Community of Disciples
“In high school, I started going to church, but I wasn't going for the right reasons,” said Tevin Robbins, now a sophomore at the University of Iowa in Iowa City. “I was a believer, but not a follower.” After a difficult first semester in college, a friend invited Tevin to a prayer time with ñ. During a powerful moment of prayer with a staff member, Tevin realized that even in his brokenness, God had been walking with him. “From then on I did everything with ñ,” said Tevin. “I found the family I had been longing for and a community that was there for me.”
That spring, Tevin joined five other students on a spring break trip with City Lights, ñ’s urban ministry in St. Louis. During the week, he committed his life to God. “I was trying to control my life, and at City Lights I was challenged to follow Jesus with all of my life,” said Tevin.
Building a Bridge to Latino Students
The staff at City Lights also encouraged Tevin to consider how his chapter reflected the multiethnic Church. “It struck me that we have an ethnically diverse student body but we don't associate with each other,” he said. “For us to be able to come together, united under Christ, is a necessity. God isn't calling one group of people. He's calling everyone.”
When he realized there were a few Latino students connected to the chapter, Tevin got a campus job in the Latino Native American Culture Center and began building relationships with students he meets. Every week, he attends their meetings and invites people to come to the Bible study he leads there.
In December, Tevin spoke on the prodigal son at ñ’s monthly worship gathering, and several students from the Culture Center showed up in support of him. When Tevin invited people to “come home to Jesus” as the prodigal son came home to his father, two of those students said they wanted to pursue a deeper relationship with God.
The Crazy Work of God
This spring, Tevin and other student leaders led 21 students on City Light’s mission trip, including four students from the Culture Center. “The Latino students originally wanted to do a service project over spring break. They didn't expect anything spiritual to happen within themselves,” said Tevin.
Over the course of the week, the group prayed and studied Scripture together. Elia, one of the Latino students, had many questions about faith. She and a staff member at City Lights began exploring what the Bible says about Jesus. Several times, Elia said she wanted to give her life to Jesus, but she thought her sin too big for God to forgive. At the end of the week, she came to trust God with her life and committed to following Jesus.
Three of the students also decided to take a more active role in ñ. “Not only do they come to my Bible study, but now they want to be involved with our large group community,” said Tevin. “God's been doing some crazy work.”
Going Beyond Campus
Other students have noticed the unique fellowship the chapter experiences. During City Lights this year, Tevin and his friends got to know ñ students from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, which also has a diverse student body. The students wanted to know how Tevin’s chapter created a loving and multiethnic community. Tevin responded, “With a lot of Jesus, a lot of prayer!”
Since the trip, the student leaders from both schools have kept in contact, encouraging each other and sharing ideas. “It was cool to see our peers notice what we're doing with campus ministry and want that too,” said Tevin. “God extends beyond boundaries. It'll be exciting to see their growth.”
In the last two years, Tevin has seen many students join the chapter, and more importantly, those students grow in their relationship with God. “We're learning about community and about trusting in God. That's what keeps me coming back,” said Tevin. “A year ago, we'd never have thought we could lead a group of students on this mission trip. We've really been shepherded well in being leaders, and now we’re shepherding people stepping into our chapters. That feels really good. This doesn't stop with us.”