The Character of a College Minister

 "As a prisoner of the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.  Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.  Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace."  Ephesians 4:1-3

Most of my writing in college ministry is focused on the competency and the College Minister, yet I believe that we must acknowledge and point to the equal importance of the character of the College Ministers.

"Live a life worthy of your calling" is a reminder to all of us who serve in ministry that who we are will always affect our ministry.  We cannot ask or expect students to be more than we are attempting to be.  If a leader does not demonstrate character, then the ministry will not demonstrate character.  The ministry will always to some degree or other be a reflection of the strengths and weaknesses of the leader.

Paul lists five expressions of the character of a Christian and particularly one who leads other Christians:

1.  Humility - This humility that Paul speaks of is not one of seeing no value in ourselves, but rather as Romans 12:3 says, "Think of yourself with sober judgement."  It is to think of ourselves as God sees us both strengths and weaknesses.

2.  Gentleness - Scholars say the term translated gentleness refers to the point between two extremes.  We must be aware of the power of our words and actions and how they affect the students in our ministry and those not yet in our ministry. Quick word spoken in anger can be destructive to relationships and ministry.  When we are out of control in words or actions, we are not honoring the Lord.

3.  Patient (Long Suffering) - This characteristic can be applied to mean being willing to give a ministry time to develop or a student time to develop and mature.  Remember, it usually takes about three years for a ministry to begin to be as we envision it being.  Are you willing to give the ministry time?  Are you willing to give that bright freshmen the time to grow into the potential that you see in them that God can use?

4.  Bearing with one another in love - When we love someone in a godly way, we continue to love them when they do not act in a way worthy of love.  Students will let you down.  Student leaders will sometimes not do what they know to do.  Just as the Lord never gives up on us, we are to be people that never give up on students.

5.  Unity through the bond of peace - There are different ways this may be expressed in college ministry. If there are multiple Christian ministries on a campus or reaching out to the campus, it means knowing and acting on the belief that God's kingdom is bigger than you and your ministry. It can mean not being critical of others ministries and even looking for ways that ministries might possibly work together for the good of the campus.

A ministry will always to some degree be a reflection of the strengths, weakness, and character of the leader.

This post is adapted from my book,  A 3 Part College Ministry Success Formula,  Amazon.com/dp/B0BZ6Q7HSV.