Christian Student Fellowship holds church services

Brad+Walker%2C+Pastor+of+Redeemer+Church%2C+giving+a+sermon+in+Meadow+Lodge+to+the+CSF+and+other+attendees.

Olivia Cook

Brad Walker, Pastor of Redeemer Church, giving a sermon in Meadow Lodge to the CSF and other attendees.

Katie Casper, Staff Reporter

The group Christian Student Fellowship, or CSF for short, is a church group hosted at IU Southeast.

Every Thursday night on campus CSF will meet in a different housing lodge for dinner and a church service. The dinner starts at 6:45 p.m. and the service begins at 7:15 p.m.

Cody Bishop, IU Southeast Campus Minister, started his first day Sept. 1. Bishop said every service begins with two songs, followed by the service and closes with another song.

Bishop said services usually finish by 8 p.m. and the dinners, which have been provided by Bishop so far this semester, are soon to be provided by local churches in the area. Any setup, service help and tear down is done by volunteers in the community, on campus and by students.

The preachers thus far this semester have been volunteers found by Bishop. Bishop said once he gets things going he plans to start preaching mainly while having local guest pastors come and occasionally preach as well.

Austin Loveing performed the music. Loveing, who plays the guitar, is in the process of putting together a band for the services comprised of IUS students.

After every service, CSF welcomes all attendees to hang out together at “That One Spot,” where everyone can play games, pool, pingpong, and watch television among other various activities. “That One Spot” is located at 615 Park East Blvd. in New Albany.

Dorothy Lucas, psychology senior at IU Southeast, is the president of CSF.

“As Christians, we want to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ. The group is meant to connect to students, to Christ and to other believers,” said Lucas.

Lucas said when she was a sophomore she attended a CSF event at the Clock Tower and enjoyed the event and the friendly people. After participating for a year, she was offered the position as president of the CSF leadership team in the spring of 2015.

“CSF has helped me have a closer relationship with God along with making close friends. [It] is a ministry reaching out to college students and our mission is to lead students to Christ,” Lucas said.

As president, Lucas sends out weekly emails about upcoming events to members and makes sure everything is ready for their Thursday night services.

Jenae Sigafoos, nursing sophomore, has been involved with CSF for two years. Sigafoos is the vice president of fellowship for CSF. In this position she helps with organizing events, planning, and helping members communicate and interact among other tasks.

“My favorite part about being a part of CSF is having [connections] with other Christians on campus. It can be difficult and lonely sometimes, and CSF has many opportunities to get connected in various ways,” Sigafoos said.

Sigafoos said CSF has many opportunities for students to get involved. Every Tuesday they host a Bible study with lunch in University Center North in room 121 from noon – 1 p.m.

Every Saturday from three in the afternoon until midnight, “That One Spot” is opened for students to come and hang out, watch football, play games and relax.

CSF is also referred to as Connect on the IUS campus. Their mission is to connect students to other Christians on campus and other local churches.

Students who are interested in being involved, joining, or getting information about CSF can send an email to ius.csf@gmail.com. CSF also has an office in the Student Involvement Center in room OO1K with hours from 1:30 – 2:30 p.m.

Sigafoos said you can also connect to CSF through their Facebook page, Connect IUS and via fliers that are around the IUS campus.

CSF is a nonmembership, open group on campus, that welcomes all people regardless of their religion to their services, Bible studies and hangouts.