This is a post by Blane Young. He serves on staff with Chi Alpha at American University and completed his CMIT through DC Chi Alpha several years ago. You can connect with him via his blog.

I used to work at a church and so naturally, Easter and Christmas were holidays when we were able to connect with hundreds of people in our community that may have otherwise never attended a service or been impacted by an outreach project. But it was during my internship several years ago that I realized that Thanksgiving was one of, if not the most, strategic holiday for building relationship with international students.

I was surprised and I don't think I fully understood how true this was until I attended Mosaic Conference. It's a conference designed specifically for international students and provides an opportunity for them to have an unforgettable experience during Thanksgiving.

I've had the privilege of attending for the past few years and let me tell you - it was incredible. To sing with over 50+ students in multiple languages is an experience that I won't ever forget. I met students from countries where Christianity is hardly spoken of and I found myself in multiple conversations explaining the role of faith in my life.

We did everything from a talent show to shopping in NYC on black friday to offering classes on various topics including culture shock, financial planning and a survey of the Bible.

I'm still friends with several of the students that attended and I know that they're forever grateful to Karen Keyser & Josh Fairchild for coordinating this event.

As students are away from their families and their friends at school have returned home - I ask that we would pray for love and hope to be clear in the relationships each student experiences at Mosaic.

Will you join me in praying over this conference, especially as student are deciding whether to attend in the next few weeks?