Annual Christian Life Conference focuses on Victorious Christian Living
By Sophie Gage, CIU Student Writer
Columbia International University celebrated, “Victorious Christian Living,” a CIU core value, at the annual Christian Life Conference in September.
The guest speaker was CIU alumnus Pastor Matt Densky of Radius Church in Greenville, South Carolina. He graduated from CIU with undergraduate degrees in Bible and Youth Ministry and from the CIU Seminary in 2012 with a master’s degree in Ministry Leadership.
Densky began the conference by establishing the theme of pursuing life with Jesus and practicing His ways. Every sermon began with a simple question: “Are you hungry?” When the student body shouted “Yes,” he opened his Bible and said, “Let’s eat.” He invited the students to posture their hearts toward God as the week began, imploring that they “are known by God,” no matter how they feel in their season of life.
Prayer Day
The second day of the Conference was also CIU’s first Prayer Day of the semester. Under sunny skies and mild temperatures, the students began the day in front of CIU’s historic Prayer Towers. There, they gathered under the trees to praise God in song. Then Dr. Ed Smither, dean of the School of Missions and Intercultural Ministry led in the Lord’s Prayer and emphasized have a grateful spirit each morning.
“Prayer is the best way to cultivate an intimate relationship with God,” Smither added.
The students were then encouraged to disperse across campus for an hour of personal prayer time.
Two Chapel sessions followed, the first highlighting the importance of wrestling with God as it shapes your character. “It’s in the wrestling that God begins to shape who we become,” Pastor Densky preached. The last chapel of the day continued the theme of prayer, as students wrote out prayer requests on sticky notes that were placed on the walls of Shortess Chapel and shared with one another.
Thirsting for God
The final chapel of the week began in an unexpected manner. The electricity suddenly went out! As smartphone flashlights began to shine around the room, President Dr. Bill Jones quickly took to the stage and encouraged the students to look up the lyrics to the traditional hymn “Come Thy Fount of Every Blessing,” on those same phones. As a band member strummed the song on an acoustic guitar, some students came to the front of the stage to sing.
Despite the power outage, the students united in worship until the lights came back on a few minutes later. Student Hannah Moore called it “a special moment,” wishing for another song by flashlight.
After the electrical power returned, so did the power of God’s Word as Pastor Densky preached from Psalm 63:1
O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly;
My soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You,
In a dry and weary land where there is no water.
Densky challenged the students to thirst for God, who will come where He is wanted, adding that such an attitude is the “secret of revival.”
So, are we hungry? Let’s eat.
View the Christian Life Conference messages with Pastor Matt Densky on CIU’s YouTube channel. Listen to them on CIU’s podcast page.
Higher learning. Deeper faith. A Christ-centered community on campus and online. Request Info | Apply | Give
