As a Methodist-affiliated university, Ohio Northern has a variety of Christian groups for students to get involved in, such as Kappa Phi, Northern Christian Fellowship, ONU Catholic, spiritual hour gatherings and chapel worship. However, there has not yet been an open-invitation organization dedicated to women and their journey with Christ.
Caroline Hensley recognized the need amongst her female peers for and dedicated her summer to starting a chapter of Delight Ministries at ONU.
Delight Ministries is a nationwide organization dedicated to providing college women with a “Christ-centered community” on campus. Each chapter meeting includes guided discussions, study booklets, and group activities that bring women closer to their Christian faith.
Upon hearing about this organization and the resources it offers, Hensley knew it would be a unique way to help women find God at Ohio Northern.
“I wanted to create a space on campus where every girl was welcome to show up as they are, leaving with bold faith and lots of new friends!” wrote Hensley. “God put it in my heart that there were ONU girls longing for a community like Delight, so I couldn’t say no.”
To garner interest and promote the group, Hensley and the ONU chapter’s leadership team started an Instagram account and linked a GroupMe chat to their profile. Over 160 students joined the GroupMe without any meetings occurring on campus.
Similarly, the leadership team began advertising for Delight’s interactive workbook, Heartbeat, which will be used by students during meetings throughout the semester. Copies were on sale during WelcomeFest and other designated dates, and the team sold out each time. The unexpectedly high popularity for Delight took Hensley and the leadership team by surprise.
“I was expecting maybe 20 girls to be interested in Delight, but here we are selling out of our books multiple times before we have even kicked off,” she said. “I have to point it all back to God, it is nothing that the leadership team has done. There is a hunger on ONU’s campus for Jesus, and I think Delight is just the start of that.”
While there are other organizations on campus designed for women of faith, each group maintains their own structure and culture. Delight aims to be another source of belonging for women discovering Christ and adds diversity to the university’s religious groups.
“I have been involved in many of the other Christian organizations on campus during my time at ONU, but I have never experienced something quite like Delight,” reflected Hensley. “There is something special about an imperfect group of girls coming together to praise our perfect Father. What I think makes Delight special is that girls are welcome to come as they are, no matter their past or what they are going through now. All girls have to do is show up.”
With the dedication of the leadership team and young women’s desire to grow faith on campus, ONU’s chapter of Delight Ministries has reached quick success.
[…] on multiple occasions to gaining over 160 GroupMe members over the summer, Delight received an unexpectedly large amount of interest last fall that shocked their leadership […]