02.07.08

Where to start? I seem to remember finding myself in a similar situation last year. It’s VERY well into the school year, and yet here I am just getting the first prayer letter of the year out.

Well, at this point I can either try to summarize everything that’s happened since my last correspondence, or I can get you up to date on what’s happening right now. I’m going to side with the latter since that’s probably more important right now.

My goal going into this year was to invest my time in three distinct areas: 1) communication, scheduling, and administration for the staff; 2) developing better relations with the University; and 3) continuing to build our ministry to students at the Ohio State University who struggle with same-gender attractions.

I’ve had opportunity to see a lot of success in the first two areas, but the third has been frustratingly slow in development. Since the beginning of the year I’ve gotten opportunities to minister to a number of students and staff across the Great Lakes Region struggling with same-gender attractions, but I haven’t gotten to do any outreach to the gay community. I would really like to pursue ministry aside from “preaching to the choir” of largely conservative Christians, but I’ve kept so busy with running activities that it has taken a back-burner this year. This quarter though, I’ve been approached by both students and staff who are eager to take steps to reach out and address this sensitive and extremely important topic on campus. We’re currently planning videos and a talk for our entire movement of 500 students to be conducted at our weekly meeting sometime Spring Quarter. Please pray for my motivation and that all our hearts would be enlarged to care for those who are struggling to reconcile their sexual attractions with faith in Christ.

Praises:

1) Like last year, I was in charge of the first outreach event of this school year: the Hog Roast! With all the people milling around it was hard to get a good count on how many students turned out, but we had at least 300 students attend! The president of the University, Gordon Gee, even stopped by. It was a great opportunity for new students at the University to get plugged into ministry and for all of us to reconnect after a long summer apart.

2) I’ve been trying to organize more events in conjunction with the University and on January 11^th the Ohio State University gave us a grant of over $1000 to host an alcohol alternative program called “Moonlight Madness” in the RPAC, our largest athletic facility. With over 400 students in attendance, it was the largest event focused specifically toward students that we have ever held… and it didn’t cost us anything! The whole event was organized by Lee McConkey, the student president of Campus Crusade, and me. We’re already making plans to do similar events in the future.

Although using University money means we aren’t allowed do traditional evangelism, events like this give us an opportunity to get students out of the dorms that we wouldn’t normally get to come to one of our events, and the University encourages us to do educational seminars in conjunction with events. On the schedule for next time are “What are the Teachings of Jesus?” and “What do Christians believe about the next life?” Though we can’t do evangelism, we CAN tell that students what we’d say if we WERE doing evangelism. Nice little loop-hole huh?

3) Soulfest: 150 Students drove to a meeting place off campus on Friday the 18^th to pray for the campus and for God’s will to be clear to us in the coming year. That time really was a great occasion for all of us to recharge and refocus not on what professors, parents or friends want for each of us, but rather what God has called us to: the advancement of His kingdom. Amidst hectic schedules and many other options for their Friday night, it was great to see the students’ hearts for prayer! Afterward about half the students stayed behind for a coffee house and free concert put on by the Jared Mahone Band.

4) We’re really working hard this year to support our overseas missionary partnerships in France and Venezuela. We’re excited to have 6 students signed up to spend their Spring Break in Nantes, France and another 11 going to Valencia, Venezuela! Please pray that

a) the students will be able to come up with funds to get to their respective countries

b) that the permanent staff and STINT’ers (Short Term INTernational) will be encouraged by the presence of the students

c) that their group effort would see lives changed and hearts won for Christ

d) and that the students spending a week overseas now would be challenged to have a heart for the nations and perhaps to return for a longer investment later!

Prayer Requests:

1) We’ve seen a number of students come to Christ this year on the campus and as I look at our movement in comparison to years past, I see a larger, stronger, better connected fellowship of believers than I’ve seen since I’ve been around. But we’re experiencing significant spiritual warfare. The first week back to campus Amber Bryant, a leader in our movement, lost a family member to the first murder in Columbus this year. She has such a big heart! I asked her how she was doing that week and she told me that neither she nor her family was doing well at all. Somehow she found it in her though to spontaneously bake a few dozen cookies for those of us who work to set up our weekly meeting each week. Her kindness and thoughtfulness despite, and perhaps even because of her suffering, really moved me. I know that both Amber and her family are still deeply hurt by their loss. When I talked to her yesterday, she told me that she is still having a really hard time. I think it’s been especially difficult for her to mourn her loss while she’s at school and away from her family. Please pray that God would somehow reveal Himself to Amber’s family through their loss and that He would extend to her specifically a sense of peace.

2) Paul, a student who has taken the year off due to family circumstances, could also use a lot of prayer. His father, a pharmacist, was arrested two weeks ago for running a meth-lab out of their family basement and is now looking at spending a long time in prison. His family is handling things very poorly and I really just wish Paul was back in Columbus right now. Please pray for Paul and his family.

3) My house (the physical structure) is doing especially poorly. The central foundation was undermined decades ago to make space for heating vents and now the house is sagging. It’s gotten to the point where the center of the house has actually sunk 4 or 5 inches. The floors are all sloped toward that central undermining spot. One of the walls is buckling, and the refrigerator is threatening to fall through to the first floor. I called our maintenance guys to take a look at a small waterfall that had sprouted between the second floor shower and the first floor bathroom sink this past week and when they noticed the slope of the floor they called their manager who in turn called the actual owner. Apparently this coming week will find a 30 ton jack, 5 new steel supports, a reworked heating system, a repaired central foundation, and some new beams in my basement. The man who will be doing the repairs was so concerned that he told me he called his insurance company to see if he was covered if the house actually fell down! We’re all praying the house doesn’t fall on our heads from this intervention. Feel free to join us :)

4) Chris Reed, one of my 11 housemates, found out an hour after returning from a mission trip to France this past summer that his father has esophageal cancer. Chris’s father has been receiving treatments and undergone surgery, but the doctors have now found cancer that has spread to his pancreas. There are 12 of us in my house this year and I don’t think that most of the guys including myself know just how to be there for Chris. I also don’t think it has hit home to many people, including Chris, that the doctors see his father’s condition at this point as terminal. Please pray that the doctors are proved wrong. That Mr. Reed will be restored to health. But whatever God’s will, please pray that He will be glorified and that God would show us how to meet Chris where he’s at through whatever lies ahead.

5) My host while I was in India, for the sake of security I’ll call him Papa, recently fell while trying to get on a bus. His hand was broken and he banged up his face pretty good losing a few teeth. He and his family have always lived solely on charity as missionaries and he has no health insurance so he’s currently praying that God will provide him with the 5000 rupees or roughly $625 in US dollars that he has incurred in medical costs. He really is serious about prayer. While we were in India his wife and daughter fasted and prayed for days at a time while we went about the country visiting churches and orphanages. It is neither safe nor economically profitable to be a Christian in India; let alone a pastor and a missionary. Please pray for Papa’s quick recovery, and if you feel led to help him pay for his health costs or to help equip his ministry through financial contribution, let me know and I’ll direct you in how to go about that.

Thank you all for your prayers and financial support! Believe it or not, this is a very condensed letter. There’s a lot more to be said in praise of what God’s doing and a lot more topics to be prayed over, but I’ll wait to share more so you don’t get tired of reading! Thank you so much for your prayers!

In Him,

Todd Isler