Chris Campus Ministry, Faith

My New Campus Ministry Gig

Yesterday was my first day on the new job with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship!

As I communicated with everyone on our monthly newsletter list, this change in vocational focus could be summed up with this phrase: Less Coffee, More Church. (Want to receive that monthly newsletter? Click Here!)

What this means is that I’ll be spending less time in the coffee shop near campus and more time building relationships with churches in order to see more college & university students engaged with the Gospel—the good news of hope and peace that comes with a transformed relationship with God through Jesus.

For the past 5-6 years, The 86 Coffee Bar has been my primary context for living out my calling to show hospitality to college students and engage them in the discipleship journey. Prior to that, I spent about 5 years at the Edge House, a Lutheran-sponsored campus ministry house adjacent to UC’s campus. For these past 11+ years my “job” has been to connect with college students and be a spiritual guide and mentor in their lives.

Now, my primary job is to help resource churches for ministry with college students and young adults. (My hope will be to continue spending at least 1 full day per week at The 86 to meet with some student leaders and other campus ministry leaders. FYI)

As a result of this ministry over time through InterVarsity, our hope will be to see hundreds and even thousands more college students actively integrating faith and life within the context of a local church. Also, there are about 1800 unreached college campuses in the United States that InterVarsity would like to reach and attaining that goal by 2030 will only be possible in partnership with churches! (This is what IVCF refers to as the 2030 Calling)

 

This new role with InterVarsity, in some ways, is a continuation of my leadership for the past 5 years in the Church of the Nazarene (my “home” denomination) in the area of college & young adult ministry.

So my role as a “Church Engagement Catalyst” for InterVarsity pairs up nicely with my role as Campus Mission Coordinator for the Church of the Nazarene under the umbrella of NYI Ministries in the US & Canada. More information on that here if you’re interested.

 

For most, working in the area of college ministry requires raising money. Although that was originally a huge mental barrier for me as I entered the world of campus ministry nearly 12 years ago, I now see it as a real benefit. There is a special relationship and partnership we feel with those who financially or prayerfully partner with our ministry! It’s like having a small tribe of people who really believe in you and support your cause. We love having a team of people like that.

As we begin this new season of ministry, we are inviting more people to join this ministry team. It’s going to take more prayer and more funds than ever before. That’s a daunting challenge, but we really believe God is calling and providing this great opportunity for long-term Kingdom impact.

Would you please consider joining our team of financial ministry partners? You can give a one-time or recurring gift to our ministry here at InterVarsity’s website. Thank you so much! As I continue to pour myself into college ministry with this slight change of focus, I am very hopeful that we will see the lives of students and faculty transformed, campuses renewed, and more churches connected with all of the above.

Chris Campus Ministry, Faith

Partnering with EveryCampus

In my role as the coordinator for Campus Mission, it has been exciting to partner with EveryCampus as a way to engage local churches with the mission of reaching out to college & university campuses.

The idea is pretty simple! Cru and InterVarsity campus ministries have collaborated to create the EveryCampus initiative whose goal is to see a Gospel community developed on every campus in the United States. Currently, about half of all campuses have such a ministry.

Campus Mission has become one of the partnering organizations and at two denominational gatherings (with the Church of the Nazarene) we have shared this mission and invited pastors, churches, and leaders to get involved.

Check out the EveryCampus website to find out how you or your church can help us reach this goal. They also have great resources for launching new ministries on a college campus.

    Learn More about EveryCampus
    EveryCampus Learn More
    Chris Books, Campus Ministry

    Richard Rohr, Carl Jung & Campus Ministry

    Sitting under my favorite Sycamore beside the monastery.

    Each year about this time I spend a couple of days at a monastery (the Abbey of Gethsemani) and “do” what I call my annual prayer retreat. Typically, I take a few books along for the quiet time in my “cell.” The first one I got to this year was a re-read of Falling Upward by Richie Rohr (that’s what his close friends call him. ha!)

    So the gist of Rohr’s book is talking about how to navigate the transition from the first part of life to the second. Often, this transition is instigated by some sort of “falling” down in life. He seems to imply that most people go through this transition (if at all) between the ages of 35-55. So at the ripe old age of 48, I’m right on track since I would suggest that my “falling up” began about 5 or 6 years ago.

    The basic premise is that you spend the first half of life establishing identity and building a certain “container” for life. Then for whatever reason, the container cracks…life takes an unexpected turn…some sort of crisis unfolds…etc. In the second half of life, ideally, you go a little bit deeper into some soul-full territory. You realize the limitations of superficial structures and either-or (dualistic) thinking. Rohr loves the language of unitive consciousness…moving from either/or thinking to both/and or “yes” thinking.

    I’m finding a parallel journey in campus ministry from the first half to the second half, although in this case it’s the first and second halves of a school year.

    In the first half of a year with students, I’m establishing identity and connection…building a sort of container for our relationship. Now in the second half (spring semester) it’s time to go a little deeper. I want to use the foundation of relationship which we’ve established in the first part of the year as a platform for launching towards something more.

    So my hope in the 2nd semester of each school year is to see these relationships go a little deeper in several directions. I will challenge students to plunge a little deeper into the God-waters…moving out of “kiddie pool” spirituality into the depths of trust and exploration. I will also challenge them to deepen their relationships with others. Perhaps it’s time to be a little more vulnerable, or to care a little more for those closest to them. It could be in a small group, in a class, with a roommate, or any significant relationship they have developed.
    And of course, I want to deepen my relationship with the student if that’s what is most beneficial for the student. Although in some cases, I will encourage a deeper mentoring connection with someone else if I’m not necessarily the best person to fill that role in their lives.

    The goal is always transformation and growth. The second half of this school year is about to begin. Here’s to seeing a few students go from spiritual immaturity to maturity over the next few months!

    Ironically, as I was reading Falling Upward at the monastery and enjoying some Pneuma Coffee in a cool Star Wars mug I had just gotten for Christmas from my daughter, this happened…

    Coincidence??