STUDENT MINISTRY: Dream Big!

As we march toward the beginning of the school year, you may be thinking about what might be possible for your students. On the other hand, you may be exhausted from the summer and have less than grand expectations about the new year. Let me encourage you to dream big! There are all sorts of opportunities for teaching, serving and growing in the new year.

You may have struggled over the past few years between the pandemic, political unrest and a general sense of defeat. It is time for us to move forward and make choices that help our students become more devoted Christ-followers.

Some of us are natural dreamers. We are always thinking about possibilities and ways things could be different. While others of us struggle to think outside of what we have been doing. God has given us imagination and creativity for a purpose. What are some ways that we can foster a God-given dream and vision for our student ministry?

• Make sure you are spending time in the Word. We must spend time with God regularly. If not, the creativity and dreams that flow from us are simply more man-made nonsense. I am a big fan of SOAPing (Scripture, Observation, Application and Prayer) through Scripture. It is a methodical way to approach reading and hearing from God. There are other methods out there. The important thing is to find an approach you utilize on a regular basis.

• Seek the input of your adult sponsors. What do they dream of for your student ministry? What would they like to see? Some of them have been serving with students longer than you have been at the church. While we don’t want to be mired in tradition, praying and communicating together with these faithful men and women can spark a greater vision than just developing one on your own.

• Communicate with your lead pastor. It is important to pick the mind of the primary leader of the church. Any dream or vision for the student ministry that takes it in a different direction than that of the church is a wrong one. Your student ministry should pour out of the church rather than running parallel or in the opposite direction.

• Ask yourself good questions. How can we help our students grow in their relationship with Christ? How can we reach lost students in our community? What might we do if money was no object? What do we want graduates to take with them as they move on to the next phase of their lives? A good question can spark a whole different line of thinking.

While you may not consider yourself a dreamer, I think every student ministry worker needs to dream at least a little bit. God has given us much and we want to be good stewards. Let’s ask God to give us big, God-given dreams for our students and our ministries.

Join the conversation in our Facebook group (facebook.com/groups/StudentMinistryMattersCommunity).