Friday, December 15, 2006

CCC on CBS Evening News

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Bibles Replacing Beer On College Campuses
Researchers Find Many Students Entering Colleges Say They're On A Spiritual Quest

MADISON, Wis., Dec. 14, 2006
Is the Bible replacing beer as motivation for college students? (CBS)

(CBS) You don't have to look far to see why the University of Wisconsin makes the Top 10 list of party schools year after year, CBS News correspondent Kelly Cobiella reports. A trip down popular State Street says it all.

But these days, another kind of bingeing is catching on, one that is less about beer and more about the Bible.

Rae Gillen used to follow the party crowd. Now she leads prayer groups in the dorm. She made the change after breaking up with a boyfriend two years ago.

"It was just probably the most difficult time of my life that I've ever had, just really sad all the time, really depressed. And didn't really know how to fix it," Gillen says.

She found her fix in Campus Crusade for Christ, a student organization whose services resemble a kind of college party for God. Their membership at Wisconsin has tripled in the last five years.

That mix of higher education and a higher power isn't unique to Madison. Campus Crusade for Christ says it has expanded to 1,200 campuses, and has seen its membership almost double during the last decade.

UCLA researchers found the vast majority of students entering college say they're on a spiritual quest. Nearly 80 percent say they believe in God, nearly 70 percent pray, and they're looking for a new way to explore faith, outside of the traditional church.

A half-dozen college ministries are spending millions to build private, religiously themed dorms close to campus like one in Madison that has an underground passage to the Presbyterian church next door.

"Students will be able to come right underneath and come up and worship in their pajamas if they want," says Pastor Mark Eldson.

What Gillen really wanted was a sense of belonging and a deeper connection.

"People who desired to really know me and not just me as the person who was crazy enough to do something that, after a few beers I was willing to do," Gillen says.

It's not that today's students are giving up the party in favor of prayer. But when the party's over, some search for more than just a ride home.

©MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Wednesday, December 06, 2006

An example of the fruits of recruiting

Here is an encouraging blurb from one of our new staff who joined SV as a direct result of my online recruiting initiative:

"I am so thankful for the Student Venture internet job posting. I would have never known that I could serve God by utilizing my gifts in finance and administration as well as spend time ministering to students face to face at their high school. What a blessing to be able to use my gifts, talents, and desires to serve God’s kingdom and see high school students reached for Jesus. Thanks Howard, your diligent work has provided an opportunity for me to serve God that I would have never known was available. - Scott B/Student Venture - Finance"


Please pray many others like Scott will find out about SV through the internet, see how their professional skills could be used in the context of ministry, causing them to apply to join staff.

Monday, December 04, 2006

Ministry Stats through October 2006

Here is a snap shot of our ministry’s statistics: (These numbers do not include conferences for the summer. They do include all cities reports through the end of October except for 3 cities, whose reports only went through the end of September.)

49,923 = Personally heard gospel (including direct field ministry, internet, and summer projects)
7,455 = Indicated decisions for Christ
1,688 = Total students in Student Venture discipleship groups