North Central University
Aaron Smith
Extreme sports, extreme ministry

Aaron Smith gets good grades; played four years of varsity soccer; served as a discipleship leader, resident advisor and as a student government official; and he has spent the past two summers raising funds for missions projects.

“North Central is really good about making opportunities available for students. There are many opportunities to learn, lead and grow spiritually,” Smith, a 23-year-old senior, says of the college in Minneapolis, Minn.

Such opportunities refined Smith’s leadership skills to the point where he was ready to strike out on his own two summers ago. With two NCU classmates, Smith bicycled across the United States — the journey would affirm his commitment to ministry and help raise funds for Speed the Light.

“We wanted to help missionaries and demonstrate to youth that God is bigger than this world and desires to be a part of their lives.”

The trek across the United States raised more than $15,000 for STL and birthed an idea to bike across Europe. This past summer, Smith and four other NCU students biked through several European countries in an effort to raise $25,000 for Cry Africa, a project devoted to battling the AIDS epidemic in Africa and spreading the gospel.

“We want to inspire people to do something similar,” says Smith. “People need to dream and know that with God dreams can come true.”

When he finishes college, Smith would like to start an adventure discipleship program, where people would learn about Christ through extreme outdoor missions trips. Smith would also like to put his journalism degree to work by writing about his adventures and the physical condition of the world.

“I hope the missions trips and my writings would elicit a response from people and help them understand the value of helping others,” he says. “Maybe through those avenues people would come to know Christ as their Savior too.”

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