What Students Have Been Saying

It is always an encouragement to me to see students posting on Facebook about the good times they've had at RUF events, or when they are excited for a coming event.

Here are a few of those posts that have been uplifting me this week:

 

After my first time meeting with her individually

Posted after a Guy's Dinner & Discussion night focusing on common objections to Christianity

Here is picture of the group we had for the DC trip that last one mentioned:

We took a free shuttle from campus to the metro where we helped new students get a Smartrip card and taught them how to right the metro! We had a great time walking around the mall (because someone forgot to check when the Smithsonian closes.....oops) and then ate dinner at Gallery Place! It was such a great way to get to know the new students better and help them get comfortable using the great transportation available to get into DC.

Prayer Requests:
Please be in prayer for these budding relationships & connections. Please pray for the 20 odd students coming with us to Ligonier, PA this weekend for the RUF Mid-Atlantic Fall Conference! Relationships grow so much deeper on retreats such as this, so pray that they would form. Pray also that God would be preparing the hearts of all the students to heart the Gospel. Logan is leading worship so pray also for the band!

Thank you so much for making it possible for Logan and I to be a part of what God is doing here at Maryland!

Grace & Peace,

Welcome Week!

First of all, let me apologize for my long absence in posting. We have been pretty busy these last few weeks welcoming the students back to campus!

Now that school has been in session for a full week, things are starting to set into their normal rhythm for our schedules. That means time to write a blog to tell you about Welcome Week.

Welcome Week is actually longer than a week, but we use it to refer to the time when students start moving in through the end of the week when classes begin. For much of this time, school feels more like camp to the students. Classes haven't started and there are thousands of students roaming around campus exploring what the University has to offer.

It is a vital time for RUF to be out welcoming students to the campus and getting our name out for any students looking for a Christian community or curious about Christianity.

This year we set up tables in high traffic areas of campus to give away Freeze-pops (about 600), RUF stadium cups filled with candy (about 300), & RUF sunglasses (about 100). We also let students know about events such as tailgating for the first game, kickball & watermelon, a s'mores social, welcome BBQ, & a big hike.

The big hike at Billy Goat Trail

All of these programs are intended to bless new students, give a smile and start building relationships to further the Kingdom of God.  We are not just handing out free stuff for fun, but rather to show the grace of God which is free. Some students can't believe that we are giving away things with no strings attached but this is what we do. We hope through these gifts of grace, by your support, that we can begin to break down walls of unbelief and build friendships which will be fruitful in bringing students to Christ.

S'mores & 70+ people at Giant Jenga!

Kickball on the Mall

Our Welcome BBQ

We are off to a good start but now we need your prayers as we attempt to follow up with the many students we contacted and had sign up for more information (approx. 80). Pray for students to be spurred by God's Spirit to connect and come out to our Large Group and small group meetings and that they would be open to one on one's with Logan, Chris and I. We have met many new friends and are excited about these relationships. 

Grace & Peace,