The Student Ministries at Calvary Church exist to encourage young people to respond in faithfulness to who Jesus is, what God has done for them, and who they are in Christ.
Living such a faithful and biblically holistic life involves much more than attendance at church. The goal is beyond encouraging young people to go to church – rather, it is to be the church – which is to recognize that we are to be a blessing people sent by God in His mission to serve others as He brings people into relationship with Himself.
A ministry to students comes out of that which is entrusted to the people of God. It is the responsibility in families for parents to model love for God and neighbor before their children. It is the responsibility of spiritual leaders in the context of their communities to train and equip people to live with such a missional emphasis in being both a “sent” and “sending” people that loves God and neighbor. This priority is emphasized in the whole of Scripture, from Moses to Jesus:
Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up (from the Shema in Deuteronomy 6).
As we help encourage students to respond in faith to God’s missional work, we help them to become disciple-makers themselves as they follow Jesus. We seek to instill in them the following qualities:
- Compassion for community (caring for others)
- Activity that imparts hope (abiding in the Word of God)
- Passion for serving others (prayerful in direction)
- Teachable in disposition (training in responding to life challenges)
- Integrity of character (integrity and wholeness in all of life)
- Vigorous in giving back (vitality in ministry)
- Enthusiasm for life (enthusiasm for God’s mission)