April 2018

Dear Praying Friends

As I write this it is 70 degrees and sunny here in Ithaca, a warm welcome from winter’s long shadow.

Two weeks ago we continued our monthly tradition of giving out free coffee at bustling Mann Library. It is amazing to see the interest students have in our fellowship considering we are nearing the end of the academic year. But no matter the time of the year, by God’s grace people are interested in Him. Our students extended a lot of kindness and good conversation and coffee to passersby. Listen to what one freshman who stopped by our table said: “Just this morning I said to my roommate, ‘I need to reconnect with God’, and here you guys are!” Lots of other undergrads also stopped by to ask how they could be a part of our group. This is exciting, but it also means we need to pray because busyness can crowd out even the best of intentions.

Our freshmen male and female only Bible Courses recently finished a five-week study of the bible’s teaching on dating and relationships and decided to cap off the study by meeting together, to discuss together, scripture’s wisdom. It was a great evening of hearing from a couple of older, married Christian couples who shared their experiences with the group.

Christians from across the campus committed to 40 days of prayer during March and April. One of our sophomores, Adrienne, commented on the impact of gathering daily for prayer: “I now see just how important prayer is. I’ve always known it is important but being with a large group of other Christians on campus every evening in prayer has shown me the power and intimacy of prayer in a new way.”

Our freshmen girls gathered for a tea at our Mott Ministry Center this past weekend hosted by ministry fellow Carrie Jussely, ministry assistant Liz Thomforde, and intern Hannah Dorpfield. Said one freshman, “I have never had Christian fellowship like I have here with Christian Union. The depth of friendships and the importance of God’s Word to the life of this community have been such a blessing to my walk with the Lord.”

On a separate occasion a freshman male commented to me: “I have grown so much in the Lord because of the Christ-centered friendships I have in this fellowship. I was very nervous my first few weeks setting foot on campus, but the Lord has given me increased confidence in Him which is due in no small part to the wonderful friends I have made in Christian Union.” The importance of Christian community grounded in the Word of God has been a recurring theme for our freshmen. We give thanks to God for His provision.

In about four weeks students will be departing campus. Until then our Bible Courses and large group meetings (Vita Fidei) continue, so we ask that you pray that new people would continue to join our ranks. On that note, at our last Vita Fidei, a handful of new people came, which is an answer to prayer. So, thanks very much for praying! We have two more Vitas left, so please keep praying. We also have a few more outreach events in the making – Grill Me For Grilled Cheese on May 11 and a free lemonade and iced coffee giveaway on May 14 - so we ask that you would pray for solid execution and that Christ’s name would be held high.

Thanks again for your prayers and for your heart for our ministry here at Cornell.

Take care,

Geoff Sackett
Ministry Fellow
Christian Union at Cornell 

Please note: if you would like to receive regular updates on how to pray for Christian Union's work at Cornell, please email prayer@christianunion.org.