CAMPUS LAUNCH PAD

Do you remember the first time you came home after being at college for a semester? I do. I was headed out to see some friends and it was 11pm. My mom asked what I was doing and where I thought I was going at that “time of night.” You already know where this is headed, right? I casually told her that I was headed out, 11pm was a normal time to leave the house for a college student, and I would be back later. Within seconds, two things were clear: 1) both my mom and I were convinced the other had lost their mind and 2) I was not leaving the house! I had been home for a total of six hours and I had already blown my witness with my parents and been handcuffed with a curfew! I’m not sure who was more ready for the semester to start back up in January, me or my parents! The transition back home for our students, especially our freshmen, can be hard for several reasons. They are moving back under the direct authority of their parents. They may be moving home to some sin patterns that they ...

Fish. Thirteenth –graders. Newbies. Freshmen have many names.  Our campus sometimes calls them baby ducks (don’t ask, you don’t want to know). Freshmen ministry is one of the most time consuming and rewarding things in college ministry.  For many, it’s the first time they begin to own their faith. For some, it’s the first time they are exposed to discipleship and evangelism.  For those of us in collegiate ministry we see the pros of freshmen getting plugged into a ministry and growing in their faith, but we also see the dark side of freshman year  as vast numbers of church attending freshmen disappear from the faith after they hit campus.  Within the first 4-8 weeks incoming freshmen have set their pattern and their peer group, and many times Jesus and discipleship aren’t in the picture.  We have a saying here, “Catch them in four or chase them for four.”  It’s the rally cry the first month of school.  We have four weeks to help them discover a...