“Don’t Let Me Down” by The Chainsmokers and Daya has lived on mainstream radio since the summer, and Campus Outreach’s Austin Breaux managed to tie the song to the Bible Tuesday night.
Campus Outreach is a inter-denominational on-campus ministry that held their weekly event called 808, for the ninth time this semester on Tuesday. The group teaches students how to balance spiritual growth and the challenges that come with being a college student.
The ministry holds various events throughout the school year including flag football tournaments, water balloon fights in the AgCenter and mission opportunities over the summer to Tampa, China, South Africa and Thailand. These games and activities provide relief from the monotony of the school week and help students relax and have fun.
Campus Outreach holds 808 every Tuesday night at 8:08 p.m. in the Howe-Russell building. Everyone reports inside as soon as the the eighth minute of the hour begins and forms teams of two or three. The room then transforms into an arena of hyper-competitive trivia teams using the Kahoot! App.
The trivia encompasses different subjects in pop culture, from naming who sang a certain song or what movie a particular quote was from. In the most recent meetings, trivia proved more difficult than normal for some. A picture of a celebrity was slowly revealed, and students were challenged to identify the celebrity. Once trivia finished, the room settled down and listened to a member of Campus Outreach talk about this semester’s message: Music Matters, where the speaker shows how lyrics of popular songs can teach students significant truths about spiritiual growth. During this meeting, University graduate Austin Breaux spoke about The Chainsmokers and Daya’s hit, “Don’t Let Me Down,” and how the message parallels living life in a spiritual matter.
Breaux said Campus Outreach tries to make connections to pop culture and current issues to make the message more accessible and hands-on.
“We don’t just want to tell people reading the Bible is important,” Breaux said. “We want to help them learn how to do it. We don’t want it to be a classroom setting.”
Breaux, who attended Campus Outreach events while he was a student, joined the staff after discovering his passion for the ministry and goals they share.
Campus Outreach strives to involve as many students as possible, according to its mission statement. Everybody is welcome regardless of faith, and all are encouraged to invite others. Mass Communication freshman Monica Growden has made friends through the ministry and attends as many events as possible.
“I really like how friendly and nice everyone is,” Growden said. “I also really enjoy the thought-provoking messages that the speakers give every week.”
Campus Outreach is a national organization with ministries in major cities across the world. The ministry at LSU is part of Campus Outreach Memphis. The Memphis ministries will unite at New Year’s Conference in Chattanooga from Dec. 27-31, where almost 2,000 students participate in sports tournaments, live concerts, and other events to help them grow spiritually.