One of the most crucial and difficult “must-do†tasks in university ministry involves counteracting the natural outflow of students as they matriculate through their academic programs and into the marketplace. This reality is not conducive to a continuity of ministry so the need for regular, consistent training tops the list that preoccupies our thoughts for trans-generational ministry. Our annual Europe-wide summer training conference is one way in which this mountain is climbed. Another way is our SFC-Belgium leadership weekend. In early September, about 25 student leaders from all four SFC-Belgium groups met together to pray, strategize and make concrete plans to effectively reach out to students on their campuses.
This fall, as the new school year gets under way, we’re already hearing echoes of how students are employing the methodologies they learned during the summer conference and the weekend retreat. For us, this brings the interior smile and warm feeling that accompanies a trans-generational model of ministry and in which we say to ourselves, “These students have had their ‘Aha!’ moment in realizing what it takes to perpetuate ongoing growth and development.â€
