BSU September Newsletter - Fall Semester Begins

The BSU has finally kicked off and Chloe and I are really excited about the way things are looking for our first year serving Crowder. We had our Back to School BBQ on the 23rd and it was a great success! With help from First Baptist Neosho, we cooked and served a few hundred students and staff and made a great first impression with many of the students. Over 25 students signed up to join the BSU and to be notified about our upcoming Bible studies, events, retreats, mission trips, and ways to serve in the BSU as a student leader. Honestly, we were not expecting so many students to put their name, number, and email down on a sign-up sheet that anyone walking by could look at. A handful of these students came to use specifically and told us that they were looking for a bible study on campus. Praise the Lord, and keep praying for this ministry.
I’ve made a lot of administrative changes with the BSU, including the email, logo, slogan, and completely updating our website and social media. These changes don’t really affect how the BSU operates, but I have made some other changes that will. I have moved our weekly Bible study to Monday nights at 6:30, and we are meeting on campus in the student center, instead of the BSU building. I’d like to break down my thought process for making these changes.
I talked with several Crowder employees who gave me insight onto the most populated days and times on campus. Commuters are not on campus on Sunday, and leave early on Thursday. Most flex students don’t have class on Wednesday or Thursday. Wednesday night and Sunday night, in my opinion, should not include BSU activities because those are the nights when local churches are likely to do ministries and activities. These situations left me with Monday or Tuesday as my options for the BSU Bible study. I had originally scheduled it for Tuesday, but Student Life at Crowder kindly asked that we switch to Monday since most Student Life activities take place on Tuesday night.
As for moving our Bible study on campus, this is part of an overarching decision making process where I have been led to feel as though the BSU needs to be on campus as much as possible. I love our BSU building, it has a large fellowship room, a kitchen, student lounge, and large yard. When I first took office, I had planned to update all of these rooms and buy sports equipment for outside, but I simply felt led away from that decision. After visiting and being influenced by experienced campus missionaries at Campus Missionary Training in Jeff City, hosted by the MBC, I was fully convinced that the BSU needed to be on campus as much as possible. This is what led to the decision to move our Bible study on campus, and it’s the reason why nearly everything we do will continue to be on campus. Several students have told us they are happy that the BSU Bible study will be on campus, because they wouldn’t be able to come otherwise. I think being on campus, in the student center, will increase our visibility and reputation, and will create a more welcoming environment for students. As for our BSU building, our students still have access to it, and we plan to use it for specific events. It will be open for students to use for studying, hanging out, and cooking during my office hours, and also for our BSU bonfires, yard games, and various other activities.
As always, I am open to change and suggestion. We are simply trying a new approach to the BSU ministry that was advised by several local pastors, several Crowder staff, and the students themselves. We will see how the Lord directs.
As for upcoming events, we are still doing our Pie Day on Sept. 7th. Our 417 Collegiate Retreat is Sept. 15-17 in Mt. Vernon. We will also be participating in Wellness Week Sept. 19-21, where we will be praying with students and hosting a worship night, if we find musically inclined volunteers. ​