From Uni Student to Campus Gospel Worker

“I’d never even heard of Bible college,” Jhenn Hall says with a laugh. But that didn’t stop her enrolling at Trinity Theological College just six months after returning from a string of cross-cultural missions trips. The path from science student to MDiv graduate wasn’t one she’d ever planned—but God had been laying the groundwork for years.

Growing up in the Philippines in a religious household, Jhenn had assumed that faith was about following rules and trying to be a good person. It wasn’t until she was a teenager that a family member shared the gospel with her, and she gave her life to Christ. Jhenn moved to Perth at the age of 17 where she went on to study science at the University of Western Australia, with the aim of starting a career in public health.

While she was at uni Jhenn got involved with Power to Change, a Christian ministry to university students. That turned out to be a significant step in her journey.

“I got to meet Christians on campus who were very passionate about their walk with God, but also about sharing their faith on campus,” Jhenn recalls. “I had a seed planted in me because I realised that I wasn’t just at uni to earn a degree, but I was there to reach the nations with the gospel.”

After uni, Jhenn joined a mission organisation and spent the next two and a half years involved in short-term cross-cultural missions trips. “I got to do all sorts of things, but then it dawned on me that while public health is very valuable, people don’t really have life to the full unless they know Jesus. I wanted to do something that could have an impact for someone’s eternity.”

When she returned home to Perth, Jhenn found herself asking, “What is this Bible college everyone keeps talking about?” Almost every mission organisation she contacted suggested theological study as a next step. A friend of a friend was studying at Trinity, and she spoke so highly of it that Jhenn decided to attend an information night.

Within six months of returning from missions, Jhenn enrolled in the Graduate Diploma of Divinity at Trinity in 2019. But it wasn’t long before she realised she wanted more. “It kind of whet my appetite,” Jhenn says. She ended up transferring into the Master of Divinity, graduating at the beginning of 2023. 

As it turns out, Jhenn’s is a full-circle story: she is now serving in the same ministry that helped her first consider ministry for herself. She’s ended up serving with Power to Change in university campus ministry. She says what really pushed her to consider it as an option was the realisation that her own life was the fruit of it. 

When asked what she loved most about her time at Trinity, Jhenn smiles and offers two words: “Friends and frames.”

The ‘friends’ were fellow students who loved Jesus deeply and were determined to shape their lives and ministry around the gospel. “Even having graduated, it’s such an encouragement to see them faithfully sharing the gospel, serving the body of Christ, depending on God,” she says. “It feels like you have allies. We’re doing this together. It’s like the Fellowship in Lord of the Rings—same mission, same goal, same purpose.”

The ‘frames’ came through the theological training that anchored everything in the gospel. “Trinity really instilled in me how you’ve got to keep the gospel central to everything,” she explains. 

Looking back, Jhenn can see how God grew her love for his Word and deepened her faith through her time at Trinity. “I feel more equipped to talk with people about theology and spirituality, to evaluate different perspectives and resources,” she says. “But more than that, I cherish the gospel more. I love the Lord more. The Spirit moves through that—studying the gospel again and again—it pierces your heart and spills into your life.”

Please pray for Jhenn to remain faithful as she seeks to serve Christ and reach young people at universities with his love.