text-a-toastie

It is all sorts of necessary that i blog tonight.

For many reasons. But there is one, in particular, overriding, very incredible reason why i should overcome my current writing mode (i.e. 'just swallowed a dictionary' or 'writers block' - both due to recent essay deadlines) and blog about what just happened.

This is what just happened:

It may not seem like much, but let me explain!

Our Mission Coordinator, Becca, is very good at her role on CU exec (as are the rest of the team - but this story relates directly to her initiative!!). For the past few months, she has been contacting other CU's around the country and checking out their websites to get creative ideas of how we can be more missional, and bless Keele students in a practical way, whilst also creating opportunities to talk about our faith.

In order to make space for us to be intentional about this, we have made a tri-weekly schedule of our CU meetings.

Week 1 - ARK (Act of Random Kindness). Mission / service project / outreach on campus, and maybe an invite for them to join us the following week, which is:

Week 2 - Social. A time to hang out and fellowship together - every Society on campus has regular socials, and that usually involves heaving drinking, so we avoid that aspect and just enjoy a time where we can chill out and spend more time together, maybe go out for food or to the pub, or have a quiz or something along those lines.. and then:

Week 3 - Meeting. In this week we have a time of worship together, and teaching or discussion where we can really dig in to the Word and learn together about our amazing God!

So that's our new structure, and this week was a 'Week 1.' ARK.

Enter, 'text-a-toastie'.

I'm unsure as to what Uni we got the idea from, but having heard that it works verrrry well on a number of other campus', Becca introduced the idea to us. The last two times we've done an ARK have been making pancakes for people in blocks all over campus, and then washing up in kitchens (which is 2nd in the list of student appreciation, only to 'free food') both of which have been successful and great conversation starters. Tonight was sort of... well, a step up from these.

Lots (and lots!) of prayer and preparation went in to making this evening happen and it was just awesome to see the ways that God turned up.

Flyers, posters, a giant whiteboard outside the library and lots of facebook profile pictures helped get the word out about 'free toasties' on wednesday may 11th.

Between the hours of 7 and 9 tonight, anyone on keele campus could text in to request a toastie (with 2 fillings, cheese / tomato / ham / chocolate spread) and ask one question they have about God / Christianity / Life / the World etc...

And text they did!

Keele CU had the privilege this evening of spreading out across campus, serving and providing food to students, and giving an answer to / conversing about some of the most difficult questions that even we as Christians often struggle with.
Questions about life after death, sin and forgiveness, good vs evil, homosexuality and the church, amongst others flooded in and I couldn't help being inspired and somewhat emotional by what I saw and heard; the obvious craving for spirituality, for answers to hard questions, or just for opportunity to ask these hard questions and talk about possible answers if not the definite one... cravings for love and acceptance, for honesty, for someone to follow and look up to, for certainty in a life that is all over the place, for clarity and peace where there is confusion and hostility..

Christ offers all of this.

I have Christ to offer.

How can I keep Him to myself?

"You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.." Matt 5: 14-15

The light we have in us, is not to be hidden. The message we carry, we should not keep a secret.

I know I am blessed to be part of a CU that is so richly resourced and supported by students, by Keele itself and by the local church. I hope and pray we are using the resources we have efficiently and wisely and to their full potential and I am so very excited to see what God has in store for the rest of the year... If the past 5 months are anything at all to go by, Father will be growing and stretching us immensely as we continue to shine the light of Christ around Keele.

At the end of this long, but amazing day, I have to declare that God deserves all the glory for this and the success and fruit that has already and will come from this evening.

Hallelujah!