CCO Campus Ministry

Sharon Stewart

When I graduated from high school, I enrolled in a four-year all-women’s college in Massachusetts. College was full of constant activity but something was lacking. I remember talking to God alone in my dorm room; I longed for Christian fellowship. One evening toward the end of my sophomore year, my friend Betsi, who was a junior at Westminster College in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania, called and asked me to be her roommate the following year. At the end of the year, I said goodbye to some good friends and drove home, looking forward to a new experience.

Within days of being on Westminster’s campus for my junior year, I was in a Bible study with amazing Christian men and women who talked about their relationship with Jesus Christ with joy. I remember going to [CCO staff member] Andi Ellis’ apartment and enjoying conversations about what it means to be a Christian on campus. We talked about the beauty of God’s creation, our sinful nature and that in Christ we are a new creation. I was so thirsty to hear about God’s love and grace. Being in community with other Christians was so refreshing after the drought I had experienced the previous two years.

I attended the Jubilee conference as a student, as a staff member and for many years as an alumna. I loved the worship and fellowship with students who were dwelling in God’s Word and being transformed by the presence of Jesus Christ in all areas of life. When I worked in marketing and sales in my 20s, I learned how difficult it is to maintain a strong Christian character in the workplace. Jubilee speakers were encouraging and shared practical ways to implement my faith in difficult situations.

The ministry of the CCO taught me about what it means to be involved in a Christian community where we can talk about our faith and how it applies to our entire life. My relationships with people from the CCO changed my entire life.

Right out of college, I served on CCO staff with students at Duquesne, Point Park and the Art Institute. Discipleship is about relationships and growing in your relationship with Jesus Christ. I first learned about discipleship as a student at Westminster as I attended and led small groups, and today, I serve as the Director of Disciplemaking and Spiritual Growth for the Pittsburgh Presbytery. I graduated from Westminster with a degree in Christian Education and a minor in psychology, and I am currently enrolled as a part-time student at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary in the Master of Divinity program.

My husband John and I have been married for 23 years, and we have two wonderful daughters. We live in Pittsburgh’s South Hills and worship at Pleasant Hills Community Presbyterian Church, where I have been involved in children’s and youth ministry, served as an elder, and teach, preach and work with the pastor. I share my faith in my neighborhood by praying with my neighbors, sharing my relationship with Christ with my teenagers, their friends, people in the community and whenever I have an opportunity.

The most important thing that I experienced through the CCO was learning what it means to be a disciple. Being a disciple involves following Jesus and staying connected to the One who empowers us to integrate our faith in all areas of life. Jesus said in John 15:5, “I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing.” My relationships through the CCO have provided fellowship and accountability because following Jesus is a life-long journey.

Transformed Lives