previous happenings - 2004/2003 school year

Bonfire Social (July 15, 2004) - For large group we had a bonfire social at La Jolla Shores Beach! People brought s'mores and instruments to sing worship songs around the campfire. We also watched the sun set in the late afternoon. It was great fun!

Integration Dinner (June 22, 2004) - The topic for this integration dinner was on the role of women in ecclesiastical and in parachurch organizations. Kristen hosted this dinner for June.

GCF Retreat to Big Bear (June 18-20, 2004) - Instead of the traditional fall retreat, we had our yearly retreat in June to celebrate the beginning of summer (and to accommodate people before they left for the summer). The theme of the weekend was "Being Salt and Light in the University". We shared the weekend with several other GCF groups from the Southern California area as well as a few InterVarsity Graduate staffworkers. We also enjoyed time playing volleyball, basketball and hiking around the local forest.

Integration Dinner (May 23, 2004) - Jessica and Kyle hosted this integration dinner (in reality, it was a "lunch"). The topic for the night focused on "Integrating a Christian view on life into our political and social stances." More specifically, the discussion centered around what our roles as Christians should be in protecting life. Time was also spent discussing academic areas of biological research and warfare, and also perspectives on hotly contested topics such as abortion, the death penalty and animal rights.

City of Refuge (May 15th, 2004) - We continued our service with the City of Refuge ministry in downtown San Diego. This event included some people from the UC Irvice graduate group and we were grateful for their participation. For more details look at the October 25th, 2003 entry below.

2004 UCSD Veritas Forum (May 8, 2004) - Elliot Hui organized the 2004 UCSD Veritas Forum for undergraduates that were interested in different topics at the interface of faith and academics. Many people within GCF volunteered their time to help put this event together. Topics included: "Integrating God into our roles as Christian Scientists and Engineers," "A Scientific Approach to the Evolution-Creation Debate," and "Intelligent Design 101."

Integration Dinner (April 16, 2004) - The topic for this integration dinner was Christians and the U.S. Constitution, with a focus on the Bill of Rights. The discussion included thoughts about free speech, the right to bear arms, and the right to privacy. Matt Schneider hosted this integration dinner.

National Day of Prayer (May 6, 2004) - Some folks from GCF went to Geisel Library to pray with many other Christians on campus. This was an open invitation to anyone who wanted to pray for the campus, our leaders, and our country. The Faculty and Staff Christian Fellowship hosted this event.

Easter Potluck (April 11th, 2004) - We had a potluck for Easter at Surfside. People brought a lot of wonderful food to eat and we spent some time worshiping God. We even had egg painting available for people to do!

Spring Break Social Activity (March 25th, 2004) - Instead of our large group meeting this week, we had a bonfire at La Jolla Shores. This was a great time to socialize and sing songs worshiping God around the fire.

Integration Dinner (March 29th, 2004) - Cindy Gustafson-Brown hoasted the integration dinner for March. The topic for the night focused on what it means to be a "Christian scholar." Questions such as, "How does a Christian in academia achieve intellectual integrity, reconciling our academic disciplines and our Biblical worldview?" were discussed.

GCF Potluck (March 20th, 2004) - Jeremy and Aileen Kua hosted another great potluck at their home. Good food and good fun!

GCF Night at the Movies (February 27th, 2004) - Mt. Soledad Presbyterian Church rented Town Square 14 to view "The Passion of the Christ" movie. Many people from GCF bought tickets and went as a group to see the film.

Integration Dinner (February 24th, 2004) - Peter Payne, a staff-worker with InterVarsity's Graduate and Faculty Ministries, came to speak at this integration dinner. The topic for the night was "Science and Christianity: Worldviews in Conflict?" His knowledge and experience made him an excellent resource for our group.

City of Refuge (February 7th, 2004) - We continued our service with the City of Refuge ministry in downtown San Diego. For more details look at the October 25th, 2003 entry below.

Integration Dinner (January 19th, 2004) - We had January's integration dinner at Liam's place. The topic for the night was "How Christ is Displayed in the (Academic/Popular) World Around Us." This was a great meeting to find out how to respond to Jesus being depicted in secular contexts.

GCF backpacking trip (January 10th-11th, 2004) - Kyle put together a nice backpacking trip to the Anza-Borego desert for people to go to. This was a fun time to get away from the city for a while, enjoy each other's company and see some stars that you wouldn't usually see. Pictures can be seen here.

Christmas GCF Potluck (December 16th, 2003) - Liam hosted a potluck at his place after the school quarter was out. A lot of GCF people were in town so this was a fun activity for celebrating Christmas and the end of the quarter.

Christmas Party (December 11th, 2003) - Instead of our usual large group, we gathered at Surfside for a Christmas Party. We spent some time sharing about our lives, singing Christmas and worship songs, and ate lots of great food.

Integration Dinner (November 24th, 2003) - Loren and Betsy Rodgers hosted the integration dinner for November. The topic discussed focused on issues relating to the relationship between government and religion in our country.

Thanksgiving lunch for the homeless (November 22nd, 2003) - Coast Vineyard hosted this event and people from GCF went to help out. In addition, donations of clothes, food and money were also collected for people in need.

GCF Potluck (November 15th, 2003) - Jeremy and Aileen Kua hosted a potluck at their home. Fun activities included watching Vaggie Tales and playing games. Of course, there was also a lot of food for a great feast!

Graduate/Undergrad seminar (November 4th, 2003) - This seminar was our service for undergraduates to help them answer questions about grad school and the life of a grad student. Some topics that were covered were, what does it mean to be a Christian graduate student, how does one get into grad school, workload of a graduate student, and how one expresses their Christian faith in grad school.

City of Refuge (October 25th, 2003) - We have continued to help out with the City of Refuge ministry. This is a ministry to the working poor in which we bag groceries, give food, share the gospel, pray for people, etc. This continues to be a great event to service people in the community. Pictures can be seen here.

Integration Dinner (October 17th, 2003) - Yueng hosted an integration dinner for GCF. The topic was "Integration: Communicating and Living Out One's Beliefs and Principles."

GCF Fall BBQ (September 27, 2003) - We had a fabulous BBQ at Coast as part of our new student outreach at the beginning of the school year. The event was dubbed "Fantastic Festival of Free Food, Fire, Fun and Faith". Many new graduate students showed up and it was a good opportunity to make these new students feel at home. Pictures are available here.

GCF Fall Retreat (September 19-21, 2003) - GCF went to Catalina Island (Campus by the Sea) for a retreat. The topic of the retreat was Practicing the Presence of God and how this influences our First Fruits. It was a great time had by all and pictures can be seen here.