By: Jennica Lyons
Student Life Editor
Photo Credit: Morgan Rutledge
With 168 hours in a week, it’s surprising that students can’t spare one to share their spiritual lives with their colleagues.
Lydia Oliver, head of the spiritual life branch said she thinks it’s a problem of disordered priorities.
“I think students get busy and don’t prioritize,” said Oliver. “Sometimes people get complacent with going to chapel at Milligan so they don’t really see the need of small groups.”
According to the branch committee, small groups are a great way to get involved on campus and engage in interesting topics with other students. Small group numbers dropped from over 100 students last spring to 70 in the fall.
Oliver acknowledged that many students are attending small groups off campus.
“Our numbers are low, but I think there are healthy small groups in churches or other places students attend,” said Oliver.
Oliver says that her vision is to combine what students want with what they need. Eventually, she would like to raise student leaders to be small group teachers alongside the faculty. She said it will be a slow change but is excited for what is ahead.
Junior Jenna Swett, a communications major, said that her schedule is the problem when it comes to attending small groups.
“My schedule is just really busy and it is hard for me to fit it in,” said Swett.
Eight or nine small groups will be offered, most at night, so that students can choose which is the best fit for them. This semester there is a group for married couples, which Oliver hopes will help the small groups appeal to more people.
This year’s small groups will be covering different books of the Bible as well as other books, such as “Crazy Love” by Francis Chan.
Small group sign-ups will start this Tuesday, and close on Saturday, February 5 with the small groups kick-off in SUB 7. Students may sign-up in the cafeteria at lunch, at the kick-off event, or by emailing smallgroups@milligan.edu.
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