Prayer and Thanksgiving to God with students

One of my great joys this semester has been being a part of a prayer movement God is doing in students lives in CU IV. One of the CU IV students began the movement of prayer by simply suggesting we meet for coffee and prayer one Wednesday morning to support and see some friends working at a coffee shop on campus.

Out of that small start in prayer, we have started meeting every Wednesday morning for prayer and coffee. I have been able to encourage and help plan the prayers through scripture and other ways as the Spirit led. Every week it seems we invite more friends in CU IV and they join us. We come closer to God and each of our days is better for having started in prayer.

Today CU is on break for Thanksgiving, but some students are staying in Boulder for different reasons. So we met this Monday morning at 10 am for prayer while Kim was working the front desk in the dorm she works as an RA. That way she could work and we could be together and pray.

Aris (a student leader who I lead bible study with) led us through Luke 17:11-19 about the 10 lepers healed and the one that returned to Jesus to praise God and give thanks. Then we shared what we are Thankful to God for and praised him! Here are some of the things we are thankful for: 
(Nozomi - who is not a Christian, Megan, Grace, Aris, Kim and I all met together to pray)

God We are thankful for:
Repentance and forgiveness.
Opportunity to share Gods love and experience it at the same time.
Opportunity to Come back to God after falling out.
Healing
Health
God providing ways to pay for college.

Thank You God!
Amen

God Loves me (and you): So come to him

My repentance before God led me to this sweet reminder:

Even if my ministry were to fail entirely.

God would still Love me.

Because I believe in Jesus that he lived, died and rose again.

I gave this to God because I have recognized my sin of seeking righteousness in the success of my ministry outside of Christ’s righteousness.

My heart says:

But I don’t deserve to be loved.

God said back to me:

No you don’t, but I love you anyways 

. . . 

and I forgive you and receive you as my son adopted into my family and inheritor of my glory and eternal life 

. . .

because of my Son Jesus

Have Peace my son

Fall Conference 2012

This year at InterVarsity Fall Conference God showed up!

Fall Conference is a retreat in the mountains for college students from all over the area including 6 campuses (University of Colorado Boulder, Auraria, School of Mines, University of Northern Colorado, Colorado State and the newest group Red Rocks Community College).

200 students gathered to experience community and hear God's words from our speaker and InterVarsity student and staff Alumni Don Everts an author and pastor.

Many of the students were not Christians and some had never heard the gospel until this weekend.

We were led in music and worship by our multiethnic worship team of students and staff as we sang to praise God in English, Spanish and Korean.

4 students from CU accepted Jesus for the first time.

49 CU students making the buff sign and symbolizing our community of CU IV!

The room was full of energy and the Spirit of God in worship, teaching, and community in Christ. 

Prayers for future November 2012

Prayers:

Praise be to God for:

• Movement of Holy Spirit in InterVarsity
• Students taking risks in faith
• New Brother and Sisters in Christ’s family
• Church and 20 and 30's community for Daniel. 

Petitions:

•  Growth of prayer movement in CU IV
•  Raising up new student leaders
•  Students who leave in December accept Jesus in their heart 
• Nozomi a Japanese International student who is very involved and coming to know more about Jesus.
• Jake an american student who went to a christian highschool but never accepted Jesus in his heart.
• For Daniel growing in discipline in personal life and leadership
• Multiethnic reconciliation and reaching new groups of students.

Jerry and his story

This is a short summary of my friend Jerry, a freshman at CU who is also a chinese international student

On October 13, 2012 my friend Jerry became our brother in Christ.

                   Jerry on the right, Aris and I cooking in my apartment for a small group dinner

August 27 2012 Jerry and I met as my friend Stephen Gelhaus and I had evangelistic outreach conversations to see what CU students thought about identity and how God can help them find their true identity. Jerry through a language barrier was very interested in coming to know more about this God that he had not really hear of home in China.

So Jerry started coming to my small group, biking across campus every week. As a physics test came up I asked if I could pray for him and his studying, he said yes. The next week I asked him how it went and he said he got a 100%, wow he is smart! But also praise God for also being present with Jerry even in studying. We can glorify God in our studies and jobs! God cares about it all. And I believe God answered this prayer for my friend amazingly!

One week we met and he asked me questions about right and wrong and God. I gave him a bible and told him he can pray to God in heaven. I taught him he can pray in his native language and he can say anything to God and he listens to him.

I was afraid to ask him to come to too many InterVarsity events. But I gave my first Large Group talk/sermon and invited him. He came and supported me. That night I spoke on Luke 10:1-11 about how we can bring the Kingdom of God near. Afterwards I asked him about my talk and this idea of kingdom and how to understand it from his culture. I asked him if he wanted to be a part of God's kingdom. He quietly said yes, but was not ready to ask for it right then. I put off this big invitation to accept Jesus. Our big conference was coming up. I was afraid to ask him because I knew he worked weekends at a dining hall on campus. But my coleader Aris was on top of it and got him to come. So Jerry got his friend Wenyi to first come to bible study then work his shift so Jerry could come to Fall Conference!

Then at Fall Conference: 
During free time Saturday at 2:30
I just walked and asked that god take me to who he would have me talk toI found jerry as he was playing Starcraft 2 so we bonded.Then two other students Ray and Moon came so I played banana grams with them.I asked Jerry to join us and as we started he did.
Then the other students left and I asked Jerry about Jesus and what he was learning. I felt that he wanted Jesus! So we studied Acts 8 about Philip and the Ehtiopian. We talked about accepting Jesus and recieving the Holy Spirit in Baptism and how baptism of water is a testimony to others of our faith. 
I asked him if he was ready to accept Jesus. He said yes. I asked him to pray and tell God.He prayed in ChineseI felt the Holy Spirit inside of meI asked Jerry what he feltHe said I just feel HolyWe didn't even know what to do nextWe praised God in prayer room


Now I have seen with my own eyes the kingdom of God come near. I have been a part of God's movement in Jerry's life. Together as my supporters in prayer and financially we get to be a part of God's work in students lives at CU! Let us rejoice with God in heaven! Amen

Happy Halloween! Pumpkin Carving with International students

Happy Halloween! This day and the traditions may be normal for you. But in InterVarsity we have the joy of having many international students who have never celebrated Halloween. They have never carved a pumpkin or worn a costume. It is amazing how something so simple could bring so much joy. I am blessed to be a part of this community where peoples of many nations, ethnicities and languages can have fun and follow Jesus together. For my Intern teammate Ivannas birthday we carved pumpkins. Kelly and Yvette who accepted Jesus and received the Holy Spirit for the first time at Fall Conference have begun going to Ivanna's small group and are eager to know Jesus and the bible more! They have been bringing their friends because they want them to know Jesus also!

From top left to bottom right: Tom, Yvette, Coco, Kelly

Darley Small Group: Bible Study group at CU IV

Daniel, Jing, Aris, Grace: Core members of Darley Bible Study Small Group in CU IV

We started small, but we are growing and we are praying and working to impact the whole dorm with our community and Jesus! Each week we have had new people attend. Several students who do not follow Christ or have never read the bible have attended. We have had great discussion and missional activities. We  started handing out cookies and throwing game nights in the dorm to bless people and build more community. Our prayer is that we would be transformed as we renew this dorm and the people around us. Last night we went on a prayer walk and asked people in the dorm who may never come to bible study what we could pray for them for.