extending a hand across campus

with just a week left before students begin to return to campus, it's time to start crossing off some of those "to-do's" from our list...

for all of us involved in campus ministry, whether we serve on the campus or from off-site, one of the most important things we can do to further the reach of our ministry is to establish important partnerships with key individuals on the campus/es we serve.

university life is interesting...

during the summer months, when campus is quiet and minds are a bit more clear, we have grand thoughts of new endeavors and partnerships... but too often too little effort or energy as we are recovering from the year of ministry that was...

and as the new academic year looms ever-closer... what once was just a dream of what "could be" has the chance to be easily pushed off the table because of what seems more urgent in our final days of preparations...

but i ask:

is there anything more important, more valuable, then new and growing relationships with people on and around campus?

as people who minister to college students we need to be in their world... and known by those in that world that will long outlast our students - namely, the faculty and staff.

to have a well-respected faculty and/or staff speak highly of you/your ministry, to advocate for you in the presence of other fac/staff/students, to point students your direction, etc., is one of things that can strengthen and grow your ministry the most from one year to the next!

conversely, it doesn't take too many faculty, staff or students for that matter, talking badly about you or your ministry to bring it crumbling to the ground!

finding ways to partner with different campus figures for different ministry initiatives can serve to add legitimacy (in the eyes of some on campus) to what you're doing, as well as new levels of breadth and depth to what you are offering.

recognizing the season of life (the university years) that the people we serve (college students) are in needs to shape how we do ministry... how we approach them!

we need to be advocates of education, higher education, the learning process, the role of faculty and staff in the educational and formational process of students...

and we hope, and pray, that they become that for us!

i believe that God desires for us to see one another (campus ministers and the institution) as partners - and not adversaries - in the formation of students during the critical college years...

what do you think?

what challenges do you face in this area?

let's keep the dialogue going...