What's the ONE Thing for a Church College Ministry?

We all are looking for the simplified version of how to do a task....the Readers Digest or Clif Notes for college ministry.  What is it that will make students be lifetime followers of Jesus, love His church and be workers in it?  That is all we want to know.  For those who do church college ministry, what's the ONE thing?

This past weekend I spoke for the worship service of Cook Baptist Church in Ruston, Louisiana and led some sessions for their students and adult college ministry leaders.  Here is the thing they are doing that is great.....and in my mind may be the secret ONE thing for the long run of these students' kingdom service.

Cook Baptist Church and their College Minister, Chris Walker, are doing a terrific job of connecting their college students to the church as a whole.  The students feel a part of the church.  They don't just attend collegiate events sponsored by the church....they are a part of the church.

One of the ways they are doing this is through a monthly lunch for college students following the worship service.  Each one of those lunches is a potluck provided by one of the adult Sunday School Departments AND attended by members of that Sunday School group.  They mix and mingle.  They even do some games such as what I call "People Bingo".  This is where participants have to find someone who has been to California to sign their square or someone who has four kids, etc.

Not surprisingly, Chris says their attendance of students goes up a little on those potluck lunch Sundays....who would have thought it?  Sometimes, they seat people at tables in occupational groupings which allows students to meet older adults who are doing the very thing the student hopes to do later in life.

Many who are studying high school ministry and the loss of high schoolers to faith following graduation believe that part of the issue is separating youth ministry from the church as a whole.  So, when high schoolers graduate from the youth group, in effect, they feel they have graduated from church.  The more we separate our college students into college only events....are we not repeating the same mistake?

Another Encouraging Word:  Cook Baptist is not a large church.....it is not tiny, but it is not large.  Many churches feel they must be large in order to have a strong and effective college ministry.  I would even go as far as to say, that it is easier in a smaller church to connect college students to the church as a whole.

Some would argue, perhaps correctly, that we can reach more students if we do events in our churches just for students.  But, the argument might be made that the net lifelong effect is best achieved by connecting students to the church as a whole.  That is the ONE thing that a church college ministry can do that a campus based ministry cannot.