The passion of a leader should never be less than that of his follower. The 2004 Chi Alpha Campus Ministers Conference (CMC), themed “Reinvigoration”, made sure that statement was true. Feb.27 to March 1, over 250 leaders renewed their hearts in working for God’s Kingdom as they gathered at the Sheraton Colony Square Hotel in Atlanta, Georgia, to listen to featured speaker Ian Green, leader of a church-planting ministry.
During the CMC Sessions from 7-10 PM on Friday-Sunday, Green spoke to the leaders about the joys and challenges of reaching people who are unfamiliar with church. Many leaders enjoyed his lectures.
"Ian was perfect for our leaders. He was very funny while bringing a strong exhortation to stay very close to Jesus as we pioneer new works for God," said Curt Harlow, Leadership Development Representative for Chi Alpha.
Green is part of the church planting ministry within Next Level International of Great Britain. The church-planting ministry states it “facilitates church planting in Central and Eastern Europe.”
Started in 1953, Chi Alpha Campus Ministries takes its name from the first two letters of the Greek words, "Christou Apostoloi " meaning Christ's Ambassadors or Christ’s Sent Ones. It is run by the Assemblies of God denomination.
Leaders also received time to network and exchange ideas while in discussion groups or on an individual basis at the conference.
Nick Callaway, Campus Director at Louisiana State University, remarked that "connecting with other leaders was just as important as the worship and teaching. I was able spend one-on-one time with several veteran missionaries who really helped me think through what I am doing on campus."
According to the report of Glen Davis, campus director at Stanford University, the theme of the conference was a success. “Both the creativity and passion of the worship touched me deeply. I went back to my campus full of both new energy and new ideas."
Chi Alpha said, “Please pray for our campus leaders as they return to their mission field and continue their work reconciling students to Christ.”
The next conference will be the “New Campus Leaders and Internship Prep Track”, June 14-16, sponsored by Reach the U Institute of Chi Alpha and held at the Assemblies of God Central Bible College in Springfield, Mo.
