Bridgewater, Va.- From Dec. 28, 2023 to Jan. 1, 2024, Bridgewater College’s very own Crusades for Christ, also known as CRU, attended the Mid-Atlantic CRU Winter Conference in Washington, DC where a couple hundred college students gathered to grow their faith with God.
CRU is a National Christian organization for college students and here at Bridgewater College. This group is an active organization meeting in the Stone Chapel every Monday night at 8 p.m. This group also does other activities around the community and with the regional chapter of CRU, such as the Winter Conference.
Over break, the on-campus organization attended a Winter Conference where the group got the chance to listen to speakers, worship, pray and attend breakout sessions and fellowship with other college students that are a part of CRU on other college campuses in the region.
Senior Lizzie Mumbert, who is on leadership for CRU here at Bridgewater, shared that her favorite part of the winter conference was when Gospel Lgwe spoke and taught about surrendering and living a life wholly committed to the Lord.
There were eight different sessions including a New Year’s Eve Worship session where the organization rang in the New Year praising their God. There were speakers from all over the county who spoke to the college students, such as Thabiti Anybwile, Kristie Anybwile, Gospel Lgwe and Rachel Gilson.
Each session of the conference focused on a different faith based topic, but the overall theme of the conference was focused on identity in Christ, knowing God’s plan for each of our lives, and living that out. These topics help those who attend grow their faith and share the gospel with others.
Junior Emily Poole talked about her experiences at the conference and said, “Winter Conference was focused on connecting each person to the heart of Jesus Christ. Throughout the conference, we were encouraged by thoughtful teachings from God’s Word, musical worship and prayer experiences with breakout sessions to help us grow in our walk with Christ and equip us to share Christ with others and deep time in community.”
Another member of CRU, sophomore Emelyn Koene, also talked about her experience with the conference and said, “The team that organized the conference did a really excellent job making sure everything was organized and accessible. They made sure that there were interesting topics being discussed in breakout sessions, but also that there were fun activities to do during free time. Personally, I really liked the speakers they asked to come to the conference.”
CRU’s winter conference was a “great success” according to the club members that attended from Bridgewater College. The fellowship, speakers, worship and prayer brought the attendees closer to God and helped them become reaffirmed in their faith.
