thursdays

*Names have been changed for the protection of students

After Leader Training, I was placed on the Young Life College team, where Jeff introduced me to Jay at a pizza event during finals week while students study. At that point, we went on break, but I did my best to stay in contact with Jay over the time away. When we returned, I sent Jay a text to see if he would be down to grab lunch at Raising Cane’s, which I quickly learned we both love. It was there that I got to talk with Jay about his involvement in YL and what he thought about it. He told me about serving at Clearwater Cove and going to YLC “Let’s Chat.”

Since then, we have been getting lunch every Thursday, talking and getting to know each other. As a new leader, I have found myself inexperienced in how to segue conversations toward faith. I asked God to help me before the next time we met. Over the course of our next several meets, Jay started opening up to me about his life— career decisions he has yet to make, his family, and more recently, where he stands on religion.

I had the opportunity to share with him how I became saved and the steps I took to get there. I told him that first, I had to prove to myself that God exists at all. Once I did that, I then had to determine which God exists. After heavy investigation, I found that it is the God of Christianity who loves me for who I am today. After sharing this, Jay was able to pinpoint where he stood. He has proven to himself that God exists, but he has not yet determined which God he finds himself praying to every night. He said he is still in the gray area and needs more evidence to fully commit to Christ.

The most exciting part now is that I get to walk through life with him, showing him where God is and helping him see that the events in his life are not merely chance. We continue to meet every Thursday for lunch and to study together.

— Josiah Cooper, University of Michigan Leader