You walk up the stairs of Sutliff and down the hallway towards room 253. The sounds of music and laughter increasingly fill the hallway as you approach the room. You step through the door and are met with the sight of ping pong balls being tossed back and forth and people spinning around on office chairs. You have arrived at a Young Life Club meeting.
Young Life is one of the Christian ministries for students to join on campus. Megan Arble, a sophomore social work major and one of the Young Life leaders, defines Young Life as “a Christian ministry on campus that meets students where they are at.” Arble says the leaders of Young Life strive to support and engage students by showing up to the things they are involved in, and therefore meeting them where they are at. The overall slogan for Young Life is “you were made for this” which Arble explains means that you are never too far from Jesus and it’s never too late to start a relationship with him.
Young Life offers two main events for students to participate in during the week, Club and Campaigners. Club is a time where you hang out with fellow members, play games, hear about upcoming events, and listen to a short message. It is a relaxed atmosphere that is designed for students to find fellowship, friends, and people that make them feel more comfortable, according to Arble. She states, “it is like a family experience.”
The other main Young Life event during the week is Campaigners, which is held on Sunday nights and is a bible study. Arble says that by coming to Campaigners, students will “gain knowledge about the bible [as well as] a further understanding of what we are reading and what it means to be believers.” She also expressed that Campaigners is a space for conversations, sharing, questions, and overall learning experiences. Both meetings are open to anyone and everyone to attend, whether you grew up a believer, have recently discovered Jesus and want to know more, or anywhere in between.
When discussing her goals for the future of Young Life, Arble says that she hopes the club can continue to grow in size by getting more people to come to meetings each week. She also hopes to branch out and do more activities as a group when the membership numbers increase.
When asked about her favorite parts of Young Life, Arble expresses that she loves how inclusive the group is and how they place a big focus on introducing people to Jesus. She says the group has a “come as you are kind of message” and that she hopes anyone, and everyone, will come because “I just want to get to know you and introduce you to Jesus.”
To learn more about Young Life, contact Megan Arble at [email protected]
To have your club be the focus of the next Club Corner, email Maddie Bolger at [email protected]
