[Part 3] Finding God & Keeping Him in College || Being the Light

Aug 27

Part 3 of Finding and Keeping God in College I hope will challenge you this school year. As I start my time in college ministry, I have been doing a lot of research. One resource I've found for college ministry leaders said, "Our goal is that every Christian shares their story at some point in their college career." Part 3 of the journey is about sharing your story - directly and indirectly - and what it means to bear fruit.

Faith into Action [and Words]

In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

--James 2:17 (NIV)

If you went to Sunday School growing up, I am sure you have heard this verse over and over again. "Faith without action is dead." Who are we to have this faith and not put it into practice? The way I think about it is this: I was made for every moment. I was born at an exact moment so I would be mature for other exact moments. These exact moments vary from saying "Hi" to a cashier to praying with a widow on the streets of India. And in that in between of those two extremes lies exact moments of my college careers.

What if I would have shown that professor grace, instead of sending a nasty email? What if I held the door for the kid with the crutches instead of running by him to get to class? What if I joined a group project with the special needs man in my class? What if I shared my testimony to my non-believing friends? Faith needs action (and positive words).

Prayer as the Key to Sharing the Word
I have this fulfilling devotional on evangelism called Jacked. In this book, Shelby Abbott, writes a chapter called "Game Time." It is about preparing for "Game Time" - sharing the Word. Notice Abbott uses this chapter to prep Christians for "Game Time," not just to send us on our way.

Abbott dissects John 17. This is the chapter where Jesus withdrew from the disciples and prayed for us all. Abbott translates this into our Great Commission as, "before you talk to people about God, talk to God about people. It really is the best way to prepare in order to see good things happen." Prepare your heart (and others' hearts) before just going and doing it. "A kind of running motto should pretty much always be on the mind and heart of every Christian," Abbott says, "and it goes like this: 'if it's good enough for Jesus, it's good enough for me' (although this doesn't fit on a bracelet quite as well as 'WWJD'). Jesus' life didn't lack prayer and neither should ours."

Building Relationships & Planting Seeds

And remember, it is a message to obey, not just to listen to. If you don't obey, you are only fooling yourself.

--James 1:22 (NLT)

Okay, so you are all prepped for "Game Time." What next? I would argue that next, you should build a relationship with the person you are sharing with. This "relationship" could be a special mission over the semester for you or could be a five minute relationship in the coffee shop. Make the relationship a safe place and be vulnerable to the other person.

And so the moment has come. You share the Gospel and.....nothing. No results. "I've failed," you say. Wrong. Over and over in the bible we hear the analogy of reaping and sowing. Sharing the Good News is not different. Sometimes we are the reapers. Sometimes we are called to prep the fields, others plant the seeds, others water, and final someone will harvest and nurture the fruit.

I remember being called to plant a seed my freshman year. A woman in my small group didn't have a Bible. So I bought her one, handed it to her. She had no idea how to use it and someone else showed her. And that was the end of it. I didn't see a life transform before my eyes, I saw a woman holding a pink leather Bible I used the rest of my graduation money on, that's it.

Fruit
But some times we sow. And oh, the joy that is! The fruit, though, needs to be handled with care. You need to nurture the fruit and care for it, like others have done for you.

I remember sharing the Gospel in the Rutgers-Newark Campus Center with a stranger. She looked at my friend and I and said, "Wow! I need Jesus. Can I have Him?" I got so reap and sow all at once. Though rare, that moment showed me the results of immediate fruit.

But most of us wont' see that. Remember that seed I planted freshman year? That was my first semester of college. Let's fast-forward to spring break senior year. You see my small group prepared the fields, I planted the seed and then 4 years had come and gone. I'm sure there were times of rain and times of drought, but 4 years later I got a Facebook message:

Do you remember that Bible you gave me? Where do I start?

The fruit had arrived. This long-term fruit had blossomed and was ready to be nurtured. Even if we don't see immediate results (or results for 50 years...or not at all), we have to pray for the fruit. Pray that others will care for you seed or later the product of that seed. Reaping and sowing isn't just your duty, but others' too. "Game Time" is a team effort.