(this is also available as a pdf here)

Hello, everyone! We hope y’all are having a smooth transition to fall. It seems to always be a time of transitions for people as they regroup after the summer’s activities come to a close. So that makes it a prime time for refocusing ourselves and for ministering to others. This is never more relevant than when you mix grief/loss into that time of transition. In light of this, I wanted to let you read an excerpt from Cynthia Thomas’ blog. She and her husband are CCC staff at Virginia Tech (VT).

“I had the chance to share the gospel with Reema Samaha, one of the victims of the Virginia Tech massacre, just about three weeks before she died. I had taken a girl I lead, Ria, in the dorms with me, and we met Reema.

“We share our faith by going through a short interview to get their spiritual background, and if they want more information on Christianity, we take them through the Would you like to know God personally? booklet. Though I was unsure by Reema’s responses where she was spiritually, when I asked her if she’d like to talk more about Christianity, she said, ‘Sure!’

“We took her through the booklet, and as we did, she said that she had heard this before, and had accepted Christ in the past, though she was having a hard time living it out in college. Then I told her about the Holy Spirit and how the Bible teaches us that only through leaning on the power of the Spirit moment by moment can we really experience victory in the Christian life.

“She was very interested in this, and I remember her asking, ‘So this has worked well in your life?’ or something like that. I told her yes! Ria and I had a great conversation with her and left really pumped and encouraged by her openness and honesty! We believe she had a relationship with Jesus. I really treasure that conversation and experience now. It has reminded me of the goodness of God.

“I tell the girls I lead when we tell others about the Lord, ‘Today is this girl’s lucky day! We are going to give her a chance to have a relationship with God!’ I really believe that, and now more than ever.”

We had the privilege of hearing from our VT staff team in Colorado. Their hearts were broken just like everyone else’s, and yet they rose to the challenge of ministering to students and families scarred by that day. With the new school year ahead, I’d like to ask you all to pray for the staff and students at VT.

Pray for their own hurts to be healed by God and for them to have unshakable trust in His goodness and provision. Pray for them to be a bold and courageous witness of the love of God active in Christians’ lives, so that others would come to know Jesus as their source of healing and life. And while we’re praying for them, please pray for the rest of our Campus staff and students around the world to walk closely with our God and to share God’s message with love and grace and truth.

Prayer is our greatest “work” we can do to be a part of God’s plans for this world, so I thank you now for your prayers that will be used incredibly by God in the lives of these people. What a privilege we have to speak to God on behalf of other believers and for the sake of those who don’t know Him yet and can’t ask for themselves! We pray for you as well, that you would know God’s hand in your life, give Him your hurts to carry, and be empowered by Him to live your days with trust in Him and be a living testimony to the lost around you. God bless you.