Category: Cru

Last year was Isaacc’s first time attending Cru at UWSP and this past week he gave his story at the first Cru of the semester. Below you can read a little about his background and what he experienced as a freshman attending Cru for the first time.
So tonight is the Cru kickoff and I am sure for a fair amount of you this is your first Cru meeting. Well, last year in late September I went to my first Cru and found myself in a similar situation as some of you are probably in. But here is a little bit of my life before I got involved with Cru. Before college my life was really not all that exciting. I had grown up in a Christian home and knew the basics about Jesus. I knew that he died for my sins and that he loved me. And I asked Jesus into my heart at a young age but that was as far as it went. I never thought about god or even cared. Instead, I pursued my own interests. I went through life doing my own thing, and I was pretty happy living that way. I used my time pursuing what the world told me I should academics, sports, money; the list goes on and on. And honestly seeking those things worked out pretty good for me. In high school I was one of the “cool” kids. I wasn’t the top dog but I was up there. I had a lot of friends, I was pretty smart, I was better than average at sports, the teachers liked me, and most importantly the freshmen feared me. My senior year of high school I started drinking and smoking weed. And again these things worked out pretty good for me. I made more friends and had a blast doing it. Now I continued this lifestyle into college where I met my roommate who just happened to be involved with Cru. He invited me out to a few Cru events where I noticed there was something different about the people who went to Cru. They didn’t care about what I could do for them; they accepted me for who I was. They invited me to hang out with them even though they didn’t know me, and we didn’t have a lot in common. One night after my first Cru meeting I said a quick and simple prayer. It went something like this god if you are real show me and I will follow you.  Now I didn’t suddenly have a ground breaking epiphany, and I didn’t break down in tears, and I didn’t kneel out in the rain with my arms out like in the Shaw Shank Redemption. But over the course of the next month as I continued to hang out with other Christians, I became more aware of god and that he wanted a relationship with me. It was then that I made the conscious decision that I believed in Jesus, and that I wanted to follow him and no longer wanted to do my own thing.  And that decision has made all the difference. Since then, my life has been turned upside down and I won’t lie to you and say my life has gotten easier or that I haven’t had to make sacrifices. Actually quite the opposite has happened; my life has become an uphill battle. And every day I have to remind myself how much I need God. So why would anyone want to follow god. Well, the reason I follow god is simply because the peace and joy that god has given to me. It’s indescribable I’ve never felt anything like it, alcohol and weed can’t even compete. Now at the beginning of my testimony I said that my life before college was uneventful. The reason I said that was because god has shown me that the best this world has to offer is nothing when compared to a life with Christ. So if you are unsure whether god exists or if he really cares about you, I just ask that right now or later tonight you just say a quick prayer. Asking god to make himself real to you, and if you continue to seek after god, he will answer. And if you give Jesus the wheel, I guarantee he will take you on the ride of your life that can only come through him.

Introducing the emcees for our weekly meeting of Cru (local chapter of Campus Crusade for Christ) at the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point. Here are a few fun questions to get to know Mike Kowbel and Heather Kelly.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
1. What is your favorite late night snack?

Heather: Ice cream. Or, if I’m feeling healthy, frozen yogurt.

Mike: Marvin’s

2. What did you do this summer?

Heather: This summer I lived in Point, worked at Jimmy Johns, and was involved in Woodlands’ church childrens’ ministry. God taught me more about His provision in my life and how to be a light in the workplace.

Mike: I taught marching band this summer, which led me to the land of Canada eh. There, we saw elk and the Canadian Rockies, along with some Mounties…they totally wore the red suits and the brown hats…

3. What’s your take on the Packers, can they do it two years in a row?

Heather: I love the Packers!!! Of course they’ll do it two years in a row!

Mike: I think the Packers are the greatest sports franchise to ever exist. Can they repeat you ask? I say not a repeat, a threepeat or even a fourpeat…I’m talking a minimum eightpeat.

4. If you could pick a super power to have, which would it be and why?

Heather: Fly. I would love to be up in the clouds with the birds.

Mike: If I could have a super power, I would definitely choose the Force…right now I’m thirsty for a Sun Drop…all I’d have to do is lift up my hand and the fridge would open and in flies a frosty cold bottle of Sun Drop wonder…the hardest part would be drinking it…

5. What would I find in your refrigerator right now?

Heather: Milk, water, apples, coffee creamer, ketchup, mustard, butter, and leftover mac and cheese. I’m obviously not a health freak.

Mike: T-Bell, Marvin’s, and all ingredients necessary to make goulash…only the essentials…

6. You are able to send one text to all of your friends as the last point of contact you will ever have. What would you text them?

Heather: Hm… I think I’d say something like, “I want u 2 know how much I care about u &, more importantly, how much Jesus cares about u. I hope u will seek out ur identity in Him & I hope I see u in heaven!”

Mike: God loves u & is desiring a true relationship w/u. He sacrificed His son 4 ur sake, taking ur place, receiving the just punishment 4 ur sin. U can know Him right now, entering into relationship w/Him, by trusting in this truth.