More Dreaming About A College Ministry Gathering of All Tribes

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Updated 4/13/12

Still thinking about this… one year later. And I still think it’s a good idea. What about you?

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Well, it happened again. While I was mowing the lawn over the weekend.

Suddenly I found myself daydreaming about what it might look like to convene some sort of event that brought campus, para-church and church-based ministry leaders together for a few days… to think, share, listen, and learn.

If you’re not quite sure what I’m talking about than you may have missed my first post on this from a few weeks ago:

That first post generated some good conversations with college ministry folks from a few different tribes… all more or less in agreement that some kind of gathering would be beneficial for all involved… if done the right way.

So my mid-mow daydream seemed to pick up there… in the ever-so exciting realm of logistics.

  • How far out would we need to begin planning and preparing for such a far-reaching event? Would 2015 be realistic?
  • When would we hold it?  May or June?  December or January?  What’s the best time of the year for leaders like us to come together?
  • Where could we hold it?  Lebanon, KS (the geographical center of the continental US)?  Or maybe Nashville, TN? I may or may not have some connections with a school here. ;)
  • What would make the folks from the different tribes want to attend an event like this?  What’s the incentive to break from their routine conference schedule, or add this one to it?
  • Who would we want to share at an event like this?  How many “big names” would we want/need?  How many leaders from the different tribes would make sense?
  • How might we shape the event?  How much time would we spend in large group vs. break-out sessions? Programmed vs. unprogrammed time? Would we need to have Tribe-specific sessions? Or would that defeat the purpose of an experience like this?
  • What might we call such an event?

So, with all of these questions, I come to you.

Is this a crazy idea?  Or do you think God might want to use something like this to do something in us, through our ministries and on our campuses… around the world?

I’d love to know what you think!

Please take a moment to share your thoughts, or add your own questions to the list above, in the comment section below.

Thanks for being a daydreamer with me today!

 

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About the Author

Guy Chmieleski

Guy is the Founder of FaithONCampus.com. He is also the University Minister, at Belmont University, located in Nashville, TN. FaithONCampus.com is designed with campus and college ministers in mind, and is here to serve as: a resource, catalyst for conversations and encouragement for our shared work with today’s college students.

  • http://twitter.com/campuscc Douglas Wood

    An interesting idea. I wonder if it could be even wider-ranging – and include our boards and perhaps even (GASP) students. Could such an event be done electronically? That is why have umpteen carbon miles to move bodies to one place, when we are talking about sharing ideas – whcih weigh considerably less.

    • Anonymous

      Hey Douglas! Some good questions here. I guess I’d start by saying that anything is possible… it just depends on what we ultimately hope will come from it.

      Now, I will say that to add students to the mix would change the content — I think. We’re so used to catering to students, and they’re so used to being catered to, that we could find it challenging to ultimately have some of the conversations we’d like to have “about” students — because they’re right there with us.

      As far as conducting this kind of event electronically — I think there are times and places for such events (I have hosted a few myself here at FaithONCampus.com), but I think this would be a great event to hold in person. I get to much “virtual” stuff as it is. ;)

  • Anonymous

    i would like to continue this convo, Guy!

  • markkaprive

    Sounds a bit like Ivy Jungle meets Summer Institute?? Neil Postman had a popular book called “Amusing Ourselves to Death” that I used to like. Along those lines, we probably do not really need another typical conference that contributes merely to “conferencing ourselves to death”….so I guess I prefer something more grassroots…something that helps me love God more/deeper and love people more/ better….God’s anointing, authenticity, shared struggles, failed intiatives and best practices, listening, Kingdom of God stories, global/missional view…I also would not mind learning how to have my lawn look like the pic in your blog over a small group coffee chat!

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