I Remember When…Urbana ’90

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I remember when I went to Urbana ’90.

What’s Urbana?  I can hear you asking.

Urbana is a missions conference sponsored by Intervarsity.  The conference takes place every three years between Christmas and New Years on the campus of the University of Illionois in Urbana/Champagne, Illinois.  The conference is specifically geared towards college students, and the conference is designed to challenge students to consider missions.

I actually had the opportunity to go to this conference twice – once in 1990 during my freshmen year in college and once in 1993 during my senior year in college.  I have great memories of both times.  In a way, Urbana ’93 came at a more critical time in my life as I was processing what to do after graduation.  Maybe I’ll share more about that in another post.

Urbana ’90 was an eye-opening experience.  In a way, it felt like I was being thrust into a more adult existence during this conference as I faced big issues and wrestled through challenging topics with other students.  My dad was there, but I didn’t seem him often as he stayed in a different dorm and participated in different activities geared towards pastors.  At Urbana ’90, I stayed with three other friends from my home town in Mt. Holly, NJ – Andy Travis, Paul Braun, and James Harton (pictured above).

Together, the four of us spent the conference listening to great speakers, worshiping with 20,000 other college students, talking to missionaries in the exhibit hall, and debriefing in a small group in the dorm (with the guy standing behind us in the picture).  In between all these activities, we walked around the snowy University of Illinois campus.

One of my favorite speakers from Urbana ’90 was Isaac Canales (funny that my son is named Isaac).  His message was hilarious, but it was also powerful in challenging my heart.  I can’t find a video feed of the message, but I found another video of Pastor Canales that features some of the same elements of his message at Urbana.  If you have a few minutes, you’ll enjoy listening to Isaac Canales:

It’s kind of interesting that none of us became full-time missionaries.  Andy is a scientist, Paul is a professor at the University of Illinois, James is a musician, and I’m an engineer/manager.  I think the term missionary carries a certain expectation that can miss the mark.  When we hear the word missionary, we expect to hear about someone who has gone overseas and who works full-time for a missions organization serving others and spreading the Word of God.  God can still use us right where we are.  We can be missionaries in our neighborhoods, in our places of employment, and in our other activities.  I think this must be one of the messages that I came away with when I left Urbana.

As I remember this conference which took place over 20 years ago, I’m thankful for the springboard towards missions that took place.  I still have an interest in missions overseas, but I’ve also realized that God calls us to be missionaries right where we live and work.  You can read some of my thoughts on this in my post:  Where Is Your Xenacoj?  Missions has definitely become a focus in our family, and I’m looking forward to seeing where God takes us as we continue to serve Him.

If you are a college student, I would highly recommend that you check out Urbana.  The next one is coming up this year – Urbana 12!  For more information, click here.  (I just discovered that the conference is now held in St. Louis, Missouri – still worth the drive!)

Have you ever been to a conference that changed your world?  Tell us about it.

Related posts:

  1. I Remember When…I Met My Friend Brian
  2. I Am A Missionary…And You Can Be One Too!
  3. I Remember When…I Dunked In A Game
  4. I Remember When…My Family Moved Half Way Across The Country
  5. I Remember When…My First Kiss
  • http://billgrandi.com/ Bill (cycleguy)

    it was back in 1987. i attended a pastor conference in Kirkland, WA. I had just been relieved as pastor of a church after a secret meeting that did not include me. It was in April and I had till August. The conference was in May and one of the reasons I was being asked to leave is because I was attending this conference at my expense. They told me “No they would not let me go at their expense” so I paid for it with help from my mom. it was like a balm to a hurting, weary soul. I learned that worship was alive and for the first time I raised my hands. The professional stuff was good also. :) I also stayed with a family that was awesome.

    • http://jonstolpe.com/ Jon Stolpe

      Conferences like this can do so much to restore our souls.

  • http://www.tnealtarver.wordpress.com TNeal

    Thanks for giving me a chance to practice my Russian. I couldn’t figure out the middle of the poster but “Jesus Christ … in all the world.” Your missionary comments line up well with what Chris Patton wrote last week: Are You A Missionary or Impostor? ( http://christianfaithatwork.com/are-you-a-missionary-or-an-impostor/ ).

    I had the privilege of attending Amsterdam 2000 in the summer of that year. Over 10,000 Christian leaders gathered from all over the world for a 2-week conference. What I valued most from that experience was spending time in prayer with brothers in Christ from Africa, South America, and other parts of the world. The prayer times happened during our 45 minute train ride each morning and evening between Utrecht where we slept in a huge airplane hangar and Amsterdam where we gathered to listen to amazing speakers.

    • http://jonstolpe.com/ Jon Stolpe

      Thanks for the translation, Tom!

  • http://danblackonleadership.com/ Dan Black

    I remember God rocking my world at some different conferences when I first started to fully serve God.

    I have also attended John Maxwell, Dave Ramsey, and Ken Blanchard conferences which really positivity impacted me.

    • http://jonstolpe.com/ Jon Stolpe

      I’d love to see Dave Ramsey live.

      • http://danblackonleadership.com/ Dan Black

        It’s worth it.