TWITTER

Follow me on twitter. I'll post any good thoughts I come up with (or I'll ask Charlean to give me a few) and post/link them there for your consumption. If you are still new to TWITTER or spend all your time on facebook. Here is a introduction to Twitter.....in plain english!

Video: Twitter in Plain English

Ideas for Connecting with Gen Y

Here is a summary of the article in a nutshell: 10 Surefire Strategies for Connecting with Gen Y (according to marketers)......
1) Respect them as consumers: Members of Generation Y are tech savvy and highly intelligent. Don't talk "at" or "down to" them.

2) Get to know them. Before they will do business with you, Generation Yers want to know that you care enough to find out what makes them tick.... Get out there and talk to them.

3) Look cool and hip: To see what's working, visit http://Apple.com....or Jones Soda Co. http://www.jonessoda.com/index.php

4) Be socially responsible: Generation Y is incredibly conscious about social causes including the environment, animal rights, and world hunger. They want to know that your company is aligned with a cause that creates an emotional connection with them.

5) Be real: Young consumers can spot a phony from a mile away. Don't try to talk the talk if you don't speak the language. Be honest and open.

6) Join their networks: Generation Y will not come looking for you. If you want to attract Generation Y, go where they hang out: social networking sites. MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, Delicious, and Second Life are the hot sites for Generation Y and cost nothing to join.

7) Take it to the streets: Today's youth love experiences. Promotional stunts, product sampling, and rollouts in a strategically placed venue attract the young urban buyer. They thrive on word of mouth marketing, and street marketing is one of the best ways to create buzz for the young consumer. Today's smart marketers use street teams and event marketing to reach Generation Y. For more information visit www.streetteampromotion.com and www.mryouth.com.

8) Give them a chance to win: Generation Y is wild about winning a contest or receiving a gift, especially if it's meaningful to them, like an iPod, a trip to a national snowboarding competition, or tickets to a hot concert. And you'll always be able to reel them in with great java and food. But one caveat: Generation Yers travel in groups so be sure the gift or prize includes enough spending power for them to bring along their friends.

9) Go viral: YouTube turned the Internet from an information highway into an entertainment complex without walls. Video (vodcast) and audio (podcasts) bits uploaded to your site can spread across the Internet as Generation Yers share their favorites with their friends, who pass it along to their circle, and so on.

10) Text them: I hear many older generation leaders saying, "I don't text message. I don't even use e-mail." If you can't connect with their preferred method of communication (texting over email), forget about reaching Generation Y. Learn how to integrate mobile technology in your marketing efforts to get into their networks and be seen. Look at how popular shows like American Idol use texting to vote for their favorite performers, because the producers recognize that their audience is primarily is Generation Y!

Leadership Lift reading list

Here are some books you may want to read if you are interested in LEADERSHIP:

Made to Stick
Silo, Politics, and Turf Wars
Freakonomics
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team
Death by Meeting
Purple Cow
The Tipping Point
The Leadership Pipeline
Good to Great
Developing the Leader within You
The Five Temptations of a CEO
Communicating for a Change
Houdini Solution
Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done
What Got You Here Won't Get You There
Next Generation Leader
The Big Idea

Grab a good book over the Holiday

Merry Christmas to all of you and Happy New Year.

Here is the latest list of "good reads"/podcasts from your fellow collegiate ministers:

Love Dare

C.S Lewis’s A Grief Observed

Jim & Casper Go to Church.”

Essential Church

Again, the MCAP series(with Hugh Halter) has been an invaluable source of enhancing our focus and our direction in ministry.

One book that has been particularly helpful is “The Life You’ve Always Wanted,” by John Ortberg. We’ve used the material in our personal growth, in our college Bible studies and College Sunday school class.

Reading UnChristian by David Kinnamon

Evangelism Without Additives

Continuing to read Leadership Next: Changing Leaders In a Changing Culture, by Eddie Gibbs.

Reading Genesis in Space and Time, by Francis Schaeffer as background for my weekly Bible study.

Vintage Jesus – Mark Driscoll
Jesus Wants to Save Christians – Rob Bell
Jesus and the Gospels -- Blomberg

I listen to three podcast on a regular basis. (Weekly)
Matt Chandler (The Village Church)
Rob Bell (Mars Hill Grand Rapids)
John Piper (Bethlehem Baptist Church Minneapolis) (Desiring God .org)

“Lord, save us from your followers” by Dan Merchant
“Jim and Casper Go to Church” by Jim Henderson and Matt Casper
“Jesus: Made in America” by Stephen Nichols

Get out of the Pit – Beth Moore
The Names of God

“The New Christians,” by Tony Jones
“The Great Emergence” by Phyllis Tickle.

Enjoy the Christmas break!!!!

Campus stories from September

Campus ministry through NCM looks a lot different this year at the University of Idaho. After of summer of praying through and making decisions we have reshaped our approach to the campus by adopting the paradigm of campus ministry through a collegiate focused church plant. Through our relationships with Resonate Church, Keith and Page Weiser and the rest of the Resonate staff we have brought Resonate to U of I. This includes starting a Resonate service in Moscow at 8:30 on Sunday nights, beginning four new Resonate Villages in Moscow, one of which is just for freshman, and developing a team of student leaders who are on Volunteer Staff through Resonate.
We started the semester off with a lot of publicity on campus. We probably passed out 1000 granola bars at U of I, each with a flyer attached with info about Resonate. This alone was quite an experience as we got to see the many ways college students either receive or reject free food being handed out by strangers. No doubt, being rejected when offering a free granola bar was hard at times but when someone would take one and act like it made their day it was a little easier. Some people seemed to be counting on them for daily nourishment as they became regulars throughout the week. This advertisement proved to be affective as we met numerous people at the first couple of services who came because they received granola bar. That was the story for one girl named K. who came to the first service and then to the first village and has now gotten involved in many aspects of Resonate. She is a grad student who just started at U of I and moved here from Montana in August and says she considers Resonate her church home here at school.

We also did a music/magic show with Drew Worsham and Josh Martin the Sunday before school started. We probably had 200 people show up and it gave us a chance to share the Gospel as well as give some subtle advertisement for Resonate.

A large part of what has enabled us to implement this new strategy for campus ministry is our partnership and support from Trinity Baptist Church. This past summer we has several meetings with the pastors of TBC discussing Resonate at U of I and the college ministry through Trinity. We all realized that there was definite need for both approaches to reaching and ministering to students in Moscow in that there are some students that each church will be more affective in reaching than the other. Several of the students who have been involved through NCM the past two years had found their church home in Trinity. In order to continue to minister to these students I have been working alongside the leadership at Trinity to build the college program in the church. This has entailed starting a student led college home group that meets during the week where students share a meal together and engage in discussion prompted by the sermon from Sunday. Also, we have begun a new rotation of teachers in the College Sunday School class that includes a former philosophy professor from U of I, and both the senior and associate pastor of Trinity, seeking to make that time a more in-depth Bible study. In addition, we are currently establishing an “Adopt a Student” program in effort to get college students more connected to the church body through relationships with older adults and families.

This fall semester has been off to a exciting start as we are seeing a diversification in how students are being reached at U of I, and a growth in the number of students involved. Please pray that we will now be able to excel in our ministry to these students and empower them to minister on their campus.

II. An evangelistic story: (one full page on your reporting month)

As Resonate has gotten started at U of I we have started several new Village small groups as well. One of those groups was in need of a location to meet in and an opportunity opened up at the Nuart Theater, where we have our Sunday night service. The lobby area of the theater has been converted into a Christian book store/ coffee bar complete with couches and tables. The theatre, being located in downtown Moscow, is situated among several popular bars and it’s not uncommon for people to drop in randomly either drunk looking for something to do and sometimes interested in discussing Christianity. Well the first village meeting had one of these “drop ins.” Tim, the village leader, told me about how a guy who had apparently been drinking some came in with a friend looking to play a game of chess. Tim declined the chess game but invited the guys to have some spaghetti and join their discussion. As they started talking the more outspoken of the two, “Mike,” began to debate some. Through this, Tim and the others at the village were able to communicate their belief in Christ and challenge them a bit. Tim said that Mike seemed a little more closed off but his friend who didn’t say much seemed to be listening very closely to what they were saying. Again the next week a guy named S. dropped in and ended up eating with them and participating in the discussion. He claims to not be a Christina, though he has a strong Christian upbringing and only recently decided he didn’t believe. S. has continued to come now for four weeks strait and Tim has had numerous opportunities to share with him and build a relationship.

The first sermon series through Resonate has given me several opportunities to discuss evangelism with students during one on one meetings. The series, titled “Beyond the Red Letter,” has been highlighting the actions of Jesus and how we can emulate them in our everyday life. Specifically, we have seen how Jesus purposely sought to get on the same level as those he was ministering to as seen in his interaction with the woman caught in adultery and he saw and spent time with people who were outcast by society as seen in his meeting with Zaccheus. We also looked at how Jesus connected with those who are morning and in sorrow in the story of Lazarus’ death a resurrection. Each of these stories have given students clear pictures of how Jesus related through his actions towards others. This came up as I spoke with Nate. He was asking me how to share with his roommates who he had little in common with. He began asking how to debate with them and I challenged him to get to know them. I told him that it was no mistake that he was their roommate. That building a trust relationship with them and establishing that he really cares for them may help them be more open to Gospel and show them he doesn’t just want to convert them. We talked about what they were into and he said golf. I encouraged him to learn something about golf, get them to teach him something about it. We also talked about not stopping his researching apologetics and looking for answers to tough questions but not counting on that alone to help him share his faith.
I had a similar discussion with Jimmy who as a business major has a study group he meets with at least three times a week. He has established that he is a Christ follower and wants to know how to further influence his classmates. We talked about how he can become more than just classmates and establish friendships with them, getting involved in their lives and interests. Jimmy said he was interested in this and now wants to figure out how to make it a reality. We talked about questions he can ask to get to know them more and seeking to spend time with them outside of class and group meetings.

It’s been encouraging to be able to challenge these students to live out their faith through embodying the values of Resonate of authentic community and missional living.

REPORT Schedule '08-'09

October: Weiser’s, Young’s, Steve Lewis, Andrew Davis

November: Ken Harmon, James Sanders, Tomasini's, Jeremy Johnson

December: Arlette Coumbs, Ryan Moore

January: Chad McMillan, Bo White, Rea Trim

February: Weiser’s, Young’s, Steve Lewis, Andrew Davis

March: Ken Harmon, James Sanders, Tomasini's, Jeremy Johnson

April: Arlette Coumbs, Ryan Moore

May: Chad McMillan, Bo White, Rea Trim

June: Everybody END of Year Report

July, Aug., September: No reports due!!!!

State of Campus Ministry

State of Campus Ministry 2008
Executive Summary
of the Ivy Jungle Campus Ministry Survey
and Implications for College Ministry

Survey Summary:

This year the Ivy Jungle Network conducted the largest Campus Ministry Survey to date. This marks the 4th survey this decade (2001, 2003, 2005, 2008) and provides data on the demographics of campus ministry, statistics on group size, make up, and trends. It also provides data on the longevity, education, and compensation of campus ministers. The survey looks into issues facing students today and provides data points for marking changes over the last 7 years. This year’s survey also provided for some cross referencing of data between church-based, denominational, and para-church organizations.

In general, the survey shows that the first decade of the new millennium has been a strong time for campus ministry. On the whole, ministries are growing in size, health, scope and diversity. Campus ministers demonstrate a commitment to the ministry, a value on their own education and development, and a concern for the generation to whom they minister. Salaries increased early in the decade and seem to have leveled off more recently. Diversity has continued to increase among students and campus ministers, as well as in the number and kinds of groups on campus. However, much of the growth in numbers and diversity parallels demographic shifts among students.

Early in the decade worship (music) played a more significant role in large group ministry. That has given way to service and mission opportunities. Students still seek community and connectedness. 90% of all campus ministries have some form of small groups. Evangelism and leadership development continue to be ongoing challenges for campus ministers and ministries.

Most campuses that have a ministry presence have multiple groups reaching out to students. However, despite the fact that most groups report growth over the past 3 years, the vast majority of campus ministers perceive only a small fraction of students are connected to a ministry.

Campus ministers believe students are under considerable pressure regarding their time. Students are too busy, over-committed, and an increasing number must work in order to cover the rising costs of a college education. Social pressures continue to be very real in college life, especially with regard to sex and dating. Campus ministers see many students struggling to generate a coherent, Biblical world view and to live out their faith in a consistent manner.

On the positive side, students are optimistic, passionate, and coming to school with a great heart for the poor and causes related to justice and the environment. At the same time, they also exhibit considerable apathy, cynicism, and self-focus. Students are both volunteering more in service projects and to help the less fortunate, and spending more and more time on their computers and connecting with friends through virtual means.

Campus ministers are also finding students with less developed leadership skills and general maturity. College is no longer a great step into adulthood, but an extension of adolescence. Parental involvement reflects this as well.

Brief Overview of Four Trends in Campus Ministry:

1. Growth:

84% of all campus ministries have grown or maintained their size over the last three years. Nearly 10% of all groups did not exist three years ago. National ministry statistics also bear out a trend of growth. More regionally focused ministries are expanding into new geographic areas and many groups have increased diversity. Many organizations have taken very concrete steps to increase racial and ethnic diversity among both students and staff. Churches are also becoming more engaged in campus ministry.

2. Cooperation:

This decade has been marked by a growing sense of cooperation among ministries. This can be seen in intentional partnerships among ministry groups, between para-church groups and churches and in local campus ministries. The recent launch of the Youth Transition Network with the collaborative support of a dozen campus ministry groups demonstrates a unity among campus ministries that has not always been common. Partnerships have also increased with ministry groups such as International Justice Mission, World Vision, Compassion, Food for the Hungry, etc. which have all stepped up efforts on campus.

3. Link Between Social Action and Evangelism:

Evangelism continues to be a struggle on campus. In many cases, school rules and regulations have changed how evangelism is done. More importantly, a significant shift in worldview has meant certain approaches to evangelism and apologetics have become less effective in a postmodern pluralistic culture. These shifts have several groups rethinking their approaches to evangelism and even their understanding of the gospel. At the same time, students have shown a significant increase in interest in social action. From Spring Break trips to causes like HIV/AIDS, poverty, and the genocide in Sudan, students have a heart for justice. This has led to a number of new evangelistic opportunities. Community service and mission trips have become entry points for non-believers. Events focused on combating sex trafficking or the World Vision Acting on AIDS campaign have generated great interest. Several groups report a significant increase in conversions. 86% of all campus ministries report someone coming to Christ in their ministry last year. This is despite a continued decline in “evangelism” as a ministry program activity. Creating opportunities for service and helping students see the way social action connects with the gospel will continue to open doors for introducing students to Jesus Christ.

4. The Changing Face of Students Today:

Student populations are more diverse, have had more exposure to the world, and are more connected through technology than ever before. The rate at which social networking took over student communication and relationships has been staggering. Technology – from cell phones to the internet to video games shapes much of life. Impacted thoroughly by postmodernism and pluralism, most students think differently than their predecessors of even a decade or so ago. They have less identity in denominations and group labels, but approach much of life with a high level of consumerism with regard to the experiences that make them feel good. (Christian Smith’s idea of moral therapeutic deism brings this mentality into their spiritual lives).

Students are less mature and more connected to their parents and home than ever before. This has both good and bad implications. Many campus ministers believe students today are less equipped for life and leadership than in the past. More students arrive on campus with issues related to their family of origin (divorce, abuse, etc.) and mental health issues (evidenced by the prevalence of depression on campus) than in the past. Students are working more and have more demands on their time. They seem stressed over finances, academics, activities, relationships, and the future.

Students also show a high level of dis-integration in their lives. They often hold conflicting viewpoints simultaneously. On the one hand, they are optimistic, passionate and eager to volunteer their time for a cause; yet also apathetic, self-focused, and cynical – especially toward the church. They are “spiritual, but not religious”, into Jesus but not the church. Technology has changed the nature of community, where “friends” may only be encountered in cyberspace and never in real life at all. They want to end child slavery and sex trafficking, but engage in risky behavior and serial relationships in their own lives without translating ethical stances from the public to personal arenas. Campuses have become much more diverse, but also niche-focused where many students increasingly surround themselves only with those people who are like them in some way.