You made it! You have students mobilized on the mission field and at camps. You just sent this year’s graduates out with a great celebration. You get a chance to unwind from the routine of midweek services, coordinating small groups, and student leader meetings. It’s time to enjoy the summer and think about caring for students when they come home!
While college campuses dwindle to a remnant of students, you as a church leader have an incredible opportunity to care for students when they come home. By all means, rest and reset for the year, but also take advantage of the sweet time you get with these students who have been at another college campus.
Use The First Summer
Caring for students when they come home is different. They’ve been in the grind and are back to rest and reset like the rest of us. There is even more free time available and less stress without a final looming over them. Caring for students starts the week they graduate from high school. Using their first summer to connect with them immediately after high school graduation can change the whole college experience. We would always be at senior Sunday to welcome them into college. They need to know who you are and feel comfortable coming into the group. We would also use the senior Sunday School teachers to help us connect. They would pick a date to all walk over to the college department together so that nobody felt alone. We would also take a group of students to tour the college they plan on attending in the fall. On that tour, we would introduce them to local college ministers and visit their churches. Helping the High School Grads feel a part of the group in the summer will help them even more when they start on campus.
Focus on Fellowship
Students feel cared for when they have a place to belong. Another way to care for students in the summer is to plan a weekly event with a high focus on fellowship. We always tried to do our Bible studies in a home if possible, and if they had a pool, even better. Each week we would eat dinner, pray and study the Bible, and then have fun. In the summer, you should expect the group to change, the first half of the summer will be different than the second half. The first half of summer, students may not be taking a class, or they may be waiting on camp to start or a job to line up. Prepare yourself to watch the group change and adapt to the needs.
Get Creative with Connections
Sometimes, caring for students who come home means we don’t forget them. Students may feel forgotten when they get home and they are alone. One way we connected with students was sending post cards or care packages. If a student is away at camp, we would get our group to write them a note and send it with some of their favorite snacks. We would also send welcome packages with hand written notes to incoming freshmen. This gave the summer group a way to serve and connect with other students. This also meant the world to the student receiving the care package. They knew the group back home loved them and couldn’t wait to see them again.
Plan a Retreat
Another part of caring for students is giving them an opportunity to get away together. We would end the summer and simultaneously kick off the school year with a beach retreat or collegiate week. The beach retreat was the highlight of every summer. We would pile them up in a retreat center in Gulf Shores for a few days. The days would be semi-scheduled with volleyball tournaments and the evenings would end with a worship service and share time. The students tended to make their own traditions, like giving the worst sunburn award and making it a competition of staying up the entire night before we head home. On the last night, students share their excitements and fears about the upcoming year and we would pray together. Collegiate week was the same. It was a time to get away and get to know students from other campuses. It was always a meaningful time to end the summer.
Church Connections
As summer ends, students start heading back to their campuses, ready for another year. If they haven’t connected with a church at their campus, help them find a place. You may have some connections with other campus ministers that would help. You can be their advocate and bridge the gap for them.
Summertime can be the most fun time of the year to work with College students. Plan a weekly gathering, a few fun events and an end of summer sendoff, and your students will feel like they have been cared for while they are home. At the same time, your ministry isn’t starting over but is energized and ready to reach the campus.
Cody Albritton is the Discipleship Pastor at North Monroe Baptist Church in Louisiana. You can follow him on Instagram @codyalbritton.
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