Vision – The Lowedown

It was the spring of 2014 and Jen and I were just entering a new phase of ministry. After 25 years with college students as our primary focus, we made a pivot to reach Millennials, the largest age group in our culture, but the least churched.

Our first time in Nashville (2014) included the Q conference. We only got half of the first day in before Jen ended up in the hospital. A highlight of that session was an interview with Carrie Underwood and her husband, NHL Hockey player Mike Fisher.

We flew to Nashville to spend some time with about a dozen other Cru staff members who were also committed to reaching this underserved audience. On the heels of our staff time, we were slated to attend the Q conference (led by Gabe Lyons – now rebranded as ThinQ Media) and we were looking forward to meeting with one of our former students from our time at the University of Arizona who had transplanted his family to the Nashville area.

On the first day of that conference, Jen experienced some chest pains that ultimately landed her at Vanderbilt hospital.

I wrote about that experience in our April 2014 newsletter, which you can access here (bit.ly/LWDN0414).

We left Nashville feeling grateful that we had dodged a bullet. When we arrived at the hospital we didn’t know what was going on. We were relieved when the doctors told us that they thought Jen had walking pneumonia and gave her antibiotics to help clear up any infection.

Cru Embark staff enjoying good BBQ in downtown Nashville

It turned out though that that diagnosis was wrong, and this was just the first phase of a medical journey we entered, and are still in.

Thankfully, we know a lot more about Jen’s condition, vasculitis, which is currently in remission.

This last fall, I had the opportunity to return to Nashville for the first time since that ordeal. Jen was not able to make this trip due to a conflict with her class schedule.

Once again, a fledgling group of Cru staff met to discuss and dream about reaching the under-served audience that is Young Adults.

It was great being back in Nashville and experiencing a bit of the culture, including good BBQ and some great music from talented artists.

We were treated to a small intimate, unplugged acoustic set from American Idol season 8 winner, Kris Allen

Me with Kris Allen – American Idol Season 8 winner

We were surprised by one of our Cru staff who lives and ministers in Nashville and happens to live just around the corner from Kris Allen (of American Idol Fame) who did an acoustic set for us on our colleague’s back porch! That feels very Nashville-y!

Meeting up with my friend Mark, a former student from way back during our University of Arizona days. This meet-up was 10 years overdue!

As much as I enjoyed connecting with our staff and revisiting and renewing my vision for Young Adults, the highlight of my trip was my time after the conference.

I decided to delay my return so that I might meet with my friend Mark, the former student we had to cancel on 10 years earlier.

In addition, another friend from our church in South Orange County had moved his family to Nashville 4 years ago and my trip provided an opportunity to connect with him as well.

I was able to connect with a friend (Rob) from our church in SoCal who moved his family to the Nashville area a few years ago

It was great to pray together and have extended time to connect on a deeper level and hear how God is moving and working in the lives of these two families.

As I reflected back on my time in Nashville, I realized that the number of Cru staff who are reaching Young Adults is still rather small.

What really stood out to me though is that the make-up of the staff in attendance was different. I was the only person at these recent meetings who had been at the Nashville meeting 10 years ago. That is often the nature of ministry. People often come and go and move on to other opportunities and other callings. For us, at this time, Young Adults remains our calling.

We are grateful for your investment and commitment to us!

To read the pdf version of our newsletter, click here.

Hundreds of Cru Staff outside of Colorado State's Moby Gym after one of the main sessions of Cru15. — Hundreds of Cru Staff outside of Colorado State’s Moby Gym after one of the main sessions of Cru15.

Every other summer, over 5000 Cru Staff members from across the United States convene at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado for 2 weeks of vision, training, worship and spiritual refreshment.

Over the years, this has been a highlight of our summer and a family tradition as we make the trek across the Southwest to connect with friends, and be challenged and motivated from God’s Word by Cru leaders and Christian leaders from around the world.

This year, Jen and I were not able to attend the conference due to Jen’s recent health issues. Back in February, the outlook for Jen’s health looked very uncertain. We were anticipating another round of chemo-therapy that would have lowered Jen’s immune system and put it in its most compromising state right at the time we would be surrounded by 5000 other people in varying states of physical wellness.

As a result of the questions we were facing, our leadership granted us an exemption from attending this year’s conference. It seemed like the wisest course of action.

Jacob & Joshua had a blast attending the Cru15 high school Getaway program and being challenged in their faith.

Though Jen and I weren’t able to be there, we made the decision to send Jacob and Joshua so they could participate in the Cru high school Getaway program and connect with some of their friends. They had a blast flying on a plane for the first time by themselves and were definitely challenged by speakers like Josh McDowell. In addition, their faith was stretched as they had the opportunity to share their faith in the local community.

Jen and I were disappointed that we weren’t able to attend the Cru15 conference in person. You may be wondering why we would be sad to miss out on a 2 week-long conference of meetings and training sessions. After all, getting exempted from a work conference is normally like a receiving a “Get out of Jail Free” card.

Though it’s a conference, with many meetings and sessions, there are a lot of fun activities with a definite family atmosphere. We’ve found it to be a great time to connect with our friends, co-workers and even many of our former students who are now working with Cru. It’s amazing how road trips and living out of your suitcase for a few weeks can create a lot of family bonding opportunities and many lifetime memories.

Over 5000 Cru Staff from all over the U.S. inside Moby Gym for a main meeting session of Cru15.

Though we weren’t there in person, through the marvel of modern technology, Jen and I were able to live-stream many of the main sessions and interact with our co-workers on social media. It wasn’t the same as being there in person of course, but it was great to hear the speakers and see the direction and vision of Cru for the next few years.

A couple of exciting themes emerged from this year’s conference. One was a continued commitment to reach the ethnic scope around us and to create an atmosphere in our organization that would welcome and foster ethnic diversity.

Jen and I have a passion for ethnic diversity in ministry because of our many years of giving leadership to Ethnic Student Ministries in the campus ministry. It has been a long road of learning and growing as an organization, but we’re confident that we’re on the right path as an organization and that our leaders are leading us through the necessary changes to make sure we are relevant as an organization for many years to come to those whom we seek to reach.

Francis Chan uses a Lego to illustrate the need to humbly partner with others for the sake of the gospel. Each one of us is a brick but together, we can create something special.

A second theme that emerged was the need to humbly partner with others. If we’re committed to reaching every person, we must be willing to come alongside churches, volunteers and lay people and work together synergistically to accomplish the Lord’s work.

Partnering is one of the core values Jen and I have as we seek to reach Millennials, who have a strong desire to be mentored. Our desire is to raise up and train dozens if not hundreds of volunteers throughout Orange County who could impact Millennials by leading community groups and providing mentoring both spiritually and professionally to this unreached generation.

We couldn’t be more excited about the vision and direction the Lord has given us. Would you please pray for us and with us as we seek to take the next steps in developing our ministry to Millennials?

Thank you for your partnership with us and your ministry to us. You are a blessing from the Lord to us and our family!

Click here to access the pdf version of The Lowedown.