Joshua Bell

Religion is something almost everyone thinks about. You may see a Bible and then begin to question life, and your place in it. ZAO College Ministries is there to help.

ZAO is a newly recognized college organization that is there for anyone and everyone to explore the Bible. Their constitution and by- laws were approved at the Student’s Association Jan. 31 meeting. College pastor Jason Harshbarger, of the Brookings First Assembly of God Church, said that, “God made us with a purpose,” and that is exactly what ZAO is going to help students explore.

Amber Sperlich, the president of ZAO, helped start this organization as she was striving for something more.

“We basically started it for something real, something applicable to our lives, and something challenging to our faith,” she said. “It’s all about being real. If you argue with something that’s being said, we will discuss and be open about it.”

It may only be the first year they made the push to come on campus, but has been meeting off campus since last year and already has 30 members. This program is for all those people who want to develop a relationship with new people, while developing a relationship with God, Sperlich said.

“It’s fundamental of Christianity, getting to know new people, while being closer to God,” she said.

The organization is not there to push beliefs on anyone, but to bring people from all over the country, all nationalities, to experience the Bible together, Sperlich said. ZAO believes that the Bible is one hundred percent true. And through this, she said, each person can find their own meaning of the scripture and how it affects them.

“Not Your Normal Greek Life” is the slogan of this newly-formed organization. The organization is an off shoot of the Brookings First Assembly of God, taking the name ZAO after the Greek letter, which means “To live abundantly.”

Each of the weekly meetings has praise and worship services, followed by an interactive Bible study. At the end of the night, there will be more praise and worship before closing.

The weekly sessions, known as Thursday Night Life, are held at 7 p.m. at the Warehouse on 112 Main Ave. South. The Monday Night Guys and Gals Bible studies will be in two separate places at 7p.m. The guys will study Pierson room 409, while the ladies will meet in NFA room 236. Everyone is welcome.