He could easily be the most popular kid on campus. Matt Jaeger strolls onto the grounds of Poway High School in a suburb of San Diego. The school is twice the size of his hometown in Kansas, but that hasn't stopped him from befriending everyone he can. On a Monday at lunchtime, Matt walks through the office and greets an administrator. She hands him an award he won for "performance above and beyond the call of duty."

Matt thanks her, concentrates on the certificate for a minute, and makes his way to the main part of campus. Except for classrooms and offices, Poway High has no roof. Lockers line the buildings like typical school hallways, but because of Southern California's temperate climate, the ceiling is the sky.

A student immediately recognizes Matt and calls out "Hi, Jaeger!"

Everyone at Poway seems to be Matt's friend, even though he is old enough to be their teacher. Matt is a 28-year-old staff member with Student Venture, the high-school arm of Campus Crusade for Christ.

Every day across the nation, young people are making life-changing decisions that will affect their futures, their families and their legacies. It's no different at Poway. Because of Matt and his influence, the choices some students make will be different. Although routine, this lunch hour is crucial to Matt's ministry.

He spots some football players and walks toward the group sitting at one of the many scattered picnic tables. A student notices Matt and shouts to him. Matt shakes hands with the boy as he approaches the table, and introduces himself to another student. They all talk about the NFL draft, and four picks from their area. Then Matt invites them to an upcoming Student Venture event.

He encourages students to invite their friends to the functions too, because the 3,200 students at Poway are too many for just one person to reach with the gospel. Matt wants everyone to hear about Jesus, and everyone to have a chance to get involved. He knows that other things vie for youth's attention. Nationally, 38 percent of 10th-graders have admitted to using illegal drugs according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse. That number increases to 50 percent for high-school seniors.

	Matt serves as Student Venture's city director in San Diego, but still finds time to lead Bible studies.

As he leaves the football players, he passes a boy and girl gazing into each other's eyes while holding onto each other like Romeo and Juliet. It's not an unusual sight. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 48 percent of America's high-school students admit to engaging in sex at least once during these years. Matt hopes that through Student Venture, he can help students focus on Jesus, and not worldly pleasures.

Students pass by all around him. Some pause to say hi or call out "Hey, Coach!" Matt stops to chat with Assistant Principal Matt Hannan, who is monitoring the break. Mr. Hannan tells Matt that a student involved with Student Venture is having problems in school. "Maybe you could talk with him," he says. Matt promises to discuss it with the boy he helped lead to Christ earlier that year. The boy comes from a single-parent home, so his mom is thankful for the time Matt spends with him.

"Matt invests so much time in these boys," says another mom, Kathy Weaver, whose son is on Poway's freshmen football team, which Matt coaches. "Parents only have so much influence at this age. Matt asks them tough questions about God. If someone gets injured on the football field, the boys go and pray. They stand out. That's Matt's influence."

When Matt came to Poway four years ago, the first 10 students he met with asked Jesus to be their Savior. But he does not measure effectiveness in ministry by the number of those who accept Christ. He bases success on the number of involved converts, those who follow Christ and participate in Student Venture. He hopes that 20 to 30 percent of those involved will have begun their walks with Christ through the ministry.

Another student strolls past Matt as he talks with the assistant principal. The boy acknowledges Matt only. Matt gives him a high-five.

"He'll always find somebody he knows," says his teammate, Student Venture staff member Shawn Faulkner.

Matt recognizes more boys standing near lockers. All three are wearing black, and one sports an Alice in Chains T-shirt and listens to an iPod. "Hi, Jaeger," one says. Matt gets updates on their lives and invites them to a Student Venture function. They say they plan to attend, but it is not a guarantee.

"There are disappointments because some kids don't follow through, but Matt has a resilience," says Chuck Klein, a Campus Crusade leader who helped train Matt in ministry.

Matt crosses the hall and joins three guys eating pizza. He asks a student who resembles football legend John Elway to tell the story later that night of how he became a Christian. Donnie, who also happens to be the quarterback of Poway's football team, agrees to explain his testimony at an evangelistic event for freshmen.

Pizza is a staple in youth ministry. Matt knows that food and fun attract participants.

Donnie became a Christian through Matt's influence. Matt had coached Donnie on the freshman football team three years ago, then he began coaching him spiritually as well, outside of practice. Donnie had questions about God, so Matt met with him regularly and discussed them. Matt invited him to attend a Student Venture conference his sophomore year. There he learned apologetics—a strong, intellectual defense of Christianity. It made sense to Donnie, and he accepted Christ.

"Matt's always been there," says Donnie. "He's kind of the one who got me there. I had doubts. He helped me out. He's like a third parent. He's always there to talk."

Matt asks Donnie and the two others if they would also like to develop some sports trivia questions for the freshman outreach. Their faces light up as if they were just drafted, and they say yes. It begins to sprinkle outside, as they plan the evening a little more. Matt stands. Lunch is almost over, and he needs to order pizza and make other preparations for this outreach.

On his way out, he passes more students, reminding each of various Student Venture Bible studies, outreaches and retreats.

The sprinkle turns into rain, and he dashes toward his eight-passenger Ford Expedition. He sits inside and sends a quick e-mail from his personal digital assistant, a device that also serves as his cell phone. Then, earpiece in his ear, Matt calls a mom about a conference.

"He brings traditional values with him that kids in the big city hunger for," says Chuck Klein. "Anybody can do this if they put their heart in it and trust the Lord. Matt trusts the Lord a lot."

Matt takes another look at his award, for which a freshman nominated him. It reads: "Matt helps with your problems in football and in life. He was always there for me and helped me find Christianity."

Matt appreciates the award. It symbolizes that he really is helping high-school students find true significance. Still, it's just paper and won't last. Matt finds his significance not in his job, but ultimately in Christ, a relationship that will last beyond this lifetime. And he hopes that every student at Poway will experience the same.

You can contact the writer at Jennifer.Abegg@ccci.org.

ACTION POINT - The Next Step >Do you take opportunities to turn regular conversations into spiritual ones? >If you or someone you know might want to start a high-school ministry, visit www.gocampus.org.