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I wrote earlier this week on the need to raise up students who will accept and even revel in the unsettled, “sojourny” experience they’ll likely have after college – if indeed they’re open to the preparation and adventure God has for them.
Two helpful thoughts from recent books that could help here:
1. The 10,000 Hour “Rule.” In Outliers: The Story of Success, Malcolm Gladwell famously presents a notion that to be truly great at something may just require 10,000 hours of work. You can read more about the idea in the book (which is phenomenal, by the way), or catch the Wikipedia take on it in the Outliers article.
And while there’s no sense in applying this sort of thing in a legalistic way, it’s at least a good principle to help our students understand that they’re probably looking at a long time of nose-to-the-grindstone work before things “feel” more “concrete.” (10 years at 20 hours a week would cover that “rule.”)
2. The Dip. Perhaps even more useful, get your students to read Seth Godin’s The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When to Stick), or read it yourself and help them understand the principles. (Really, this incredibly quick read could change the way you approach projects within your college ministry. It’s fantastic for us AND our students.)
Like Outliers, this is a secular book, but there still isn’t a better go-to book I’ve found for helping anybody who’s considering undertaking any sort of project.
And here, Seth Godin helpful compares and contrasts the 10,000 Hour Rule with The Dip.
I honestly believe that either or both of these books / ideas could help fuel your preparation for students’ long-term success – including a realistic understanding of the road ahead of them. They don’t replace the biblical wisdom, to be sure, but I do think there’s real wisdom here.
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Ten years ago this month, I began my sojourn of sorts. I’m still very much within that trip, yet to find out where (or when, or if) I’ll “land.”
I had graduated from Texas A&M in the middle of the expected collegiate career, leaving behind what I would later realize was the most flourishing college ministry climate in the country. That last semester was my best semester, and it came on the heels of perhaps the most formative year of my whole life. That last semester, Fall 2000, was the last time life was “normal” or “expected,” you might say, and beyond that it was genuinely fun.
But in January 2001 I followed God up to Abilene, Texas, to minister to college students among three Christian schools out there in West Texas. Five and half hard, interesting, good years were spent in Abilene, filled with seminary papers and paper routes and bookstore-creation and random large road trips that I stumbled upon (little knowing they were only forerunners of much longer treks). Those pictures remind me just how elusive I found stability and normalcy to be.
Then a year in Dallas and another college ministry gig. Abilene had always felt “sojourny”; Dallas seemed like it might provide a chance to land. But that comfort didn’t last long.
God adjusted my call after that year to serving the entire field of college ministry, and off I went on a yearlong road trip to 44 states, Mexico, and Canada by accident. That amazing year has been followed by two-and-a-half more, happily aiming to lay down my life for our cause among the campus tribes.
For someone like me – not your natural adventure-seeker – this decade without “my ducks in a row” isn’t the most comfortable proposition, even in hindsight. But God has stretched me and taught me to enjoy this wandering. Truly. Usually.
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A year or two after I graduated from college, I happened to visit my alma mater and sit in on a church’s weekend conference for college students.
At one point, the speaker shared something that (I’m sure) those students and (I know) one semi-recent college grad didn’t want to hear. He told us we shouldn’t assume that the entire span of God’s preparation will be contained in the four or five years of college. Instead, he said, God often uses ten years or more .
Ten years of preparation. Ten years of sharpening. Ten years of becoming useful for a person’s major life purpose.
The point came home (at least to me); we shouldn’t assume we’ll step from graduation stage to centerstage. In fact, we might find ourselves seemingly sojourning in this sense for many years after the glories of our college years fade.
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I celebrate these past ten years, and I’m happy to share it with you guys. But my main reason for writing this is to encourage us to remember that we’re raising up wanderers. Our strong, mature, awesome students may very well spend the next several years still preparing to be used in the ways God wants to use them.
And of the biggest temptations they’ll face is the temptation to choose stability over sojourn.
Though each person’s spirituality certainly isn’t evaluated by just how “awkward” his or her adventure happens to be, I pray we’re raising up lots of students who are at least willing to wander, and to wander well.
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I noted yesterday one of the major resources we have for determining how best to grow the college students we’ve been called to shepherd. Those resources are the Singles Ministers, Young Adult Ministers, and really anybody else who works somewhat up-close with post-collegians.
(Add this area to the list of research projects somebody needs to pursue for our field of ministry. But for now, you’ve got plenty of people in your town you could talk to!)
While I would urge us to “go to the source” and observe our students’ future through the eyes of these ministers, I figured it might be edifying to note what I’ve observed myself. ‘Cause I am indeed a “single young adult,” and I’m involved in a church with a pretty thriving young adult crowd. So after spending a Labor Day retreat with 4 or 500 fellow young adults, this topic is rather on my mind.
What do we as college ministers need to do better to prepare students for their young adult lives?
Again, to be clear, I’m just pondering this one. This is not an area of particular expertise (which is why we need to consult those who actually work in this area!). But I was interested to see the list I’d come up with, and I’m interested to see if you – or even your young adult minister buddies – might have anything to add.
Here are some areas that may deserve a little more suitcase-packing:
- understanding the power of intimate Christian community and getting over the roadblocks to participating in it
- being great in the basics of the Christian walk
- watching out for the legalism and Gnosticism-lite that descends on college students and young adults alike
- learning and using spiritual disciplines (of various sorts)
- learning and using their personal spiritual gifts (of various sorts)
- the wonders of intergenerational connections
- having a battle-plan for the post-graduation disillusionment & other difficulties
- biblical literacy
- reading through the entire Bible by the time they’ve finished college
- shining the light of what God’s doing in their lives – both among non-Christians and among Christians
- knowing that God is calling them into a great, personal, impactful adventure…
- …but realizing that they were never, ever meant to “choose their own adventure” based simply on passions, hopes, desires, or circumstances
- understanding church
- finding a church
- singleness and its glorious opportunities
- servanthood and its glorious opportunities
- doing something cross-cultural (or even outside the country) by the time they graduate
- a realistic understanding of the various waits, slowdowns, and other patience-trying years that may await them in their 20s and 30s
- glorifying God via their vocations
- the amazing opportunity to give away much of what they earn, and everything else that it can mean to glorify God with finances
This honestly came off the top of my head, but it was interesting to ponder. What might you add? What do we college ministers need to be better about packing in our students’ post-graduation suitcases?
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A while back, I had the opportunity to attend a panel discussion by leaders in the field of Youth Ministry at a seminary. The panel was very well attended and really informative… plus, it even showcased an impromptu debate between two really well known communicators about the value of home schooling.
There was space for Q&A, and I got to head to the front and ask a pretty simple question, along the lines of, “In what ways have you been able to get wisdom from college ministers about how high school students should be trained?”
Crickets would have chirped, had there been crickets in the room. Tumbleweeds would have tumbled, too (it was Texas, after all). They clearly had nothing to offer; my question was met with an agreeable response: “That’s a great question, but we really haven’t had opportunity to look at that,” basically.
I think most (or all) of those reading this would agree: Youth Ministers absolutely must seek the thoughts of College Ministers as they strategize the shepherding of their students. If those on the receiving end aren’t consulted about what students will need, what they generally seem to be missing when they get out of youth group, and the general climate into which they’re being thrown, then aren’t Youth Ministers missing an enormous opportunity for wisdom?
Of course they are.
But that’s not what this blog post is about.
Because if you agree with me… and I kinda bet you do… then there’s one more question that needs to be asked: When’s the last time you (as a College Minister) talked with a Young Adult Minister, a Singles Minister, a Young Marrieds Minister, a Premarital Counselor, or any other adult-area minster-type about
what young adults will need,
what they generally seem to be missing when they get out of college,
and the general climate into which they’re being thrown?
You can at least start with the locals, right? Couldn’t you grab coffee this week with somebody on a local church staff?
Tomorrow, I’ll post some thoughts after spending a whole weekend with the (fellow) young adults at my church. [Here's that post!] But don’t wait for me – there’s better wisdom from the people who actually serve full-time in ministering to the future versions of your present college students!
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If you’re new to the blog, you’ll notice that while I’m on a big Road Trip, I happily springboard from what I’m learning along the way. Not every day – but plenty. Today is one such day.
Occasionally I run across “Special Topics” connected to the world of college ministry which, if addressed, could make a huge impact on our field. And of course, anything that impacts our field impacts the whole world.
Because our field, the field (or “profession” or “vocation”) of college ministry impacts the whole world. (That goes without saying, right?)
Here are two such field-changing, world-changing areas:
1. Helping churches see the immediate usefulness of the “products” we’re turning out.
Ryan Lindsey, Christian Challenge director at CSU-Pueblo, got me thinking about this yesterday. He described actually approaching local pastors and explaining to them something along the lines of,
Since these young adults served on my ministry team, they’ve been well-trained in several key tasks. Now that they’ve graduated college and are in your church, please don’t simply assume you should stick them in the Youth department or Childrens’ ministry, or wait ’til they have gray hair to let them serve as Deacons. They have done solid, committed ministry work… they’ll be disillusioned quickly if you now ask them simply to sit in a pew ’til they’re 35.
If that idea somehow spread like wildfire among the churches of our country, then (1) they would more highly value our work, (2) the Transition Out of students to the “real world” would go better, and (3) the number of younger leaders in our churches would increase drastically, which leads to all sorts of other benefits!
2. Building a better understanding of what Christian Unity means within the campus ministry community on a given campus.
As I discussed some at the Blogference and as I’ve discussed not once but three times with college ministers I’ve met in the last two days, a practical understanding of unity-among-college-ministries largely alludes us. From what I’ve seen, “overshooting” or “undershooting” on this score is far more prevalent than finding unity in ways that actually turn out well. If someone did the hard work of investigating that problem, researching the highs and lows of individual campus histories in that regard, or gathering data from those who have learned in similar contexts (foreign missions, for example)… any of those steps would drastically impact our field.
Any takers? Anybody want to write a paper, start a project, or otherwise change the world in one of these ways?
Posted from the Lees’ house (my host home for the Ascent Conference), Longmont, CO
Road Trip 14 recap, Day 2
new states: Colorado (#3)
new campuses: Colorado State University – Pueblo (#4), Air Force Academy (#5)
yesterday: great visits to the above campuses, as well as a personal tour of the Navigators HQ; then night one of the Ascent Conference for (mostly) church-based college ministers
today: all day at the Ascent Conference!
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You might know that I’ve been exploring the campus ministry scene in the great town of Fort Worth; as I began preparing this post, I was still there. Then a birthday dinner with my sister and her buddies, and then I finally made it back across the Metroplex to home.
It was a good few days, though! I’ll probably blog sometime soon on how valuable a 3-day excursion could be for you, too – lots of learning, lots of observing, and lots of collaborating are easily available to you in this incredible way.
For now, however, there are other great ways to learn, observe, and collaborate – namely, plenty of cool online discussions that relate to college ministry! Eat up, and enjoy (and don’t miss all the great college ministry methods people have been describing – they’re at the bottom!).
vocational theology & transitions: Mike Hickerson of InterVarsity’s Emerging Scholars Network interviews Derek Melleby of the CCO and Center for Parent / Youth Understanding – about Derek’s book (The Outrageous Idea of Academic Faithfulness) and his work on the Transition to College that’s such a struggle for so many Christian kids. A lengthy interview – in a good way. For more on one of those topics, Tim Ehrhardt posts some great thoughts on helping students consider their education and vocation theologically.
why college ministry matters: A great profile of one college minister’s work way up at Syracuse University could be really helpful for sharing the value of College Ministry – and presenting College Ministry as missions. All the more helpful for getting the attention of outsiders, it’s from the major Christian news service Baptist Press.
thinking theologically about the iPhone: The Washington Post looks engagingly at information-obsession, smartphones, and public connection with others. A lot has been written along these lines, but this is better than much of what I’ve seen – in large part because it asks questions more than it offers answers. It could be a really good, basic piece for waking up your students to this important discussion. (HT: Rhett Smith)
weeding out students?: Brian Barela continues his helpful posts on Starting a College Ministry, this time looking at creating purposeful ministry aspects that work to weed out students who aren’t really aligned with the ministry. A tricky topic, and one that I don’t have completely settled in my own mind – but a good read, and definitely worth pondering.
lifechange opens up ministry opportunity: Tim Ehrhardt provides a cool evaluation of our opportunity to minister to students because of – not just in spite of – all the transitions taking place in their lives.
you can help…: …Chad Logan develop a brochure for explaining the basics of Christianity to international students. …Tom Grosh develop a bibliography of resources for understanding the various Generations and how to minister to them!
learning from others: Justin Wallace posts a phenomenal apologia for exploring other college ministries – complete with results from a couple of recent visits he’s gotten to make. A great post, and very worth reading. (And if you could use even more basic motivations for collaboration, Russ Martin provides one.)
two famous new presidents: Christianity Today has posted a couple of interviews with the two new (famous) presidents of two major Evangelical schools: Wheaton College (Philip Ryken) and Baylor University (Ken Starr – yep, that one).
a new college ministry partner to consider: Guy Chmieleski had several helpful posts this week – including reflecting on his NYC mission trip from this week. Perhaps the post with the most heuristic value discussed ministry partnership with alumni – an endeavor that could certainly be worth putting some energy toward in the coming months. (But you should check out the others while you’re there.)
How-tos, Methods, and Under-the-Hoods
- …for starting in a new college ministry position: Lance Crowell has been writing a series on how college ministers (particularly church-based ones) should get going in a new college ministry. Solid stuff, with five brief parts so far. You can find the first post here, and then two, three, four, and five.
- …for engaging students in play: Wes Woodell gives detailed instructions for playing “Humans vs. Zombies” – an interesting way to draw people to your group and have a good time, campus-wide
- …for engaging students in discussion: Mike Hurt provides a really solid look at using discussion groups (instead of “lectures”)
- …for engaging students in spiritual conversation: Mike Mattson of a secular recruitment consulting organization describes his interaction with a Christian campus ministry’s great discussion-starting table at USC. Great chance to see an outsider’s take on a method that has become pretty popular within college ministry.
- …for raising up college ministers: Steve Lutz has been posting his content from a talk he recently did on discerning the call to college ministry – and preparing for the call. Definitely worth giving your students who are (or should be) considering a campus ministry vocation. Start here; 4 posts so far.
- …for getting support for college ministry: Jerry Beavers notes an effort within one denomination to re-emphasize collegiate ministry. While the example applies specifically to their group, it’s a really helpful example for others, who need to consider doing the same within their own denominations or networks! Work the system!
- …for evangelism: Tom Greentree takes a look at one simple evangelistic presentation that’s growing in popularity – and even links to a book that helps go further on this tool and its theology.
- …for celebrating Passover with your students in a few weeks: Derek Leman goes all-out on the instructions and other helps. (HT: Scot McKnight)
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(These are the thoughts from Day 1 of the Jubilee Conference; for my thoughts from Day 2, click here!)
Yesterday was one of the crazier days in my recent explorations, as I took a flight from Dallas to Pittsburgh (via Charlotte). There was a crazy bagel-thing and a haircut in there, too.
Some other high points, followed by some of the best discoveries and rediscoveries for college ministries at Day 1 of the Coalition for Christian Outreach’s Jubilee Conference.
4 Things:
1. It was weird to realize that I’ve taken 3 flights in about 3 months… after taking 3 flights in the 3 years before that. I tend to be more of a “ground guy,” as you know. But flying is nice for a change.
2. Upon landing in Pittsburgh, I helped Deahna Calgaro (of the CCO) and David Kinnaman (yes, that Dave Kinnaman) circle the airport in a minivan. Until we picked up Jim Belcher (yes, that Jim Belcher). Then Jim B. and I wandered the airport for awhile looking for David Naugle, but it turns out he had taken a taxi to the hotel. But we then picked up David Greusel, the lead architect of Minute Maid Park (yes, that Minute Maid Park) and PNC Park (yes, that PNC Park).
It was a bit surreal. Fun conversations on the way into downtown.
3. I’m tweeting the conference, of course. It’s not exactly “live-tweeting,” if that means sending 10 quotes for every talk. Instead, I’m writing some highlights and anything I think you might particularly enjoy. Read those at www.twitter.com/bensonhines. Or, you can see everybody’s thoughts using the #j2010 hashtag.
4. If you think about it, could you be praying for me between now and Sunday morning? I’ll be speaking at 9am Eastern Time, and I’d like to continue honing that talk throughout today. I’m speaking to college students (and maybe some leaders) about the wide, wide, wonderful world of campus ministry!
Of course, you can also pray that I’d spend this conference observing, exploring, learning, and connecting in ways that help our field!
Key (Re)discoveries:
- Gift Card Giver: Amazing charity that it would be so easy for your college ministry to connect to, and they work to make it even easier for campuses
- COMMENT Magazine: I had a great chat with what appeared to be most of their leadership team. The magazine seeks to present fresh Christian intellect for impactful consumption by other thinkers, opinion leaders, and culture shapers. I knew about ‘em before, but the conversation made me want to revisit what they’re doing.
- Don’t forget: RTS Charlotte now has an Institute for Reformed Campus Ministry.
- Two projects your students could consider for their after-graduation sojourn: Teach for America, Mission Year.
the books Byron Borger promoted
You might have seen me mention Byron Borger and Hearts & Minds Books on here before. He’s a real hero among certain college ministers, well-regarded as a bookseller who knows his craft and does it with excellence. His regular “book selections” at Jubilee are quite popular, too.
Here are his from tonight (sorry for those that are incomplete; I’ll try to update soon)
- Halos and Avatars
- some green book about Revolution
- The Fight
- Rouault
- Let Justice Roll Down
- Follow Me to Freedom
- Creation Regained
- Heaven is a Place on Earth
- After World View
- The Outrageous Idea of Academic Faithfulness
(These are the thoughts from Day 1 of the Jubilee Conference; for my thoughts from Day 2, click here!)
All week, I’ve been posting some quick ideas that are especially applicable during this second half of the ol’ school year. Of course, nearly every week I post a College Ministry Fridea – usually a kooky little idea that might just springboard your campus ministry to greater creativity or success! (In fact, you can see all the Frideas so far if you’d like.)
But as I continue with this week’s theme of spring-specific ideas, here’s this week’s very spring-y (and very speedy) Fridea:
Minister at graduation.
Why do college ministries often stand aloof from this incredibly important event in the life of their campus tribe? Everybody’s graduation season and festivities work differently, so it’s up to you to figure out how this might work!
But here are some themes, audiences, and other graduation-related aspects that might be worth thinking about as you brainstorm this one…
- service to the crowds
- parents
- helping the school achieve its goals
- professors after a long spring of teaching
- concessions
- fundraising
- senior send-off
- helps for making the transition to the real world
- serving those in your ministry or outside
- a booth
- teasers for the upcoming year
- teaching about celebration
- celebrating
If you’ve got other ideas, or if you end up doing something cool, will you let me know?
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Yes, many college ministers have gotten to spend this week (and get to spend the next, and maybe even the next) recuperating, planning, and otherwise enjoying a brief hiatus in their primary duties. However, there are lots of college ministers who are functioning full-speed-ahead this week! So this Weekly Review is dedicated to those hard-working (and cold-enduring) brothers and sisters in our field!
Specifically, there are plenty of college ministers serving on Quarter System campuses (as opposed to Semester System) who have already gotten started on the Winter Quarter. (Most of these can be found on the West Coast and in Ohio, but there are others.) And across the nation, many church-based college ministers are pulling out all the stops to minister to home-grown students before they return to school.
So as we celebrate these guys and gals (and pray for them), here’s this week’s review of some of the best online college ministry discussions:
On brainstorming: Justin Wallace kicked off Heart of Campus Ministry’s new series on The Art of Brainstorming, discussing things he learned about leading team brainstorming sessions. (I’ll be blogging there this Monday, so be sure to check that out!)
Tools for sharing the faith: After his much-celebrated postgame comments this week, I figured I’d point you to Colt McCoy‘s evangelistic “I Am Second” videos and page! And Keith Davy posts about a new Campus Crusade evangelism emphasis, using Short Films to spread the word. As is often true, one campus ministry’s resource developments can be gain for everybody!
Book collaboration & two helpful analyses: Brian Barela not only previews an ebook he’s working on (for those starting a college ministry!), he wants collaboration. And in another post, Brian offers a really helpful analysis of three directions campus ministries might “bend.”
One more cool post went up yesterday, where Barela drew out the reasons a “gray areas” message he heard was so impactful. I would love to see more blog posts like this from around the college ministry world – simply filtering down some activities, messages, and other campus ministry staples to their key principles or “best practices.” (If you read the post, you’ll see what I mean.)
Starting, and starting slow: Matt McComas describes his observations and asks for suggestions as he begins to transition from a big college ministry in Bozeman to a Metro team in Portland (or, as he describes it, “from cowtown to urban hipster”). Meanwhile, his fellow CCC staffer Bob Fuhs provides a solid exhortation to move slowly in such endeavors. Be sure to check the comments on both posts, too.
Book suggestions: Derek Melleby with the College Transition Initiative blogs his fave books from 2009 – many of which might make good teaching, small group, or disciplemaking material.
BIG week on this blog: Exploring College Ministry is well on its way to the most second most hits of any week ever… so thanks a bunch for reading! This week has included a post pushing college ministries to enthusiastically recruit students, a first-of-the-year encouragement for us to consider quitting our big projects (that seemed to scratch where some people were itching!), a Fridea with 9 ways you could consider taking the courageous “Combo Approach,” and a reflection on how Campus Crusade’s local Winter Conference mirrors its ministries on the ground.
College students, young adults, spirituality, and why our work matters: Several items came out for helping both us and other Christians (like pastors and parents) understand the audience we serve! You might want to pass some of these on!
First, Scot McKnight begins a multi-post series at Jesus Creed about Christian Smith’s Souls in Transition. The book is about the spiritual activities and pursuits of “emerging adults” (people 18-29). So it’s obviously directly connected with not only what we do, but also the world into which we’re sending our students. I look forward to hearing McKnight’s take.
Further, Sam Rainer highlights the Pew Forum’s new research project and gives some basics on Millennials. And in a related vein, Tim Elmore points to 12 key ways the world changed in the past decade (you know, the decade when our students “grew up”). Chuck Booher, Senior Pastor of Corona, California’s Crossroads Christian Church, pens a helpful article in The Christian Standard with some basics on understanding and connecting with college students and young adults. Bob Hetzler notes a good way to find out what collegians and young adults think about a church.
And finally, Rhett Smith gives a great look at the issues surrounding how parents can help their students plug into a ministry when they go to college. And he asks for thoughts on this very important issue (and has received several comments so far).
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Here’s this past week’s lineup of helpful links and particularly important blog conversations about our amazing field!
Jeff Widman offers something superb: his expertise in social networking, applied to college ministry! Apparently Jeff had a great college ministry experience himself; now, he’s a major social networking guru. (His clients include Microsoft, Seth Godin, and others – really, this is legit.) Receive the fruits of his generous combination of those two loves by joining his Useful Facebook Tips for Campus Pastors group.
Here at Exploring College Ministry, I asked for wisdom about how we classify various college ministries – and people responded with some great thoughts. If you get a chance, take a look – and add your own thoughts on this important issue.
The Association of Collegiate Ministries posted the first of two posts about college ministry fundraising, reprinting (with permission) Steve Shadrach‘s 5 Keys for this important area. Shadrach is a well-known consultant in this area, and it’s great that ACM has been able to share his wisdom.
Need some cool ideas for simple service – for individual students, small groups, or your ministry as a whole? The Simple Love Project provides all sorts of ideas, at the touch of a button! (HT: HeartOfCampusMinistry.com.)
Also at Heart of Campus Ministry, Brandon Smith wrote a great, quick post on college ministry as “reverse missionary work.”
What an amazing idea for your college ministry: offering free peer-tutoring to your campus! Florida State’s Michael Mears shares Christian Campus Fellowship’s idea and their (very cool) advertisement right here.
Christianity Today posts a lengthy interview with sociologist Christian Smith, discussing his new book, Lost in Transition. Smith is a well-known expert on young adults’ connection (and disconnection) from spiritual life and church life.
written from Riverside, California
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Road Trip 13: Days 13 & 14 recap
finished up at the CollegeLeader Conference
T-shirts: the Screaming Eagles of U. of Southern Indiana and the Wave tribe of Pepperdine
today: churches and catching up (see all explorations so far!)
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