MOUNT VERNON — What if the most important question about your future isn’t, “What do I want to do?” but “God, what do You want to do with my life?”
That question is at the heart of Mount Vernon Nazarene University’s Explore Conference, Nov. 6 and 7, which will bring young adults to campus for two days of worship, conversation, mentorship, and reflection on God’s calling.
Explore is designed for high school students through age 25 who are considering what comes next — whether they already have a sense of direction or are still trying to discern where God may be leading them.
“We’re seeing a generation of young people asking really important questions about their future: What am I supposed to do with my life? What am I good at? Where do I fit? What does God want from me?” said Jon Nicholas, M.S., Executive Director of Enrollment at MVNU.
“Explore was created to give them space to ask those questions in a community that believes God is actively at work in their lives.”
The conference includes four tracks: Called to the Church, Called to the Marketplace, Discerning the Call, and a Guides track for pastors, parents and mentors. Nicholas said Explore isn’t built on the expectation that participants arrive with answers already in hand.
At Explore, calling is presented as something broader than a career choice.
“We don’t expect students to arrive with everything figured out,” he said. “Some already have a clear sense of calling, while others have no idea what comes next. Our hope is to help them listen, discern, and begin discovering how God might want to use their lives.”
“Calling is bigger than a job title or career choice,” Nicholas said. “It begins with who God is calling us to become and then shapes how we live, serve and work.”
That calling might lead to pastoral ministry, worship ministry, or missions — or to classrooms, hospitals, businesses, and creative fields.
“At Explore, we want students to understand that the question isn’t simply, ‘What do I want to do with my life?’” Nicholas said. “A better question is, ‘God, what do You want to do with my life?’”
For young people who feel pressure to have their futures mapped out, Nicholas said Explore offers permission to sit with uncertainty as part of the process.
“There is tremendous pressure on young people to have their future figured out,” he said. “We want Explore to be a place where they can admit, ‘I don’t know yet,’ and realize that’s OK.”
Discernment takes time and happens through prayer, Scripture, community, wise mentors and taking the next faithful step, Nicholas said — which is why the conference also draws in pastors, parents, and youth leaders, not just students.
“We want students to have permission to wrestle with their questions rather than feeling like they need to manufacture an answer,” he said. “And we want adults there who can walk alongside them — not to tell them what God is saying, but to help them learn how to listen for His voice themselves.”
The conference deliberately holds together conversations about vocational ministry and careers outside the church — teachers, nurses, entrepreneurs, coaches, artists, accountants, engineers, and business leaders among them.
“The Church absolutely needs the next generation of pastors, worship leaders, missionaries and ministry leaders, and we want to intentionally help young people who sense God leading them in that direction,” Nicholas said.
“But the world also needs followers of Jesus who understand their work as part of their calling. … We need teachers, nurses, entrepreneurs, coaches, artists, accountants, engineers, and business leaders who ask, ‘How can I honor Jesus and participate in what He is doing through the work He has given me?’ Explore creates space for both conversations because both matter to the Kingdom of God.”
Although participants will experience MVNU’s campus and community, Nicholas said the conference isn’t primarily a recruiting tool.
“Explore isn’t primarily about entertaining students or recruiting them to MVNU. It’s about helping them listen to God,” he said. “Of course, we’re excited to welcome students to our campus and let them experience the MVNU community, but the goal is bigger than enrollment. We want to invest in the Church and in the next generation of Christian leaders, wherever God ultimately leads them.”
“Calling isn’t always one dramatic moment when God reveals the next 40 years of your life,” Nicholas said. “Often, it’s a lifetime of listening, trusting and responding to God one step at a time.”
Registration information and additional conference details are available at mvnu.edu/explore.