Students and Religious Participation

There was a very interesting article in the Daily Texan (of all places!) about college students and religion. Apparently college students are more likely to be religious than less educated members of their own age group.

This comes as a surprise to many people, because it has long been assumed that college itself creates an hostile environment toward religion. Instead, it seems that the independence and lack of structure during the young adult years is more to blame for the decrease in religious participation among the post-high school crowd. The researchers speculate that the increased structure provided by a university setting contributes to the greater spiritual interest amongst students when compared with their non-student peers.

I tend to think that college students are more religious because college is a time in which people are open to new ideas, new friends, and new ways of looking at the world. Many of them grew up in marginally religious or non-religious homes, and for the first time they have the chance to embrace their faith apart from parental interference or pressure. Parachurch organizations and campus churches are able to capitalize on this openness.

This is good news for those of us ministering to college students. The fields are indeed white for the harvest...now we just need to pray for workers!

Impressive or Effective?

When I first began my ministry, I was strongly tempted to judge success based on the number of students who showed up to hear me speak on Sunday morning. To tell the truth, I still struggle in that area from time to time, but my desire to impress and wow the large crowds has faded a bit. Allow me to explain.

One book that has deeply shaped my thinking about ministry is called The Master Plan of Evangelism by Robert Coleman. His book essentially describes Jesus' techniques to infiltrate the world with His message. How did Jesus ensure that when He was gone, the world would hear of His death and resurrection?

He certainly spent time in front of large crowds, often teaching for thousands of people at a time. But large-group evangelism was not his primary strategy.

Instead, he spent the majority of his time building into twelve diverse and often frustratingly obtuse young men. He especially narrowed in on three of them: Peter, James and John.

Instead of expecting five thousand people to effectively carry his message around the world, he relied on a small group with whom he shared His life, His theology, and His deepest teaching.

Jesus understood a valuable principle: A large crowd, while it serves a purpose in the teaching process, is not the most effective means of passing on a legacy. The most effective means is life-on-life, eye-to-eye, heart-to-heart with a few close disciples.

Consequently, the biggest slices of my time are now spent with a key group of interns and student leaders. I love teaching for large crowds, but I realize that the greatest legacy I can hope to leave is a few young men and women who are well-equipped to share the Gospel and to reproduce disciples.

Consider those who truly shaped who you are today. Were they those who believed in you and invested personally in your life, or those whom you only observed from a distance? For most of us, I suspect it is the latter.

Counseling

Yesterday I saw a hilarious Bob Newhart video on a blog I subscribe to. It has very little to do with college ministry, except to say that I am sometimes tempted to counsel students with the same advice and attitude. By the Lord's kindness, I've resisted that temptation thus far.

I hope you enjoy it.

Dad vs. Homer (Simpson)

Apparently today's college students generally feel that their fathers are worse than Homer Simpson, according to a recent study. When I first saw this, I thought it had to be a joke. How could the average American father be worse than the irresponsible, perpetually lazy, drunk, outright stupid patriarch of the Simpsons?

When I finished the article and processed it, I understood the issue at hand. At least Homer is there. He might be mean and stupid and drunk and immature, but he is actually around and takes an interest in the lives of his children.

Pretty sad, huh?

A few weeks ago in a sermon I made reference to students who get good advice from their moms. My parents were present, and my dad (who is a great advice-giver) later asked why I did not mention fathers at all as a source of wisdom.

I told him the reason: Many, if not most, of the students in my ministry had absent or distant fathers. It would never occur to them to ask their dad for advice, because he simply was not around. This absence on the part of fathers creates all manner of relational problems in young adults.

As a result, students are looking for a man to model fatherhood for them in some way. Hopefully they can find a real-life, godly man to admire; otherwise, they end up gravitating toward good old Homer.

One of the most humbling and scary parts of college ministry is the degree to which students (especially the engaged ones) seek my advice on how to be a good husband and father. I have even had one or two tell me that they are looking to me as a model. That's not because I'm the perfect father; it's because of the dearth of alternatives in their lives.

If you are a man ministering to college students -- especially if you have children -- rest assured, you are being watched. If that thought doesn't motivate you to prayer, I'm not sure what will.

New Life

As I write, roughly thirty college students involved in our ministry are overseas on short-term mission trips. They are on six-week trips, some in East Asia and some in North Africa.

Yesterday I got an exciting report that one girl in North Africa trusted Christ for eternal life. This is particularly encouraging because our team is ministering in a Muslim country that is very resistant to the Gospel. At present, there are fewer than five hundred Christians in the country of more than ten million people. So we were naturally thrilled to hear the news of a new sister in Christ.

Today my wife Shannon and I went to the doctor and saw an ultrasound of our expected baby, due this coming January. Watching the tiny heartbeat and seeing this little one instilled a profound sense of awe.

The juxtaposition of these events in my life reminded me of the scene in John 3, in which Jesus tells Nicodemus that he must be "born again" to enter the kingdom of heaven. That phrase is so commonly used in evangelical circles that we often forget how it utterly confused Nicodemus. How could a person be born again?

Jesus explained, in essence, that a human child is born of the flesh, but a believer is born of Spirit. Two births are necessary for true life.

One birth from the mother's womb, in which the child is knit together by God (Psalm 139).

One birth by the Spirit of God alone, in which the believer is made new.

Praise the Lord of new life for graciously giving us both.

And Lord, please lead my two little ones to receive your second birth, one not of flesh but of Spirit alone.

Evangelism Strategies

I had a great conversation today with the college ministry staff on the topic of evangelism.

If you are not in vocational ministry, you may not be aware that over the past few years a debate has slowly emerged regarding the most effective strategies for sharing the Gospel. This is an especially relevant topic when dealing with university students.

The major question being asked is whether "confrontational" evangelism is as effective in drawing people to Christ as it was in the middle part of the twentieth century. For those unfamiliar with the terminology, the most well-known confrontational strategies are knocking on random doors or approaching random students on campus with a tract or a Bible.

Some writers in the past ten or fifteen years have argued that our country is currently in a "sowing" phase rather than a "reaping" phase (to borrow the language of Tim Downs, the author of Finding Common Ground). They suggest that evangelism in the twenty-first century requires more relational approaches, in which we Christians spend weeks, months, or years developing friendships prior to sharing the message of the Gospel. The best research indicates that most people trust Christ through friends and family members.

While I tend to agree that our increasingly post-Christian society is looking for true community and relationship, I cannot help but wonder if the pendulum is swinging too far in this direction. In other words, many believers have the "relationship" thing down, but forget about the "evangelism" part. Friendships are usually the necessary context for evangelism, but at some point we need to open our mouths and speak. Confrontational evangelism can provide a chance to "practice" sharing the Gospel, so that when opportunities arise with friends and family, we are prepared to accurately share Jesus.

After discussion, our staff has begun to settle on a combined approach to evangelism. We will continue encouraging students to practice confrontational evangelism on campus, but we will also provide training and opportunities for evangelism in the context of relationships.

A book I can recommend on this topic is The Seven Principles of an Evangelistic Life by Doug Cecil. He similarly encourages pursuing a balanced course.

I am curious to hear any thoughts you may have regarding the topic. What do you think are some effective ways to share the Gospel in our current cultural environment?

Talking About Relationships

Beginning this week, Shannon and I are leading an engaged couple through their required premarital counseling.

One of the most rewarding and challenging parts of college ministry is preparing young men and women to have godly marriages. It is also quite a humbling task, because I never quite feel qualified to give advice on the topic. Shannon and I have a good marriage, but for some reason exhorting a young man to love his wife (or future wife) "as Christ loves the Church" makes me feel just a tad out of my league. Sort of like a junior college basketball player telling a high school kid how to play like Michael Jordan. His heart may be in the right place, but...well, you get the point.

Nonetheless, those of us who work with college students have a responsibility to teach them about dating, sex, and marriage.

Yes, the topic has often been beaten to death by popular Christian writers, as if there were no other spiritual topics worthy of a publisher's time. Yes, some students have heard dozens of "dating talks" and are tired of them. Yes, teaching on the subject can make the university pastor feel a bit cheap, as if he is merely trying to expand his audience by giving them what they want to hear (dating talks invariably draw large crowds).

And of course, feelings of inadequacy go with the territory.

But the truth is that a bad dating relationship or marriage will derail a person's spiritual life. In my ministry, sexual immorality and poor relationships probably distract more students from the Lord than anything else.

So despite the problems inherent to the topic, I do my best to provide students a biblical framework for relational health. The world is working overtime to teach its views on dating and sexuality; why should the church remain silent?

Selling Tickets

When it comes to college students, expect creativity and ingenuity.

It seems that Harvard University had a bit of a problem this year with students selling tickets to the free commencement ceremonies:

www.cnn.com/2007/EDUCATION/06/07/harvard.scalping.ap/index.html

Although I do not condone the scalping of tickets, it is an interesting story. Let's recap:

1. Ivy League college graduates from the top business school in the country
2. High-Profile Commencement Speakers
3. Too Many People and Not Enough Tickets

Sounds like a situation ripe for entrepeneurship. One has to wonder: What exactly did the administration expect?

Leadership Development

I just returned from visiting our weekly student Bible studies. This summer one of our college interns is providing leadership for them. Our interns are recent college graduates, ranging in age from twenty-two to twenty-five. This particular young man has been on staff for the past two years.

Each week, after the students meet in their small groups, they all gather together in a large group to get any remaining questions answered. The intern mentioned above is the emcee each week for this large-group meeting. He answers theological and biblical questions, teaches from the text, and suggests appropriate applications for each week's study.

I could not have been more impressed with his leadership tonight.

He was clear and articulate. He was confident and well-spoken, but also humble. He was accurate to the text. And he was worshipful and God-honoring.

One of the temptations of college ministry is to do all of the "real ministry" by myself and leave the gruntwork for the interns and other staff. After all, I have the seminary degree. I have the experience. I have the pastoral position.

The advantage of that approach is that I would never have to leave crucial tasks in the hands of those who might mess them up badly. It is possible, even likely, that they will stumble over words, say something inaccurate, lose control of the group, or simply bore everybody. Of course, I could do any of those as well, but at least I could be in control.

The disadvantage of doing everything myself is that I would miss moments like tonight. Moments in which the Spirit of God works in the life of an extraordinary young man to impact the lives of college students. Moments in which a young leader has the opportunity to use his spiritual gifts and develop in confidence. Moments in which I realize that over the course of two years he has developed into an incredibly gifted teacher and leader.

And he's just one of our ten interns...

Now what were the advantages of doing it myself again?

Happy Birthday, Pastor!

Last Sunday was my birthday. As a surprise, the college ministry worship leader sang "Happy Birthday" to me in front of our students. He also asked me to ride around on a mop (which I declined) and to put a green flashing "birthday light" on my head (which I did).

The strangest moment, though, happened after the service as I was headed out to my car. A student in the foyer, whom I had never met, greeted me loudly by saying, "MATT! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" He then proceeded to embrace me closely, as if I were a dear relative or old friend. Note at this point that he had still not given me his name.

I managed to say, "Thank you." But then the really weird part...he encouraged me to bend at the waist so that he could give me my "birthday spanking." I declined, of course, but he still made a motion as if he were going to slap my posterior. I nervously chuckled and said an awkward goodbye.

Apparently, after I left, he looked at one of our college interns and said, "Did I really just tell the pastor to bend over for a spanking?" Reality sets in...remorse begins to take hold.

The real irony here: My talk that morning was called, "The Beginning of Wisdom: The Book of Proverbs." I encouraged using good sense in making decisions rather than making them impulsively.

The impulsiveness he demonstrated can create some of the most amusing, exciting, as well as troublesome moments in college ministry. Each year several students in our ministry "impulsively" decide to spend six weeks overseas sharing the Gospel.

But others buy cars with money they don't have, or make poor sexual decisions in the heat of the moment. Or, of course, offer to give a pastor birthday spankings.

I feel like one of our goals in college ministry is to provide to students a sense of balance and wisdom. To help create at least a small moment in their brains for evaluation, planning, and thought. That desire is part of what motivated me to teach from the book of Proverbs this Summer.

At any rate, thanks for the birthday wish, even if it was a bit unusual.

Does Holiness Matter?

I noticed an interesting news story yesterday regarding college students and marijuana use. See this link:

www.redorbit.com/news/health/955445/marijuana_is_a_popular_part_of_student_life_college_students/index.html?source=r_health

One quote in particular stood out to me: "Other friends prefer to go out and drink a coffee or juice," Gabriel said, "and I'd rather stay at home and smoke a doobie." I find his statement simultaneously amusing and saddening.

The university where I serve is rather conservative socially, so I am not certain if the statistics in the article hold true here or not. I occasionally encounter students struggling with illegal drugs, but it seems that alcohol is the drug of choice amongst our student population.

I have, however, witnessed the same cavalier attitude amongst Christian college students toward the issue of alcohol abuse. In particular, underage drinking and excessive drinking do not seem to be quite as taboo for churched students as they were when I was college during the 90s. There were certainly Christian students who abused alcohol, but their sense of shame was stronger; it was more of a social no-no, so to speak.

I am a big proponent of the doctrine of grace. I believe it, teach it, and try to model it. I strongly believe that we are justified by the grace of God alone, apart from works. I cringe when I hear preachers adding works to the Gospel or implying that a person cannot be a Christian and struggle with sin at the same time. I also cringe when external factors (drinking, smoking, dancing) are consistently used as the primary measuring stick for spirituality.

That having been said, I wonder if the evangelical church has done a poor job in the past half-century of encouraging believers that holiness is worthwhile (perhaps out of a fear of being legalistic). This issue of substance abuse is a case in point. When students are blatantly violating Romans 13 and Ephesians 5 with no apparent sense of remorse, something has gone wrong.

I think what has gone wrong is that they do not understand that holiness goes hand-in-hand with fulfilling our purpose in life. We cannot effectively glorify God by reflecting His character if we willfully disobey Him. What do we stand to lose? A purposeful and eternally significant life. The praise of our Savior at the judgment seat of Christ (Mt 25:23). Eternal reward (2 Tim 4:7-8).

If those who minister to these students do not spur them toward holiness, I fear nobody else around them will. So how well are we fulfilling our task, to raise up disciples for the next generation?

The Powerful Percent

One the best books about college ministry is The Powerful Percent by Patricia Burgin. If college students are a part of your life in any way, you need to read this book. (It is unfortunately out of print, so you will have to find a used copy online).

The title refers to the roughly one percent of the world's population who are college students. Burgin details the impact this "powerful percent" has had throughout history. College students have been responsible for many of the major cultural, scientific, political, and societal changes of the world. Her thesis (and I agree) is that when college students are captivated by the Gospel, God uses them to change the world.

Here is a great quote:
"There has always been something extraordinary about students. Throughout history they have been on the frontlines of revolutionary change. Their energy and idealism have fueled the gospel's advance through every generation. And just as university-aged people have carved deep marks of influence through the past 2000 years, students today are on the verge of leaving their mark on the final years of this millennium. Their work, too, will be felt for all eternity."

Students have the time, energy, and idealism to make a difference. They still believe that the world can truly change, and they are right! I cannot think of a better way to spend my life than convincing these young men and women to give their lives to the kingdom of God.

Welcome!

Well, it seems that everybody in my life has lately taken to blogging. I held off for quite some time, because I was uncertain what I could possibly add to the flood of blogs.

It occurred to me, though, that there are few (if any) blogs dedicated to the subject of college student ministry. I am a college pastor at a Bible church near a major state university. We are blessed with a large and healthy college ministry which I feel privileged to lead. Every so often I will post thoughts or experiences or articles that are relevant to university ministry.

I look forward to hearing from you also! Let me know if there are any relevant topics you would like to discuss, and I can do my best to include them.