How much do your college ministry efforts mimic the local church?

How similar does your ministry look and feel with those around you?

Would students be able to make any noticeable distinctions between what you do (on any given day of the week) and what happens in any local church?

And if your college ministry is based in a local church, is it a mini-replication of what is happening in the larger church structure?

And here’s the big question I really want to ask… Should it?

Should our ministries mimic the activities and foci of the local church?

OR

Should it take on a look and focus that is similar (or, in some ways, separate) but distinct from what happens in the local church?

Here’s why I ask…

Depending on where we are geographically located, there may be a number of other ministries that we end up unintentionally (or even intentionally) “competing” with if we all offer the exact same things.

For a long time now we’ve operated off of the assumption that the denominational distinction was difference enough… but I don’t know that’s necessarily the case anymore given how few college students seem to care about denominational theology and/or style.

Now I’m not suggesting we abandon our denominational identities… in fact, far from it. What I am suggesting, however, is that we probably can’t make that the only thing that distinguishes us from other college ministries and/or local churches that students can get involved with.

I think we need to be more intentional to consider the ministry saturation level in our area and allow that to help shape our ministry efforts with college students.

Here in Nashville we have hundreds of local churches that our students can get involved with — and a number of great college ministries that take place on our campus, other local university campuses and in nearby local churches.

I would consider this to be a highly saturated area. Probably more saturated than most. Which means that students can pick and choose from a lot of options — often based on what they like most and/or what’s most convenient.

And while that could tempt us to try to “out d0” our “competition,” I think what I’ve found to be more beneficial is to try to discern what it is that only we can offer.

Given our position at the university, and our connection to para-church and local church ministries in the area, what is it that we can uniquely offer students that these other ministries cannot? Likewise, what are some of the unique things happening in some of these other ministries that we can highlight for our students — instead of trying to mimic and compete with them?

How might this focus our efforts in ways that compliment what students might be able to get in other ministry contexts (yep, cross-pollination — encouraging our students to be involved in more than one ministry context)?

How might this help to change students’ perceptions about the Church and local ministries?

What do you think?

Does this sound crazy?

Unreasonable?

Or does it make sense?

Take some of the pressure off?

And maybe sound like the Body of Christ in action… in some ways we’ve maybe not experienced it before?