November 2014
Please note: if you would like to receive regular updates on how to pray for Christian Union's work at Harvard, please email prayer@christianunion.org.Dear friends and partners of HCFA,
I would first like to introduce myself as the new writer of our monthly prayer email. My name is Anne Kerhoulas and I have filled the position of Jane Tsang as a female ministry fellow at Harvard. Thank you for joining with the Harvard College Faith and Action (HCFA) staff and students as we seek to see our Father truly transform Harvard culture and students.
Drawing near to Thanksgiving, the semester so far has been one of much delight and fruit as well as struggle. Our freshman campaign proved to be highly successful as the Lord brought enough students to fill three women's bible courses and two men's courses. There is such desire and excitement in these courses as many freshmen are studying the Bible in depth for the first time. It has been a beautiful experience to wrestle through Hebrews with these new students as they grapple with what it means to take their faith seriously in a culture that often seeks to place hope and faith in ourselves and our own ability. Please pray for these freshman who are still trying to figure out where they fit in at Harvard and that the Lord would be near them as they grow and are known in Christian community.
Our fall conference was the biggest it has even been with around 120 students. It was a refreshing weekend away for students as we learned more about what worship is—not simply going to church on Sunday, and certainly not simply singing, worship is what our entire lives must be composed of as we seek to glorify God in the everyday. This weekend proved to be a time for freshmen to become more integrated into the HCFA community and for the returning students to continue to bond as they entered the semester. Please pray that our students continue to grow in their understanding of worship and their experience of worship as a call to commune with God daily.
In the past two weeks, we have taken a step back from our Bible courses to address mounting questions and concerns about how our community can respond and care for the LGBTQIA community at Harvard and even within HCFA. Nick Nowalk spoke on how we as Christians understand sexuality biblically. We then hosted a conversation between Nick and a senior HCFA student who is openly gay in our community to take a closer look at the two primary views on homosexuality in scripture. Finally, Teal McGarvey, a ministry fellow at Harvard, led a discussion on singleness in the church. This has been an intense season of questioning and even some confusion for our students on the issue of homosexuality and sexuality in the church. We hope and pray that these discussions and conversations have been both educational and fruitful as we help lay a framework through which our students can think biblically about prominent issues in our culture. Please pray for wisdom for our students as they wrestle through what scripture says about sexuality. Please pray that they desire scripture to be their ultimate authority rather than one perspective in their life. Please pray that God protects them at Harvard as they navigate the tricky landscape of college as people who hold very different views from mainstream culture.
Thank you for your care and support of HCFA. We need and appreciate your prayers!
With much love,
Anne Kerhoulas
Ministry Fellow
Harvard
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