Region / Country: Latin America
Peru
Bolivia
Puerto Rico
Brazil
Chile
Colombia
No better decision
Evangelism. You only hear the word and your heart-rate rises. You think of a million reasons to just walk away. They’ll think you’re crazy. They won’t be interested. You won’t know the answers. It will be awkward.
In 2011, something happened to change that all-too-familiar experience. UCCF Great Britain launched Uncover – a series of Gospel studies to help students and their friends discover more about Jesus and the life He offers.
Few things have changed students’ attitude to evangelism in such a dramatic way as Uncover. What’s special about the resource is that it has given ordinary students around the world the confidence to open the Bible with their friends and introduce them to Jesus.
Taty and Karol are students in Ecuador. Taty was a Christian; Karol wasn’t. We asked them to share the story of their friendship and Uncover journey.
Talking to Taty
Taty, how did you hear about Uncover?
I found out about Uncover through CECE, the national movement in Ecuador. It was being recommended as a more personal, interactive, evangelistic resource. It sounded like a great way to help your friends discover Jesus.
Why did you decide to ask Karol to read Uncover with you?
We were waiting for the bus. I heard Karol and another friend talking about faith. They turned to me and asked me what I thought. I talked to them a bit about what I believe and it occurred to me to invite them to look into it with me. I felt a little nervous and afraid that they’d reject my invitation or wouldn’t be interested. But it went better than I’d expected! They were very enthusiastic!
Taty
How did you find going through the Uncover studies together?
We had a good time! We went through the questions in Uncover and they came with their own questions as well. Sometimes I didn’t know how to answer, but then we’d go away and find out more and discuss it again the next time. Towards the end of the series, we were talking about salvation and Karol asked me how she could be saved. I explained that it’s a personal decision and suggested Karol use her own words to pray to accept the Lord.
Why would you recommend using Uncover?
Because it’s an excellent and interactive way to present Jesus to someone. And because it invites you to think about faith in a different way, using the Gospels as research texts. This allows people to see that following Jesus is not just a religion.
It was a very beautiful experience because I could accompany others as they discovered Jesus. And in the end one of them made a faith decision! Another of the best things was that through doing the studies we developed a very good and lasting friendship. It fills me with joy to know that God can use you as His instrument when you least expect it – and that is only by His grace.
Talking to Karol
Karol, how did you meet Taty, and what was your impression of her?
I met Taty while I was with a friend. We were talking about faith and some doubts that I had. Taty came up and clarified some of those doubts and then told us about the relationship she had with Jesus. She showed a lot of honesty with us and that was what impressed me. She didn’t know us well, but she opened up and was transparent with us.
What was your impression of the Christian faith before you did Uncover?
From a very young age I was Catholic because my parents were Catholic. I had in my mind a far-away God who punished me for the bad things I do. I didn’t know much about the Bible or Jesus.
Why did you agree to read Uncover with Taty?
Because she managed to transmit confidence and security. She answered my questions, and when she didn’t know the answer she was sincere. She told me to find out or she would ask someone herself. I liked that. She was very honest with me.
How did you find doing Uncover?
Increasingly I wanted to know what was going to happen next or what Jesus was going to do. And each time I admired Him more. I loved seeing that in each context He came in different ways.
What surprised you about the person of Jesus?
That He is a son, a brother and above all a friend. His humility in every step he took. The way He expressed Himself and talked to people and answered with tranquillity. The value He gave to each person and His selfless love for all.
What impacted me the most was seeing that He already knew the need of the paralytic. I never thought that someone could do that. And even now every time I remember that study of the paralytic and his friends I am very happy, because I know Jesus knows what it is I really need.
What was it that made you decide to become a Christian?
The same feeling of knowing that there is someone who knows what I need and above all who loves me despite everything; knowing that there is still hope in Him.
How has your life changed since you became a Christian?
My life has changed so much. And as I said on my first birthday of being a Christian, I feel that this year has been one of the best years, one of the years in which I felt calm in my life. Whatever happens, I do not want to be separated from God.
It has also changed the way I speak. I am quite a shy person, but God has been working on that. Thanks to CECE I have had opportunities to talk to people about God, and to put aside my fears. Now I serve in my church with young people. I am excited to know that young people can, like me, know God personally in different and fun ways. I’m praying for my father, who is not a Christian, to know the God of love and not of rules.
I could not have made a better decision in my life than to follow Christ. Every day in every little detail He shows me His love.
Uncover goes global
The Uncover resource is now being used by many IFES national movements around the world. Translations are available in almost 30 different languages, including Arabic, Chinese, Russian, Portuguese, Indonesian and Hebrew. Uncover Luke was launched in 2011, Uncover John in 2014 and Uncover Mark in 2018.
Talk to your national movement to find out if there are copies available in your language or visit http://www.uncover.org.uk/ to find out more.
Why I’m in the Circle of Silence
Sunday, 10am, blue sky, 21°C. The morning sunshine lights up rows of brightly-coloured houses. The shops are just opening up for the day, but already there’s a cheerful bustle in the streets. Tourists clutching selfie-sticks meander around the historic city, trying to take it all in: the 23 metre-high aqueduct, the 17th century architecture, the vineyards, the mountains. The locals, familiar with their idyllic surroundings, are busy going about their weekend errands or heading to church for morning Mass. This is Querétaro: beautiful, vibrant, alive.
Yet Querétaro lies in an area of Mexico known by Christians as: ‘the Circle of Silence’. Despite persistent missionary effort, the region has proved notoriously difficult to penetrate with the gospel, and the percentage of evangelical Christians remains very low.
Querétaro is home to Monica, a staff worker with COMPA Mexico. She shared her reflections on doing student ministry in the Circle of Silence.
Closed doors
“The spiritual climate of the university is hard. There is a lot of opposition, a lot of indifference. Most students come from very Catholic families. Finding any who call themselves Christians is difficult. And when you find them, some do not respond to the call to share Jesus – they’re not interested; they’re not committed. Many don’t want to do evangelism because they’re afraid of rejection in such a heavily Catholic environment.
Photo by Dennis Schrader on Unsplash
Such was the case of a Christian student we met at the university. We talked about COMPA and what we did, and he seemed to respond well. But when we began the training he told us this was not what he wanted to do; he appreciated our support, but he didn’t want to start a Bible study group.
We invited another student to join the ministry. She said that she was already serving in her church. She was going to pray about whether she should start a Bible study group. But I never heard back from her.
It is difficult to meet with these kinds of responses. They discourage us and make us wonder if we should continue at all. It hurts us to see that in the Circle of Silence, it’s common to experience opposition and rejection from both non-Christians and Christians.
Photo by Naassom Azevedo on Unsplash
Why I am here
It’s in these moments that I question the Lord’s call and wonder if I’m in the right place. But that’s when God, in His faithfulness and grace, leads me back to the reason why I am here:
“For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.” John 6:40 [NIV]
This is His will. God has put me and a team of workers in this area with the purpose of making His Son known, so that students may have eternal life. That’s why we stay. Even though the environment is hostile to the gospel and often the responses of students discourage us, the Lord helps us to persevere. We have confident hope that there will be some here who respond to the invitation to follow Jesus and proclaim His Word in the university.
Voices raised for Jesus
Praise God – there are small encouragements along the way. I was looking at the Bible with one student recently, and he responded: “If I want to do mission and see my friends change, I first need to let God change me.” Another student came along to an evangelistic event COMPA put on and told me: “This is what I need: to surround myself with people who help me to know Jesus and His Word.”
It’s encouraging to see that, in a context of religiosity and indifference to the gospel, God is at work here, changing the hearts of students. I am learning to see and trust His sovereignty in this region. My desire is to see more students meeting Jesus – the real Jesus who transforms lives, who brings hope, who fills the spiritual void that exists in the university. May there be many students in this generation who raise their voice for Jesus in the Circle of Silence!”
Please join us in praying that the gospel would take root and transform the universities of the Circle of Silence.
