Campus Crusade for Christ was founded by Bill and Vonette Bright at UCLA in 1951. One year later, Bill Bright wrote The Four Spiritual Laws – likely the most widely distributed religious booklet in history, with approximately 2.5 billion printed to date.
By 1960, Campus Crusade was established on 40 campuses in the United States and in two other countries. During the 1960’s the ministry began conducting international Christmas conferences and summer mission projects.
In 1983, a major event called KC’83 was held in Kansas City that drew 17,000 college students. Almost a decade later, in 1991, Campus Crusade relocated its headquarters from California to Orlando , FL.
US News & World Report rated Campus Crusade as the top religious charity in the United States in 1995. Money magazine ranked the ministry as the most “efficient” religious ministry in the U.S. in 1996.
By the year 2000, Campus Crusade for Christ International , the parent organization for the college ministry, had more than 24,000 full time staff members, and more than 500,000 trained volunteers serving in 191 countries. Founder Bill Bright passed the leadership torch to new president Steve Douglass, formerly executive vice president and director of U.S. Ministries in 2001.
Our Mission and Goals:
The college campus provides a pool of worldviews that leave many students actively searching for some absolute truth. This generation was raised in a society where situational ethics and relative morality have softened the spiritual foundation that was secure for past generations. Today’s students are eagerly seeking genuine spiritual truth. Once they embrace a faith in Christ, they are burdened to share that hope with others in creative and relevant ways.
The mission of Campus Crusade for Christ is to turn lost students into Christ centered laborers. Our spiritual mandate is found in Matthew 28:18-20.
Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Lost college students
We believe that a relationship with God through Jesus Christ provides the hope and purpose in life that people are seeking. College students often find themselves in an environment that is tearing away at their moral and spiritual stability. They can feel trapped by the pressures of academic life and the deep need to be accepted by their peers. All of this can add up to a college career filled with anxiety, superficial relationships and fear of the future.
Jesus offers today’s students something different. In the Bible, Jesus says, “I came that they might have life, and might have it abundantly.” (John 10:10). When students begin a relationship with God, they find purpose and meaning, and they experience life the way that God intended.
Christ-centered laborers
Being a Christian is not about practicing a religion or fulfilling a duty. Being a Christian is about having a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ. Every person has a story. The gospel is really about our personal stories fitting into the larger story of God’s creation and purpose.
Being Christ-centered means allowing God to shape our lives around His eternal purpose. It means evaluating our life’s direction and decisions in light of God’s Word. Being a laborer refers to God’s call for our lives to have great significance and eternal impact. We can serve God in many ways, such as sharing the gospel with others, going on a short-term missions trip, or joining a ministry full-time to help reach others for Christ.
Our Goals
Imagine the changes the world would see if every one of the 110 million college students had an opportunity to hear and respond to the gospel every year. Our goal is to see as many students go from a place of unbelief to a place of belief in God. We want to see students embrace the purpose, love and forgiveness that God offers them in a relationship with Jesus Christ.
By 2010, we are working to…
- Increase evangelistic exposures to 25 million worldwide annually, trusting God for 350,000 evangelistic decisions annually.
- Equip 200,000 involved students each year to share their faith and disciple others on campus, in the community and around the world.
- Plant 3,770 new ministries where lost students are turned into Christ-centered laborers.
