We don’t know what the answer is, but we think something needs to change. The last couple of weeks, we’ve had over 500 students gather for Fuse, NewSpring’s student ministry, on the Anderson campus. We have huge momentum, and we think that’s going to escalate in the coming months when the new student ministry facility opens in Anderson.

But that’s part of the problem. We know it’s highly unlikely that we’ll have the resources for dedicated space, staff, etc. to pull off student ministry at our other campuses like we do in Anderson. We think something needs to change. But we don’t know what it’s going to look like.

That’s where Davey steps in. He’s our student ministry pastor in Greenville, and we’ve given him some freedom to test drive a new approach to student ministry. We’re hoping we’ll discover a way to help students connect in relationships with peers (the hook) and ultimately connect in a relationship with Jesus (the goal).

Here’s how Davey recently described how we’re initially going to approach student ministry in Greenville:

Tonight we are cranking up what we’re calling Fuse*Groups. This will take place in 4 rather large homes across the city every week from 6:30-8:30pm. At these homes we will pack 40-60 students in a very relaxed and conversational environment. As our numbers grow Fuse*Group homes will spawn new homes. Our MINIMUM vision is to have a home for every grade per high school and middle school.

At these homes we will have some very intentional “hangout” time with students . . . A time of video teaching from all kinds if crazy intense locations . . . And some focused small group discussion time.

These small groups will be divided by age and gender and will facilitate discussion about how the video teaching can be applied to each of the student’s lives.

Then, once a month we will come back to the GVL Campus and, in place of Fuse*Groups that week, we will have Fuse* (a huge celebration and what I will call a “throw down”). You never know what’s gonna go down here so bring all your friends.

Here’s an example of the video teaching that Davey prepared for the initial Fuse*Groups gatherings:


Two A Days from Davey Blackburn on Vimeo. 

Like I said, this is a test drive, but here’s some of the value we think this model will deliver:

  • It puts the focus on relationships rather than production.
  • It necessarily empowers volunteer leaders to build into students’ lives.
  • We’re using homes rather than facility space because they’re much more conducive to relational connections.
  • The once-a-month gathering becomes a big event rather than part of the weekly routine. We think that will create an outreach opportunity for students to invite friends.
  • We think students may take spiritual steps faster if we create environments that revolve around relationships with their peers and their volunteer leaders.
  • We’re able to encourage students to fully engage in Sunday services and serving opportunities without completing with the Sunday services.

Yes, we know. This is a risk. It might not work. But, I love that I’m part of a ministry that’s unwilling to sit idle and watch the next generation become more and more disconnected from the church and their faith. And I love it that we’re willing to try something that may fail in order to find a solution that works.

We’ll keep you posted on the results. In the mean time, what are your recent learnings from the world of student ministry? What trends are you noticing? How can churches continue to effectively impact the lives of students?

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