The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champign accommodated 2800 trainees during the NACT in two different university housing complexes, Ikenberry and Florida Avenue Residence (aptly acronymned as ‘FAR’).
The majority of the European saints stayed in Ikenberry. Ikenberry had seven different halls available to the saints: Hopkins, Bousfield, Snyder, Scott, Weston, Oglesby, and Trelease halls.
Like typical American university halls, many of the rooms had two single beds and storage space, and corridors had shared bathrooms. In some halls, the rooms were arranged in suites with two to four rooms sharing a bathroom and sometimes a common area. We used the common areas near our rooms for our small group fellowships during the week.
During the college training, we were arranged into five different cohorts, which corresponded to the colour of their badges: light blue, medium blue, dark blue, pink, and red. Each cohort ranged from around 300-700 trainees and had the morning sessions in five different meeting rooms.
Throughout the day, each of the five cohorts also had a different schedule from one another! This was mainly so that the mealtimes could be staggered and we could all eat in a timely way. The saints coordinating the NACT ensured this college training would go smoothly in order for all the students to make the most out of the training and to gain Christ every moment. Thank You Lord for their service to You!
There were three meetings each morning (the grey boxes on the schedule): morning revival fellowship, a morning session on the keys to experiencing the jubilee, followed immediately by a special fellowship meeting, and then each evening all the trainees gathered for the evening session in the State Farm Centre. Aside from the meetings, there were assigned times for memorising verses, Bible reading and ministry reading, recreation, small group fellowship (in groups of about 10 trainees), and evening room time, and of course three meals a day at the cafeteria.
It was really helpful to have a detailed schedule during this week. In order for the Lord to work Himself into our whole being we must redeem the time we have in our day. We should pray to allow the Lord to flow into our spirit moment by moment. We can enjoy Him as the Jubilee when we eat, rest, do activities, in the meetings, and in the mornings and evenings! Praise the Lord He is so available to us!
In this post, we will also share a little more about the morning revival fellowships. Each morning started with a lot of enjoyable and releasing singing, encouraging us to turn our hearts to the Lord. Then some brothers shared with us some principles related to spending time with the Lord in the mornings.
Matthew 6:6
‘But you, when you pray, enter into your private room, and shut your door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will repay you.’
When we wake up to a new day, we must build up a habit and set a time to be revived and meet with God. Having a personal time with the Lord removes any barriers we have between us and Him. He deals with the blockages in our heart and our growth in life increases! When we have an intimate time with Christ, we can enjoy Him and His word in a deeper way.
We learnt how to build a more intimate relationship with the Lord (EAT!):
- Early – rise early in the mornings to find the Lord. This can be 5, 10, 30 minutes earlier than the time you usually wake up.
- Audible – speak! This is where our being goes. Our mouth is connected to our spirit and the Lord wants to hear our voice (S.S 2:14)
- Tethered – our mind should be tied to something solid, as our mind tends to wander. If our mind is tethered to our spirit and the Word, we can focus on the Lord and look fully unto Him.
Each morning after this fellowship, we would find a spot around the campus and spend 30 minutes for personal morning revival. Some days we might feel tired, some days we might find our mind wandering, but every day we are practicing to build up this private, intimate, and spiritual time with the Lord!
Hymn 643 – stanza 2
Take time to behold Him,
Hymn 643
The world rushes on;
Spend much time in secret
With Jesus alone.
By looking to Jesus
Like Him thou shalt be;
Thy friends, in thy conduct
His likeness shall see.