Bring Your Best Friends

Hi! I’m Chloe, a junior at Cal studying Public Health and Data Science. 

I’m the one in the Cal sweatshirt below!

Last month, Klesis hosted Bring Your Best Friends (BYBF) Night: an evening of stories, trivia, music, and laughs… held entirely online!

Emcees Joy and Merryle kicked off the night with some trivia questions where we learned some interesting facts about friendship and relationships. “How long do psychologists say a friendship must last in order for it to last a lifetime?” Answer: 7 years. Wow! That’s a long time and quite rare nowadays. Another surprising stat is that we’re entering the decade in which we’re most likely to meet our best friends!

Beyond these questions, we also had the opportunity to learn about some UC Berkeley students’ life-changing stories of faith. Abby, Issac, and Charles (seniors), Sarah and Chloe (juniors), and Christy (sophomore) shared stories about how they personally came to know God and grew into a stronger understanding of their faith in college. These students spent a week writing, editing, and revising! After final edits, they did several run-throughs before sharing their stories for the evening. 

Throughout the week, we prayed for BYBF night – that people we invited would come and relate with these stories. And, that our friends would see that Christian life is more than just attending church on Sundays – it’s about a personal relationship that changes everything. Friends we invited (some from waayy back!) came to hear our stories and learn more about us! These stories centered around topics of “Finding Truth,” “Rediscovering Ambition,” “A New Outlook on Church,” and more. Each story was moving and encouraging, presented so authentically. It reminds us that behind the seemingly put-together, hard working student is someone with a story worth telling. The story might be surprising, yet very relatable.

Through BYBF Night, we learned that despite each person’s different struggles in life (with ambition, identity, hypocrisy within church, etc.), ultimately we all arrive at the same conclusion: Life must have greater meaning, rooted in love and lasting purpose. We ended with an epic music video: a cover of Hillsong Young & Free’s Best Friends. The lyrics, at least for me, hit home. Indeed, in a world that is so broken, “So much is missing.” Deep inside, “we want the truth… the real thing.” 

Featuring a few of our stories, BYBF Night gave us a glimpse of how we stumbled upon a greater truth in college. That is what we’re about at Klesis: seeking answers to the larger questions of life, doing it together, and building each other up in community. 

Klesis is a Greek word that means “divine invitation.” College is full of invitations, but this is a special one. During my freshman year, I accepted this invitation. Over the past couple of years, I’ve met so many people who have openly shared their stories with me. Each time, I’m drawn closer to reality and authenticity and love – truth about myself, people, and the world. I wanted to hear more. Whether you are looking for a church, want to hear more of our stories, or searching for a genuine community to build lasting friendships, we invite you to join us.