For the last 6 weeks I have been on the road with this team of 11 women! Yes we all fit in this van with all of our luggage and sound equipment! Its a miracle, and we have such a blast all together.
Here is a list of the universities we have been to in the last 6 weeks:
- University of Cincinnati
- Indiana Wesleyan University
- Ohio State University
- Indiana State University
- Purdue University
- Michigan State University
- Eastern Michigan University
- Slippery Rock University
- Chatham University
- Delight Ministries Northeast Retreat for leaders from Sacred Heart University, Mount Claire State University, Saint Anselm Univeristy, Seton Hill University, Slippery Rock Univeristy, West Virginia University, Youngstown State University, John Jay University, Fairmount State University, Duquesne University, Chatham University, Davis & Elkins University, & Cleveland State University)
- Cornell University
- SUNY University at Albany
- Boston Woman’s Regional (9 different universities were represented from schools across Boston including (Boston Univeristy, Northeastern University, Univeristy of Massachusetts Boston, University of Massachusetts Lowell, Brandeis University, Gordon College, Massachusetts University of Art, Babson University, Berklee College of Music).
My team has witnessed God do more than we imagined in these last weeks that we have been on the road, and we have a note that is filled with testimonies from each state that we have been in. I decided that I would highlight just a few in this update, but I hope to share more of these in person soon!
Testimonies:
We just finished hosting an event with students from Michigan State University, and our team decided to go out to eat after our event around 11 pm on Friday night. As we were sitting there eating our dinner, we watched as crowds of college students stumbled by on the sidewalks making their way to the next party or club. Some were stoping in the restaurant that my team was in to grab some food to keep going. As our team was sitting there our hearts were pounding, because these people are the ones that we preach about reaching and there we sat in the midst of them. My co-leader began sharing about the reality of what each of them would likely experience that night and for the rest of the weekend, just to wake up Monday morning and try to survive the week to get to the weekend. We couldn’t stand to stay silent. So we made eye contact with two girls as they walked in, then looked at each other and decided that we would approach them.
We started the conversation by asking if one of them had pain in her hip. She said, “no but I do have terrible arthritis in my right knee, and its really frustrating because I just want to run again. Why are you both med students?” My co-leader and I laughed, and explained that we had seen Jesus heal people before and we just believed he wanted to do the same for her. So we prayed a very simple prayer, and as we said amen. She started thanking us and but we made sure to ask her how it felt and if she could test it out by doing something she couldn’t do before. She started explaining that she couldn’t bend it and mid sentence she started bending it, and looked up with tears in her eyes. In that moment she sobered up, and we began to share the gospel with her. Wide eyed, she listened to every word, and by the end she explained that she had never given Jesus any thought and asked to how she could get connected with us. This moment marked our hearts as we realized that we are often surrendered by need, but we feel too overwhelmed to open our mouths. When we push past this feeling, it’s often way easier than we anticipated, and lives are awaiting our response.
While this was happening two of our other team members were sharing with some other girls and the woman they were sharing with were so effected that they left the bar they were in because they realized their dissatisfaction.
Before our events we spend 1-2 hours walking around a campus inviting students in publics places to come our gatherings. At Slippery Rock University in PA I was walking around with one of the girls who is works with college ministry at a local church. We approached lots of girls and were very direct in asking if they had a faith background or not. Most replied saying “kind’ve” or “they grew up around it” but none of them practiced it. One girl immediately shared that she was struggling and was presently searching for God. She explained that she was struggling before there was an explainable death in her family, that she couldn’t wrap her head around. At this point I had asked her if we could sit down with her, we she enthusiastically said yes to. I asked her if she had ever heard the gospel before, and she said yes. So I asked if she could share with me what she knew of the gospel. She simply shared that she the gospel was creation. After hearing this, I realized that she probably hadn’t to heard it, and so I shared with her. I got to specifically share with her that Jesus overcame death, so it would no longer have its sting, but I boldly shared that the only way for that to happen would be through repentance and a full surrender to Jesus. After sharing this, I asked who was Lord of her life and she said “yes I know what he has done, and I honestly in a humorous voice replied you’re not, just believing that exists does not mean you’re in it. She replied with a light hearted laugh and said, “I know.” After this I asked if she wanted relationship with God, and she was open but rushed off to class. But I believe that God was so intentionally revealing himself to her in the midst of her search for him in this moment.
One of the girls I was praying for shared that she was struggling with depression and wanted prayer. As I began to pray, I felt that she was felt that he depression was deserved and punishment for her shortcomings, mistakes, and deserved for her lack of perfection. As I finished praying she said, “how did you know that?” I knew in that moment that she simply just needed to hear the gospel, and so I shared with her. As I did, I watched as tears filled her eyes and she couldn’t stop shaking her head saying, “wow.” She had been taught that if she didn’t do enough for God that she didn’t deserve his love or his healing. I can explain how beautiful it was to watch her realize that Jesus paid a price for her to have relationship with her and freedom that she couldn’t earn, but only accept as a gift.
After the night ended, I sat talking with a few girls after and one in particular was talking about how she could stop sinning and she wanted to stop but she does some times but then she slips back into it. I started asking her really pointed questions to dive deeper, the first question I asked was, “what do you think point/purpose of this whole Christian life?” Her response was, “to bring more people to heaven with me when I die. So I asked, “so what happens if you get to heaven and you didn’t bring anyone with you, what do you think Jesus will say to you?” She said, “you could’ve done better.” Heart broken I shared the gospel with her also. I finished by challenging her was to wake up every day and allow God to love her to remind her of the gospel.
Another girl was just walking away from getting prayer after responding to the salvation call and saying yes to following Jesus. She approached me and told me that her father had committed suicide and that my message really touched her, and convinced her to finally make the decision for to fully follow Jesus, and not to allow her fathers death to be the reason to not follow Jesus. Isn’t Jesus’ love so perfect?
After our event at Eastern Michigan University, my teammate and I were talking with a group of girls and one of the girls kept coughing. She then explained that her voice was ‘broken’ because of a thyroid surgery 4 years ago that permanently paralyzed half of her vocal cords leaving her with a broken vocal cord. We asked if we could pray for her and she said “yes” reluctantly, but after praying she looked frustrated. I asked her if she had ever forgiven the doctor who performed this surgery. She admitted that she hadn’t and she was very bitter about how the doctor didn’t listen to her concerns. In the moment, we began to explain that unforgiveness and bitterness is like a poison, and the decision to withhold it only poisons ourselves. We also explained that words have the power of life and death in them, and with every time that she spoke about her broken voice she speaking words of death. After sharing this we asked if she wanted to repent for her bitterness and forgive her doctor. She said yes, and we prayed with her. When we finished she said, “I am really going to have to change the way I talk now!” We challenged her to write down her medical condition as it was and without blame or bitterness. In all of this we are believing that her language and heart shifting alone will be like healing honey to heal her from the inside out.
I have also attached a voice recording of the message that I have been sharing at these universities! I hope that you are blessed and encouraged to know that God is encountering and transforming the lives of young adults across the nation right now. With two remaining we have already seen 28,334 gathered & 3,279 decisions to follow Jesus.
I cannot thank you enough for praying for the salvation and freedom of my generation, they will never be the same because of the power of the gospel, so thank you for sacrificing your time and resource into the eternities of many that will never know your name! The kingdom of God is growing with each day that passes!
Please keep my team in prayer as we finish our last 2 week stretch at Towson University, Univeristy of New Haven, University of Hartford, Brooklyn College, and Parsons the New School of Art & Design.
With love,
Autumn