While para-church collegiate ministries have accomplished much for the glory of God, the very purpose of the local church is to minister to the entire body of Christ. This charge, rightly seen, includes college students. This paper focuses on two key issues. One, most college students have never consciously evaluated what they truly believe about themselves and the world they live in. Second, leading a student to explore his or her worldview can help fulfill the churches primary functions of evangelism and discipleship.

This paper suggests that the most effective college ministry comes from a full integration of church, college, and community.

Essential Elements of a Christian Worldview
that Impact Today’s College Student

As a foundation for thinking and evaluation, while in college and, indeed, throughout one’s life, one must sincerely ask and answer many questions. Significant issues such as the origins and purpose of humanity, the existence of evil and the future of humanity, are too important in their implications to leave unaddressed. Accurate answers to such fundamental questions provide an individual with a foundation that supports the weight of all the important issues and decisions in one’s life. Many call this noticeably vital foundation a worldview.

One’s basic worldview dictates much of what he or she decides and believes. This holds great implications for the college students as well as the collegiate ministry itself. The following are elements of the Christian worldview that, if allowed, will greatly affect the lives of late adolescent students, and others, for the glory of God and for the benefit of each individual.

God exists and can be known

Many believe that the foundation of a Christian worldview is the authority of scripture. While it is true that scriptural authority is a critical aspect of a healthy worldview, it is not the foundation. For one to accept the authority of scripture he or she must first accept the authority of God. To accept God’s authority means one must first accept God’s existence. As such, the foundation of a Christian worldview is one’s personal faith in the fact of God’s existence.

Not only does God exist, He has gone to great lengths to make Himself known to humanity. God has revealed Himself through His creation (Rev 4:11, Rom 1:9, 1:20, Ps. 19:1-2), the Bible, and through His son, Jesus Christ (Matt 11:27, Isa 9:6, John 8:58).

Truth exists and can be known

In his book, Baby Busters, George Barna documents some amazing statistics concerning truth. Of the 18 to 27 year olds who were surveyed, 70% claimed that absolute truth does not exist. Of the same respondents, 44% strongly agree, “the Bible is the word of God and is totally accurate in all that it teaches” (Barna 1992, 136). This contradicting worldview among late adolescents should be alarming.

In contrast, George Knight tells us that truth does exist. He declares, “All truth finds its source in God as the Creator and Originator” (Knight 2006, 182). The Bible reveals God’s truth. It is His self-revelation to humanity. It is true, without error in its original manuscript and is authorative in all it addresses.

The Bible reveals that God is absolute in His being and unchanging in His purpose. John tells us that God’s word is truth (John 17:17) and therefore truth is absolute and unchanging as well. God’s word is universal in its application to all people. It eliminates the idea of relative truth.

God created and sustains all that exists

A reasonable worldview must provide a satisfying answer to the question of man’s origin. Is humanity an accident, a product of chance, or were men and women made in the image of a loving creator for a distinct purpose? Chance as an option simply does not satisfy sincere inquiry.

God created the universe and all that it contains ex nihilo. Nothing came into existence apart from God and nothing continues to exist apart from God. As God’s creation, humanity, as well as the rest of the created order, has an innate purpose and value. As creator of all things, God alone has the right to dictate the purpose and worth of His creation. Only humanity has an elevated value and the responsibility to steward wisely over the rest of creation because humanity was made in the image of God (Gen 1:6).

Holding to the biblical account of creation leads one to cling to the value of all humanity, including one’s self. The fact that God made all people in His image should eliminate issues of racism, prejudice, and even low self-esteem, which is common among many college students. “The ultimate need of the student, then” says Freese, “is to realize his identity as a person created and deeply loved by God” (Freese 2007).

All people have sinned and are in need of salvation

Once a person understands the truth of God’s existence and His revelation, he or she must come to terms with this revealed truth. The most significant truth revealed in scripture is who God is in contrast to humanity. God is perfect and righteous. Man is sinful and separated from the fullness of God’s blessing.

Each one sins when he or she fails to live up to God’s standard. All of humanity sins, both by nature and by choice. God, as creator, has the right to hold humanity accountable for this sin. Humanity is helpless in achieving this right relationship with God, apart from the work of God himself. In fact, to do anything other than sin is impossible for humanity. God and God alone can save humanity. He has done so through the sacrifice of His son for those who would believe (John 3:16).

God is always relevant

God is always relevant. There is no aspect of one’s life that should not have a direct awareness of God’s presence and his purpose. In her pivotal book, Total Truth, Nancy Pearcey points out that many, even Christians, hold to a very unbiblical view of reality. This view, held mostly by default, holds that there is a distinction between the sacred and the secular. Pearcey rightly refutes this understanding of God’s relevancy.

We have to reject the division of life into a sacred realm, limited to things like worship and personal morality, over against a secular realm that includes science, politics, economics, and the rest of the public arena. This dichotomy in our own minds is the greatest barrier to liberating the power of the gospel across the whole of culture today (Pearcey 2005, 20).

All aspects of life are subject to God’s authority, not just things considered spiritual in nature. An effective collegiate ministry will assist students in understanding that God is relevant to every aspect of their studies and their lives (Gen. 1:28; Matt. 28:19-20).

A Strategy for an Effective Church-Based
Collegiate Ministry

An effective church-based collegiate ministry is a difficult thing to define. Arliss Dickerson suggests one reason for this difficulty is that “each campus has its own atmosphere and attitudes that must be recognized and factored into the shape and style of the ministry” (Dickerson 1997, 4). Not only do colleges and universities have their own personalities, but the surrounding community also has its distinctions. As a product of both the college and the community in which it lies, the church must reflect some of the personality and style of the surrounding environment. Like the church, an effective church-based collegiate ministry must successfully integrate with and reflect the cultures of the college and the community without compromising biblical standards.[1]

Rather than developing a collegiate sub component to the local church, the goal with this strategy (like that of most churches) is to build a church that is committed to the community around it. The difference here is that a large percentage of the immediate population is college students. To address the requirements of this assignment, the strategy will be presented focusing on the specific needs and interests of the college students, however be aware that some of what is proposed can and should be implemented beyond the specific focus of the college students.

Purpose Statement

As a ministry our purpose is to pace with college students within an integrated community to help them establish a personal, progressing, and portable relationship with Jesus Christ.

Pacing with students is all about building interpersonal relationships. Richard Dunn clarifies that we must relate with students “not just physically but intellectually, emotionally, socially and spiritually” (Dunn 2001, 16). The church must engage students on each of these four levels.

This purpose statement also communicates our commitment to having students “own” their own relationship with Christ. This becomes essential as students separate themselves from their inherited beliefs (Joshua 24:14-15).

Also communicated in this purpose statement is the idea of sanctification. Sanctification is a process that culminates only in the future coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Leaders and students alike must understand the need for continuous change into the likeness of Christ (Philippians 1:6).

The idea of “portability” will be often misunderstood. We are committed to leading students to build their spiritual lives around personal bible study and prayer as well as faithful participation in a local body of believers (the church). When students leave the college environment, they should be able to take their faith with them. Based on their current position in life, students will be transient. Their faith, however, should not be temporary like their time in college.

Purpose Statement and the Great Commission

This purpose statement echoes the commands of the Great Commission found in Matthew 28. Any successful ministry will seek to accomplish these directives.

To collaborate faithfully with students fulfills the call to both evangelism and discipleship. To be instrumental in a student coming to know the Lord is a wonderful thing, but also to influence them to reinvest themselves into the lives of others who need the Lord is truly a success. Successful collegiate ministry builds disciples and it does so one relationship at a time.

A successful collegiate ministry is intentionally multi-cultural. The typical college campus is a melting pot of cultures. One can truly influence the world from the college campus. As students leave to find their place in the world, they will take all that they are with them.

We will seek to influence “the nations” by intentionally trying to make the ministry multi-cultural to reach the many cultures that are represented on the campus. Our influence then may be spread throughout the world as these students leave college and find their place in the world.

Ministry Environment

One very important goal of this ministry is to eliminate the false dichotomy spoken of by many worldview authors. To set a specific place or time for spiritual things apart from secular things propagates this lie. With that said, this strategy encourages student and non-student believers to engage others with a relational gospel throughout the week and throughout the community. Members of this church are integrated throughout the community and the college by both profession and by preference. The goal of this ministry is to try to permeate the student’s daily routine with conscience thoughts of God’s work and purpose in his or her life. This philosophy fits well with Dunn’s idea of pacing with students. If both student leaders and non-student leaders whole-heartedly seek God in their own lives, while intentionally integrating their lives with others, there will be effective ministry taking place.

On a traditional closed campus, it is wise to do as much ministry “on campus” as possible, however with an integrated or open campus, this distinction does not exist. Students will be scattered throughout the small town as the dormitories and classrooms are scattered. Students are just as likely reached in the local coffee shops and the corner food mart as they are anywhere else.

Even though the church is located within the college community, the goal with both the students and others within the community is to engage them where they are. This is a conscious effort to bring awareness of God’s presence to the person where he or she is at any given moment. In part to fulfill its commitment to the community and in part for personal growth and discipleship the church family meets weekly to learn how to engage the community throughout the week in its own environment. Members also use this opportunity as a time of praise and prayer for those whose lives are touched by the congregation.

If the church consists largely of the community in which it exists, the weekly worship time will reflect this culture. For many students raised in conservative churches this will likely be much different than they are accustomed. This corporate worship time is not centered, however, on the students or the community. Worship is giving to God what He desires and has demanded of us. Because of this, corporate worship is open and friendly to the unbeliever but still focuses on God and does not compromise on biblical ideals concerning worship.

This corporate worship time takes place in the churches renovated warehouse located just blocks from the college dormitories (Appendix 1). While the facility is not a typical church building, it was chosen more for its strategic location and versatility than its distinction from typical church architecture. The gathering time is 10:45 am on Sunday mornings. While some may, there is not a concerted effort to have college students in small group studies on Sunday mornings. With a goal of integrating the church members and the students, the ministry integrates the student’s primary weekly worship with the church as a whole. This Sunday morning worship time also allows for easy transition into another local body of believers once the students graduate.

While Sunday morning focuses on God-centered worship, Thursday nights focus on seeker-centered evangelism and outreach. While greatly emphasized to the college community this time is open to the entire community as well. Thursday nights will focus on engaging the culture. The typical Thursday would include music and a short apologetic message followed by a time of social interaction with the intent of engaging students and others in further conversations about the night’s topic.

Other ministries throughout the week include informal lunch gatherings in the college cafeteria or in local sandwich shops, small group bible studies in the dorms or coffee houses. The church facility is open as a place to study independently or to schedule study groups. Students and other church members who are involved in these ministries are encouraged and lead to engage their community in any place or time around campus and within the community.

Monthly activities include organized outreach either on campus or within the community. Concerts, theatrical performances, and other culturally engaging activities can be scheduled as appropriate to provide opportunities for evangelism and the building of relationships within the college community. Many colleges encourage students to attend enriching activities within the community as part of their cultural requirements.

Obvious opportunities will exist in such a community for service projects. The church can take on various projects throughout the community to allow students the occasion to serve others. When possible, teaming up with other civic groups, and even the college, would provide opportunities to build relations beyond our current sphere of influence.

Staff Needs

Staffing a collegiate ministry poses many challenges and opportunities. No ministry has an endless budget. Church based collegiate ministries may have even greater financial difficulties as they often receive smaller percentages of the churches overall budget. In addition, churches with a large percentage of student membership have less revenue coming in from tithes. Many students earn very little if any money and their tithe reflects that shortcoming. Even with tithes, private donations, and support from the state and local associations, it is likely that operating expenses, the facility, and its renovation consume much of the churches budget. As a result, the staffs salaries are lower than average for the area.

While the church staff functions as a team, one pastor is given oversight to the collegiate ministries. This person would be responsible for the programming aspect of the ministry to college students. He would also oversee the church volunteers as well as the student volunteers involved in the collegiate ministries. This position is also responsible for proposing and maintaining budget lines relating specifically to this ministry.

Because of the tight integration encouraged between the church and the students, all pastoral staff as well as the entire congregation has a responsibility in the ministries to the students. Volunteer support comes from both church members and the college students themselves. If the churches membership reflects the collegiate community, there will likely be plenty of gifted and talented volunteers. The typical college community would have plenty of musical, artistic, and intellectual talent. Encouraging and training members to serve and witness within their existing weekly schedules would offset the issue of adding to the already difficult schedules of college students and others. Additional commitments of time will be necessary, but the ultimate goal is for each one to be effective in service and evangelism where he or she currently is.

Philosophy

Relational Development

One of the primary issues facing college students is the potential for isolation and the need for community. The creation account in the book of Genesis made it clear that Adam needed fellowship (Gen 2:18). The typical college student needs fellowship as well. Research shows that an average of “92 percent of a college student’s time is spent outside the classroom” (Thornbury 2002, 346). As many as 70 hours per week are spent with peers, who Thornbury calls “the single biggest influencer of the traditional college-age student” (Thornbury 2002, 347). Rick Holland tells us, “Students who live together, study together, eat together, and recreate together form a close-knit community. The relationships that develop in this context provide a firm foundation upon which a campus ministry can be built and the Gospel can go forth” (Holland 2007).

An effective college ministry will seek to utilize these “peer” relationships as much as possible for value of their impact. Select students must be discipled and lead to do the same with other students. Author and educator, Richard Dunn calls this relational discipleship pacing.

Pacing is the language of love…for effective student ministry. Pacing requires me to listen to the heart of an adolescent, seeing beyond words and behaviors. Pacing therefore demands time, the time it takes to go beyond the surface in a conversation or to enter the social turf of a student—a band concert, a dorm room. Pacing is costly. The payoff, however, far exceeds the cost. (Dunn 2001, 16)

Pacing with students and leading them to do the same in the life of others is the greatest way to generate change in the lives of college students.

The college freshman is one of the most viable grounds for relational ministry. Arliss Dickerson tells us, “Relationships is the key word and issue for freshmen. First, when they come to college they are looking for friends. Secondly, they are looking for information about relationships and how to do relationships better” (Dickerson 1997, 29).

Spiritual Development

The one most crippling aspect of most people’s spiritual development is their lack of time spent listening and relating to God. In the busy world of the typical college student, there is the perception of having little or no time for many things, including Bible reading and prayer. As you may recall, college students spend as many as 70 hours each week with their peers (Thornbury 2002, 347). This fact alone leaves the argument concerning time lacking. Students must be encouraged to spend time in God’s word and in prayer. If God is real and His word is true, one must seek to understand and apply His directions for life.

Students will be encouraged to spend time in God’s word. Activities such as open discussions and debates may prompt even unbelieving students to spend time studying God’s word. The authors of The Chase give us four steps to help us study and understand God’s word. The authors tell us “we really have to take in what we read. We can’t just look at it. We have to read it, think about it, pray about it, and live it” (Bridges, Howver, and Howver 2003, 91).

The primary goal in the spiritual development of college students is to lead them to know and live out what they believe. It is about making a direct application of one’s faith in every aspect of one’s life. That is why pacing with a student provides greater influence than preaching to one.

Christian Worldview Development

Richard Dunn points out that during their college years, students are “wholly engaged in the process of developing a sense of identity separate from their parents” (Dunn 2001, 166). For many students, it is their first time to explore their own thoughts and convictions apart from those of their parents and other authority figures in their lives.

The goal in college ministry is not to become another authority figure in the lives of these young adults. Inevitably, students will question this authority as well, if not discard it altogether. The goal then is to assist each student in assuming the responsibility over his or her own worldview.

An effective collegiate ministry will assist students in understanding and evaluating their own worldview. Students, who have long since discounted God as fictitious and the words of scripture as, at best, poetic, will likely reconsider their view of scripture as they find their own worldview to be deficient and unsatisfying. Author, Nancy Pearcey says, “Part of the task of evangelism is to free people from the power of false worldviews by diagnosing the points where they fail to stack up against reality” (Pearcey 2005, 134).

One must also solidify one’s own beliefs by contrasting them to the conflicting views of others. In her pivotal book on the Christian worldview, Total Truth, Pearcey recommends an effective means of comparison between worldviews. Pearcey suggests that all worldviews must adequately address the same three essential elements; creation, the fall, and redemption (Pearcey 2005, 134). These same elements serve as an effective foundation for the development of a student’s worldview.

Leadership Development

The process of discipleship (or pacing as Dunn calls it) is naturally a system of leadership development. The church, leadership staff and otherwise, seeks to maintain pacing relationships with students and others within the community. The church staff spends as much as 50% of it’s time fostering these pacing relationships throughout the community.

The church also provides and encourages various formal opportunities for leadership development as well. These range from structured small group sessions that focus on leadership to retreats that allow for leadership and community development within the leadership team. Larger trips of this nature are limited to once or twice a year and are available only between semesters.

Academic Development

The academic development of students is vital to an effective ministry. For many students academic achievements are their focus. Some because of their ability to succeed in academics while others are so focused because of their inability in academics. These students must “make the grade” in order to remain at the institution. Effective ministry with college students will take into account the academic schedule and its demands on students.

Another aspect of the ministry that can assist students academically is the paring of students who need assistance with students and others who excel in the area of concern. Offering these connections between professors and students will work well in both a tutoring environment and in a lecture or debate environment.

The ministry should look for ways to utilize the skills and gifts of the professors as well as talented students. Some professors may actually be believers and look forward to sharing their beliefs as well as their professional expertise with the students. Other professors may simply be willing to share their expertise as a courtesy to the students. Offering reasonable compensation is necessary; however, some professors would welcome the opportunity to share their insights without such requirements.

Ministries could easily meet other student needs as well. Many students would value a designated study area and organized group studies. Providing such an environment can be very helpful to students living with roommates that do not share their same study needs or for those who truly long for opportunities to connect with others in a non-threatening way while still accomplishing their academic goals.

Calling & Career Development

Pearcey’s point concerning the sacred and secular dichotomy has significance here as well. Every believer has a call from God to a specific vocation. It is just as critical for a person to be a teacher or plumber for the glory of God as it is for a pastor to preach the whole counsel of God’s word. This ministry seeks to influence students in their understanding of this issue in various ways. One way is to take the ministry to the community as an everyday engagement rather than expecting the community to come to the church. Students may also gain an understanding as Christian businesspersons are brought to share their testimonies during group events.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Barna, George. 1992. Baby Busters: The Disillusioned Generation. Chicago: Northfield.

Bridges, Jerry, Jay Howver, and Jen Howver. 2003. The Chase: Pursuing Holiness In Your Everyday Life. Colorado Springs: Think NavPress.

Dickerson, Arliss. 1997. The Ten Commandments of Collegiate Ministry. Jonesboro, AR: by the author.

Dunn, Richard R. 2001. Shaping the Spiritual Life of Students: A Guide for Youth Workers, Pastors, Teachers & Campus Ministers. Downers Grove: IVP Books.

Freese, Barbara. 2007. Understanding and Ministering to the College Student. Lifeway. http://www.lifeway.com/lwc/article_main_page/0%2C1703%2CA%25253D155038%252526M%25253D200845%2C00.html?/ (accessed November 5, 2007).

Holland, Rick. 2007. Philosophy of Ministry. Crossroads. http://crossroads.sks.com/content.asp?CustComKey=283534&CategoryKey=283544&pn=Page&domname=crossroads.sks.com/ (accessed November 2, 2007).

Knight, George R. 2006. Philosophy & Education: An Introduction in Christian Perspective. Berrien Springs: Andrews University Press.

Pearcey, Nancy. 2005. Total Truth: Liberating Christianity from Its Cultural Captivity. Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway Books.

Thornbury, Kimberly. 2002. Christian Worldview and Student Life. In Shaping a Christian Worldview: The Foundations of Christian Higher Education, ed. David S. Dockery and Gregory Alan Thornbury, 346. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.

APPENDIX  1

Overview of the community in which the church and the college reside

The community for which this strategy was developed is a small college town. Much of the industry that once provided for the town’s economy and it’s future has now been moved to the periphery of town or to nearby suburbs. Many industrial and retail facilities have remained unoccupied for years until a revitalization project, sponsored primarily by the college and the local residents, successfully attracted many restaurants, bars, specialty shops, and cultural entities to the historic area. An invigorated downtown community developed.

Early in the process of this revitalization, the city encouraged the growth by drastically reducing the cost of many of the buildings that remained empty as well as offering many tax breaks for those who opened up businesses in the area. Buyers were contractually obligated to both occupy and renovate the structures that they purchased or leased. The college administration took advantage of this opportunity to purchase much needed facilities for their current expansion. The college renovated the new facilities into both classrooms and dormitories. This change effectively changed the college from a traditional closed campus to an open environment.

As an outreach to this, now thriving but unchurched, cultural area, local believers planted a church with the help of the state and local associations. While not exclusively targeting the college students, this church considers the students as a crucial part of the community that it serves. Also taking advantage of the cities plea for occupancy, the new church purchased an old warehouse located within easy walking distance to the college facilities. The warehouse is also accessible tso the many residents that remain in the downtown area. The church made arrangements with civic authorities for the use of a small parking garage just across the street from the warehouse. While the garage is public, the city allows church attendees to park at a much-diminished rate during non-business hours. Available parking allows the church to attract people from the suburbs as well as the immediate community.

[1] Appendix 1 contains an overview of a hypothetical college community. This community serves as the foundation for the strategy proposed in this document.