ULC Ministry Stories

The Lord is using the University Lutheran Chapel in Lincoln to minister to the students, both traditional and international, at UNL. Here are some of the things He is doing through this ministry.

One Sunday, Sun Li and his wife Xiaoli joined University Chapel staff at a congregation for a presentation on the ministry of the Chapel. Xiaoli joined Sun in the United States just two months earlier and was still in need of a conversation partner. This fact was mentioned during the presentation to the congregation.

During a time of fellowship following the service, the ULC staff member met a former acquaintance and his wife. This couple did not belong to this church, but participated with the worship team on occasion. They were there that Sunday for the service and were invited to stay for the meal by a member. This was when the Lord led them to be connected with Sun and Xiaoli.

They requested Xiaoli as their conversation partner. Before the staff member could introduce them, the she noticed this family visiting with Xiaoli and Sun. Because Sun had been in the country for two years and had adequate English skills, he had never been paired with a conversation partner, but now he had connected with a friendship family.

Following time with these conversation partners, Xiaoli asked Pastor Bill to baptize her. She said the meeting between her and her conversation partner helped her to know she wanted to be baptized. The Holy Spirit is using the conversation partners at the University Lutheran Chapel to work in the hearts of the international students and those with whom they converse.

Please keep this program and this ministry in your prayers and praise God for the work He is doing in the hearts of many.

Walking along the University of Nebraska - Lincoln’s campus, she looks like any of the other thousands of students, but Dana Brosig has a special story to tell.

Dana transferred to UNL her second year of college, but that’s not what makes her special. Dana’s parents were going through a divorce, but that’s not what makes her special either. What makes Dana special is her story of how God reached down and turned her heart back to Him.

During Dana’s parent’s divorce, church was not a part of her home life. She began to drift away from the truths she had learned as a child. Feeling “ungrounded”, she began to search for answers to her loneliness at various campus ministries at Oregon State.

After her freshman year, Dana transferred to UNL and continued her search. A friend in her dorm invited her to an activity at the University Lutheran Chapel one evening. Within days, Pastor Bill Steinbauer had called her and set up an appointment to meet.

Since that first activity and meeting with Pastor Bill, the Holy Spirit has worked in her heart to draw her closer to God and to give her that relationship she was looking to find.

Not only has Dana found comfort for her life, she has also been moved to action by her faith. Living in an international dorm, Dana has had the opportunity to invite students of others faith to experience the life-changing gifts of God offered through Word and Sacrament worship and Bible studies at the University Lutheran Chapel. There are also opportunities to witness to those in other countries. Dana joined the Chapel last year on the mission trip to Tijuana, Mexico. Once there, she was able to help build a house, hand out food to the homeless, and spread God’s Word of hope in a spiritually hungry world.

Closer to home, Dana continues to live her faith in Lincoln by helping other students serve meals at the Gathering Place twice a month. She also continues to grow closer to her Heavenly Father through the ministry taking place at the University Lutheran Chapel in Lincoln.

It is amazing to see how just one life has been changed because someone took the time to invite a friend down the hall to a Christian gathering. It is amazing to see that one life touch others. But more than that, it is amazing to think we have a God who is so gracious He sent His only Son to die for us so we may live for eternity. Is there any reason we all can’t invite someone to join us for church or Bible study? Just imagine the special stories like Dana’s we could all tell!