WINTER 2017
ON CAMPUS TRANSFORMING COLLEGE STUDENTS TO TRANSFORM THE WORLD
HOW A DYING CHURCH FOUND NEW LIFE
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OUR VISION is to see a generation of college students TRANSFORMED by the power of Jesus Christ and His Gospel, in partnership with the local church, reaching the world FOR THE GLORY OF GOD. The CCO (Coalition for Christian Outreach) calls college students to serve Jesus Christ with their entire lives in three distinct ways: 1. We develop students to be passionate leaders who serve Jesus Christ in their studies, jobs, communities, and families. 2. We serve together with the church, inviting students into the lives of local congregations. 3. We design each ministry to fit the needs of every campus we serve. For more about us, please visit our website: www.ccojubilee.org or find us on social media: /ccoministry
@ccoministry
ccojubilee
On Campus is published tri-annually by the CCO’s Marketing Team. Photography: Andrew Rush, JPG Photography (pages 10-13) 2
NEW LIFE FOR THE CHURCH
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OU HAVE PROBABLY HEARD STATISTICS ABOUT YOUNG
people and the Church. Approximately 70% of college students who grew up attending a Christian church stop doing so during their college years. And
fewer young people have grown up even attending church in the first place.
According to a 2016 study by the Public Religious Research Institute, “young adults today are nearly four times as likely as young adults a generation ago to identify as religiously unaffiliated.”
Because we are convinced that the Church is the vehicle through which Jesus builds His kingdom, CCO campus ministry is built on the solid foundation of partnership with local congregations. This ministry isn’t only about sharing the Gospel with college students and equipping
them to live faithfully as Christians on campus. It’s about preparing them for life-long
discipleship—on campus today, in their workplaces, communities, and families tomorrow. It’s about building up the Body of Christ: the Church. This is why the aging congregation of Indianola Church of Christ in Columbus, Ohio
chose to commit itself to the mission field on its doorstep at the third largest university in the country: The Ohio State University.
This is why pastors from several churches in Abington, Pennsylvania prayed together for
years for their community—including the local Penn State Abington campus—and joined together to support a CCO campus ministry staff member to reach students there.
And this is why First Presbyterian Church in Fresno, California approached us last year
and invited us to step into an entirely new geographical region to help them reach a new population of college students.
This is why we are committed to reaching out to college students in partnership with the local church.
Vincent J. Burens President & CEO CCO
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TRANSFOR HOW A DYING CHUR
BY MIKE RICHARDSON, LEAD PASTOR,
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E KNEW WE HAD TO DO SOMETHING TO REVITALIZE THE CHURCH. When I came to Indianola Church of Christ five and a half years ago, the leaders of the church were facing many important decisions. After decades of declining attendance, we had to decide whether or not we had a reason for continuing on as a church family in the community where we were located. We were a very old church whose best years were in the distant past. Many of our members were over the age of 60, and there were very few families with children. Yet we were located two blocks from The Ohio State University. We realized that in order to survive and someday thrive as a church, we had to relearn how to reach students and pass our faith along to the next generation of church leaders. We had to become good at something we barely knew that we could do. Making the kinds of changes we needed to make to reach college students and young adults was not easy. Those changes involved great sacrifices for our older adults. Indianola
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Church would need to serve and focus on reaching a group of people who were challenging to reach, significantly different than the majority of our church members, and living in a world many of our members barely understood. Everything from the appearance of our building to our style of worship needed changing. And all of these changes had to take place with minimal financial resources. They also required our older adults to serve a younger generation faithfully and joyfully, with no assurance that these changes would make a significant enough impact.
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NVESTING IN THE LIVES OF COLLEGE STUDENTS IS PROBABLY THE GREATEST THING OUR CHURCH COULD EVER HAVE DONE. It has been a great joy to become an increasingly multigenerational church, watching college students worshiping, fellowshiping, and serving alongside senior adults. There is now a growing understanding and appreciation between the generations. As our senior adults continue to serve our young adults, our young
RMATION CH FOUND NEW LIFE
, INDIANOLA CHURCH OF CHRIST adults are finding ways of serving our senior adults in return. The most exciting thing is to see God move in and through our congregation—seeing new young people come to our coffee shop, show up at CCO fellowship meetings, and join us for Sunday morning worship services. Their youthfulness and enthusiasm are infectious! None of this would have happened without the leadership of CCO staff, first Lauren Alexander, and then later Ryan Kindell. God has blessed us with two leaders who are fully committed to the
goals and mission of a partnership between a campus ministry and a local church. The vision of what a partnership with the CCO can bring to a local church is very real. We have seen it come to life at Indianola—and we are still in the beginning stages of what this transformation will bring.
We realized that in order to survive and someday thrive as a church, we had to relearn how to pass our faith along to the next generation of church leaders.
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TRANSFORMATION: HOW INDIANOLA
REACHING THE 53,00
The congregation of Indianola Church of Christ transformed their building, their worshi State University college students two blocks away. As a result, hundreds of students now and those who know nothing about the Christian faith. As they interact with church me
The church’s fellowship hall has been transformed into a coffee shop outreach. The Coffee Underground welcomes local students who become comfortable hanging out in a church building. Indianola Church hired a fulltime manager who recruits and oversees volunteer baristas. Many church activities had to change or be canceled to accommodate coffee shop hours.
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Finals dinners are hosted by the Indianola Church at the end of every
semester during exam season. What started as a ministry to a few dozen students has grown exponentially. Last semester, church members prepared and served meals to over 950 students over three nights. Students stick around the church after dinner to study.
Sunday morning worship services have undergone changes to make college students feel more welcome. From mixing contemporary music with hymns and older music to inviting students to participate on the worship team and to serve as greeters and ushers, Indianola Church has become a welcoming space for younger worshipers.
Church members take students out to lunch after church. This has cultivated
deeper relationships between the students and the rest of the congregation, and some students have even gone out to eat with church members outside of these monthly organized meals.
CHURCH OF CHRIST IS
00 DOWN THE STREET
ip services, and their financial priorities in order to make their space inviting to Ohio w feel welcome within the walls of this church—those who grew up going to church embers, students are experiencing the love of Jesus Christ.
CODY’S STORY
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HEN AN OHIO State University student named Andrew first invited his friend Cody to join him for coffee in the basement of his church, Cody balked. A self-proclaimed atheist, Cody wasn’t interested in going into any church, even for a cup of coffee. But Andrew didn’t give up, and eventually Cody said yes—and was surprised by how welcomed he felt. After the first visit, Cody returned the next day, and almost every day since. This quirky church-run Coffee Undergound is where Cody found his community.
It’s where he spends hours studying and hanging out with friends, and ultimately, it’s where he was drawn into a relationship with Jesus.
“Cody made it very clear from the beginning that he was an atheist, bringing it up in random conversations,” CCO staff member Lauren Alexander remembers.
He also started coming to church and getting more involved with the congregation. Cody now calls Indianola “my home church,” and he was recently baptized there. “Everyone in our church knows Cody and cares about him deeply,” Lauren says. “He is an incredible guy, and he is a different person today than when we first met him.” —Amy Maczuzak Â
“Because he came to the coffee shop every day, we got to know him. He is a Roman history major, so a lot of our conversations centered around history, but eventually would veer into religion and more personal topics.” Cody started coming to Bible studies, and he even shared his life story at the CCO’s Share Your Story ministry event. Then he went to Jubilee. A few weeks later, during a Bible study, Cody shared that he had given his life to Christ. He said he felt loved and accepted by this community—something he wasn’t used to. 7
FAITH
CCO STUDENT SHARES THE
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HIS SEPTEMBER, MOLLYKATE CLINE WAS THE YOUNGEST DESIGNER ACCEPTED INTO THE PRESTIGIOUS NEW YORK FASHION WEEK. Her six-piece line, “L’histoire de Dieu” (God’s Story), was designed to showcase Creation, Fall, Redemption, and Restoration. MollyKate knows this story well. Her life has followed a similar pattern. When she was a child, her dad committed suicide. She was adopted by her mom’s new husband. And with a new reality and a new last name, MollyKate had to adopt a new identity. “When I became MollyKate Cline, I felt like a new person—one I didn’t know,” she remembers, “So I started changing my hair and making my own clothes. I thought that my new name sounded like a fashion designer’s name, and just a couple of months later, I had my own sewing machine and was wearing my own designs to school.” 8
“My dad never got to go to college, and because of this, he always said that he wanted me to go. I knew at ten years old that I needed to go to college for fashion design.” In the fall of 2016, MollyKate entered the Columbus College of Art & Design as a fashion major. Already a talented designer, writer, and anti-suicide advocate, MollyKate had also attended weekly church groups in high school and asked Jesus into her heart, but the pieces never quite came together. At college, MollyKate was ready to figure out what things would be important in her adult life, and faith was a definite priority. But MollyKate felt insecure around Christians. She just couldn’t seem to “catch up” with the Biblical knowledge they took for granted.
ON THE RUNWAY
E GOSPEL AT NEW YORK’S FASHION WEEK Then, through CCO campus staff member Randy Stratton, MollyKate learned about the Jubilee conference. At Jubilee, MollyKate discovered God’s story in a way that made sense. “In just three days, I knew more about the Bible than I had ever learned in my whole life!” MollyKate says. “Creation, Fall, Redemption, and Restoration was the perfect way for me to understand the Gospel narrative and take in the most information. I left with a brand new outlook on life and have completely dedicated my life to Jesus since leaving Jubilee.” MollyKate began meeting weekly with Randy and attending a local church, where she was baptized on Easter Sunday. And as she learned more about God’s work in the world, MollyKate began to reimagine
her work in fashion design. She began to plan and sew a sixpiece fashion line in order to share the Gospel narrative. When her Jubilee-inspired line was accepted into New York Fashion Week, she used recycled fabric from her summer internship to honor God’s creation, printed out a poem to give to spectators, and explained the message to her models backstage. To her great surprise, all of her models—chosen for availability, hair color, and measurements—were Christians. “When we discovered this, the models had all just had their makeup done and I told them not to cry,” MollyKate remembers. “But we were so emotional, and then with about five minutes left until showtime, we prayed together backstage, and I think that was the best part of the whole show!” In the audience, Randy Stratton marveled at the positive response to MollyKate’s line.
“I often tell people that working in ministry is like having a front-row seat to the work God does on campus,” he says. “What a profound experience it was to actually sit in the front row as God’s grace walked the runway for all to see.” —Jen Pelling
This September, MollyKate was the youngest designer accepted into the prestigious New York Fashion Week with her Jubilee-inspired line.
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THE AN
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NSWER TO A 20-YEAR PRAYER I O N MONDAYS during lunch, CCO staff member Spencer Golomb attends a Bible study where he can’t understand a single word. Spencer works with students at Penn State Abington, just outside Philadelphia. It’s a unique community: primarily commuter, racially and ethnically diverse, and ten percent international. Spencer serves these students by drawing on every resource he can find— and then connecting the dots between them. Monday’s Bible study is in Mandarin. It began this way: Some of Spencer’s Chinese friends at church attend the local seminary. As undergrads in the US, they became Christians, and now they want to share their faith. Spencer invited them to the campus Chinese New Year celebration, and connections began to form. Now these seminarians lead a study for Chinese students, many of whom have never heard of the Bible. Spencer attends so that he can chat—in English—with the Chinese students before and
after the study. He also attends to support Daniel, a ChineseAmerican student leader who chooses to live in the one campus dormitory so that he can befriend and serve international students. Last spring, Spencer was interviewing student leader candidates. When it was Daniel’s turn, Spencer asked him, “Why do you want to be on the leadership team?” Daniel responded, “Because I can speak Chinese, and none of you can. How else are you going to share the Gospel with Chinese students?” An excellent question. Now Spencer sits in at the weekly Mandarin Bible study, alongside Daniel and the Chinese seminarians from his church, and he marvels at what God can do. This is just one example of “coincidences” that have resulted from the choices—and the prayers—of generations of Christian believers in Abington.
N OTHER WORDS, THIS STORY doesn’t begin with Spencer. In the mid-nineties, an Abington pastor with a vision convened a group of fellow pastors to pray regularly for their community, including the nearby college campus. Sadly, Reverend Brewster Hastings unexpectedly passed away last year, but this group of between 20 and 30 pastors from different denominiations have continued meeting monthly for nearly two decades. As the Spirit moved, some of the pastors felt particularly called to reach out to students at Penn State Abington. They held Bible studies and started a small fellowship group, but they needed someone on campus full time, connecting students to the local Christians who cared about them. continued on the next page
Spencer sits in at the weekly Mandarin Bible study, alongside Daniel and the Chinese seminarians from his church, and he marvels at what God can do.
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Last fall, Riya came to a Bible study for the first time. She grew up in a Hindu family, then Jesus appeared to her in a dream. Now she was hungry to know more.
continued from the previous page “I met Brewster, the man with this vision, face-to-face at Jubilee in 2015,” Spencer says. “The rest is history.” Now Spencer lives in a house near campus, rented to him by another local pastor, Rev. Wakaki Thompson, who wanted the house to be used for ministry. The prayers of the pastors are being answered. Spencer’s weeks are full of Bible studies and “triads”— that is, two-on-one meetings with student leaders. They include card games in common areas on campus, dinners at his house, and quality time with local pastors and other leaders. For Spencer, it’s all about the connections. Students involved in triads and Bible studies are trained to lead their own. Outreach includes meaningful service and regular involvement in campus life, and Spencer regularly invites students to attend local churches where he knows the members and pastors personally. Within this web of relationships, students are invited, included, and blessed. Last fall, Riya* came to a Bible study for the first time. She grew up in a Hindu family, *Her name has been changed to protect her privacy.
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then Jesus appeared to her in a dream. Now she was hungry to know more. “I was overjoyed by not only her story, but also by how the rest of the group made her feel welcomed and loved,” Spencer says. “Riya isn’t the only student I’ve met who is new to the faith or is seeking truth. The Spirit of God has been stirring the hearts of many students at Abington.” Spencer remembers arriving on campus three years ago, knowing only two faculty members and a handful of students. Now as he stands alongside student leaders at the Involvement Fair each fall, they have a new problem.
“This year we had to encourage returning students to make room at our table so that new students could approach us!” Spencer says. “It is a joy to see the community God is building among His faithful here in Abington.” —ÂJen Pelling
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A CALIFORNIA C In Fresno, California, church members are leaving the comfort of their sanctuary to go to the nearby mission field of a state university campus.
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CHURCH JUMPS IN
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HEN VETERAN STAFF MEMBER GERAUD BRUMFIELD STEPPED out in faith to pioneer the CCO’s ministry to students on the west coast this fall, he wasn’t sure what to expect. Just a few weeks in, he is already overwhelmed by the clear evidence that God has been preparing a way all along.
Geraud approached members of his partner congregation, First Presbyterian Church, Fresno, early in the semester with an outreach idea that has been successful on many campuses where CCO staff serve. His plan was to recruit a few students to join him at Fresno State University on Saturday nights to hand out hot dogs to other students on their way to fraternity parties and bars. What Geraud was not prepared for was the enthusiastic response of church members and leaders. They wanted to join him to hand out hot dogs themselves! This is how a group of volunteers, ranging in age from early 20s to late 50s, began to show up on Saturday nights to hand out food and bottles of water to students along Greek Row. They start setting up around 9 p.m., hand out hot dogs and chat with students until nearly 1 a.m., and then go home to get a few hours of sleep before gathering for worship on Sunday morning. Mindy, a retired librarian, and her introverted husband, Jamie, bring their fire pit along, encouraging students to sit and stay for s’mores. Jamie engages students in one-on-one conversations that they find so meaningful, they return week after week for more. Jay, a psychology professor at a nearby Christian college, has connected with a Fresno State psych major and exchanged phone numbers so they could stay in touch. Marty, a pediatrician, has invited a pre-med major he met one evening to shadow him on the job. In Fresno, California, church members are leaving the comfort of their sanctuary to go to the nearby mission field of a state university campus. They are also opening their homes to college students. Once a month, a different family hosts the Sunday evening college Bible study at their house and sits in to participate in the discussion. Other families have volunteered to host after-church lunches for students in their homes. And still others have asked if they can help put together finals care packages to send to students who grew up in the church, as well as those who attend one of the local colleges. Because of the radical hospitality of a congregation eager to reach out to nearby campuses, students feel welcomed in the church—and students who would never think to step through the doors of a church are experiencing the love of Jesus for the first time. —Amy Maczuzak
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WHY JULIE AND ROGER JOHNSON GIVE TO THE CCO Roger and Julie Johnson met when they both worked for the CCO, Roger as Director of Recruiting and Julie as Alumni Relations Coordinator. The Johnsons now live in Franklin, Tennessee, where Roger is Vice President of New Product Development at a large healthcare technology company and Julie is the CEO of their home, loving their four children and volunteering her writing skills whenever possible. They are invested in their community and are passionate about orphan care; their youngest child is adopted. We support the CCO because we believe in the mission. The CCO played a huge part in building the foundation of our adult lives—Roger first connected to the ministry when he was a student—and we know that the CCO plays that role in the lives of countless college students each year. The CCO helped spark a love for the Gospel and a love for Jesus that has grown richer and deeper over the years. We continue to support the CCO so we can participate in what God is doing through the organization. We will continue to support the CCO, giving to both individual staff and the Next Generation Fund. We give larger gifts as the Lord blesses us. College is such a pivotal time in our lives. We decide who we want to be and what our purpose is in life. Having 16
a Christian campus minister to walk alongside you as you form important beliefs and decisions is invaluable. Investing in the CCO is an investment in countless future leaders—leaders who will be mothers and fathers, pastors and teachers, lawyers and doctors, politicians and social workers. These future leaders need the foundation of Biblical literacy and worldview that will be strong enough to stand through the challenges of Kingdom work. Would you like to remember the CCO in your estate plans or through another planned gift? To find out more, please contact Allyson Sveda, Director of Development, at 412.363.3303.
OUR BOARD Elizabeth Baker CEO Hot Metal Media LLC Vincent J. Burens President & CEO Coalition for Christian Outreach Kurt E. Carlson Executive Vice President Hefren-Tillotson, Inc. The Rev. Nancy O. Chalfant-Walker Rector St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church CCO Staff Alumna Jennifer Ciccone Vice President Civil & Environmental Consultants, Inc. Judith Herschell Cole President Herschell Environmental, LLC Ryan D. Deaderick, P.E. Vice President, Production Energy Corporation of America Joseph P. Diggins, Jr. Partner Ernst & Young LLP Louis A. Divers President Precision Abrasives Reggie Dulaney Owner, Panthro Fitness Daniel J. Dupee Chairman of the Board Coalition for Christian Outreach The Rev. Dr. William R. Glaze Pastor Bethany Baptist Church Darrin E. Grove CEO TrueFit John M. Holt, Jr. President Holsinger, PC Harry Kunze President Sapientia, LLC Amylyn Kyler Managing Director Kyler Professional Search
The Rev. Dr. Robert R. Long Chairman Emeritus Coalition for Christian Outreach Brian T. Must Founding Member Metz, Lewis, Brodman, Must & O’Keefe Attorneys at Law The Rev. Richard Noftzger Executive Presbyter Redstone Presbytery CCO Staff Alumnus J. Paul Organ Founder & Certified Financial Planner Marathon Financial Services CCO Staff Alumnus James W. Rimmel Senior Vice President, Investments UBS Financial Services, Inc. James D. Roberge Managing Director Staley Capital Advisers, Inc. Chris Seidler Vice President of Sales & Marketing Simcoach Games Kenneth E. Smith President Simcoach Games Lori Stuckey Homemaker and Volunteer Henry B. Suhr III Adjunct Faculty Geneva College CCO Staff Alumnus J.T. Thomas Entrepreneur & Business Consultant Mary Martha Truschel Assistant Counsel, Southwest Regional Office PA Department of Environmental Protection James D. Young COO, Senior Vice President Crown Castle