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Reaching the Next Generation with the Life Changing Message of Jesus Christ

We consider it a privilege to be in full time ministry. We feel that the Lord has called us to influence young people through the ministry of Cru.  We serve in the Campus Ministry on the Coaching Center Team.  We get to be a part of Jesus transforming lives as we mentor college and high school students in their walks with God and help enable them to build movements to reach their peers.  

EACH & EVERY:  Jesus commanded His followers to make disciples of ALL nations. Today's students will be the leaders of the nations tomorrow. That is why Cru focuses most of their energy on students, because students have so much potential to influence. Also, students are at a time in their lives where they are making decisions that set the course of the rest of their lives. High school and college is such a crucial time in the life of young people to have opportunities to put their faith in Jesus and learn to walk with Him. In light of these truths, we have strategies in place to help the body of Christ get to each school and every student.  

The Coaching Center is Cru's "YES" team. "Is there a ministry on my campus?"  If there isn't one, our team will answer, "Yes, we will help you get one started." Even though teams of on-location staff are effective in reaching bigger campuses, they are limited to reaching a finite number of campuses. Cru's overall campus strategy relies heavily on the Coaching Center to help reach the rest of the schools: each school, every student.  We help empower student leaders and volunteers, believing the Lord has already raised up all the people and resources needed to reach each campus or school. Some of them just need mobilized. We trust that God has an army in His Church that is eager, willing, and some leading student movements, yet there are many others who just need a little encouragement and coaching to feel confident to step out and make a difference.

We thoroughly love what we do. We look to partner with churches who have a heart to reach a campus near them for Christ. Also, we strive to identify key students who God may be raising up to make an impact on their campus. Then we coach these students and volunteers not just on starting and leading spiritual movements, but walking with God in the midst of it.  

A movement is a group of students dependent on God, who help one another grow spiritually in their understanding of God and His Word, who are being trained in ministry and how to share their faith, and who are being sent out to share the Good News of Jesus with others. They are moving and growing in depth and in numbers as well! A Biblical example of a movement  is found in Acts 2:42-47.

Having attended a college as a student where there was no Christian missional presence, Amy understands what it feels like to want to be used by God to impact your campus for Christ, but not know how to do it. After a friend contacted the Coaching Center with Cru, Amy and a few of her friends were connected to staff who worked at a nearby University who encouraged and mentored them all in faith and ministry.  Throughout her remaining years in college, Amy was used by God to help launch a Cru ministry on her campus and provide leadership for that movement.  It was through her experiences there that she grew in her love for God and for ministry and her desire to make an eternal impact on the lives of students around the world.  This movement is still going strong today, 30 years later!  Praise God! Students there continue to hear about Jesus, grow in their faith, and go out to tell others!  That is our desire for all campuses across the country and the world, and it is to this end that we labor, all for His glory! 

We believe the Lord has uniquely gifted us to be a part of the Coaching Center. Adam is a pioneer, networker, and recruiter.  He loves to see how God is at work and to recruit as many people as he can to take part in what God is doing.  He  specifically enjoys using these gifts to help launch movements around the country. Amy is a mentor, a good listener, and is able to discern well what the next steps are for a person she is mentoring or a movement she is leading.  She really enjoys using her gifts to help coach volunteers on how to lead a ministry and also mentoring them in their own walks with the Lord.  

Though we spent our early missionary years of 1998-2003 ministering on campuses in Ohio and Indiana, we have always had a heart for international ministry and liked to take our summer and spring break assignments overseas. We have led teams of students on mission trips in Albania, Italy, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Croatia and Thailand.  In June 2018, we returned from 14 years of mission work in Macedonia where we helped build spiritual movements across Eastern Europe.  

God has blessed us with three children along the way:

Our daughter Lauren (2001) - She graduated from Asbury University having studied Psychology and Equine Studies. She wants to help at-risk kids using horses and point them to Jesus!

Our son Seth (2003) - He graduated from Cedarville University, studying Computer Science and now works from home for a consulting company as a software engineer.

Our youngest son Nathan (2006 in Macedonia) - He graduated from Northridge HS in 2025 and is working on his pilot's license in order to one day be a missionary pilot. 

We can use your help!  We need to grow our ministry partner team who pray and give financially to support our personal ministry to help reach students for Christ! Please pray about how the Lord might have you join our ministry partner team, potentially $200 per month or another amount. 

Thank you for considering joining our team to help reach students for Christ!  If the Lord leads, you can give a gift here and we will connect with you.

If you have any questions about this, or would like to make an impact on a college or high school campus near you, please contact us personally at adam.burkey@cru.org or amy.burkey@cru.org​

Website: https://tinyurl.com/BurkeyPhotos