CRC in Arizona Starts realTALK

Christ's Community Church in Chandler, Ariz. realized that young people, especially college students on secular campuses in their area, were in need of the saving grace that the gospel provides.

While many young people, up to 40 to 50 percent of students, lose their faith once they get to college, many of them have had little or no exposure to Christianity to begin with.

It was this group -- the marginal and unchurched students--that the Christian Reformed Church congregation in Chandler wanted, perhaps in partnership with others, to especially reach.

“Many ministries largely center on trying to hold onto youth who grew up in the faith, but there are so many who have never even once been challenged by the truth claims of the gospel,” says Jonathan Gerstner, pastor of Christ’s Community Church (CCC).

CCC decided it wanted to focus its efforts on this group of college students.  But it wasn't sure how to best do that.

Then, it was introduced to realTALK, a thriving campus ministry started several years ago by a church in Texas..

RealTalk is dedicated to sharing the gospel on secular campuses.

Each gathering begins with a lengthy period of open discussion, followed by an opportunity for ministry leaders to share a Christian perspective on a topic.

RealTALK also offers discipleship group opportunities for interested students.

The overall goal of this ministry is to bring young adults into a living relationship with Christ while, as a side benefit, also decreasing the high percentage of youths from Christian backgrounds that depart from the faith during college, says Gerstner.

Whether or not students accept the saving message of Christ through their participation in realTALK, the ministry brings them into contact with the gospel—for some, their first encounter with Christianity.

CCC had just begun with realTalk.

Then new CCC member Peter Rice, who formerly served as a realTALK campus leader at Kilgore College, a state college in East Texas, felt called to launch a campus ministry at nearby Scottsdale Community College, where he attends.

Rice introduced Gerstner to Chuck Warnock, senior pastor of New Covenant church in Phoenix, and John Eisenring, director of New Covenant’s realTALK ministry.

Warnock had a strong vision and commitment to expand realTALK and start a broad campus ministry in the Phoenix area.

After a time of prayer and discernment, CCC decided to implement the realTALK ministry on college campuses in the Phoenix/Tucson Kingdom Enterprise Zone.

New Covenant agreed to send two experienced campus leaders to help Rice and CCC connect with young adults.

Rice, the two campus leaders from New Covenant, and another campus leader from the Dallas campus of Southern Methodist University have been tasked with getting the ministry up and running in the Phoenix area.

Through realTALK, many students have started attedning come to Christ and nearly 200 college students now attend New Covenant on a regular basis.

In addition to launching realTALK, CCC plans to launch a mid-week worship service geared toward college-aged young adults to help them get plugged in to a church family.