Encourage another College Minister. This is the easy time for College Ministers to be discouraged....working night and day and some things maybe not going as hoped or planned. Even if you are encouraged, someone else is down. Call and encourage another College Minister. And, the way to encourage them is not telling them how great it is going for you. Ask how they are doing and listen.
Sponsor another college ministry. Should your ministry be helping another college ministry? Send them a check.....$25 is a gift from heaven for some ministries. Pick one and stay with them or do something for a different one each time.
Missing upperclassmen? With the emphasis of reaching new students these first couple of weeks, it is easy to not realize some regular upperclassmen from last year have not been around at all. Think back over last years regulars. Anybody you need to check on?
Thank your leaders. Don't take for granted the extra work, time, and energy your leaders are putting in during these first few days and events. Make a clear and strong effort to thank them as a group and individually.
Encourage that leader who is dragging. It is not unusual at this point to have some of your leaders just busting it, but someone is not doing much or seems to be struggling. Invest in them and encourage them before they feel they just have fallen too far behind.
Homesickness is real or do I fit at college? One thing for us to be aware of is those students who are feeling very left out or struggling with this new adjustment. I have had two conversations in the last 24 hours with an aunt and a mother concerned that their student will quit and come home. We sort of grin about homesickness, but it is real to the one who is homesick. And that student who has made A's without ever trying suddenly feels lost. Part of our "pastoral ministry" is encouraging ones like this AND talking with moms and aunts.. One freshmen I saw as a future leader of our ministry went home Labor Day weekend and just never came back.
Second and third week of school is a time of getting around on campus and loving on students.
Arliss Dickerson's college ministry books are available at amazon.com/dp/B08CMD9CXX.
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