The Ministry of Availability

I was asked by my pastor to share about the College Ministry that I am helping lead.  Basically he wanted me to share for 3 to 5 minutes about what we’re all about and ways that people can get involved.  When I began to think about it, I could list out a few tasks that we do such as our meeting once a month and the small group that has formed, but it didn’t seem to convey what we are attempting to accomplish.  

As I thought about it, I came up what type of ministry we do.  We do the ministry of availability.  Most of the things we do create a space for our college students to grow in an unofficial way.  Our ministries are unconventional ones.  We have ministry through texts checking up weekly or daily with our students.  We spend time meeting our students where they are at.  We do campus visits for students that are not in the immediate area.  We will go and encourage our students who are involved in on-campus ministries by visiting their groups and participating with them.  We will go on campus with our students and eat dinner with them in the commons or take them off campus to get away for a little bit.  We will sit with them and study.  In the midst of this we get the opportunity to see how the Lord is leading them and have great opportunities to have solid spiritual conversations.  When we are able to meet one on one with students we have opportunities to open the bible and share scripture.  It is often that on a Sunday I will have the week completely open.  At the end of the week I look back and may have had one evening open.

I simply want God to send me to whom he will send me to.  As Isaiah 6:8 says:

And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.”

The ministry of availability is based on being available and willing to meet the students where they are at.  Though we are not often a large group, we do our best being resources to help our students get involved in different and continue to grow in their spiritual walks in and in maturity.