It seems ironic that I of all people would be writing about an event that really connects college students.  It is well understood that I am NOT an event driven guy.  I find myself fighting against the event-driven culture that is common to most student ministries, desiring for students to see that it is not the role of the church to be your activity planner.  With that being said, there is one event that I absolutely love that we offer each year; it’s our Halloween Party.

You can call it whatever you want in order to make it acceptable to promote at your church.  I have seen “Fall Party”, “October Bash”, and we even called it the “H-Bomb” once, playing on the taboo nature that comes with hosting a “demonic” Halloween party.

Why do I love “Halloween Parties”?  Some events just naturally have a draw to them, events like: Super Bowl parties, Christmas parties, gatherings when the Cowboys are playing and Halloween are no different.  The reason I love ours is because this event has the greatest draw for reaching the un-churched and de-churched.  I rent out the bowling alley on campus at UTA (The University of Texas in Arlington), we put up a lot of flyers, we have lots of free food, and we give out gift cards for the best costumes. 

Most of the events we offer really only keep churched people happy, and I am drawn to events that attract those who are outside of our church walls.  The risk that comes with taking on a Halloween party is that you may see some questionable costumes, but the gain is that you will find yourself engaging in real conversations, much like the one Jesus encountered when he spoke to the woman at the well.  For me the gain far outweighs the risk. 

What events can you put on that will allow you to build relationships with those outside of your walls?

The intent of the team blog website and format is to aid collegiate/young adult leaders in their ministry to college age students in Texas.  The southern Baptists of Texas Convention does not necessarily agree with or condone all of the thoughts in every blog written by ministers, they simply are providing a platform for resources and thoughts to be shared through this blogging opportunity.  If you have any questions, please contact our offices.