(Chicago Urban Program)

For those of you who are still wondering what will you be doing in a couple weeks, I would like to invite you to consider spending your spring break at the Chicago Urban Program. It is one of the premiere programs that we offer, and you have the opportunity to come alongside and serve in some of the most effective programs of social and racial justice in the city of Chicago. CUP provides an opportunity for you to get a really brief glimpse into what it takes to truly bring about renewal in a neighborhood, and you learn a lot about yourself in the process.

As college students, I know that there is a desire in most, if not all, of you to make a difference in the world. That’s why so many of you are pursuing degrees in education, medicine, law, engineering, etc. Spring Break CUP would be a transformative experience that opens your eyes to what it really take to make a difference in the world. It’s not always as glamour as we think it might be, but with the hope of the gospel, true change can really take place that turns a community around.

If you are at all interested in participating in Spring Break CUP, please email me and let me know as soon as possible! We are hoping to have a go that spans across all of our fellowship. The program will run from Saturday – Thursday of spring break and the total cost just $225. If you need any sort of scholarship assistance, please let your staff/student leader know as soon as possible. The registration deadline for our week is the Sat a week before. For more information about CUP, please check out their website: cupivcf.org. We also have several students who have participated in the program before. Please feel free to ask them about their own experiences!

So, in summary:

1. Consider how you might use your spring break to grow and learn, and how CUP could be a great opportunity for that
2. Ask CUP alumni about their personal experiences and how they’ve been changed through CUP
3. Let your staff know as soon as possible, if you’re remotely interested!
4. Registration deadline is the Sat a week before we go and the cost is $225.

However, I think the deepest impact CUP had on me in my return to campus was through the spiritual discipline of community and being part of my site team. As I went through the next fall semester coordinating ministry in my dorm and leading a team of small group leaders there, I continually referred back to things I learned while at CUP. There were multiple instances where I was vastly better equipped for leading my team through conflict because of the plentiful time spent in conflict resolution at CUP. I was able to see and address many things that affected the functioning of our team such as self-protection, trust, competition, and judgement because I had had my eyes opened through my team at CUP. The journey of living, working, eating, doing devotions, and having fun all as part of a team for 7 weeks had more impact on my ability to lead than any other experience in my life. A summer spent at CUP is great for anyone, and it is especially one of the best experiences available to missional leaders and leader of leaders in a campus fellowship.”

Kevin Wallington was on the Lawndale Summer CUP Team in 2010. He was the resident Southerner (from Alabama) and the most likely in the apartment to burst in to spontaneous song or dance. He is now on staff with InterVarsity at Illinois Wesleyan.

(Link thanks to Ryan)

Chicago Urban Program’s Spring Break can help you as you as you try to instill the core commitments of InterVarsity into your chapter and student leaders.

Here are core commitments that can grow through an Urban Program Spring Break.

Value – Community: We promote authentic relationships and redemptive communities marked by God’s grace and truth.

CUP allows students to have honest dialogue about their ethnic identity and about racism and injustice. Students and staff often deal honestly with their own brokenness and their need for the cross and for reconciliation at CUP.

Value – Discipleship of the Mind: We engage in learning and thoughtful Biblical reflection in every area of life.

CUP is a training program, not just a service trip. Students spend time learning what the Bible has to say about the Kingdom, the Good News, the poor and justice. We teach about the history of racism and injustice in our society. Students are challenged to embrace a robust Gospel that deals with both individual and corporate sin.

Value – Leadership Development: We develop women and men to serve as God’s leaders at every level of InterVarsity and ultimately for the Kingdom of God, honoring God’s gifts and calling in them.

CUP offers opportunities for student leaders to grow in cross cultural relationships and conflict resolution. They grow in their understanding of their own ethnic identity, allowing them to serve better cross culturally.

Value – Whole Life Stewardship: We proclaim Jesus as Lord over all creation and culture, striving to integrate faith, life and vocation in serving Him.

Many of our students will end up working and living near cities. CUP helps them understand how God is the Lord of the city and how they can be involved in the His work in urban areas. Students see various models for how to integrate faith, life and vocation in their lives.

Value – Ethnic Reconciliation and Justice: We pursue ethnic reconciliation by practicing mutual empowerment, grace and truth and by promoting personal and systemic justice.

CUP focuses on these issues through teaching, worship, dialogue, small groups, testimonies, and service. Students hear directly from people who have been hurt but who are committed to reconciliation. They work alongside ministries seeking to promote the Kingdom.

Value – Church: We partner with churches in campus ministry and equip students, faculty and staff to be lifelong active members in local congregations.

Value – Missions: We serve God and partner with His people to extend His kingdom cross-culturally on campus and around the world.

CUP partners with local ministries and churches so students learn from those who know the city. Students serve under local Christians who disciple our students in ministry and service.

Blue Eyes was an interesting person. He didn’t have a wife or kids, but he was obviously very protective and very attached to the neighborhood kids. At the street corner, there was a fire hydrant that was almost always turned on because of the heat. And the kids would run around and play in the water like they do in old movies, except in real life. The water spouting out of the fire hydrant was so strong that if a kid stuck his leg into the water too close to the spout, he would literally go flying with the stream of water. But Blue Eyes would always be watching from the background, shades on, scowl on face, arms crossed, making sure the kids didn’t get too close to the fire hydrant or run into the street when cars were coming, a gang leader guardian of sorts, keeping watch over the corner.

Unfortunately, it was not always a happy corner. During the second week of our time in Chicago, we heard gunshots at night outside our window. On one of the nights, there was a gunfight that went on for almost ten minutes on our street corner. The next day, we learned from one of our neighbors that one of the gang members was shot and killed by a rival gang during the shootout. I don’t think he was even 25. It was not something I had expected, going into the trip. Dealing with death 10 days into my trip was not something I had foreseen. It was a solemn and sobering moment, seeing the brokenness in our world
firsthand in such a tangible way.

But even amidst that brokenness, I saw God work. In the aftermath of the death, Blue Eyes approached the pastor of the main church in our neighborhood. He told the pastor that he wanted the neighborhood kids to be involved with church activities so that they wouldn’t get caught up in gangs. He wanted them to
have a better life than the one whose funeral was being planned. He wanted them to live a better life than he, and he saw the church as a way to save future of the kids on the corner.

Blue Eyes showed me that gang members were just people. And not just people, but people who love. People who love, whom we should love, our neighbors, just as much as anyone else.

-Humboldt Park student

The state of emotional exhaustion I faced was horrible but helpful. When I finally arrived, it made me realize a number of things about God, the world, and myself in general. I didn’t have the emotional stamina to project an image of having things in order. My first option was to disengage from the situation, to retreat and muster my strength. Yet the long discussions each night hindered my attempts; I could not escape. I couldn’t articulate myself well in conversation, but my one consolation was that the discombobulated thoughts were genuine. This made me more aware of my tendency to project an image, especially at Northwestern. When I had time to organize my thoughts and temper my emotions, I could appear however I desired. Yet when the façade chipped off, I found myself not nearly as charitable or friendly as I would have suspected.

This epiphany also helped me to view others differently. People in Lawndale seemed to act irrationally, especially in terms of spending. They would sacrifice long-term goals for a quick fix at McDonalds or new Nikes. At first I dismissed the habits as a result of low self-control. Yet as I considered my own emotional state, I wondered what would happen if my deprivation were financial instead. Might it lead me to similar choices? Rather than judge the actions of those around me, I was able to empathize(at least in part) with the mutual messiness. Our choices were not ideal, but rather flowed from a survival mentality. Instead of expecting behavioral change, I saw a need to lift the burdens first.

Even more important, the messiness I saw in the community and myself illuminated my desperate need for grace. In playing like I had it all together, I was not relying on God to change me. Such a position only deceived myself and fostered pride in my own efforts. The vulnerability brought about by CUP was uncomfortable, but allowed me a glimpse at my own deficiencies. It pulled me back to God, as I saw that I could not even fix myself, much less society.

Will, Northwestern Student