By Abi Christian

On Top of Spaghetti

Spaghetti, meatballs, and the Bible—these were the ingredients that helped to deepen Ben Nichol’s faith at the University of Buffalo in New York and motivated him to share the gospel with other students.

Ben joined InterVarsity as a freshman after he came across an ice cream outreach event and met several InterVarsity students. One of those students, John, an upperclassman, developed a friendship with Ben. He frequently invited Ben over for dinner and they talked about what they were learning in the Bible and being a Christian in college.

“John made a big impact in investing in me. I hadn’t been around people who were really excited about following God,” said Ben. His desire to pursue God, which had grown stagnant in high school, was renewed.

Later that year, Ben helped at another outreach event, handing out fliers and talking with new students about InterVarsity. At the end, he stayed to clean up and chatted with an InterVarsity staff member about classes. Chatting turned into a deeper conversation on faith and the effects of sin, a conversation that lasted several hours. “It was the first time I admitted some of the sin in my life to anyone,” said Ben. He realized how important relationships were for growing in faith.

It wasn’t until he attended Basilea, an InterVarsity conference for students from New York and New Jersey colleges, that Ben began to care about the spiritual state of students on campus. With so many students praising God together and learning about sharing the gospel with other students, Ben realized his faith wasn’t something to keep to himself. “I saw how much bigger God’s plan was. It opened my eyes to the work that could be done if I surrendered my life to God,” he said.

Spaghetti for Freshmen

This year, as a senior, Ben felt God’s call to start a small group Bible study for freshmen. He didn’t know if there would be enough interested people, but over the course of the year, 12 men have joined the study. Ben regularly meets one-on-one with each of them, trying to invest in them the way John invested in him—sometimes over a meal of spaghetti and meatballs.

“I want to set an example of discipling students younger than myself. I want students to take ownership of their faith and of InterVarsity,” said Ben. “I believe that’s how growth happens – through investing in people and relationships.”

Ben also began a Bible study with two friends who are unsure of what they believe. Though they have doubts, Ben sees them actively seeking to know God, and he’s hopeful that God will work in their lives, even after he graduates from Buffalo.

As Ben prepares for further study in civil engineering, he knows he doesn’t want his faith to grow stagnant again. He’s encouraged by Psalm 37:3, which says, “Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.” Ben said, “I want to be a part of what God’s doing, wherever it is.”