Many College Freshmen have Half-Way Dropped Church Before they get to College

What do I mean by, "Many college freshmen have half-way dropped church BEFORE they get to college?"

You will hear many college ministry folks like me quote the statistic, "60 to 70% of high school seniors active in church make NO spiritual connections in college."  

I stand by that statement and those percentages......but........and however

Youth ministry folks will tell you that many of their senior high students come on Wednesday night for youth group and are not regular attenders on Sunday for big church and Bible study groups.   Their schedules are packed with all kinds of activities and they have gotten their driver's license.  Often, their folks, who know they are run down and tired, give them the option of going on Sunday morning and many of them do not.

So, when they graduate from high school, they have basically graduated from their church.....the youth group.

Some larger churches to combat the loss of youth to Sunday morning church have gone to having Sunday Youth Worship.  They are there on Sunday, but not connected to the church as a whole.  

So, it is not that the vast majority of college freshmen make an abrupt change in their church involvement.  For many, they have been in the process of dropping out the last couple of years.

In addition, some larger churches have gone to Sunday Youth Worship which is separate from the church as a whole.

If we want to combat losing our youth to faith commitment and involvement in college, we have to realize that it needs to start early in high school. I will go as far as to say, Sunday school and worship involvement are MORE important than Wednesday youth group, if you have to drop one.

BUT, IF YOU HAVE A FRESHMAN NOW, HERE ARE 4 THINGS YOU CAN DO:

1.  Contact the BCM or other campus ministry or local college church with their contact info.  A grandmother just had me pass on the info for her freshman to a BCM Campus Minister.  It is not too late.

2.  You can encourage them to go and ask about what they may have already done.  You still have influence in their life.

3.  If you are going for parents weekend or Homecoming, make plans for all of you to attend a college friendly church that weekend.  It is way easier for them to go back to some place they have already been.

4.  Pray for your freshman.  If you are half way comfortable doing so, ask them when you talk, what they would like for you to pray on their behalf.  That in itself will be an encouragement!

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