Christian Faith Development for Students on Non-adventist College and University Campuses

155 Pages·2016·1.29 MB·English

by  Ronald R. Pickell

Andrews University
Digital Commons @ Andrews University
Project Documents Graduate Research
2014
Christian Faith Development for Students on Non-
adventist College and University Campuses
Ronald R. Pickell
Andrews University
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https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/dmin/101
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ABSTRACT

CHRISTIAN FAITH DEVELOPMENT FOR STUDENTS
ON NON-ADVENTIST COLLEGE AND
UNIVERSITY CAMPUSES

by

Ronald R. Pickell

Adviser: Allan Walshe
ABSTRACT OF GRADUATE STUDENT RESEARCH

Project Document

Andrews University

Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary

Title: CHRISTIAN FAITH DEVELOPMENT AMONG COLLEGE AND
UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

Name of researcher: Ronald R. Pickell

Name and degree of adviser: Allan Walshe, DMin

Date completed: July 2014

Problem

Surveys show that between 70% and 80% of all Adventist college-age youth,
approximately 100,000 are attending non-Adventist colleges (Dudley & Sahlin, 2010,
sidebar of study in email message from researchers). Social science has long
demonstrated the importance of faith-development in the period of college life. Other
studies have demonstrated the importance of spiritual life and development among
college students (Astin, Astin, & Lindholm, 2011, pp. 276-299). Non-Adventist college
degree programs do not include Adventist faith-development as a part of their regular
college curriculum. An Adventist faith-development process is needed for the spiritual
life and faith-development of all students attending non-Adventist universities.
Method
A twelve-week curriculum (Journey Bible Study) was developed introducing
students to the mission and message of Jesus with primary reference to the Gospel of
John, including the Synoptic gospels, and the rest of the Bible. Lesson guides include
introductory ice- breaker questions (Journey Together), main passage of study (Road
Map) and a small group reflection (My Journey) that meets on a separate occasion during
the week. A leader’s guide (Back Story) was developed as part of the curriculum. Five
basic spiritual disciplines (Five S’s) are suggested as a guide to enable participants to dig
deeper into the study and develop spiritual habits.
Interviews were conducted with random participants from four different groups
who completed the twelve-week Journey study to determine their spiritual growth and
faith development. Participant interviews included undergraduates, graduate students, and
a retired professor/current Berkeley ACF faculty adviser. Participants were selected from
universities across the North American Division including the University of California,
Berkeley, Texas A & M University, College Station, Texas, and 2012 ACF Campus
Ministry Training Institute participants. Seven interviews were conducted from a sample
of these four groups. Participants were asked to reflect on their growth in understanding
on the mission and message of Jesus as well as how their spiritual life was deepened
through the study of scripture and following the five spiritual disciplines.

Results
Participants reported that the Journey study provided a look into the mission and
message of Jesus that was fresh, challenging, and helped them integrate their life in
Christ within their broader everyday life experience. Participants were challenged to
discover that Jesus had a central message—“The Kingdom of God is at Hand” and
already underway with Jesus accomplishments in the first Advent. Participants were also
encouraged to see how open Jesus was to “check him out.” They saw how people spent
time with Jesus before they made up their own minds about who he was. The spiritual
disciplines employed in the Journey study along with the group interaction, enabled
students go beyond Bible study and into a real encounter with God in the person of Jesus
Christ. For many, Journey was the beginning of a whole new relationship with God—one
that challenged their faith and helped them apply it on campus and on into their life
following college.

Conclusion
Participants in the Journey Christian faith development process were introduced
to a Jesus that many had never met before. Journey demonstrates that Christian faith
begins by learning about who God is and connect with his mission and message.
Participants learned that there was a central message in Jesus mission. The gospel was
Jesus’ message, but they learned that the gospel of Jesus was the “good news” of God’s
kingdom breaking into our present existence.
Experiencing the gospel as God’s sovereign rule in the here and now helped
participants integrate their faith in God on campus, at work, in their relationships—in all
of life. The five spiritual disciplines in Journey encouraged participants to have a daily
encounter with the living Christ. Ultimately, Journey introduced or reintroduced
participants to a God who is present in every way and in their everyday life. Journey
introduced participants to a brand new journey with God relevant to their life as a student.
Andrews University

Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary

CHRISTIAN FAITH DEVELOPMENT FOR STUDENTS
ON NON-ADVENTIST COLLEGE AND
UNIVERSITY CAMPUSES

A Project Document

Presented in Partial Fulfillment

of the Requirements for the Degree

Doctor of Ministry

by

Ronald R. Pickell

July 2014
© Copyright by Ronald R. Pickell 2014
All Rights Reserved
CHRISTIAN FAITH DEVELOPMENT FOR STUDENTS
ON NON-ADVENTIST COLLEGE AND
UNIVERSITY CAMPUSES

A project document
presented in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree
Doctor of Ministry

by

Ronald R. Pickell

APPROVAL BY THE COMMITTEE:

________________________________ ______________________________
Adviser, Director, DMin Program
Allan Walshe Skip Bell

________________________________ ______________________________
Benjamin C. Maxson Dean, SDA Theological Seminary
Jiří Moskala

________________________________ ______________________________
Jane Thayer Date approved
TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii

Chapter
1. THE NEED FOR CHRISTIAN FAITH DEVELOPMENT AMONG
COLLEGE STUDENTS ON NON-ADVENTIST COLLEGE AND
UNIVERSITY CAMPUSES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Personal Ministry Context . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Statement of the Task . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Justification for the Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Description of the Project Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Expectations From the Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Delimitations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Limitations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Definitions of Terms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

2. A THEOLOGY OF COLLEGE CHRISTIAN FAITH DEVELOPMENT . . 8

Discipleship as Narrative . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
My Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Story of Journey Bible Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
What Jesus Knows. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
How Jesus Cares . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
God’s Pursuit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
The Mission of God. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
The Never Ending Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Best Practices: The Five S’s of Hearing and Discerning God’s
Voice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
The Invitation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

3. LITERATURE REVIEW. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Part 1: Spiritual Life Climate of Today’s Students and Campus . . . . . 35
Part 2: Existing Models of Campus Discipleship . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Pros and Cons of Campus Discipleship Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

iii