The Power to Shake a Nation: Exploring the Power of Fasting; Solitude as Art; Free Speech Prevails at Princeton; Union with Christ with Sam Allberry; Q & A with Dr. Timothy Flanigan: Infectious Disease Specialist Talks COVID-19, Students, and Spiritual Warfare; I Was a New-Age Healer. Then I Realized I Wasn’t the One Doing the Healing and more, in this issue of Christian Union’s bi-monthly email brief.
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and , though the mountains tremble at its swelling.
— Psalm 46:1-3
The Power to Shake a Nation: Exploring the Power of Fasting
From Christian Union
In CU New York’s most recent forum, CEO and Founder of Christian Union, Matt Bennett, presented a biblical view of fasting, speaking to its relevance and power throughout history and testifying to many powerful ways in which he has witnessed God moving in response to fasting. He offered practical examples of how Christians and church communities can apply fasting to their walks with the Lord.
Solitude as Art
By James K.A. Smith
From Image Journal
“And yet isn’t solitude necessary for creation? Is this strange situation an opportunity to reconsider something about art-making?”
Philosopher-theologian James K.A. Smith explores the role of solitude in creative activity and how this pandemic may be an opportunity to discover new creative power.
Free Speech Prevails at Princeton
By Robert P. George
From First Things
Here are two important, and related, questions: Can we debate issues pertaining to race while honoring principles such as freedom of thought and expression that are essential to the maintenance of a democratic republic? Will our intense disagreements over such things as monuments and defunding the police destroy what Lincoln called “the bonds of affection” that enable us to recognize one another as fellow citizens—not mortal enemies—despite our differences?
Union with Christ with Sam Allberry
By Sam Allberry and The Village Church staff
From The Village Church
Pastor and author Sam Allberry discusses the life changing theological concept of union with Christ on The Village Church podcast. Allberry argues that understanding union with Christ is foundational to the Christian identity as it breathes gospel life into our daily lives.
Q & A with Dr. Timothy Flanigan: Infectious Disease Specialist Talks COVID-19, Students, and Spiritual Warfare
By Timothy Flanigan and Tom Campisi
From Christian Union
Timothy Flanigan is a member of the Division of Infectious Diseases at The Miriam and Rhode Island Hospitals and Alpert Medical School of Brown University. At the Alpert Medical School, Flanigan mentors students who work side by side with staff in clinical medicine. For the last ten years, he has taught a popular course at Brown, Beyond Narnia: The Literature of C.S. Lewis.
I Was a New-Age Healer. Then I Realized I Wasn’t the One Doing the Healing.
By Nicole Watt
From Christianity Today
From the time I was a child, skipping along the creek bank to my grandparents’ house, I felt I could sense (and at times see) what you could call the unseen or spirit world.
Sometimes this world was as sweet as the childlike wonder of knowing where the prize Easter egg was hidden. Other times, an ominous flash of perception would warn me that I was in a home where witchcraft was practiced. Often, these experiences were accompanied by a vision and a sensation of hot or cold in my heart, forearms, and hands.
Prayer Requests
UNIVERSITY MINISTRIES
Pray for students as some prepare to return to campus and will be facing a very different college experience. Pray also for the mental strength for students who will be staying home to continue classes remotely. Pray that the Lord uses Christian Union to meet students in unique ways this fall and that many would come to call him Savior.
CITY MINISTRIES
Please pray for us as we work to determine our mentoring program and community groups for the fall. With many people still in limbo about moving or returning to New York City, we will complete these later than usual. On the other hand, we are looking forward to this fall being full of opportunities for personal growth and ministry in a city that is redefining itself. Pray for Christians here to be full of faith as we step into these opportunities.
DAY & NIGHT
Pray that American Christians would stay focused on Jesus during these chaotic times. Pray specifically for CU Day and Night’s upcoming move to further God’s kingdom in our land.
Talk Back
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