I'm going to tell you a lie. Students have absolutely no money and can't afford to give to church or charity. 

This is a nonsense. It's balderdash, claptrap and poppycock. 

This might have been true in the 60's, and it's true that students have increasingly considerable loans at university. Much of that is for tuition fees and rent. However, a good principle to share with students is, "if you've got it to spend, you've got it to give". In other words, if you can't afford to eat, you probably can't give much away. But if you're splashing the cash on flat whites and the cheekiest of Nando's, new skinny jeans and cinema trips - you probably have it to give! 

Over the last three years, we have been blown away at the generosity of students in our local church and also to Fusion. We challenged them to buck the trend and not be the norm. We said, "if you want to be totally normal, don't be generous with your finance and don't give, but if you want to be incredible and unusual you might want to think about what you could give." We encourage everyone to consider what their giving costs them. We believe God provides so we can give out of what we don't have, not what we have (Luke 21:1-4)

In a recent study, it was discovered that 17% of students and young adults give to charity. This was the exact percentage of students giving to our church in York. When we challenged them to think about this and invited them to give, that figure rose to 79% giving. We treated them like adults. We asked them to contribute to and not just consume church.

Perhaps you could do this in your church. You may be surprised at the results. You may infect them with the generosity bug. You might give them a heart for giving to the church for the rest of their lives. 

Let's not assume they can't give and invite them in to God's economy. #JesusGenerous