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Christian Union: The Magazine
March 25, 2020
Christian Union's Response to COVID-19; Return to God in Disaster; 8 Works of Fiction Every Christian Should Read; Blessed To Be a Blessing; 9 Ways to Love Your Neighbor in this Pandemic; Admit it: Control, Certainty and COVID-19 and more, in this issue of Christian Union's bi-monthly email brief.
 
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Return to the Lord your God,
for he is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love;
and he relents over disaster.
— Joel 2:13

 

Christian Union's Response to COVID-19

By Matt Bennett
From Christian Union Day & Night
01 mattChristian Union founder and CEO Matt Bennett calls believers across America to consider joining him in a 40 day fast, drawing near to God in the midst of this national and global pandemic. Whether you fast for one meal per day, multiple meals per day, or on some other schedule, please join more than 4,500 others who have already signed up to seek God together during our national (and global) crisis. If you sign up, you will receive a new devotional, delivered via email, every day during the fast.

Learn more about the fast or watch the message from Matt Bennett now >

Read an update from Matt on COVID-19 and Christian Union >
 

Return to God in Disaster

By Jill Constantinou
From Christian Union Day & Night
The following is a devotional from the 40 day fast mentioned above.


The situation seems impossible. The effects would be immediately felt by the people of the region and the consequences would be far-reaching. There was no escaping, and no way to hide from the devastating results. This is not referring to the spread of COVID-19 in 2020, but instead to the Jewish people living in the Persian Empire circa 450 B.C. A legal decree went out stating that the Jewish people would be destroyed and their homes plundered. How could they be saved?

 

8 Works of Fiction Every Christian Should Read

By Karen Swallow Prior
From The Gospel Coalition
03 musicSome Christians find it hard to justify reading fiction. If we invest precious time in reading books, shouldn’t we read non-fiction books on leadership, ministry, theology, apologetics, or cultural trends? Fiction can feel superfluous.

But human beings are creatures immersed in stories. From the stories we share in the office or around the dinner table, to the testimonies we share about our salvation or God’s work in the world through the gospel (the “good story”), our lives find their form...

Read More >
  

Blessed To Be a Blessing

By Tom Campisi
From Christian Union: The Magazine
For Jade Thompson, co-directing a Text-4-Toasties outreach for Christian Union at Columbia this fall was just one of the many ways she has been challenged to grow as a leader. Thompson, an Economics and Sustainability major from Westchester, New York, called her involvement with Lumine, Christian Union’s ministry at Columbia, “the best part of my college experience.”

Read More >
  

9 Ways to Love Your Neighbor in this Pandemic

By Justin Whitmel Earley
From Gospel Coalition

05 coronavirusOn August 17, 2017, cars packed the interstates surrounding Houston as people scrambled to evacuate. Hurricane Harvey was headed in, and millions were headed out. The next morning, a picture went viral. It was a line of trucks pulling boats. These vehicles also crawled, bumper to bumper on the interstate, but what the internet slowly realized was that these trucks weren’t headed out—they were heading in...

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Admit it: Control, Certainty and COVID-19

By Ana Yee
A Christian Union student leader's take on the coronavirus and the perspective gained in these days of uncertainty.

It was just two weeks ago that I got home from a busy day of class and meetings– to my roommate cancelling a huge conference she had planned for months because of the spreading coronavirus. That was the first big cancellation that made the illness feel like a more immediate threat. It was also what made me realize that my long-awaited summer plans– to go back to Ethiopia– might be compromised...

Read More > 


Prayer Requests


UNIVERSITY AND CITY MINISTRIES
Please pray as Christian Union ministry fellows have had to transition much of their ministry from events and in-person meetings to Zoom meetings and phone calls. Bible courses, evangelism, discipleship, and mentoring are still happening, but in this new context. Much of this is logistical, but the on-going resourcing and equipping of students and professionals involved in our ministry is more critical than ever. Christian Union is trusting God to still work powerfully during this time by changing hearts and drawing believers into a deeper relationship with Him.

DAY & NIGHT

As mentioned above, Day & Night began 40 days of prayer, fasting, and repentance on March 18, 2020. Praise God for an immediate and significant response by believers across America. Pray that thousands more will join in seeking God for His mercy at this critical time in our nation and the world. Pray that Christians will respond in faith and repentance, and that God will bring a Christian awakening and revival to our needy and sinful society.

Talk Back

We would love to hear your thoughts and feedback about this newsletter or about any of the articles above. Please use this Contact Us form to share your thoughts >