Free Relays Taxi!!!!
In response to reading the book Radical by David Platt, our InterVarsity leadership group got together last Spring and discussed how we might live out that book by radically serving our campus. We came up with the idea to give free taxi rides home to students during Drake Relays, a big party week on campus. We were a little worried about logistics and how students would respond... but it went amazing! We gave over 500 rides over three days and had nothing but ecstatic responses!
Well this year we wanted to continue the tradition and expanded our operation. We teamed up with several of the other Christian groups on campus and added a van. I had the privilege of organizing the schedule for over 50 student volunteers over three days and I also drove the old Chevy Astro van all three nights. We joked that part of our mission that weekend was simply to redeem the public perception of vans.
After it was all over, we gave rides to over 700 students! We heard responses from students like "You're a God-send," "My mom is adding you to her prayer list," and "You guys really get Jesus!" Without condoning drunkenness, we were able to love our campus and serve a real need in a fun and non-judgmental way. When asked (repeatedly) why were doing this we simply responded "We're from a couple different Christian groups that wanted to love and serve our campus." What an awesome, Kingdom centered weekend!
Surgery, Breathing Again, and Wonderful Friends
On a more personal note, a had nose surgery during April that sidelined me for about a week. In the course of playing football, I had broken my nose several times, including a really bad break this past season. It was so bad that I had to see a specialist, an actual plastic surgeon, for the repair. He told me afterwards that my septum (the cartilage down the middle of the inside of your nose) was so screwed up, it was actually touching the other wall and had fused together with it. Essentially there was a wall in my right nostril that kept all air from going through.
My Nose: From Broken to Breathin'
 |
| Day of the broken nose |
 |
| Recovering From Surgery |
 |
| After Surgery |
I was surprised how long it took me to recover. I didn't have a lot of pain thanks to modern medicine but I've had surgeries before where I was back at it in three days, this took me a full week. I was extremely blessed, however, by texts and visits from students in InterVarsity, stopping by to check on me and chat. Living in the upstairs of my pastor's house, Mike & Sherri Harder, they went out of their way to bring me snacks and food without even asking. Amy Becker, my fellow InterVarsity staff, was even the one to take me and pick me up from the hospital.
So as wonderful it is to now be able to breathe out of my nose, my surgery revealed even more how wonderful my friends are and how blessed I am to be surrounded by brothers and sisters in Christ who care and love for me. If you are reading this, thank you all.
Four Minor Highlights from the Month
1) Creating Dialogue - The month of April opened up with the annual Week of Understanding, in which different religious organizations on campus attend each other's events, answer questions, and build relationships. I had the opportunity once again to speak on the Christian perspective and had a blast. I absolutely love answering questions and talking about Jesus. It was a great week of conversation and understanding for the Christians, Muslims, and Atheists who participated.
2) Breeding Unity - April was a great month of unity for the Body of Christ on Drake's campus. We began the month by teaming up to organize and speak at the Week of Understanding. The next week we teamed up to organize and lead worship for Unity Night, the annual night of unity between all Christians on campus. The next week we teamed up to organize and lead worship when Simon Estes spoke on campus as a part of the Iowa Prayer Breakfast. Then, finally, we teamed up to love and serve our campus with the Relay Free Taxi. That's coming together for a different event every week of the month! In what can often be divisive and competitive, what a blessing it is to see different Christian groups coming together as the Body of Christ to serve and love Jesus!
3) Raising Partners - Finally, April has been the first month when I've really been able to hit the ground with raising Ministry Partners. Building a prospect list, making contacts, and setting up appointments take a surprising amount of time and effort. But getting a meeting or phone call when I talk about Jesus with someone, share the vision God has given me, and invite them into a relationship and partnership over God's movement on campus is such a privilege and joy. It is certainly not without it's challenges and it is tough sometimes to emphasize that it really isn't about money but about Jesus. But as long as I keep seeking His Kingdom first, there is no doubt it will all fall into place and continue to be a blessing.
4) Finishing Strong - Last week, the second to last weekly large group of the year, we had a time of reflection and closed with a worship time of celebration. First of all, the celebration at the end was so awesome and fun. It was my final time leading worship at the Drake InterVarsity and we went out with a bang. People were clapping, shouting, dancing, and really experiencing the joy of the presence of God. It seemed like a lot of fruit from my time leading worship and was everything I've always wanted worship to be. After reflecting on the year and feedback from students, we also learned that we had around 10 students give their like to Jesus for the first time and 20-30 go from merely "believing" to truly "following" Jesus with their life. What an amazing semester of fruit and harvest!
Thanks for taking the time to read my update! God has been so faithful to see so much fruit come this semester! Feel free to click around my website for more blog posts as well as more info about me, my ministry, and what it means to partner with me.
God bless!
Seth
No comments:
Post a Comment