WHAT??? You have NOT Been Criticized THIS Week?

1.  All leadership/decision making roles draw criticism.

2.  Consider the source.  

3.  Hear but don't dwell on the ANGRY criticism.  It is possible there is a grain of truth in it.

4.  Evaluate the constructive criticism or that from a positive source.

5.  Not all disagreement is criticism.  Some issues do not have perfect solutions, but a decision has to be made to move forward.

6. Listening to those with positive criticism demonstrates you care.

7.  Remember, that critics tend to be louder than supporters or those who agree with your decisions.  It is crazy, but true.

Arliss Dickerson's college ministry books are available at amazon.com/dp/B08CMD9CXX .

An Awkward Conversation in College Ministry

One "awkward conversation" that has come up some lately is likely one we need to intentionally have in the college ministry family....particularly the Baptist Collegiate Ministry family.  That "awkward conversation" is, "Are we emphasizing evangelism at the expense of other needed and proven ministries?"

No College Minister wants to come out "AGAINST" evangelism.  It is contrary to the gospel, contrary to our calling and contrary to continue to be employed.  Here is the "HOWEVER".  In recent years due to the increasing number of  non-believers on college campuses and non-believers being more reachable during college days, there has been a greater emphasis on one to one evangelism and gospel presentations at each large group meeting.  And consequently, less time, energy and emphasis is often being given to other areas of ministry..

Some years ago a student came and asked if she could talk to me.  She had been active in another ministry on campus and wondered could there be a place in our ministry for her.  She was painfully shy.  She barely looked at me as she spoke.  She said the campus ministry she was involved in told her that she must go out on campus and engage strangers in conversations about becoming a Christian.  That was totally foreign to her personality.  I told her there was a place for her.  She had what was likely the greatest servant heart I have ever seen.  She enhanced our ministry greatly and was a "witness" to many with her service and loving heart.  While all of us are called to be a witness, that calling will show itself in different ways.

Maybe our "awkward conversation" needs to at least partly be about teaching students there are different kinds of evangelism and personal witness.  But, I also believe that one of the great strengths of Baptist Collegiate Ministry through the years has been that we do a lot of things well in our ministries.  In the need for doing a great job in evangelism, lets make sure we keep doing and talking about other parts of life that students need to hear and develop.

Our "awkward conversation" is not whether evangelism needs to be done, it is about how we do it well AND do the other things we are called to do as well.  My life verse is Luke 2:52, "Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man."  It is about balance.  We won't get it perfect, but we need to have those "awkward conversations".

Arliss Dickerson's college ministry books are available at amazon.com/dp/B08CMD9CXX.

Rules for College Ministry

 1. Believe and act on the fact that God is always doing more than you know.

2.  Ask a student to do it, if at all possible.

3.  Affirm leaders and help them grow.

4.  Play fair with the school and all other ministries, even those you don't like.

5.  Build on previous years while realizing every year is brand new.

6.  Look for partners.

7.  Always express thanks to those who serve and support.

8.  Model what you expect from students.

9.  Make the most of each campus season and each personal season.

10. Never let your ministry take the place of your personal relationship to the Lord. 

11. Work wisely hard AND care for your family!

Arliss Dickerson's college ministry books are available at amazon.com/dp/B08CMD9CXX.

Why Campus Ministries Oftentimes Have Student Leadership Teams by Jerome Stockert

  Why Campus Ministries Oftentimes Have Student Leadership Teams, Jerome Stockert                                 

-They believe in student leadership.

-Students need to help, lead, and make a difference.

-Students can connect with their friends and peers in ways that staff cannot.

-Students on leadership teams tend to grow stronger spiritually while serving.

-A leadership team models the disciplines of the Christian life.

-Leadership teams help students discover their spiritual gifts while serving.

-Developing student leaders helps build future leaders for the church.

Jerome Stockert is Baptist Campus Minister at the University of Central Missouri.

Arliss Dickerson's college ministry books are available at amazon.com/dp/B08CMD9CXX.

5 Characteristics of Large and/or Growing College Ministries

 As I say frequently, every situation is different....BUT I do believe there are five common characteristics that I see again and again in large and or growing college ministries.  Most, if not all, of these can be done to some degree by any sized ministry.

1.  Specialized Freshmen Outreach and Ministry

These ministries tend to make the most of the summer leading up to the start of school and then they do a great job of special events and follow-up aimed at new students.  It also helps many new students not shipwreck their college career or even their entire life during those first couple of weeks.

2.  Effective Small Groups

Small groups both teach and retain.  Great discipleship and growth happens in well done small groups.  And, students are personally known and cared for.  There are three obvious options to doing small groups: One is random times throughout the week, another is all of the groups meeting simultaneously such as a "Freshmen Night".  Where College Ministers used to say that new students came into their ministry through the large group worship and then migrated to the small groups, many now say that their small groups are the entry point.

3.  Leadership Development

The more strong student leaders a ministry has, the stronger and usually larger the ministry will be.  This involves building a leadership culture and to be intentional about encouraging and mentoring student leaders.  Some of a College Minister's most valuable time is spent mentoring some student leaders.

4.  Sense of Mission

These ministries are not just present on campus, but they are also permeated with a desire to reach the campus, share Christ and be an influencer to the campus. This does not come accidentally or instantly.  But, it comes from the top down.  Leadership priorities are contagious!

5.  Consistent Long Term Professional Leadership

Continual turnover from one Campus Minister leader to another is one of the two most common killers of college ministries.  Students and momentum are lost in every change.  It takes three years for a ministry to take on the priorities and direction of the one leading it.  When there is change every two or three years, a ministry stays in the beginning stages.  The larger the ministry and the campus, the more important it is for long term capable leadership.

This is summarized and adapted from "Fixing a Broken College Ministry" amazon.com/dp/1521876665.

Arliss Dickerson's college ministry books are available at amazon.com/dp/B08CMD9CXX

Ministry with Guys and the NEED for it

 There have always been more girls involved in college ministry than guys.  That reflects the same ratio that is true in church as a whole.  But, is the ratio getting even more disproportionate these days?  I have heard some College Ministers indicate that is true for them. A few elite schools are now even relaxing some of their entrance requirements to get more guys.  So, what is going on?

Kathleen Parker, syndicated columnist, did an editorial this week entitled, "Why it's not surprising that young men are abandoning college". Parker basically says that over the last several years in an attempt to give girls fair and equal opportunities our efforts have developed "a growing intolerance toward boy behavior in general."  She cites that twice as many boys are on ADHD medicine than girls (11.7% to 5.7%).  Time Magazine in an article, "Men Are More Likely to be Single than Women", indicated that almost a third of single men live with a parent and that since 1990, women have graduated college in far higher numbers than men."  One conclusion from the Time article is that men function at a higher level and tend to earn more when they are married.  Yet, college educated women are less likely to marry a man with less education. The article goes on to say, "What seems to be clear is that the path to marriage increasingly runs through college." 

I have felt for the last several years that more and more guys were willing to just participate rather than take responsibility and lead out.   College women were looking for opportunities to lead and guys were looking for excuses not to lead or take responsibility.  So, here is the deal, fewer guys are going to college and guys are more and more willing to take a back seat.  A friend told me recently about going to his son's Father/Son Fraternity Weekend Tailgate Party.  He said none of the guys, including his son, went into the stadium to the game.  They just hung out and gradually drifted off.  It was a mystery to the father.  Guys just seem to be drifting more.

Some years ago the ministry that I led had a Guy's Ministry.  There were some special discipleship events, but mostly our guys leading it tended to focus on "Painting up" for ballgames.  I wrestled with that in that I thought that "Painting Up" was too much the central focus of our guy's "ministry".  But, I do believe that we need to do some things that directly appeal to and connect to guys.  A friend of mine used to do a guys retreat with lots of bacon and they used donuts for the bun on their hamburgers.  They had tee shirts that had pictures of duct tape on them. You may flinch at that, but do we need more of that, both in reaching guys and use those opportunities to teach them to step up and not just trudge along?  I also think we need to be helping both men and women have godly marriages that enhance their lives, the church, and society as a whole.

I think we need to be more intentional than ever in reaching and discipling guys.  Hey, look for some guys that want to "Paint Up" for the next ballgame.  Buy them some paint and start meeting with them weekly for discipleship. Hooray for all the young women who are stepping up and doing.  I am not for pushing them back, but for helping guys fill their role as well.  I think our society and our churches need both strong men and women who take responsibility to serve and to lead.

Arliss Dickerson's college ministry books are available at amazon.com/dp/B08CMD9CXX.

The Number ONE Tool of Your College Ministry

 Nothing will affect a college ministry more than the person leading it and who they are as a person.

The longer you serve in the leadership role of whatever ministry you lead, the more it will reflect your strengths and weaknesses.  The ministry will become a picture of you.  Also, the more the ministry grows and is known, the more people will look at you as the face of the ministry  Your priorities will show in the ministry.  That is why as the leader, you must always be working on you.

Four factors in being the best tool and leader of your ministry:

1.  Your relationship to the Lord

If the ministry you lead is to truly be a ministry and not simply a club for college students, your relationship to the Lord is key.  At the heart of the ministry is the leader's relationship to the Lord. There is the temptation to pretend to be more than we are.  But, students quickly see through that.  Be you with the Lord and how you walk with the Lord. One part of this picking a scripture that is central to who we are and what we want our ministry to be about.  For me that verse is II Timothy 2:2, "And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others."  I would encourage you to choose a "Life Verse" to guide you in your relationship to the Lord and in focusing your ministry.

2.  Your personality

God gave all of us a personality. I believe that our personality is both a result of how we are raised and part of it just is "born in" as someone has said. That is God's hand in us and is usually best represented in our gifts.  We will tend to attract students who are like us or drawn to our personality.  If your personality is an outgoing one, there will likely be lots of outgoing students in your ministry.  If you are more introverted, there will likely be more introverted students in your ministry.  One of the challenges of college ministry is to make sure that our ministry is not just limited to those who share our personality.  Part of how we broaden our ministry past our own personality type is by demonstrating that we value gifts and abilities different than our own.  We must demonstrate that we value a wide variety of students and provide leadership opportunities for them.

3.  Your personal strengths

So, part of your personality shaping the ministry will obviously be your strengths.  What do you do best?  What are the gifts God has placed in YOUR life?  Are those being given the time and priority to be at their best? It is at the heart of my beliefs that God has placed gifts in each of our lives and that He wants to utilize them and that they are the heart of His use of us.  It also means identifying and being honest about what your shortcomings are as well.  It means making room for and giving the freedom to others to do what is not at the heart of your gifts and strengths.

4.  Your relationships

The more people we know, the the more it will benefit our ministry.  The more students we know the more we are likely to reach.  We must be intentional about working at and developing a wide variety of relationships.  Relationships are the currency of ministry.  The more we have, the more we can spend.  There are a variety of students, administrators, campus leaders and potential supporters that we can and should develop positive relationships with that will benefit the ministry and our lives personally.

Some questions for self evaluation and development:

What are my priorities for the ministry?  Are those being demonstrated in the ministry?

What are my personal gifts and strengths and are they being demonstrated in the ministry?

How is my personality shaping the ministry in positive and negative ways?

This article is adapted and condensed from "A College Ministry Success Formula" amazon.com/dp/B091F5S1RF .

Arliss Dickerson's college ministry books are available at amazon.com/dp/B08CMD9CXX