This week students from across the state will engage people with the gospel through spring break mission projects. They will be bold in sharing for this one week. What happens on mission could transform the way they live their lives if we are careful to help them connect the dots. 

How can you communicate that the mission exists beyond an event? Here are a few thoughts: 

Missions is not projects but people.  The people students encountered on mission are living out their own lives as usual. Hopefully there was a plan in place to follow up with them after the week was over.  If it involves your students, hold them accountable to that follow up.  If it doesn't, be sure that they are aware that there is follow up from someone, that the people they met are real people who matter to God every day. Make a plan to pray for the people they ministered to during the week.  

The mission is for here too.  Several BSMs and churches have come back from the mission field and implemented similar strategies in their own locations.  Whether it's free rides from the late night hangouts or engaging international students in a new way, help students implement the things they learned in their home context. Being on mission can happen wherever you are, and a mission trip can jump start new ministry in your local context.   

Boldness is needed wherever you go.  This week will be the first time some students have ever shared their faith with someone. The mission environment creates a sense of urgency and fosters boldness.  What could happen if your students brought back that same urgency to their local campus?  Encourage students to be bold on their own campus, to see those they encounter each day with fresh eyes. People on their campus need Jesus too, and the urgency to proclaim the gospel is the same wherever we go.  

Last week student leaders from across the state of Texas met together for the State Lead Team Winter Summit. These leaders will represent Texas Baptist Student Ministry and college ministry in Texas Baptist churches for 2018. At the Summit they were challenged  to be on mission where God has placed them for this season of life. Here are a few takeaways:

• Observe your surroundings. See people in their context. Who are they? What needs do they have? 
• Adjust. Everyone's experience is not the same as yours. How will you adjust? 
• Engage. God has given you a mission field where he has planted you. Engage it. 

They graduated and spent their last summer in the youth ministry, but where did they go this fall? When they became college freshmen?  If you're having trouble connecting with the students that just left your youth ministry, you're not alone. And, there may be some things you can do to "mind the gap" in this next year. 

X You Are Here.  When students leave the youth ministry, where do they go next? Is it close to the youth building? Are you asking them to cross a parking lot, or go to a space that is far away from where they have been? It may sound silly, but your location might be creating a barrier for students. They have left friends in the youth group behind, and taking the initiative to go to a space far from where they have been might be enough to keep them from making the effort. If moving isn't an option, be intentional about finding students to help build relational bridges. 

Invest in the Youth Ministry. What do current youth know about the college ministry in your church? Do they know you as the leader? Students need to have a picture of where they will go next and who will be there. Let them see college students serving in the youth ministry. Have college students share testimonies about a college mission trip or retreat. If you're the college minister, offer to speak at a youth event, or serve as a leader at youth camp. Get to know the students who will be in your college ministry next year, or in two or three years. 

Remove the Stop Sign. Work with the youth minister and youth ministry leaders to develop a strategy for ministry that begins in the youth ministry but continues on into the college ministry. Begin to share that plan and vision with students in the youth ministry so they see graduation as a marker, not a stop sign, What will they look forward to as they grow into the college ministry? Leadership? Special mission opportunities? Giving back to the youth ministry where they started? Share the plan with students and parents along the way so that students eagerly embrace the road ahead as they move into the college ministry. 

When Moses sent them to scout out the land of Canaan, he told them, “Go up this way to the Negev, then go up into the hill country. See what the land is like, and whether the people who live there are strong or weak, few or many. Is the land they live in good or bad? Are the cities they live in encampments or fortifications? Is the land fertile or unproductive? Are there trees in it or not? Be courageous. Bring back some fruit from the land.” It was the season for the first ripe grapes.   Numbers 13:17-20 CSB

God commanded Moses to send out spies to scout out the Promised Land before the people went in.  They were to collect valuable information about the land and the people they would encounter there.  And they were to be courageous.  You're not occupying a foreign land, but sending out some "scouts" from your group can help you be ready to engage the campus. 

Your strategy for reaching students in your area should involve the students in your church.  They are already engaged in your ministry, and they are already connected to local campuses and other students.  It's possible that they have never seen their campus as a mission field. 

Be specific in asking them to share their insights about their campus.

• On your campus, what does an average student's week look like? Are they commuting? Hanging out on campus? Leaving quickly?  
• If you were to describe the students on your campus to an outsider what would you say about them? 
• In your opinion, what do you think are the greatest needs that students on your campus have? 
• What is one thing that we could do as a college ministry to serve the students on your campus? 

Happy First Day of Summer! Are you doing some summer reading? Here are a few suggestions to add to your list that will help you maximize your discipling time with students. You might even want to ask a student or two to join you in reading one of these. 

• Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth, Richard J. Foster, 10th Anniversary ed., Harper San Francisco, 1998. "Superficiality is the curse of our age.... The desperate need today is not for a greater number of intelligent people, or gifted people, but for deep people," Richard Foster. Foster's work has become a modern classic for Christians, drawing believers deeper in their Christian faith through spiritual practices. He works through several common disciplines of the faith, communicating the purpose and best practices for each one.     
• The Divine Conspiriacy: Rediscovering Our Hidden Life in God, Dallas Willard, What is discipleship? What does it mean to follow Jesus? Willard breaks down the concept of discipleship and reconstructs it, in order for the reader to discover the true meaning of following Christ, and daily disciplines to help one on that journey. 
• Spiritual Disciplines Handbook: Practices that Transform Us, Adele Ahlberg Calhoun, Intervarsity Press, 2015. Practical, accessible guidance on how to do the disciplines of the Christian life. This handbook is a great reference for incorporating spiritual practices into everyday life. You may want to ask a student to work through the book with you, intentionally practicing each of these disciplines as you read them.   

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