On March 17, 2006, Eric Ottens, a student at the University of Evansville in Indiana and a member of the basketball team, was killed in an automobile accident. Kim was dating Eric’s best friend and deeply mourned Eric’s death. God intervened into her grief and brought her to a relationship with himself.
The University of Evansville is a small school, and Eric’s death affected all of the students. But Kim had known Eric better than most; and when he died, she started asking questions about the meaning of life and death and where God fit into things. About this time, Leah, a sorority sister a Zeta Tau Alpha, invited Kim to a GIG (Group Investigating God), a Bible study for non-Christians, at the sorority house. Kim decided to go. She thought this would be a good place to get some answers to her questions about God; in addition, Kim wanted to know why Leah was happier than other students she knew.
When Kim arrived for the Bible study, Esther, the InterVarsity staff member, was there to help Leah. They studied the passage from the Gospel of John, chapter four, about the woman at the well. Kim did not get her questions answered during this study, but she was undeterred. She asked Esther if they could meet together to explore what God says about life and death.
Esther agreed to meet with Kim weekly to specifically look at what the Bible had to say in answer to Kim’s questions. Over three weeks, Kim came to understand that she was created by God for his glory, but that she had not lived up to his standards and so had no relationship with him. After a couple of meetings, Esther asked Kim, “Do you want to be in a relationship with God?” Kim answered, “Yes.” She accepted Jesus to be her Savior and entered into a new life in him.
Esther continued to meet with Kim until the end of the school year, encouraging her in her new faith. Kim is excited to return to campus for her senior year and learn more about how to live her new life in Christ.
