Universities Experience Spiritual Awakening
By Anne Kerhoulas
Editors Note: In light of the recent moves of the Spirit at Asbury University, Lee University, and Samford University, this article from the spring of 2022 is more relevant than ever.
“They say Aslan is on the move—perhaps he has already landed.”
And now a very curious thing happened. None of the children knew who Aslan was any more than you do; but the moment the Beaver had spoken these words everyone felt quite different....At the name of Aslan each one of the children felt something jump in its inside. Edmund felt a sensation of mysterious horror. Peter felt suddenly brave and adventurous. Susan felt as if some delicious smell or some delightful strain of music had just floated by her. And Lucy got the feeling you have when you wake up in the morning and realize that it is the beginning of the holidays or the beginning of summer. - C.S. Lewis, The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe
Cultivating the Heart
By Anne Kerhoulas
“How do we cultivate a heart in which God delights to dwell?”
This is the question Jon Tyson answers in this sermon series for the Church of the City. Tyson explores the principles behind revival and awakening throughout history and dives into how we can join the Lord in His work, pursuing His will and living in alignment with His desires.
“Look at the nations and watch—and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told” (Habakkuk 1:5).
Greetings in the Name of the Lord!
The word “revival” is in the air thanks to God’s faithful movement on the campuses of Asbury University and Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky. On February 8th, a chapel service—usually lasting an hour—continued beyond its regularly scheduled time. It kept on going past the hour, throughout the day, into the evening, into the next day, and the next. Remarkably, this worship service has continued ever since. I write this in its tenth day and the 2023 Asbury revival has spread to over 22 other college campuses. People are showing up from as far away as Singapore and New Zealand to fill Hughes Auditorium and overflow rooms. Videos from the revival are going viral on social media, and the story of what God is doing at Asbury is receiving coverage everywhere from Christianity Today to NBC and Fox News.
Repenting of the Sin of Partiality
By Chitra Kovoor, Ministry Fellow, CU Lux
Social psychologists say it takes a few seconds for people to determine whether they like a person or not. Rapid judgments are made on the basis of first impressions. Assumptions about personality and how successful one is can be based on a quick scan of what someone is wearing, their general appearance, accompanying accessories, and other clues indicating a person’s wealth, power, and social standing.
CU Nova Worship Team Goes Deep
By Cynthia Makachi
The end of the fall semester concluded an exciting season of learning and growth for CU Nova’s worship team. From joining the team as a freshman when activities were completely virtual in 2020 to becoming a co-team leader as Princeton’s campus transitioned back to normal, it has been an encouragement to see the team grow and thrive in new ways as it serves the CU Nova community. And I’m not alone—my co-leaders and members of the team agree: the worship team has been an invaluable part of their college experience.
Student Chapel Service Led to Four Days (And Counting) of Revival
By Anne Kerhoulas
Asbury University is no stranger to revival. The small school in Wilmington, Kentucky has seen eight notable moves of the Spirit since the early 1900s, with the longest in 1970 lasting over 144 hours.
CU Gloria Social Action Team Explores Environmentalism and the Gospel
By Anne Kerhoulas
What does climate change have to do with Jesus? For many people, the answer is nothing. But as environmental activism and climate policy become more central to the world stage, Christians are speaking into the conversation with a simple but profound truth: environmental stewardship is a call placed on every Christian.
Sunday Worship Is Just One Place We Experience Jesus
By Anne Kerhoulas
In Exodus 33, Moses speaks with God face to face in the tent of meeting. But in their conversation, Moses says that he needs God’s presence with him all the time. It is God’s presence that sets Israel apart. It is God’s presence that leads, guides, delivers, and provides for them. Moses is in the presence of God in the tent of meeting, but he needs the presence of God all the time.
A Cornerstone Partner Visits the Ministry at Brown
By Don Stahl
Ever wonder, “what is that ministry really like?”
As a Cornerstone Partner, I certainly knew something of what Christian Union seeks to do, and saw lots of evidence that it was genuinely touching the lives of the next generation of leaders. But in my experience working with over 100 non-profits and ministries throughout my career, I have found there is nothing like “showing up!”
So, by prior arrangement, I did. Am I glad I went!
Secular Authors Criticize Modern Sexual Ideology
By Anne Kerhoulas
Two recently released books by secular authors argue that the sexual revolution has not brought the sexual freedom and empowerment that it promised. Rather, it has created identity crises, rampant assault and abuse, the degradation of women through pornography, and the disintegration of marriage.
While Christians who believe in the biblical sexual ethic may not be surprised by these findings, it’s important that secular thinkers are beginning to re-evaluate what sex and sexuality are for and what it means to flourish in sexual relationships.
I'm Craig Holliday, the new Ministry Director at CU Lumine. It's a pleasure to introduce myself and provide you with our prayer requests for the current semester.
By God's grace, we have gotten off to a great start for the spring 2023 semester during this season of transition. The students have returned with a deeper desire to seek God for a revival on the campus and a harvest of new converts at Columbia University.
I’m Dr. Marcus Buckley, and as the new CU Vita Ministry Director, I first want to say thank you for your support of the great work God is doing on campus here at Cornell University. It is an honor and a privilege to be a part of this effort for the Kingdom, and I’m grateful that God has opened this door of opportunity. I have served as lead pastor for nearly 29 years, and I am truly excited for this new journey that the Lord has for my family and me. My wife, Lea Ann, is also on the CU Vita staff as the Administration/Ministry Associate, and we are genuinely excited to be here in Ithaca.
Greetings from CU Vox! As I watch the snow fall and praise God for his beautiful creation, I am reminded of Revelation 21:5, which says that “He who was seated on the throne said, ‘I am making everything new!’” In this spirit, our prayer request is simple: for divine newness and renewal as we finish the winter term, endure the finals, and look toward the spring.
Sad will be the day for every man when he becomes absolutely contented with the life that he is living, with the thoughts that he is thinking, with the deeds that he is doing, when there is not forever beating at the doors of his soul some great desire to do something larger, which he knows that he was meant and made to do because he is the child of God. - Phillips Brooks, Class of 1855, Harvard Overseer and Preacher
Greetings in Christ from CU Martus!
As stated in the previous letter, we conducted our winter retreat. I’m pleased to say that we had 40 students that attended a retreat where we discussed the Holy Spirit and the gospel. This was a time for students to live out our third goal of being steeped in Scripture and exercise the model we see in Acts 17:11 of examining the scriptures to investigate what was being discussed at the winter retreat. Students came away being challenged in their faith, spurred on to evaluate Scripture further, and also building life-long bonds with one another.
Click the full screen icon to view Christian Union's 2022 Annual Report in full-screen mode, or download a PDF version of the Annual Report here.
What Makes Christian Leadership Unique
By Chuck Hetzler, Ph.D.
But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” – Matthew 20:25-28
CU Alumna and Hamilton Cast Member Finds Identity in Christ
By Ashley LaLonde
Growing up in the heart of New York City, I often struggled to connect with other believers. Though my parents were both faithful Christians, and we attended church nearly every Sunday, almost all my close friends were people of other faiths or no faith at all. I often felt like the oddball. I loved Jesus and knew I had a relationship with him, but I would frequently downplay it with others just to fit in.
ChatGPT Just Transformed Education
By Anne Kerhoulas
Chat GPT arrived at the end of 2022, bringing with it a slew of problems—both ethical and practical—to the university setting. The AI program is capable of producing high-quality written content and is adept enough to imitate specific voices, styles of writing, and even well-known authors. This powerful tool is now posing an unprecedented threat to education, and educators from middle school to the university setting are scrambling to adjust to a new world.
Choosing To Forgive Rather Than Be Easily Offended
By Michael Racine, Writer and Ministry Fellow, CU Lux
Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense. – Proverbs 19:1
The biblical proverbs are so very practical. They don’t try to ennoble us with any Kantian notion of moral virtue detached from self-interest; rather, they tell us what wise, insightful people do to make things go better, and what ignorant fools do to make things worse. If we will only pay attention to these instructions and remember them, we won’t need a heroically self-sacrificial heart to put them into practice; we all naturally want to see life go more smoothly.
