GT Crossroads - students, staff and great summer adventures

Georgia Tech students work hard during the school year. Not surprisingly, they like to take on exciting and challenging ventures during their summers. You can find Tech students in the top paid internships at international companies like Volvo. Many students are studying and touring Europe or Australia.

GT Crossroads staff member, Greg Ashworth, lead a team of students for a six week summer mission project to Sarajevo, Bosnia. Our ministry adopted the University of Sarajevo ten years with the goal of planting an indigenous student movement. Ten years in to this very challenging endeavor we are happy to report that God is doing great things in Sarajevo. 

Darin McKenna, a Crossroads student leader, recently sent me a Bosnia summer mission project update. Here is how he summarized their activities:

 We met over 130 students from the University of Sarajevo. The entire Gospel was shared no less than 80 times in our 5 weeks there. We are connecting around 30 students to the long-term staff of Svaki Student in Sarajevo. We were able to serve the long-term staff by:planning a weekly meeting for them, baby-sit their children, plan events (such as a cookout, rafting trip, soccer day, girls party, and a talent show) for the organization, and beef up their numbers for a real game of ultimate frisbee (since Bosnians are soccer purists...). We attempted to serve at an orphanage (it fell through due to the insane amount of paper work and barriers they put up for us). Our goodbye party had around 30+ people, which was a surprise because of the large rainstorm that happened right before it started.

Greg, Darin and the entire team did a great job in Sarajevo this summer. I cannot wait to hear more of the stories of the students they met and the many conversations that they had about Christ. God clearly was at work leading them to the right people and using them to share Christ' love and the Gospel. 

A story from Darin:

  Once during the trip, a lady who worked at the Copy Shop down the road from the student house saw what our leader (Greg) was printing. She asked if he was a Christian. When he replied "Yes," she said "Then who is this Jesus and how do I have a relationship with him?" She started working at that copy shop only days before we arrived in Sarajevo and stopped a week before we left.

   

As we plan and raise funds for the Fall at Tech, we are encouraged once again by the potential for impact that the students here at Tech have when they "get out" for the summer or for good!

Tech people in Bosnia this summer! Darin (Left in Blue shirt, Greg is slightly on the right at the back of the table.

Vision for influencing institutions

This summer I saw a glimpse of what I believe is to come on the Georgia Tech campus.

In May, almost 80 students from around the Southeast met up with Campus Crusade staff in Destin, Florida, to live and learn together for three weeks.   This was my "summer assignment."

Greek Summit students and staff

While not all of these students were mature Christians (yet), they were all Greek -- members of fraternities and sororities on their respective campuses   --  and they all had a desire to be some kind of influence for Christ in their Greek houses.   As I worked with the fraternity men in my group, I saw fresh examples of how God is at work in these students' lives.  

For example, last year there were only a handful of University of Alabama students at Greek Summit, but this year 20 Alabama students came, and they gave numerous accounts of friends coming to know Christ over the past year.   The handful of students from last year had been immersed in God's word and Christian community and had been empowered by the Holy Spirit in such a way, that when they returned to campus, their enthusiasm for Christ was contagious.   Being Greek, they had a natural network of trusted friends with whom to share the love of Christ.  Now God is using the faithful influence of a few to bless this influential, yet secular, campus institution.  

Bean (L) a student leader at Eastern Kentucky University invited his fraternity brother, Dalton, to Greek Summit. Dalton came to know Christ and the result was life-changing for them both.

Shortly after I returned from Greek Summit, I had lunch with Drew Johnson, an alumnus of the Tech Greek ministry.  Drew and I were discussing how his new company might help us equip students to live effectively for Christ post-graduation. Drew became a believer through the outreach of students involved in Crusade's fraternity ministry in the mid-nineties. Talking with Drew was a great reminder of the potential impact of Christ-centered, missional movement that begins with the leaders in a community.

Gt Greek Alum, Drew Johnson
   

Georgia Tech is a campus teeming with leaders and potential leaders. The Greek System represents nearly 30% of the student body and one of the most open institutions on campus to share Christ.  While we don't focus solely on the Greek system, it has proven to be a fruitful ministry ground.

Our ministry plan for 2011-2012 includes creative cookouts, talks to pledge classes, outreach Bible studies, and life-on-life ministry among fraternities and sororities in order to influence the Georgia Tech Greek community. Please join us in praying for two things:

1) Full funding for the McEntyres and the Georgia Tech campus budget. My wife and I are excited to be leading the Georgia Tech ministry this year. But, one of the challenges we face is raising adequate support to cover our expenses as well as the central budget for our team. For example, we need $1,500/month for just the amount we need to raise for our role in the Greek ministry. We also need $20,000 in one time gifts for our summer and fall ministry expenses.
     2) An effective leadership and staff team for engaging student leaders at Tech. We are leading a team of two full time staff men and potentially three full time intern women. Please pray that our influence among leaders at Tech will be an overflow of the community and vision of our staff team.