Ben Panner, college pastor

Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.

Colossians 2:6-7

Our desire is to raise up students who are rooted in Jesus and ready to serve him. We want to help students land in the local church and find a church home here. This year we launched a semester long discipleship initiative called Rooted that is designed to help us pursue these goals.

We wanted to carve out space that fits with the student rhythms and serves as a catalyst to help students cultivate a vibrant faith in Christ and catch a vision for the local church. God has brought together two cohorts of students in the fall and spring semesters, and we are amazed at his work in and through this initiative. Students are learning to love God by worshiping together weekly at the 9:30 a.m. service. Students are finding gospel friendships with others as we connect each week. Students are developing biblical convictions that are intended to shape lifelong commitments through regular theological discussions over meals. As students meet with mature mentors, they are learning to embrace spiritual habits that are helping them make progress in the faith.

As we started the semester, we shared with the students some prayers and hopes for this initiative. God has been answering these prayers. Will you join us in thanking God for his work over the last year? Will you join us in praying to God for future students who will connect to this ministry?

PRAYERS

We pray that students will develop the habit of gathering for weekly corporate worship. Cultural trends push against the church and away from corporate worship. We pray for a new wave of students committed to loving God and finding renewal in him through corporate worship.

We pray that students will be convinced about God’s plan for their spiritual growth, commit to the local church and commit to God’s mission in the world. Our faith is weak, but God provides means for us to grow in a knowledge and love of himself. Our tendency is to live life independently, but God brings us into a family to be nurtured. Our world is dying apart from Jesus, but we have the hope of the gospel. Our church needs to grow up, but we can speak truth to build one another up in love. We pray for a new wave of Spirit-empowered students with a vibrant faith in Jesus to carry on God’s mission.

We pray that students develop habits of daily worship. We pray that students will learn to live in gospel light with other believers and speak gospel truth to other believers. When religious hypocrisy is rampant, we long to be an honest community that lives in the light because Jesus invites us into the cleansing light of his grace. When we are weighed down by the burdens of life, we can hear the precious promises of God from gospel friends who are seeking to mend our souls with the gospel. When we are wandering, we have the gift of gospel friendships who will snatch us away from the fire and point us again to Christ. We pray for the next wave of students who are conformed to Jesus by living in the light of his grace and the light of his word.

We pray that students develop trust and cultivate gospel friendships with one another. We pray that students find time to reflect on their spiritual state and turn to God for renewal. When free time is hard to come by, choosing to sacrifice time for one another on overnights will sow seeds that will help real community to form and flourish. We pray for a new wave of friendships grounded in the gospel for the good of the church.