generations

Genesis (Rhode Island College & Columbia Law)

College ministry is a strategic world mission. Genesis is a great example of the impact of Sojourn on the campus. Once she graduated from Rhode Island College in 2017 she went on to graduate from Columbia Law in New York City in 2020. Here is a recent article featuring Genesis.

I grew up in the church. Unlike a lot of the students that Sojourn serves, I already had a relationship with God. While at Sojourn, I learned a lot more about God and justice. I always loved to serve but didn’t know exactly how. Through Sojourn, I was able to work with people and help in whatever way I could. 

Though I graduated from RIC in 2017, the lessons I learned through Sojourn have followed me into my law school journey. I’ve learned to have conversations with people. To get to know others. To build on what they know and not to judge them.

Even from a distance (attending Columbia Law in New York City), I’m still involved with Sojourn. I get to attend the alternative spring break trip to Mexico every year and continuing to strengthen my relationships with students and the kids we serve. 

Because of Sojourn, and it introducing me to ways in which to serve others, I have continued seeking out opportunities to serve.

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Owen (Tufts University & Sojourn's Bread Coffeehouse)

Owen is joining the inaugural Res10 team in Boston while working with his alma mater, Tufts University. We asked him why he was excited to join the team and here is what he said:

“I have felt a tremendous amount of love from the people I have met through Bread (Sojourn), students and staff included, and being a part of a program that has given me so much feels tremendously important. Undergraduate college years are, for many, the first four years that a person is on their own and what Bread has done for me has provided a safe place to explore further what part faith is going to play in my adult life, and I am excited to help cultivate a safe and explorative space for others.

While in school I have experienced so many differences with the ways that people think about God and their faith. I think that an authentic, listening ear is incredibly valuable to college students, it certainly has been to me, and to try my best to provide that for students is one way that I try to share God's love. I am very excited about developing relationships with students and watching them grow into their fullest selves.”

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Sarah (Rhode Island College)

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Over the past 4 years, Sarah has been discovering God’s Dream for her life. Now as a graduate from Rhode Island College, she is excited to give that same opportunity to more students.

“Being a student in Sojourn changed my life and I am so grateful for the relationships that I have made through this community. I believe that God has been calling me to continue to help Sojourn students learn and grow in faith and build a community on college campuses. College is hard, and having a community of people to help you get through life makes all the difference. By working for Sojourn, I hope to continue to build this community and reach students that would never have a community otherwise. I believe that conversations around faith and life are essential, and I am excited to continue to create a space for these conversations to take place.

In my time as a student in Sojourn, I was able to not only grow in my faith but also help other students grow in faith too. I had the opportunity to lead a few small groups, and I feel confident in sharing the good news of Jesus with students who ask questions. For me, college was the time when I really took my faith into my own hands, and I am looking forward to be able to help students figure out what faith means for their lives and why it matters. I am excited to help students grow in their relationship with each other and with God, and believe that working for Sojourn on the Res10 team will help me to do that.”

Rebekah (Northeastern University)

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My involvement with Sojourn began a few years ago while I was studying Journalism at Northeastern University in Boston. I vividly remember walking into my first Sojourn meeting, anxious and alone, I entered the room, “Hey Rebekah!” Greeting me by name was the Sojourn staff member I had sat down for coffee with the week prior. I couldn’t believe he had remembered my name! After only a few short minutes in the room mingling and chatting with students, my anxiety about being in a room full of strangers had almost completely dissipated. Soon after attending that first meeting, I started hearing about Sojourn’s alternative Spring Break trip coming up in a few months and immediately knew I wanted to go. Through interactions with my peers, the work we did on the trip, and the divine connection I was feeling to my Creator that I had been longing for, the heartbeat of the Sojourn community was revealed to me - and I knew I belonged.  

Fast - forward to the present. I have completed a two years of an internship/residency with Sojourn and am about to embark on starting a brand new campus ministry at Providence College. I have the unique opportunity to lead the new team who will help students, like I was just a few years ago, discover God’s dream for their lives. Over the past two years, I have built relationships with students who have never been part of a faith community before -- and witnessed God working in their hearts through their growing curiosity about the role of faith in my life and what it could mean for theirs. Because of Sojourn I had the opportunity to: invite students to church for the first time and process the experience with them afterward, read through the Storybook Bible with students, serve alongside them in Mexico on our Spring Break trip, invite them to serve in their own communities, celebrate baptisms, sit with them in sorrow, all while also growing in my own understanding of ministry, the Bible and what it means for me personally to follow Jesus. This is the most mynute snapshot of what being a part of the Sojourn community both in college and post-grad has looked like for me. Ultimately, the experience has emboldened me live into the woman God created me to be and has given me the confidence to lead college students toward figuring out what it looks like for them to do the same.

Emma (Salve Regina/Sojourn Newport)

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As a freshman, Emma was an integral part of starting a brand new campus ministry in Newport, RI. Since then she has been a part of dozens of students following Jesus for the first time and a thriving ministry on “the island.” We are welcoming her to our 2020 Res10 team, here are a few words about what excites her about being on the team.

“I am excited for the conversations that will be had and all the different students I will get to interact with. I’m excited for all the stories I will hear and what I can learn from each one. I look forward to all the events that bring the community together and are just plain and simple fun. I’m excited for retreat and spring break because of the impact they had on me and now I would get the chance to help create that for so many others. I am excited for the challenges that will arise and getting to face them head on, knowing it will grow my faith and make me a stronger person. I’m excited to learn more about myself and expand my horizons. I am excited because it’s Sojourn and sometimes you never know what you are going to get and that is the best adventure of them all.”

Dustin (UMass & Northeastern)

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Dustin spent a year as an intern with Sojourn. After a year of experience, he went on to help start a campus ministry at UMass Boston and Northeastern University. He talks about this experience here.

“The Lord led me on an unforeseen journey through college from engineering to college ministry. It seemed crazy for this country kid from Missouri to have a strong desire to move to a far off city, but the Lord gave me a confidence that he would make a way. I was blown away by how the Church came around me to support the work God was leading me towards. What ended up being 7 and a half years with Sojourn was so much more than a “first job”. Participating in the limitless love of Christ for students far from him, seeing lives transformed by the Gospel, and leading communities in pursuit of the kingdom radically shaped who I am today.”

Garrett and Emily (Sojourn Newport)

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Post grad, post Sojourn has been a whirlwind. A tiny part of me believed that since I was no longer a part of an official ministry, certain opportunities might never happen again. For example, as a student and staff member with Sojourn I got the high honor of being able to baptize some of my closest friends. I got to play a special part in a big life decision to follow Jesus. I have been praying that God would continue to use me, and my wife, in ways that draw people closer to the kingdom. There was a sense of fear that our newly married life would limit our opportunity to be used in such ways. However, this last month, on June 27th, Emily and I got to baptize one of our closest friends Jess. Jess’ decision to do this was the product of months of hard and honest conversations back and forth. The coolest part perhaps, was noting that God used Emily and I in Jess’ life in very different, but very specific ways. 

This experience was an answer to prays and it seemed to be God’s way of showing me that He will continue to do amazing things through us if we are willing to let him. God’s timing is so cool. Jess got baptized just two days before Emily and I got married. Additionally, a new friend, and new member of our local home group, Andy, also got baptized that day. He made that life changing decision to follow Jesus and let me be there to dunk him too. I know that baptisms aren’t the most important thing. But to me, it is a signpost that signals how God is using me to bring heaven to earth, and how committed I am to serving people. Sojourn or not, this experience has reminded me exactly what Sojourn has always taught; God’s dream is that we allow Him to dwell in us, among us, and through us.

Nate (Rhode Island College)

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In 2012, Tyler Nobis was leading a staff to expand the ministry of Sojourn to Rhode Island College. As a student Nate joined this new group on campus. For 3 years, as a student, Nate saw first hand how the lives of his friends were being transformed. This led him to accept an invitation as an intern with Sojourn. After the year-long internship he was ready to begin his graduate work in Psychology at Boston University. However, God had been working in his heart to continue to help students discover God’s Dream for their lives. So, after much prayer and discussion with his wife, Amanda, they decided to take on a full-time ministry role with Sojourn at Rhode Island College.

Three years later, Nate is now leading the ministry at Rhode Island College. Being a graduate from Rhode Island College and an alum of Sojourn he has a unique opportunity to reach his alma mater.

AJ (University of Rhode Island)

Being a part of Sojourn was really the beginning of, and the catalyst to my, journey as a Christian. Since joining Sojourn, I was baptized, had the opportunity to baptize someone, and I am continuing to live a life attempting to glorify God in my day-to-day activities. Currently, I work in the sporting goods industry, and everyday can be a challenge as a Christian. However, challenges are opportunities in disguise, and we are called to be light in the world. There have been many times that I have been able to share my faith, in personal settings, with my co-workers. I have never had someone that was not receptive to what I had to say, and I think Sojourn prepared me for that. There are many stages to becoming a Christian, and Sojourn has prepared me to meet people at their specific stage in that journey, wherever that may be. I hope that God continues to use me as He sees fit, and I hope Sojourn continues to help students wherever they are in their journey.

Webby (Bread Boston)

Bread Coffeehouse Boston is the newest ministry located in the heart of Somerville, MA. Bread serves several campuses through a hospitality coffeehouse. “Webby” celebrated his decision to follow Jesus through baptism in the spring of 2019. Check out the video for more.

Yisu (Northeastern)

I joined Sojourn as an 18 year old who had freshly discovered the promise of Christ and five years later, I can confidently name my time in this ministry as the best choice I made in college. Through Sojourn I was baptized and welcomed home by my family in Christ; through Sojourn I found my first church home and went on my first mission trip to see God move. Sojourn has equipped me with courage to face this too-big world and hunger to seek God in every circumstance. Every week at cadre (small group) I look around the room and see my friends enjoying each other's company, laughing and sharing and doing life together--it makes my heart swell with joy to be a part of a faith community like this, which points me daily to the incomprehensible goodness of God. It's holy work, what Sojourn does.

Carina (Sojourn Newport)

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Although I come from an atheist family, God is using me in unique ways. I typically cannot get the words God, Jesus, or Christ in a sentence let alone actually conversing about God. This summer has been interesting. Through God’s doing I have had many good conversations with family and I have been able to grow personally in order to show what it means to be a Christian. I have a cousin that suffered from a severe accident over 20 years ago. She recovered completely from the accident, but was initially in a coma and lost some of her memory. She has opened up and told me about how that accident is what keeps her faithful to God. She never mentioned this to me before, it took time in the conversation for her to become this vulnerable. She decided to share this because I had shared many stories of my journey with Sojourn, as sojourn played a major role in my college life.

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I have also had the opportunity to witness another cousin struggle with her gender identity. This is not very unique in today’s day and age, but with pride month just occurring there has been a lot of criticism on the Christian community. I have actually been very self-conscious that my cousin thinks of me as a stereotypical Christian. One of the most important things I learned from Sojourn was to treat everyone with love and kindness, regardless of who they are. I would never not love my cousin, but what she is going through is tough for me to wrap my head around. I want to ask many questions just to understand, but I know that isn’t the best thing to do to someone in that situation. Sojourn has equipped me to be able to love this cousin without feeling the need to completely understand the situation. God is using me as a support system for my family. Although I would love to see Him bring my family to Christ, these baby steps are exposing my family to what it means to be Christian.