“New York City is the most fatally fascinating thing in America.”

~ James Weldon Johnson

That begins to mean something to you when your feet hit the pavement for the first time. The chill from the shadows cast by concrete & steel giants makes the wind shearing past you that much colder on an early spring morning. As you look up, you get the sense that you’re walking in the valley of a man-made Grand Canyon, with shimmering walls that stretch upward for hundreds and hundreds of feet as they taper off into spires. All around you, thousands upon thousands of people rush past in a mighty torrent of humanity — with a focused sense of urgency. New York runs on the tightest of schedules, and it can’t really afford to care about you in the moment. Horns honk, sirens wail, megaphones blare, bells ring, and the cacophony of sound that assaults your ears both fascinates and overwhelms you. The smells of spices and fried food wafts toward you from a food truck; the aromas somehow combine with scents much less delicious to create another massive collage of sense. Between the flashing jumbotrons and the general sensory overload, I begin to wonder how to make sense of it all.

Home to over 8.5 million people,

New York is both America’s most populous city and a global hub of finance, fashion, and culture. The 5 boroughs that divide the city are brimming with people from every conceivable walk of life; New Yorkers hail from all over the planet and claim nearly every nationality, ethnicity, and religious belief. In a sense, NYC can be thought of as a massive microcosm of the world. This Spring Break, I have the chance to dive right in and experience this with Cru, the college ministry I’m a part of here at USC. Of course, we’ll see the sights and experience the city, but that’s not really why we’re there. Within the massive skyscrapers, tucked away in little pizzerias, and out and about on the streets are people — whose stories are worth hearing.

Something is happening

You’ve probably heard how America is becoming less and less religious, and that people my age are walking away from their faith in increasing numbers. New York City is no different; if anything, it’s broken away from traditional Christian America even more drastically than the rest of the country. Millennials make up the largest chunk of people who affiliate with no religion, and New York has the highest density of Non-Christian faiths than just about anywhere else in the country. If you’re more curious about all the stats, check out Pew Research’s Religious Landscape Study of NYC. But, all the figures say one big thing: that people aren’t satisfied with just believing what they’ve been told their whole lives. They come to places like New York City to discover what’s out there and to figure out what’s real. There are over half a million college students who attend dozens of colleges and universities in the city, and they’re searching. They’re not satisfied, and they’re seeking truth.

My generation, the next batch of world-changers, are seeking the truth.

Now, if you’re a Christian, the statistics I mentioned might be a little discouraging. I’m not telling you all of this to wage a culture war or to crusade against people who don’t believe what we do. I’m telling you all of this so that you can see an incredible opportunity we have in front of us. In our country, we have the unique opportunity to go somewhere and experience the world. We have the chance to sit across from people from cultures we’d otherwise never get to experience and honestly talk with them about who Jesus is. So many people in NYC haven’t heard the Gospel, and many that have heard don’t have the full picture. God works to revive dead, confused hearts; we get to sit across from people in genuine compassion and learn more about them. We have the opportunity to speak, soul-to-soul, the news of a God who regenerates and restores people from their brokenness.

Last year, I went to New York City for the first time.

I was blown away by the city, but the people are what really left a mark on my heart. A few dear friends from Cru and myself packed into a little church in Brooklyn every morning with Cru movements from UGA, Vanderbilt, and Belmont. Once we prayed for our mission & the city, debriefed about the previous day, and let the coffee kick in, we started to learn about the people of New York. We learned about the history of the city — that the ever-churning, profit-driven machinery that has been in place since 1624 still hums along today. We learned how to have meaningful dialogue with people from completely different backgrounds than our own, to get past the jargon and Christianese I’m way too fluent in and speak to the heart. In particular, we spent a workshop learning how to communicate clearly and effectively about spiritual things with Muslims — something I’d never done before. We learned how to ask genuine questions, respectfully but also intentionally seeking where hearts lay.

And then,

We walked out of the church doors and put our training to work. We went out into the colleges and Universities near New York and started genuine conversations with students. I can remember having lunch with a Muslim guy from Queensborough Community College and not knowing what I was doing at all. The Spirit has to lead these things! As I learned to let the Spirit lead, the awkward and the beautiful combined into some sweet, God-glorifying moments. I can remember my friend Peter and I talking about Jesus with a construction worker at that same college I mentioned earlier. We left not knowing what the guy believed, but as he left the table he told us that our conversation had changed something inside of him. I don’t know how exactly how many people came to a new life in Jesus that week, but God saw fit to graciously work salvation in several New Yorker’s lives over Spring Break. We connected these people to faithful, Bible-teaching churches, so that they could continue to lay a foundation for a spiritual revival in the city.

and now,

In a couple of weeks, I have the opportunity to go back to New York City and continue to be faithful in a place that sorely needs healing, truth, and the love of God. I will continue to be equipped and learn how to share the Gospel in patience, respect, and love. My experiences from last year will give me a better understanding of how to navigate the incredibly complex cultural brew of the city and to speak to people with more care and less anxiety. I have a call to spend my life doing this; to bring the truth of the Gospel to people that need to hear it. I’m eagerly waiting to step off that plane, get into the city, and do the disciple-making work the Great Commission calls us to do. To do this, I need your help!

I believe with all of my heart that God can and will work revival in the hearts of New Yorkers. Our faithfulness to be loving image-bearers of Jesus can and will show people a hope and a joy in God that will change their lives for eternity. I’m trying my best to be faithful and pursue that call, but I’m also a broke college student, plain and simple. So right now, I’d like to ask you a huge favor.

Stop reading this and pray.

ask God how you can be faithful.

If that means faithful prayer, great!

If that means genuinely sharing your faith with your neighbor, great!

If that means looking inside your own heart to see where Jesus can work, great!

If that means financially supporting a college student who is taking a step of faith to live out the Great Commission, great!

(I happen to know one — you can click here for more info on how to help).

Regardless, God calls us to do something. He works in us to be his hands and feet; to show his love. I hope you see how I have an opportunity to do that, and I hope I can encourage you to take steps of faith too!

With Brotherly Love,

Cade