The Miller Runner

Professors changing lives

Posted on May 21, 2024 by Nate Miller

Dr. Furman, Retired Professor of Mechanical Engineering, answers
students’ questions about life and his faith in Jesus.

Everyone was nervous, even the professors. The Cru staff members at San Jose State had just finished praying with the professors who would be presenting that evening when students poured into the meeting room. Students loaded their plates with the best pizza in town and sat with friends. Over 60 students and faculty came to hear four professors share their faith in Jesus.

Students leaned forward in their seats, eagerly listening as professors told how Jesus dramatically changed their lives.

Mathematics professor, Dr. Roddick, told how a compassionate street preacher appealed to her intellect and search for truth as a college student.

Physics and astronomy professor, Dr. Romanowsky, shared how research of an ever expanding infinite universe points to a God who is beyond and above it all.

Engineering professor, Dr. Liu, shared of a God who met her in the depths of her loneliness as a grad student.

Dr. Fung, a photography professor, proclaimed that God changed him from a selfish and self-reliant man to one who clings to grace and cares deeply about others.

Students flooded the professors with questions. At the end of the event, each student received a list of Christian professors on campus willing to talk about having a relationship with Jesus.

God is using this amazing group of San Jose State professors to introduce students to Jesus. Please pray that God will continue to draw students toward himself through the conversations started that evening.

Thank you for partnering with us as we serve behind the scenes. With you, we are grateful to be a part of what God is doing. We are thankful for you!

Posted in Campus, Evangelism | Tagged Campus, evangelism, share faith, students | Leave a comment

Using GodTools with Gen Z

Posted on April 26, 2024 by Nate Miller

Gen Z is the least religious generation in American history, opening the door for the gospel.

Abdul loves God. But being a Christian in the Middle East is not easy. A Christian that openly invites friends and coworkers to church every week faces great risk.

Yet Abdul invites people to church every week and many join him. He struck an agreement with his pastor, “I’ll bring them to the door, and you take it from there.”

Abdul yearned for something more—something to help him articulate the gospel so others could understand and decide about trusting Jesus as their Savior and Lord.

That yearning was satisfied when Abdul was introduced to GodTools, an evangelistic app created by Cru. “This is just what I’ve been searching for! Now I can bring my friends to church and show them the Gospel, too. Thank you!”

GodTools is also impacting students in the United States. Jacob, a Cru staff member in San Antonio, was recently expanding his skills as a missionary by sharing short stories about Jesus from the Bible. He invited Francisco to listen to Mark 1:35-45.

Francisco resonated with the story. Jacob asked Francisco if he wanted to know more about how Jesus made a way for him to be totally clean. Francisco was very interested.

Jacob opened GodTools and scrolled to “Knowing God Personally.” This evangelistic presentation is simple, clear, and concise. Jacob shared in Spanish, the language with which Francisco was most confident. Francisco trusted Jesus right there on the college sidewalk.

Like Jacob, you can change lives using the GodTools app.

Thank you for partnering with us as we serve behind the scenes. With you, we are grateful to be a part of what God is doing. We are thankful for you!

Posted in Campus, Evangelism, international | Tagged Campus, evangelism, international, share faith | Leave a comment

A different Spring Break

Posted on March 20, 2024 by Nate Miller

Unlikely friends, Tina (l) and Camryn (r) met in Bithlo, Florida outside Orlando.

Shocked is an understatement,” Camryn said. “I didn’t think there was a place in the United States that didn’t have clean running water.”

Camryn spent spring break in 2022, on Urban Immersion, a ministry outreach sponsored by Cru Inner City.

The weeklong ministry effort focused on Bithlo, a mostly forgotten enclave devoid of basic infrastructure despite being 45 minutes from Disney World outside Orlando, Florida.

When Camryn met Tina, the older woman was just six months sober after receiving assistance through Transformation Village, a partner ministry of Cru Inner City.

Shortly after they met, Tina confided she spent more than a dozen years in prison for auto theft and drug-related felonies. She was legally free but restrained by the dual barriers of a criminal record and limited work experience. Tina spent her nights curled up under a truck, until she arrived at Transformation Village.

That first Spring Break, Camryn and Tina developed a deep bond. Their relationship prompted Camryn to return to Bithlo last spring break for her second Urban Immersion experience. “A year later, Tina is now 18 months sober and has a job and a license for the first time in 15 years,” Camryn shared last spring.

Now a senior, Camryn plans to return to Bithlo for a third Spring Break. “Without Cru Inner City, I assumed interacting with the underprivileged would only happen outside the United States. I didn’t realize how many people were homeless and trying to find a way to make it.”

Thank you for partnering with us as we serve behind the scenes. With you, we are grateful to be a part of what God is doing. We are thankful for you!