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kinect

*my apologies to youth pastors*

one aspect of collegiate ministry (that i enjoy) is that it is not youth ministry. again, no offense to youth ministers, but ym always fights a battle with entertainment (the best youth pastors take this battle head on and do a great job with a huge challenge). but, campus ministers don't have to do battle with entertainment the way youth ministry does. college students have a million things to entertain them...they get involved with campus ministry because they have questions, they are seeking something, they are looking for purpose, etc, etc. that gets me excited in ways that wacky games and cool videos don't.

when we decided to do an event at UMASS-Boston this semester called Kinect with Sojourn I cringed a little. pizza, xbox kinect, dancing...sounded a lot like a youth ministry cliche to me. this probably says more about me than anything else.

nonetheless, we knew we needed to do something as a "middle step" event for all the people we've connected with who wouldn't jump right in to our weekly conversation (which is more of a bible-study type gathering).

in the end, the event was a great success...we had over 50 students show up, we have a ton of people to follow up with, and our core students were super stoked with the energy and excitement of the day. UMASS is longing for anything that brings students together and creates a sense of community on campus. i think we accomplished that.

and i think i learned a lot (again) about how often i can get in the way of what God is doing with my preconceptions and prejudices. God is definitely moving at UMASS-Boston. it is a diverse campus in every sense of the word, and it is the school where the kids who grow up in this city go to get a college education. 

i am humbled and honored to be a part of this work and to help UMASS students on their journey back to God.