Lead a Weblog for Young Adult Leaders

The first month of school shapes collegiate ministry for the entire year. Sure, God can and does move in October or April, but typically what does or doesn’t happen the first month of the university year matters in October and in April. Students set their patterns the first three weeks of Fall semester. They often decide quickly where they’ll park, when they’ll eat, who they’ll spend time with, and whether or not they’ll be involved in church or campus ministry. Bam! Decided. Tuesday/Thursday schedule set. Monday/Wednesday/Friday schedule set. Collegiate ministries have a key window of opportunity to enter into a student’s life during the first month of the year.

In Dan Pink’s talk at the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), he unpacks surprising research about what motivates people. What the research reveals will force you to think differently about leadership and teamwork in your career, your life, and your ministry.

My favorite air to breathe is fall air on a college campus. Believe it or not, fall and the arrival of students, new and returning, is here! Football players, resident assistants, sorority recruitment leaders, and band members are likely on your campus right now. Others will quickly follow! Wooo Hooo!

It’s summer and you may be planning what’s going to happen in the young adult ministry in your church this fall and into next year. You may be totally focused on all matters of high spiritual value. Let me give you one word of advice: Build in some fun.

Nearly 19 million college students are preparing to begin class next month. How will you and your church seek to be involved in their lives? Consider the following: make the first three weeks of the semester count, develop a specialized ministry to at least one people group on campus, and have a plan for your collegiate ministry.

Any ministry is stressful, but ministering to young adults can be especially draining. It often requires you to stay up late at an event just to get up early to head into the office the next morning. You have intense physical demands on your body, especially when you top that ministry off with a family. How are you supposed to have the energy to exercise?

My heart joined hundreds of sad hearts this week as I learned of the death of Palmer Maphet, a sophomore at Tennessee Tech University who was serving as a missionary in Maine through Baptist Collegiate Ministry. Palmer and his team were traveling to minister at Laconia Motorcycle Week in Laconia, New Hampshire, when a car accident ended his life on earth. While none of us ever want to be the bearer or the recipient of the news of the loss of someone in your ministry, those who have walked this path have wisdom to share on how to most effectively and compassionately lead your students through times of grief.

With a flash and a clap of thunder the rain began to fall on middle Tennessee. The storm pounded Nashville and surrounding areas with more than 13 inches of rain. So much rain, in fact, that my city, my neighbors, and my life would never be the same.

In this month’s leader tip video, young adult ministry specialist Jason Hayes answers the frequently asked question: Where do we start getting involved in local and global responsibility?

As leaders of young adults in churches, many of us spend a majority of our time focused on numbers, not individuals. We set goals for how many people we hope and pray will come to our Easter services. We set markers for the numbers of people we hope to attract to Sunday School or our small groups. I don’t believe that’s completely a Jesus-focused thought process. To be sure, He spoke truth to the masses, He fed them, and Scripture tells us He had pity on the multitudes. Yet, most of His ministry was focused on the individuals who were lost. He focused on them each day.