Christian Union Hosts Impactful Student Conference
By Tom Campisi, Managing Editor
At the conclusion of the academic year, Christian Union hosted Spiritus, a two-week-long, invitation-only conference that introduced students to Daniel Spirituality and inspired them to be transformative Christian leaders. Spiritus, held at the D.L. Moody Center in Northfield, Massachusetts, featured doctrinal teaching with an emphasis on prayer, fasting, and repentance.
“Spiritus was radically successful,” said Matt Bennett, CEO and founder of Christian Union. “We had several visitations of the Holy Spirit and a rich time of fellowship and joy in the Lord. Students grew in their ability to hear the voice of the Lord.”
Liz Thomforde, a Christian Union Ministry Fellow at Cornell, said, “It was so encouraging to see the unity and deep friendships forged among the students, and to experience their collective hunger to seek the Lord together.”
Teaching sessions were led by Christian Union faculty and guest speakers Dr. Michael Brown, founder of FIRE School of Ministry and host of the nationally, syndicated talk radio show, The Line of Fire; Dave Warn, founder of Forerunners of America; George Otis, founder of The Sentinel Group; and Rev. Trevon Gross, pastor of Hope Cathedral, Jackson, New Jersey.
Topics focused on the Seeking God Lifestyle, fasting, repentance, community, obedience, forgiveness, the Holy Spirit, revival history, prophecy, inner-healing, and deliverance. Daily devotions were led by students, who are leaders with Christian Union ministries at some of the nation’s most influential universities.
“The feedback from students was superlative,” Bennett said. Some of their comments include:
-
- “I was so blessed by this conference. It was pivotal for my spiritual growth and I am sure I will remember it for the rest of my life. I made and strengthened so many friendships, and I have gained so many more true brothers and sisters in Christ.”
- “The seeds planted at Spiritus are resulting in real, transformative impact on the students that attended, the community that was created, and our campuses. I thank God for His grace and love and for every moment of Spiritus.”
- “This conference has been so spiritually transformative and life-changing. The power of the kingdom was revealed to me, and I made a commitment to walk in the way of the Holy Spirit.”
One of the highlights of Spiritus was the introduction of Christian Union’s Daniel Spirituality Pledge. Ten students signed the pledge and will stay connected over the summer to follow its pattern of Christian devotion in a virtual community with Christian Union faculty.
The Daniel Spirituality pledge is comprised Christian Union’s Seeking God Lifestyle and six spiritual practices:
The Seeking God Lifestyle consists of humbling oneself with the help of fasting, fervent and frequent prayer, large intakes of the Scripture, ongoing repentance of all sins, ongoing faithful obedience, gathering with fellow believers for spiritual strengthening, and persevering over time. The Six Spiritual Practices consist of 1) daily morning and evening devotions of at least 30 minutes each; 2) taking more time to draw close to God on Sundays, including church in the morning and increased devotion in the evening; 3) fasting Wednesdays and Fridays by refraining from all food until at least 3 p.m.; 4) spending a full day seeking God once a month; 5) participating in a robust Christian conference of three to seven days (approximately every six months); and 6) periodically, and at least once per year, seeking God in a bolder way as is modeled in the Scriptures.
At Spiritus, a student who signed the pledge said they were motivated “by being surrounded by strong people of faith who pushed me to seek the Lord wholeheartedly, with everything I have. I want to grow closer to God this year and the pledge will help hold me accountable and provide me with a support structure to do so.”
Another one said, “I was convinced that the lifestyle delineated by Daniel Spirituality is what the Lord expects of me. In addition to that, I desire to see God work powerfully in my life and on my campus and I believe that doing Daniel Spirituality will help me draw nearer to God so that He can do His work.”
After two weeks of living out Daniel Spirituality at Spiritus, the impact of the conference will help produce fruit for the Kingdom in their future careers or back on campus in the fall. These key leaders are now better poised to bring transformation to every sector of society.
“I have been desiring to seek God more passionately for a while now, but it’s been hard to imagine what that would look like on my own,” said an attendee. “Spiritus did a really great job with laying out different spiritual disciplines, the biblical basis for them, their importance, and a plan to commit to all of them. I am excited to seek God wholeheartedly and excited to see the fruits of Daniel Spirituality in my life.”
To learn more about Christian Union's ministry at some of the nation's most influential universities, please click here.
