June 2018

Dear Friends and Partners of Christian Union at Penn,

Praise God from whom all blessings flow! Another academic year at the University of Pennsylvania is complete, and our ministry was blessed to see our 2nd graduating class of CU at Penn. To celebrate, we enjoyed a pre-graduation ceremony retreat to the Jersey Shore with 10 of our grads in May. It is bittersweet to see them go: some to New York City, some to graduate school and one to the mission field. We will miss them.

The end of May and the beginning of June is a great time for the Christian Union (CU) staff to regroup, review the year, and enjoy nights at home rather than on campus. We are grateful for your prayers throughout the year, sustaining us in the joyful labors of the Gospel at Penn. We are grateful for your continued prayers for rest and refreshment as our team heads out on vacation and a season of professional development. Please pray for Ministry Fellow Kelly Schaaf. After leading a CU student trip to Uganda, she is currently at l’Abri in Switzerland, growing in philosophical apologetics while enjoying community at the famed Francis Schaeffer retreat.

Please pray for Ministry Fellow Fuji Kim as his family prepares to go to California to visit extended family. While in California, Fuji will have a week of retreat at a Bible Camp to read, fast, and pray. Pray that his time there would be refreshing, and that God would speak to Fuji through His word and in the stillness of the California woods. Pray for Lisa and the boys (Ezra, 5, and Asher, 3) as they visit Lisa’s family and enjoy the fellowship of an extended family who is faithful to Christ and His Church. Pray that the boys would continue to grow in stature, strength, wisdom and faith.

For our Administrative Assistant, Mae Trieu, please pray for her time with her children (ages 4, 6, and 9), that it would be a time of growth and learning for them throughout the summer.

Please pray for me and my family as we look forward to my brother and his family’s visit to Philadelphia. We are so much looking forward to spending time with the “Iowa” Else’s.

Throughout the summer, our staff is leading a discussion of Tim Keller’s Prodigal God. Please pray that our students would grow in their love for Jesus and their wonder at the grace of God the Father. Pray that the Spirit would grip their hearts, and that Jesus would be glorified like never before this summer. I am also taking part in a Collegium Institute book study on John Milton’s Paradise Lost. Please pray that there would be ample opportunities to take those discussions into the direction of personal application of the Gospel – rather than the discussions merely being an academic exercise. There are a number of non-believers who are taking part. Pray that new life would be given by God’s sovereign Spirit!

Finally, please pray for our students who have returned from Uganda and Israel. Both of those CU-sponsored trips had a number of Penn students participating. Pray that the experiences they had, the fellowship they enjoyed, and the knowledge they gained would have a life-altering impact as they come back home. Pray that the things they have learned would be leveraged for the sake of the Gospel as they share about their experiences with others.

Finally, please pray for fresh vision for this coming fall. Even now as we plan, we are trusting in God’s power to bring divine appointments, to scatter the seed of the Gospel, and to see much fruit born. Thank you for your prayers!

In Christ our King,

Tucker Else
Ministry Director
Christian Union at Penn