Combatting Loneliness in University Students with God’s Word

Although it’s often depicted as endless parties and group hangs on TV, college can be lonely.  

New classes, new responsibilities, new friends, and a new place to call home can overwhelm the average university student. 

Jessica was one of these students. Raised in a Christian household in Brazil, she intended to continue her faith journey upon starting university in 2015. However, family hardships and long nights writing papers led her to step away from Jesus a year later.  

“I remember telling God, ‘You don’t care about me,’” she said, reflecting on that time. “‘I’m dealing with so many things, and I don’t hear You. I don’t think You even exist anymore.’”  

A classmate, though, recognized that Jessica was struggling and invited her to attend a campus Bible study group. 

“I told her, ‘I don’t believe in Jesus anymore. I can’t go with you,’” Jessica said. “So eventually she asked me if I could just help her with the Bible study material, and I went.”  

That initial meeting didn’t change Jessica’s opinions on God, but the group members decided to keep pursuing her.  

“They were determined to be my friend,” Jessica said. 

Eventually, their persistence paid off.  

“Everyone just embraced me,” Jessica said. “I was walking in a totally different direction, but through our group, God showed me very clearly that He cares about me. He sent so many good people to walk with me.”  

With new friends and a newfound love of Jesus, Jessica became a campus leader, participating in Yellow September, a Brazilian campaign aimed at increasing mental health awareness. She also became a faith leader, creating Bible study curricula that were shared with various university Christian groups, and in 2018, she began interning with Our Daily Bread Ministries (ODBM) Brazil. 

Around this time, ODBM Brazil leaders also felt a desire to create more biblical materials for university students. Consequently, they reached out to various pastors in the community, asking if they knew anyone involved in university evangelism who could be hired to facilitate this new work. 

Much to ODBM Brazil’s surprise, the right candidate they had been searching for was interning in their office four hours each week. Pastors identified Jessica as a trusted, well-connected Christian university leader. 

Therefore, she was hired fulltime and tasked with creating and managing Conexão Universitária (or “University Connection”), a sub-brand of ODBM Brazil aimed at connecting university students to God, themselves, and each other. 

What initially started in 2020 as 10 Bible study groups meeting on university campuses has now grown to include more than 60 groups across 15 Brazilian states. In total, over 300 university students and leaders meet weekly to study the Conexão Universitária biblical curriculum. When not engaged in their Bible studies, they connect digitally through the Conexão Universitária app.  

Topics groups discuss range from mental health and managing time to sexuality and sanctification.

“I was giving up in university, and God gave me friends to start over. It was so precious to me,” said Jessica when asked how her own college experience affects her work now. “Through Conexão Universitária, we want students to realize that we need each other. We are Christ’s body, and God has a purpose for you when you’re going through university.”  

In the future, Jessica and the Conexão Universitária team hope to not only inspire more community-building within their app but also to create Bible study curricula for high schools 

Still, with these new goals, their mission will remain the same. 

“We all must know that God won’t leave us alone. Ever,” said Jessica.