CAMPUS LAUNCH PAD

Make Disciples: Virtual 1on1s. Sunday morning I, like most Christians, sat on the couch with my family and watched our church service online. I gotta admit, it was kind of a cool experience! Later that afternoon, I caught a couple more services from churches around town.  I watched as the CHURCH broke Facebook Live!  Never before has the Church been so digital and so available!  On the campus ministry front: our students have gone and our campuses have gone online. Therefore, we go virtual!  Never before has this been an option in the history of the church! But, let’s not buy into the lie.  In the same way that in-person worship services never produced the same quality disciples as the intentional one-on-one investment, the well done, live-stream worship service will fall short just the same.  If nothing else, it will take consumeristic, church-hopping Christianity to the next level!  Before we take our large groups online, what’s our plan for...

“What you’ve heard from me in the presence of many witnesses pass on to faithful men who in turn can train others.” Paul of Tarsus “The gospel came to you on its way to someone else.” Rob Gallaty “Your church is the fruit of other people and churches whose names may have been long forgotten.  Has your church started other churches, or did history stop with you?” Steve Addison The gospel is meant to be passed on.  It was meant to saturate every pour of our being and every nook and cranny of society.  It’s what Jesus preached: “Repent the kingdom of heaven is at hand!”  What a picture!  In order to see the kingdom come near and the gospel passed on Jesus had a big vision, a focused plan, and an open hand.  EVERY AND ALL: The Big Vision Jesus had a big vision and started with the end in mind. Here are a few of God’s “vision statements”: Go and make disciples of ALL nations... - Matthew 28:19-20 EVERYONE who calls on the name of t...

John Worcester said, “Fill the field instead of fill the room.”  This is such a powerful statement! It’s so simple but packed with so much insight!  Instead of gathering students to hear you preach how can you send students out.  Instead of packing out the room how can you saturate the harvest field with workers.  Isn’t that what Jesus said to pray for in Luke 10:2?  Ask the Lord of the harvest for workers because the harvest field is plentiful but the workers are few.  Jesus didn’t ask us to beg God for sitters and listeners, but for goers and workers!  How many of college ministries make it their goal to gather Christians? If they can just gather enough Christians and provide a safe place for them to hang out until they pass through the dark ages of college then they’ve done their job. O friends, may it not be!  May we become so captured by God’s vision to see our campus saturated with the gospel that we begin to see the harvest field in n...

If I’ve got to be honest, I think my love language is numbers. Seriously. When more people show up at our events - I feel loved. I mean, numbers have to be important, right? God named a book of the Bible Numbers! But nothing can suck our souls dry or set our souls afire like numbers. When we run out of chairs and people are standing in the back we go home and have trouble sleeping we’re so excited! When we only have half the people show up who we thought would come we go home and have trouble sleeping we’re so depressed. The numbers game. Ever been asked: “How big is your ministry?” This question has a way of exposing the sin in our hearts quicker than any other. When we walk into a room and we think we’re one of the larger ministries we fight pride. When we walk into a room and we think we’re one of the smaller ministries we fight insecurity and self-doubt. Have you been there? Always looking at how many are there. Feeling like you’ve arrived because you can gather ...

Have you ever thought about how similar Jesus’ situation was to the average college minister?  Think about it.  Jesus walked into his ministry knowing he only had about three years with his disciples. We’ve got five, maybe.  He knew that after three years they would be separated from them and so he had to begin knowing his exit strategy and what they needed to know before he left.  Not only that, but Jesus’ disciples didn't come to him as blank slates.  Many of them had emotional, ideological, and theological baggage that had to be stripped away before Jesus could begin to build a sturdy foundation. His disciples came with strengths and passions that needed to be channeled so they could be used for the Kingdom. This is our story! This is college ministry, folks!  This is what we do!  We have a limited time, unlimited potential and immeasurable sending capacity!  I’m struck by Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer in John 17.  It’s similar to us as ...

It’s that moment when you sit with your students and look into their eyes and they are done. And I mean done. They’ve pushed through the first of the semester rush. They’ve engaged their campuses with the gospel and they are spent. Like Paul, they would say, “I’ve been poured out as a drink offering.” It’s nearing the end of the semester and they are spent emotionally, physically, and academically. Maybe, if we are honest, we are there too. The underlying question we even whisper in our souls is, “if I kick this thing into neutral is there enough to get me to the end of the semester?” Have you been there? Does this sound familiar? The semester or quarter just seems to be longer than your stamina. So on the midst of being empty and being tired, what does it look like to finish the semester well and help your students stay strong?. REJOICE IN WHAT GOD HAS DONE Chances are, God has done some great things for you, your students, and your ministry this year! The psalmist writes i...

Do you spend much time at the doctor’s office? If you haven’t, just wait till you have kids! And, if you are blessed with boys, expect to spend some time at the ER as well. Just saying… I have four kids and three of them are boys and our girl is a tomboy, so I’ve seen a lot of waiting rooms. Waiting rooms are all pretty much the same. They usually have two sections to divide the well from the sick and a variety of things to keep both parties entertained until their time comes to “move on” to the next room. Look around the room. There isn’t much emotion. Each person is biding his/her time until his/her time comes to move on. Now compare that with a launch pad for the space shuttle. The cockpit is swarming with activity. Ground zero is alive with clicking and talking. All parties are frantic to make sure every detail is secure. The ground crew is scurrying about making sure everything is filled up, topped off, and packed. There is an excitement and anticipation. This is a much ...