Two years ago this month, it was just another day at Asbury University in Kentucky, just another prayer service. But God had other plans. A revival broke out, attracting people worldwide for 16 days.
Last week, approximately 8,000 people gathered at the University of Kentucky in Rupp Arena with similar cries for repentance, renewal, and restoration.
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Most students in Asbury answered the call from the Unite US to celebrate Jesus’ name, get baptized, and hear the call of God. Later, in 2023, Unite US marked its birth at Auburn University, eight hours south of the University of Kentucky. In 17 months, their college campus crusades have attracted over 70,000 students.
They don’t plan to stop fanning the flames of revival nationwide in 2025. Six more events are scheduled through April 15 at Baylor University’s Foster Pavillion.
“Every time they confess their sin, they yell it out. They are responding to the gospel in herds. Like droves of kids are coming forward to receive Jesus,” said Unite US speaker and founder of IF:Gathering Jennie Allen. “We are baptizing kids for an hour and a half. [They are] giving their lives to Jesus. There is a movement amongst students that you can’t believe. And even when you see it, you can’t believe it!”
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University newspaper Kentucky Today spoke to Daniel Johnson, the director of the Baptist Campus Ministry in Lexington on the University of Kentucky campus, about the Unite US event.
“We’re seeing these pop up around a ton of different campuses [near the University of Kentucky],” he said. “The spirit is ripe for moving. We are praying that heart change is happening, and we will see a ripple effect. It can lead to a different culture on campus. That there would be spiritual fruit from this, and lives are so changed that Kentucky is not seen as a place of darkness as a campus but a place of light.”
Local NBC News affiliate WLEX 18 interviewed Dr. Sarah Baldwin, the vice president of student life at Asbury University, who connects Asbury to the events in Rupp Arena.
“There’s something about these thousands of young adults standing shoulder to shoulder seeking the same thing and being present with something bigger than their own experience,” she said. “It was so powerful, and we know that what God was doing and is still doing here at Asbury is just a taste of what God is doing globally. So, we’re seeing the whole movement around faith rise up in young adults.”
God is moving by His Spirit among college students. What He is doing exactly is uncertain. Some theologians and church leaders believe this move since Asbury is preparing this generation for the return of Christ.
Others think it could be a new chapter in history books–possibly the next Great Awakening.
Whatever it is, it’s incredible to report and behold.
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