Have you ever marveled at the uniqueness and the intensity of the relationships among the 12 disciples that Jesus chose? Imagine dwelling in community under the rich and direct teaching of Christ! As seen in Mark 10:24, 26, the disciples were continually “amazed” at what He taught.

Have you ever wondered about Jesus’ reasons for assembling a community of disciples around Him? Two hundred thir-ty of the two hundred sixty times that disciples are mentioned in the New Testament are found in the four gospels. And what is the role of a disciple? A disciple is one who receives instruction from another, and discipleship is training to repeat the process in lives of others. Community helps to foster growth in understanding how to wisely apply biblical knowledge in everyday living.

The mission of Geneva College is “to glorify God by educating and ministering to a diverse community of students for the purpose of developing servant-leaders, transforming society for the kingdom of Christ. This is accomplished through biblically based programs and services marked by excellence and anchored by the historic, evangelical, and Reformed Christian faith.” One way this mission is fulfilled at Geneva is the New Headland Discipleship House, which is an in-tense discipleship program that I was given the opportunity to participate in during my sophomore year. The House exists to prepare and equip students to become servant-leaders. The main focus of the House is to call students to faith-ful obedience to Christ in all areas of life in order that they may grow in their relationship with God.

Begun in the fall of 1992, the House has gained more structure and vision in its 8 years. The program is designed for sophomore-level students so they can apply the knowledge and skills gained in their next two years at Geneva before stepping into the public arena. My experience at the House has done just that. Geneva invested in me, and I want to give back! Before my sophomore year I had no desire to be a resident assistant of a dormitory, which I later became. Working with resident life in the Student Development department gave me a passion for higher education, which is excellent fuel for my current employment at the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities.

At the Discipleship House, six men and six women are chosen according to their Christian commitment and character exemplified in an interview and an essay application. Like the 12 disciples in Scripture who came from various back grounds—including a tax collector, fishermen, and a political activist—the Geneva students chosen for the program are quite diverse, too. My experience in the House is one of many that confirms to me that the Lord does bring people to-gether and builds friendships for His purposes and our blessing. God provides strength, support, and encouragement in relationships.

Currently under the direction of Scott and Deahna Calgaro, members of Geneva Reformed Presbyterian Church, the Discipleship House is a facet of Geneva’s Campus and Community Ministries department, which is under the direction of Chaplain Tim Russell. Past resident directors include Mark and Deone Quist, Ken and Linette MacLeod, and Vova and Laura Ivanov. All four couples have been employed by the Coalition for Christian Outreach and have pursued higher education while at Geneva. Their purpose is to help students to be effective, to challenge, and to encourage per-severance. I believe that all four couples would agree that there is never a dull moment living with 12 college students who are seeking to develop and clarify their worldview and who are stressed out with classes.

As residents of the House, students are committed to participate in weekly activities including Bible study, Scripture memorization, prayer partners, House meetings, small covenant group meetings, weekly individual meetings with the directors of the House, chores, meals, and service projects. The time commitment relating to the House is equivalent to about two three-credit courses. During the second semester, students are responsible for leading the weekly Bible stud-ies in the House meetings. The women meet with the female resident director (RD) and the men meet with the male RD during the weekly individual meetings. Curriculum used varies according to the needs and dynamics of each individual and group; during my year in the House I focused my attention on Romans, the Navigators’ Topical Memory System, and writings by Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Larry Crabb.

Before the beginning of each semester, the residents of the House return early for retreats designed to help them evalu-ate their relationship with God and to think about areas in which God wants them to grow through the next semester. Specific goals are developed in order to help meet expectations and desires and to evaluate spiritual growth. In order to be a servant-leader, one’s inner life must be built firmly upon his or her relationship with the Savior. Before first semes-ter, students go on a wilderness trip in the hills of West Virginia for three days. One of the most significant times for me in the program was during the second semester retreat when we spent a lot of time confronting and praying with others.

Perhaps you have heard rumors about co-ed housing around Geneva. Please dispel them! The Discipleship House abides by the same visiting hours in rooms and lounges that the rest of Geneva’s campus does. Men are housed in the base-ment and women are housed on the second floor, with the resident directors’ apartment and office in between.

My year in the Discipleship House clearly helped me in my walk with God and my service for Him. I have gained a more well-rounded understanding of individuals’ needs and a value for others’ interests as though they were my own. My comfort zone has been stretched, and my appreciation for diversity has been increased. I am greatly appreciative of the accountability that was shared. I have come away with a group of women that I know I am chained together with through prayer.

The discipleship and prayer did not end after that year; the group of women that I shared my sophomore year with con-tinued to meet once a week this past year. Furthermore, the Campus and Community Ministries staff has developed a discipleship group program for the rest of campus, with which I had the opportunity to he involved. The program is “an attempt to involve students in studying the Scriptures with a faculty or staff mentor who can be someone that has sig-nificant input in their lives. By giving students the opportunity to closely look at what they believe in a small group setting, with a mentor to help them wrestle through their questions, a significant impact can be made on their lives and future decisions.”

Why is the Discipleship House a good thing for Geneva? As Steve Garber says in The Fabric of faithfulness, “Com-munity is the context for the growth of convictions and character. What we believe about life and the world becomes plausible as we see it lived out all around us.” As I stated in the beginning, community helps to foster growth in under-standing how to wisely apply biblical knowledge in everyday living. I have found truth in Bonhoeffer’s words that “the more genuine and deeper our community becomes, the more will everything else between us recede, the more clearly and purely will Jesus Christ and His work become the one and only thing that is vital between us.

The privilege of living among other Christians should not be taken for granted. It is a privilege to he a part of lives and to dwell in unity together. Our most basic calling in life is to be disciples of Jesus Christ!