Mix It Up Day!!!

Hello, friends!

Yesterday was an interesting day at Lincoln and definitely in a good way! Allow me a few minutes of your time to share. =0).

At Lincoln this semester, I've been alternating between doing proxe stations on campus and spending time in the cafeteria and doing bible studies with students. This week, it was a cafeteria week. I'm really glad that was the case.

When I walked into the Student Center, I noticed that it was way more crowded than normal. I usually get there around 11:30 or so, right before a big lunch rush comes in so it's not hard to find a seat. This week though, you could tell that the caf was a little more full than usual. There were also students with name tags greeting everyone who walked through the door, welcoming them to "Mix It Up Day."

One of the things that's I've noticed this year is that Lincoln has made a concerted effort to build school spirit amongst the student body. There are always some things going on but this semester it seems like it's been a little bit more. I just figured this was another one of those things where the student government was trying to build a party atmosphere or something. I was actually wrong on that one.

Here's the deal. It turns out that Mix It Up Day was being hosted by two of the professors in the education department. They wanted to get students to explore and learn about other cultures, so instead of class, their students were supposed to go into the caf and "mix it up," by sitting with people who they didn't know and eating lunch with them. As a campus missionary, I wholly support this endeavor. =0).

Besides the students who I normally see, I got to meet 3 new students at Lincoln. The first two students I met were L and J. There was "sushi" (and I use the term loosely...) on the menu, which meant there were chopsticks in the caf. I taught them how to use them and we talked about their lives and their programs. (NOTE: J picked up using chopsticks much faster than L did, but he eventually got the hang of it.)

The third gal I met was R, and that was a really fun conversation. It turns out that her step father is a Chinese man who grew up in Korea and she spent a month teaching English in Korea this past summer. It was fun talking with her about culture and such. That conversation eventually led to talking about what I do, which led to me sharing the Gospel with her and challenging her to recommit her life to Jesus. She even joined us for our afternoon Bible Study!

You never really know what kind of relationship you are going to have with a school when you step on campus. Sometimes the administration doesn't really know or care that you're there (like at Mizzou). Other times, the administration couldn't be happier to have you there and do whatever they can to make sure you're in the know (like at Columbia College). Other times, the administration is actively hostile towards you. Lincoln has been a little more in that third camp, especially since I started doing the proxe stations. Still, they may not have known it, but by letting their professors do something out of the box they helped me "mix it up" yesterday, and that may even lead to new life on campus!

Have an excellent day!

~Adam