18 Students Said Yes to Jesus at Emerge
On January 16-18, 225 students (248 including staff and guests) gathered for our 20th annual Emerge Retreat, and it felt like holy alignment from start to finish.
Pastor Kaarina Hsieh brought a timely and courageous word on “Realigning with God’s Heart in a Time of Drift.”In a cultural moment where distraction, compromise, and quiet drift are normalized, students were invited to courageously name the idols they’ve grown comfortable with and to reorder their lives around faithfulness to Jesus. It was a call not just to believe—but to realign.
The weekend was packed with joy, depth, and community:
🕺 Epic icebreakers and nonstop dancing (huge thanks to DJ Austin)
🎸 Outstanding student-led worship from VIU, UBC, and UBCO
🥶 A polar dip in Cultus Lake (yes… really)
🏀 The best basketball Emerge has ever seen (no debate)
🎤 Powerful student testimonies to close the weekend
💛 A generous missions offering, with $3,930 pledged toward our UCM Service Trip to Guatemala
Students returned to campus refreshed, realigned, and on fire to live and minister for Jesus. I am deeply grateful to Stillwood Camp for hosting us so well, and our team of UCM Campus Workers that made this weekend possible across campuses in BC.
After 20 years of Emerge, we’re still seeing God meet students in powerful, personal, and life-changing ways. And once again—we’re emerging.
Stories from the Weekend
One of the most meaningful ways we measure the impact of Emerge is through the stories students share afterward. This year, the feedback was overwhelming—in the best way.
18 students shared that they made a new or renewed commitment to follow Jesus.
13 students reported experiencing healing or receiving a prophetic wordduring prayer ministry times.
Here are just a few glimpses of how students encountered God:
“I experienced the presence of God when I received prayer during worship the second night. Afterwards I felt so much peace.”
“During worship on Saturday night, I felt the presence of God so fully… I felt the Lord convicting me in my personal life and empowering me to strive for a year of change.”
“During the final worship songs, I felt lighter—as though a great burden had been lifted. A sense of hope and trust rushed through my heart.”
Students also described how God used the teaching to bring clarity and courage:
“God showed me that fighting my battles alone isn’t courageous. It’s scarier—and better—to invite God and others in.”
“I gained a deeper understanding of how much He truly loves me and cares for my future.”
“God showed me that I need to make an active commitment to Him.”
One student shared how the impact followed them home:
“When I got home, my younger brother called me from his university in a rough moment. The lessons from Emerge were exactly what I needed to pray with him through it.”
These stories are why we do this. God is forming resilient, courageous disciples—right in the middle of campus life.
UCM Service Trip to Guatemala
At Emerge, we also invited students to look beyond themselves and say yes to God’s mission in the world.
We highlighted this year’s UCM Service Trip to Guatemala and invited students to participate through prayer and giving. Using a pledge-card system, students committed $3,930 toward the cost of the trip. As of now, approximately $2,300 has already been received, and we are praying the remaining pledges come in over the coming month.
This May, a combined team of 12 from UBC and UBCO will travel to Pastores, Sacatepéquez, Guatemala in partnership with Global Shore Opportunities.
While there, the team will:
Serve at a Christian school in El Tizate
Participate in daily devotionals and school life
Build relationships with students, staff, and families over meals
Share testimonies and assist with high school and conversational English
Deliver groceries and participate in local evangelism efforts
This trip is not just about what our students will do, but about who they are becoming—disciples shaped by humility, compassion, and obedience to Jesus’ call to go.
Thank you for praying, giving, and walking alongside us as we invest in students who are learning to follow Jesus and live on mission—on campus and around the world.
🙏 Prayer Requests
Pray for Lasting Fruit from Emerge ⛺️ 🔥
Give thanks for how God met students so powerfully at Emerge, and pray that what was sparked there would take root on campus. Ask the Holy Spirit to help students carry renewed faith, courage, and obedience back into their lecture halls, friendships, and ministries. Pray that commitments made would become lifelong patterns, and that campuses across BC would feel the ripple effects of what God began that weekend.
Pray for the Guatemala Service Trip Team 🧳 🌍
Pray for the UBC and UBCO Service Trip team as they prepare to serve in Guatemala this May. Ask God to provide the remaining financial support needed, that all pledged funds would be realized this month. Pray also for unity, humility, and spiritual readiness as students prepare their hearts to serve, listen, and witness—trusting God to work in them and through them.
Pray for Apprenticeship Applicants 📝⏰
As applications for our Campus Ministry Apprenticeship close on January 31, pray for those discerning this next step. We are grateful for the four applicants currently expected, and ask God to confirm His call on each of them. Pray also that additional candidates would step forward in faith, and that the Spirit would guide us in raising up the right people to serve and lead on campus in the years ahead.
