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I’ve been talking about niche-based and complementary campus ministry for the last couple of days, largely because they were discussed a few times with the Ohio ministers who brought me up there last week.
After offering a sort of primer on the two paths yesterday, I wanted to offer the first of some random thoughts. There’s no real organization here; it’s simply a collection of some of the things I’ve noticed, wondered, or imagined for these two areas.
Gamers. One of the campus niches that seems like a really good example of a new, fairly well-defined niche is the Gamer Culture. I’ve heard of at least one ministry reaching out to that group, too.
Niches that seem obvious. Besides athletes, international students, and ethnic-specific ministries (which I mentioned yesterday and are fairly well established in our field), several others come to mind as strong candidates for niche-based ministry at many campuses. These include academic / honors students, apartment-dwellers, specific majors that have particularly stringent workloads (like Architecture), students drawn to or studying the arts, individuals from specific countries (rather than simply working with all internationals), and Christians considering going into ministry.
Niche ministries you should know. Though less well-known, it’s been fun for me to learn about Lifelines, a niche ministry of Cru focused largely on outdoors-lovers, and the Christian Medical and Dental Association, which is active on many campuses for those entering those fields.
Complementary options. While any strength (of a particular minister or an entire ministry) could eventually be used to complement other ministry work taking place in town, some opportunities seem more widespread than others. I wish we’d see more ministries helping with Leadership Training, campus-wide Service, Preparation for life after college, Missions Mobilization, and supporting the particularly academic students – just to name a few options!
Spin-off style. For both complementary and niche-based endeavors that start within a present, full-fledged college ministry, it’s always worth considering whether those efforts should eventually spin off into their own ministries. That’s not always the best plan, but it’s a valid – and sometimes better – option.
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I’ve certainly written about these before, but in light of yesterday’s post, I wanted to talk about two options that I think far too few college ministries consider. Further, while any present campus ministry can consider adding these to its repertoire, it’s even more important that any – and perhaps every – new ministry consider one of these roads instead of the standard path.
Niche-based college ministry
Why do most college ministries start by trying to reach throughout the campus? Many campuses clearly have “tribes within the tribe,” so it might often be more missional to aim specifically for one portion of campus. Further, this can make a lot of sense from a growth perspective – reaching critical mass within a smaller group is far easier than reaching critical mass from a pool of thousands.
Sadly, niche-based college ministry is rare… except in the situations where it’s so common we don’t even think about it. Think about it: ministry to athletes (a la FCA), ethnic-specific ministry, and international student ministry are three instances of “low-hanging fruit” in our world. Right?
So I think it’s vital for any college minister – from any organization or church – to consider if they’re perhaps not called to compete as directly with the present, full-fledged, classic ministries on that campus. Who are the unreached groups? Who’s underrepresented? Are there populations, geographies, or other niches that would be impacted better by your mix of skills, personality, and opportunities?
Complementary college ministry
Complementary ministry is like niche-based, in that its aims are more modest – while offering potentially more impact. In this form of ministry, an organization (or individual college minister) specializes in one form of ministry. So instead of trying to fully disciple students in all the ways they may need, instead this ministry complements what more “full-fledged” ministries do.
Leadership training, missions mobilization, apologetics training, vocational preparation, a city-wide Bible study (without any other structures, like small groups). These are just a few examples of what complementary college ministry can look like.
This one requires new thinking on both sides, of course: It takes a college minister recognize that they’re more impactful by specializing, but it also requires other college ministers recognizing that complementary ministries can play a role in impacting their students.
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For a few of the last several Mondays, I’ve been highlighting some of the thoughts from my free book, Reaching the Campus Tribes. It’s a chance to point out just how missiological the work of collegiate ministry is; the more we (and all American Christians) realize this is a missions endeavor, the better off we’ll be!
This week’s quote and discussion were suggested by my time in Ohio last week, where I got to consult with several college ministers and some potential church planters. The issue I discuss here came up often (just like the one I mentioned on Friday).
In many … college ministries, there is a strong bias toward ready-made programs that have been used elsewhere. While these successful templates might be a helpful place to start the planning process, students will only be best served when campus mission efforts are tailor-made for the tribes they are reaching. Contextualization is key. This doesn’t mean new ministries have to be untrue to their sponsoring organizations or fully “start from scratch” at each campus. But form should always serve function, not the other way around. Oftentimes that will require creative adjustments to the usual template.
Wise contextualization will also reveal that not every campus is right for every national ministry. Some parachurch and denominational organizations seem to assert a “manifest destiny” to place a ministry at every available college campus. However, I would urge all groups to consider planting ministries only where their work is truly needed. As with international missions, the cause of Christ must trump the cause of a single group. (Reaching the Campus Tribes, pages 103-104)
Not only campus-based groups reveal a “manifest destiny” mentality, either; I’ve come to realize that churches can do the same thing – both standard churches (especially ones with a large budget) and collegiate churches.
We simply don’t have a right to assume that just because we can plant a college ministry (or collegiate church), we should. Not every campus needs another ministry – especially if it’s yet another ministry of the same type, aiming for similar students.
As the week continues, I imagine I’ll discuss some of the implications – and amazing options – here. But first and foremost, we each have to deal humbly with the missiological wisdom of hesitation.
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You may know that I published an ebook, Reaching the Campus Tribes, back in 2009. I was humbled by how well it was received by college ministers (and others) from across the Christian spectrum. And I’m so excited that God continues to use it (including in training present and future college ministers, like at Beeson Divinity School). It’s still free, it’s still an easy read – and it still could revolutionize the way you understand, do, and tell others about Collegiate Ministry.
For a little while, I’m spending Mondays revisiting some of the points from the book, beginning with here and here and here.
In Chapter 4 of Reaching the Campus Tribes, I made my fundamental argument that collegiate ministry should be approached like foreign missions. This includes recognizing the vital need for contextualization, patience, realistic expectations, aggressive progress, and more.
We also need to pursue longevity, as I argue on pages 53 and 54. Here’s a portion of that reflection:
Another way college ministry parallels mission work is in the value of long‐lasting ministries. Our hope should be to build ministries that serve as powerful campus missions for decades to come.
College ministries often benefit from a lengthy tenure. For one thing, a campus ministry or church‐based group that is widely known as effective and established will receive positive word‐of‐mouth from students, campus staff, the community, alumni, and others who hear about its work (even from far away). Relationships grow deeper over time, too. Strategy and contextualization become more and more fine‐tuned. And even when a ministry isn’t the largest ministry on its campus each and every year, it may have an easier time staying “in the mix” as a staple in that campus tribe.
The net result of longevity is also a pretty powerful statistic. While other ministries may at times steal the spotlight, a consistent, long‐term college ministry can ultimately impact a much larger number of students. Plus, a long‐lasting mission effort not only gets to impact collegians, but eventually its influence can extend to faculty, administration, and other “locals” as the ministry becomes an integral part of the campus and even the city.
This seems like a great thing for us to ponder in April and May, doesn’t it? The truth is, whether your college ministry is reaching 10 a week or 1,000 a week, if it lasts long enough it could truly have an impact on 10,000 students or more. But are you establishing your college ministry so that it could do that?
Some questions for us:
- How sure are you that your college ministry will be far better in most areas in five years?
- What specific actions are you taking to help this happen?
- Have you made long-range (definitely beyond one year) plans to be a stronger ministry?
- If your ministry is more than five years old, is it having a significantly better impact now than it was two years ago? Is it run more effectively / efficiently? Have you begun to see your past long-range plans bear fruit?
- When’s the last time you planned – specifically – for ministry strength beyond the next school year?
- Are you at the point where you (or someone) can spend ample time thinking about “new initiatives” and “taking more ground” in your ministry? What would it take to have that time each month?
- If God suddenly calls you to a new job elsewhere this summer, will your campus ministry outlive you? Would it thrive in the years to come?
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After all my travels and explorations and conversations, one of the clearest conclusions is that we don’t have nearly enough college ministries that have been built – from the ground up – with their particular campus in mind.
Many, many of us are good at slapping some coats of Contextualization on our already-built ministries, ministries composed of bricks from various sources. If we spend time loving one campus long enough, we might occasionally do some minor renovations that involve Contextualization more heavily, adding a wing or modifying a previously incongruous room to match better the campus we love.
But there’s not a lot of evidence of campus ministries designed with their own campus in mind more than any other influence. This sort of ministry would be composed of local bricks, nearly every decision affected by the campus tribe in which it finds itself. These college ministries are inherently contextual rather than simply growing to fit (somewhat) the field they’re in over time.
Of course, a large number of college ministries are still doing amazing work on their campuses. The lack of ground-up contextualization hasn’t kept them from bearing exciting, enormous fruit. But what more might we accomplish?
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Sometimes it’s just helpful to have a pile of ideas or resources to think about in regards to college ministry – especially as we enter the summer and start thinking (or continue thinking) about next school year. (Meanwhile, some of us – including many church-based college ministers – are jumping right into their “second college ministry” with summertime students.)
This small pile of ideas, links, and thoughts comes directly from my amazing time with the BASIC College Ministries leaders at their Propel conference this week. I wanted to give everybody those same things, as well as provide an outline of my talk – which obviously provides a whole “pile of ideas” itself!
So here you go. Hope it’s helpful.
- Simple Church. I brought up this great book several times to help college ministers think through the “path of progress” they’re providing for / expecting of their students. Though it’s written about churches, it’s easily “translatable” – and profoundly helpful for us.
- The Books of Daniel and I Peter (and probably Esther, too). These all came up in the context of how campus ministries live “under captivity” (or something like that). How do we work, serve, witness, and thrive within a campus tribe that may be not only indifferent to our message but even concerned about our methods? These books of the Bible answer this question differently than popular Christianity and even some college ministries do.
- The Dip. This came up a couple of times, especially in the context of newly forming college ministries. Are you prepared to do what it takes to establish a long-lasting and long-effective campus mission? And have you considered all the options for the scope of your ministry – including not aiming for a traditional, full-fledged college ministry? This secular (and very short) business book will help you answer those questions.
- CruPress and NavPress both came up multiple times as great places to look for tips on leading small groups (especially the former) and curriculum for small groups (especially the latter).
- Veritas Forum came up multiple times as a great example of an outside group that can be awesome for multiple ministries on a campus to rally around (and thereby unify around). I also discussed Veritas as really helpful for providing Christian forums that can still appeal to a fully secular campus.
- I actually failed (I think) to give most of the group the address for my (free!) ebook. You can find that at www.reachingthecampustribes.com.
Here’s the outline of my two seminars from the weekend. Remember, I was speaking to leaders from multiple church-based college ministries, so these seminars tilt that way. But there’s lots in there that would apply to most of us.
SEMINAR ONE: WHO WE ARE
We Are College Ministers
- we have an awesome and noble calling
- we must be learners (whether our personality tilts that way or not)
- we are missionaries to a specific tribe
We Are Missionaries
- this is difficult
- long-term and short-term strategy is vital
- we should be building toward longevity
- contextualization is fundamental
We Are Part of the Campus Tribe
- we should respect the land we’re called to
- we should love the land we’re called to
- we should connect with life there
- we should connect with and join in with what God’s already been doing there
We Are Sent By a Church
- there are some advantages to being church-based; use them!
- we should share our story and our specific role with our church; help them understand and support us!
- we should help our church own the vision and work toward a long-lasting, fruitful campus mission
- we should consider how we’re shepherding home-grown students – perhaps even first
SEMINAR TWO: (NEW?) IDEAS WORTH PONDERING
- Purpose-based Methods (every time)
- Preparing students for an excellent Transition Out (to the “real world”)
- Don’t be afraid to love your campus
- Don’t be afraid to take a step back and make sure you’re building the best possible College Student Plan
- Don’t be afraid to invent
- Be excited about what you can do
- Learn more about the Millennials (since they’re our mission field right now)
- Don’t be too student-centered (they need adult direction and wisdom)
- Prioritize teaching students to be “great in the basics”
- Get great in the basic skills of college ministry
- What you’re doing – campus ministry – is so very worth it
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Early in the week, I jumped off of Jeff Goldblum’s quote from Jurassic Park:
“[Y]our scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, that they didn’t stop to think if they should.”
If you didn’t get to read that post, I encourage you to – or if you didn’t see the comments, there were some really thoughtful ones. It’s important that College Ministry (as a field) and college ministries (as individual entities) be known for proceeding with wisdom.
Right now, I don’t know how well that characterizes us (as a whole).
As an addendum, here’s the more complete offering from Dr. Ian Malcolm at that scene in Jurassic Park. It doesn’t all fit the metaphor exactly… and he’s being a bit heavy-handed… but I found it edifying still. While he stands in awe of the “force of nature,” we might argue that college ministry is likewise a force – which is the argument we all make to supporters and outsiders, right? If it’s a force, then there’s a lot of responsibility here, because what’s positive can also turn negative. Wielding our opportunity unwisely can actually be damaging to the “ecosystems” of campuses and the students that inhabit them.
Here’s the quote:
Gee, the lack of humility before nature that’s being displayed here staggers me. … Don’t you see the danger, John, inherent in what you’re doing here? Genetic power is the most awesome force the planet’s ever seen, but you wield it like a kid that’s found his dad’s gun. …
If I may, I’ll tell you the problem with the scientific power that you’re using here: It didn’t require any discipline to attain it. You know, you read what others had done, and you took the next step. You didn’t earn the knowledge for yourselves, so you don’t take any responsibility for it. You stood on the shoulders of geniuses to accomplish something as fast as you could, and before you even knew what you had, you patented it and packaged it and slapped it on a plastic lunchbox, and now you’re selling it. You want to sell it. Well…
John Hammond, the Park Director, breaks in at this point: “I don’t think you’re giving us our due credit. Our scientists have done things which nobody has ever done before.”
Yeah, but your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, that they didn’t stop to think if they should.
Later, Malcolm adds,
What’s so great about discovery? It’s a violent, penetrative act that scars what it explores. What you call ‘discovery,’ I call the rape of the natural world.
May we all be slow and wise as we approach the campus tribes. What we do is powerful, for good or for bad. Let us aim to stand on the shoulders of those who have gone before us (and those who are wise in the present world of college ministry, too).
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As I chat with college ministers and others who are trying to connect with college campuses, the omnipresent assumption seems to be that starting new college ministries is always beneficial.
National ministries want to be on more campuses, local churches want to be on that campus nearby, and present college ministries want to reach additional segments of campus, too, all while various individuals who feel called to college ministries determine – through some means or another – a campus on which to start a brand-new college ministry. Meanwhile, even outside ministries from time to time decide to establish a new collegiate program, develop some sort of collegiate material, or otherwise join the party on campus.
Is there a new college ministry of some sort on your campus this year? Chances are pretty strong that there is – whether you’ve noticed it or not, whether it’s “staffed” or student-directed.
i’m not grumpy
The tone of the paragraphs above may sound a bit more negative than my usual notes, even if they don’t outright suggest that starting new college ministries is a bad thing. I would never suggest that, in fact; I’m hopeful that many more individual college ministries (and other efforts to impact collegians) will start in the next decade. But as I’ve had the chance to view our field of ministry quite broadly, I’ve come to recognize…
...starting new college ministries should be done thoughtfully, methodically… even hesitantly.
If college campuses are truly like tribes of people (and I obviously believe they are), then there is such a thing as oversaturating the campus with ministry efforts, just like we can oversaturate a mission field far, far away.
Not only that, but it’s also very possible to reach a campus badly. And because a campus system is rather “closed” and oh so “local,” the effects may be far worse than if we start a bad church plant.
jurassic park
Do you remember the little speech in Jurassic Park that Dr. Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum) gave, questioning the basic assumptions behind the park’s creation? It all came down to this dialogue:
John Hammond, Park Director: “Our scientists have done things which nobody has ever done before.”
Dr. Malcolm: “Yeah, but your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, that they didn’t stop to think if they should.”
[For more from Dr. Malcolm that applies to college ministry, click here.]
I believe individual ministries – including national college ministries, outside organizations, local churches, and present local college ministries – will have more and more ability to and desire to reach campuses. So right now, right here, I want to remind us to always ask if we should. (And once we decide that, asking how is also vital.)
All of us in college ministry recognize the immense power of what we’re doing here, the dramatic nature of this “hinge moment” in people’s lives… all in the context of a cultural and educational hinge for our nation and the world. But I’m afraid that we’re not awed by this opportunity enough, that we assume that “just doing something” is always better than doing nothing.
That’s true with constructing a jigsaw puzzle. It’s less true with constructing a bomb, doing surgery… or planting a college ministry.
so, development matters
So that’s one reason – it’s only one reason, but it’s a big one – that I care about developing our field as a whole. From my bird’s eye view of our field, I run into groups and people all the time that are starting new collegiate ministry efforts. And while many of them are probably strategic and helpful, some might not be. We need a field where everybody feels the weight of what we’re doing – and the necessity of hesitance.
As we start our ministries, publish our ideas, spread our impact, and otherwise reach the campus tribes, no one should have to look back in 10 years and realize they “were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, that they didn’t stop to think if they should.”
[Read the follow-up post, with more from Dr. Malcolm, right here.]
I do recognize that the Drexel Dragon is not a dinosaur, but it’s the closest I’ve got. Also: Did you realize that Jurassic Park came out when some of our students were one year old?!
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As you may remember, I’m speaking this morning at the Evangelical Free Church leadership conference. (Please pray for me!) The talk will address
- the importance of college ministry
- the difficult state of affairs at present (particularly within churches)
- and how to turn that tide by developing a strong College Student Plan.
And as I’ll planning to tell the people in my seminar today, you can find much more on those topics (including more pictures!) in one of two places:
- my free book, Reaching the Campus Tribes. In this case, it’s particularly from chapters 3 and 5 and the “Road Map Forward” final chapter – but honestly, reading the whole thing will give a more complete picture.
- the resource I wrote for the Building Church Leaders resource, “Ministry to College Students.” Building Church Leaders is a part of the Christianity Today family, so I was especially excited they chose to address our field!
According to the publication agreement, I’m allowed to publish the article on my own site. And seeing as how this is my own site… I’m including that below, even though it’s lengthy.
(Please note: I don’t hold the copyright on this article – they do. So feel free to read it and point others to it here, but no electronic or paper copying, please. And anyway, you should check out the whole resource! It’s solid.)
The College Student Plan for Your Church
by Benson Hines for BuildingChurchLeaders.com
If your church decided to begin a missions endeavor among a people group overseas, the first step would probably involve spending time developing the church’s mission plan. The church would get to know the people involved, pray through every possibility for ministry, examine the available resources, look for possible partnerships, consult other churches with similar efforts, and so on. While those with a heart for missions might hope to “jump right in,” wisdom would dictate a more deliberate approach.
Sadly, many churches fail to apply this same wisdom to their work with college students. While their intentions are good, many North American churches—big and small, contemporary and traditional—have Read the rest of this entry »
I mentioned yesterday that I have the chance to speak at the national EV Free church leaders’ convention this week. Today, why my topic matters to everyone in college ministry, not just churches.
I care – deeply – about college ministry in all its branches, including certainly campus-based ministry, collegiate churches, and institutional college ministry. But I personally spent lots of years in church-based college ministry. I’ve also had the chance to examine the college ministries (or lack thereof) in most of the country’s best-known churches, along with plenty of churches that aren’t as well known.
And it’s a tough scene.
The toughest (or at least most under-developed) of all the branches.
And the difficulties don’t just affect those churches. They affect all of us who hope to minister to students.
I believe one BIG solution to the difficulties – and one with BIG ramifications for other kinds of college ministry, too – is an approach that emphasizes forming the College Student Plan over the building a “classic” church college ministry.
I first mentioned College Student Plans in my book (pp. 98-103), including:
Perhaps some churches feel they must either have a full college ministry program or nothing at all. But this is simply not the case. In fact, if I began my trip with the faint illusion that every church should build a full-fledged college ministry program, my research quickly cured me of that notion. Not every church needs a standard, holistic college ministry, and obviously not every church will be able to support that level of investment. In fact, our Christian cause among campus tribes would actually be damaged if every local church began competing for the students on the campus.But every church that encounters college students must plan for that encounter.
The College Student Plan Approach to church-based college ministry begins with the assumption that every campus climate is an individual ecosystem, a culture, a “tribe.” It also recognizes that every church is different, too, including (of course) the nature of the collegians actually under its care or in its vicinity.
For a church to begin with any sort of pre-packaged “checklist” for starting its ministry is, at best, foolish. And this includes assuming that the church needs to aim for a stand-alone, full-discipling, classic “college ministry.” Nor should any church assume that its ministry to students needs to look a certain way (like the church down the street or across the state), needs to draw a certain size to be viable, or even needs to look the same season-to-season.
Instead, the College Student Plan Approach begins with “exegeting” or “decoding” the entire context. The point is exegeting before building. Sadly, most churches seem to either jump forward with lots of gusto in an “if we build it, they will come” mentality… OR they take the organic approach and just “see if we can get something going.”
As I’ve seen in churches throughout the country, these two approaches seem to have terrible overall track records.
The College Student Plan Approach urges churches to put all possibilities on the table, and carefully evaluate what’s needed where they are. Their eventual result could include one or more of the following ingredients:
- particularly focusing on their “home-grown” students, both locally and away at school, including helping them plug into college ministries that will impact them well
- pointing attending students to campus-based ministries to receive their specialized collegiate impact
- offering a really solid intergenerational experience for students who attend
- offering ministry to students that complements the work being done by other college ministries
- cooperating with like-minded churches to establish a single ministry for college students
- cooperating in direct partnership with campus-based ministries (or institutional ministries, in the case of Christian colleges)
- and yes, perhaps creating a full-fledged college ministry to impact the local campus(es)
Should some churches start “classic” college ministries? Absolutely! But one reason we should ALL care about the College Student Plan Approach is that it only implements that option when it’s best. In that way, it encourages health throughout our local campus tribes.
[Later, I reprinted an article I wrote outlining a possible process to discern a church's College Student Plan. You can find that here.]
But there’s another way the College Student Plan approach encourages health. Because it slows down the church’s process, emphasizing exegeting before proceeding, the resulting college ministry – even if it does ultimately involve a “full-fledged” college ministry – will be far healthier, a better fit within the campus community, and longer-lasting. The entire tribe is weakened when a local church’s college ministry undulates in strength over a decade, restarts constantly, or turns out to be unhealthy.
So we should all rally here, encouraging churches to weigh their attempts wisely, exegete fully, and (as needed) build strongly!
Any thoughts on this – from the church-based among us, or from ministers in the other branches?
For more info on my opportunity this week – and how you can pray, check it out here!
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