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Better_Stories

The past week has been spent with three of our core campus groups (Northeastern, UMASS-Boston, and Boston University), as they wrap up their semesters. What an incredible group of students we have! Diverse and eclectic in every way (personality, culture, background, etc) they have come together to tell great Jesus stories in Boston. Here's a shot of each group and the story they are telling:

Northeastern...

I think NEU is telling an "integration" story. They have a unique model where students spend at least two semesters on "co-op"...an opportunity where they get to work and learn in their field while they are undergrads. Co-ops are super important, students stress out over them, and some even find their first "real" jobs through these internships. The idea flows out of the culture of the school: learning happens been in practice. I see these students really working to integrate their studies, their work experience, and their faith in Jesus. It is a beautiful story.

UMB...

I have watched our UMB students tell a "multi-cultural" story. Multi-cultural because we quite literally have students from all over the world in our community: Brazil, Honduras, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and even India! We also have multi-cultural "native" students (Mexican-Americans, African-Americans, etc). That's pretty amazing all by itself, but I actually think the true multi-cultural story comes from the ways these students seamlessly flow in and out of various communities and centers on campus. We never have to encourage UMB students to get outside the Sojourn "box". They just do it. They cross all kind of boundaries and build all sorts of bridges and they do it effortlessly. This is also a beautiful story.

BU

No other campus lives my favorite Donald Miller quote quite the way that BU does. (The quote, just in case, is We live in a world where bad stories are told, stories that teach us that life doesn't mean anything and that humanity has no great purpose. It's a good calling, then, to speak a better story). BU is about as hedonistic, individualistic, and nihilistic as you can get. It takes great courage as a student to insist that life means something, that community is possible, that there are better ways to live. They are telling a story of "meaning" and it too is a beautiful thing to watch.

Well done!