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Becky Wainwright

wainwright_b.jpgIf it wasn’t for the CCO, I don’t know if I would be a follower of Christ today.

I grew up in a Christian home. As a seven-year-old, I prayed to “accept Christ as my personal savior” and grew up in the church and was active in our youth group. By my senior year of high school, I rebelled from that path. I made poor decisions, apart from everything I knew to be right and true. I could care less about a relationship with Jesus and, although I was still going through the motions of being an outward Christian at church, my lifestyle was the way I wanted it: destructive dating relationships, under-aged drinking, and, scariest of all, I just didn’t care anymore. A good friend of mine, who wasn’t a Christian but knew I was, asked me what I was doing. She recognized well before I did that I really was spiraling down to a dark place.

By the time I left for college, I had broken free from some of the negative influences and people in my life. I arrived at the University of Pittsburgh very unsure of who I was or where I was going.

Two things happened to change all of that. The first was a very spiritual encounter. I had a 7:30am fitness class, and I remember walking up “Cardiac Hill” all by myself and feeling very alone and lost in the big city. This was before iPods, and 7:30 am is as quiet as a college campus gets, even one in the middle of a city. I found myself hearing God speak to me as I huffed and puffed up that steep hill. And, more shockingly, I found myself praying back.

That same first week, I met a girl in my freshman studies class, who to this day is my best friend. She said she was going to check out Cornerstone, the CCO’s fellowship group at Pitt, that night. I went with her, and there I found a home.

The fellowship meeting was crowded with students, welcoming and fun. I joined a freshman girls’ Bible study, I was mentored by CCO staff member Melissa Hicks, and I was challenged in every thing I knew to be Christianity. I loved it!

Suddenly, God became very big. He cared about everything: my major, my career, who I voted for, where I chose to live, whether I recycled, and how I reacted to the homeless guy I passed on the street. This fresh vision of the Kingdom of God, this new worldview, was compelling and actually made sense! I started living with purpose out of the conviction I am an agent of redemption in a world that God created and called good, but is broken as a result of the Fall. This message became real to me in hard conversations with my CCO campus minister and intense Bible study discussions, and also in fun ways at our fall retreats and girls sleepovers.

Because of the CCO, I was able to take what I learned in my psychology classes and compare it to the biblical worldview I was learning about. After graduation, I decided to wait to pursue a master’s degree in social work in order to give back what was given to me. I took a CCO position at Penn State and worked there for three years. Now I am in Philadelphia, working in development for the CCO in order to raise the funds to hire new staff and create positions at new campuses. My husband and I are active members of Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, where I am involved playing the piano and organizing outreach events.

I work for the CCO now because I believe that college students are at a pivotal point in their lives. I hope that every college student has the opportunity to explore Jesus’ claims in a welcoming and fun community.