“What is your biggest fear?” I’ve been asked that question countless times, and I never know how to answer it. “Do they want the honest answer or the lighthearted one? I don’t want to give them a cheap answer, if they’re asking seriously. But I also don’t want to kill the mood with something way deeper than they were intending.”

(For the record, here’s my shallow answer: spiders. They’re gross… Especially hairy ones. To all those who pretend to like them, stop lying to yourself.)

Here’s my serious answer: letting people down. I care about people thinking well of me… A lot. I’m a people-pleaser, and too often I set relational goals with others, while stopping short of, or even at the expense of, my relationship with the God of the universe, to whom I’ve been graciously granted access. It’s messed up. That aside, my people-pleasing nature makes being a leader scary. I think it’s scary for everyone at times. However, there’s a much higher risk of letting people down when we allow ourselves to take positions of leadership, because we’re responsible for people; people are counting on us. It’s much safer to simply avoid those positions. But God never called us to live safely. In fact, He’s asked us to live boldly, to step outside of our comfort zones (because how else will we grow?), and to rely on the power of the Holy Spirit through the comfort and discomfort alike.

But what does being a leader mean? What defines a leader?

Before I try to answer that, here’s a disclaimer: My leadership experience is limited, I have much to learn in the leadership positions I hold, and I’m only just about to leave my teens. That being said, I have read a book that provides an excellent, even perfect, example of a leader. That book is the Bible, and that example is Jesus. He’s a pretty trustworthy guy to follow.

I believe being a leader, at its core, is being a servant. As Christ-followers, we cannot separate the two. Removing service from leadership would be denying Christ’s example, contradicting His instruction, and living for personal gain, not divine glory.

One of the most whole-hearted servants I know is the cleaning lady at my church, Ms. Doreen. She faithfully sweeps our sanctuary [gym] floor several times a week, takes out the trash when no one is looking, mops the hallway when she won’t be in anyone’s way, sometimes leaves candy in the church office, and is barely known by the majority of our congregation… She is a leader. She sacrifices much of her life to provide a functional space of refuge to worship, to rejoice, to learn, and to grow. Guys, Ms. Doreen rocks. People probably don’t tell her that.

But why do we need to be “servant leaders”? Why can’t we just avoid both, and get our participation ribbons after crossing the finish line?

I believe we can; but if we do, we’re missing out. We have the privilege of participating in the living God’s work while on this earth. That is grace. That is our means for worship. That is service. That is leadership. That is sacrifice with a greater, more majestic, more weighty, more beautiful reward than we could ever imagine, and certainly than we deserve.

Our perfect example, Jesus, had an established reputation of being a friend to sinners. He hung out with the people who knew they needed Him, and endured ridicule, questioning, and eventually death from those who didn’t recognize their need. “…When the teachers of the religious law, who were Pharisees, saw him eating with tax collectors and other sinners, they asked his disciples, ‘Why does he eat with such scum?’ When Jesus heard this, he told them, ‘Healthy people don’t need a doctor – sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.’” (Mark 2:16-17) He loved the unlovable and gave his time to those who wanted to learn. He invited Himself over to a short (not that being short is inherently bad – it better not be, because I’m 5’1’’), bitter, hated thief’s house, simply because Jesus thought that thief was worth His time, when no one else was giving theirs (Luke 19:1-10). If Thief Zacchaeus was worth Jesus’ time, isn’t your awkward, lonely, or “sinful” classmate worth your time?

Jesus’ example is worth following, regardless of the confusion or mockery it may solicit from others. We can rest in the knowledge that God recognizes our sacrifice, our service, and our leadership even when people do not. When the rubber meets the road, God’s recognition is better than people’s. He deserves so much more than we could give, but HE WANTS US, yes, literally died so he could have relationship with us. He walked to the Cross knowing we would fail him. Through his death, he gets a disobedient child; an unfaithful servant. We get a perfect Father; a gracious Master; a loving Friend; a redeemed soul; a new life.

Now, all that may be true, but this whole servant leader thing is easier said than done. I’m still scared of being a servant leader, because it sounds kind of miserable. I’m scared of being a servant leader, because it feels like a lot of pressure. I’m scared of being a servant leader because that means humility - not the kind of humility that prompts people to say, “OMG, they are just so humble!” but the kind where people don’t say anything at all, because they don’t notice. A dear friend once said, “Humility is scary, because humility is close to invisibility.” However, God’s promises remove the fear in servant leadership. “Humble yourself before the Lord, and He will lift you up in honor.” (James 4:10) “Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time.” (1 Peter 5:6)

May we, the Church, join together in servant leadership to each other and the world around us, in the peace-giving knowledge that we are not alone (Deuteronomy 31:6), our God is worthy (Revelation 4:11), and our reward is great (2 Corinthians 9:6; Matthew 5:12).

“Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Philippians 2:3-11)

Eliza Kosobucki, VP of Worship, Impact Christian Fellowship

Things we all have in common:

We’re stressed.

We’re tired.

We’re overwhelmed.

We’re over-scheduled.

Impact is for:

The stressed.

The tired.

The overwhelmed.

The over-scheduled.

And finally, those in need of love - the wonderful, life-giving, unconditional kind that we can only get from one source. College is hard, and goodness knows we can’t make it through the year running on only our own strength and motivation. 

The first weeks of Impact have really set the pace of what to expect for the rest of the year. Over 30 students have experienced a weekly life group, and about the same number attended our first Night of Worship. We appreciate the presence of each and every one of you, and we’re so glad you got to experience Impact firsthand - whether it be the first time you’ve heard of us or you’ve been a regular. We’re also incredibly thankful for being able to connect with all the students we’ve seen at the Involvement Expo and before classes even started at freshmen orientations.

This semester, we’re delving into the book of Acts. If you have questions about the start of Christianity - how ideals were formed, how the church was formed, how it all started to take shape - then Life Groups will quench your curiosity, and even spark more questions. We’ll explore events and things that real people dealt with in order to get the Christian Church started.

What does it mean to be a Christian? How can you be a light with your blessings and circumstances right now? How can you get inspired and inspire others naturally as a result? Every one of you holds an important place in the kingdom of God. To get connected to this study of Acts, you can start (or continue) attending one of our weekly life groups here on campus. We’d love to have you! Times and locations are here: http://www.impactatiupui.com/lifegroups. 

On your marks… Let’s make this a blessed semester.

Haley Welch, Student President of Impact Christian Fellowship at IUPUI

It is human nature to always be concerned with what the future is going to bring. Constantly we plan things out in our head, and often times we think we know exactly what is going to happen. However, the thing we tend to forget is that God already knows exactly what his plan is for us.

I remember going to bed as a child and not being able to sleep at night. This was because in my simple mind, life was nothing but a giant dollhouse where after some time we would be thrown aside and that would be it.

 As a young child my family did not regularly attend church. Even though I was not attending church, God was working on me through two people. One of these was my grandmother and the other my babysitter, Janet. Now just to give you the proper image, Janet was a sweet grey-haired lady who stood no taller than 4’8. I went to her house every day while my parents were at work, and because she did not have any grandchildren yet, she treated me like her first. 

To this day I can remember her pushing me on the swing set she bought for me and singing songs like ‘Jesus Loves the Little Children’. Because of her influence and the few times I had gone with my grandmother to church, at age seven I went to my parents and told them we needed to go to church. 

Looking back on it now it is amazing how God used me as a seven year old to get my family to attend church. So I started attending church regularly, and quickly the void that had used to keep me up at night was filled. I attended all throughout school and later became a leader within our youth group.

Many of the friends I made in high school were through this group. Having a strong support system was always extremely helpful, but upon graduation we all went off to different schools. While we still kept in contact the daily and weekly support was no longer there. It was time for me to start over and really define myself.

Freshman year I made the mistake of trying to do everything by myself (and of course I failed). I went back home after my freshman year and started going to church again, because without a car I did not have any luck finding a church as a freshman. Sophomore year had its own struggles, but by the end I had really began to build my relationship with God again. However, again without a support group and a home church, when the busy summer came I began to fade again. 

As junior year came my faith had fallen out of routine. I began to realize this and decided that I needed to find an on campus group, but I was not sure what group that was going to be. Knowing that I was not going to be able to do it on my own, I simply prayed about it.

I had every expectation God was going to answer my prayer and give me the support group I needed, however I never could have imagined the way in which he did it. This is when Janet came back into the picture.  Her health had been declining since I left for college, and at the beginning of the fall semester things started to take a turn for the worst. 

I went to visit her in the nursing home, and at this time she was not responding to anyone. I sat by her bedside and told her how much she meant to me and that I hoped I had made her proud of the man I had become.  During this time I saw her smile, something her daughter said she had not done in days.

A short time later she went home to her Creator and we gathered at her funeral. It was a hard day, but God’s was right there. After we put her to rest, I sat with my family and ate dinner at the church. While we were eating, the pastor came over and sat with us. Interestingly enough, he too had attended the Kelley School of Business. After this connection he realized he had an introduction he needed to make.

At this time I met Andrew Hodges, who told me that he led a student fellowship group at IUPUI. Now if there is any doubt this was God, let me tell you that there were no more than 30 people at this dinner, and the overwhelming majority was family. I got Andrew’s contact information, and two weeks later I joined Impact at IUPUI and started regularly attending one of their life groups.

Since joining Impact at IUPUI I have found a life group that I attend weekly, which is exactly the support group I had been looking for. Also this semester I shared my testimony at our night of fellowship, and I have begun to think about what I want to do for the group I will lead next semester. Through this group I met several people who led a college bible study on Sundays at a church close to my apartment, so now I also have the home church I have been wanting. I can now feel God at work in my life.

So do not get discouraged when things do not go as you had planned. God is there in those times, and believe it or not he knows exactly what he is doing. The best part about it is that he will do it in the most unimaginable ways. Ways that will cause you to look back and smile, because he was there even in the times you doubted.

Zach Treon, Student in Impact at IUPUI