Decoding a campus is one of the best ways to begin reaching students on a new campus. By decoding, we mean prayerfully scoping out, surveying, and gathering information about a campus.
The key is to get an understanding of what God is doing and where He wants to work so that we can partner with Him in all that He is already doing on campus. Before we get to the top ten ways to decode, let’s look at an example in Scripture.
Nehemiah is known as the man of God who rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem. Before he accomplished this task, he first heard a report from men who had surveyed Jerusalem.
They told Nehemiah: “Those who survived the exile and are back in the province are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire” (Neh 1:3). Because of this news, Nehemiah then gets permission to go to Jerusalem.
Instead of immediately acting, he also does some decoding. “By night I went out through the Valley Gate…examining the walls of Jerusalem, which had been broken down, and its gates, which had been destroyed by fire…so I went up the valley by night, examining the wall. Then I said to the people, ‘You see the trouble we are in: Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned with fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace'” (Neh 2:13-17)
As we trust God to launch spiritual movements of Jesus followers on every campus, one of the best first steps is to “decode a campus.”
TOP TEN WAYS TO DECODE A NEW CAMPUS
- Prayer walking: Praying on site with insight for God to work and for God to give us a vision, a burden, and ideas. Nehemiah, after hearing the news about Jerusalem, sat down, wept, and prayed when he saw and felt a burden. The Holy Spirit will give you an emotional and spiritual burden as you pray.
- Gather Lots of Information: Maps, brochures, catalogues, list of student organizations on campus, majors, hours of the student union, requirements to become a student organization, etc. Get a copy of the academic school calendar to see key dates.
- Ask People Questions: Beyond just gathering written information, one of the best steps is to ask students/staff about the campus. Tell them you’re considering starting a Christian student organization and that you want to learn more about the campus. You’ll likely learn people’s spiritual interest, but hopefully you can learn where students gather for fun, where they eat, what is the most popular major, when the most students are on campus, etc.
- Look for Great Commission resources: God’s people are here! Look for Christian students, a church, Christian group, or Christian faculty/staff. You can ask people: “Do you know any students who go to a Bible study or church?”
- Get pictures of the campus: Take pictures of the places where people hang out or study. Consider taking pictures of what you deem to be key spots on campus. Send these pictures to friends or Cru staff to ask them to pray for this new campus.
- Where do people live: Find out if most people live on or off campus. If people live off-campus, do they drive or walk? Is the student population mostly commuters?
- University Studies: What are the academic rigors of this campus?What is the campus known for academically?
- Student life: What do they do for fun? Where are the spots students hang out most? What sports or activities are big? What organizations, associations, or sub-cultures are most popular on campus?
- Evangelism: God is already working on campus and you don’t need to be a recognized student group to do evangelism. Bring surveys or other outreach materials to ask people questions about their spiritual life. Maybe God will lead you into a great spiritual conversation or even lead you to someone who is already a Christian looking for fellowship.
- Find a Person of Peace: Luke 10:1-12 gives us insight into how Jesus sent out His disciples to new areas. He told them to look for receptive people who would care for them and help them to understand the land. We are trusting God to find people on campus that are receptive to us and to our message. Ideally these people might be used by God to reach their social community and be the core of a future transformational community. However, they could even be non-Christians who are receptive and influential and are willing to help us understand the campus.
We believe that God is already at work on every campus and that He desires for every student everywhere to have an opportunity to hear the gospel and grow in their faith. One of the best ways to accomplish this is through groups of students intentionally growing and sharing their faith on every campus. And one of the first steps to gathering a group like this, is through the process of prayerfully decoding a campus.
To find a campus near you that still needs a movement to be decoded and launched, check out everycampus.com. It is a collaborative venture of multiple ministries to mobilize prayer and gospel movements to reach every campus in the country.