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Finding You
G wanted to create a worship experience that celebrated the history of worship music so G and Pastor Courtney crafted a three part contemplative series called “Finding You” that highlighted different expressions of worship through the themes of praise, lament, and thanksgiving. In the end, the events were cancelled due to the covid-19 crisis, but G “enjoyed getting to be a part of something more than [her]self….” She also learned “what it takes to build a project like this and eventually execute it.” She was thankful for the opportunity to grow her skills and explore her faith. |
Connection
L committed to a second student ministry project for spring semester. This time he wanted to create a weekly gathering space where people could talk about their faith and find common ground with one another. For eight weeks, L reserved a kiosk in Atwood Memorial Center and posed a question about faith. Then, he invited students to share their thoughts with him or write them on a sticky-note. One conversation in particular really made an impact on L, “...an asian brother came up and told [Pastor Courtney and me] his story on why he no longer has faith. A while after calculating and trying to understand, his story moved me, it somewhat gave me a different perspective because I was able to connect with this person and see and understand his problems on a deeper level.” After completing two ministry projects, he highly recommends the experience to other students because the “conversations and projects will hopefully build and strengthen faith as it did with me.”
L committed to a second student ministry project for spring semester. This time he wanted to create a weekly gathering space where people could talk about their faith and find common ground with one another. For eight weeks, L reserved a kiosk in Atwood Memorial Center and posed a question about faith. Then, he invited students to share their thoughts with him or write them on a sticky-note. One conversation in particular really made an impact on L, “...an asian brother came up and told [Pastor Courtney and me] his story on why he no longer has faith. A while after calculating and trying to understand, his story moved me, it somewhat gave me a different perspective because I was able to connect with this person and see and understand his problems on a deeper level.” After completing two ministry projects, he highly recommends the experience to other students because the “conversations and projects will hopefully build and strengthen faith as it did with me.”
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Exploring Faith in a Time of Tech
Y and Pastor Courtney worked together to create a retreat opportunity at Luther Crest Bible Camp. Y wanted to use the time away to dive into a conversation with his friends about how faith is and isn’t changing with technology. In the end, the discussions were Y’s favorite part of the retreat “...because of how great the conversations were. I'm thankful that we talked about so many different things and that the conversations were deep and meaningful.” After completing his ministry project, Y was inspired by his experience and now knows that “....faith is always changing and that it is okay to explore more and see faith as something that can change.” |
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Faith and Science: Space for Conversation
M hosted a space on campus for students to explore how faith and science could be in conversation with another and benefit one another. To prepare, she read the book Quarks, Chaos, and Christianity by John Polkinghorne. After the event, during which she had fruitful conversations with some international students, she said that “[t]hese worldwide religious and scientific connections of the body and mind gave me more assurance in my career interest with animal sciences as well as being a Christian” and that “Christianity and science both combine to make one big picture, I love to have framed and hanging on my heart.”
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Faith/Doubt
L wanted to hold a Bible study exploring the themes of faith and doubt. To prepare for leading the study on his own, he read the book Learning to Walk in the Dark by Barbara Brown Taylor with Pastor Courtney. They met and talked through the themes lifted up in the book including light, darkness, faith, and doubt. L learned that “the ‘dark’ isn’t a bad place to be, its okay to be in the dark and that the ‘dark’ isn’t something that we should stay away from or make attempts to avoid it.” After completing his two-part Bible study, L lifted up that “[o]ne thing I learn[ed] from living out my faith is that there are a lot of people in the same shoes as I am, and this is very comforting to know.”
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Tailgating for TalahiA is passionate about fighting childhood hunger so she organized a fundraising event to support Feeding Area Children Together (FACT). She organized and hosted a potluck where people could vote for their favorite dishes with their tips. They raised $50 for weekend hunger packs! A said she "loved having a chance to completely plan an event on my own and to learn how to bring together my faith, my skills, and my personal connections to create a fun and fulfilling event through LuMin."
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FollowJ led a three part Bible study exploring the nature of God and discipleship supported by the book 51% Christian by Mark Stenberg. Their mission was "to show campus and the community that God is a living, breathing God." They hoped that this experience would strengthen their faith and build their confidence.
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