Saved People, Serve People--Ben and Sandie Dyke mobilize university students to be fully devoted followers of Christ

Ben and Sandie Dyke serve with Cru. They help mobilize university students to serve their campus and to challenge students to follow Christ by making a difference for the rest of their lives. 

Life change occurs amid challenging circumstances. No matter if you are a college student or not, difficulties emerge suddenly.

Yet where do you turn?  Who can help you think through why this terrible thing happen to you?  What does it feel like to be overwhelmed and feel hopeless? 

Tiffany, a student who attended IndyCC, was confronted with a terrible tragedy. She was asked, "Why did this happen?!"

IndyCC offers university students the hope of Jesus Christ in a five day conference where students discover how God can help them through life's challenges.  Students engage with service projects for the community.  Students share their faith. And then students bring in the new year with a celebration of all God has done and with upbeat prayer for God to do great things in the new year ahead.  

As Tiffany who attended IndyCC testifies, "I left [IndyCC] with hope that God could make something good happen out of something difficult."  

Watch Tiffany share her story of how IndyCC gave her the confidence and answers to comfort a hurting friend. Attending IndyCC strengthened her faith and enabled her to help others.



Your prayers and support of Ben and Sandie Dyke help them mobilize events like IndyCC to the offer hope of Jesus to university students in the Midwest.  Join them in prayer by sending an email to let them know that you are praying for them. They will start connecting with you and share how you can be part of their team in developing fully devoted followers of Christ on university campuses with Cru. 

Saved People, Serve People on the college & university campuses

Grace Church partners with a group of people who serve on the university and college campuses. One of our missionary partners is Ben & Sandie Dyke.  

 

We praise God Ben & Sandie Dyke. Please pray for them as they develop fully devoted followers of Christ on the university campuses. 

Ben & Sandie Dyke with Cru

Ben & Sandie Dyke with Cru

Ben & Sandie serve with Cru. Ben is the Director of Operations, Great Lakes Region.   Their family lives in Fishers, IN.

Please pray for Ben & Sandie. Ben recently lost his grandma Bonna. Ask God to help the family mourn and process their grief. They will miss great grandma Bonna. View her story here.
You can read more about the ministry of Ben & Sandie from these links:

• Learn more about Cru
• Check out Ben's FB profile

I am thankful for these people who are also my heroes

Grace Church partners with a group of people who serve on the university and college campuses. We praise God for our team--Ben & Sandie Dyke, Mark & Roxanne Johnson, & Michael Greer. Please pray for them as they develop fully devoted followers of Christ on the university campuses.  Read more below.

Ben & Sandie Dyke with Cru

Mark & Roxanne Johnson with Cru

 Mike Greer with InterVarsity

 

Ben & Sandie Dyke with Cru

Ben & Sandie serve with Cru. Ben is the Director of Operations, Great Lakes Region.   Their family lives in Fishers, IN.

Please pray fervently for Ben & Sandie. Sandie is a cancer survivor!  You can follow her journey on the CaringBridge website: SandieDyke. You will need to log in. So, please add the family to your prayers.

You can read more about the ministry of Ben & Sandie from these links:

• Send a friend request more about them by visiting their ministry webpage.
• Learn more about Cru
• Check out Ben's FB profile

Mark & Roxanne Johnson with Cru

Grace Church partners with Mark & Roxanne Johnson.  The Johnson's serve with Cru at Indiana University in Bloomington, IN. 

Roxanne grew up in Wayne County, OH, in Apple Creek.  She knew about the Lord but made a commitment to Christ in her freshmen year at Ohio Northern University.  Roxanne wanted to serve God in a significant way.  She served with Student Venture, the high school ministry focus of Cru. She and Mark are now serving college students with Cru.

Mark grew up in North Carolina. He came to Christ while studying music at Indiana University (Bloomington, IN).  God challenged him to join the staff of Cru even taking the Gospel to an unreached city in Asia.  Mark's desire is best captured on his Facebook page under employers, "I get to tell people about Jesus for a living."
You can read more about the Johnson's from these links:

• Learn more about Cru
• Check out Mark's FB profile 
• Send email to Mark Johnson to get their prayer newsletter.

Mike Greer with InterVarsity

Grace Church partners with InterVarsity at the College of Wooster.  Michael Greer serves the College of Wooster campus. Mike serves with Julie Longacre (Jon). 

Mike Greer helps to mobilize the Wooster chapter to share Christ in different venues all school year. He loves building friendships and establishing relationships with students.  Thus, Grace Church praises God that we partner with those who are equipping students to be on-mission. We pray for fully devoted followers of Christ who are willing to take risks to challenge their friends to come to know Jesus.  

You can get more information from these links:

• Send Mike Greer an email to receive updates and prayer requests at mgreer@wooster.edu. 
• Learn more about Intervarsity at their website.

Dream A Dream

Last night I got the opportunity to hear Vishal Ralreja who is executive director of dreamadream.org at the College of Wooster.  First I want to thank the Center for Entreprenuership and their sponsors for hosting Vishal here in our community. I appreciate being invited to come hear Vishal.

Vishal shared with the group his own journey of social entrepreneurship from a volunteer to an agent of social change. The main takeaway for me was his final question posed to all in attendance at the end of his speaking time:

"What potential do you have to impact another human being in this life?"

Vishal offered several tips or principles for those seeking to embark on becoming a social change agent.

• To accelerate social change you must have compassion, creativity, and collaboration because solving any social ill is greater than one person.
• At the outset expect a lot of worries where you have no answers and many questions unanswered as well as heartache.
• Your response to the first heartache or discouragement is a litmus test for your commitment to solving social problems.  If you are willing to get hurt over and over again in this same manner, then you affirm you are on the road to social change.
• Gather volunteers around something bigger than yourselves while rehearsing why you do what you do and fanning into flame why you believe your work is important. Say, "I want to bring change. I believe this is possible!"
• Instill volunteerism in children. Model it. Involve them. Show them how to help someone else.
• Engage critics by getting them to come observe what you are doing and allowing them to ask more questions. You may find that they become a fan and eventually start volunteering for your cause.
• Help others! Vishal offers assistance to people via Skype or visit for what he calls, "I think I have a solution" coffees.  He offers brainstorm ideas and critical thinking about strategy.  Great idea!

I again reiterate how I got to come to this lecture. Thanks College of Wooster! I wonder if anyone else went to the lecture or heard about it. Please post your comments and things that I missed.  Thanks.  

Dream A Dream: Vishal Talreja, Founder & Director
Vishal Talreja is founder and director of Dream a Dream, an organization committed to promoting "lifeskills" education for vulnerable children in Bangalore, India, through innovative programs and strategic partnerships with other social sector organizations, private sector groups, and volunteers. Recongnised as an Ashoka Fellow in 2005, Vishal's organization Dream A dream today works with over 500 children from vulnerable communities and does this through an extensive, active volunteer network of 500 volunteers.

Pray for Mandy who goes to El Salvador

Mandy Isaacson leaves for El Salvador (thanks to Flags of the World website for image) for a missions trip over Spring Break with David & Debbie Hawk of the World Gospel Mission in Jacuapa.  From March 27-April 5, the team will serve in many ways, including, but not limited to, conducting a VBS while the children are on "Semana Santa,"or Holy Week, helping with construction projects for the new medical clinic, and sharing drama, puppet, and music presentations at church gatherings as needed. 

Taylor University expects students to experience the world through service.  Their Spring Break Missions Trips dovetail with our mission as a church--develop all people into fully devoted followers of Christ in all the nations of the world, to all the nations of the world.

I find it inspiring that students from our church seek to attend schools where the value of reaching out to others and acting in service for others is practiced.  May the Lord we serve always get the glory for all we do.  

Mandy shared with me the following prayer requests: 

1. "That my heart will be prepared for the trip and I will be sensitive to God's leading 
2. I'm going to a Spanish speaking country and I speak very little Spanish. Please pray that I will be able to connect with the people there despite the language barrier.
3. That I will contribute to my team in some way.

Thank you for your prayers!

-Mandy Isaacson"

Please join me in praying for her and the team.  I would add one more request that I am going to pray for her:

• Ask the Lord to bring her home challenged with greater love for God and greater service for God.  

You can check out a couple of pictures and a few comments on the host missionaries blog.