Living out the Gospel in Oxford: A Conversation with Travis
Episode 19 | 12 Minutes | May 2, 2025
In this episode, Brenna Carson sits down with Travis Sweeney, a college student from Northwestern College, to talk about his recent spring break service trip to Oxford, UK. Travis shares how serving at The Jungle, a community center and art space, opened his eyes to a new way of doing ministry—one rooted in relationships, creativity, and quiet transformation. From art classes to men's prayer, hear how God moved through everyday moments and how Travis is carrying those lessons into his life back on campus.
In this Episode:
Travis shares about his experience serving at The Jungle, a community center and art gallery in Oxford, UK, focused on relational ministry.
The team engaged in a variety of community activities, including art classes, children’s story time, men’s prayer, and community surveys.
Travis reflects on the holistic, action-based approach to ministry, and how showing Christ's love through service made a lasting impact.
Powerful stories of transformation, including individuals in the community experiencing life change through Jesus, deeply influenced Travis’s faith.
Travis talks about how the trip is shaping his leadership as an RA, and his growing interest in possibly returning to serve with One Collective.
-
Travis Sweeney is a student at Northwestern College in Orange City, Iowa, where he studies ecology and plays on the men’s soccer team. Passionate about nature and community, Travis is exploring career paths in wildlife biology or botany. He recently participated in a spring break service partnership trip to Oxford, UK, where he served at The Jungle, a local community center and art gallery. Through that experience, he discovered a deeper understanding of relational ministry and the transformative power of showing Christ’s love through action. Travis is stepping into a leadership role as a resident assistant (RA) on campus and is considering future opportunities to serve with One Collective.
-
Brenna Carson: Hi Travis, how's it going?
Travis Sweeney: Good! How are you?
Brenna Carson: Good, thanks for being here today. I'm excited to hear more.
Travis Sweeney: Of course.
Brenna Carson: Yeah—what you have to share about your recent short-term team experience with us. Could you start off by introducing yourself a little bit?
Travis Sweeney: Yeah, so I’m Travis Sweeney. I go to Northwestern College in Orange City, Iowa. It’s a small Christian school. I'm studying ecology right now—looking to maybe be a wildlife biologist or botanist in the future. I play soccer here as well, and that’s about it.
Brenna Carson: Nice. And over spring break, you went to the UK with us, right?
Travis Sweeney: Yes.
Brenna Carson: Tell us a little more about what you did. Were you a part of specific projects or doing different things each day?
Travis Sweeney: Yeah, we were with The Jungle, which is your partnership with Phil and Lola. It’s a community center and art gallery with Micah, who handles the art. They host multiple events throughout the week—like story time for parents and kids, "Time for Tea" for older adults, and men’s prayer on Friday mornings.
Art Gym was another activity, where people gathered to create art while Micah guided them through exercises. While we were there, we also helped conduct a community survey for people attending those activities, just to learn how The Jungle has impacted them and how it could better serve the community.
It’s located in a shopping center, which is a great spot to bring together people from all walks of life. Really cool to see that in action.
Brenna Carson: So that art element at The Jungle—do you do a lot of art as an ecology major?
Travis Sweeney: No, I don’t. I’m not very good at it at all. I like to doodle sometimes, but that’s about it.
Brenna Carson: Maybe sketch plants or something?
Travis Sweeney: Yeah, I did a few leaf sketches!
Brenna Carson: Still art—landscape vibes! How did you end up going on the trip? Have you gone on other spring break trips before, or was this a new thing for you?
Travis Sweeney: Yeah, so at Northwestern we have Spring Service Partnerships. Every spring break, they send teams to various places. Last year I went to New Mexico to work with a church.
This year, I saw the UK trip and felt called to it. A few people talked to me about it since it was a new option, and I don’t think Northwestern had partnered with One Collective before. I’d also been to England the previous summer and really loved it, so I thought it’d be cool to go back. I definitely don’t regret it—it was amazing.
Brenna Carson: How did the service partnership trip compare to your personal trip to England?
Travis Sweeney: It was definitely different. When I went with two friends last summer, we stayed with someone we knew in London and had more freedom to do whatever.
But in Oxford, every day was spent at The Jungle, and then we'd go out in the evenings with volunteers or with Phil, Lola, or Micah. It was a different pace, but both trips were really good in their own way.
Brenna Carson: Yeah, both are cross-cultural experiences, even if they’re different.
Travis Sweeney: Definitely. And with this Oxford trip, it was a lot more clear to see Jesus working and transforming lives at The Jungle. That wasn’t something I experienced in the same way during my personal trip. It was really cool to witness people choosing to be there and being changed by Jesus.
Brenna Carson: That’s such a powerful part of these service trips—getting to see where God is already at work and stepping into that.
Can you share a moment or story from the week that really stuck with you, something that helped you see God in a fresh way?
Travis Sweeney: Yeah, absolutely. One thing that stood out was seeing how The Jungle does ministry. It’s part of One Collective’s holistic approach, which isn’t overtly “Christian” on the surface, so it draws in people who might not walk into a traditional church setting.
They just show the love of Jesus through their actions, and people become curious. That curiosity opens doors to transformation.
Men’s prayer was another highlight—we had 26 guys that morning, and Phil said it was the most they’d ever had. That was special.
Also, seeing how God changed the lives of some of the volunteers—one guy in particular used to be the biggest drug dealer in Oxford. He hit rock bottom, found Jesus, got baptized four months ago, and is now living a completely different life. That kind of transformation doesn’t come from anything else in the world besides Jesus. It was eye-opening.
Brenna Carson: Amen to that. Thanks for sharing that story.
Travis Sweeney: Yeah.
Brenna Carson: So fast forward—now that you’re back and looking toward the end of the school year, what do you feel like you're carrying with you from this trip? Whether in a big way or something smaller?
Travis Sweeney: I think, like I said earlier, just the way The Jungle and One Collective do ministry—leading with love and letting your actions speak for your faith. That really impacted me.
Next year, I’ll be an RA, and I think it’ll be a great opportunity to live that out—serving people, welcoming them no matter what they’re going through, and letting Jesus show His love through me. This trip had a big impact, and I’m even thinking about working with One Collective again or going back to Oxford. Before the trip, I didn’t even know anything about One Collective.
Brenna Carson: That’s so exciting! We’d love to explore what that might look like. It’s clear God is doing something in your life right now. That kind of intentional love and presence you’re describing is going to make such a difference in your RA role.
Travis Sweeney: Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Brenna Carson: When you were preparing for this trip—or even your previous ones—was there anything you did that helped get you in the right mindset or spiritual headspace? Something you’d recommend to someone considering a short-term opportunity like this?
Travis Sweeney: Definitely a lot of prayer. Also, meeting regularly with the group going on the trip helped. We worked on sharing our testimonies and thinking through what Jesus has done in our lives so we’d be ready to share that if the opportunity came up.
I don’t think you ever feel totally “ready,” but once you’re there, you feel present, and God meets you where you are. The week flies by and feels like you’ve been there much longer—in a good way. It’s just a really meaningful experience.