On Mission at a Religious College

God inspired me to enter teaching before I knew Him.

Initially, I decided to follow my father’s footsteps and enter corporate America. However, halfway through my MBA program, I realized I could get paid for doing what I loved: learning, teaching what I’d learned, and writing. Even though I may not be as bright as most professors, through hard work, intense focus, a tailor-made Ph.D. program, and God’s grace (still unknown to me then), I graduated and found employment at a secular institution.

In my second year as a professor, I accepted Christ as my Savior, soon realizing it was He Who led me to a career in academia. It offers a great mission field, with young minds yearning for meaning and purpose. I learned that God sometimes prepares us for His work unbeknownst to us.

After several years of sharing my faith with students in my office and integrating faith with my discipline, I was warned that I’d be denied tenure because these activities were unacceptable at my university.

Consequently, I landed at a Catholic college, an environment offering many opportunities to share my faith with students, most of whom did not apparently personally know God. 

Here, God opened my eyes to wonderful doors of opportunity for me to plant seeds of faith.

These included: 

  • Opening classes by presenting key points from daily devotionals on subjects of relevance to college students like relationships, careers, stress, and money.

  • Giving dorm talks on Christian subjects for Residence Life and for Campus Ministry student groups.

  • Advising Christian campus organizations.

  • Linking course material (e.g., decision-making) to the gospel in optional-to-attend presentations during the last 10 minutes of class.

  • Launching a Facebook page, “Professor Geoff’s Place,” where, among other things, I posted Christian articles and devotionals. 

  • Posting my apologetics lessons on issues such as the Bible’s veracity and why God allows evil and suffering.

  • Giving my Christian testimony to students who wished to hear it outside of class.

  • Weekly passing out “prayer cards,” inviting students to optionally (and anonymously if they preferred) fill them out with their answers to the question, “How are you doing personally?” I promised I would pray for each of them at least once during the coming week. 

In His grace, after my secular university employment ended, God gave me a wonderful mission field at a religious university, allowed me to accomplish some good work for His kingdom by His empowerment, and I am mourning that it is finished now that I am retired.  

Though the need for Christian professors at secular universities is enormous, Christian professors can also find open pathways for fruitful ministry in religious colleges and universities if the Lord directs them there, as He did with me.

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Geoffrey Lantos

Professor Emeritus

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Stonehill College, Easton MA