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Top News |
Men's Soccer Showcase March 8-9During the Soccer Showcase, students will have the opportunity to participate in a training session with other prospective players under the direction of our coaching staff, and seniors who plan to attend CIU also will be trying out to make the official roster. Learn more... First Intercollegiate Athlete Signs to Play for CIU Rams SoccerClick here to read the full story. 30 Days of Prayer for Rams AthleticsAs our hearts are focused on creating an athletics department which will glorify God, we desire that all at CIU are a part of the building of the program, starting with prayer. If you can or feel lead, please join us in prayer as we develop CIU Rams Athletics and dedicate our work to the Lord; asking for His guidance, direction and wisdom. For more information please email KAbbott@ciu.edu First Annual Discover CIU 5kFor the results from the First Annual Discover CIU 5k check out the Cross Country Page. |
History In The Making
We are embarking on one of the most exciting chapters in the history of CIU. For the first time in 89 years, CIU will field our first intercollegiate athletic teams in fall 2012. Why athletics at CIU? It fits with our purpose of educating people from a biblical worldview to impact the nations with the message of Christ. Imagine the outreach that student-athletes and coaches can have both at home and abroad using the platform of athletics to share the good news of Jesus Christ
Our Sports
Fall 2012 marks the beginning of an aggressive five-year plan introducing intercollegiate athletics at CIU.
Our League
CIU will compete in the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA), whose mission is to use athletic competition as an integral component of education, evangelism, and encouragement.
Our Mascot
The ram was chosen as the CIU mascot for its strength and its biblical significance. Not only are rams known as ferocious defenders of their territory and their flock, the ram is a symbol of God's provision - a foreshadowing of Christ's sacrifice on the cross.
Click here for more information on becoming a founding member of the CIU Rams Club!
Cheryl Guinther is the communications coordinator for the Alumni Ministries Office of Columbia International University. She serves alumni with genuine personal care and a professional approach developed over years as an executive administrative assistant and missionary. Cheryl worked over six years for a Christian financial management company providing client-care to seniors. As a missionary with Brethren in Christ World Missions in Zambia, Africa, Cheryl managed a mission guesthouse, served with a church team taking the “Jesus Film” to outlying villages, and started a “Reading Room” ministry to help street children return to school. For the last five years, she has been a mentor in the Missions Development Program for Brethren in Christ World Missions. Cheryl and her husband, Peter, moved to Columbia from Mechanicsburg, Penn. in August of 2010 so that Peter could complete his Master of Divinity degree at CIU. She enjoys reading, gardening, volunteering at a women’s shelter, and the close fellowship with her neighbors in the CIU Village.
Cheryl’s favorite Scripture verse is Romans 13:8.
Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.
Tom Keefer
“But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.” (Matthew 7:26)
The foundation was shaky. The walls were crumbling. The beams and structure: rotted. No, I’m not talking about my house, but the foundation of my soul. I grew up in Chicago, had a closet for a bedroom and wore the same Chicago Bulls jersey to school every day. It made me the target of bullies. My mother was bi-polar and my father was abusive. It was the perfect recipe for a depressing childhood.
I tried to escape it all by moving out and getting a construction job. Construction was an escape from the abuse and pain I endured at home.
After my wife, Mandy, and I started having children, we began to have marital problems. A Christian friend of mine in the construction business invited us over for dinner and shared with us the love and forgiveness of Jesus Christ.
Shortly after that dinner, I moved my family to Florida for another construction job. The money was pouring in, but I was working 80 hours a week, growing more arrogant by the day and tragically turning into my dad. While I was busy working, Mandy discovered MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) and heard the call of the Holy Spirit to radically transform her life. I saw the change in her and decided to commit the rest of my life to Christ.
That’s when I heard about Columbia International University. Mandy and I visited the school and knew we wanted to make CIU our new home. Today I am passionate about church planting and reaching others for Christ. I’m not sure where God will place me. But one thing is for sure; CIU has made an impact on me and my family and has helped me reconstruct my life for God’s glory. Laying a new foundation for my life could not have happened without CIU.
“He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built.” (Luke 6:48)
Download a printable version of this Impact story here.
This graduate of Columbia International University is like 17,000 other alumni around the world making an impact every day. If you want an undergraduate, graduate or seminary education that equips you to make a real difference, we need to meet.