“Houston, we have a problem.”
Over time these words have been said to covey a variety of issues. And this moment is no different. But these words remind us that problems can be recognized, discussed, and hopefully addressed successfully.
The local church continues to play a vital role in carrying out God’s work in our world today. As a campus ministry, Christian Challenge values, supports, and desires to work with the local church. In doing so, we hope this article will help open the doors of conversations on how we can work together in bringing resolve to a long-standing struggle. This struggle is with students being able to successfully move from youth group to college ministry. To be clear, churches are not the cause of the problem, but we do think they can be a big part of the solution.
So what IS the problem? For many years now, high school graduation continues to get a lot of pomp and circumstance (both literally and figuratively). It’s a tremendous accomplishment, and definitely one worth celebrating. However, over time it has created a dangerous mindset. In the minds of many students, as well as some of the adults in their lives, high school graduation can be perceived as the finish line. Well, what happens when we get to a finish line? We stop running! High school graduation is NOT the finish line, this is no time for students to stop running. If anything, going from high school to college should be viewed as the beginning of another lap. It’s the next phase of the race, not the end. You see, we don’t set expectations or begin preparing for the next phase of the race if we think we’re already finished running. So, how do we make a shift in this mindset? It starts by seeing the concern expressed here, then begin addressing it with the students God has placed in your church.
Students don’t know to aim for something that they don’t know exists. There’s a good chance that your youth don’t know that there are students that really lean into their faith in college. They may not realize that college students are learning to see their campus as a mission field and leading their peers to grow in their faith. Your youth may not realize that college students use this season of life to pursue discipleship training and mission opportunities during their extended breaks. There’s probably a lot they don’t know about what their college years could hold because they’ve not had an opportunity to be exposed to it. Which means they go into college with little to no spiritual expectations, and more times than not the opportunities that others seize will slip right through their fingers. Your students need to know that college is a season in which they should anticipate God doing some incredible things in their lives. And it just might be YOUR conversations in the areas below that will put different goals and desires on their hearts and minds.
EXPECTATION
Sure, students may have a variety of expectations when they think about college. But it’s not very typical for them to consider much about their faith as they look ahead. In fact, many students don’t take time to consider what God has to do with their years in college. This means students are making huge decision about things that have long-reaching impacts on their lives, without considering God’s plans or desires. The thought of students making these decisions with little to no consideration as to what God would desire is terrifying, yet that’s what we see happening on college campuses every year. Even students that claim to be Christians struggle to see the importance of seeking God’s will, instead they rely on their own perspectives, emotions, and preferences for making their decisions.
We believe that the church has a great opportunity, year after year, to help their students know how to form better expectations for college in regard to their faith. Even having conversations with your students on this subject can be a big help. In fact, we encourage you to help your graduating seniors consider questions like these:
- What should my relationship with Jesus look like in college?
- What steps should I take to help grow my faith in college?
- What role will the church have in my life during college?
- What would I like to see God do in and through my life in college?
These types of questions can help start some great conversations and establish more Christ-centered expectations for what their college years could hold.
PREPARATION
We’re going to look at preparation in two areas. First we’ll look at how the church can help prepare their students. Secondly, we’ll share some ways the church can prepare itself to continue to walk with their youth even after they graduate.
Much of what you are probably already doing is laying a significant foundation in the lives of your youth. We just want to see that work continue in their lives, but we need your help in making that happen. Your students will not accidentally grow closer to Jesus. Their lives will not reflect Him and His ways more clearly without first deciding He will be a priority in their lives. This requires intentionality. But if they don’t come into college knowing how to make that a priority, it could take some time or could never happen at all. Here are a few ways you can help prepare them for the season ahead:
> Help them get connected with Christian Challenge on their campus. Christian Challenge is a part of the Baptist Collegiate Network. Regionally you may see different names (BSU, BCM, BSM, etc.), but our purpose and values are the same. In Colorado, we are Christian Challenge, but no matter where they go there will be ministry staff that would love to connect with you and your students. Tell them to look for us, give them our info, give us their info, and get us connected before the school year begins. Honestly, anything is helpful. Let them know how critical it is for them to get involved with a Christian community on their campus, and Christian Challenge would be a great choice. Although most of the students involved in Christian Challenge in our state are typically native to Colorado, very few of them come from Southern Baptist churches. We would love to see that change.
> Help them find churches to look into once they get to school. Christian Challenge can help you or your student with information on churches in our area. But same as above, you talking about the importance of finding a church when they get to college is extremely important. Within Christian Challenge, we don’t see ourselves as a replacement or substitute for the church. Our staff are all actively involved in local churches, and we encourage our students to be involved in local churches throughout their time in college.
> Let them know what classes or opportunities your church has for them when they return. Before your students graduate, communicate what they have to look forward to in your church after youth group. This will help them to know there is a place for them in your church, and it can help them to know what to expect when they come back home.
Lastly, as you send off students from your youth ministry, we encourage you to find meaningful ways to stay connected with them. Even after graduation, we hope you will still see them as YOUR students. Just because they may go away for school, doesn’t mean they have to be completely disconnected. When astronauts go into space, they know they still have a support system, that others are invested in their journey, and people are looking forward to them coming back home. It should be the same for your students after they graduate from high school.
We realize that different churches have different capacities for engaging college-aged students. Just keep in mind, if you have a youth ministry or high school students graduating from your church, you can potentially have some type of reach into the lives of college students. Below are just a few ideas to get you and your church thinking, but this is not meant to be an exhaustive list. And if our Christian Challenge staff can ever help you think through possibilities and strategies for your church in regard to ministering to college students, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us. Here’s a list of ideas:
> Stay connected. Have a system in place that church members send them letters, care packages, gift cards, etc.
> Visit. If church members are going to the students’ college town, they should call the students and have a meal or a cup of coffee with them.
> Utilize breaks. Have people within the church plan an event over Christmas break and during the summer, especially for returning students and other college-age members of the church.
> Pray. Churches should keep their college students on prayer lists throughout their college career. They are in one of the toughest battlefields in our culture, so please stand in the gap.
> Support. The home church should be the first to support their students as they go on discipleship training programs and overseas mission opportunities. You want your students to explore these opportunities during college, and your partnership will be a huge blessing.
> Inform. Our Christian Challenge staff throughout Colorado want to be resources for you. Invite us to your church to share with your youth so they know about us before they graduate. You can even invite us to come share during your church service. Many parents are unaware that Christian Challenge exists, and we would love to help you spread the word.
Christian Challenge is the Baptist representation of collegiate ministries throughout Colorado. We exist to help college students come to know Jesus, learn to live like Him, and change the world the way He did. We absolutely love college students and want to be there to help them experience Christ daily as they pursue their degrees. We create communities on campus for students to explore the Christian faith, grow in their walk with Jesus, and learn how they can help reach the nations with the gospel. Each Christian Challenge ministry is unique and tailored to meet the needs of the campus in which it is located, but we all share the same love of God and love of people.
Kent Slack is the Director of the Christian Challenge at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs.
Derek Gregory is the Director of Christian Challenge at the University of Colorado Boulder
