Campus Impact

Living for Jesus in the iPod Generation!

If you were to walk on to a college campus on any given day, you wouldn’t be there very long without seeing evidence of the iPod Generation. Most likely, you would see many students sitting in the union or walking around with little white iBuds coming out of their ears and a white cord trailing into a pocket or backpack. In June 2004 it was estimated that more than 700,000 iPods were being sold every 3 months, and between Christmas 2004 and Christmas 2005 sales for the iPod went up 500 percent! Apple’s iPod is the quintessential icon of this generation.

But the iPod is an icon of something else as well. It is an icon that represents self-centeredness. After all, owning an iPod is all about me — I can put all of my music on it and take it with me everywhere I go. If I don’t like all of the songs on a CD, I no longer have to buy them all — I just get on to iTunes on my computer and in a few short clicks I can purchase only the songs I want for 99 cents each. When I leave class I can put my iBuds in and not really have to talk to anyone else — I can be in my own little world.

Now before you come unglued, let me clarify. I’m not saying that if you own an iPod you are self-centered - I own one. Owning an iPod doesn’t make you self-centered, self-centeredness is a problem of the heart. Each of us struggles with a self-life — that part of my old nature that wants to live for myself. I want to live to make my life better and get ahead in this world. I struggle with desiring the things of this world.

So how do you challenge a group of college students who live in this type of environment almost 24/7?

You put a giant iPod on your stage and design a Bible study that will challenge them to think practically about what it really means to live for God’s glory and put others first. That’s what we’ve been studying together in the college ministry at Lincoln Berean this past semester. We looked at scripture on a grand scale and saw how the Bible is not really a story about me and how God sent Jesus to die for me. The Bible is a story about God! It is a story about His greatness and His glory and His grace and His love. Yes, it is about His rescue of us from our sinful state, but even that rescue points back to the glory of God — “that at the name of Jesus every knee would bow...and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

The first half of our study taught us over and over again that, “It’s not about me!” Life on this earth is not about me, the resources, gifts and talents I’ve been given are not about me. My relationship with God is ultimately not about me — It’s about Him! In addition to our study, we also challenged the students to become aware of the world we live in and how we can represent Christ and make a difference. Specifically, we challenged them to help provide food for the BackPack Program at the Lincoln Food Bank — a program that provides supplemental food to low-income families in Lincoln. Many small groups in the college ministry brought a backpack full of food every week for the rest of the semester! We also challenged them as a group to sponsor the translation of 100 verses of scripture for the Lole people in Indonesia. In this translation effort we worked with ONEVERSE (www.oneverse.org) which allows individuals to sponsor verses for $20 each. I’m excited to tell you that the students fully funded the translation of 1 Corinthians 7:31-11:17 just last week! Who says that college students are poor?

The second half of our study consisted of the same verses we translated, 1 Corinthians chapters 6-10, in which we learned about the following question: If it really is all about God...if life really isn’t about me and it’s all about God’s glory, then how should that affect my life on a daily basis — i.e. how should I live differently? I’ll give you the highlights:

• 1st Corinthians 6:12-20 — You are not your own, you are God’s - therefore glorify God with your body!
• 1st Corinthians 7 — Being single allows you to be undistracted in your devotion to Christ!
• 1st Corinthians 8 — Love should rule the day in my interactions with others and my freedoms.
• 1st Corinthians 9 — It’s all about the gospel! Don’t be disqualified from sharing it!
• 1st Corinthians 10:1-22 — Push Pause and Think!
• 1st Corinthians 10:23-33 — Do everything to the glory of God!

If you are interested in learning more about our study, you can download the study guide or listen to the messages on our web site — www.campusimpact.org.

God continues to change the lives of college students each year at Lincoln Berean. We want to say thank you to so many of you who have supported us with your prayers, the use of your homes and your resources!

If you would be interested in serving in the college ministry, please contact Matt Meyer.

Q&A

Q: How long has LBC been ministering to college students?
A: College students have attended LBC since the church started in 1962. A formal college ministry was started in 1981.

Q: How do LifeGroups work in the college ministry?
A: Real Time is the lifegroup environment in the college ministry. There are currently 23 lifegroups that exist during the school year. New lifegroups are started each fall.

Q: Do college students get involved in the ministry of LBC?
A: Yes! Many college students serve every year in the children's ministries and youth ministries and you can find alumni of the college ministry on the worship teams and in other ministry areas at LBC.