IUP: Who else needs to know?

CCO campus ministry began at Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 1971, but it begins again every August when new students arrive on campus. It begins again because students, then and now, need a place to belong. 

And some years, belonging starts with popsicles. 

Starting in August, CCO staff Julie Deibert and Kenny Campbell gather a team of student leaders to staff a welcome table outside the dining hall. Under a “Welcome to CCO IUP” banner,  they hand out popsicles—or hot chocolate, depending on the weather—and smile when students make eye contact. They learn the names of students who say hi, and greet them by name when they see them again. 

And then, when students are open to more conversation, they invite them to coffee to learn more about campus ministry at IUP.

This low-risk invitation is an intentional next step. “Many students struggle with social anxiety,” Julie explains. “Right now, it’s easier to ask a student into discipleship than it is to invite them to a large-group event. So we start small.”

Over coffee, they get to know the student, hear their story, and share Jesus’ story. Then they invite them to participate in a five-week study of the book of John. Many students say yes, if only because they are curious, since an increasing number of young people have never before opened a Bible. Two or three students join each group, and Kenny estimates that well over a hundred students have tried the study over the past two years.

After the initial five weeks comes another decision point. As Kenny explains, “At week five, you can say, ‘This was great, but I’m out.’ Or you can keep going.”

To “keep going” takes different forms for different students. Some keep meeting with their small group (there are about 60 students meeting currently). Others join one of five missional communities, groups that meet over a dining room table for dinner, Bible study, and prayer. And still others join the student crowd at Graystone Presbyterian Church—the original CCO partner church and still a partner today!

The goal is to invite each student deeper into Christian community, to overcome their social anxieties, and to meet their need for belonging by beginning with the truth—that they belong to Jesus. 

But it doesn’t stop there. The next step is to help students look outside themselves and ask the question, “Who else needs to know that they belong?”

This is how Kenny came to know Stanley. 

Stanley’s story is somewhat unusual. He came directly from the military, so he arrived on campus alone. He embraces his family’s Christian convictions, so he wasn’t drawn to IUP’s famous party scene. Still, he experienced the need to belong just like everyone else. 

During the fall of his freshman year, Stanley attended church when he could, but he never found a place to connect—in most congregations, he was the only young person there. He was busy with classes and his off-campus job, so he didn’t seek out Christian fellowship on campus. But several times a week, he met a friend at the gym, and they lifted or boxed together. 

One feature of CCO missional communities is that they have an “out night” every month, a night where, instead of meeting in someone’s apartment, they go to campus and do a fun activity, open to all. On the first “out night” in the fall, they went to campus to play wallyball, which Kenny describes as “basically volleyball in a small room.” Before starting, they walked around 

the gym, inviting other students to play.

Stanley and his friend were working out in the next room, but agreed to pause and play wallyball. Everyone seemed to have a good time, but afterwards, the two young men scurried back to their workout without sharing their phone numbers or even last names. It seemed that was the end. 

However, Julie and Kenny “have a tendency to be on campus,” and Kenny kept running into Stanley. 

“I probably ran into him four or five times that semester,” Kenny remembers. “It was almost as if God was nudging me to talk to the young man! But each time, I just said hi. Finally, during finals week, I took the hint. I ran into Stanley at the library and said, “Hey Stan, we keep running into each other and I’m not sure if that’s meaningful or not, but would you like to get coffee sometime? I’d love to get to know you.’ And he said yes!”

After their initial hangout, Kenny and Stanley continued to meet, and Kenny learned about Stanley’s family and their deep faith. He also learned why Stanley was so shy about his beliefs—he only knew older Christians, so he concealed his faith with his peers. Even when Kenny invited Stanley to Jubilee, Stanley was skeptical. “He wasn’t buying it,” Kenny says. “He told me he had been let down enough in his life and didn’t want to be disappointed, so he lowered any expectations he had.”

But when the weekend began, and Stanley saw a convention center full of students following Jesus, he was stunned. He hadn’t known that God was doing something like this in the world. On Saturday night, as students were called forth to give everything to God, Stanley couldn’t resist. He rushed forward, and Kenny prayed over him. It was powerful, tender, and unforgettable for both of them. 

It’s been a little over a year since that moment, and Kenny reflects, “Stanley is a new man.” God showed Stanley that he doesn’t need to be shy about his faith. He is now passionate about sharing how the Lord is at work in his life, he reaches out to friends who aren’t following the Lord, and he even changed his work schedule so he can help lead a missional community. 

This is the fruit of belonging first to Jesus and then to one another. This is the result of Gospel transformation. 

Or, as Stanley says, “This is where I’m supposed to be. CCO is a community of people who are serving the same God I’m serving, and we support each other in that. I’m not alone in my faith anymore.”