Students impact communities with the Gospel during Fall Break

Over this past Fall Break (Oct. 8-12), Liberty University’s Center for Ministry Training (CMT) sent teams of students into communities across the country, meeting both physical and spiritual needs while exposing students to the front lines of ministry. More than 70 students participated, with teams serving in Orlando, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Baltimore, and Albany, N.Y. Another team of 10 students was dispatched to Camp Arrowhead in Brackney, Pa., to provide support at a camp for the disabled. These Ministry Exposure Trips are offered during Fall and Spring Break and are open to students of any major.

Liberty University students on a Fall Break Ministry Exposure Trip to Atlanta reach out to the homeless in the community.

While all groups sought to share the love of God and spread the Gospel, the work varied from city to city based on the needs of the community. Some groups worked with the homeless, others painted and cleaned, and some helped with outreach and church planting efforts.

“Each student got an opportunity to learn intellectually as well as get involved practically,” said Timothy Moroz, CMT lead ministry coordinator. “One of the things we strive for with our teams is giving them opportunities to build relationships with ministry staff as well as the culture. The students experience ministry the way that the church does it, instead of just coming in and trying to ‘show them how it’s done.’ In most cases, the students walk away with a paradigm shift in the way they think about ministry.”

Two teams in Atlanta assisted with church planting in a multicultural setting. Each group had a unique experience with a different Atlanta church.

In Orlando, the team spent time ministering to as many of the more than 70,000 Disney World cast members as possible. Students passed out Bibles and helped connect cast members to churches via The Gathering, a local church-planting network.

Liberty students helped build community relationships while working with a local church plant in Baltimore.

In Baltimore, the team reached out to and served the community while helping an urban church plant. They also worked with an anti-sex trafficking organization.

In communities surrounding Philadelphia, students shared the Gospel while connecting with factory workers and ministering to those struggling with substance abuse. The team led a heroine addict to Christ and encouraged fellow believers through their struggles with faith.

“Someone told me, ‘Don’t expect people to get saved,’” said Vince Valeriano, a CMT staff member who led the team, “but the more we shared the Gospel with, the more people got saved.”

Students had the opportunity to work with a church plant in Albany, listed as the most Post-Christian City in America by the Barna Group. Through this experience, they were able to see how ministries such as Acts29 are attempting to reach out to people in an environment that is predominantly non-religious.

• The Center for Ministry Training actively recruits and trains students to make disciples wherever they are, regardless of their occupation, to impact the world for Jesus Christ. In addition, the CMT works closely with ministry students from undergraduate religion programs and the Liberty University Baptist Theological Seminary. Its purpose is to train students to engage the world effectively with the Gospel message.