Special Guests Archives - 91�Թ�

Hall of Fame Vietnam Veteran David Christian Speaks to Students

Jocelyn Amon — Fri, 01 Dec 2023 15:30:01 +0000

On Wednesday, November 15, Vietnam Veteran David Christian was invited to speak to 91�Թ� students. Christian, originally from Bucks County, is the youngest most decorated Vietnam War veteran, having been awarded seven purple hearts for his bravery. He served as a senior advisor for the Senate on national defense, foreign affairs, and veteran benefits. His efforts were crucial in fighting for the Vietnam Veteran Memorial Wall and writing Agent Orange and Post Traumatic Stress Legislation. This year, he was inducted into the United States Military Officers Hall of Fame.

Christian shared with students his struggles returning disabled from a controversial war. After recovering from his injuries, he decided to attend law school to advocate for veterans like himself. His efforts took him all the way to the White House, where he spoke with President Jimmy Carter on veteran affairs. This path came with more sacrifices when he was fired from his job, and his new job working for the Ronald Raegan administration often took him away from his family. Through his new position, however, Christian was able to influence legislators and politicians for the benefit of veterans.

As he reflected on his own life and the lessons he learned in leadership, international affairs, and suffering, Christian motivated students to stand firm in their convictions, and to be prepared for the repercussions that may come. “You are tomorrow’s leaders,” he said. “You want to go and change the world? Then try, and if you do so, do your best job.”

Annual Church Leaders Conference Explores Being the Church in the Digital Age

Isabelle Lazor — Wed, 30 Mar 2022 18:08:21 +0000

On Thursday, March 3, 140 people gathered for Cairn’s annual Church Leaders Conference. The Church Leaders Conference takes place over the course of one day, inviting Church leaders across denominations to enjoy an edifying and educational event. This year’s conference was centered around the theme of being the Church in the digital age.

Jay Y. Kim, a lead pastor at WestGate Church in the Silicon Valley of CA, led the conference as the keynote speaker. In addition to pastoring a church, he works at Vintage Faith Church in Santa Cruz, CA as a teacher-in-residence. He’s also authored a book, Analog Church, and has had his writing published by Christianity Today, The Gospel Coalition, Relevant, Mission Alliance, and more.

The conference’s main session started in the morning from 9:15 to 10:30 am. Breakout sessions, including “Digital Discipleship in the Home” with Mrs. Renee Beamer, “The Bible’s Use of the Bible and Preaching” with Dr. Gary Schnittjer, and “Addressing Issues of Forgiveness in Ministry” with Dr. Bryan Maier occurred after a brief break. After lunch, a second main session took place, which was followed by a Q&A session ending at 2:15 pm.

During his seminar sessions, Jay Y. Kim challenged church leaders to think critically about how to best lead congregations in the digital age, giving advice on how to wisely steward the gift of technology and raising awareness of its potential pitfalls. Jay Y. Kim shared,

“As convenience, accessibility, and automation increases, what happens right alongside it? There is a decrease in strength, skill, participation, and practice…To follow Jesus faithfully and deeply we have to recognize and embrace the reality that there is no technological substitute that can do that work for you. Discipleship to Jesus demands effort and participation. The more we leverage technology . . . we simply have to reckon with reality and ask ourselves the question: how is our leveraging of this technology potentially decreasing strength, skill, participation, and practice in the lives of our people?”

If you’re interested in hearing more about Jay Y. Kim’s message, watch and on 91�Թ�’s .

Cairn Hosts Successful 2021 World Reach Week

Juston Wolgemuth — Wed, 22 Sep 2021 15:05:42 +0000

From September 13–17, 2021, 91�Թ� hosted its annual World Reach Week. In the third year of its three-year cycle of Discover, Prepare, Commit, this year’s theme was “Commit: Increase your resolve to be part of God’s global work and His heart for the world.”
This year, the theme “Commit” gave students the opportunity to experience the ways God is working through a variety of initiatives to build His church. Through chapel messages and breakout sessions throughout the week, students grappled with how they can serve as God’s ambassador to the world and were challenged to pursue their role in God’s global work.
Cairn welcomed to campus dozens of mission representatives from organizations doing work all over the world. They shared about their work with students and professors at the beginning of their classes and at their booths set up across campus. Additionally, mission representatives and students took part in sessions throughout the week, such as panel discussions on ministry topics; informational sessions on life in the mission field; and World Feast, an event in which students prepared food from different cultures to share with one another.
As the 91�Թ� community adapts to the global need of serving our neighbors, World Reach Week continues to be vitally important as students are educated on how to serve Christ in the church, society, and the world.
For more information on World Reach Week and all the events that were a part of it, visit cairn.edu/worldreachweek.

91�Թ� Hosts Annual World Reach Week

Blog Team — Mon, 22 Feb 2021 19:15:03 +0000

91�Թ� hosted its annual World Reach Week from January 25–19, 2021. This year’s theme “Prepare,” encourages and assists students in developing skills for sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with both global and local neighbors by recognizing the various ways different people groups best understand gospel, thus fulfilling their calling as God’s servants.
Alumnus and keynote speaker Kevin King ’90 urged students to be passionate about sharing the gospel and to have a desire to be used by God through his three chapel sessions: “,” “,” and “.” His messages shared his cultural perspective and heart for world evangelism, which were both shaped by his studies abroad in the Middle East and time spent in Europe and Asia. He also shared from his experiences as president of , an organization focused on initiating church planting movements through diaspora unreached people groups in ethnic communities and on university campuses.
In addition to Kevin King’s keynote chapel sessions, students had the opportunity to participate in and attend other events throughout the week.
Students came together to make Luopads (washable and reusable sanitary products for women) from donated clothing at an event hosted by Student Missionary Fellowship and Chi Beta Sigma, the social work club. With the help of the Cairn student body, more than 300 Luopads were created and $277.28 was raised to ship these products.
Students were also invited to sit in on an “Ethics of Evangelism” panel discussion, which was hosted by Dr. Guy Eshelman, missionary in residence. Dr. Eshelman provided questions and points for conversation for Dr. Keith Plummer, Katrina Selby ’18/G’18, and Liz Givens ’69 as they discussed the tensions and ethical considerations of making disciples in today’s world.
At the “Storytelling on the Mission Field” event, Stephanie Bernotas ’11 and Liz Givens ’69 assisted students in understanding the effective ways of retelling their time on the mission field. The act of storytelling requires an understanding of both creativity and ethics, and this event helped students learn the basic principles for photography, writing, and more as a tool in telling family, friends, and supporters about what God is doing around the world. Liz Givens, who serves on the University’s Board of Trustees, stated, “we tell stories in missions for the Lord’s glory and not our own.”
As 91�Թ� adapts to the global need of serving our neighbors, World Reach Week continues to be vitally important as students are educated on how to serve Christ in the church, society, and the world.