The BASIC staff has been reading through the book Crazy Love by Francis Chan this past month and as we discussed one of the chapters we got into a conversation that I felt could apply very much to college students.
Chan talked about how there are times in the Gospels that Jesus challenged those following Him, so that He could weed out those who were just along for the ride from those who were committed. As we discussed why Jesus would do this we realized why He wasn’t always “seeker sensitive” as most churches and ministries try to be today. Yes, Jesus showed love to all those around Him, but He made pouring into the lives of the 12 disciples who would change the world after His resurrection His priority. Jesus didn’t care about numbers; He preferred to have 12 men completely devoted to the cause of the Kingdom than 200 lukewarm followers. John even wrote in Revelations 3:15-16 to the church in Laodicea, “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm — neither hot nor cold — I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”
As we look at our ministries I think it’s important to determine the best balance between being “seeker friendly” and challenging the students in our groups to live wholeheartedly for God. Certainly it is our mission to reach the lost and hurting on each campus, in fact college is for most their last chance to come to Christ (statistics show only 5% of Christians get saved after the age of 25). But for those in our ministry who are already Christians are we creating a culture that challenges them on a week by week basis to improve in their walk with the Lord – to take risks and make sacrifices for Him? I truly believe that lukewarm Christians are born out of boredom and that the majority of these are bored because they are not being challenged regularly.
As Cheryl and I have worked hard to create an atmosphere of challenging students in our ministries on a regular basis we have seen them grow and rise to the challenge. In fact, instead of seeing students never return as most would expect, we have seen students grow deeper in their faith and get more involved. Tim Elmore, founder and President of Growing Leaders, has learned a lot about Generation Y (or the Millenials) which represents mostly people born in the 80’s and 90’s, which are today’s college students. Here are two of the many observations he has made:
1. “A new generation of parents emerged, beginning in the 80’s. Starting with the Tylenol scare in 1982, parents demanded that promoting and protecting children become the top priority in government, schools and sports teams… Most parents mean well and damage unwittingly, but their children are their trophies. Some will do anything to make them succeed.”
2. “They want to do things that matter. Meaning is as important as money at work. They don’t think small. They like projects that are very important and almost impossible.”
In other words these children have been safe guarded their whole lives. These students want to be challenged, but they haven’t grown up being challenged. We can see from the Bible that challenge is a necessary part of life. James 1:2-4 says, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” When students leave our ministries isn’t our hope for them just that – to “be mature and complete” in their faith?
I would rather take the risk of challenging students than to see anyone face the same punishment as the church in Laodicea in the book of Revelations. For this next semester I encourage you to pray about how you can create a culture of challenge in your ministry that encourages and empowers students to make an impact on their campus and after graduation, the world.