December 2006

Movement Evaluation

One of the most important things I do as a campus director is to find out how we are doing as a movement in accomplishing our mission: “Turning lost students into Christ-centered laborers.” Our student leaders who lead our small group Bible studies and are actively sharing their faith on campus are the best source of information on the state of our movement. So, at the end of every semester we take time with our leaders to evaluate where we are at and talk about where we would like our movement to go in the next semester.

Questions

This past week at this evaluation time we asked students the following questions:

1. What one or two things have been most effective in helping us as a movement to accomplish our mission?

2. What one or two barriers might be preventing us from more fully accomplishing our mission on campus? What things have contributed to these barriers?

3. As a movement, how can we overcome these barriers?

4. How might God use you personally to help deal with these barriers?

5. As you consider our mission, what specific thing would you like to see God do in our movement or in your ministry next semester?

Responses

On how God might use them personally:

“I need to trust God and rely on him and...to let God work and be thankful for what he has done.”

“I desire that God might give me the courage to communicate my faith clearly and to have discussions with people I don’t know.”

On what they would like to see God do in our movement:

“I would like to see God raise up many leaders who are all committed to the ministry equally with school work, so that all the big dreams and ideas people have now for the ministry might be fully realized, instead of being unrealized because of the lack of laborers.”

“I would like to see God building up more leaders in my ministry and across campus. Then for these people to continue to share their faith to reach more students.”

“I would like to see the girls in my Bible study start to live out their faith, bring others to Bible study & Cru [our weekly meeting], and spread the word. I want to see their hearts completely captured by Christ!”

“I would like people to be joyful in God...to make Him look like the Savior He is.”

“I want to see Christ reaching more people through us in ways that are life-changing and not simply temporary.”

Please pray that God would grant these desires. Pray that God would use these leaders to change the lives of students all over campus. Pray that God would give me and the rest of our staff team wisdom and a real sense of dependence on his power as we seek to win students to Christ, build them up in their faith and send them out as Christ-centered laborers.

300 students attended Fall Retreat from U-M, Western Michigan, Eastern Michigan and a number of smaller schools. A regional director from California was our speaker and challenged students to consider all things as loss compared to Christ (from Philippians 3:7-8). It was a challenging weekend for students not only spiritually but also physically as they stayed up late talking, made midnight runs to Steak ‘N’ Shake, played football on Saturday afternoon or took a brisk 6 mile run with Nate around the lake.

 Merry Christmas!

We are very thankful for your prayers and you support of our ministry! You play such an important part in allowing us to lift up the name of Jesus Christ on this campus where so many students do not acknowledge him as God come to earth as a man.  Have a very merry Christmas!

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