One Conversation

Cru is a big missions organization.  About 800 staff work at the World Headquarters serving about 8,000 US staff, and another 10,000 globally.  And yet what defines Cru the most is…

...one conversation.

It is a conversation explaining how someone can know God personally.  It is a conversation helping someone to share their faith with a friend.  It is a conversation inviting someone trust God with a difficult period of life.  It is a conversation inviting someone to invest a week, a summer, a year, or a lifetime in telling others about Jesus.

This weekend I was talking to two of my high school friends about Gary, a Cru staff member who invested in each of our lives.  When I was 17 he sat with me on a stairwell and explained how I could walk in the Spirit moment by moment, and I still remember that conversation.

You can probably point to a conversation like that in your life.

When Cru went through the name change a few years ago they interviewed hundreds of people about what being a part of Cru meant to them.  There were three common themes:  They experienced changed lives,  they formed meaningful relationships, and they had opportunities to engage in the mission of introducing others to Jesus.

This video is a picture of what Cru helps happen.

Thank you.

This month we all celebrate Thanksgiving, and we thank you for investing in our lives and ministry.  You not only allow us to serve with Cru, but you help us make a difference in different parts of Cru all over the world.  Thank you for your friendship with us. We can’t express enough how much your partnership means to us.

With love and thanks,

And here is one more 2 minute video about why we do what we do.

The Hard Work of New

THE HARD WORK OF NEW

Coach Alan at work

This summer Macy decided she wanted to play softball in high school.  As a 14 year old freshman, she had never swung anything but a whiffle ball bat.  At the tryouts a woman said to her, “You are kind of old to be getting started, aren’t you?  Can you even throw?”  
Macy wanted to leave, but went through with the tryouts. We are full of admiration for her bravery and willingness to step into something so new that she has to learn how to do everything!
God gave her Coach Alan, who has been very encouraging, telling her not to worry about being behind, telling her making players better, “is what I do.”  He has kindly spent significant time with her, meticulously adjusting her throwing motion, her swing, how she moves her feet…everything.  Macy is having to pay attention to everything she does.  It feels awkward because it is all new, but she is learning.  With multiple practices and two games under her belt, she is improving every day with the skills her Coach is helping her learn.

RELENTLESS ATTENTION

When I was made aware of some areas in my life that needed to change, I also met with a coach to help me.  I found that changing my natural inclinations and behavior was hard!  It took relentless attention on what I was doing to make the changes.  Just like learning a new skill, I had to move slowly and intentionally with the new behavior I wanted to master.

As I’m coaching other leaders at Cru in areas that are hindering them, I let them know that it will mean they have to work hard at making changes to what feels natural to them.  Everyone has to go through the awkward stage before the changes feel somewhat normal.  It takes bravery and effort.     

Thank you for investing in our lives and ministry with Cru. We can’t adequately express how much your partnership means to us, and allows us to invest our lives for the sake of the gospel.

With love and thanks,

It's the little things...

PRACTICING HIS PRESENCE

Last night after dinner we sat around the table taking a Type A/B assessment. I didn’t come out as Type A, but I did observe that activity, finishing things, and being busy is a big part of who I am. But the drive to produce can keep me focused on the work, not the Lord.

Walking with God requires pausing, even if briefly, to acknowledge His presence. I too often find myself asking, “what is next?” and moving on, and I miss out on appropriating his love or wisdom, or hearing what he might want to say to me. In a devotional last week, we talked about how to help take that pause, and I tried some things. When I walked to my next meeting, I prayed for the person I was walking to meet. It has helped to take just a few minutes to say, “Thank you Lord, that you are here with me, that your Spirit empowers me. Please guide me.”


I’m hoping I can make those pauses more frequent and more of a natural part of what I do each day. It’s kind of a small thing, but I think it can help me walk moment by moment with Him.

SMALL STEPS, BIG IMPACT

At Cru, over the years, I’ve seen that implementing a relatively small change can have a large impact on the effectiveness of the mission. For example, several years ago I was able to make the month of May the time when everyone would receive their annual feedback, instead of on a work anniversary date. It was a small thing, but the result was a huge improvement on staff getting feedback from their supervisors and reinforcing our Cru values of faith, growth, and fruitfulness.

I’m working on another project now, that if successful, could have a similar impact, and result in our ability to equip our staff much more effectively, more quickly, and for less money. It may not work, but we’d appreciate your prayers for this project and my ability to navigate organizationally to see a small change bring big impact to Cru. I’ll let you know if it works or not!

Thank you for your investment in all we do with Cru.  We are so grateful for your friendship.

In Him,

JUNE CELEBRATIONS

Aubrey and Catelin

Grandpa/Dad Billy, Macy, Aubrey, Dayna, and Barrett

In June we celebrate Catelin, Aubrey, and Cara's Birthday, plus Father's Day.  We did as much celebrating as we could last month!  We are glad Barrett's Dad lives so close!