North Greenville University has a new apologetics ministry. The Life Answers Team, formed by Tony Beam, vice president for student services and Christian worldview, began its work this semester.
NGU students who make up the Life Answers Team are ready to start their first year of apologetics ministry. From left: Austin Lane, Ben Villaverdae, Dylan Baxter, Tuni Barner, Courtney Holt, Alex Grubbs, Stephen Howard and Brittani Balchin.Operating out of the Christian Worldview Center, the Life Answers Team is the first group of its kind on campus. According to Chrysta Johnson, assistant director of the university’s Christian Worldview Center, the team has been established to train students in the “discipline of possessing and professing the truth of Christianity in a variety of worship and marketplace settings.”
Eight students were chosen for membership based on their testimonies and walks with Christ, as well as their desire to defend God’s truth. The mission of the team will be to defend the gospel and show evidence of the truth of Christianity in all situations.
The ministry’s success does not depend on the students alone. “The effectiveness of the ministry is dependent upon the Holy Spirit and the willingness of each group member to maintain a right relationship with the Lord and with each other,” said Johnson.
Team members receive a scholarship and will be required to attend weekly debriefings and do preparatory work. The team travels three out of four weekends a month during the semester for ministry opportunities and speaking engagements. The team is also funded by love offerings from churches they visit.
Johnson said the team is different from other ministry teams on campus in one distinct way: They are not a performance group. Members “are accountable to keep their focus on Jesus as they speak, debate, share individual testimonies, lead fellowships, stay in homes and encourage those who are hurting or lonely, as well as in their academic work, and in how they conduct themselves on and off campus,” she said. – NGU