The 48-hour prayer tent that was on campus

BY BRENNA DEMPSEY

Executive Producer

A prayer tent was set up at the amphitheater by the Thompson Student Center from April 14 to 16 for a full 48 hours. 

The Baptist Student Ministry (BSM) holds this event each spring around Easter to pray together and with whoever feels called to participate.

Jessica Vick worked at the prayer tent to do just that.

“This is my favorite thing we do in the spring. We do it only in the spring because this Friday is Good Friday, when Jesus died on the cross, and then Monday is Easter, so we do it during Holy Week,” Vick said.

A motto they used was to “pray without ceasing,” which is a scripture found in 1 Thessalonians 5:17. This went along with the goals they had for the event.

Marissa Wolfe, a campus missionary for the BSM who graduated in December 2024, came back to help guide and encourage students to pursue Jesus.

“I think our two main goals are, number one, to permeate prayer across campus,” Wolfe said. “We want students who maybe have never prayed before to feel comfortable in a space where they can come and pray and learn how to pray. And we also put this out here so people might know Jesus and his saving grace.” 

The big tent had fans and couches so people could stay comfortable, as well as five tables with different themes arranged along the walls.

“There are five stations, and each station kind of represents part of the foundation of what we believe in Christianity, and we break it down to make it easier to understand. So, if you start at one and end at five, we hope you have a very broad but understandable idea of Christianity and what Jesus has done for us,” Wolfe said. 

The table Vick ran was called “sanctuary” and focused on finding comfort through the fruits of the Holy Spirit.

“Over here, we have beads and string where you can make a bracelet for the fruits of the Spirit. When you look at the bracelet —or sometimes people make keychains— it’s a reminder of the fruits of the Spirit and what it represents,” Vick said.

The event was designed to have something for everyone, no matter where they are in their walk of faith.

Lexus Brisby was sitting at one of the sections in the prayer tent that focused on how to search for and connect with Christ.

“It's been really cool to see people,” Brisby said. “Even if they know Jesus and they're wanting to get closer to him, they can search for the Lord. We have a Bible where it talks about all of his attributes and how sweet he is. So, it's cool getting to see people that have never explored faith at all, like people that know the Lord but feel far because of the things in their life, or they're just searching, listening and wanting to hear his voice.

The event was meant to bring comfort and support to the students on campus, whether they are religious or not. 

Wolfe wants to help students find hope through faith, and the prayer tent is one way to spread the word of God.

“Just be bold. You only live once, and you just never know. Thankfully, we’re not pieing people in the face here or something else people usually do at the amphitheater,” Brisby said. “This is a chill environment; we’re here to serve campus and serve the students. We’re not trying to send anybody away, no matter what you believe.”

If you missed the prayer tent this year, mark it in your calendars for next spring so you don’t miss out again.