This Week in the BRN Family 08.28.25

College ministries and churches across Pennsylvania/South Jersey welcome back students and prepare for another year of reaching the campus with the Gospel - it's an exciting week in the BRN family!

August 29, 2025
Macala Mays

This Week in the BRN Family shares quick highlights of BRN churches and ministries throughout Pennsylvania and South Jersey loving their neighbors. Check out the latest happenings, baptisms, and accelerating Kingdom movement stories below:

New semester, same mission: Collegiate missionaries kick off another year of reaching the next generation

For many colleges and universities across Pennsylvania and South Jersey, this week (Aug. 25-29) marks the start of a new semester. For our collegiate missionaries, this week is filled with meeting new students, interacting with returning students, and engaging all students for the sake of the Gospel. Please join us in praying for them as they strive to reach the next generation with the hope of Jesus!

NewLife/BASIC Campus Ministry at PennWest Clarion:

NewLife/BASIC Campus Ministry at PennWest Clarion in Clarion, Pa., kicked off their semester by participating in the university’s Org Fair on Sunday, Aug. 24. Held the day before classes start, this outreach opportunity allows the campus ministry to connect with new students, engage in Gospel conversations, and invite new and returning students to their Monday night Bible study. Campus Missionary Scott Underhill has been serving the Clarion campus for 15 years. In a short video, he shares how you can be praying for students and the PennWest Clarion community this year. View this video by clicking here.

How you can pray for NewLife/BASIC at PennWest Clarion:

Pray for impactful outreach opportunities and experiences
Pray for their ongoing Monday night Bible Study, specifically that the Lord would give students a thirst and a hunger for His Word
Pray for students to invest in Clarion and boldly share

NewLife Campus Ministry at PennWest California:

NewLife campus ministry at PennWest California University (Cal U) in California, Pa., held their first Bible study of the semester on Tuesday, Aug. 26. Earlier in the day, student leaders spent time on campus interacting with students and inviting them to the Bible study. Later during their first week back, the ministry hosted an ice cream outing, which gave NewLife student leaders another opportunity to engage with their peers.

How you can pray for NewLife at PennWest California:

Pray for the student leaders who are running the NewLife college ministry at PennWest California, specifically that the Lord would guide them and grant them wisdom as they reach their campus
Pray for the students at PennWest California who are lost and in need of Jesus. May they have an encounter with the Gospel while on campus
Pray that their Welcome Week outreach opportunities will be fruitful and that they will make new members feel welcome

Steel City Church College Ministry:

Last Sunday, Aug. 24, Steel City Church in Pittsburgh had the pleasure of welcoming back their college students! Steel City ministers to students who attend University of Pitt, Duquesne University, and Carnegie Mellon University as well as other colleges and universities in the Pittsburgh area. On Sunday, students were welcomed back with donuts and a sweet time of fellowship with their Steel City Church family.

How you can pray for Steel City Church College Ministry:

Pray for the students returning to these Pittsburgh campuses, specifically that they may come to know Jesus as their Lord and Savior if they do not already
Pray for the Christian students who are returning; that they may be lights to their peers for the sake of the Gospel
Pray for Steel City Church as they minister to college students. Pray specifically for their College Ministry Director David Domalski and his family

NewLife/ABS at Lock Haven University, a ministry of Big Woods Bible Church:

Two years ago, the NewLife Campus Ministry at Lock Haven University (LHU), a college ministry of Big Woods Bible Church in Lock Haven, Pa., started a Bible study for student athletes after seeing a need among this specific student demographic. The Athletes Bible Study (ABS) at LHU originally started with 25 students meeting on Monday nights to study God’s Word.

On Monday, Aug. 25, the college ministry hosted its first Bible study of the semester, where they saw 86 students come out to start their semester off by hearing about Jesus! The NewLife/ABS college ministry is led by Pastor Robbie Mays, Associate Pastor of Campus Ministry at Big Woods Bible Church. Check out a video from the first Bible study below.

How you can pray for NewLife/ABS at Lock Haven University:

Pray for Athletes Bible Study at Lock Haven University, specifically that the Lord would reveal Himself to the students through His Word and that they would be obedient to His call
Pray for Pastor Robbie and his wife as they disciple and share the Gospel with students at Lock Haven University
Pray for Big Woods Bible Church as they care for these college students, specifically that through this body of Christ LHU students would come to see the beauty of the local church

NewLife Campus Ministry at Penn State:

A week before students returned to campus, Penn State University NewLife staff held their first meeting of the semester. Eric Reiber, director of PSU NewLife, gave the ministry’s new intern, Rebekah Vaughn, a tour of campus as they prayed and strategized for the semester. Students returned to Penn State Main Campus in State College, Pa., on Aug. 25. The first day back, the NewLife Campus Ministry treated 45 students to ice cream from the Creamery using a BRN Evangelism Grant. This outreach gave the ministry a chance to engage with students and invite them to their Tuesday night Bible study.

How you can pray for NewLife at Penn State University:

Pray for the students that PSU NewLife connected with during the first week of classes and that they will be responsive to the Gospel
Pray for Eric and his family as he continues to minister to students at PSU. Pray for Rebekah as she learns a new campus and engages with students over a lunch time Bible study
Pray for PSU NewLife’s Tuesday night Bible study to be a space where all who come can learn, grow, and foster their relationship with Jesus

Campus Ministries at Gwynedd Mercy University, Montgomery County Community College and Delaware Valley University:

Classes are underway at three campuses located in the Philadelphia region: Gwynedd Mercy University, Montgomery County Community College, and Delaware Valley University. Campus Missionary Brady Rennix ministers to all three of these campuses, plus others in the Philadelphia area. Along with facilitating Bible studies and events for students, Rennix also spends a portion of his time ministering to student athletes.

This year, he is hoping to develop a sports ministry and offer pre-game chapels at Gwynedd Mercy, starting with the baseball team. Hear more about this opportunity in Brady’s video here. Check out a special message from a Delaware Valley University student here, and prayer requests from students at Montgomery County Community College below.

How you can pray for college ministries at Gwynedd Mercy University, Montgomery County Community College, and Delaware Valley University:

Pray that the Lord will open the right doors for a sports ministry and pre-game chapels on Gwynedd Mercy’s campus
Pray for Brady Rennix and his family as he ministers to multiple campuses and college students in the Philadelphia area
Pray for the students on these campuses. For the ones who are Christians to boldly proclaim the Gospel to their peers, and for those who are not believers to be receptive to the Gospel

Baptist Campus Ministry at Drexel University:

As Drexel University eagerly awaits students to return, Brian Musser, director of Baptist Campus Ministries at Drexel University, asks BRN churches to pray for outreach opportunities during the first week of classes, specifically that new and returning students alike will be receptive to the Gospel. Students will officially return to the Philadelphia campus Sept. 14-21 (Welcome Week) and begin classes on Sept. 22.

How you can pray for BCM at Drexel University:

Pray for the Drexel BCM as they engage new students and returning students during Welcome Week (Sept. 14-21)
Pray for Brian and Jennifer Musser as they care for students throughout the academic year and share the Gospel with the campus
Pray for effective outreach opportunities and that students at Drexel will be receptive to the Gospel

Be a part of This Week in the BRN Family

Have exciting things happening in your church!? Let us know so we can celebrate with you and share the good news with our BRN Family. Submit stories of your church accelerating Kingdom movement, loving their neighbors or celebrating baptisms on our News Tips page. We can’t wait to hear from you!

Macala Mays

In 2022, Macala Mays stepped into her current role as Associate Editor of BRN United and Podcast Producer for the Baptist Resource Network of Pennsylvania/South Jersey (BRN). Before taking this position, she worked as a contracted Podcast Producer in 2021 and a freelance writer in 2020 for the BRN. During her time with the BRN, Macala Mays has produced three different podcast series, including 50 Stories of Transformation (2021-2022), The #LovePASJ Podcast (2022), and Celebrating Cooperative Missions (2023). She also has written over 60 articles for the BRN and has been nationally published by The Baptist Paper and Baptist Press. She is also a member of the Baptist Communicators Association (BCA). Prior to working with the BRN, Macala interned at the State Capitol of Tennessee in the Publications Division under the office of Secretary of State. She also remotely wrote news for TalkErie, a radio station in Erie, Pa., and previously worked as a News Director/Producer for WJET-TV in Erie, Pa. Macala Mays holds a master of arts in communications from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania (EUP) as well as a bachelor of arts in journalism/public relations from EUP. During her graduate years, Macala worked as a Graduate Assistant and helped manage the on-campus radio station. She also served as a managing editor for the university’s newspaper, which led to an interest in music journalism. Macala and her husband, Robbie, live in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania, where they attend Big Woods Bible Church and Robbie serves as the Associate Pastor of Campus Ministry. Both Robbie and Macala find great joy in discipling and walking alongside college students at Lock Haven University.