Nostalgia Vs. Principles

 Mark Robinson, Baptist Collegiate Ministry leader for Louisiana, had a great post on Facebook recently about being in a meeting where young and old heads were planning a mission trip.  The old head wanted to do it like they had always done it in the past.  The younger guy said, "I refuse to be held hostage by Legacy Thinking.

I want to speak to both sides of sides of that (and from an old guy viewpoint).  

Students have changed and we must adapt to the changes.  If we think college students act and behave....and think like they did years ago, we are definitely out of touch.  We must be continually learning and adjusting.  Plus, every campus is a little different every year.  The ebb and flow changes at least slightly.

BUT, some things are principle driven.  Beware of doing something just because it is the latest thing.  I believe there are principles in college ministry, just like every ministry, that never change.  We must continually be about identifying and understanding those principles.  Is this new thing principle driven or is it just a fad that will soon pass away?

I was confronted once by a young and fairly new College Minister who said, "You do college ministry the old fashioned way."  He had recently come to a campus and had thrown out their program of Freshmen Ministry to do something entirely different.  I don't know the nice way to say this.  His new way was reaching far less than the old way had the year before.  He was reaching way less than our "old fashioned way" was reaching.  In two or three years he had gone on to another job.

Change, adapt, and don't just say, "That is the way we have always done it."  But, beware of falling prey to the bright and shiny object that is just new, but not principle driven.

One of the reasons I am high on experienced College Ministers mentoring new College Ministers is I think they both learn and benefit.  The new guy gets some principle driven facts and the old guy gets some of the new thinking.  College Ministry is better on both ends as a result.

Beware of "Legacy Thinking" and don't put something down because it has been done that way for a long time.  Look for the Principle!

Arliss Dickerson is a college ministry advocate, writer, and once in a while speaker.  Check out his college ministry resources here:  Amazon.com/dp/B08CMD9CXX. and here:  Amazon.com/dp/B0FFTHL6HP