Grossmont College--Devin didn't know what Christians celebrate at Christmas

Grossmont College, a local community college with nearly 17,000 students from 52 different countries, isn't a particularly remarkable school. There is no on-campus housing. There are very few athletic teams or campus activities. The school is rated as "non-competitive" for entrance.

However, it is home to 17,000 students--many of whom are the first from their families to go to school. It is home to people who are trying to gain a fresh start in life. It is home to students who don't have money to attend elsewhere. In fact, the academic fees are "only" $181/credit hour and an average student would receive enough financial aid to cover this for an average load of classes each semester.

This past week, I went out sharing on campus with David, a student from Virginia Tech, who is here on project. As a group, I think that as many as four students may have indicated decisions for Christ on campus this week through our outreach, but I want to tell you about two other students that I met that heightened my urgency to share the gospel with every student on every campus and teach all of them to become multiplying disciples.

We met a Kurdish Muslim named Walit who was willing to talk but obviously uncomfortable throughout the entire conversation. He stands out to me because I have had more conversations with Muslims (and Mormons, for that matter) than I can remember from years past.

David and I also met Devin. He shared openly about his life and beliefs with us. He represents the biblically illiterate next generation. The case in point occurred when I asked him if he knew what Christians celebrate at Christmas and responded that he really didn't know. I followed up and tried to clarify and he gave a broad answer about "being good/generous to others." He has one friend who is still in high school whom he was willing to describe as a "real Christian." His girlfriend practices Wicca. He was open to the claims of Christ and acted interested in participating in one of our campus Bible studies, but I couldn't help but walk away from the conversation with a renewed commitment to pray for God to bring revival and spiritual awakening to the college campuses of the world.