We've Moved

Hello?

Hellooooo....

Is anybody here?

Where is everybody...

Hey! 

What are you doing here???

Well... uh, I... Where is everybody???

There not here!

Not here?

No, there not here.

Where'd they go?

Moved!

Moved?

Yeah!  Moved out.

Where?

I don't know... heard something about faithoncampus.com...

faithoncampus.com?

Yeah!  What is yah... hard a hearing or something???  Geesh!

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The conversation has moved... come check out the new site at  http://faithoncampus.com/

Hope to see you there!

How Do You Decide?

How do you make decisions that shape your ministry with students?


More specifically, how do you decide what to speak on from week to week?  Semester to semester?  Year to year?  


Is there some method to the madness?  


Have you developed a 'rotation' of sorts that maps out a 4-year cycle of topics/themes that you hope to expose students to during the course of their years on campus.  Or do you take a more flexible, let's see how the Spirit is leading - or the campus is trending - kind of approach?


Although I've been engaged in campus ministry for 13 years now, I'm pretty much a rookie when it comes to speaking in front of large groups of students...

Practicing What You Preach

Do you ever struggle to practice what you preach?  I do.


As people who work with college students we often find ourselves asking them tough questions, thinking with them about the ways they think and/or approach their life and even challenge them to consider important changes that might dramatically impact the way they live.


One of the biggest challenges today's student struggles with is waiting... They've grown up in an instant society and are not used to hearing the words 'not yet.'  In many ways 'no' is more of a relief than 'not yet' simply because the issue at hand can be quickly put to rest.  But 'not yet' involves waiting... the issue remains open, without resolution, pending... 

[Attempting to Become] All Things to All People

Do you ever read the Bible and find yourself being totally challenged by something you find?  If you read the same Bible I do than I would imagine your answer would have to be yes... at least every once in a while!


In the Apostle Paul's first letter to the Corinthians he talks of 'becoming all things to all people for the sake of the gospel.'  His desire was to do whatever it took to win people for Christ... and I find myself wondering how well do I reflect this desire and attitude?  If I'm honest, I'd probably have to say - not very well and not very often.


My reality is that I often want God to use me just as I am... so that I don't have to move from my place of comfort and do something that stretches me beyond what feels natural and safe.  

Cats, Kittens, Helicopters & College Students

I have to confess to you... I'm not a pet person.  I learned at a fairly young age that I am VERY allergic to most cats and dogs - which was fine in the pet-free home I grew up in, but it did make for challenging sleep-overs as a kid.


Of course, I ended up marrying a pet-person... isn't that always the way it happens?  My wife has been very understanding for most of our first 10 years of marriage.  This past winter, however, her parents asked if they could drop off their "outdoor" cat for the winter.  Having just moved "out to the country" I felt obliged to create some space for this "outdoor" animal.  


While we found ways to make it work during the winter months, you can imagine the shock and horror I experienced as I learned this cat had become pregnant during the active spring months.  Sure, the new kittens she produced were cute and all, but there was no way I was going to become a cat person.


Why am I sharing all of this?  Great question.  And I promise there's a connection to campus ministry coming...