The Organized Campus Minister by Darrell Cook

Darrell Cook, Baptist Campus Minister at Virginia Tech, is the most organized College Minister I know.  Here are his wise words on organization.

As a young campus minister I read several books on time management and organizing and I also would pick up tricks and tips from observing others who organized well.  The things I picked up seem to stick and turn into habit only when I used them to change the way I thought.  Like so many other areas of life, when I change my mentality my actions are more likely to change.  That being said, here are three key places where shifting my way of thinking really helped me to be wiser at organizing.

1.  VALUE PLANNING AND ORGANIZING AS A SPIRITUAL VENTURE - Don't feed the mentality that oversimplifies by separating ministry into spiritual parts and administrative parts.  We often act like there is nothing spiritual about planning and organizing, but remember that Paul lists administrating among the spiritual gifts. (I Cor. 12:28)  Yes, there are times we can get too tied to our desks and devices.  Yes, I have never started a story about God's fruitfulness in our work with students with the phrase, "It all started when I was doing my monthly report...."  But when I have prioritized and done my administrative work well, I am less distracted and can fully dive in to the others parts of ministry with better focus and purposefulness.

2.  DON'T JUST ABSORB ADMINISTRATION - I have observed that a lot of people either avoid or absorb administration.  As a young minister, I often put off planning and attention to details so I could do the "more exciting" parts of ministry.  Planning, evaluating, and organizing would only get the leftovers of my schedule.  The better we get at administration, the more we understand the importance of it and can stop the patterns of avoidance, but I have found a problem on the other extreme when I absorb administration so that others don't have to deal with it.  As I work with staff members who are half my age, it is so easy to think, "I'll let them dive in with the relational parts and I'll keep the systems and details organized."  To regularly do this is to rob them of the chance to learn how to more completely lead and organize well.  The same is true with the students that I lead; I must leave room for them to try (and sometimes fail) to organize well, coaching them through the details instead of doing these things for them.

3.  PRACTICE SAYING "NO" AND CELEBRATE WHEN YOU SUCCESSFULLY DO - Anyone out there a people pleaser?  I see those hands, so you can put them down now.  (Mine is raised too, by the way.)  A dozen or so times a month I am asked by various people to do things that don't fit our vision or mission.  The people pleaser part of me wants to say "yes" to each request, to save the day for someone, to not risk being labeled "unhelpful."  What do these moments have to do with organizing well?  A friend of mine says often, "The secret to concentration is elimination."  When I choose to not be discerning and say "yes" to everything, I am adding more plates to spin and cats to herd, hence my ability to focus on the parts that matter most is diminished.  And I need to celebrate from time to time when I am able to deliver a wise "no" because my people pleasing roots run so deep that even after that "no" is spoken I can still feel guilty for not "making that person happy."

Many of the young adults that we minister to are stepping out into independence and becoming students of the "how to's" of life.  So, as a minister to young adults you are, whether you like it or not, a modeler of many things.  Have fun growing in your own stewardship of organization, because the ripple effect in the lives of those watching can be pretty significant.

The 5 Rules for College Ministry Promotional Materials

Yes, I have already seen my first promotion materials for college ministry events for freshmen next fall.  One of the crazy things we all know in college ministry is that there are Freshmen Orientation events happening in the midst of "Senior Goodbye Events".  In many situations many college ministries are able to be present and hand out materials at Orientation events.  And, a surprising number are still able to mail to a religious preference list.  Fortunately, with the advent of lots of great on-line services, it is possible for all of us to now design materials without going to a high dollar print shop.  But, we still need it to be high quality.

Here are my 5 Rules for College Ministry Promotional Materials:

1.  The quality of the publicity or promotion piece says something about the quality of your ministry.  A poor piece does not say this is a high quality event or ministry.  Look at other materials that are being sent to students.  How does yours compare?

2.  Pictures say more than lots of words.  It is possible to have a very nice piece that has a great design without a picture or multiple picture.  But, pictures answer lots of questions about the ministry.  It often answer questions you might not even think to answer and would not have the space to answer.  Make lots and lots of pictures at your ministry and then choose wisely a few to use.  A "Picture Board" at a Freshmen Orientation event is always a plus!

3.  The promotional piece must clearly answer the questions "When and Where???".  If it is promotion of a special start of school event, is it clear when and where it will happen?  If it is promoting the ministry's regular weekly events, is it clear when and where they happen?  Don't assume!

4.  WHY?  This may sound a bit strange, but I have seen promotional pieces that are about a ministry, but it does not in any way tell me why I should attend.  Is it assumed I am looking for a college ministry?  Is it assumed I will go to a freshmen event?  What at that event will happen that is worthy of my attending?  What happens at "Big Weekly Lunch"?  What happens at "Tuesday Night Live"?  It is possible that we are assuming that all the students who will see this are looking for a Christian event to attend.  More and more that is a very bad assumption.

5.  Show a variety of students.  This is tough to address.  But, if you are hoping to reach students of different races, if there are pictures, do they show students of different races?  One of the questions students looking at your materials will ask in their heart is, "Is there anybody there who looks like me?".

For the first 10,000 to read this Blog Post, here is a bonus number six.

6.  Students must receive and or see the material MORE THAN ONCE!  One "expert" has ventured to say that students must see something at least five (5) times for it to register.  If you mail, I likely would not mail five times, HOWEVER, I would mail more than once, if it is affordable at all!  Some mail earlier in the summer and then mail again just before school starts in August.  Or, the same materials that have been mailed or handed out can be posted and handed out again when students arrive. We have also found when handing out materials at Orientation events, It is wise to hand materials to parents also.

Coming in May:  "FIXING A BROKEN COLLEGE MINISTRY"

Women in College Ministry

I believe we need women in College Ministry.  This is not some wild eyed rant, but rather where I always come from....practicality.

Some years ago I had just hired a woman to be my Associate when I happened to look out the window of our campus center and saw three pastors coming across the lawn.  We had no meeting scheduled and there was not an event about to happen. It was one of those "oh-oh moments".  They were there to protest that I had just hired a woman for a key ministry position.  Part of their concern was that she was married and her husband had indicated he would move wherever she found the opportunity to do what she felt God had called her to do.

I told them of my belief that if at all possible we needed a woman on our staff. I shared the story of one of my female students who had come in recently concerned about going to her first visit to a Gynecologist for an exam.  I told my pastor friends, "I am not real good with those kind of talks.".  One of the pastor's mouth dropped open and he said, "I guess College Ministry is different than the pastorate.".  I also indicated that I had a personal rule that I would not go into the women's dorms.

My wife served as our part-time Office Coordinator handling all our finances, working with our churches that did our weekly Outreach Lunch Program, etc.  I noticed that when students were sick they did not want to talk to me.  They wanted to see her.  She would feel their forehead and look into their eyes and tell them if they had fever or whatever.  Guys that I was close to would still go to our women staffers for "a woman's point of view" on certain issues.

Most of my movement is in the Baptist world of College Ministry and I know that many years ago when I started out as a BSU Director, some of the better known College Ministry leaders were women.  I think one of the reasons for the decline of women doing College Ministry among Baptists partly relates to the shift from the title of "Director" to the title of "Campus Minister".  Many Baptist entities require their College Ministers to be out preaching in churches and so is our custom, this points more to men in these roles.

The ministry I formally led now hosts a Welcome Lunch for 300 freshmen women going through Sorority Recruitment.  Their seeing a woman staffer they can relate to and connect to is huge.  Through the years we were blessed to reach many super sharp women and they were looking for role models of women who knew Christ and served him.  We were blessed to have some on our staff they could look to.

This is not a discussion about ordination, women pastoring churches, etc.  This is about recognizing the need to have women serving in College Ministry.  It is my hope that in different ways we can lift up the opportunities and need for women who feel called to ministry or are just open to how God would use them.

What are some options?  As budgets are cut and money gets tighter, consider the possibility of finding a woman in your community who might be open to working part-time during the school year and not working in the summer when her children are out of school.  One such woman I hired and paid very little was almost like a full time staffer for us in time and most of all effectiveness.  Some College Ministries are now recruiting couples for their staff....not just the guy.....but both the man and woman are recruited to serve on the campus ministry staff.

Let's be as creative as possible.....but we need women in College Ministry.


Coming in May:  FIXING A BROKEN COLLEGE MINISTRY

Interesting Figures......A Picture of America

I wonder about random things.  When I drive by packed out restaurants on Sunday, I wonder how many total people eat out in my town on a typical Sunday.  Figures and percentages fascinate.  I always kept a record of our college ministry attendance and learned by comparing these figures against the same week in previous years to anticipate slumps and peaks.   As I studied them, I always wondered what they were trying to tell me that I was not getting. Numbers are not people, but they tell lots of stories about people.

Lifeway Research is known for their outstanding studies and what they tell us about church and faith in America.  Here are some recent figures that fascinate me.  They come from the Spring Facts and Trends Magazine published by Lifeway Christian Resources.

22% of American Adults claim NO religious affiliation.

67% of unchurched people say they are unlikely to attend church in the future (In other words, it is not on their radar.)

62% of unchurched people say they went to church as children but walked away as adults.

73% of unchurched do no think their Christian friends talk about their faith too much.

29% say they have ever had a Christian share with them one-on-one how to become a Christian.

22% of pastors say they select their sermon passage or topic the week before.

7% of pastors say they select their sermon passage or topic more than a year in advance.

6% of pastors say they select their sermon passage or topic 9 to 12 months in advance.

1,043,839 International students are attending college in the United States.
To me, this is both an exciting, challenging and somber figure.  I believe....get ready......I believe that if we were doing International Student Ministry on our college campuses and in our churches as we should and could.......we would not even need to send foreign missionaries.  Most of these students return to their countries as economical and political leaders.  God has brought the future leaders of the world to us.  We can impact the world.  Students from countries who do not allow American Missionaries to enter their countries come to us.

In hosting a Thanksgiving meal for International students one said to me, "I have always wanted to see a pecan pie.".  Lots of Christians who do not think they can witness or explain the gospel to an International student can make and serve pecan pie.


Coming in May:  FIXING A BROKEN COLLEGE MINISTRY