Well, another year has come and gone. This year I intended to read and post a lot more. I am not sure I really read more, but I did mange to get a few more books on the list for 2018. I hope you will enjoy this list. There was another solid book by Christian Smith, and a best seller by Rod Dreher. I am also including an older review I did on 1968: The Year that Rocked the World, since 2018 is the 50th anniversary of they year. Enjoy.
Senator Ben Sasse’s The Vanishing American Adult is part blueprint to reverse the juvenalization of American society and part autobiography. Drawing upon authors such as Christian Smith, (see here for more on emerging adulthood), Jeffrey Arnett, and his own experience as a college president, Sasse explores the problems of emerging adults, and how to help them become more self-reliant. His case is laid out in in several chapters entitled: Flee Age Segregation, Embrace Work Pain, Travel to See, Consume Less, and Build a Bookshelf.
While not a book about evangelism, church planting, or collegiate ministry, Senator Sasse’s book still touches on a huge problem facing the church: a rapidly growing illiterate American society which does not understand civic virtue, hard work, and the gift of liberty. Drawing on research Senator Sasse points out numerous troubling points:
According to Sasse, who has a Ph.D. in history, the United States has abandoned its traditional notions of close family ties in both church, education, and work, to more and more age-segregated groups. This segregation coupled with a secularized public education system and a 24-7 internet black hole is leaving Millennials and Generation Z to fend for themselves with terrible results.
One of the ways to turn this situation around, according to Sasse, is to integrate children back into the family. This means families taking more control of the education of their children, while also including them in adult society. This will be a slow process. It will require families to make huge investments in changing lifestyles. The ubiquitous internet and first cousin consumerism must first be tackled by parents so as to model it to their children. We have to ponder, how much are parents willing to change.
Quoting Mark Twain that “I never let school get in the way of my education”, Sasse makes a plea for adults to bring their kids more and more into their world to see what adult work is like. Rather than shield children from work and its reality, we need to be helping them navigate those waters earlier. This means supplementing their educations in highly important but non-school ways such as travel, working with their hands, responsibility taken earlier rather than later, and wrestling with the ideas of great books.
So why should pastors, youth ministers, parents, and collegiate ministers read Sasse’s book? Because the work we have to do as Christians is not only evangelism and church planting. To help foster a functioning society, we are going to have to educate, and mature, a society that is deeply broken in its spirituality, character, and thinking. As quoted by Rod Dreher in his book, The Benedict Option, professor Michael Hamby states: “Education has to be at the core of Christian survival—as it always was.” According to Hamby, there must be a quest for what is true and beautiful. The church must be concerned with guiding the next generation on such a quest.
In some ways this book is too late for college students (though anyone can start wrestling with its ideas). It fits best to teach families and the church how to begin thinking about systematic reform for young adults before they get to college. And for those who are passionate about future college students, I would argue that it is up to collegiate workers to help address the challenge of this book.
Here are a few suggestions to use this book:
Finally, if you are interested in creating a look list, don’t’ just skip to the back and see what Senator Sasse put on his list of 60 books. Instead, take some time and struggle to come up with your own list. But don’t stop there. Set up a shelf, put your books on it and invite your family, church, or collegiate group to start reading.
To hear Rod Dreher on the importance of education click here
If you are in collegiate ministry you need to stop reading about Millennials and start reading about Gen Z. And that is part of the problem. Gen Z is so young (scholars are still arguing about when it began) that in some ways we don’t know much about them. Of course as with any generation there are some “hard” facts that can’t be overlooked. A few examples are the diversity of Gen Z, the size of Gen Z, and the context of Gen Z in an every more secular United States.
If you want to start somewhere with Gen Z you may want to read Meet Generation Z: Understanding and Reaching the New Post-Christian World by James E. White. The subtitle helps one understand his objectives for writing the book: description and prescription. Dr. White sets the generational years for Gen Z from 1995 to 2010. Of course, these generational brackets are much debated. However, I think he is about right give or take a year. Gen Z is in college, either as freshmen or sophomores. If you haven’t wrapped your mind around that fact, you need to start.
Dr. White does a good job laying out several characteristics of Gen Z. They are the most diverse generation, they will be the largest generation, they are recession marked, sexually fluid, Wi-Fi enabled, and post-Christian. From a Christian perspective these are great places to begin thinking about the importance of Gen Z, and how we as Christians need to reach them with the Gospel.
Meet Generation Z is not a comprehensive book, so there is only so much attention Dr. White can give to these characteristics. He gives most attention to the impact of technology and living in a post-Christian culture. I think that is justified.
In part two of the book, “A New Approach”, Dr. White turns to the prescription for the lostness of Gen Z. In such chapters as “The Countercultural Church”, “Rethinking Evangelism”, and “A New Apologetic”, Dr. White focuses on reaching a generation that is post-Christian, Biblically illiterate, yet spiritually open. These chapters give one glimpses of pathways in reaching Gen Z. Much of what he discusses in these chapters are dealt with in more detail in the work of Rod Dreher, James K.A. Smith and Charles Taylor. If you are wanting more in-depth analysis of these topics, I suggest you also read their books. But for a primer on Gen Z, Dr. White’s material is still useful.
On a practical level, Dr. White includes questions for discussion at the end of each chapter. These are great for a group reading this book as a way to get people talking and thinking together. There are also several sermons by Dr. White in the appendixes. These are included as examples of how he has attempted to address the problems discussed in the book about reaching Gen Z.
Even if you don’t have time to read Meet Generation Z now, I hope you will do some research into Gen Z and stop talking about those old folks, the Millennials.
To read my reviews of Rod Dreher, James K.A. Smith and Charles Taylor, see below:
The Benedict Option by Rod Dreher
You are What You Love by James K.A. Smith
How Not to be Secular by James K. A. Smith
A Secular Age by Charles Taylor
To read my take on Gen Z at the Collegiate Collective click here
Aimee Byrd’s No Little Women brings a lot of engaging questions for pastors, laymen, men and women about how “women’s ministries” should be thought of in the church. These questions also plumb similar issues for those doing collegiate ministry. Though Aimee was first drawn to this topic by her concern for the quality of some of the teaching material being used in women’s ministries, she carefully and convincingly goes on to ask great questions about what is a “ministry,” should there be separate women’s ministries, and what is the best model for men and women to do ministry together under a canopy of complementary theology.
According to Aimee the real ministry of the church is the Ministry of Word and sacrament which is conducted by the officers of the church. These are the means by which Christ ministers to His church. If we call everything we do ministry, we weaken the meaning of Ministry. For her, everyone, both men and women, must foremost be nurtured and encouraged through the preaching of the Word and the sacraments of the church.
Another great topic she explores is the term “necessary allies” to describe women. Using the work of John McKinley for her departure, Aimee argues that “necessary ally” is a better translation of ezer than helper for the woman in Gen. 2:18. Rather than send women off to another part of the church in a “separate but equal” track, Aimee fleshes out commonsense ways that women as necessary allies make for a stronger church. Turning to the work of John McKinley again, she lists seven ways women are allies within the church. A few examples are: giving wise instruction and counsel; responding to God as examples of faithfulness; and as cobelligerents against evil enemies. This does not mean that men and women should not have time to be in their own groups, rather it means we should not see separate groups as the normal means of how Ministry should be.
But it is not just being necessary allies that is important, Aimee also points out that women need to be competent allies as well. That means having good training in theology, education, general knowledge, and resources. It also means that they should be given the chance to be competent allies working alongside the men in the church. Women can be much more than bakers and nursery leaders. They can be great teachers, writers, and counselors within the church as well.
So, how does No Little Women, relate to collegiate M/ministry? Let’s think about a few questions.
First, fifty-seven percent of students in the U.S. are female. How are we going to reach them, equip them, and disciple them, when most of the staff in collegiate ministries (dare I use the word) are male?
Second, if a church or parachurch does have female staff, are they running a separate “women’s ministry” style model, or are they also allowing female staff to help plan, prepare, and promote the work of the whole ministry in a collaborative way?
Third, are female staff being given the same amount of time and resources to equip them to be better leaders, thinkers, and theologians for the whole ministry?
Fourth, are the female staff being given opportunities to utilize their gifts for God’s glory?
I hope that if you are struggling with the right mix of male and female staff, or even if you have never even thought about these issues, you will pick up a copy of No Little Women, read it, and talk about the questions it raises with your leadership team. I am sure everyone, male and female, will find it engaging.
I had the privilege to interview Aimee for the No Campus Left Podcast. To hear it click here.
In 2003 a new form of education was born with a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation. It was called Early College, and would help accelerate a high-school student’s ability to begin college work. The first Early College was in North Carolina at Guildford College. Today, there are 113 early college programs in North Carolina, with many others scattered around the country. For churches and ministries doing collegiate work, the Early College concept presents unique challenges and opportunities for ministry: high-school students on a college campus, administered by a high-school system.
I am always excited and amazed when I sit down to do a podcast with someone. This month, however, I was truly inspired when I sat down with Scott Kilby who is on staff at BCM of the High Country in Boone, NC. His story of how God lead him to go into collegiate ministry, and how he raised his support in just six months is a testament to God and how what seems like the impossible can happen. I hope you will spend a few minutes to hear his story and see what God can do to bring workers to the harvest. Here is the link for the No Campus Left podcast.
We know that Jesus came to serve and not be served. His example sets a high standard for us to follow. We all should be servants in some way. But let’s face it, when it comes right down to it, we often are commanding servants, well-meaning but blind servants, or perhaps befuddled servants. This is especially true in cross-cultural situations. Often the way we serve is geared to our own culture and may not be appropriate in another culture. The way we help might be confusing or frustrating to those we are trying to help. According to a study cited by Dr. Duane Elmer, 76% of missionaries are of a “duty bound” personality type. This means they are interested in getting things done and transmitting communication. They are not that good at receiving information or being sensitive to their hearers. Think about that. Those who have the drive to get something done, are often the least likely to listen to those they are trying to help.
Thankfully, Duane Elmer’s book Cross-Cultural Servanthood helps us layout stepping-stones to create a path to appropriate servanthood. Though written for those who are going to be living in another culture, I have used his steps to help train volunteers here in the U.S. working with international students. I think your training and ministry experience will be greatly improved by walking his path.
So what are the stepping-stones that lay out a path to culturally appropriate servanthood? Dr. Elmer lists six overall steps: openness, acceptance, trust, learning, understanding, and serving.
Here is his layout of the steps.
Openness is the ability to welcome people into your presence and make them feel safe.
Acceptance is the ability to communicate value, worth and esteem to another person.
Trust is the ability to build confidence in a relationship so that both parties believe the other will not intentionally hurt them but will act in their best interest.
Learning is the ability to glean relevant information about, from, and with other people.
Understanding is the ability to see patterns of behavior and values that reveal the integrity of a people.
Serving is the ability to relate to people in such a way that their dignity as human beings is affirmed and that they are more empowered to live God-glorifying lives.
Each definition includes the word “ability.” An ability, according to Dr. Elmer, is “something we can do, do better and even master.” And that’s good because we all need to to improve, especially when we are in a cross-cultural ministry.
Each one of these steps has much to offer us in improving our ability to serve cross-culturally, but I only have space to focus on the first two which are needed to begin the journey.
When I was heading up a ministry focused on ministering to international students one of my major frustrations was finding volunteers (both students and non-students) who were “open” to spending time with international students. Many people were good at making meals, giving money, or verbally supporting what I was doing. But it was often hard to get people to actually get in the trenches, so to speak, and do the hard work of cross-cultural relationships. But after reading Dr. Elmer’s chapter on “Openness,” I understand that many people, even while wanting to serve, are not able to be effective due to a limited ability to be open.
According to Dr. Elmer, several skills are needed to be open. These skills are: suspending judgment, tolerance for ambiguity, thinking gray, and positive attribution. To sum these skills up, perhaps we should say that we need more cultural mental “margin” in how we think about others. Perhaps things will not make sense in the beginning, but with time we will come to see the patterns that do make sense in the lives of others. By not writing someone off early in the relationship due to miscommunication, unexpected behavior, or prejudice, we remain open for more understanding and those long-expected “aha” moments. Being open to those who are not like us is the gate to cross-cultural servanthood.
What I like about the chapter on “acceptance” is how he describes obstacles that prevent us from accepting others. He lists five: language, impatience, ethnocentrism, category width, and dogmatism. Each of these obstacles have impact on our ministry to people from other cultures, but one that really interested me was “category width.” Narrow category width people don’t have as many categories for classifying experiences. Thus when they experience something that seems culturally “different” they may just place it in the “wrong” category. This person, this situation, this behavior is “wrong,” so I need to move on. For those with “wide category width” they are able to create new categories for “cultural differences.” You can see how having “narrow category width” sets up conflict between missionaries/servants and those they wish to help.
So how does Dr. Elmer’s steps help us become better servants? Discovering, learning about, and processing these obstacles is a great training exercise to improve one’s ability to be a better servant. Reading through the list of steps and then asking yourself or team questions about how they relate to your ministry will bring out issues you most likely have not thought about.
I could go on and on with the questions, but I think you are getting an idea of how you will be challenged yet encouraged by reading Dr. Elmer’s book. Doing cross-cultural ministry can be an exciting, spiritually rewarding ministry. It can also be a frustrating and draining ministry. But the good news about working with young student volunteers is that you can begin bringing up these issues and improving skills before natural tendencies that make cross-cultural ministry difficult get deeply ingrained in them. Start laying out your steps for this very important journey.
People often refer to stereo when talking about sound and music, but not so often about sight. Stereopsis is the enhancement of sight by using two eyes. Having two eyes allows one to have depth perception that would not be possible with just one eye. Looking at the college years and twenties through the lens of Souls in Transition and The Defining Decade helps us see emerging adulthood much more clearly. Though the two works focus on the same subject, they are positioned from different angles which make stereopsis possible.
Souls in Transition comes from a sociologist focusing on religion and early emerging adulthood, while The Defining Decade is from a psychologist looking at the twenties in general. Souls in Transition is an academic work, The Defining Decade a self-help and motivational book. But don’t be deceived, they both help us see emerging adulthood in sharper contrast.
If emerging adulthood were surfing on a bright sunny day off Oahu, then Souls in Transition would be bringing those relentless waves into focus. Are the waves cresting? How long is the tube? Is the wind blowing offshore or onshore? We just don’t see the individual surfer, but also the forces that propel that surfer. Souls does offer some case studies that highlight individuals much as The Defining Decade does, but the real punch of Souls comes from its tables and charts. We see the ocean.
Souls in Transition is the second in a series by Christian Smith who analyzed and interpreted the National Study of Youth and Religion which interviewed 13-17 year olds. He released his first book, Soul Searching: The Religious and Spiritual Lives of American Teenagers in 2005. Souls in Transition looks at third wave data he has gleaned more recently and specifically looks young adults from 18 to 23 years old, which meshes well with the traditional college demographic. Dr. Smith wants to ask questions and these are the questions he asks: “What do the religious and spiritual lives of American 18-23-year olds look like and why? What are the social influences that shape people’s lives during these years? And how do people change or not change religiously and spiritually as they exit their teenage years and head into their twenties?”
Some of the answers we get are surprising:
*The religious lives of parents are one of the most powerful influences on the outcome of emerging adults.
*Teenagers are still more influenced by parents or other caring adults than peers
*There is little evidence for internal belief without external expression
*Attending college does not increase the chance of losing one’s faith
*Most emerging adults think nobody ultimately really knows what is true, right, or good
*Emerging adults as “sovereign individuals” lack conviction or direction
For all those pastors who have been saying the ultimate responsibility for a child’s religious education rests on the parents they are right. But even if a parent cannot be there, some other adult’s involvement in the life of teenager is highly important for the religious outcome in the emerging adult years. Teenagers and emerging adults need older adults as mentors and guides.
Perhaps some of the most perceptive writing about this observation comes in the section entitled The Cultural Triumph of Liberal Protestantism. Here referring to the work of sociologist N. Jay Demerath, Smith relates how the decline of liberal Protestantism is actually a victory of their theology, since more and more emerging adults have no reason to care about religion. Smith writes: “liberal Protestantism’s core values—individualism, pluralism, emancipation, tolerance, free critical inquiry, and the authority of human experience—have come to so permeate broader American culture that its own churches as organizations have difficulty surviving.” Even though liberal Protestantism has all but imploded, it has won the theology wars by leaving a “who cares about religion” mindset with most emerging adults.
Though we have only skimmed the waves in this review, Souls is a profound book that every leader working with emerging adults should read. Its scope and magnitude go far beyond “college students” to seeing how waves are developed well out to sea. Staff working with youth and parents would be wise to read it as well. Coming in at over 300 pages, however, it is not the type of book most emerging adults will actually read. What is where The Defining Decade come in.
If Souls helps us see with more clarity the waves pushing our imaginary suffer, then The Defining Decade by Dr. Meg Jay, focuses on the surfer, and the decisions he or she makes. Is she turning left or right? Is she about to wipeout? What board is he riding? Looking through the lens of The Defining Decade we see the twists and turns the surfer should make, hold our breaths as they shoot through the pipeline, and rejoice with them as they ride the really big ones.
Though not written from a religious perspective like Souls, there are echoes of the wisdom literature in this book. Whether describing work, love, or the brain and the body, there is a much needed common sense attitude that comes through to the reader. We can resonate with her advice saying, “The church has been saying this for years!”
The main theme of Dr. Jay, is that the surfer actually has to surf, and the earlier the better. After college, many emerging adults tend to just drift on their boards without actually standing up. Dr. Jay wants to change that by lending her experience in counseling to any and all twentysomthings who will listen and realize that their twenties do in fact matter.
Dr. Jay reminds emerging adults about key guides for life:
*Identity capital is important and needs to be cultivated early.
*That prudent life choices in one’s twenties sets the stage for success in later life
*That too many choices can lead to paralysis
*That who you marry is one of the most important decisions in life, and no one in college teaches you how to decide.
*How commonalities and similar likes help sustain a marriage
*That couples who live together actually have more of chance of divorce after marriage.
Those in collegiate ministry can use these books to help them zoom in or pan out to see the particular student or wave as needed. Souls in Transition can be used to help build an integrated ministry from teenager to early emerging adult. The Declining Decade makes a good book for an individual emerging adult to read by herself, and to help parents, grand-parents, and lay leaders understand the zeitgeist of mellinnenials.
Putting these two books together helps us see a way forward for ministry with emerging adults:
*Churches need to be coaching parents on how to mentor their children in religious development
*Transmission by participation needs to replace transmission by entertainment
*Mentoring needs to begin early and continue through early emerging adulthood
*Evangelism must be done beyond the church walls since most emerging adults aren’t interested in coming to a church service
*Ministries can reach emerging adults in their brokenness and indecision through incarnational ministry that is passionate, directional, and healing
These two books work well together helping to balance the tendency by some who think a self-help book can solve any problem, or those who think everything is determined by sociological factors. As Christians we know that God has given us personal choice and a mandate to follow him, yet readily admit that God remains sovereign. In reading these two books, we are reminded of this tension of sovereignty and choice: of the crash of the wave, and the use of a board. Let’s do our part in reading these books to be the best surfing coaches, lifeguards, oceanographers, and weather forecasters we can.
In his 2011 book, College Ministry in a Post-Christian Culture, author Stephen Lutz listed five trends that could shake up college ministry as we know it. I love looking forward at coming trends, but also backwards later to see where predictions were correct or off point. Lutz’s book is about half way through the ten year span that he forecast from, so now is a great time to look back. By the way, he did a great job in picking out these five topics. If you have not read his book. You should. Here are the five possible disruptions in no particular order of importance.
The Higher Education Bubble Will Burst
The rapid growth of Higher Ed was built on the largest cohort of college students ever, plus years of low-interest rate student loans. But that was before the Great Recession. With tuition costs at an all-time high, and loan obligations stretching out longer, people are increasingly wondering if college is worth it. Institutions themselves are overextended and making cuts. The system as we know it may not be sustainable for much longer p. 172
Five year laters there seems to be no large-scale drop in enrollment of students. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, there were 20.2 million students expected to attend college in the fall of 2015. This is up 4.9 million from 2000. Though the 20.2 million is slightly down from its 2010 high, it does not seem crippling. See the data here. But we still have five years to go. Can cost still go higher? Will a flight to community colleges cripple some colleges? We will see.
Technology Will Distance, Disperse, and Depersonalize Connection to Students
The rise of online learning is a profitable boon for Higher Ed, but it’s not an unmixed blessing. The lower cost and easy accessibility of online higher education make gaining a college degree easier for older students with families or those who can’t afford living and learning on campus. But among other things, online students miss out on gathering as a group in a classroom, learning not only from their professors but from their peers. p. 173
Since students will not be spending as much time on campus, it will be harder to meet them, round them up and expect to minister to them in large groups. Instead Lutz sees campus ministry having to go outward and smaller to reach people.
More
The future of all campus ministry may look like what’s happening at community colleges around the country–large but disjointed student bodies, moving targets that are exceedingly difficult to reach. p. 174
This is, perhaps, the hardest to verify in numbers, but we know it is happening. More and more campuses are integrating distance learning with online classes and online tests and homework. Students are able to have a more flexible schedule, but it also shows the fractured lifestyles that we all live now.
Non-Traditional Student Will Become More Traditional
I can say with certainty that on this one Lutz was right on. In researching for Generation Z and North American trends, I can see the non-traditional student becoming more traditional. Lutz sees more of these types of students: older, part-time, more females than males, and a huge change in the demographics of students.
In addition to non-traditional students, we’ll also need to adapt our methodologies to appeal to students of differing ethnic and racial backgrounds and cultures. Many college settings remain overwhelmingly white, but as the demographics of North American continue to shift toward a majority of minorities, Higher Ed is following suit. p.175
In July of 2015 a U.S. and World Report article came out declaring the younger than five demographic to be more than 50 percent minority. It also pointed out the huge growth in multi-racial marriages and the children that are being born to this age group. See the article here. Generation Z is now entering college, and will be the most diverse generation in US history.
Combining with technology, transferable credit, and huge cost increases, more and more students will look at crafting their own academic learning paths that may pull from multiple campuses, and learning venues.
The elephant in the room for many ministries will be reaching an ever-growing minority demographic. Churches, campus ministries, and para-church groups will have to reach minority groups, and transition leadership to those groups to make any lasting impact. It’s going to be disrupting to many groups, but for those who get it, it will lead to more students reached on the campus. It didn’t take ten years to prove him right on this one.
College Ministers May Face Diminished Access to Secular Campuses
In 2010 the campus ministry community was reeling from the Hastings case, the Supreme Court case that allowed the Hastings Law School to restrict clubs on campus from excluding members, even those who disagreed with the club on matters of religion and policy. What followed the ruling was the decision by the California state university system to not recognize numerous Christian clubs for excluding those who did not hold to their doctrinal beliefs. Later, the California university system walked back from that policy. However, in many ways, that drama was overshadowed by the Obergefell case which finally legalized same-sex marriage throughout the United States. That case was quickly followed by lawsuits, issues relating to transgender rights, and a recent bill in the California senate which would allow homosexual students to sue religious colleges and universities for discrimination.
From Bilola University
The provisions of the proposed bill represent a dramatic narrowing of religious freedom in California. It would mean faith-based institutions would no longer be able to determine for themselves the scope of their religious convictions as applied in student conduct policies, housing and restroom/locker facilities, and other matters of religious expression and practical campus life. Though the free exercise of religion is guaranteed by both the U.S. and California Constitutions, SB 1146 would make religious institutions like Biola vulnerable to anti-discrimination lawsuits and unprecedented government policing.
Even though the state senator who introduced SB 1146, decided to pull the bill, we should still be concerned that the bill got as far as it did. In fact, he has hinted that he could possibly reintroduce the bill at a future time.
In looking at these situations and the general trend, Lutz’s speculation seems entirely possible.
Eventually, many more campus ministries may have to figure out how to function without full university recognition or legal sanction. . . . We ought to be working on navigating the coming challenges with grace and humility, adding value and generally seek to bless our campuses, and planning the future model of our ministry in the event that we have to go “underground.” p.176
He is right on this point, but the question is do enough churches, campus ministries, and Christians grasp this point? Looking forward, it seems that the fallout of Obergefell and a tendency to restrict religious liberty will continue, and will affecting Christians on campus tremendously.
What is your ministry doing to prepare in case it cannot retain its RSO status?
Financial Sustainability Will Be Challenged
The next ten years will likely mark a significant decrease in the North American base of ministry funding, as approximately 100,000 churches will disappear. The world War II generation will be gone, and the Baby Boomers (now at the peak of their earning power) will transition from giving to organizations like ours to receiving Social Security, Medicare, and the like on reduced incomes. p. 176
He hit it right on. Though we are only five years from the book’s publication, we have seen the International Mission Board of the largest Protestant denomination pull back hundreds of missionaries from the field, and other data that tends to show a demographic tsunami which will affect church patterns shortly.
In his book, The Great Evangelical Recession (published in 2013, two years after Lutz’s book) John Dickerson echoes Lutz in his concern over future giving in a chapter entitled “Bankrupt.” Looking at stats from the SBC, there were mixed results in the 2015 report. Numbers for members and baptisms were down slightly, but giving was up slightly. But we still have five more years to go. Of course these are stats from just one denomination. What exactly will happen? We do not know, but those doing collegiate ministry would be wise to start thinking out of the box to figure out how to grow staff who can generate income through support raising, or bivocational ministry.
I hope after reading about these five possible disruptions you will be encouraged to pick up a copy of College Ministry in a Post-Christian Culture, and think about how you do college ministry, and what you need to do to get ready for the next five years. You will be challenged.
Campus Parade 