It was a powerful time as students made a bold declaration of their love for Christ. This was the third time I had experienced a spontaneous baptism service and it was just exhilarating as before, but this time was different.
The first two times were at BASICcon events, but this time Todd was preaching the message and challenging students to get baptized at an Elim Bible Institute chapel service. Many of the people in the room had been Christians for a long time. Some had just recently made the commitment or recommitted to follow Christ.
Todd finished setting the tone for what was about to come and then he jumped in the tank – with his clothes on. As students lined up to get baptized and the worship team started to play, the atmosphere was energized. You could sense the emotion as people cheered and students gave sopping wet hugs. This is a day these students will remember for the rest of their lives.
As I took a step back from the excitement of the moment I had a realization. This wasn’t just a powerful moment for the students who were getting baptized, it was also a significant time for the student body and the campus as a whole. What was happening was so special that it was deepening the bonds between friends and even those who weren’t close to each other. It’s hard to put into words, but I think it must be similar to what happened in the book of Acts when the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit in the upper room.
Shared experiences where God is moving in powerful ways can do a lot to bring a group of people together. Often, this is what BASICcon did for our BASIC chapter during my time in college. It happened in the times of corporate worship and ministry, but we continued developing friendships over late night meals, pulling ridiculous pranks on my roommates and deep conversations. By the time I graduated I had formed some incredibly tight-knit relationships with people I didn’t even know four years earlier.
So, as your group prepares to come to BASICcon I wanted you to be thinking about how you can facilitate and encourage these times. Of course, some of it will have to happen on its own. When I went to BASICcon I never planned to have hour long conversations about what God was doing in my life. It just kind of happened.
But there are things you can do to encourage this kind of thing in your group. Some ideas are: go out meals with your whole group, lead a spontaneous worship time in someone’s hotel room (not during quiet hours of course), debrief with your group after the last session over lunch or when you get back home, and share testimonies at your next weekly meeting.
I’m talking about this in light of BASICcon this weekend, but it can apply to any season in college ministry. Hold social events like game nights and parties, do something special for each person in your ministry when it’s their birthday, get together for weekly prayer or worship meetings, etc. Basically, the idea is to look for opportunities to create memorable moments that will bring your group closer together and create a deeper community.
Have you had any moments like this happen with your group? What kind of effect did it have on your students?
Due to the 80+ hours I’ll be working for BASICcon this week we’ll be taking a break from posting next week. Ryan will follow up again with a post the week after. I look forward to seeing you at BASICcon this weekend!