The Percentage Problem
In campus ministry, building successful student-led movements often boils down to finding the perfect storm of two things – 1.) a felt spiritual need and 2.) a capacity for leadership. Typically, this has panned out to be most prevalent in the middle-of-the-road schools – the Slippery Rock U.’s, the Penn States, the Virginia Techs, — and we have seen much success in these places. Less often striking this balance are the top 20% (often more self-sufficient and indifferent) and the bottom 20% (often more needy and transient). That’s why gaining momentum in a city ministry can be such an enigma – almost all of our schools fall within these top 20/bottom 20 brackets. Never mind trying to build community among students from such vastly different backgrounds and situations!
So to help gain momentum, our tiny team brought in a task force to increase our manpower by 900%: 60 students from further south willing to “fly north” for spring break. Hailing from Radford University in southern Virginia and the University of Georgia, these brave souls (some relatively new to faith themselves) hit the ground running, talking with students and doing service projects all around the city.
Winds of Change
In a brief overview of Bible imagery, the Wind rarely escapes its “Big Bad Wolf” typecast. Though spoken of often, it’s usually accompanied by words like “scorching, scattered, smote, and swept” in verses about vanity, chaos and destruction. I can only think of two occasions – Jesus’ encounter with Nicodemus in John 3 and Pentecost in Acts 2 – where the Wind gets to play the good guy. But this month in DC, it got a star role with two of our visiting spring breakers.
Radford students were the first of our visitors to get out to Bowie State, initially to just cover it in prayer. There weren’t many folks to talk with that Friday, but for some reason, Haley had an unusually strong sense that the Lord’s presence was loud and clear, particularly when the breeze picked up. As it blew, she was struck with an odd sense of God’s love for that campus and the students there.
It wasn’t until Wednesday that Jessica from U. of Georgia would be at Bowie, joining with other Christians there to do some surveys about spiritual things. In the process, she connected with one particular girl and was praying with her before leaving that day. That night at our group sharing time, imagine Haley’s surprise when Jessica recounted that interaction, and how strongly she sensed God’s presence among them when, on an otherwise calm day, the wind picked up noticeably the entire time they were praying!
Things are stirring here in the city. By now, everyone is back home from various spring break ventures and the school year is winding down. But the spiritual atmosphere feels like the hour before a good summer rain, when the light changes quality and leaves upturn and get fidgety. Glimmers of the Holy Spirit’s work are blowing around, foreshadowing movement and change in dry places. Please continue to pray with us for the release of God’s healing, freeing power in DC!
Please Pray For
- The four new believers @ PGCC who came to faith through spring breakers, as well as the ongoing focus groups we mentioned last month.
- We have followed what we’ve perceived to be the Lord’s leading and are planning on staying with the DC Metro team another year, please pray for us as we work out all of the details that go into making this a reality.
- Good closure to the end of the year, even as we prepare for a summer of taking classes, raising funds, and planning for next year.
If you’d like to download the prayer letter, you can download the PDF here.
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Here is the newest Prayer Letter, from this month, March… the PDF is also available here.
I usually enjoy the challenge of painting a word picture of the ins and outs of how God is moving, but this month, I will pass on a letter from a student I work with at Prince Georges Community College. Maybe this email, written to my (quite Caucasian) coworker Bob, will capture the beautiful absurdity of a work of the Holy Spirit…
Dear Bob,
You and the DC Metro team have been on my mind heavy this weekend. I really wanted to come to the bible study Friday, but you would have seen a different me, and I wasn’t ready to expose that.
My mother recently separated and the hope was at the end of the school year we would get full custody of my sisters, but financially this isn’t a possibility and the news was pretty hard to stomach. Furthermore my father announced his divorce Friday morning and now my brothers are moving to Baltimore, so Friday could have been better.
Back to you. I am so proud of you. I thanked God so much. I don’t know if you have realized that you hold bible study with gang members, brothers who have served time, and current drug dealers. Additionally, they are black men. I know it must be hard trying to find a way to relate and at the same time find comfort in these men. Being a black male, to this day, a lot of odds are stacked up against them.
For you to have a decent life and for them striving, it could be complicated. But rest assured, you are on the right track. It is okay that you haven’t experienced some of the same things as these men, you wouldn’t want to. But it gives God more power. I am sure that as excited as you may be, nervous is in there too. This causes you to run to God more. Furthermore because of your vastly different background, it forces you not to lean on your understanding because it may be so limited…
I am here for you. I will not hold your hand, only because I have so much faith in you. But if you need to debrief, or have questions I am here. Sitting next to Antoine may help you. He is a drug dealer, but he is loyal. If he patrons your studies you are good in his book. In the event something should ever arise to make you feel uncomfortable, he is your best bet. And he is a little older, turning 26 soon.
Hope this helps,
Alisha
Alisha is one of the corresponding group of women that I (Carrie) have had the privilege of spending my last five Wednesdays with, and one of the strongest women I know. As president of a student club known to gather a rough crowd, she has recently come into her own in recognizing her social position as a God-given calling rather than something to be ashamed of. While the PGCC woman may not have the same struggles as their male counterparts, more than one has dealt with rape and abuse, miscarriage, prostitution, and absentee and incarcerated fathers. Several are pastors’ kids; several are lesbians. The overlapping combinations of these factors make for very complex stories. But every week when we shut the door, I sense that the Lord is doing something profound at this community college in Largo, Maryland. What can we do but plead with the Lord and try to stay out of His way? Would you please join us?
Love, Grace & Peace, Carrie (& Jayson)
Please pray for…
Pray for the 56 students from Radford & the University of Georgia that we have coming next week to do ministry in the city. Pray that they would see God work, that they would hear God’s call and that they would gain a heart for reaching other students in the DC area.
Pray for the students, both the men and women, at PGCC that Christ would grab ahold of them and pull them out of lives of defeat and darkness.
Pray that we would learn how to bring the Gospel into every campus in DC, every campus is different and they cannot all be approached the same way with this message that does not itself change, but transforms lives!
Pray that as Seniors visit our recruiting website they would hear God call them to the Washington, DC area as well – and that they would obey. (You can check it out too at http://JoinUs.DCCru.com)
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