Columbia University
Another semester at Columbia is coming to a close. As we reflect on all that has happened this semester, we are in awe of God’s goodness toward us. We thank God for an enthusiastic freshman class, fruitful times of ministry and a new ministry center that will serve our community well. Although we are sad to see our seniors go, we are confident that we have prepared them for Christian leadership in whatever vocation they find themselves in.
Christian Union at Columbia continues to see God’s goodness to our ministry. As you may already know, Christian Union was working tirelessly to acquire a ministry center for Columbia. As of February 13, that purchase was completed, and we will be using the center next semester. We could not be more thankful to each of you for your prayers and sacrificial giving. Our desire is to use this space as a hub for gospel engagement with Columbia University. Please pray that many students would be encouraged in their faith and come to know Jesus through the work that will be done there.
Greetings,
We’ve seen God work wondrously here at Columbia; we have so much to be thankful for. Both the staff and the students are excited about the acquisition of a new ministry center one block away from campus. Our biggest need as a ministry at Columbia is space, and God has made provision for that need in a significant way. A heartfelt thanks to everyone who supported the effort through prayer and financial giving. An incalculable number of lives will be blessed through this ministry center because of your support.
Greetings,
Christian Union at Columbia continues to experience God’s grace as we minister to the students on campus. We recently wrapped up a successful Freshman Campaign, in which we attained all our goals for the new freshman class. These students are enthusiastic new members of our family here at Columbia. We also had an impactful Fall Conference. For the conference, the staff chose to focus on the topic of wisdom, giving a series of talks from the book of Proverbs. Feedback from those in attendance was that it was one of our best Fall conferences yet. The students loved the talks we gave, and we were privileged to see one Freshman give her life to Christ during student prayer after one of the main sessions. We were also told that the conference was successful at causing friendships to form among students who usually don’t have much interaction with each other.
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Christian Union Lumine Enjoys Close-to-Campus Space
On October 13, 2018, ministry faculty, staff, and financial partners celebrated the debut of the Columbia Ministry Center with a dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony. The celebration came after the purchase of the facility in February.
Properties near Columbia are challenging to secure as the university owns much of the surrounding neighborhood. Given the competitive nature of Manhattan’s real estate market, Christian Union leadership lionized the extraordinary acquisition, just a block from Columbia University’s massive Butler Library.
Since then, the ideally located space has functioned as a hub for Bible courses, discipleship, and meetings, providing a secure, cozy hangout for students.
The center is a visible sign that God is alive and working in the heart of NYC!
The map above illustrates the rarity of finding a property adjacent to Columbia that is not already owned by the University.
“This new Ministry Center, located so unbelievably close to campus, will bless generations of students, faculty, and administrators. The precious word of God will go forth from the Center, powerfully transforming this great university and our nation.” -- Former Columbia Ministry Director Lane Young
Pictured to the left is the Christian Union ministry team at Columbia, joyfully holding up the keys to the newly aquired property. The address is: 529 West 113th Street, just one block from Columbia University’s Butler Library.
The building is comprised of a basement and five floors, divided into three units. Christian Union will be using the first unit: the basement and the first floor.
The unit provides much needed room for Bible courses, prayer meetings, freshman outreach dinners, social events, and faculty preparation.
An Extraordinary Outpouring of Support
In October 2017, Christian Union urgently needed to raise a considerable sum to move forward with the purchase of a Christian Union Ministry Center at Columbia University. The Lord moved the hearts of 220 ministry partners to give a total of $503K for the Ministry Center, $11K more than was needed to move forward with the seller.Heartfelt thanks go out to all who gave in response to the ministry’s urgent request for help. The generosity shown by so many is deeply encouraging and will make a difference for generations to come at Columbia.
All praise goes to our wonderful God, a gracious provider, for this outcome.
A Ministry Center is a game changer for sharing the Gospel at Columbia. The challenge of meeting and office space has been acute for Christian Union’s team already working with more than 200 students at Columbia. This is an enormous provision.
Columbia Ministry Team Explains the Need (1:18)
Additional Gifts Move the Ministry Forward
In the near term, the ministry will rent units 2 and 3 to offset the mortgage. Christian Union plans to use the whole building in the future; the project requires another $3 million of investments from God’s people. You can support this effort here.Naming Opportunities are Available
Christian Union offers naming rights to the building and key rooms in the center.Gifts of Appreciated Securities Make a Difference
Gifts of appreciated securities can be made toward this campaign. Please contact the ministry by calling (609) 688-1700 Option 2 to alert us to the gift, so that it is counted toward the total today. Learn more here.Christian Union Ministry at Columbia
Christian Union's ministry at Columbia is engaging nearly 200 students, an extraordinary number for this secular institution. Meeting space has been exceedingly difficult to come by at Columbia. Christian Union urgently needed room to minister to students and office its faculty.Christian Union ministry fellows open their homes to students, but these are small spaces. It is not uncommon for the Columbia ministry director and his family to host an outreach in their very small apartment that is attended by more than 100 students over the course of the evening.
Additionally, a ministry center establishes a permanent Christian presence at Columbia. Crucially, in a time when Christian ministries can face discrimination on campus, ministry centers reduce Christian Union’s dependency on the universities’ administrations for securing space.
Please give generously to see God glorified at and through Columbia.To Learn More
If you would like to learn more about making a strategic impact through a ministry center at Columbia, contact Dave Magnuson: David.Magnuson@christianunion.org.Greetings,
By God’s grace, we have just completed another semester here at Columbia. While it was a difficult year in some ways, it was still a fruitful time of ministry. A few days before the writing of this newsletter, Columbia had its graduation ceremony. We were able to greet and celebrate with many of our graduating seniors’ parents, and prayerfully sendoff seniors out into the brave new world of adulthood.
Dear friends,
All praise is due to our faithful God who continues to bestow grace and favor on us as we do his work at Columbia University. Our staff continues the work of discipleship even amid various challenges, and we are seeing students grow in their commitment to follow Christ as we remain committed to them.
Greetings,
We continue to see God’s grace in our ministry as we disciple students. One example of this is our winter conference which took place Jan. 20-22 at Spruce Lake. We were privileged to see students make strides in their walk with God. During one of our small group prayer times at the retreat, one young lady, who suffers from social anxiety and had never prayed before was taught by another student to pray. After she prayed for the first time, she was overwhelmed with joy and expressed interest to continue meeting with students to practice seeking God together.
Since 2011 CU Lumine has worked to bring spiritual transformation and renewal to campus by seeking the Lord, growing in knowledge and love of His Word, and thoughtfully engaging Columbia with the gospel. The high-caliber ministry faculty at CU Lumine teach intellectually rigorous Bible courses, disciple students one-on-one, and coach students to develop as Christian leaders.
CU Lumine also offers conferences and retreats each semester and a weekly leadership lecture series called Illumina, which features great worship, talks from compelling speakers, and space for students to grow together in fellowship.
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