Cornell University
June 7, 2020

Christian Union Vita (Cornell University) enjoyed connecting with alumni at 2:00 PM EST for a virtual reunion. Christian Union Vita invited participants from all classes, all denominations, and all Christian ministries to this annual event.
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For questions about how to get involved as an alumni or Christian Union Vita on campus, contact Christian Union's VP of Alumni Engagement Christine Foster: christine.foster@christianunion.org.
We have begun our second semester at Cornell as students have come back from winter break. After a period of transition, we now have a new director on our staff. Greg Ray has come from Madrid, Spain, where he was doing missionary work to lead our team. As we move into this new stage, we look forward to seeing how God is going to work through the team on this campus.
It is hard to believe how much of this semester has gone by already. We have had a very productive year so far, as our new ministry team has settled into their positions. Bible courses are going very well, and we have had far more freshmen men involved this year than in previous classes, which has been an immense blessing for our ministry. As students get busier leading up to finals, we pray that they would stay focused and continue to be involved in Bible courses even as it becomes more difficult with time constraints.
It has been a busy month here at Cornell, as we have been welcoming this year’s freshmen and transfer students. We have also been reconnecting with all those who have returned to Ithaca after the summer. Throughout this Freshmen Welcoming season, we have done a number of events, led by our students, to reach out to those who are looking to be connected to Christian community. We just started our Bible courses, as well as large group meetings, and we all look forward to what God will do this semester on campus.
As the summer has progressed, we have been hard at work preparing for the Fall semester. We are planning events for Freshmen Campaign, and have been meeting with our Exec team through Skype, about our teams and retreats at the beginning of the academic year. Along with this, there have been a lot of transition for us here. Geoff Sackett has moved onto other ministry opportunities, and I am now filling his position as we look for a new Ministry Director. We have also hired two new women’s ministry fellows: Liz Thomforde and Lisa Cooper.
We have come to the end of our Spring semester, and our students have mostly departed from campus. Seniors graduated and are preparing for new jobs and graduate school. Underclassmen are at summer internships, jobs, or are remaining on campus for various research projects. The summer is a time to prepare for the next year and is hopefully a time of rest for our students.
We are coming up on the end of our Spring semester here at Cornell, and there are several important things which are happening in the last weeks of the school year. The seniors are getting ready for their next stage of life, and others are getting into serious study mode as they prepare for finals. We are also preparing for our Grill Me for Grilled Cheese outreach event, as well as our Senior Banquet.
- This semester, we have been doing a Mocha Mondays coffee giveaway. At this point, we have established a regular presence on campus giving away coffee, hot chocolate, and tea. Pray that this would lead to relationships and a chance to present the gospel.
- We had a showing of the documentary Liberated: A New Sexual Revolution, with a panel following that including students and staff discussing the dangers of the hook-up culture. Pray that the fruit of this would continue to show itself as students think through these important topics.
- The new Bible course with men in Greek life has been consistently going well and has led to some very fruitful discussions. Pray for the continued growth of students in their spiritual lives as we continue to disciple them.
- There are a number of events that need to come together for the end of the semester. Pray for student volunteers, especially as they try to navigate their busy schedules.
Ministry Director
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.
About a month into this semester, Bible courses, Vita, and prayer groups are meeting regularly, and are continuing to be a source of encouragement for our students as they seek God. Our outreach team began a new activity this semester which we have called “Mocha Mondays,” in which we hand out free coffee and hot chocolate at one of the libraries on campus. Along with this, we are also offering free books and mugs. We also have plans to show a documentary on campus about the dangers of the hookup culture, which is so common among college students. The goal is to promote a conversation about sexuality and God’s design for us as men and women.
Our students were gone for the past month over Christmas break, and classes have just reconvened. Some Bible courses started last week, but most are about to begin as we teach both the book of Acts and Seeking God to our students. As a staff we have begun meeting with students since they have come back from break and have been planning for our Bible courses this semester. Our large group meeting is going to begin next week. At the end of the first week of classes, we kicked off our semester with a dinner and game night. Many students came and showed a lot of enthusiasm for the events coming up within the next couple of months.
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