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SNEC Young adult & Collegiate Congress

Posted in: Events

| by: AUYouth

SNEC Young Adult/Collegiate Congress
September 28 & 29, 2012

SNEC Young Adult & Collegiate Congress (18-35 years):

Sign-up Now

Theme: “He Wants Your All”

It will be a weekend of Faith, Fun, Food & Fellowship at the Atlantic Union College -

338 Main St. South Lancaster, MA 01523- Machlan Auditorium.

Speaker: Pastor Ryan Simpson, Associate Youth Director for Southern New England Conference.

Accommodations: Atlantic Union College – Preston Hall

Room Rate (Flat Fee): $45 per room for the weekend (up to 4 people per room).

Room Arrangements: made directly with Olga at Atlantic Union College - 978.368.2290 or olgairis.torres@auc.edu.

This is a Free Event for Young Adults & Collegiates ages 18-35yrs)!*Make plans to attend this awesome weekend with your friends. For more information go to: www.snecyouth.org/YACongress

Meals: Sabbath Lunch & a light Supper will be provided

Fill Out Registration Form

(This will help us out in determining how many meals we need)

Facebook Event Page:

http://on.fb.me/MFvIxV

Download Flyer

*This event is catered to Young Adults & Collegiates. If you have children and are planning to bring them, please make preparations for them.

25SEP

ADVENTIST CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP SUMMIT FOR COLLEGE & UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

Posted in: Events

| by: AUYouth

ADVENTIST CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP SUMMIT FOR COLLEGE & UNIVERSITY STUDENTS (April 13 14, 2012 @ Columbia University):

College and University students from all over the Northeast of the United States and Bermuda, as well as from different cities of North America will be coming to New York City’s Columbia University to participate in the summit for College and University students.

If you are a College or University Student and have not made plans to be present, you still have time to register. There is no charge for the registration, the event organizers need you to register to plan accordingly.

To register, please click here: http://bit.ly/Hoq6mG

The Program begins on Friday Evening at the Church of the Advent Hope, in Manhattan and continues on Saturday on the Campus of Columbia University.

Locations:

Church of the Advent Hope (Friday night, April 13, ONLY)

111 East 87th Street, New York, New York

Earl Hall, Columbia University (Saturday, April 14)

2980 Broadway, New York, New York

(Enter on 116th Street and Broadway)

Speaker:

Zane Yi

Musical Guests:

Nick Zork, Columbia University Gospel Choir

For more info, please click here: http://bit.ly/Hoq6mG

Lodging Information

If you are looking for a hotel, the organizers of the event are recommending hotwire.com and hotels.com, where they have plenty of rates in Manhattan that are under $200 per night. For less expensive rates they have been recommending a fantastic hostel that is about 10 blocks from campus and offers great rooms and room arrangements starting at $50 per night (http://hinewyork.org/).

10APR

Why Do They Walk Away?

Posted in: Articles

| by: AUYouth

http://www.adventistworld.org/article.php?id=630

\| WORLD VISTA
Why Do They Walk Away? Keeping youth and young adults engaged in the church must be one of our highest priorities. By Jan Paulsen When we consider the course our life has taken, it’s easy to project back a certain quality of “inevitability”—the path we took in our education and career, the life-partner we chose, the family we raised. And yet, this sense of inevitability is an illusion. In that critical early phase of decision-making—in the teenage and young professional years—when so many of our choices have such long-lasting, unknowable consequences, the shape of our future is far from certain. It balances precariously upon a multitude of variables, tipped this way and that by circumstances or opportunities or choice. I look back at my own teenage years and I think: How slim the margins were! How easily could an ill-judged decision, or a coincidence of circumstances, have pushed things a completely different way. And I look at those in our church family—those under 35—who are in the process of making these same life-decisions. They no longer merely reflect the attitudes and beliefs of their parents or teachers. They’re testing these values for themselves—“trying them on for size,” deciding whether they’ll keep them, modify them, or replace them with something entirely different. Then I consider the exodus of young people from our churches, and it distresses me deeply. Why do so many walk away? At the risk of oversimplifying something of such grave importance to the church, I’d like to offer a few reflections that have taken shape in my mind over time, but which in recent years have gained an increasing sense of weight and urgency. In talking about this, we have to differentiate between two broad groups—teenagers, and young adults or young professionals. Although some issues overlap between them, their struggles and experiences are essentially different, therefore their reasons for leaving the church will be different, too. Teenagers Many years ago something happened to a young person who was very close to me. He was struggling with a number of things at the time, and it was not easy for him to get up each Sabbath and go to church. He arrived at the door of the church one Sabbath morning, a little late, dressed in jeans. The head elder who met him there said, “You’re not suitably dressed. Go home and change your clothes.” So he went home and he didn’t come back. And there began his long journey into the wilderness where he has spent a long, long time. Occasionally he comes out from the wilderness, but this is more a reflection of love he has for his parents, and his sense of their unquenchable love for him. Was this incident the sole reason he left the church? No. But for him it was a defining moment when the church said to him, “You really don’t fit the role of someone who should be worshipping here. Go home and put on more suitable clothes.” What difference does the label “Adventist” really make in practice? Many teenagers choose to leave the church primarily because they feel “picked on.” They are made to feel unworthy; they have no useful role; they have no safe place within the church to work through those questions of behavior and standards with which they and their peers struggle. We could make a long list of these: social activities, choices in music and entertainment, relationships and sexuality, their need to express their growing sense of individuality and independence. They’ll talk about these things among themselves, but quietly, with the feeling that they’ll be condemned if they’re heard. How do we more effectively embrace our teenagers? ♦ Make it personal. Think of your own family, your own kids. Does it take much for your son or your daughter to establish “worthiness” with you? Of course not! They are blood of your blood, flesh of your flesh. If we take time to think about each young person in our congregation as we would our own son, or our own daughter, there’s an amazing shift in perspective. It’s only when a teenager feels the same kind of warmth from the church collectively that a child feels within the close bonds of family that we can effectively offer guidance and correction. It has to be personal. This isn’t a task to be delegated to youth ministries or Pathfinders or Sabbath school. It’s my attitude to the younger members of my congregation that makes the difference. What are they sensing from my words and attitude toward them? ♦ Put it in context. Teenagers do and say some crazy things; they just do. They’re teenagers, and doing and saying crazy things is actually quite normal. It’s the nature of teenagers to test the waters, to make choices that rattle and unsettle the “elders.” It may be due to peer pressure, an act of rebellion, or simply the fact that they’ve grown up in one world—an Adventist world—and want to taste, smell, and experience the “other world.” Quite simply, the values of parents aren’t passed on genetically; the teenager is actively questioning and testing—it’s a process that belongs naturally to this stage of their journey. So let’s extend grace and patience and be willing to take the long view. ♦ Remember. Remember: I was there once, and I also made mistakes. Many mistakes! Can you remember when you were a teenager? Sometimes you didn’t feel very good about yourself. You were self-conscious about every single thing: every pimple on your face, every perceived shortcoming, and so you were exceptionally vulnerable to others’ opinions. A word thoughtlessly spoken by an older member of a congregation can have untold consequences for a young person whose fragile self-opinion is easily shattered. Yet a few words of affirmation can have an equally powerful, positive impact. Young Adults and Young Professionals Then there are those who survive the teenage years—they’re still in the pews, at least most Sabbaths. They’re finishing their education, embarking on their careers, establishing families. What makes the difference between those who put down strong, long-lasting roots within the community of believers and those who will drift in slow degrees toward the door? ♦ Relevance. There’s a group of friends, young professionals, who sometimes get together socially. They come from different countries, but their careers have brought them and their families to the same city in western Europe. Some still have strong ties to the Adventist community, others have lost the connection along the way, but they’ve all traveled much the same path together in their education and early life experiences. Sometimes they talk about the church. They ask: How relevant is Adventism? Does it have anything significant to say about the everyday issues of life—about social justice, poverty, and human rights, about the environment, about ethics, the economy, or about the communities we live in? What difference does the label “Adventist” really make in practice? For many young adults, their perception of how well the church answers these questions can determine whether they will stay or walk away. They’re disenchanted with religion that focuses wholly on the time to come and neglects the present. It’s not that they’ve ceased to believe what the church teaches, but they’ve lost faith in the church’s ability to speak meaningfully to life as they experience it every day. They’re frustrated by what they perceive as the church’s unwillingness to bring its moral and theological weight to bear on the issues in society that trouble them most. ♦ Community. But more important still, for some in this age group the church does not adequately provide the community ties they crave. One young professional wrote to me recently: “When someone is struggling, do they immediately reach out to the church as a place they know they will be loved and cared for? Or is the church the last place they consider ‘safe’ to open up and ask for help? Too often it’s the latter.” For generations of young people shaped by the postmodern world, being “right” will take you only so far. You can speak the truth ever so eloquently, you can be correct in every detail, you can cite chapter and verse, but they will still walk away if they do not also strongly sense a deep, embracing warmth and acceptance. ♦ Function and trust. Young adults and professionals also walk away because they are filled with ideas, opinions, and energy, and yet find no room to release this within the church. It’s not that they believe the church is irrelevant to them, but rather they believe they’re irrelevant to the church! So they may stay on for a while—for family or social reasons—but they’ve already “checked out.” A Call to Action I don’t have the words to express the depth of my conviction that we must give young adults meaningful roles within the church. It can’t be mere “busywork,” but we must vote them into substantive roles that bespeak a high level of trust, include them in decision-making processes, seek their involvement in ways that say: “We want to hear your voice.” For teenagers and young professionals alike, “trust” is the pivot upon which so many of these issues turn. Not the kind of trust that says: “I’ll give you this defined responsibility, and after a time we’ll see if you measure up.” I’m talking instead about a trust that frees and empowers young people to be active partners in shaping the worship and witness of their congregations; a trust that acknowledges one doesn’t have to be 40, 50, or 60 to have a passionate desire to serve God; a trust that recognizes their love for the church runs as deep as mine and that they, too, have chosen this place as their spiritual home. Will their expression of these things sometimes be different from the way I would express them? Yes, perhaps. Is there risk involved? Maybe. But the risk of not trusting our young people is far greater. For if we don’t trust them on some level, they will simply walk away. Jan Paulsen is president of the worldwide Seventh-day Adventist Church. PRINT THIS PAGE EMAIL TO A FRIEND SEND US A COMMENT
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29DEC

Like Water Between Your Fingers

Posted in: Articles

| by: AUYouth

http://www.adventistreview.org/issue.php?issue=2009-1505&page=16

i. I’m Jimmy. I’m a recent college grad with a new job, and I just moved 1,500 miles from everything I’ve ever known.

I grew up a Seventh-day Adventist. I pinned felts in Sabbath school and recited memory verses on Thirteenth Sabbath. I worked at summer camp and did literature evangelism. I led out in academy prayer conferences and spoke at my college graduation. For the past 22 years—whether chosen by my parents, preference, or proximity—church has been an integral part of my life. And both logic and tradition say it will continue to be.

But right now, logic and tradition are getting whipped by reality.

Reality says that as I search for a new sanctuary, I’ll only attend a given church three times before I decide whether or not it’s capable of meeting my needs.¹ If it’s not, I’ll go elsewhere . . . or nowhere.

Reality says that one in every five Adventist churches in North America doesn’t have a single child or teenager—much less anyone my age. In fact, the median age in these churches is nearly 60—20 years older than the average American.²

Reality says that as a baptized Adventist since my midteens, there’s a 50 percent chance that I’ll drop out of the church completely by the time I’m 25.³

A quick interpretation of these devastating statistics yields this: today, our church is growing old. At the same time, through lack of cultivation, engagement, and meaningful relationships, tomorrow’s church is leaving . . . like water between our fingers.

Isolating the Issue

We can all agree there’s a problem. Now, the question begs: Why are young adults leaving the church at such an alarming rate?⁴

In the fall of 2008 a group of the sharpest Adventist minds from North America, Australia, and Europe descended upon Andrews University for the 2008 180˚ Symposium. The topic? Reclaiming and retaining young adults in today’s Adventist Church.

Out of the collective research and discussions emerged a synopsis containing the top five keys to keeping young adults passionate about their church:⁵

They must have a strong identity with which to shape their faith.

They must be intentionally engaged by church leadership.

They must be cultivated through authentic spirituality based on a connection with Jesus Christ.

They must be actively empowered in service through evangelism opportunities in both church and community.

The fifth key—tied unequivocally to the other four—is quite simple, yet remains the single most important factor in retaining young adults and reclaiming those who have drifted away: whether with a middle-aged couple or spirited pastor, energetic peer or elderly grandma, if they are going to stay, young adults must have genuine relationships inside their church family.

Notice something about these five points. Nowhere to be found are the often blamed “big issues”—music style and service structure—causing the constant clashing that often creates the generational divides in our church. Go ahead; try to find young adults connected to a church through healthy, spiritually fulfilling relationships arguing over stylistic worship preferences. You won’t.

Worship style is only an issue when meaningful relationships are lacking.

In an effort to understand the wishes of young adults, the Center for Youth Evangelism (CYE) conducted a study that asked respondents to rate the importance of 28 variables in determining their desire to attend a given church. Participants were given a scale of 1-3 with which to rate each category, with 1 meaning “Not Important” and 3 meaning “Very Important.” The top score, with an average of 2.88, was “accepting atmosphere,” while the third choice was simply “community.”

It’s all about relationships.

In his analysis of reasons why young Adventists drop out of church, Roger Dudley found that one “major theme shared by dropouts was that they felt unaccepted.”⁶ Further-more, a study by Rainer and Rainer of 1,000 young adults who left the church yielded the second highest motivation for leaving: “church members seemed judgmental or hypocritical.”⁷

This isn’t a new phenomenon. Even Ellen White observed this in her day:

“Christian sociability is altogether too little cultivated by God’s people. . . . By social intercourse, acquaintances are formed and friendships contracted which result in a unity of heart and an atmosphere of love.”⁸ “If we would humble ourselves before God, and be kind and courteous and tenderhearted and pitiful, there would be one hundred conversions to the truth where now there is only one.”⁹

Young adults want to be accepted as they are and unreservedly included in a community.

So how do we make it happen?

Supplying Sanctuary

As the Israelites neared the Promised Land, God knew that safety and security—especially for those least deserving—was of the utmost importance. So, He directed that six cities of refuge be established, where individuals who had accidentally killed another Israelite could escape revenge through the shelter of an intentional community.¹⁰

Another example of the Bible’s practicality, this Old Testament infrastructure has ignited a flame at the Center for Youth Evangelism—one that is starting to burn bright. It’s called Church of Refuge (COR).

The mission of COR is to “help churches provide meaningful and relevant young adult ministry with the goal of keeping Adventist young adults in the church while also reaching out to those who are not currently participating  in an Adventist congregation.”¹¹ This support ministry is dedicated to helping Adventist churches better meet the all-around needs of young adults.

“Churches of Refuge care about the spiritual needs of young adults,” said Ron Whitehead, executive director for the Center for Youth Evangelism. “But they also care about their physical and social well-being.”

In one church, a young man without health insurance was in desperate need of a root canal. Instead of simply praying for a solution, this church found a dentist in the congregation willing to perform the procedure for free. Like the old adage “Don’t give a hungry man a Bible,” this church understands that spiritual wholeness is connected to all facets of life. This is what being a COR is all about.

In order to become a COR, a church must go through the certification process by first registering on the COR Network (www.churchofrefuge.org). The next step is for the given church to provide a written description of how they are performing in nine key areas instrumental to engaging young adults.¹² Once the certification team is convinced that the church is “truly a safe, supportive, and engaging community” for young adults, it will receive COR certification and be listed on the Web site. To ensure constant credibility, churches must submit an updated annual recertification report.

“Imagine if upon college graduation or a move, young professionals had access to a site where they could see a list of churches geared to take care of their needs,” Whitehead said. “This won’t solve all problems, but at least it gives young adults a place to start.”

The new Web site (launching in early spring 2009) provides more than a reference for young adults and a marketing tool for churches. With forums, blogs, and updated news, the COR site is a vital asset in providing pertinent information and connecting local churches to the parent organization, pastoral leadership, and each other.¹³

“Churches cannot presume that college students and young professionals will choose to spend their free time at church simply because it’s the right thing to do,” Whitehead said. “I love evangelism—but somebody has to start talking about the back door.”

Luckily, the Center for Youth Evangelism is doing a lot more than talking.¹⁴

Just Accept

As she approached the young pastor, her heart raced to warp speed. And why not? After all, she was nothing more than a worthless prostitute. Walking toward Him through the church foyer, she felt the cold stares and raised eyebrows.

I don’t belong here.

Then He saw her. With a kindness in His voice she’d never known, He asked her name.

“Mary.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Mary. I’m Jesus,” He replied. “Are you hungry? We’re having potluck today and you’re more than welcome to join us.”

* * *

Did Jesus agree with Mary Magdalene’s life of harlotry? Absolutely not. But for Jesus, agreement was not, and is not, a prerequisite for acceptance.

It doesn’t have to be for us either.

For too long we’ve allowed differences in age, dress, diet, music, and vocabulary to trick us into thinking we can’t exist as a cohesive community. Struggling over these petty preferences has shattered relationships, lessening our effectiveness where it really matters.

Losing half our young adults might seem like an uphill battle.

It is.

But this isn’t about statistics; it’s about salvation.

Just like the little boy throwing starfish one by one back into the sea; accept unconditionally, love enthusiastically, and your impact will be felt—one life at a time.

Oh, and free food never hurts either.

_________

1According to Ron Whitehead at the Center for Youth Evangelism.

2As cited by A. Allan Martin, Ministry International Journal for Pastors, July 2008.

3Roger Dudley, Why Our Teenagers Leave the Church (2000).

4Young adult defined as ages 18-35.

5A book containing all the papers presented at the symposium will be available this spring from AdventSource.

6Dudley, op. cit.

7See note 4 above.

8Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 6, p. 172.

9White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 9, p. 189.

10Numbers 35:9-15; see also Deuteronomy 19:1-10.

11Ron Whitehead and Jeff Boyd, Church of Refuge: A Support Ministry for Youth and Young Adults (2008).

12As supported by biblical teaching, pastoral experience, writings of Ellen White, and CYE original research. Seewww.churchofrefuge.org for a list of the nine areas.

13Whitehead and Boyd, op. cit.

14For more information on becoming a Church of Refuge, go to www.churchofrefuge.org or call the CYE at (269) 471-8380.

___________________
Jimmy Phillips is Marketing and Communications Coordinator for San Joaquin Community Hospital.Forever a Nebraskan, he writes from Bakersfield, California.

29DEC

Claim Your Campus

Posted in: Articles

| by: AUYouth

http://www.adventistreview.org/issue.php?issue=2010-1505&page=14

he common points between us are pretty limited; so let’s just get those out of the way first.

We’re both college students, sophomores in fact. We go to class too early in the morning, cram late at night, and try to maintain some semblance of a social life.

Oh, and we’re both Adventists.

That’s where the differences begin.

At the beginning of my classes the teacher willingly sacrifices 10 minutes of the period to share a short devotional thought and prayer.

At her school a teacher can get fired for praying in class.

When I walk into the cafeteria for lunch, I have a hard time deciding where to sit—there’s a friend at most every table.

Her conundrum is more along the lines of determining which cafeteria she’ll eat at today.

On Friday afternoons I don’t have class after 2:30. Administration wants us to have plenty of time to prepare and unwind for Sabbath.

For her the challenges surrounding Sabbath never seem to end. This week, her business law class group decided to hold their project meeting on Saturday afternoon. The choice is simple: deny her convictions, or fail her classmates.

On Sabbath I walk with friends the 200-or-so yards to church. We slip in late and quickly find an open pew in the back of the 2,000-seat sanctuary. If it’s a good week, the sermon will catch our interest. If not, oh well; we’re just college students, here four years and then on with our lives.

Her church experience is relatively similar. Sometimes the sermon is engaging; other times not. She knows a few faces—one family even invited her home for lunch a few months back. But mostly her feelings about church are lukewarm. It’s not bad; people are friendly enough. But she doubts they’ll notice when she’s gone. And she will be soon enough. After all, she’s just a college student.

Maybe we have more in common than I thought.

A United Approach

From October 19 to 22, 2009, young adult ministry leaders from North America and Europe converged on the campus of Andrews University for the second annual 180 Symposium. According to Japhet DeOliveira, associate director for the Center for Youth Evangelism and organizer of the symposium, the idea behind the gathering is to share ideas and discover solutions for improving young adult ministry.

“When I was a conference youth director, I often pulled ministers together to think, reflect, and talk,” DeOliveira said. “The idea behind the symposium was to create a think tank that would provide perspectives from across many spectrums and suggestions for the church to consider.”

In 2008 the symposium’s topic centered on retaining Adventist young adults currently attending the church and reclaiming those who have already left. As DeOliveira notes, the 2009 topic was born out of those conversations.

“[In 2008] we reflected on the terrible loss rate our church is experiencing,” DeOliveira said. “We began to take a hard look at where most of our young people are. And, well, they’re on campuses—mostly public ones.”

And that’s where the 2009 symposium began. With the tagline “Reach the Campus, Reach the World,” the 2009 symposium was geared toward reaching students on non-Adventist campuses, from elementary school to college.

However, after four days of research presentations, discussion, and problem solving, it ended with DeOliveira suggesting a new, more united approach to campus ministry.

“I began thinking that if we focus too much on public campus ministry, our Adventist schools will feel betrayed,” DeOliveira said. “But by the same token, when we’re just focused on our own schools, it’s easy to forget that our mission is to the entire world.”

His point is well taken. Why should we—as a world church, as a local church, and as individuals—focus on where our kids are going to school? Roughly 70 percent of Adventist college-age students—whether for financial, academic, or personal reasons—attend non-Adventist schools.¹ That percentage is only going up. If tomorrow every Adventist college-age student decided to attend an Adventist college, our schools would be incapable of taking them all.

We have a far greater problem to tackle. By their mid-20s, one out of every two baptized Adventists—regardless of whether they went to an Adventist, Christian, or public college—will leave our church.²

And where do most young adults spend the years just prior to the drop? Colleges and universities.

It’s time to reclaim the campus. All of them.

The question is How?

One of the things I love about the Adventist Church is our worldwide connectivity. Our structure is a strength that few denominations have. At the same time, I believe that the most essential element to keeping young adults engaged in their local church is, in fact, the local church.

DeOliveira concurs. “College kids don’t need contact from my office, or from the General Conference; they need a strong connection with their local church.”

The Public School Crowd

While at her local church Charisse Southwell has often felt strong disapproval for her decision to attend the University of Florida (UF).

For Southwell this disapproval is completely ironic. You see, if not for reconnecting with a childhood friend during her freshman year at UF, she wouldn’t be at church in the first place.

“Coming from a not-so-religious household, a Christian education was not an option promoted or even discussed,” Southwell said. “I thank God that not all Adventists choose to attend Adventist universities. I cannot imagine how I would’ve possibly connected with God and the church had it not been for those attending [UF].”

Despite the joy she’s found in Jesus, Southwell and many of her Adventist classmates have, at times, felt abandoned by their church.

“The conference gives a few thousand dollars that is split between the six chapters of Campus Advent in Florida, one of which boasts a membership of 115 students,” Southwell said. “Such a small amount communicates that our endeavors aren’t of value. It’s a well-circulated perception that support from our church is not something we receive.”

As far as the local church goes, Southwell describes the church she regularly attends as “more accommodating than interested.” While she admits that the church has allowed the students to use their facilities, the overall attitude the students perceive from members is that when they are not present they are not missed.

Sadly, Southwell says that these perceptions led at least two students that she knows of to begin searching for alternative spiritual venues this past semester.

“These students have begun attending Baptist Bible studies and programs because of the fire displayed by their young adults,” Southwell said. “This fire is in part due to the on-campus support offered by their church. They own a place for congregation, have an on-site pastor, and also receive a sizeable amount of monetary support, which allows them to promote activities to students who desire spiritual guidance.”³

Thankfully, there are Adventist churches and individuals who understand the value of proactively entering the public campuses in their community.

Effective Outreach Means Personal Growth

Throstur Thordarson, who served as a pastor in West Lafayette, Indiana, for six years, believes wholeheartedly that local churches can’t sit back and wait for students to come to them.

“We estimated that there were 200 to 300 students at Purdue [University] who had an Adventist connection of some kind who weren’t coming to church.”

So Thordarson went to them. Literally.

“I actually became a student for one class at a time,” Thordarson said. “I even created a student organization and got the school to offset the funding by participating in [seminars to prevent] binge drinking and [in] other positive campus programs.”

That’s when students started coming to church. And once they did, the church actively involved them in leadership, even voting some in as elders. As a point of order, Thordarson notes that the official handbook of the Adventist Church allows students attending a school away from their home church to hold leadership positions without transferring their membership.

In California, Ron Pickell directs Adventist Christian Fellowship—a nationwide organization that focuses on public campus ministry. He also pastors two local churches.

“In my experience students are more spiritually well-rounded when they are integrated into a church setting rather than just being part of a religious group on campus,” Pickell said. “But too often, students who attend church in their college towns are viewed as visitors.”

To make the students feel at home, the Berkeley church equipped the church fellowship room with game and ping-pong tables, a TV, and other attractions to draw college students.

“They’re here all the time; it’s a connection,” Pickell said. “Building that connection with students while they’re a captive audience is vital. If students are active in a local church while they’re in school, it becomes organically engrained in them.”

At Berkeley, Adventist students have begun to take on the responsibility of leading church outreach in their local community. It’s an initiative that the older members of the congregation have both supported and joined in on.

“Older members need relationships with students, and students need relationships with older members,” Pickell said. “Our students love our older church members because they feel accepted for who they are. When everyone is working together as a church body, it’s a beautiful thing.”

Cassie Nozil, a freshman at Columbia University in New York City, has experienced the benefits of a welcoming church family.

“Having a church away from home has been a real blessing for me,” said Nozil, a native of Florida.

Church of the Advent Hope is proactive about creating a safe place for college students. In a city such as New York it’s been a haven for students from multiple universities.

“I would have never met the Adventist students from the other schools if not for Church of the Advent Hope,” Nozil said. “College is really hard. But when you can go to church and have people who listen to you and welcome you, it makes being a Christian a whole lot easier; because it’s a lot easier not to be.”

Feeling Like a Number

Like many recent college graduates, Mike Martell still lives in the same community where he completed his undergraduate studies two years ago. It’s a comfortable, familiar place for him and his new bride, Vicki, to begin their lives together.

Another similarity Martell shares with many Adventist young adults is his struggle to find a church that feels like home. However, Martell’s experience is one you might initially brush off.

For the past six years he’s lived in Takoma Park, Maryland, home to Washington Adventist University, within easy reach of dozens of Adventist churches, and less than 10 miles from the General Conference world headquarters.

And he can’t find a church to call home?

Exactly.

“A lot of students that go away to Adventist colleges never find a home church,” Martell said.

“I’ve been out of school for two years and I still don’t feel like I have one.”

Though Martell’s struggle may seem unique, many students who have attended an Adventist college have faced a similar dilemma. These students face the same spiritual disconnection as those on public campuses. But on Adventist campuses the problem is masked.

What problem?

Although most students at Adventist schools attend church on a regular basis, few are truly connected to and involved in that local church.

“Most students feel as though church is just an extension of campus activities,” Martell said. “If the church actually came on our campus and invited us to participate in church functions—as opposed to us just hearing about it from the school—it would make a huge difference.”

Chris Blake, who moderated the first two 180 Symposiums and teaches communication and English at Union College, takes Martell’s thoughts a step further.

“Adventist churches on or near Adventist campuses need to recruit college students,” Blake said.

“The pastor needs to go to the campus ministries department with a list of needs that students could potentially fulfill.”

At Southern Adventist University the Collegedale church has done just that, collaborating with students to plan a weekly church service.

“A few years ago we started a program called Renewal,” said Kari Shultz, director of student life and activities. “John Nixon, the senior pastor at the church, meets with a committee of students each week to brainstorm and plan the services.”

As Shultz says, the goal of the additional service was to make the students feel like they’re

more than just numbers.

“It’s very easy to get lost in a congregation of 5,000 people. In order to get our students interested and engaged in the church for life, we need to get intentional about involving them now.”

Blake noted that in Australia—a country with only four boarding academies—kids are heavily involved in church during their formative years.

“Guess what?” Blake noted. “They’re still around.”

Claim Them

In October 2009, General Conference president Jan Paulsen wrote an article for Adventist World entitled “Why Do They Walk Away?” The feature poignantly addressed issues facing teens and young adults and gave practical ways the church can reach them. At the end of the piece Paulsen gives a call to action:

“I don’t have the words to express the depth of my conviction that we must give young adults meaningful roles within the church,” Paulsen said. “It can’t be mere ‘busywork,’ but we must vote them into substantive roles that bespeak a high level of trust, include them in decision-making processes, seek their involvement in ways that say: ‘We want to hear your voice.’”⁴

DeOliveira takes Paulsen’s words a step further, noting that as a church, we must reach into the campuses within our reach.

“At the symposium one of the attendees told me that one day he looked at the college campus across the street from his church and said, ‘That’s my campus; I’m going to claim it.’”

And claim them we must. As a 23-year-old, I’ve seen the 50-percent fallout rate firsthand: more than half of my academy class is no longer actively involved in the church, many of whom drifted during college.

I believe wholeheartedly that we can—must—reverse this trend. Because as Pickell matter-of-factly states, “There’s simply nothing that can replace the connection of the local church.”

See now, there’s something we all have in common.

___________

1According to the Adventist Center for College Faith.

2Roger Dudley, Why Our Teenagers Leave the Church (Hagerstown, Md.: Review and Herald Publishing Assn., 2000).

3Quotes and stories adapted from “Personal Journey,” by Charisse Southwell.

4Jan Paulsen, “Why Do They Walk Away?” Adventist World, October 2009.

________________

Jimmy Phillips, a columnist for Adventist Review, lives in Bakersfield, California, where he is marketing and communications coordinator for San Joaquin Community Hospital. This article was published February 18, 2010.

29DEC

CQ (Collegiate Quarterly)

Posted in: Resources

| by: AUYouth

CQ (Collegiate Quarterly) is a devotional Bible-study guide for young adults, ages 18–35, published by the Seventh-day Adventist Church^®. The topics for each quarter are based on the same topics as the Adult Bible Study Guide published by the Church. http://www.cqbiblestudy.org/

Lessons

First Quarter 2012

CQ Plus, December 24-30, 2011

CQ Plus, December 17-23, 2011

Sabbath School University

is a weekly half-hour podcast Sabbath School lesson brought to you by young adults.

FEATURES

CQ SynapseFallen. No one wants to fall in the first place, but what if it happens again and again? Do we stay down? Lyndelle reminds us that when we fall, Jesus steps in. Read More.

Growing UPWhen Satan strikes, God strikes back even harder. In Him, we have nothing to fear. If God is with us and for us, that’s all we really need. Read More.

The Daily CQIf you’d rather listen than read, then the Daily CQ is for you. Start listening today by going to CQ’s Web site. Click Here.

The Weekly CQ PollRemember to take a look at this month’s poll questions—one for each week’s lesson. Answer the questions and learn what other CQ Bible students are thinking as well. They are also excellent discussion questions to get your Sabbath School class off to a good start. Take this week’s poll.

CQ PlusAre you searching for resources that complement the week’s study—devotionals for small groups, personal study, or a worship service? If so, check out these articles that will supplement your week’s lesson. Click Here.

The View From…Way past midnight, and missing an exit on the highway, Falvo wonders, “What if no one was looking? What if no one ever finds out? What if it is a victimless crime?”

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Prayer RequestsWe continue to receive many requests that are marked not to go live on the Web site. Many of them involve very personal issues. Please remember these “unspoken” requests as you continue to pray for our worldwide CQ family. Click Here to add a prayer request.