Exploring the Gray: Ministry in COVID-19

Ministry—in any capacity—comes with unique challenges. Ministry to college students during a global pandemic feels like buying a puzzle from the thrift store—and realizing a lot of the pieces in your box belong to a different puzzle.

It’s a weird time of the world. People are sick. People are out of work. People are crippled with fear.

But, as rough as life right now feels, what better time to do ministry? What better time to enter into conversations about hope and peace while the state of the world screams anything and everything but hope and peace?

But a “perfect” opportunity doesn’t mean it's easy.

My husband and I have led Young Life College for years. I’m only going into year 4, but Joe’s going into year 8. We’ve been doing it long enough to have a sense of what needs to happen when. We know how to plan semester kick-off barbecues and invite college students to small groups and intentionally pursue relationships.

But we’ve never had to kick off a semester in which we couldn’t meet incoming freshmen in person, couldn’t host events and Bible studies, couldn’t take students to weekend retreats and large group events.

We can meet with people one-on-one (while social distancing and mask wearing, of course). We can host small groups (also while social distancing and mask wearing). We can host virtual events and group studies. And that’s it.

Everything is weird and different and new. There’s no telling if this way of life and ministry is temporary or if this is the way things will always be.

It’s scary to open ourselves up to small groups and one-on-ones, even with precautions in place.

• What if we get sick? 
• What if we’re exposed to a germ and spread it to our at-risk family members?

It just feels so messy and uncertain right now, especially for people who like plans and structure. It feels like everything is up in the air and we’re desperately searching for a way to bring things back to our sense of “normal” reality.

But, God is not a God of chaos and disorder. He is not surprised or dismayed by the state of this world. He is not frantic.

God’s work can still be done, even if it looks a little different.

In fact, maybe stripping away some of the pre-existing distractions will be good. Maybe it will actually help us focus on what really matters: people.

Ministry has never been about the programs or activities—they’ve just been means to an end. Means that God has used, but means that are no longer available.

But the end is still there.
God’s people are still there.
God is still there.

I don't yet know how college ministry and COVID-19 intertwine. But I have peace in knowing that God is with us and for us as we learn to love His children in this weird and crazy time.

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,
will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:7