Continuing a series of posts on putting together a Spring Gameplan. Click to read Post #1 on our Timeline for the Spring and #2 on a couple of shifts we made to better raise up a reaching freshmen team.

One of the most effective things we did last Spring was something we dubbed the Leadership Pledge.

Hopefully it’s helpful, if only for the thorough description of how to set up a good 5 Things Discussion (at the bottom of the post).

Here’s how the Leadership Pledge worked:

• We had a speaker from the Travelling Team speak at our first Cru of the spring on how God has used college students to change the world.
• After the talk I stood up and gave a short 3 minute challenge to the effect of:

• Hudson talked about young people who have been used greatly by God
• They put their yes on the table
• This semester you have things pulling for your time and attention
• Will you allow God to use you in the lives of students around you?
• Would you be willing to be used by God here at the U of A?
• Hudson asked the question, “will you be used by God?
• If you’re willing to say yes to that, please sign your name
• That you would lead on this campus for God
• If you sign your name, one of our staff or student leaders will meet with you one on one to help you figure out how you can lead for God on this campus
• If you have a vision for how God can use you here, we’d love to hear it and help you use your passions for God
• Or if this is a new idea and you’re still trying to figure out how God is going to use you in your next 2, 3 or 4 years on campus, we’d love to come alongside you and help you figure out your next step.
• Don’t check it if you don’t want to talk to a staff!

• We passed out VERY simple cards and gave students a minute in silence to sign if they wanted to.

What we did for follow up:

• We trained staff and key student leaders in how to use the 5 Things – what to say to start the conversation (after small talk), what parts to emphasize, what questions to skip, etc (for more on that, I included detailed notes at the bottom of the post)
• We made a Google Doc with all who signed the Pledge and let trained student leaders and staff assign themselves to follow up with students
• We set up 1on1 appointments with every student who signed. Ideally, we take a student we’re discipling to do the appointment with us (Because we want to connect these students to other key leaders. So it will be 2 on 1)
• The Goal of the appointment – Give them vision for living missionally using the 5 Things pamphlet and find out where they’re at in regard to that
• Actions Steps  –
• If you discern that they’re not ready to lead (spiritually, socially, maturity, etc) – Strongly encourage them to get in a Community Group where they can grow (help them find a group that works for them)
• If they could be a Key Leader:

• Job 1: Get a 2nd appt with them
• Job 2: Use your discernment as to the next step.  You’re options (in order of priority):
• Get them on Leadership Retreat (say, “I’ll bring you next week”)
• Invite them to Leadership Hour (say, “I’ll bring you next week”)
• Invite them to M29 Evangelism-Track

A couple notes:

• We intentionally didn’t put Cru anywhere on the Pledge card nor did we push Cru when we met one-on-one. We really hope to be able to help students connect with God’s mission, not ours.
• The 5 Things is really good at setting up all that Cru offers.

• For example, it clearly communicates the need for equipping. “So you want to be equipped? We just happen to do a weekly equipping time on Tuesday nights you should check out!”
• It keeps a Kingdom focus and then we offer Cru as a solution to helping students make an impact for the Kingdom, which is exactly our role. Getting “plugged into Cru” is not the end, but a means to an end- equipping and mobilizing laborers for God’s glory.

Here’s what we did to equip our staff and student leaders to lead a 5 Things Discussion (I think this is pretty helpful):

• The 5 Things is a pamphlet designed to help students figure out what it would look like for them to have an impact for God on campus and for the rest of their life
• Click to view the trainer’s guide on Facilitating 5 Things Discussions
• Don’t have an appointment until you read thru the trainer’s guide and are comfortable going thru it
• The best way to open the conversation (included in the guide):
  • “I’d like to go over 5 key principles that when applied to your life help you figure out what it would look like for them to have an impact for God on campus. And not only that but I believe these 5 things lay the foundation for knowing and serving God for a lifetime.”
  • Before you get into The 5 Things, talk about Surrender (there’s a how-to on that in the Guide). I would use the verse – “you are not your own – you have been bought with a price” I Cor. 19-20 and ask some of the questions from the guide
  • Before you get into the first Thing – Kingdom Vision, I would steal some of the content from the Discipleship Challenge and ask:
    • Before we get into our vision for our lives, what do you think is God’s vision for our lives as believers?
    • His final words on earth are found in Matt 28:18-20 – let’s look at that
    • That is God’s will for all Christians that they would spend their life making disciples of all nations
    • So any plan we have for our lives needs to fit into this greater plan