A year ago, I didn’t know anything about Cru or what it stood for . . . until a colleague invited me to a faculty luncheon hosted by Faculty Commons.
That invitation changed my life.
Glancing around the packed room, I saw faculty and grad students from different disciplines, strangers to me, but connected as the body of Christ.
That day it surprised me to hear the faculty speaker share about her walk with Christ and how she identifies herself as a Christian in the college. I learned that expressing our personal beliefs can happen in various appropriate ways, even on a secular university campus.
Step 1: Joined "A Grander Story" Group
Spurred by the boldness I had witnessed, I signed up to participate in a faculty discipleship group where we were discussing “A Grander Story.” Wow! What an amazing book. Each chapter captivated my mind and moved my spirit to act on what I believe. I hadn’t considered that the Lord had a specific purpose for me as a faculty member, but I was excited to take the plunge.
Step 2: Identified Myself as a Christ-follower to My Students
It was the first day of class and I stood before my students. I took a deep breath and shared a little about my family, my academic background, and myself and then calmly stated, “and I am a passionate follower of Jesus Christ.” The room was quiet. I started my lecture and ended the class by wishing them a good day. By the grace of God, something that felt like a high hurdle to me turned out to be a small step!
Step 3: Became the Point Person for Prayer in my Department
One tiny step of faith led to another. From participating in a faculty discipleship group, I started leading the discussions and eventually volunteered to be a Faculty Commons Point Person for my department. As a Point Person, I pray for my department and look for opportunities to be salt and light through simple acts of service.
For example, I am active in the University of Florida Impact Prayer Alert Team where we receive prayer requests via text messages and start to pray within 24 hours. We expanded that prayer group in the College of Nursing, and invited believers and non-believers. I can’t count the number of prayers that have been answered since we first started meeting – like the time we prayed for a colleague who needed six clinical placements. He told us he needed a miracle. That evening, he emailed our group stating he got his miracle and all six placements were found.
I’m thankful that I’m able to bring Christ along with me to my workplace and appreciative for the coaching and mentoring I received from the Faculty Commons staff. God is doing a wonderful work at our university. The activity of a healthy Faculty Commons group encouraged me to take some small steps of faith that I probably wouldn’t have taken otherwise.
With apologies to Neil Armstrong, when enough Christian professors take small steps, it can result in a giant leap for the kingdom of God.
Anita M. Stephen
University of Florida