 | PEER MINISTRY |
| PEER MINISTRY |
Campus ministry is an oasis in this desert experience. Those involved in campus ministry seek to reach out to all students, to offer opportunities to grow in their Christian faith and to become whom God intends for them to be. The ultimate goal is to assist students in their development as caring people. One effective avenue to this end is Peer Ministry.
Peer ministers are students using their own unique gifts and talents to minister to other students. By words and lifestyles, peer ministers share their own faith that powers and guides their lives. They can be particularly effective with students who may not feel comfortable in sharing their difficulties with professors, parents or pastors.
Peer ministers introduce students to a unique and vital support system. In the midst of the overwhelming pressures of college life students, through peer ministers, can find a caring community in which they can begin building their own network of friends and contacts.
Peer ministers provide an active witness to the Christian faith. As students reevaluate their life's direction, values and priorities, the trained peer minister can be an effective witness to the Christian faith by positive example of Christian life. In their caring for others peer ministers discover caring is a way of life.
Students are selected on the basis of their written applications and personal interviews to be trained as peer ministers. This training includes biblical study; prayer, interpersonal and leadership skill building; opportunities to clearly articulate their faith; and familiarization with resources available for dealing with specific problems. A minimum of one academic year commitment is requested from each peer minister. It is suggested that students be selected from both undergraduate and graduate classes so that a wider range of students are reached.
The ideal peer ministry program is based on Mark 6:7. Jesus sent out the disciples in pairs so that they could strengthen and encourage one another, especially when they faced rejection. While we acknowledge that our strength comes from God, we recognize that God never leaves us alone or forsakes us. Our God is relational and meets many of our needs through our teamwork with others. Hence, we model our peer ministry in sending out students "teams" paired for ministry according to their sense of call and blending of gifts and talents.
Areas of ministry are determined contextually, but some common ones are:
Evangelism: making initial phone calls and follow up visits to new students and especially to visitors to the campus student center.
Hospitality: providing food and atmosphere that attract and sustain students and developing small groups for support/study
Spirituality: planning retreats and providing contacts/introductions to Spiritual Directors; coordinating a prayer ministry
Outreach: inviting volunteers and coordinating volunteers to meet the needs of the community, e.g., Habitat for Humanity, Neighborhood Services, Bread for the World, Crop Walk, Homeless Shelters
Worship: inviting and coordinating students to serve as worship assistants, ushers, choir members, altar guilders
Communication: collecting the news of the community and publishing a newsletter that goes to other students, alumni and appropriate synodical leaders
Education: planning and coordinating forums where students can discuss and debate with others those issues that concern them and gain knowledge from appropriate leaders to assist in decision-making, priority-setting and values formation.
Biblical Study: establishing and leading Bible studies especially in dorms or apartments where students are likely to gather more comfortably and frequently.
Internationality: establishing initial and facilitating ongoing contact with the international students for mutual understanding of the wider community and opportunities to learn from one another about differing customs, languages and faiths.
Ongoing evaluation takes place in weekly staff meetings with the pastor. It is advisable that the pastor also provides a time of bible study, prayer and conversation as part of the staff meetings. An overall evaluation is conducted at the end of each term.
FUNDING:
It is anticipated that funding for next year might be provided by the following sources: matching gifts from Lutheran Brotherhood/AAL [by means of some special program or activity we sponsor for this purpose such as a "garage sale" or "bake sale" or "concert"]
requests from parents and alumni
requests from selected congregations, especially those from whom the students arise or "home congregations"
Individual stipends vary from campus to campus and depend upon the total number of peer ministers serving, the nature of their duties and responsibilities and the number of hours per week. Hours served range from 6 -15 per week. An average stipend ranges from $550 - $1000 per year. Often stipends are calculated by # of hours per week times minimum wage. Sometimes room and/or board is offered in lieu of partial payment.
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7/3/98 |
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