Supporting and Motivating College Students in the Church

The Millennial generation (ages 18-29) is hurting spiritually. The Barna Group conducted a 2011 study on how Millennials with a Christian background would describe their spiritual journeys. Here’s what they learned: 59% have dropped out of church after going regularly; 50% are significantly frustrated about their faith; 57% are less active in church today than they were at 15; and 38% have experienced periods of time where they significantly doubted their faith (For more info on why, check out the book "You Lost Me" by David Kinnaman).

With this in mind, how can the Church effectively support, motivate, and disciple what seems to be a spiritually indifferent generation? Here are three suggestions:

Build relationships: one of the primary ways the Church can uphold this generation of college students is by spending time with them and investing in their lives. Here are a few practical examples of how this can be done: have them over for dinner; offer to do their laundry (detergent and fabric softener aren’t included in tuition); bless them with a gift card (Wal-Mart/gas cards are in high demand). At the end of the day, they simply want to know that we care. Much of why the disciples were so bought in to Jesus was simply because he cared about them. College students are no different. They are far more likely to buy in to Jesus when they see the Church making efforts to pour into them.

Model authenticity: the expressed desire for authenticity is pretty well unanimous among college students. Many are likely to view authenticity as today’s highest virtue. Without visibility, words like life-change, grace, and discipleship become nothing more than a theoretical “pie in the sky” sales pitch. In order to be effective in reaching them, we must be transparent with our own struggles and graceful in how we respond to theirs. Your typical college student will feel ostracized by the Christian who acts as if they have it all together. Quite frankly, they are appalled by pretense. If we want to reach them, we must be real with them.

Prioritize service: college students want to make a difference.  Simply hearing about life change isn’t really enough; they want to be involved in it. This is why they find missional initiatives such as “Love Loud” to be so appealing. College students are much more likely to go all in with the Church that is intentional about displaying the love of Jesus in their community through service and outreach.

The commitment that is required to reach this generation is nothing new. Discipleship always has and always will demand sacrifice. Here’s one of the many reasons that I believe the sacrifice is worth it: when I reflect on the eternal impact that many college students are having on their campus communities in WNC alone, I become more and more convinced that the Church of Jesus Christ is and will continue to be in good hands for many years to come. This may even be the generation that finishes the mission of God’s great Kingdom by spreading the Gospel “to the end of the earth.” Consider this as an invitation to join me in praying for such a good and glorious end.