Staying spiritually connected

Students receive practical steps to stay accountable during the summer

With summer fast approaching, students are looking for ways to stay spiritually plugged-in without the Liberty University support system of prayer leaders and professors behind them.

Every year, students are given countless resources to help them continue growing in their spiritual lives while at Liberty.

Prayer groups, Convocation and religion classes offer opportunities for students to pray together and be discipled, but once they enter the summer, they lose those resources.

Dean of Students Robert Mullen said that while Liberty offers online resources to help students, there is one primary way for them to stay connected wherever they spend their summer.

Mullen said Liberty offers videos, communities and past Convocation messages online, among other things, but these are not a replacement for a local body of believers.

“Liberty University is not God’s plan for personal discipleship,” Mullen said.

“It’s one of the tools, but the main plan is the local church. Plan A is the local church. Plan B is the local church. There is no substitute for God’s plan.”

In the case of students who already have a local church, Mullen also had advice for them.

“We encourage students that when they get back home for the summer, to go back and reintroduce themselves to their pastor,” Mullen said. “Not that a reintroduction is necessary, but just a ‘Hey, I’m back.’ Tell them a little about how school was, and that you are going to be here for the next two or three months and would like to get plugged in serving.”

He said it provides a foundation and support system for students for when they are at home.

“There’s kind of this sense of spiritual accountability that you’re back under the care of your local shepherd in a very direct sense over the summer,” Mullen said.

Mullen also said that while churches are flawed, they are God’s first priority for spiritual enrichment.

“(Churches) are not all perfect,” Mullen said. “In fact, none of them are because they have people in them, but that is God’s plan and God’s resource.

Rudy Hornberger, a second-year Resident Assistant and seminary student, had similar advice for the summer based on his own experiences.

“Two things: spiritual discipline and get plugged into a local church,” Hornberger said.

When referring to spiritual discipline, he said he meant developing a daily quiet time with God.

“Specifically, you want to get into a habit,” Hornberger said. “How do you get into a habit? By setting a practical goal. So in the beginning of the summer, set a goal about your prayer time and Scripture time, and hold yourself to that goal. Celebrate when you meet that goal, and you’ll build a habit, and through that habit, you’ll grow.”

To access the resources from Liberty, students can go online to liberty.edu/spirituallife/campuspastorsoffice.

Gee is a copy editor.