Akpene's Adventures End of Year Issue - Word from Bill Johnson

Merry Christmas everyone!!!!

It’s coming up to the end of the year, and fantastic stuff has happened, is happening, and is continuing to happen. God is moving strongly, and I’m excited to partner with Him in this!

 

A Cultural Thanksgiving

My co-worker, Tanya, and I wanted to extend a tangible expression of love to the people in our ballroom dancing class, so we had decided to do a Thanksgiving dinner for them. Thank you to all who helped with food, and to a friend who offered her home to host it. It was fantastic! We had a small group; a graduate student from China and an older gentleman from Russia who brought his daughter, who attends UT. We ended up sitting and talking for nearly 4 hours, talking about China, Russia and the US, and not only were we able to love on them in an open and caring way, there were some spiritual conversations. Yafei, the graduate student, had already received Christ in China and is hungry for more of Him. Vladimir and Anastasiya are atheist, but some of our conversation had them asking questions and changing their perceptions.  They enjoyed it so much, Yafei was asking about Christmas celebrations, and Anastasiya, who hasn’t attend the ballroom class, is now excited to join us and continue the friendship. I’m loving this ongoing God story, don’t you!?!?

 

Campus Renewal: A Practical Plan for Uniting Campus Ministries in Prayer and Mission

The story of campus Renewal Ministries has been told and published! Find out what happens by reading about what God is doing at the University of Texas through Campus Renewal Ministries. God has united campus ministries around a vision to reach all 50,000 students at UT with the gospel each year, and they are taking practical steps to see their vision accomplished. It’s an awesome testimony of the transformation of what has already happened, and a peek at what is coming. This is a great read for people passionate about campus ministry, Austin, transformation, God stories… basically everyone! Check it out at www.campusrenewal.org/campusrenewalbook to read a chapter and to buy. You can also contact me and I can get you a copy for $10.

 

University Students and Transformation

For those of you who were able to make it, on Sunday night, Bill Johnson spoke about the need for fathers, and in it, he spoke, no, mandated a call for spiritual fathers and mothers for the college age generation. I felt like he took my heart and passion and laid out for everyone to see, spoke into the need of this generation. Let me restate an excerpt of what he had said.

 

“We need fathers and mothers; they do not compete, like siblings, friends. People who will deal with the stuff, who will celebrate the victories, our destinies… We also need to give birth to mothers and fathers. The Jesus People Movement in the late 60’s/ early 70’s - there’s a new Jesus people movement forming right now. We’re going to see absolute revival spread through major colleges and universities of our country. This one will be different… the difference will be this, if we actually have spiritual mothers and fathers in place…

 

“I’m looking for [spiritual mothers and fathers].  And I’m looking for this out of this house. I’m looking for a company of people that will sacrifice their own Christmas gifts, spiritually speaking, for the benefit of a generation that could quite possibly shape the course of world history. It’s positioning ourselves to get the most out of a moment; the most out of a movement, the most out of what God has promised and released upon us.”

I would encourage you to listen to the message; here is the link: http://cothaudio.org/Church_of_the_Hills/Teachings/Entries/2010/12/5_Entry_1_1.html. It was like he looked into my heart and spoke out why I am here at Campus Renewal, and why my heart is desperate to find like-minded people who are willing to invest in this generation. I had a dream a couple of years ago, and God has resurfaced it in my mind, and makes me aware of it every day. In the dream, I walked onto a battlefield that was full of chaos. People were wandering around, confused and directionless. There was fighting on a couple of fronts, but there were holes everywhere. I remember thinking, I just need to do what I need to do, and picked up my armor and weapons and headed to one of the holes in the fighting line. As I went, I looked back and saw people picking up their weapons also. While some followed me, some went to other places in the battle, and some headed to the recovery tents – the point is, they all went where they were needed. A friend of mine once told me, “I may not be able to or am called to fight in the frontlines, but I can equip you to do that, and know that I am part of that victory.”

 

Bill asked, “What would it be to have a company of people who just says, ‘yes’? I sense such a summons from God, a summoning from the Lord for mothers and fathers to arise… I want to see this next go around, this next Jesus People Movement. I want to see mothers and fathers in place.”

 

This is something tangible, not far off, not a vague “I can do something sometime if some need comes up somewhere.”  We need people to come along side of us as well as those who hold down the fort. We need those mothers and fathers who can mentor and encourage, and we need people willing to teach and pastor. Also, to continue in my role, we need those who will financially support me in my part for the ministry as a whole. And, as always, we need and appreciate your prayer support.

 

I would love to talk and meet with you if you would like to find out if our how you can volunteer or work with Campus Renewal, (or just college students in general).  If you’d like to make a special or monthly gift, you can go to www.campusrenewal.org and click on donate, mail a check to Campus Renewal Ministries, 2421 San Antonio St suite B, Austin, Texas 78705. If you would like to make a stock donation, please call 512.331.5991. Remember to check with your employers to see if they do matching donations.

 

Really great God stories have come out of this year, and I’m anticipating even more for this next year, for all of us! Merry Christmas, and have a blessed New Year!

 

Much Love,

Akpene

sweetspirit96@gmail.com

512.293.9107

Akpenesadventures.blogspot.com

Find me on Facebook – Akpene at Campus Renewal Ministries

www.campusrenewal.org

www.reachingcampus.com

 

 

+ All contributions to Campus Renewal Ministries are income tax deductible, and are made with the understanding that Campus Renewal Ministries has complete discretion and control over the use of all donated funds. +

 

 

 

 

 

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Akpene's Adventures End of Year Issue

Merry Christmas everyone!!!!

It’s coming up to the end of the year, and fantastic stuff has happened, is happening, and is continuing to happen. God is moving strongly, and I’m excited to partner with Him in this!

 

A Cultural Thanksgiving

My co-worker, Tanya, and I wanted to extend a tangible expression of love to the people in our ballroom dancing class, so we had decided to do a Thanksgiving dinner for them. Thank you to all who helped with food, and to a friend who offered her home to host it. It was fantastic! We had a small group; a graduate student from China and an older gentleman from Russia who brought his daughter, who attends UT. We ended up sitting and talking for nearly 4 hours, talking about China, Russia and the US, and not only were we able to love on them in an open and caring way, there were some spiritual conversations. Yafei, the graduate student, had already received Christ in China and is hungry for more of Him. Vladimir and Anastasiya are atheist, but some of our conversation had them asking questions and changing their perceptions.  They enjoyed it so much, Yafei was asking about Christmas celebrations, and Anastasiya, who hasn’t attend the ballroom class, is now excited to join us and continue the friendship. I’m loving this ongoing God story, don’t you!?!?

 

Campus Renewal: A Practical Plan for Uniting Campus Ministries in Prayer and Mission

The story of campus Renewal Ministries has been told and published! Find out what happens by reading about what God is doing at the University of Texas through Campus Renewal Ministries. God has united campus ministries around a vision to reach all 50,000 students at UT with the gospel each year, and they are taking practical steps to see their vision accomplished. It’s an awesome testimony of the transformation of what has already happened, and a peek at what is coming. This is a great read for people passionate about campus ministry, Austin, transformation, God stories… basically everyone! Check it out at www.campusrenewal.org/campusrenewalbook to read a chapter and to buy. You can also contact me and I can get you a copy for $10.

 

University Students and Transformation

This past weekend, there was a pastor at our church, and in the middle of the message, he began to speak about the Jesus Movement of the 1970’s, and how God is getting ready to do that again. One of the major keys of transformation are the university age students, he said, and they need us to mother and father them, encourage them and speak into their destiny. I would encourage you to listen to the message; here is the link: http://cothaudio.org/Church_of_the_Hills/Teachings/Entries/2010/12/5_Entry_1_1.html. It was like he looked into my heart and spoke out why I am here at Campus Renewal, and why my heart is desperate to find like-minded people who are willing to invest in this generation. I had a dream a couple of years ago, and God has resurfaced it in my mind, and makes me aware of it every day. In the dream, I walked onto a battlefield that was full of chaos. People were wandering around, confused and directionless. There was fighting on a couple of fronts, but there were holes everywhere. I remember thinking, I just need to do what I need to do, and picked up my armor and weapons and headed to one of the holes in the fighting line. As I went, I looked back and saw people picking up their weapons also. While some followed me, some went to other places in the battle, and some headed to the recovery tents – the point is, they all went where they were needed. A friend of mine once told me, “I may not be able to or am called to fight in the frontlines, but I can equip you to do that, and know that I am part of that victory.”

 

Will you join us in this battle? We need people to come along side of us as well as those who hold down the fort. We need those mothers and fathers who can mentor and encourage, and we need people willing to teach and pastor. Also, to continue in my role, we need those who will financially support me in my part for the ministry as a whole. And, as always, we need and appreciate your prayer support.

 

I would love to talk and meet with you if you would like to find out if our how you can volunteer or work with Campus Renewal, (or just college students in general).  If you’d like to make a special or monthly gift, you can go to www.campusrenewal.org and click on donate, mail a check to Campus Renewal Ministries, 2421 San Antonio St suite B, Austin, Texas 78705. If you would like to make a stock donation, please call 512.331.5991. Remember to check with your employers to see if they do matching donations.

 

Really great God stories have come out of this year, and I’m anticipating even more for this next year, for all of us! Merry Christmas, and have a blessed New Year!

 

 

 

 

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Akpene's Adventures Volume 2 Issue 6

Hi all!

 

The semester is drawing to a close, and as usual, God is showing up all over the place! I am so excited to be where I am doing what I do, it’s very special. There are many things that happen in so many areas, it’s hard to narrow things down, but I’ll try!

 

Ballroom Dancing Missional Community

Remember our friend Santos, the instructor who got saved? He continues to blow my mind. He has taken a prayer hour at the Campus House of Prayer and shows up consistently when he’s in town. His humility and awareness of God’s grace astounds me and makes me look at myself and how I respond to what God has done for me. His passion for the things of the Lord has not waned, and it’s wonderful to see how he reaches out in small ways to the people of the class. It truly is a miracle!

 

In our class, we have a ton of international people; from India, Serbia, China, Russia, and Switzerland (that we know of). My co-worker, Tanya, and I realized that many of them may not have a place to go for the holidays so we wanted to do something for them. God provided a person who has opened up their home, so we are having a Thanksgiving on Friday evening for them. One amazing thing that has happened already is that one of the students in the class who is not particularly friendly, and has on several occasions given us a definite impression that she didn’t particularly like us, RSVP’d and said that she’s bringing her father! WOW! Here is a chance to tangibly be a part of what God is doing in this community: We need folks to volunteer to fix a side dish, dessert or drink (we have the turkey already) to contribute to the meal on Friday. I can come by in the morning and pick it up, and can return any dishes or cookware the next day. If you want to double up a recipe and contribute part, that would be fantastic. Please call, email, text or Facebook me by Monday, November 22^nd.

 

Across The Nation

God is moving in the hearts of students, faculty, staff and general volunteers who have a heart for the collegiate mission field! In New York City after the awesome response at One Cry (click here to read about it!), those students have been praying for the NYC metro area. They set a simple but seemingly impossible goal: to have prayer catalyst groups - students praying for campus transformation - on 44 campuses (half the campuses in the NYC area) by the end of this school year. They just had a catalyst meeting, which really encouraged the core group that this goal can be reached. Jaeson Ma had a screening of his new movie, 1040: Christianity in the New Asia, the previous weekend, and called out for those willing to pray for their city. Over 400 students at that location in Flushing, New York, signed up alone!  It was totally unplanned and unexpected. God is bringing in the harvest!

 

At the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, they’ve seen over 3 times as many students praying at the Campus House of Prayer regularly that at this same time last year. Students are being challenged by our staff to pray for their campus like never before, and they are answering the call!

 

At Texas State University in San Marcos, Campus Ministers are praying weekly, and they are starting to see the spiritual climate on the campus changing. Students who don’t know Jesus are open to hearing the gospel. Campus Ministers are partnering in covenant relationship with trust. You need to watch this video testimony from one of the Campus Ministers; it’s incredible, and personally builds my faith. It’s nearly 10 minutes long, but worth every minute! Watch here!

 

Prayer Requests

I think I mention this often; the harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Monthly, sometimes weekly, we have student’s campus ministers, parents, contacting us asking if we have volunteers or staff in their area that can help them with united prayer groups or facilitate some missional communities leadership groups – from the Midwest to the southeast, from California even to Canada, and we just don’t have those human resources. Please pray for God to bring the workers in, people – students, graduates, marketplace workers, volunteers- who have a passion to see the collegiate mission field transformed by the gospel of Jesus Christ.

 

Besides human resources, I still need support for the amount I am responsible to raise for the work of Campus Renewal Ministries. It is coming to a critical point, and I need your help. Please pray for the support needed to come in, for open doors as I approach different organizations, and for opportunities to present the mission and vision and mission of CRM to different small groups. If you want to give directly online, either through credit or debit, or through an electronic funds transfer, please visit www.campusrenewal.org, and click on the donate link. I would love to meet with you and tell you more about what is happening.

 

As always, I’d love to hear from you – what God is doing in your lives, and your triumphs and prayer needs. Shoot me a message or give me a call any time!

 

Much Love!

 

Akpene

sweetspirit96@gmail.com

512.293.9107

Akpenesadventures.blogspot.com

Find me on Facebook – Akpene at Campus Renewal Ministries

www.campusrenewal.org

www.reachingcampus.com

 

 

 

 

 

FW: Reaching Campus: A call to prayer

Hi folks,

This was written by one of my coworkers. There's not much to add. We are all doing all right, and our students are amazing; mobilizing prayer at every turn. Blessings to you all!

Akpene

 

From: noreply+feedproxy@google.com [mailto:noreply+feedproxy@google.com] On Behalf Of Reaching Campus
Sent: Wednesday, September 29, 2010 9:28 AM
To: sweetspirit96@gmail.com
Subject: Reaching Campus

 

Reaching Campus

---

Campus on Lock Down Posted: 28 Sep 2010 01:52 PM PDT Today was just supposed to be another ordinary day in the office. But I guess I should have learned by now that every time I think that, something crazy happens and today was no exception. This is not a joke The morning began with a phone call from an old friend. "Are you okay? Have you heard?" "Yes I'm fine… wait, what's going on?" "There's a gunman at UT. Shots have been fired. Whatever you do, don't set foot on campus… I just wanted to make sure you were safe." Racing to my roommate Jill's room, I told her the news and flipped on the TV and there it was. A gunman had entered the campus around 8am in the morning, opened fire, and then taken his life on the sixth floor of the Perry Casténada Library, one of the largest and most popular libraries on The University of Texas at Austin campus. The university had gone into lock down, with SWAT teams, Austin and UT policemen canvasing the area for a possible second suspect. I sat there trying to absorb all the chaotic information, fingers flying away as I sent out texts, emails and fielded phone calls. Everyone was trying to call each other to make sure we were all safe. Jill sat next to me reading her Bible. If there ever was a time to pray, this was it. Silence in the streets The Campus House of Prayer (CHOP) was all but empty when I arrived. Helicopters were flying overhead and sirens rang every 15 minutes warning students to stay indoors. The streets were eerily quiet, empty parking lots, devoid of most people save for a throng of reporters, cameramen, and the occasional student making their way back to nearby apartments. Walking through the front door, I hugged my co-workers Tanya and Akpene. The three of us sat in the office quietly listening to the live stream from Fox news on the shooting. Texts, emails and facebook messages were still flooding in, but things were a little calmer now. Reports said that save for the gunman's apparent suicide after firing shots, no one else had been injured. All our friends and family members had been accounted for, and we thanked God that there were no innocent casualties. I still couldn't believe this was happening. Not today. Not on my campus. A call to pray As you might have guessed, today's post is not the usual entry for this blog. But then again, today was not your usual day. While it saddens me to have had this happen on my beloved campus, it's been interesting to see the wave of prayer that has been going on since news first broke of the shooting. Christian students who were in lock down in campus buildings found other Christians to pray with, and it seems as though the entire Body of Christ has been mobilized. In my opinion, today has jolted us into realizing that more than ever, we must cover our campuses in prayer. So what am I saying? This is a call to pray. Pray for our campus, the students, faculty and administrators. For the shooter's family. But don't just pray for us, pray for your campus too. It has been said that times of crisis often drive people towards God. And while I'm certain God can and will bring something good out of today's incident, don't put yourself in a situation where you require a crisis to get on your knees before Him. Our campuses need people to fight for them. And as with all things, it starts with prayer. So pray. And we'll continue to do the same. "God is our refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea." -Psalm 46:1-2

 

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Akpene's Adventures Volume 2 Issue 5

Hey Folks!

 

It’s been an amazing and busy start to the school year! I had the opportunity to go visit my brother and sister-in-law and their new baby just outside of Boston, as well as running over to New York to attend some meetings and to look over the lay of the land. God has been moving in remarkable ways, and I’m so excited to share my stories with you…

 

Jesus and Ballroom Dancing

Yes, I did put ballroom dancing! My co-worker, Tanya, and I have been taking free ballroom dancing lessons at the UT campus on Thursday nights. It’s great fun, it’s exercise, and we’re meeting all sorts of people. We decided to pray for and get involved more with that group. Our instructor is incredible, but very much in the dance world. While I was in Boston, Tanya called me up to tell me the most amazing thing. She was in our prayer room and she decided to put our names down on the wall that listed missional communities (organic groups that CRM staff and students are involved with that we want to relationally share and expose others to who Jesus really is). Later that very same day someone knocked on the door, and she came face to face with our instructor, Santos! Can you imagine how surprised the both of them were? He didn’t know that we worked at the Campus House of Prayer; he had come there because he had come for some sort of a meeting last year and he remembered it as a place of refuge. What happened was this – he had been going through some hard things and had hit rock bottom. A friend of his led him to Christ, and when he needed somewhere to go to pray, here he came! Still amazed, Tanya told him about missional communities and how she and I have committed his class to prayer and relationship. He was so excited and thrilled that he had other Christians in his class! What a great way to lay hands (literally) on everyone in our community! Oh, the story doesn’t stop there, though. Tanya invited him to her simple church, but he was already going to be going with his friend that led him to Christ. But that weekend, he was baptized by one of our student church leaders. The following week in class, the whole atmosphere was lighter and more free, and Santos has signed up to pray weekly at the CHOP.

 

In telling that whole situation to other people, not only do I see God working in amazing, miraculous, “coincidental” ways, I see the power of the testimony live and at work. Hope kindles in people’s eyes and hearts, and they are more encouraged to go to their communities, live life with Jesus at the center, and expect Him to do the same thing that they were just hearing. So why not Jesus and ballroom dancing, or Jesus and skateboarding, or Jesus and book clubs, or Jesus and whatever! Just a thought…

 

Fusion of Vision

One of the meetings I attended in New York City was a Fusion Group for Campus Ministers. You all are certainly getting an education in this edition! Fusion groups are leaders praying with leaders on a consistent basis to grow in relationship and partner in mission together for the transformation of a campus. So this group held quite a few leaders of well known ministries like Campus Crusade and Intervarsity, and we prayed through II Chronicles 34 and 35 for the campus in the city. As we prayed for the students, the leaders, and the atmosphere, what came out was a unified vision of transformation that I’ve been praying for since I myself was in college, but haven’t really and truly seen until that moment. I knew for sure that my heart was joined with theirs, and that this was a huge reason why God is moving me to this place. It was a powerful revelation for me, and has made me excited and more purposeful about the steps I need to take in order to walk out that vision. Will you join with us to see this amazing, influential city transformed by the power of God?

 

Austin President’s Banquet

For those of you in Austin, I would like to extend to you the invitation to come to Campus Renewal’s President’s Banquet taking place on October 14^th at 7 pm at the University of Texas Alumni Center. This is a great time to hear Jeremy Story share his heart and the heart of the ministry in which I am involved. The tickets are $30, or $250 to sponsor a table of 8-10 people who would like to come along with you. I would love to see some supporting faces that evening! You can register here at www.campusrenewal.org/austinbanquet.

 

There’s always more happening than I can describe in this letter. I would be so happy to fill you in on anything that interests you, and would love to hear what God is doing in your own lives. The power of testimony works both ways, I love being encouraged!

 

May you be blessed beyond all belief!!!

 

Akpene

sweetspirit96@gmail.com

512.293.9107

akpenesadventures.blogspot.com

Find me on Facebook! Akpene at Campus Renewal Ministries

Check out our new blog:

www.reachingcampus.com

 

 

Akpene's Adventures Volume 2 Issue 4

Hi folks!

Guess what? I’m moving!!

Okay, now that I have your attention, let me update you on the last couple of months. It’s been a busier summer than I expected, with a lot of system changes to do before the school year begins. We had our staff summit at our University of Tennessee hub in Knoxville. 3 other co-workers and I drove there, and swung through New Orleans on the way back. Some of you know how much I love driving – I had a minor meltdown about 8 hours away from Knoxville on the way home. The others just laughed at me. Next time, I’ll take a plane. The summit meetings were very intense but very good. We refined our vision, and came up with some great strategic plans for this coming year. I can say in hindsight that it was worth the drive…

A Couple of Good God Stories

Staten Island is known in New York City as the forgotten borough because most New Yorkers don't visit there and much of what happens in the city is centered elsewhere.  A staff worker from another ministry that we partner with, Miles,  met with our president and told him, "I have great news! The College of Staten Island administration has given me permission to start a church on campus!  Our students are praying now more than ever thanks in large part to Campus Renewal Ministries efforts.  I want to base much of this new church on the principles of missional communities we learned in CRM's Spark Course.  Can you help us?"

Miles and his students have been praying for breakthrough to have a church on the campus for a while.  I learned from Miles that God has recently brought a new high level administrator to the campus who is a Christian.    Miles went to see her in order to ask her if he could start a church on campus.  Before he could ask her she proposed the idea to him, "Miles, have you ever thought about starting a church on campus?  I think it would fill a need on our campus."  What is amazing is that in the past the College of Staten Island has had a history of turning away any outside involvement from any religious group.  Come on, God!

This summer, in a tremendous show of unity, as well as in an effort to cater to the summer college crowd, 11 ministries came together for 9 weeks of united teaching on the book of Acts! “It’s about creating a great place of worship with shared ownership, ” said Justin Christopher, our UT Campus Director. “We want to create a place for those who don’t have summer programs.” He and the other campus ministers wanted to develop a summer program to allow students from different ministries to come together and worship, as well as be exposed to different styles of teaching. We’re hoping that this in-depth study of the book of Acts will cause more students to be passionate about being missional and reaching those around them.

A Look to the Future

So, back to my first comment. In order to explain where I’m going, let me start with where I’ve been. I’ve been feeling for the last couple of months that I’m supposed to move to the Northeast. Now, that made no sense to me, because I know God called me to Austin. Some of you will remember, I received that promise – when Austin has been transformed, then I can go to France (that’s my long-term goal). God turned my heart to Austin, and I’ve been excited about what’s happening. So when that thought came, I pushed it away until I couldn’t ignore it anymore. I told God if this was of Him, then I will go, but to be frank, I had a bad attitude about it. I reminded Him of the word He Himself had given me, and Jehovah Sneaky replied, “I never said you’d be in Austin when it happened.” Sooo not fair. Anyway, I was reminded  of how dry, hard and apathetic the spiritual atmosphere was in Europe, and it reinforced my desire to return to France, and underscored why I’m in campus ministry – to grab a hold of and train this next wave of young people who are going into the market place and government and whatnot and change the status quo. That’s when God explained (it usually happens that way, you say yes, and then He tells you the details…). He said I’m sending you to the Northeast as a training ground before you go to Europe. Anyone who has been to both places can tell you of the similar spiritual climate.

What does this look like? Your guess is as good as mine. ;D I know for sure that I’m not moving tomorrow! As far as where, it will be to New York City, since that is where the president of CRM is, it will greatly aid in my duties as I assist him. I will probably look for a place just outside the city (for financial and sanity reasons) to live and commute in. I was looking at December, but it will more likely be June before I settle things here in Austin and raise my support. I would love to go into more detail and answer any questions to anyone who would like – please call, text or email me, and we can get together!

Thanks ever so much for your prayers as I live through this adventure that God has designed.

Blessings,

Akpene

sweetspirit96@gmail.com

512.293.9107

Find me on Facebook! Akpene at Campus Renewal Ministries

Akpene's Adventures Volume 2 Issue 3 Correction!!!!!

Hi Folks!

 

Sorry about this – someone just notified me that the URL for the website is incorrect: it is www.campusrenewal.org/sparks to buy the book. Sorry about that!

Akpene

 

More to Come

This is not all that has been going on, so I do encourage you to read all about it on our blog page. School is winding down, but we still have many things going on. One of our staff just recently finished a book about the missional community movement going on. You can go to www.campusrenewal.org/sparkbook to download the free chapter of Sparks, by Raul Garcia, which details a movement of missional communities that is seeing God expose these future leaders to the truth of His Gospel. You can also buy the access to the eBook for $1.99 on our website at www.campusrenewal.org/sparks, or you can go to Amazon and download a version for your Kindle. The University of Texas is also hosting a first ever united retreat, where multiple ministries are getting together to pray and plan for the upcoming school year. This is a new thing, and we’re excited to see where it will lead!

 

Can you see the theme that’s springing up? God is uniting His people like never before, and we are starting to see the fruits of that! This is one of the reasons why I decided to partner with Campus Renewal Ministries. Our vision of forging partnerships in prayer, across organizational boundaries is one that I see is an important building block of transforming our campuses. I think of that passage in Ephesians 4, where we are one body and one Spirit, one Lord, and one faith, but in that body we have different roles and callings that work differently. When we work together, though, as one  body, we grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head – Christ. This is my heart and my ultimate goal, and as I go into this season of support raising, I would love to share more about the vision and mission of Campus Renewal, and all the ways that God is moving through and among us. I am still working to raise the $4000 monthly support that I am responsible for out of the CRM budget, and will follow up personally with those interested in supporting the work of CRM in collegiate ministries. As always, you can visit our website (www.campusrenewal.org) and click on donate. I appear 1^st on the list, and you have the option to make a monthly or a one-time donation. You can also send a check to:

 

Campus Renewal Ministries

2421 San Antonio St. STE B

Austin, Texas 78705

 

You can make the gift to CRM preference for my support on a separate note, not on the check itself.

 

I would love to meet with those of you in Austin this summer to tell you more about what’s happening, both in my life and ministry as well as in yours. Thanks for all your support, and happy May!!

 

Much Love,

Akpene

 

sweetspirit96@gmail.com

512.293.9107

akpenesadventures.blogspot.com

Find me on Facebook! Akpene at Campus Renewal Ministries

 

Akpene's Adventures Volume 2 Issue 3

Hi Folks!

It has been an amazing 6 weeks or so since I last updated you! God is so awesome in what He’s doing in the college campuses, and I really love what I’m doing now because of that! So, where do I start, so much to say!!!

REZ Week

I told you about our annual Resurrection Week in my last letter. Thank you for praying; it was awesome!! We had an art gallery, musical performances, poetry, free coffee, tea, hot chocolate, painted murals throughout the week, worship, prayer, and evening teachings by Matt Chandler of the Village Church in Flower Mound, Texas. He spoke on prayer, confession, and we ended in a solemn assembly that people fasted for, in which students gathered together and prayed prayers of blessings and repentance for one another. This Rez week was the largest attended one in quite a while (you can see the pictures of people on the patio of Gregory Gym and overflowing across the street to the business school. Craziness!). What was really cool was that on Thursday night, the night of the solemn assembly, when we didn’t have the draw of a well known speaker and it was clear that we were going to be fasting and praying, we still had a very large gathering. I believe that’s a huge testimony to how prayer and its importance is growing in the hearts of the students. Please pray for this momentum to continue, and that out of this springs up more united prayer movements!

One Cry

April 9^th we hosted the national solemn assembly event, One Cry, in New York City. It was incredible, absolutely incredible. I was able to be on site for this event to help facilitate this. It was held at Times Square Church, and between 900-1000 people attended, from different churches and city campus. It was also live broadcasted on God TV and the internet. There were so many great things, but the highlight for me was after the national portion was done, Jeremy, our president, gave a call to action for those present in NYC. Using the text from Luke 10:2-3, he talked about the plentiful harvest and the need for workers to go. He painted the picture very clearly that the harvest wasn’t the issue, that we need to raise up more workers. He then asked for people to stand that would commit to praying for and being those workers, and I saw maybe 50 or so stand up. Jeremy took it a step further and asked them to come forward so they could be prayed for and commissioned by the speakers and the students who lead prayer to go forth into the harvest, and also to be connected to each other, across organizational and campus divisions, to unite together in that prayer. Over 100 students surged forward, and I could barely see through my tears as I saw these generals commissioned and connected. The best part about this was the follow up; they just had a meeting this last week of those who came forward to plan strategically, to pray and to encourage each other. It absolutely humbles me to be a part of something historic like that! Please pray for these prayer catalyst as they invade the New York City area with their united prayer efforts!

Street Preachers

Another one of our hubs, at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, managed to turn what the devil meant for evil into good. Apparently every year, street preachers descend on the campus declaring and preaching hellfire and damnation, igniting tempers, spreading hopelessness, and leaving a bad taste in people’s mouths and hearts about the “love” of Jesus. This year, when they came, students from all different organizations came and were able to talk with the people who were hearing the denouncing, condemning and accusations. The situation was ripe for God-conversations, and the Christian students were able to “Insert Love Here”, if I may steal the title from a sermon I heard recently. What was exciting was the unity among organizations. One group could not have handled this situation alone. Suzanne of Vols For Christ stated, “How cool it was to see the body of Christ come together [to redeem a potentially harmful and divisive situation].” You really need to read the full story on this (as well as the others that I only just touch on) on our blog at www.campusrenewal.org/blog. Please pray for the students that heard about the love of God, that they keep seeking for Him, and for other situations like this to be turned to God’s glory!

More to Come

This is not all that has been going on, so I do encourage you to read all about it on our blog page. School is winding down, but we still have many things going on. One of our staff just recently finished a book about the missional community movement going on. You can go to www.campusrenewal.org/sparkbook to download the free chapter of Sparks, by Raul Garcia, which details a movement of missional communities that is seeing God expose these future leaders to the truth of His Gospel. You can also buy the access to the eBook for $1.99 on our website at www.campusrenewal.org/sparks, or you can go to Amazon and download a version for your Kindle. The University of Texas is also hosting a first ever united retreat, where multiple ministries are getting together to pray and plan for the upcoming school year. This is a new thing, and we’re excited to see where it will lead!

Can you see the theme that’s springing up? God is uniting His people like never before, and we are starting to see the fruits of that! This is one of the reasons why I decided to partner with Campus Renewal Ministries. Our vision of forging partnerships in prayer, across organizational boundaries is one that I see is an important building block of transforming our campuses. I think of that passage in Ephesians 4, where we are one body and one Spirit, one Lord, and one faith, but in that body we have different roles and callings that work differently. When we work together, though, as one  body, we grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head – Christ. This is my heart and my ultimate goal, and as I go into this season of support raising, I would love to share more about the vision and mission of Campus Renewal, and all the ways that God is moving through and among us. I am still working to raise the $4000 monthly support that I am responsible for out of the CRM budget, and will follow up personally with those interested in supporting the work of CRM in collegiate ministries. As always, you can visit our website (www.campusrenewal.org) and click on donate. I appear 1^st on the list, and you have the option to make a monthly or a one-time donation. You can also send a check to:

Campus Renewal Ministries

2421 San Antonio St. STE B

Austin, Texas 78705

You can make the gift to CRM preference for my support on a separate note, not on the check itself.

I would love to meet with those of you in Austin this summer to tell you more about what’s happening, both in my life and ministry as well as in yours. Thanks for all your support, and happy May!!

Much Love,

Akpene

sweetspirit96@gmail.com

512.293.9107

akpenesadventures.blogspot.com

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Akpene's Adventures Volume 2 Issue 2

Greetings!

 

It seems like this month has just flown right by. So many good things have been happening, I’m sad that I can only touch upon a few things. God is moving a lot in many places, but it is so amazing to see His Hand moving in the college ministry. It gets me so excited that I can hardly contain myself at times! Let me share with you:

 

The Collegiate Day of Prayer

What a monumental day! There are so many stories of what God did, and I wish I could include them all. Take a look at our blog on campusrenewal.org to read more. Here’s just a snippet of what went on at our campus: I went to pray at 8 am with one of my co-workers (a miracle in and of itself, seeing as how I am NOT a morning person) at the Tower. Oh, yes, and it was a brisk 32 degrees at that time… It was a wonderful communion time with the Lord, praying our hearts to see transformation on the campus. In the evening, we had a prayer walk, and we spread out and prayed for all the different disciplines, dorms and two of the bus routes on campus. That was pretty amazing, especially since over half of the participants had never done a prayer walked before! It was wonderful to see the passion and compassion that was stirred up in these students and others. Worship ended the day, from 10-midnight at the Tower. The Spirit fell so heavily, an guy in a wheelchair was able to stand up and walk. Now that is something I would call a highlight! There are so many more; check out the Campus Renewal blog at www.campusrenewal.org. Please continue to pray for those whose hearts were stirred up for praying for the campuses. The harvest is plenty, and God is gathering and army!

 

REZ Week

Every year, the University of Texas puts on an event called Resurrection Week (Rez Week) the 4^th week of March, and other campuses have been picking this up. This year, UT’s theme is Breaking Ground, and the reference is Hosea 10:12, “Sow for yourselves righteousness; Reap in mercy; Break up your fallow ground, For it is time to seek the LORD, Till He comes and rains righteousness on you.” We’re asking the Lord for a ground breaking, preparing the land for His harvest. There will be prayer, speakers, testimonies (we’re hoping the young man who walked from his wheelchair will come speak!), and end with a solemn assembly, where the focus is worship and repentance. Please pray for the hearts of all those hearing the message on those four days, that they be open to receive what the Lord wants to plant in them!

 

The Harvest at the University of Texas

Speaking of harvest, boy howdy! God has really been moving! One of our students felt led to go and talk to, befriend and minister to a pagan group society. God certainly went before her, because the last report was that several of them gave their lives to Jesus, and quite of few of the others were questioning their beliefs and searching hard after the Lord. A couple of weeks ago, Intervarsity ministry had an event called Not For Sale, where they talked about human trafficking. This was actually a united event that several different ministries were involved in. At the end, there were over 20 response cards that indicated those students giving their lives to Christ, and all of them are connecting with someone to help walk out that decision. There was also another event, called Sex and the City, talking about purity and relationships. Over 400 girls attended, and over 30 students got saved! Events like this are blowing our minds – the response to Christ’s message is larger than we’ve ever seen! Please pray for those who have newly started on their Christian journey, and also that the unification of these different ministries will continue to show exponentially more fruit than we’ve seen even now!

 

One Cry

There is so much that is going on, I will be brief. There is a solemn assembly scheduled for April 9^th and 10^th at Times Square Church in New York City, which will be televised nationally. This is a prayer and worship event that had a huge impact last year, and we are praying for an increase this year. Go to our website (www.campusrenewal.org) and click on One Cry for more information. This will blow your mind, I promise you! This is a YouTube link to the promotional video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_AJPJ0lbb4

 

With all that is happening, I do appreciate your prayers. I have been all kinds of sick in the last month (right now, I am fighting the flu), and I keep seeing major appliances bite the dust wherever I am. I am excited for what God is doing, and following where I see Him moving. I know the enemy is not happy about it, but I do have my eye on the prize: Philippians 3:14, “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Praise the Lord, I am on the downside of 50% of the monthly support I am responsible to raise for Campus Renewal! If you or someone you know is interested in supporting the work of CRM in collegiate ministries, visit our website and click on donate, or you can also send a check to:

Campus Renewal Ministries

2421 San Antonio St. STE B

Austin, Texas 78705

 

You can make the gift to CRM preference for my support on a separate note, not on the check itself.

 

If you would like to hear more in depth of what is happening, please feel free to contact me! I am always excited to testify to God’s goodness and miracles. Also, please share with me your own testimonies, God stories and prayer request. I would love to partner with you in your own journey! Blessings to all!

 

Much Love,

Akpene

 

 

 

 

Akpene's Adventures Volume 2, Issue 1

Hi all!

 

Let the fun begin! I talked to many of you about my desire to work with Campus Renewal Ministries (CRM) in reaching college students. God took my yes and totally rocket launched me forward. Thanks to an anonymous donor on the National Level, I was able to get involved and start almost immediately! Amazing, isn’t it? So much has happened, I hope I can convey all that God is doing!

 

Executive Coordinator

Don’t you love it when you think you’re thinking big, and God expands your vision? My heart is to reach college students through what CRM is doing, though I wasn’t exactly sure how to go about doing that. Having volunteered before for short projects, many of the staff knew me and my heart, so when the donation came in to hire an assistant to the president, I was called to fill the role. Tentatively, but excitedly, I said yes. Wow, what a ride, and what opportunity! In addition to bringing some order to the chaos that Jeremy (the president) has been trying handle for the past 14 years, I am helping shape some of the structures and procedures that we use to plant missional communities as well as students and campus minister prayer leadership groups on campuses across the nation. Locally, at the University of Texas, I am involved in one of those student prayer leadership groups and mentoring one of those students. And this is just getting my feet wet! Please pray as I step into this role, that I may be able to assist Jeremy to the fullest so that he can increase his efficiency.

 

Passion Conference 2010

January 1-5, I went to the Passion Conference as an intercessor for the 24 hour prayer team. For those unfamiliar with this, it is this massive conference for college students  who desire to see a spiritual awakening come to the college campus of this nation and the world. There we’re some very wonderful days, and some tough days. One person on our team was stopped in the center several times by groups of students asking about God, what sin is really, and who IS this Jesus? The seeking hunger and passion of these students were never more apparent than at that time. There will be another conference in January of 2011, and I am making plans to be there, crying out for these students once again. Please pray for these students to find the truth that will set them free!

 

Collegiate Day of Prayer

February 25^th (which happens to be my birthday! Who would’ve thunk!) is the National Collegiate Day of Prayer, and it is already amazing. There is so much to say about it; I encourage you to go to this website – www.collegiatedayofprayer.org – to read up on the history of it. CRM, along with Collegiate Impact, Student Church Movements, International House of Prayer, Campus America, and Student Volunteer Movement 2, have come together to call the churches and colleges back together this day for a global student awakening. The momentum has taken off and far surpassed everyone’s expectations! There are well over 50 colleges and organizations participating on that day! Here in Austin, we will be having 24 hours of prayer, from midnight February 25^th to midnight on the 26^th at the Tower on the UT Campus. There will be prayer, worship, and prayer walking. Please contact me if you or your group would like to get involved! Please pray that every campus and student will take up prayer on this day, that we may see the transformation of our colleges and cities.

 

That is the news for this month; I aim to give you an update on what’s happened and what is coming up so that you can know what I’m doing and where the ministry is going. I am also still raising funds; while the surprise gift was enough to get me started, I do not have the full support needed to fully minister in all the ways needed. I have about 50% of my monthly goal – I still need to raise $2000 monthly. There are two ways you can give:

1.       Go to www.campusrenewal.org, click on ‘DONATE’ on the top left, then click on the Online Donation link. On the menu on the left, click on Staff Support, and I am the first one.

2.       Send a check or a money order to:

Campus Renewal Ministries

2421 San Antonio Street Suite B

Austin, Texas 78705

 

Put on a separate slip: Akpene Torku

 

Thank you for all your prayers! Please let me know how I can partner with you in your own journey!

 

Much Love,

Akpene