lunch, he told me about the series he just finished at church about Voting Your Values. We had a great conversation with his students (who joined us around the table) about how neither party or platform aligns perfectly with what Jesus taught.
There are so many things that I can glean from a really rich and full day at Lincoln. This election rocked the campus in a profound way. I've NEVER had people come up to me before and want to talk. This election is what did that. I've NEVER had so many prayer requests. I've NEVER had such in depth conversations about politics. As I listened to these students, read their prayer requests, tried to help them process, and generally tried to figure out my own feelings, I kept coming back to this thought:
Politics isn't a game. It's real life. These students are really scared. They are really hurt. They legitimately don't feel like the rest of the country cares about them. They want to know how a man who can say the things that he has said and do the things that he is done, can be trusted to be "for them." I don't know how many people who voted for Trump had conversations with people of color about their vote but my guess is that many didn't. I believe that a few more conversations like the ones that I had at Lincoln may have changed a few minds. Maybe it wouldn't have done anything. I don't know.
Voting for Trump or for Clinton does not make you more or less of a Christian. Voters have their reasons and everyone has the right to vote. You make your decisions. My one request is this: if you voted for Trump and are now happy that we will be the next president, please think of Lincoln students before you fire off that Facebook status or tweet. Remember that politics isn't sports and people are legitimately dismayed and afraid. Remember that empathy is the only thing that will lead to a healing of the deep divisions in our country.
Have an excellent day!
~Adam
Friday, November 4, 2016
The Week of MPD!!!
Hello, friends!
Ministry Partnership Development, or MPD in the IV circles, is in intregal part of the work that we do with InterVarsity. More than just fundraising, MPD is about builiding a team to rally around us through prayer, volunteering, advocacy, and giving, as we reach the campus with the Gospel. Without our partners (like you!) we wouldn't be able to do the work that we do. Thank you.
This week, our entire staff team in Missouri is going to be taking an "MPD Focus Week" going off campus for us to focus on developing our networks and building more partnerships for the ministry. We will be putting all of our campus work (meeting with students, leading bible studies, things like that) on hold so we can refocus and remember that MPD is important for our work too.
Friends, will you be praying for our team this week as we enter into this time? Please pray for a few things specifically:
- Pray for diligence as we work. MPD is one of those things that isn't really a ton of fun for most staff. It's easy to get distracted and want to do other things. It's easy to forget how important this work is. Pray that God will continue to direct us and guide us as we work.
- Pray for a constant reminder of God's presence. One of the biggest temptations when doing MPD is to get too high when good things happen and too low when bad things happen or nothing happens. We need to be constantly reminded of God's faithfulness and his presence regardless of our funding percentages, the number of phone calls we make, or how an appointment goes.
- Pray for God's provision. We know that God owns the cattle on a thousand hills. He holds the whole world in his hands and is our great provider. Would you please pray that as we take these risks and ask people to partner with us, that God will provide for us?
If you'd like to join our team, we would love to have you on board! Here's how:
- If you'd like to volunteer, advocate, or be part of our intentional prayer team, you can email us and we'd love to chat!
- If you'd like to partner financially with us, you can do that by clicking the link here.
Have an excellent day!
~Adam
Ministry Partnership Development, or MPD in the IV circles, is in intregal part of the work that we do with InterVarsity. More than just fundraising, MPD is about builiding a team to rally around us through prayer, volunteering, advocacy, and giving, as we reach the campus with the Gospel. Without our partners (like you!) we wouldn't be able to do the work that we do. Thank you.
This week, our entire staff team in Missouri is going to be taking an "MPD Focus Week" going off campus for us to focus on developing our networks and building more partnerships for the ministry. We will be putting all of our campus work (meeting with students, leading bible studies, things like that) on hold so we can refocus and remember that MPD is important for our work too.
Friends, will you be praying for our team this week as we enter into this time? Please pray for a few things specifically:
- Pray for diligence as we work. MPD is one of those things that isn't really a ton of fun for most staff. It's easy to get distracted and want to do other things. It's easy to forget how important this work is. Pray that God will continue to direct us and guide us as we work.
- Pray for a constant reminder of God's presence. One of the biggest temptations when doing MPD is to get too high when good things happen and too low when bad things happen or nothing happens. We need to be constantly reminded of God's faithfulness and his presence regardless of our funding percentages, the number of phone calls we make, or how an appointment goes.
- Pray for God's provision. We know that God owns the cattle on a thousand hills. He holds the whole world in his hands and is our great provider. Would you please pray that as we take these risks and ask people to partner with us, that God will provide for us?
If you'd like to join our team, we would love to have you on board! Here's how:
- If you'd like to volunteer, advocate, or be part of our intentional prayer team, you can email us and we'd love to chat!
- If you'd like to partner financially with us, you can do that by clicking the link here.
Have an excellent day!
~Adam
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