Yesterday I took a general look at the student work I have been involved in. Now I want to reflect on the home student context, i.e. the majority student community in the places that I have visited. My perception is going to be biased towards those I spent more time with, i.e. those who showed more interest in what was going on. The British students that I talked with often seemed to sense both the supreme importance of the message and the cost involved in accepting it. I do not recall any conversation I had with a British student being flippant.
My perception of the students in the Netherlands, however, was not the same. Of course, my experience in Utrecht was short so I may be wrong, but my hunch is that it is harder to attract students to events there. Perhaps, then, Dutch students are lagging behind their British counterparts. Not that they are further back – if anything it is the other way around – but they do not show the same interest. Perhaps because there is more nominal Christianity there still.
I would characterise many of the British students I met as ignorant, curious, reserved, and longing. Let me explain.
Many students at our universities have never heard a presentation of the claims of the gospel before. A core goal of the events weeks is to inform those who are ignorant. There can be no commitment to Christ if there is almost no knowledge of who he claimed to be. I had nearly an hour with a young man from a bicultural background who knew very little indeed and asked lots of thoughtful questions. Some may be tempted to dumb down their answers to such questions. But if someone asks penetrating questions about the Trinity it is important to be able to answer that question and show from the Bible where such an idea comes from.
Ignorance is matched by curiosity. Students see the marquee and wonder what it is that drives some of their peers to want to be so public about their beliefs. So many of them want to visit to find out more. But their curiosity is tempered by a reserve. I think there is a real fear of rejection or at least embarrassment. That can be overcome through personal contact: it is best if someone they know invites them along, but even being given a flyer by a friendly stranger can be a significant moment.
The CU member in charge of flyers this year at Dundee was far from God a year ago. Someone handed him a flyer, he stuffed it in his pocket, and went on a night out. In the early hours, walking back to his room and realising the hollowness of having just slept with a woman whose name he didn’t even know, he came across the flyer, found his way to an event the next day, and came to Christ.
That is unusual. Most of those who profess faith do so in the weeks and months following the events. It takes time to learn even the basics, when you are starting so far back. The follow up arrangements, then, are vital; groups to look further at Uncover John or Mark, for example, seem to be just right for many who have started on a journey to faith. As is also the offer to be taken to church, especially on the Sunday following. It is important, therefore, that every effort must be taken to ensure that the CU doesn’t take off for a weekend away immediately following the week. I know it is difficult in some situations to avoid this, but it is such an important time for continuity of witness.
I think there is also a longingin many for the message of Jesus to be real. But what prevents a student from immediate acceptance of the message, when it is presented so cogently and winsomely? Could it be that so many of our young people have had their hopes dashed too many times already? Is it the pain of family breakdown, or the broken promises of a friend, or the dispiriting effects of a lifetime of social media? For the most part I have not found the students attending events to be hard-nosed cynics. They are sceptical, to be sure, but not in a bad way. They throw out questions, but my impression is that these are not usually with the goal of tripping someone up.
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