I got back late last night from my first ministry trip since March! It has been very difficult to know how to conduct ourselves wisely in this pandemic. Much is unknown and much is uncertain. RUF ceased all travel from April through June. In light of all the uncertainty, we canceled staff training in Dallas originally scheduled for this week. Not long after, the virus outbreak surged in Texas. Instead of all going to Dallas, RUF ministers met in local groups where it was safe to do so, and connected by video conference.
Three of our ministers were unable to join us in person, but everyone else drove to State College Tuesday morning. We wore masks and sat six feet apart from each other. It was a bit strange, but we had a great time together. We worshipped, prayed for each other, discussed ministry issues, and participated in video a conference with the rest of the country. We had a large screen video display, and the three who could not go to State College participated by video. Sure, it was a bit weird, but everything is a bit weird these days. Considering everything, we had a wonderful time.
Three weeks, and fall semester activities begin! A lot of our discussion centered around how to minister when schools are partly closed – or completely closed to outside activity. I am amazed at the abundance of ways to minister to students through the internet. There are more opportunites than any minister can do! The biggest challenge will be contacting freshmen and others who have never encountered RUF, but even there the ministers had astonishingly good ideas. In any case, there is a lot of work to do before classes begin. Pray for us!
Cam Smith is the RUF minister at Penn State, and he worked non-stop to make our meetings possible and enjoyable. Thanks, Cam!
RUF Mid-Atlantic ministers in person and on screen wearing RUF caps and RUF masks.
David Green 