Let's Walk: The Question I Can't Stop Asking

One of the unexpected gifts of my job is that I get to spend time with remarkable people.

About every six weeks, I meet with the Toronto Campus Ministry team. We sharpen each other's thinking, swap ideas, talk strategy, encourage one another, and occasionally solve all the world's problems over lunch (or at least convince ourselves we did).

Somewhere along the way, I realized I kept leaving those meetings thinking about the same question.

What kind of person becomes a campus chaplain?

I've spent the last year watching Ruth, Sebastian, Brenda, Carol, and Steve do what they do best, and I've come to the conclusion that they're a wonderfully unusual group of people.

They're incredibly bright, but they don't feel the need to have the last word.  They're deeply rooted in Scripture, yet they're surprisingly comfortable when a student says, "I'm not sure I believe that."

They ask thoughtful questions, and then—and this might be their most remarkable quality—they actually wait for the answer. In a world that rewards quick opinions, they seem strangely committed to curiosity.  That has taught me something.

As a York University graduate, I often find myself thinking back to those years. University wasn't simply where I earned a degree. It was where I started making decisions that would shape the rest of my life. More importantly, it was where my faith stopped being something I had inherited and became something I had to wrestle with for myself.

If I'm honest, my five years at York were some of the hardest years of my life.  Not because of exams.  Because adulthood quietly arrived.

Looking back, I realize I could have benefited from someone like the chaplains I know today. Someone who wouldn't have rushed me toward easy answers but would have walked with me while I figured out which questions were worth asking.

That's what has captured my imagination about this ministry. Campus chaplains stand at one of the most important intersections in a person's life. Students arrive thinking they're there to earn a degree. And they do.

But somewhere between first-year orientation and graduation, they're taking some of the most important steps in their lifelong journey of faith and identity. That's holy ground. And perhaps that's why I find myself cheering for this ministry more than I ever expected.

Success here isn't measured only by attendance or events. It's measured years later, when former students are faithfully serving their churches, leading their families, loving their neighbours, and still walking with Jesus. That's a vision worth investing in.

It's also why I'm looking forward to Let's Walk on Saturday, October 3. It's an invitation to see the campuses through the eyes of people who have dedicated their lives to walking alongside students during one of the most formative seasons they'll ever experience. I'd love for you to join me. Come meet the chaplains. Come pray for students. Come walk the same sidewalks where faith quietly grows every single day. I have a feeling you'll leave encouraged.

Let's Walk Prayer Walk

Saturday, October 3

Walk the paths at YorkU where your campus ministry happens, and get to know some of the chaplains and students you support.

Join the Chaplains of the Toronto Christian Reformed Campus Ministries by stepping directly into the spaces where campus ministry is faithfully happening every day — lecture halls, sidewalks, green spaces, and the ordinary corners of university life where students are asking deep questions about faith, identity, belonging, and what it means to follow Christ in today’s world.

Along this prayer walk, you’ll meet some of the students your churches and shared ministries are helping support, hear stories from the ground, and spend intentional time praying over the campus community together. For generations, campus ministry has carried a deep belief that Christ claims every square inch — including the university campus. This prayer walk is a chance to see that mission unfolding in real time through presence, hospitality, discipleship, and faithful witness among students navigating a complex cultural moment.

Whether you’ve supported campus ministry for years or are simply curious about what ministry to this generation looks like today, we would love to have you join us. Come walk, pray, listen, ask questions, and experience the places where God is already at work.

Registration is available here.

Location: Friend of Nations Church Toronto, ON

Time: 10:30 AM - 2 PM, Saturday, October 3