CCU Launches the Lee Strobel Center for Evangelism and Applied Apologetics
Lee Strobel and Colorado Christian University President Donald W. Sweeting announced today the formation of the Lee Strobel Center for Evangelism and Applied Apologetics at CCU. The center's founding director is Lee Strobel, a New York Times best-selling author and renowned apologist and evangelist. Strobel joined CCU to launch this unprecedented center to promote training in evangelism and apologetics in order to bring spiritual renewal to the church in America.
"As an evangelical university, we stand within the great tradition of Christian universities who are serious about faith and the gospel, and we're thrilled to have Lee Strobel join our team," said Sweeting. "Strobel's background as a former atheist, portrayed in his book and film The Case for Christ, gives him valuable insight into how to reach people who are far from Christ," Sweeting said."It is a Strategic Priority of Colorado Christian University to share the love of Christ on campus and around the world, and to teach our students to be evangelists. The Strobel Center at CCU is an incredible vehicle to enable us to make new strides to achieve these priorities."
The Strobel Center at CCU will focus on applied apologetics — equipping a vast network of Christians who are actively engaged in the marketplace of ideas in local churches and communities, in the media, in the entertainment world, on the internet, and throughout popular culture. The center will also offer accredited undergraduate and graduate degrees designed to help churches, ministries, and individual Christians share and defend their faith naturally and effectively.
Described in the Washington Post as "one of the evangelical community's most popular apologists," Strobel has authored more than 40 books and curricula that have sold more than 14 million copies. The Yale-educated former legal editor of the Chicago Tribune also has been a teaching pastor at three of the largest evangelical churches in the country.
"Who is the next Billy Graham? It is millions of contagious Christians who are trained, equipped, and deployed," said Strobel. "And we have a vision to fulfill this mission as quickly as possible through this new initiative at Colorado Christian University. As an unapologetically Christian university, CCU is a natural home for this new center."
The Strobel Center’s executive director is Mark Mittelberg, Strobel’s long-time ministry associate and the best-selling author of Confident Faith, The Reason Why Faith Makes Sense, and The Questions Christians Hope No One Will Ask (With Answers).
Over the course of three decades, Strobel and Mittelberg have equipped nearly two million Christians worldwide to reach others with the gospel message of love, hope, and redemption and have innovated and led numerous evangelism and apologetics conferences, training seminars, national simulcasts, and outreach events. They have also collaborated in leading the outreach and apologetics efforts of one of the largest evangelical churches in America.
One of the Strobel Center's unique objectives is to train and certify evangelism directors for local churches. These individuals will serve on a full-time, part-time, or volunteer basis in partnership with senior pastors in order to mobilize churches to reach their communities for Christ.
"We believe in the power of leadership," said Mittelberg. "The senior pastor can't do everything himself. We want to equip, mentor, and deploy leaders who will creatively and effectively partner with pastors to reach everyone with the gospel."
To facilitate that training, the Strobel Center's courses will be offered through CCU Online, enabling people from all backgrounds and stages of life to study online from the convenience of their own home or office. "CCU is a leader in online education," Sweeting added. "The Strobel Center will feature the latest and most creative technology, the most current and proven content, and live interaction with passionate and credentialed educators."
Tracks of emphasis will include Innovative Evangelism, Cultural Engagement, Global Apologetics, and Practical Apologetics. "The Strobel Center will be outwardly rather than inwardly focused, it will be relentlessly practical and non-denominational in its orientation, and it will pioneer fresh approaches to evangelism and the defense of the faith — all solidly grounded on a biblical foundation," said Strobel.
The Strobel Center will also include a think tank composed of leading Christian scholars, innovators, and practitioners. The think tank will collaborate on fresh ways of explaining and spreading the gospel, host national conferences to share best practices, and encourage churches in saturating their communities with the Christian message.
The Strobel Center is intended to reside in the yet-to-be-constructed Armstrong Center, a 60,000-square-foot facility that will also be home to the School of Music, the University library, and the University's first dedicated chapel space. CCU is currently in the midst of the Armstrong Legacy Initiative to secure $30.2 million for construction of the Armstrong Center, $19.8 million for the construction of a second academic building, and $50 million for the establishment of an endowed fund for need-based student scholarships. For more information on how you can contribute to the campaign, contact Eric Hogue, vice president for University Advancement, at 303-963-3093 or ehogue@ccu.edu.
The launch of the Strobel Center coincides with the University's Year of Evangelism campaign, which continues through the 2019-2020 academic year. For more information on The Lee Strobel Center for Evangelism and Applied Apologetics, visit ccu.edu/strobelcenter.