Moments of transition can be moments of vulnerability in the faith of young Christians. The shift from the sheltered community of youth group to the independence of university life is no exception – it’s a time that often presents a high-stakes challenge for a young person’s faith.
So what can our Presbyterian churches do to ensure young people journey through university with their faith intact and growing? We spoke with Jye Stephens, a second-year student studying music production at UTS, to understand how his experience of campus Christian groups can help churches prepare their graduates well for life beyond youth group.
Jye, who describes himself as a “good Christian” and “very religious” throughout his upbringing, reflects that his high school spiritual life was driven by conformity and the desire to be perceived as a “very good kid,” missing the “whole point of being a Christian”. He was involved in ministry at his local Presbyterian church, but his works-based mentality left his faith fragile. After finishing high school, Jye struggled to maintain spiritual disciplines like Bible reading and prayer, leading to moral compromise in an effort to fit in with non-Christian friends who swore and partied. Then his “compartmentalised lives” began overlapping, leading to feelings of guilt and shame at church and isolation from both his Christian and secular peers .
Jye’s struggles intensified when he entered university, studying music and sound design. He described the course environment as “very progressive,” often promoting ideas and identities that did not align with Christianity. To gain acceptance, he began “to just adapt what they’d say,” leading him to compromise his values.
Feeling lost, confused and isolated without solid Christian friends on campus, Jye became eager to connect and was looking for an opportunity to “fix my morals and become the person that I said that I was.”
This vulnerability made Jye a target for a charismatic individual from the International Christian Church (ICC) – a group that presents themselves as a regular Christian church but is widely regarded as a cult. The ICC member approached Jye, proposed daily Bible reading, and appealed directly to his desire for spiritual discipline.
The ICC’s teachings were characterised by a controlling, works-based theology. Bible sessions were a “Bible telling” rather than a discussion, imparting the member’s interpretation and making Jye feel immense pressure to believe everything said. The meetings often turned from one-on-one sessions into two-on-one sessions with “very experienced” church members joining Jye’s friend to overwhelm him with their point of view. The ICC pushed a prosperity gospel and emphasised that, as Jye describes it, “hard work and righteousness were necessary for acceptance by God,” questioning the faith of those who failed to pay their tithe. Jye notes the group even used discomfort as a “tactic of manipulation” to control behavior, suggesting that if giving to the church felt uncomfortable, it was a test of faith that needed to be pushed through.
Thankfully, a couple of months after Jye connected with the ICC, he was walking on campus when a member of Credo, the campus AFES group, handed him a free bag of popcorn and invited him to a Credo meeting. Jye hadn’t heard of Credo but responded enthusiastically to the prospect of more Christian friends. For a time, he attended Credo and ICC gatherings. But when the ICC member attempted to discourage him from attending Credo, calling it too “non-denominational” and accepting, Jye’s suspicion was raised.
When he mentioned his new Christian connection in a Credo Grow group, his leaders, Sophie and James, immediately recognised the ICC . They pulled him aside and warned him he might be involved in a cult. Jye believes he “would never have found out about the cult” without their help, and was able to step back from the ICC gatherings before they took over his life and further corrupted his understanding of God.
Jye’s experience provides a key lesson for Presbyterian churches: actively facilitate connections for your members heading to university with safe, biblically sound campus groups. Jye stresses that churches sending out young adults to campus must ensure they connect with a “fully licensed or a fully recognised” campus Bible group. AFES is a great place to start for a group that will teach sound doctrine, but Jye offers some further advice to help students and their pastors find good groups to join:
- Check registration: Churches should verify that the campus group is registered under university oversight – at UTS, for example, campus groups must be registered with Activate. The ICC group was not.
- Demand transparency: University-approved groups are monitored and must be fully transparent about their stated purpose and mission, helping differentiate genuine ministry from manipulative groups.
But going the extra mile to find a solid Christian group on campus isn’t just about avoiding the unsafe ones! A theologically sound campus Christian community will help young university students strengthen and solidify their understanding of the key tenets of Christianity, ultimately leaving them with a richer, lasting faith. This has certainly been Jye’s experience. Credo leaders, particularly James through unofficial mentoring, challenged Jye’s works-based mindset and corrected the ICC’s “iffy view on sin”. Jye was reminded of the truths he learned growing up: that salvation comes not through perfection or hard work, but through “fully trusting and depending on Jesus.” He has understood on a deeper, more mature level, that he needs to be “dependent, not perfect,” believing in God’s “relentless, forgiving love.”
Campus groups are also an impactful training ground for future church leaders. Credo has significantly prepared Jye for church ministry, teaching him transferable skills that he has applied directly to his home church, Woonoona Presbyterian. His involvement has taught him how to operate as part of a team committed to a common goal, which has countered his previous approach of just coming to church and leaving. Jye is now convicted to use his “people skills” for deeper bonding and conversation, and his musical talent for playing the piano, recognising that every church member is needed and functions best when they utilise their unique gifts to strengthen the body.
The evangelism skills gained through Credo’s ‘Share Jesus’ Prime training module have also helped Jye to invite university friends to church and given him confidence to boldly share his faith on campus.
So profound is the impact of the deep trust, relationship-building, and spiritual support found within Credo that Jye is currently pondering his future plans – he’s feeling inspired to stay and continue working in campus ministry, valuing the immense impact being made there over potential opportunities elsewhere.
Lifelong discipleship doesn’t become someone else’s responsibility when the young adults from our churches head off to university. It’s crucial that churches actively help students find safe, biblically sound Christian communities on campus. By prioritising this connection, we are extending our care and ensuring that their faith is grounded in truth, protecting them from dangerous influences and preparing them for a lifetime of ministry – hopefully back in our churches!
