At Calvin, most Bible studies form out of shared living situations or interests. For students in the Outdoor Recreation ministry, this is a shared love of climbing, hiking and nature, something that has grown into one of the most consistently attended Bible studies on campus.
It continues to see large participation, in addition to their periodic community events, with roughly 30 attendees every week. This success is largely tied to the strength of the larger Outdoor Rec community. For many students, their love of the outdoors and faith are not separate spheres of life, but rather are closely tied together.
Grace Poortenga, a senior and Barnabas ministry leader, reflected on the Bible study’s success. “If you already have a community built through all of these other things, and then you study the Word together, it just works really well.” She explained that the community built through Outdoor Rec events, such as trips and climbing, has strengthened the community of the Bible study.
For this Bible study, their shared love of the outdoors has become a foundation for diving into Scripture together.
The Outdoor Rec Bible study is open to all grade levels and is led by a team of Student Ministry leaders. Sophomore Declan Smith began attending the Outdoor Rec Bible study during his freshman year, and explained that it became one of the main ways he met upperclassmen. The Bible study is a low-pressure and welcoming atmosphere. He explained, “It doesn’t feel like just a Bible study on Wednesdays, it feels like my friends and the people I’m already doing life with.” Smith now is one of the Barnabas ministry leaders that guides the group in discussion every Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.
Poortenga added that opportunities like retreats allow friendships and faith to grow. Poortenga and Smith, along with three other Barnabas leaders, led the group on a weekend retreat on Feb. 21 and 22, spending time in a cabin by Lake Michigan, playing games, worshipping, doing crafts, hiking, sharing meals together and enjoying rest in community.
Over the past year, the Bible study has focused on themes of the miracles of Christ and trust in the Bible. Poortenga described the benefits of having a broader theme: “No matter what we’re reading, we can always bring it back to our own lives, asking what it means for us and how it shapes the way we’re living.”
Junior Annika Pollack has been a regular attendee of the Bible study and expressed that, “The outdoor Rec Bible study is [a] place where I am able to study and engage with God’s word alongside other people who share similar interests to me.”
In addition to the weekly Bible study, the culture of Outdoor Rec Ministry is supported by monthly movie nights, retreats and broader Outdoor Rec cook-offs and climbing trips. The ministry started the academic year off with a pizza night and ended the fall semester with a chili cook-off. According to Smith, they will have another cook-off later in the semester.
As students continue to gather for movie nights, climbing trips and more throughout the semester, the weekly Bible study remains a source for reflection and a strong faith community. And in a community built around a shared life outdoors, studying the Bible together is a natural extension of friendship.
