For the Local Church
Who are the students?
What should we do?
How can we help?
Thank you for asking. But more than that, thank you for wanting to journey with our students. For a variety of reasons, most Adventist students do not attend Adventist colleges/universities. And if they all wanted to and could afford to, our schools wouldn’t have enough space to hold them all. So we need to journey with them wherever they are and if you’re reading this page, you’ve probably experienced a desire to join that journey. The following information is for you. If you have more questions, send us as message on the Contact Us page.
Students
They are probably some in your congregation, visiting from week to week or even playing an active role in the health of your church. If you’re not sure, just ask.
Make several announcements (several…people need to hear things repeatedly) in various ways (from platform, in a flyer, in the bulletin, via facebook) letting students know that you want to journey with them in whatever way they need. Ask them to get in touch with one main contact.
After you’ve gathered a few names, have something special for them.
If they are very few in number, give those you know some sort of care package. Students will always be grateful for a Panera gift card or just a simple note saying someone’s praying for them.
Have a dinner at a church member’s house or at the church. Never underestimate the power of the ministry of food.
Location
Are you near a public college/university? Do a quick google search if you’re not sure. Begin praying for the campus.
Do a prayer walk on the campus with just a few people. This doesn’t mean talking to students. It just means walking around the campus, getting familiar with the scene and asking God what He would like you to do there.
Are you far from a campus? You can still help by helping students you know get connected to the ACF-GCC network.
Check the list of chapters on this website. If your student is attending one of those schools, let them know there’s a group there to support their journey.
Campus Culture
Check out a blog post here.
On-Campus Activity
Unless you have a student presence on a campus, it’s not likely that the school will allow you to be on campus in a very active manner. And that’s fine–the school must protect its students from crazies. But you’re not crazy, you just want to reach out, share the love of Jesus. Ok. If you don’t have students on the campus and you want to do something on the campus, get in touch with the Student Life or Dean of Students Office (different schools use different names).
Let them know who you are. (It may help to have the pastor with you.)
Let them know you’re interested in meeting the spiritual needs of the Adventist students.
They may or may not give you more than a yes or no. Regardless of what they say, ask what their policy is for connecting with a specific demographic.
Don’t hinder the work of others by not abiding by school policy. Many hinder future work by putting their agenda ahead of school policy.
Get creative with how you can minister to the campus in light of the school’s policy. Simply letting them know that you’re there as a support for students would be a great first step.
This list is not exhaustive. Allow God to lead your journey…