Over the last 2 months I've spent 23 days traveling on 5 separate trips. Yikes! Other than a few days at home for Christmas, the majority of my days away were for work functions. I've heard many Cru staff will joke that our name should be "Campus Crusade for Conferences."
Sometimes it feels like that's all we do. When I haven't seen friends in awhile and we get together, they ask how my conference was, and I frequently reply "which one?" They all have a purpose, though. Here are my top 3 favorite things about the half dozen conferences/retreats I'll attend this year: Community Even for a strong introvert like myself, a huge highlight is to connect with friends. Full-time ministry comes with a unique set of challenges and benefits. It can be lonely, frustrating and exhausting. There's nothing like looking around at a room full of 200+ other people in the same boat. Or looking around a table with 6 or so other women in the exact same stage of life as me that understand the challenges of ministry. Training and Development We have 2 types of conferences- those focused on students, and those that are only for Cru staff. Nearly all events for either crowd have training and development as the main focus. Whether it's training students to lead a worship team or weekly Cru meeting, equipping them for the transition from college to the real world, or developing their evangelism and discipleship skills, Cru loves investing in students. And staff are no different -- we receive really beneficial training in all kinds of areas like coaching, leading, feeding ourselves from the word, and many more. Carrying out our Mission Obviously the most important highlight of our events: to win people to Christ, build them up in their faith, and send them out to tell others what Jesus has done. Not much more to say! I personally know several people who placed their faith in Christ for the first time at Cru events. And I know many, many more who have taken steps of faith to grow and go take the gospel to the world. Bonus highlight: Renewed Vision There's nothing like sitting in a room filled with students and hearing story after story of how God's worked on college campuses around the Midwest and the World through the Cru ministry. It can be easy for me to forget about the mission when I'm swimming in tasks, e-mails, and projects. And excel spreadsheets :) I often come away from an event with a renewed vision for serving in ministry. The last few years, as I've held my future plans loosely before the Lord, he continues to lead me to stay with Cru and invest in people. He is so gracious to continue to give me a vision for how I can play a tiny part in advancing the Kingdom
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Amy WellnerEncouraging others to intentionally live out their God-given identity. Archives
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