10 Things You Should Do This Summer!

1.  Contact the 10 largest churches or youth ministries in your area to get a list of their students who will be coming to your campus.  Find out which ones they might recommend as potential leaders.

2.  Send an invitation to those incoming freshmen recommended to you as potential leaders inviting them to be part of a weekly Freshmen Leadership Team meeting and Bible study led by you.  If the church could not tell you who was a potential leader, invite all the freshmen whose names you were given by the area churches/youth ministries.

3.  If you have a facility or you are a church minister with a meeting space, look at it honestly and seee what needs to be updated, painted, or refurbished.  Ask someone outside your ministry with good taste to make recommendations.  Do at least one thing that gives it a new look or freshness for the fall.  Look at how the new coffee house type places use colors on different walls, etc.

4. Send a one page newsletter with a great picture or two to every individual and church that supported your ministry this year telling them 2 or 3 good things that happenened.  Don't ask for money---just thank them.  Don't forget churches that supplied lunches.

5.  If you speak weekly during the fall, begin a folder with ideas for topics, outlines, clippings, etc.  Then, in July begin laying out your topics and outlines for the fall semester.

6.  Go visit another campus with a strong ministry and take the campus minister to lunch and learn how and why they do what they do.

7.  While you are on that campus, walk through every religious center on campus.  Bulletin boards and signs tell you a lot.

8.  Send out an evaluation sheet to 10 of your students asking them what they see as the strengths and weaknesses of the ministry.  Send a stamped return envelope that they can return anonomously.  Make sure they understand you want it to be anonomous!

9.  If you serve in an on campus minsitry and your campus does Summer Orientations, find out if it is possible for you to have a booth, hand out water as they go by, or have a sign up they will see.  If you serve in a church based ministry, check with the on-campus ministry to see how you can partner with them in such a project.

10. Make sure that you do some golf, fishing, and family time that got shorted during the regular school year.

2 Final Words:

It is not too late to sign up to attend the National Collegiate Ministries Summit in Nashville May 2-4 (only once every 3 years).  What's better than hanging out with 400 to 500 college ministers......besides free food!

Shameless Plug:  Check out my college ministry blog: www.arlissdickerson.blogspot.com for regular postings of college ministry articles.