Region / Country: East Asia
South Korea
Taiwan
Thailand
Timor-Leste
Standing before the President
We had been meeting together each week for a couple of months: 15-20 Catholic students and me. One day we’d been looking at the story of Jesus healing the leper. I’d been so moved to hear their reflections. They said they’d felt that Jesus was really with them – not just a figure hanging on a cross on the wall of a church. They wanted to start a prayer meeting that very day.
The students were excited and invited their friends to join them. About 30 turned up. But then, unexpectedly, a group of university authorities walked in. They stopped the prayer meeting and invited me to come to their office for interrogation.
They didn’t have any grounds for detaining me. I’d conducted myself according to university protocol from the start. But they weren’t satisfied. After questioning me themselves, they took me to the University President. I was very afraid.
Before I went in, I glanced at my phone. There was a message from a number I didn’t recognise:
“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6
I hadn’t told anyone about my situation, so this was an amazing reminder and assurance of God’s presence with me as I walked in to face the University President…
Life in the bastion of Catholicism
Eli works with the IFES movement, IVCF, in Cebu City, Philippines. Evangelical Christians are a tiny minority of the population, and do sometimes meet with hostility. The city is considered the bastion of Roman Catholicism across the country. It’s the home of the famous Sinulog festival, which draws around two million people each year. The week-long festivities of vibrant street-dancing and colourful processions are said to honour Santo Niño, or the Child Jesus. The celebrations centre around a small, 500-year old statue of Jesus as a child. Scores of people come to pray to it, carrying imitations of the icon themselves.
Photo by Vher Morales on Unsplash
A changing culture and a forgotten God
Roman Catholic customs and practices still saturate the local culture. Young people take part too, even though many do not hold to the Catholic beliefs. Vannie Anne was an IVCF student leader and graduated in civil engineering last year. She writes about this generation of students in the Philippines:
“Young people today are an instant generation. They love things done fast. When they do something wrong, they would resort to indulgences and rituals rather than repentance. They would rather go to church and ‘pray’, than stop cheating or humble themselves to ask forgiveness. The motivation for their works is not for God to save them but for Him to give them what they want. They go to churches, listen to religious music, light candles, pray prayers and do other rituals and ‘good things’ to make God grant their desires. Sadly, the hearts of students are hard. They’ve forgotten their God.
But despite all these things, God is sovereign. If the king’s heart is in the hands of the Lord, what can stop God in changing the hearts of the students?”
Photo by Fischer Twins on Unsplash
Pockets of hope
For Christian students and IVCF staff members, it’s hard ground. There is opposition from university authorities; there is resistance and apathy from the students themselves. But there are also pockets of hope across the city – stories of God changing the hearts of students, bringing new life and strengthening them to endure through opposition.
Geralyn was a seeker when she first went to university. She started going along to the weekly IVCF Bible studies where she asked all her difficult questions. It was at an IVCF event in 2013 that she fully grasped the gospel and gave her life to the Lord. As she continued to attend the Bible studies, she saw a gradual change in her lifestyle, her attitudes and her perspectives. Coming from a broken family, the greatest heart change for Geralyn was in being able to forgive and love her parents again. Geralyn has recently started serving as an IVCF staff worker with in the Philippines.
Ryan studies secondary education in science and is an active member of his local IVCF group. The training and fellowship he’s found have encouraged him to persevere in the face of opposition:
“My family is persecuting me because they say I’ve changed my religion. I tell them that my faith is based on the Bible, but they speak negatively to me. I feel so down. But I know God is always there. So I pray for my family. I pray for their salvation. I pray that they will truly know who God is and will reflect on the truth the Bible reveals.”
Geralyn and Ryan are just two examples of many in whom God is at work.
Before the President
I was face-to-face with the University President. During the interrogation, I calmly answered all their questions. I also told them that a state university is owned by the Filipino people and its citizens, and therefore there is freedom to practise any religion. The questioning lasted for an hour. After threatening to imprison me, they released me, warning me to stay away from the campus or risk being arrested.
I got on the bus and went home. The three-hour journey gave me some time for reflection. I thanked God for the way He had miraculously assured me of His presence. I considered how my experience of persecution was relatively insignificant compared to that of the apostle Paul – and yet I’d been so scared. It made me realise the reality of spiritual warfare and how the Enemy hates us being active in sharing the gospel.
Photo by Ina Carolino on Unsplash
When I got home, I found out that the Head of Student Affairs had warned the students not to attend the meeting again. If they did, they’d be expelled. I went back the following week having arranged to meet the students off campus. Only five turned up.
Four years on, praise God that the ministry in this university is still moving forward despite the challenges. The group continues to meet off campus, in a bakery shop. Approximately 3,500 students are involved with IVCF across the country, sharing the message of gospel hope in the university.
East Asia
“We will not keep silent.”
“In this situation, where should Christians stand? What should we do as young Christian college students?”
Those were the questions the students of IVF, the IFES movement in South Korea, were asking, in response to the refugee crisis. In June last year, 550 Yemeni refugees entered Korea. The influx has prompted protests both of those in favour and those against it.
IVF students at Sangmyung University felt that they should not keep silent. They first decided to learn about refugees by inviting an IVF staff member who had spent time with Yemeni refugees to share with them. Hearing about the situation in Yemen and the devastating impact on its people cleared up some misconceptions they had. Now they wanted to act.
The group decided to run a two-day campaign on campus to raise awareness and money for the refugees, in partnership with a Korean NGO. Unsure of what the response would be, they prayed for God’s help.
The IVF group were delighted to see many students and faculty showing an interest. When students asked them who they were and why they were doing this, they could answer: “We are IVF. We’re doing this because we’re Christians.”
Join us in praying:
- Pray that IVF students would have wisdom in knowing how to support Yemeni refugees.
- Pray for Yemeni student refugees to find the practical, emotional, financial and spiritual help they need.
- Pray for the students IVF met through the campaign to be interested to find out more about the God of justice and compassion. Pray for opportunities to follow up with them and to help them explore the Christian faith.
Thanks for praying with us!
Be an international student for Jesus
Global numbers of international students are soaring. Today, over five million students are studying away from their home country. Not only are the numbers staggering, so too is the range of countries these students come from — including many closed countries in the Middle East and Central Asia where there are very few Christians. If these students could come to know Jesus, the subsequent impact around the world would be tremendous.
Arriving in Tokyo on that first day, I felt like a goldfish dropped into the ocean. I’d heard it was a big place. But it blew all my expectations out of the water. Everywhere I looked: people, cars, skyscrapers — on a scale I could never have imagined. And this was to be my home for the next three years… I wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry.*
Just out of reach
Numbers of international students have grown so quickly that, in almost every case, the local church has not been able to keep up. International student ministry (ISM) is vastly under-resourced globally, and therefore most international students remain unreached. The few ISM workers who are serving are usually hugely outnumbered. In China, for example, it’s been estimated that for every ISM worker there are 25,000 international students.
Many churches would like to do ISM, but just don’t have the resources to invest much into developing this growing mission field. The language and cultural barriers mean that international students usually struggle to engage with regular church ministry. Furthermore, in some countries, welcoming foreigners attracts unwanted attention from the government and can put the church in danger.
International students may be right on their doorstep, but they can still prove to be just out of reach.
The obvious solution
When I first arrived from Kazakhstan I could hardly speak any of the local language. I could just say ‘hello’, ‘how are you?’ and ‘I don’t understand.’ I used that last phrase a lot in the first few months. I enrolled in a year-long intensive language course: lessons all morning and private study all afternoon. As a class we got to know each other really well. There were 12 of us, and no two students were from the same country: Laos, Eritrea, Germany, Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Ghana, Rwanda and New Zealand. One time we had to give presentations in class about a festival we celebrate and the guy from Ghana spoke about Easter. I’d never heard what Christians believe before. It really got me thinking. That student became a close friend.*
Culturally and linguistically, a Ghanaian and a Kazakh might have little in common. But in a country which is alien to both of them, they’re in the same boat. The student from Ghana might not be called to mission here long-term. He might not be particularly gifted at languages. But he might be the only Christian that Kazakh student knows. He has an amazing opportunity to touch the lives of his classmates and dormitory simply by living and studying wholeheartedly for Jesus.
Why not me?
Christian student Sam** from the US decided to do his two-year Master’s program in East Asia. He shared his experience:
“It’s really been organic in developing honest and authentic relationships with people I’m going to school with and live with. That’s something anyone could do. There are really great opportunities to learn, and also to meet people from all over the world. My classmates are from 20 different countries, and my dorm has students from many places where the gospel is not known. And this city is a really fun and exciting place to be.”
We need more students around the world to give up a year or two to go and reach a few from this vast harvest field. Arguably the best placed people to reach international students are other international students. Whether it’s to learn the language for a year, or to take part in an exchange program for a semester, or even to do further post-graduate study — there are plenty of course options in different cities around the world, and many of these come with full scholarships. Those classmates will need friends — and particularly friends who can tell them about Jesus.
Too many of us are asking ‘why me?’ Perhaps a better question would be ‘why not me?’
Talk to your national movement if you’d be interested in finding out more.
For further reading related to this subject, read Phil Jones’ article ISM in Reverse.
* based on true stories
** name changed
From Angola to China
Frederico was doing what he could. But he was 10,000km away from the Angolan students living in China. Frederico’s focus had always been on the universities in his own country. But he realised that there was a huge number of Angolans studying in China, and he wanted to do more to support them. Encouraging them through social media was better than nothing, but he longed to meet with them in person!
So with support from the IFES Breaking New Ground project, Frederico and another GBECA staff worker, Mariano, started planning a trip to visit a small group of Angolan students in China.
But it was not to be a straightforward journey…
Unexpected hurdles
Frederico and Mariano missed their first flight because their visas hadn’t come through in time. On their second attempt, they had to first drive from Angola to Windhoek in Namibia to catch the flight. But their car broke down on the journey and had to be towed all the way — almost 600km — all through the night. They missed the flight again.
They returned to Angola, determined to try a third time. It would have been tempting to give up the dream, but Frederico reflected:
“There were many missionaries who gave their lives so that we could be saved by Christ. Even if God wants to save only one student using us, it would be worth going through all this.”
Their third attempt was successful, and soon they were face to face with the students, telling the story of their eventful journey to be there. The students were moved by the effort they’d gone to — and by the love of God for them. The group of around 30 students spent five days with Frederico and Mariano, looking at the Bible, praying and enjoying fellowship over meals. Some professed faith for the first time; for others it was a significant time of discipleship and growth. The group was encouraged to hear about the worldwide IFES fellowship and know that they are part of something much bigger.
Investing in the future
Since that trip, the Angolan students have continued to meet together and the group has grown as they’ve drawn in others from the pool of 100 or so Angolan students on their campus. The students are hungry for good Bible teaching and are eager to learn how to tell their friends about Jesus. Frederico is still discipling them from afar and hopes to return to see them again soon.
Two of the student leaders reflected on the impact of the visit:
“It helped to strengthen us all. We experienced many amazing transformations in our walk with God — in our perspective of life here, purpose, relationships. Some have even seen God transform and restore family members back in Angola through our testimonies.
It is a particularly strategic group of students to be investing in. Several of them will return to key leadership positions in the church, in education and in Angolan society. Not only that, but there are more than 500,000 Chinese people living and working in Angola today. God-willing, these international students will return equipped and envisioned to reach out to them.
Respond
Are there students from your national movement studying overseas? Are they thriving spiritually, or just surviving? How could you encourage them this year?
The trip to visit these Angolan students in China was supported by the IFES Breaking New Ground project. This was one of 67 grants awarded in 2018 to help pioneer new groups in unreached campuses, cities and countries around the world. Read more stories from Breaking New Ground here.
Give today to help us support more projects like this to reach more students with the gospel.
IFES is now accepting applications for Round 5 of funding, which will close on Thursday 28 February. Email bng@ifesworld.org to apply or visit our website to find out more.