Collegiate Collective

David Worcester talks about having a vision for multiplying your ministry beyond a single campus.

When we started our ministry at San Diego State, we realized that we were in a city with 240,000 college students who need Christ. The summer before we started our ministry, my brother Andy and I went to a Hillsong “Encounter” Conference. In addition to epic worship music, we got a vision for starting a new ministry every year before we even started the first one! The process of multiplying ministries has not been neat and easy, but we have seen God use it in powerful ways to expand his kingdom.

In five years, God helped us start five collegiate ministries in San Diego – one state university, three community colleges, and one international ministry.

Here is the most important principle:

 Fill The Field, Not A Room.

John Worcester, my dad, has taught me this powerful lesson about filling a field instead of a room. Most ministry leaders have a vision for a big crowd of people worshiping Jesus and listening to you brilliantly explain the Word.

But a full room is too small of a vision.

We see the college students within driving distance (20-30 minutes) in San Diego as our mission field. We were not content to have one really “successful” ministry on one campus when there are 10 other campuses within our reach.

Multiplying ministries allows you to do what marketing people call “skimming.” There are a certain number of people that you will naturally attract given the style and skill set of your ministry. Once you have effectively “skimmed” one campus, you are ready to go to a new campus and skim. One thing that we found was that it is a lot easier to get 15-20 to people come to a new ministry than it is to add 15-20 to our existing ministry.

Here is a story that illustrates our philosophy behind multiplication: There were two apple farmers. One farmer was very proud of and bragged about one of his apple trees that was so fruitful that it produced an astounding 300 apples! The second farmer was impressed saying, “Wow, I’ve never had a tree produce over 60 apples! But I have 100 trees, so even if I lose one of my trees, I still have plenty!”

Are you seeking to plant one big tree or an orchard?

Starting new ministries is hard but it is worth it. Imagine your city or your campus with a vibrant ministry for every campus and every pocket of people!

How about you?

What are the reliable strategies you’ve found for reaching students on multiple campus in one city or region?