Who Is CrossSeekers Campus Ministry?
We are a movement of students on various campuses throughout Southwest PA who are seeking to glorify God by reaching and equipping students to give themselves wholly to Jesus Christ and embracing His eternal purpose of making disciples of all nations. We are connected to the largest campus ministry in the US - Baptist Collegiate Ministry, although we are made up of students from all over the spectrum of Christianity and some honest seekers as well.

The heart of our ministry is a network of small groups designed to develop and deepen community with God and with peers. These Life transformation Groups (LTG’s) and the purposes inherit in them (See Below) help us establish what kind of community we are striving to become. Nobody’s perfect, so we give each other as much grace as possible, while pressing on to accomplish His purpose.

 

The LTG is a tool that can be used to start new CrossSeekers Collegiate Churches and/or help existing CrossSeekers Campus Ministries mature and grow. It is a “grassroots” concept that empowers “ordinary” students who are followers of Jesus to become disciple-makers. The LTG leverages the power of real relationships for accountability and fuels internal motivation through the Word of God rather than employing external, programmatic pressures and tactics. The LTG releases the simple, yet essential, elements that are vital for true spiritual change and growth into the lives of people who desperately need Jesus.

As Proverbs 27:17 illustrates, we need other people. Mutual accountability is the “glue” that holds the group together. The group meets once a week for about an hour, and has no “official” leader. There is no curriculum, workbooks, or prior training needed or involved. Three simple tasks are accomplished each week:

The ultimate goals of the LTG are 1) to see lives transformed by the power of God’s Word internalized and applied and 2) to multiply the group into many other groups over time.

The groups are not co-ed, but are gender specific. The group is limited to two or three in order to increase confidentiality, make it easier to schedule the meeting time, and to encourage multiplication. The addition of a fourth person in the process is considered the beginning of the next group. In other words, whereas there was one group of three, now there are two groups of two that seek to add one more person each.

There are only two suggested qualifications for starting or joining an LTG:

These two criteria balance one another to keep the group on track both with healing for hurting people and health for helping people. To compromise either of these principles will slow down or derail the effectiveness of the group.

Accountability is maintained through open character conversations within the weekly meeting using 11 very pointed and straight forward questions. Each person shares answers openly and honestly within the safe environment of the group which commits itself to honesty, vulnerability, confidentiality, and grace. The questions are:

Many people fear this part and will stubbornly turn away. Let us offer some important Scripture on this. Proverbs 28:13 says, “People who conceal their sins will not prosper, but if they confess and turn from them, they will receive mercy,” (NLT). Confession is not to be taken lightly. Now, you may say, “I will confess to God, but my sin is no body else’s business.” OK, yes, we must first confess to God. 1 John 1:9 says, “[I]f we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness,” (NLT). We confess our sin to God in order to receive forgiveness and cleansing. But don’t bypass James 5:16, “Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed, (NLT). We need healing. God has commanded and designed our lives to need mutual accountability through confession. Yes, you need someone you can confess your secrets to. We all need forgiveness, cleansing, and healing to experience real life transformation! An LTG can offer you the context to find freedom from the sin that will ultimately destroy your life.

 

THE BIBLE! This process doesn’t use lesson books, outlines, imposed structures, or a program. Each week the group decides what to read in the Bible. It is strongly suggested that the reading be at least 25-30 chapters per week. Beginners may want to start with smaller portions to build confidence and hunger. If everyone in the group doesn’t finish the reading for the week, then the same passage is read the next week until everyone finishes the selected reading within one week. The point is to read large portions of Scripture in context with repetition. The following could be some examples of weekly readings:

The point is not so much what you read, it is that you read and listen for God to speak through His Word into your life situation. Each week, each person will have the opportunity to share what God has revealed to them through Scripture. This process trusts that the Holy Spirit of God will lead into all Truth (John 16:13).

 

Other people that are in desperate need of Jesus! Everyone should know someone by name that needs a relationship with Jesus Christ. Each person in the group brings 2 to 3 names to the group. Everyone prays for each person everyday of the week. The hope is that you will have the opportunity to share Christ with those whom you are praying for everyday. When that person is open to joining your LTG, you have begun the process of multiplication!

 

On many of our campuses we gather any and all LTG’s together for a weekly large group worship time. This provides a context where we can fellowship, worship and encourage one another in a larger context.

 

 

For more info on specific campuses and what campuses in Southwest PA where do  CrossSeekers Campus Ministry Currently Exist…see below

 

Carnegie Mellon University

             Campus Directors: Doug and Kiki Cherry dougwcherry@gmail.com, jkikicherry@hotmail.com

 

University of Pittsburgh

 

California University of Pennsylvania, Community College of Allegheny County, Geneva College

 

Robert Morris University

 

Indiana University of Pennsylvania

 

For more info on CrossSeekers as a whole contact Kirk Ritchey, the Metro Director, at 724-799-1744.