Faith at Colby: The InterVarsity Christian Fellowship

The Colby Echo sat down with Kayla Murphy `23 to learn about her leadership role in the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship (IVCF). 

Murphy talked about her path to her leadership position in the club and the lack of visibility that IVCF has on campus compared to other organizations. 

Nevertheless, Murphy emphasized that her main concern was reaching students in a meaningful way, saying “it’s never been about the numbers, but the impact.” 

IVCF is a national organization that has numerous college chapters across the country. Murphy underscored that she cannot speak for the organization as a whole, since she has only ever been exposed to the New England cohort. In regard to the IVCF’s objectives at Colby, she explained the mission is to provide a safe space where students are introduced to the Gospel and can feel the love of Jesus. 

“We provide a way for college-age students to grow in their faith or to be exposed to this side of themselves that they might have not thought about,” Murphy said. 

Faith and spirituality are sensitive issues in college, especially as many students find it hard to remain connected to this part of their identity that is often so closely tied to their home. 

This struggle is particularly acute on campuses located in rural, isolated areas where community interaction is often limited to thecollege “bubble.” 

However, IVCF seeks to lessen the difficulty of maintainging faith  by building a network of Christian students at Colby.

“Statistics show that most people, if they come into college with faith, they don’t leave with it,” Murphy explained. “So we really just want to have a space where people can grow and continue to learn about Jesus and develop a faith that is outside of their parent’s faith and outside of the faith that they grew up with, or the lack thereof.”

 “[IVCF] [is] a space where [students] can discover who Jesus is through his word, through reading the Bible, through worship nights, and through community, because the church isn’t a place, it’s a people,” Murphy continued. “And so being that space for love and a home for people outside of home is what we really care about.”  

Murphy herself discovered IVCF as a first year while looking for a ride to church on Sundays. 

“So I actually became Christian maybe five months before my freshman year,” Murphy recalled. “When I came to Colby, I wanted to plug into a church, so I went to the club fair and I looked for any type of Christian group. IVCF offered Bible studies and community nights in the Mary Low Coffeehouse, and before [COVID-19], we would have meals together.” 

Murphy went on to explain how IVCF was a way for her to make friends in college and find a place of belonging while strengthening her faith.

“It definitely, one, made me want to stay in the group and two, ultimately it was a desire to figure out who this Jesus person was,” she said. 

Becoming a leader in IVCF was just as unexpected for Murphy as joining IVCF was initially. When asked about how she became a leader, Murphy admitted that it never crossed her mind until the leadership team reached out to her. 

“I was just there until they gave me a call one day and said, ‘Kayla we would love for you to join our leadership team … I know that you haven’t necessarily expressed interest, but you love the Lord and you love sharing the Lord with other people, and you’re a people person and you care about others,’” Murphy recalled.

She was initially hesitant to join, especially because she had never served in a leadership role before. But as she became closer friends with the seniors on the leadership team, she realized that the key wasn’t perfection, but authenticity. 

“I saw that [the leaders] were real people, that they’re not perfect, they never tried to be and me knowing that I was not perfect made the transition into leadership way more fulfilling because I got to do what I loved to do, which was to serve Jesus and love all people without the pressure of having to be perfect or someone I’m not,” Murphy said. 

New members described a similar experience of personal growth in faith and spirituality.

“IVCF is a place where I can be completely open about my faith,” one first year said. “The support they provide me with allows me to grow spiritually and helps me feel at ease with my on campus experience at Colby, knowing that I can have people whom I can turn to spiritually.”

Although COVID-19 has certainly impacted several aspects of student life on campus this year, IVCF serves as a reminder that the Colby community network remains strong.

~ Hae-Jung Kim `24