All
Your Gift by June 30 Will Share Gospel and Change Lives
Please consider a special gift to Christian Union by June 30 to support the next Freshman Campaign. The Class of 2023 will be here before we know it!The ministry will connect with freshmen before they even set foot on campus to welcome and warmly invite them into biblical studies, Christian community, and spiritual and leadership growth.
Your gift helps set lives on a new course!
Greetings from a Christian Union Parent
Aloha from Hawaii!My daughter, Sara Kay, is home for the summer from Dartmouth. I am amazed at her growth and maturity in her walk with Christ.
Tucker Else
Christian Union Ministry Director
University of pennsylvania
In Genesis 22, we are given a story about a dad and his son. The patriarch Abraham, the father of the Jewish nation, is commanded by God to sacrifice his son, Isaac.
As a dad myself, it is a hard story to read. “Take your son, your only son, whom you love…”
Why would God ask such a thing, particularly of this “Son of the promise” through whom the nation of Israel would come to be? After so many years waiting for him, why would Abraham be put through such a test?
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will counsel you with my eye upon you.
— Psalm 32:8
Tucker Else
Christian Union Ministry Director
University of pennsylvania
One of the most popular games of the 1980s was Trivial Pursuit, a trivia game that people found either wildly entertaining or inexpressibly dull. My family would often gather around the table and play — yes, we did have occasional Normal Rockwell moments — and while my Mom would be hoping for Entertainment or Literature categories to come up, my brothers and I would bank on Sports, and little else.
The questions were sometimes manageable, but oftentimes nearly impossible: “What was the name of the Douglas family’s dog on My Three Sons?” Which would inevitably be answered with “Chip,” as he was really the only Son (let alone dog) that could be remembered from the show.
What was always most vexing to me were the Sports questions that had absolutely nothing to do with sports: “What do Las Vegas blackjack dealers stand on?” First of all, who cares?
Q and A with Lisa Schultz
Lisa Schultz is the Chief of Staff for United States Senate Chaplain Barry C. Black. She directs all of Chaplain Black’s programs and outreach to Senators, their families, and hundreds of Senate staff. Schultz has spent 15 years overseeing Capitol Hill-focused ministries, first as Director of Outreach for the D. James Kennedy Center for Christian Statesmanship and the last 11 years for the Senate Chaplain. Prior to her time serving on Capitol Hill, she lived as a missionary in Schladming, Austria, for seven years under the umbrella of Torchbearers International.
At Christian Union’s Nexus Student Conference in February, Schultz was a member of the law and government panel during the vocational breakout sessions.
The Great Experiment in the Big Apple
by whit hazelton
On Thursday, March 7, a small group of Christians took on a “Joshua Faith Challenge” that would stretch their faith and inject new energy into their walk with Jesus. As part of The Great Experiment, a ten-day spiritual challenge to seek God for revival, participants were asked to pray and ask God to show them something they could do to put their faith into works. It was to be something specific, concrete, bold, and out of the ordinary—something that would require courageous faith in God (Joshua 1:8, 9). In response to the challenge, a number of the five thousand Great Experiment participants came up with creative evangelism plans for their faith challenge.
For his Joshua Faith Challenge, Christian Union Founder and CEO Matt Bennett met up with six friends to take the Gospel to the New York City subway! Asking for prayer in advance of the big day, Matt wrote: “I’ve never done such a thing and am a little nervous, but also excited to see what God will do!”
Susan Stover and Arthur Stella
He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness.
- 2 Corinthians 9:10
Early in Susan Stover’s life, her parents, Bob and Joan Stover, sowed the seeds of generosity. “My parents’ faith journey had a tremendous impact on me,” Susan noted.
“My father became a Christian as a young man after serving in the Navy during World War II. His life reflected his personal belief that he needed to use his talents and resources in the Lord’s service.” After the war, Bob Stover began a temporary employment agency in San Francisco.
Seniors Show Appreciation for Christian Union at Dinner
by tom campisi, managing editor
In April, students with Christian Union at Columbia hosted a senior dinner at the organization’s new ministry center. It was a sweet time of reflection, prayer, and even a few tears, as seniors looked back with gratitude on four years of spiritual growth and Christian community.
“Student after student commented on how the ministry has made a difference in their lives and how they have made lifelong friends,” said Yolanda Solomon, a Christian Union ministry fellow at Columbia. “They talked about connecting and staying in touch and how they will miss Christian Union.”
Harvard Law, Kennedy School Students Study Nehemiah
by catherine elvy, staff writer
The account of Nehemiah offers timeless lessons in spiritual and practical leadership. God raised up the Jewish official for a strategic mission, pointing to the role of providence in the form of human managers.
Those were some of the themes that emerged during a recent series from Christian Union’s ministry at Harvard Law School. During the spring term, the ministry offered an in-depth study on the book of Nehemiah to students from Harvard Law School (HLS) and the John F. Kennedy School of Government. “These young adults are in a position to become our leaders in the next generation,” said Justin Yim, Christian Union’s ministry director at Harvard Law School.
