Author: Zack

Not Only For Americans

Zack was able to attend Vision Conference in person this year and I (Naomi) was on the Virtual Vision Prayer Conference team. I want to thank the many of you who read my daily prayer updates and joined my prayer team in battle for the hearts and souls of these precious internationals. God heard and answered our prayers. Here are some highlights…

-Vision Conference did not become a super spreader event for Covid; just a handful of people got sick.

-A seeking student studying in Michigan named Samuel texted his Bridges staff saying, “the conference was truly amazing and I’ll never forget those 5 days of my life. I really thank you so much for your help and guidance…Bridges International has the best motive for connecting international students and I enjoyed so much in the Multi-nations group.”

-A Christian student, Nicole, was trained in how to more effectively share her faith and caught such a vision for reaching internationals where she studies in London. She said, “I wish I could quit school and work with you guys!” She is considering interning with Bridges after graduation.

-A Seeker from China shared how the conference impacted her and how she could see that Christianity was not only for Americans but for people from other cultures too! She is now considering becoming a Christian and has started attending a Mandarin Bible study.

-“It’s been like a reconnection with God,” said a Brazilian student from the University of North Carolina. His wife agreed. “Something happened there. I want to spread the word.” Already this couple is seeking ways to serve at their local Bridges movement.

You can read more about the amazing things God did at Vision Conference in the full report.

Planting Seeds

Zack and his film team spent a lot a time with five Christian students from Nigeria, Indonesia, Malaysia, and India capturing the stories of ways God has worked in their lives. One of those students was my friend Joke (pronounced Joe-Kay) who was in my Multi-Nations group when I went to Vision 2019.

Joke (pictured below) attended the Ambassadors Track, our highest level of training for students at Vision. Joke said “It was an amazing experience to learn how to be a leader and to share the gospel using PLANT: P- prayer, L- listen, A-articulate, N- invite, T- try again.”

Family Health Update

Our entire family got Omicron in mid January. Zack, Miah, and I are still dealing with some lingering symptoms. Thankfully I was able to get medicine that prevented a major flare of my Epstein Barr. I am still experiencing some fatigue, but I don’t know if it is from EBV or Covid. 

Annalei was our biggest concern, as she was experiencing shortness of breath (the same thing happened when she got the vaccine). Praise God, she is fine now, but she has seen a pulmonologist and will undergo testing because this has been an off-and-on exercise induced problem since she was vaccinated.

FAMILY UPDATE

We were challenged to each pray for 3 people we wanted to share the gospel with. All 4 kids have been having spiritual conversations with friends at school. Cassia was nervous, but actually saw a friend ask Jesus into her heart!

PRAISE REPORTS

God changed many lives at Vision conference.
Covid did not trigger another huge setback for Naomi.
Our kids are each gaining a heart for evangelism.

PRAYER REQUESTS

For students who attended Vision: Seekers would believe in Jesus, and Christians would share their faith.
Our kids would continue to be bold for Jesus at school.
Cassia’s friend would grow in her new faith.
The new EveryInternational video series would train many people to reach immigrants and refugees with the gospel.
Total healing for our family from Covid symptoms.

Summer Sabbatical

Zack and I (Naomi) were blessed to take a sabbatical this summer. It was a much needed break from the weight of the internal strife within Cru this past year. (See our June update) I took the time to read a book written by our founder, Bill Bright, shortly before his death called My Life is Not My Own: Following God No Matter the Cost. Dr. Bright shares his testimony about how he surrendered his life to Jesus, and the adventure and blessing that followed. He also challenges the reader of the book to surrender his/her life to Christ as well.

For me (Naomi), reading this book was a reminder of why I joined staff with Cru and a renewal of my decision to surrender my life to Christ. Jesus has shown me that I need to surrender the small, daily, mothering decisions and actions, as well as the large life choices up to Him. He honors a surrendered life!

The highlight of my Sabbatical was taking a trip to Oregon by myself! I stayed with two of my Bridesmaids and visited with several close friends from my time on Cru staff at Oregon State (back in my single days). The Oregon coast is so incredibly beautiful, and every friend deeply encouraged and renewed my heart. 

On the flight back, being in a posture of living a surrendered life, I told God that I was available to talk to someone seated next to me. And He gave me an opportunity! I sat next to a CSU student named Destiny. Since I graduated from Colorado State, it was easy to make connections with her. And as the Lord opened the door to discuss spiritual things, He prompted me to share a part of my testimony that I don’t typically share. It turns out that she had a similar experience, but it had led to her walking away from the faith. I was able to speak some truth to her. Destiny is very open spiritually but not sure what she believes now.

During my (Zack’s) Sabbatical, I dove into a book club to work through Live Not By Lies and Confronting Injustice Without Compromising Truth. Both of these books have been helpful at discerning through the issues going on in the broader culture and within Cru.

Immigrants and Refugees

Since launching EveryInternational.com in 2018, the site has been viewed 134,034 times in 136 countries. 2,293 people have registered to use our free training and have completed 5,188 lessons! I (Zack) am now editing a new batch of training videos about bringing the gospel to immigrants and refugees (a relevant topic in light of Afghanistan’s collapse).

My team and I filmed ten new lessons, including “Three Stages of an Immigrant’s Experience,” “Using ESL Classes,” and “Reaching African Immigrants.”

In one of the videos, Emmanuel, an Intervarsity staff member from Cameroon, shared his vision: “As an African proverb teaches us that a small house can hold hundreds of friends, my prayer is that God will give the ability to host hundreds of African immigrants in our hearts.”

Zack and I signed up to help with some refugees from Afghanistan through our church. Even as Zack is editing the lessons, we are excited to put the material into practice.

Family

Annalei has started driving lessons. Our other kids are glad cooler Fall temperatures are here in Central Texas.

Praise Reports

• Wonderful, spiritually refreshing Sabbatical.
• Naomi’s divine appointment with a CSU student.
• EveryInternational is training thousands of volunteers who want to reach the nations.

Prayer Requests

• We would daily surrender our big and small choices to God and live fully surrendered lives
• God would continue to pursue Destiny and work mightily in her life.
• Zack would be led by the Spirit as he edits the new videos for EveryInternational.
• Many new immigrants and refugees would be reached by Christians utilizing the new EveryInternational training.

It’s not often that our ministry organization itself is the center of attention. But due to a recent article in Christianity Today, Cru is front page news. If you hadn’t heard about this article yet, we figured it would only be a short time until you did. So, Naomi and I want you to know what has been going on, provide an update from our Cru leadership, and offer our perspective and hopefully some encouragement.

The CT article covers an internal debate within Cru that may sound familiar to you. It’s been playing out in our courtrooms, classrooms, and boardrooms this past year. Namely, how do we address issues of race?

To quote from his update letter, our national director, Mark Gauthier, says: “We recognize that in the midst of the injustice and oppression experienced in our fallen world, many secular ideologies attempt to identify, address and to bring relief to the very real needs that plague the souls of men and women.“

One of these ideologies is Critical Race Theory (CRT). A number of our staff within Cru have been very concerned about the encroachment of this ideology. Again, you’ve probably read articles or seen news programs about this. For example, CRT is the subject of a big debate within the Southern Baptist Convention (which we belong to).

The key concern, though, is how a divisive worldview is often built around CRT. Naomi and I, frankly, believe that this worldview is contrary to the biblical worldview. As Mark says, “Secular ideologies and perspectives including critical race theory and white supremacy offer worldviews that do not align with the scriptures.”

Simultaneously, Cru is facing the challenge of how to become “an effective sending base for missionaries of all ethnicities.” We desire to reach all peoples and have a staff body that is filled with all cultures. Naomi and I are blessed every year to experience a small slice of this at our Bridges Vision Conference, where we worship Jesus in the different languages spoken by the dozens of nationalities represented. Our personal ministry vision is built upon passages like Matthew 24:14, Acts 17:24-31, and Revelation 7:9.

Because these internal debates have unfortunately become public through the Christianity Today article, Naomi and I want to make something crystal clear: our central calling with Cru has not changed. Our heartbeat is the gospel of Jesus Christ and its power to change lives. As the Apostle Paul says, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16).

And while we often try to contextualize our presentation of the gospel––for example, when speaking to students from Shame/Honor cultures––we are not changing the gospel itself. The gospel is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of our sins (1 Corinthians 15). Getting this message to those who have never heard or never received it is our priority. Our mission with Cru is summarized in three words: Win, Build, and Send. “There is no other mission.”

We know that this is a narrow calling. There are surely other things the Body of Christ is called to do and be passionate about. But Cru is only one arm of the church. And we love getting to work full-time in giving every student “an opportunity to say ‘Yes’ to Jesus.” 

Honestly, these internal debates have been a heavy burden for Naomi and I this past year. Especially because we haven’t been able to speak publicly about it until now. We would really appreciate your prayers. It’s often difficult to have meaningful discussions on these cultural hot topics. But we encourage you to read Mark Gauthier’s letter below, and please write us back if you have any questions or comments.

Thank you for your prayers and partnership in ministry.