Taking Time to Notice

It’s still shocking to me that it’s December, classes are done, finals are underway, and some of our students are already on their way back home for the winter break.  It feels like it was just Welcome Week, we blinked, and the semester was over. I’m still getting used to wearing gloves every day, let alone gearing up for the new year!  But that seems to be the story of every fall, doesn’t it?

When I look back at the semester that’s flown by, I’m reminded of how much God has done.  As is our tradition in Chi Alpha at American University, we held our Celebration Thursday service last week.

It’s important to us that we don’t let these months pass without taking moments to recognize where God has moved and what He’s doing in our community.  

Written by Rev. Natalie Hill (Facebook)

Turns out when I take time to notice what He’s done, I realize that even though the semester moved so quickly, God’s packed it full with amazing moments on campus. Celebration Thursday is our way of carving out time to remember that.

One of our graduating seniors, Maura, gave our student message, sharing about what she’s learned and how she’s grown in these years as a student.  As she prepares for what’s next (grad school in St. Louis), she stressed the importance of being present and noticing what God is doing here and now, not just what He wants to do in the future.  

It was a timely, relevant word for our DC students, who are often caught planning the next things instead of living presently.  It was amazing to see how much Maura has grown in her years here, coming to AU as a baby Christian and leaving it after preaching a sermon and sharing her heart with her Chi Alpha community and field hockey team, all of whom came to hear her speak!  And to top off the night, we got to baptize two students in the university pool (while the lifeguard and late-night swimmers watched and cheered with us)!

It’s so easy to let time fly by and forget to notice what God is doing in the here and now.  He is a personal and present Savior who is involved in every moment; let us never lose sight of that.

Thank you for your constant prayer and support of this ministry and college students in Washington, DC!  We’re praying for a wonderful end of the year for all of you and a Christmas season full of joy!

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If you're interested in making a year-end gift towards DC Chi Alpha (a registered 501c3) — we recommend doing so online via our page on MightyCause (formerly Razoo Foundation).

Someone Knew Me in Less Than 15 Minutes

My mom, dad, and myself pull up outside of Letts Hall of American University with the back of our rented car filled with suitcases, Ikea bedding, and Rubbermaid tubs. We park. We get out. Then, out of nowhere, strangers with matching T-shirts suddenly start asking us if we wanted help moving in. Seeing as my dad was the only source of muscle, we all quickly agreed. Anyways, I run inside, find my room, and show these random people who said they were with Chi Alpha (a fraternity maybe?) where to take my stuff. As I was helping my helpers, a volunteer started asking me really specific questions, starting with the ones below (paraphrased since my memory isn’t great):

Written by Haley Holtzscher (Facebook)

KP: Are you from Tulsa, OK perchance?
Me:…Yes. Why?
KP: I don’t suppose you know of a church called Believer’s Church, do ya?
Me:…Yes. I’ve gone there since I was 2. *laughter*
KP: Do you know someone named Anna Saah?
Me: Whoa, yeah! How do you know her? She was one of my youth leaders!
KP: So your name’s Haley, right? Anna mentioned you while we were in Ibiza.
Me: It is indeed. How did you know? This is so weird! So about this Chi Alpha thing…

I had been on campus for less than 15 minutes and already someone knew me. Kera Package (KP in the conversation above) had no way of knowing where I was from since we had taken off all identifying tags from my luggage and tubs and I hadn’t actually introduced myself since I’d been caught up in trying to get into my first dorm room. To this day I have no idea how Kera knew, out of hundreds of students she must have helped, that I was the girl Anna had talked about. After helping me move in, Kera invited me to some AU Chi Alpha (also known as AUXA) events later that week. I said yes immediately. If my youth leader from back home was friends with this random person, then I knew I could trust her suggestions. 

So that was my entry into the AUXA world. Yeah, I flaked out on going to a few of the events I had committed to but I also knew that I had an accountability buddy who wouldn’t let me continue to make excuses. 

I showed up at AU with finding a church/faith community as one of the last things on my mind so imagine my surprise when I had joined Chi Alpha by the end of my first day on campus. Sometimes all it takes is helping a stranger move some boxes into their new home to create a solid foundation for their college experience. This foundation wasn’t what I wanted, but it must have been something that I needed or else Kera wouldn’t have found me so quickly. 

So, yeah, I believe in this whole reach the city campaign. I know that those who need to be reached will be since efforts like it reached me when I was super far from home.

Note: Today is the second-to-last day for our Indiegogo campaign called Reach the City. 

What XA Means To Me

Author info: Alec is a rising junior at American University studying Film and Entrepreneurship. In addition to starting a YouTube channel this August, called “The Rhodes Less Traveled”, he is preparing to bike across the US next summer to raise awareness and a one million dollar goal for pediatric cancer research. You can follow Alec’s journey on Facebook, Twitter (@Eagleboiii1776), and Instagram (the_rhodes_less_traveled).

There are multiple reasons why I absolutely love AU Chi Alpha Campus Ministries but if I had to choose three main reasons they would be the following: 

 First and foremost, my relationship with Jesus Christ has grown tremendously surpassing my wildest expectations, and I realized I’m just getting started. I remember my first Thursday Night Worship (TNW) as a freshman. I sat near one of the back pews shy and uncomfortable. When everyone started to worship Jesus I saw people in front of me with hands lifted towards the sky, eyes closed, and voices shouting to the heavens. Meanwhile I’m standing with both hands in my pockets thinking everyone is possessed. Four semesters later on the last TNW of the spring semester I’m in front on the front pew raising my hands to the sky, with my eyes closed, and my voice shouting to the heavens. Moreover, my prayer life has increased tenfold. At the beginning of my sophomore year I was asked by my small group leader to pray out loud in public to a group of freshmen. Long story short, the prayer was all over the place, I was thinking too much with my mind instead of my heart, and I just simply didn’t believe I could pray with sincerity. Flash forward, by the end of the spring semester I was asked to pray for the President of AU Chi Alpha, the pastor of AU Chi Alpha, and a senior, who was probably the nicest girl I have ever met in my life. Long story short, I faced my fear, poured my heart out to them, and just simply spoke as if the Lord Himself was right before me.  

Second, would have to be the travel opportunities that AU Chi Alpha offers, both voluntarily and involuntarily. I’m from a small country town in North Carolina and lived there for 18 years of my life so it’s easy to say that when an option of traveling is mentioned I’ll be the first one on board. During my time in AU Chi Alpha I have evangelized strangers on the Outer Banks in my home state and helped build churches in Mexico. Moreover, I have had unforeseen circumstances in which I network with someone mutually related to AU Chi Alpha telling me of phenomenal opportunities to glorify God and grow in my faith journey. Just this summer I had the privilege of attending a conference in Grand Rapids, Michigan on how to effectively address poverty with a Christ centered focus as well as intern in Selma, Alabama to help small businesses thrive and make promotional videos for them and the internship itself! 

“Each and every encounter never ceases to amaze my spirit within because all of my “Chialfriends” have a deep desire to go out of their way to help others.”

Last but not least is the unparalleled community of Christ minded students from all over the country and the world that AU Chi Alpha attracts. Each and every encounter never ceases to amaze my spirit within because all of my “Chialfriends” have a deep desire to go out of their way to help others. Whether it’s an Oregon girl keeping myself accountable to stay consistent with my devotionals and bible readings over the summer or a Malaysian guy praying for our Uber driver, each and every one of them genuinely care for my growth in Christ and strangers alike. In addition, my lifelong friends in AU Chi Alpha have never given up on me even when I gave up on them. Despite enduring the hardships of a breakup, the overwhelming stress of almost losing my financial aid a whopping three times, and struggling with depression, anxiety and even suicidal thoughts, my friends, my saviors, pulled me out of the darkness by shining the light of hope upon me. 

Simply put, I absolutely love AU Chi Alpha, because AU Chi Alpha absolutely loves me too! #BetterTogether

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Donate online to Reach the City - 2016 at Razoo

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Published on July 23, 2016 • Short Link: http://bit.ly/2a147sb

Someone Knew Me in Less Than 15 Minutes

My mom, dad, and myself pull up outside of Letts Hall of American University with the back of our rented car filled with suitcases, Ikea bedding, and Rubbermaid tubs. We park. We get out. Then, out of nowhere, strangers with matching T-shirts suddenly start asking us if we wanted help moving in. Seeing as my dad was the only source of muscle, we all quickly agreed. Anyways, I run inside, find my room, and show these random people who said they were with Chi Alpha (a fraternity maybe?) where to take my stuff. As I was helping my helpers, a volunteer started asking me really specific questions, starting with the ones below (paraphrased since my memory isn’t great):

Written by Haley Holtzscher (Facebook)

KP: Are you from Tulsa, OK perchance?
Me:…Yes. Why?
KP: I don’t suppose you know of a church called Believer’s Church, do ya?
Me:…Yes. I’ve gone there since I was 2. *laughter*
KP: Do you know someone named Anna Saah?
Me: Whoa, yeah! How do you know her? She was one of my youth leaders!
KP: So your name’s Haley, right? Anna mentioned you while we were in Ibiza.
Me: It is indeed. How did you know? This is so weird! So about this Chi Alpha thing…

I had been on campus for less than 15 minutes and already someone knew me. Kera Package (KP in the conversation above) had no way of knowing where I was from since we had taken off all identifying tags from my luggage and tubs and I hadn’t actually introduced myself since I’d been caught up in trying to get into my first dorm room. To this day I have no idea how Kera knew, out of hundreds of students she must have helped, that I was the girl Anna had talked about. After helping me move in, Kera invited me to some AU Chi Alpha (also known as AUXA) events later that week. I said yes immediately. If my youth leader from back home was friends with this random person, then I knew I could trust her suggestions. 

So that was my entry into the AUXA world. Yeah, I flaked out on going to a few of the events I had committed to but I also knew that I had an accountability buddy who wouldn’t let me continue to make excuses. 

I showed up at AU with finding a church/faith community as one of the last things on my mind so imagine my surprise when I had joined Chi Alpha by the end of my first day on campus. Sometimes all it takes is helping a stranger move some boxes into their new home to create a solid foundation for their college experience. This foundation wasn’t what I wanted, but it must have been something that I needed or else Kera wouldn’t have found me so quickly. 

From Forgetting to Remembering

          Emily Packer

          Facebook 

Though I’d like to deny it, I forget about God’s love more often in my life than I remember it. Lucky for me, when I do remember, I’m amazed all over again. It’s kind of like learning to play an instrument in elementary school, having a terrible middle school band teacher, then picking that instrument up again in college. You can talk all you want about how you played an instrument (because we all know music makes us smarter, right?), but bragging about the past is never as satisfying as busting that baby out in worship and showing people you play. Likewise, loving God can become an instrument you claim to play but never practice. It’s even worse when you remember the feeling of playing, and settle for the memory of it. You’ve still got bragging rights though, right??? Of course! But that memory becomes a barrier to the upfront-in-your-face kind of love available to you everyday. In fact, right now.

Sometimes, when I feel God’s love “slipping” from my reach, I’ll think of a time He really came through for me. With this thoughtful plan of mine I construct the perfect way for God’s love to only become real when I want it to. Unfortunately, the hard truth is God’s love is said to be constant and consistent, and so even as I write this post He is proving my plan defective by showing me His love. Will I think back on this moment whenever I feel God’s love waning? Probably not, because my mind will be searching for that one time at beach retreat when we all sang “Oceans” while slowly and figuratively walking into the ocean (not kidding, true story). However, I do have hope that one day, as I sit in my office chair or on an airplane seat or regrettably watching Transformers 5, I will feel the same gratitude for God’s love as I do in the middle of small group on a beach in North Carolina. After all, it’s as simple as ditching my faulty plan and realizing it was unnecessary all along.