What does it take to begin a relationship with God? Do you need to devote yourself to unselfish religious deeds? Must you become a better person so that God will accept you? Learn how you can know God personally.
Learn the basics of what Christians believe.
Get the answers to frequently asked questions on Christian beliefs and practices.
Explore answers to life's biggest questions.
We all have a story. Read about individuals who have been transformed by faith.
Take the next step in your faith journey with resources on prayer, devotionals and other tools for personal and spiritual growth.
Explore resources to help you live out your life and relationships in a way that honors God.
Find resources for personal or group Bible study.
Learn to develop your skills, desire and ability to join others on their spiritual journeys and take them closer to Jesus.
Help others in their faith journey through discipleship and mentoring.
Develop your leadership skills and learn how to launch a ministry wherever you are.
View our top Cru resources in more than 20 languages.
Have some fun taking various quizzes and assessments to learn about yourself and others.
Volunteer abroad this year on a short term global missions trip offered by one of the best, most-reliable Christian missions organizations in the world.
Internship opportunities with Cru's ministries.
If you're looking for the best Christian jobs and careers, check out Cru's ministry job openings for full- and part-time missionaries and professionals.
Live in another country building relationships and ministries with eternal impact.
Would you like to give your time to work with Cru? We need you.
Find a Cru event near you.
Use your hobbies and interests to find the best place for you to serve.
Helping students know Jesus, grow in their faith and go to the world to tell others.
Reflecting Jesus together for the good of the city.
Partnering with urban churches to meet physical and spiritual needs.
Striving to see Christ-followers on every team, in every sport and in every nation.
Equipping families with practical approaches to parenting and marriage.
Reaching students and faculty in middle and high school.
Bringing hope and resources to military families worldwide.
How we seek to journey together with everyone towards a relationship with Jesus.
Answers to questions on donations, financial policies, Cru’s annual report and more.
What we believe about the gospel and our call to serve every nation.
Learn about Cru's global leadership team.
When the global church comes together then powerful things can happen.
Leading from values so others will walk passionately with God to grow and bear fruit.
Because ethnicity is part of the good of creation, we seek to honor and celebrate the ethnic identity of those with whom we serve as well as those we seek to reach.
Showing God in action in and through His people.
Hear what others are saying about Cru.
“He’s 6. He loves games. How do you describe a kid?” Shawn Cramer smiles and laughs softly, thinking about his son, Jace.
“He’s really sweet and tender. He’s kind – not as loud as I make him seem,” he beams. “He’s just a great, thoughtful boy.”
Jace Cramer – light blonde hair combed sideways like his dad’s and a huge smile full of baby teeth – has been Shawn’s inspiration for his “Man Trainings” project since its conception 4 years ago. The project consists primarily of photos with Shawn’s words of wisdom – most of which are somewhat chuckle-worthy – addressed to his 6-year-old son.
What started as a random Facebook post is now a project with more than 600 entries and 3,614 followers. The “trainings” range from sentimental (Man Training #586 displays the boy, short one tooth, along with the caption: “Son, according to hockey players, today you have become a man”) to hilarious (Man Training #609 has Jace “roaring” at a taxidermied bear, and says: “Son, with black bears, make yourself as big as possible ... Or is that with grizzly bears.... No, it's black bears.... Wait...... It's Urghurgrrrrugh.... – Indecision and passivity seek to kill many a man. Beware”). But all convey the clear message of Shawn’s delight in Jace.
Shawn is a missional team leader for Cru’s Denver college campuses. He credits his project’s popularity not to his creativity or wit, but to the fact that it addresses “perhaps the strongest desire of our hearts – to be known and loved. To just be us and with someone.”
“It does stem from our relationship with God,” Shawn says. “I always saw my relationship with God as Master/servant. But God used Jace to reprioritize my life.”
“Conceptually, I knew that no matter what I did, God’s love for me wouldn’t change,” he says. “But now … I don’t want Jace to wake up to perform for me. I just want to enjoy time with him.”
Shawn also wants audiences to look at “Man Trainings” and see that God, our Father, wants to spend time teaching, delighting in, and experiencing life with us.
Here are some of Shawn’s favorites from his over 600 “Man Trainings”:
Friend Shawn Cramer on Facebook to follow the project.
Man Training #36: Son, the essence of manhood has nothing to do with hunting and football, but everything to do with using your power for the powerless, your voice for the voiceless, and your hope for the hopeless.
Man Training #72: Son, I will always be there to catch you. But one day you will have to catch me, or at least put me in a nursing home that doesn't smell like old people.
Man Training #84: Son, every man is king of his own castle.
Man Training #142: Son, the "just because flower" is the most potent of all. Use it wisely.
Man Training #163: Son, nothing like camping in the wilderness, hundreds of inches from any modern technology and conveniences.
Man Training #191: Son, there is a line that precedes every injury for men, and it's this: “Hey, watch this!”
Man Training #247: Son, it's impossible to overestimate the number of sacrifices your mom has made to ensure that you become the lil' man you were created to be.
Man Training #225: Son, being a protector is a large portion of what it means to be a man. Protecting those close to you, those who can't protect themselves, and the ideals for which you stand.
Man Training #89: Son, close doesn't always count.
Man Training #308: Son, what goes up.... is harder to get up now that you've gained some serious man thickness in the past year.
Man Training #143: Son, there three steps in taking a handoff: 1 – inside elbow up, 2 – clamp down on the ball to cover the tips, 3 – apply face of determination.
Man Training #62: Son, show me a man “too manly” to help with the dishes and I'll show you someone that doesn't know that men were created to serve, not be served.
Man Training #51: Son, we were made for adventure.
Man Training #1: Son, you are a large reason why I am the luckiest man on the face of the earth.
Discover significant yet simple ways to honor your mom on Mother’s Day this year.
Though we wish it were so, the reality of life is not always a Cinderella story. But during some difficult days, I learned there was something better than a magic wand to wave away my troubles.
©1994-2023 Cru. All Rights Reserved.