As Christmas and the end of the year approach, I think back on ministry stories I’ve heard throughout the year. God is on the move in this generation of students! At a college in Virginia, Cru® students were concerned about low response to the gospel so they began a prayer vigil and shared their faith more diligently. That semester, they saw over 100 students trust Christ! Cru staff members also report that 1 in 6 high school students who hear the good news of Jesus say yes to following Him! In middle schools, they report that it is 1 in 3!!!
This is why I’m excited to help Cru create fresh, new ways to connect students with Jesus! Some of our tools help introduce students to Him, and others help them grow in their relationship with Him. One example is The Snake Crusher, a Bible discussion series we wrote on the first three chapters of Genesis and the Emmaus Road story in Luke 24. It centers on the first promise of the Messiah in Genesis 3:15, where God says this to the serpent:
“And I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and hers;
he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”
(Genesis 3:15, NIV)
Students on several campuses have been testing The Snake Crusher and giving us feedback on their experience using it. Here are three of their comments:
“I really like the inclusion of different forms of study (like listening to the passage and watching videos, and journaling). The videos especially are helpful in explaining, I think I am just more of a visual learner.”
“The book of Genesis foreshadows the story of Jesus and His redemption plan. Everything prophesied in the Old Testament is fulfilled in the New Testament.”
“I would say that it led me to have a deeper understanding of God’s great intentions from just the beginning of the Bible.”
Google’s AI, Gemini, summarized all the feedback on The Snake Crusher like this:
“The series has been highly effective in deepening participants’ understanding of the redemptive story of the Bible and increasing their comfort and motivation to discuss their faith.”
I so appreciate my generous partners who have enabled me to produce resources like The Snake Crusher! Thank you for helping me in create fresh, new ways to connect students with Jesus!
