Region / Country: South Pacific

Dining with Jesus

Initiating conversations about faith can feel daunting and awkward, particularly in secular societies. But Christian Union (CU) students at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand, have found a natural way to introduce the gospel. They invite others to dinner, to hang out – and to meet Jesus. 

“It’s made it so easy to expose my friends to God and his love,” says second-year student Robyn. 

Free Food, No Pressure 

A couple of years ago, the CU, part of TSCF, the IFES movement in New Zealand, recognised the difficulty of inviting peers to weekly Bible studies – especially because the group had been meeting in student houses or TSCF staff homes since the 2011 earthquake and COVID-19.  

So, they booked a communal space on campus for every Wednesday evening, cooked a simple meal, gathered to eat it, and then spent time in Scripture. They invited friends, contacts, and anyone who was still studying in the space when the meal was served. At one point last year, around 70 students were attending. 

Trinity shares how simple and effective it’s been: 

“I just invite people to get a free meal, to relax, and chat with some really friendly people. I tell them that after the meal there will be a Bible study but that there’s no pressure to stay. It gets people through the door – which isn’t easy when some think that Christianity is distasteful! Then, I let God and time do the rest.” 

A Taste of Jesus 

Non-Christians are often surprised by the generosity. (Each CU small group takes a turn to sacrificially serve by buying and cooking the food.) Positive conversations arise over dinner, and, after a few weeks, many newcomers decide to stay on and learn about Jesus in the Gospels. 

Some have already responded in faith – last year, a friend that Robyn had invited became a Christian. Others are still considering. Yet all have appreciated the friendship and the space to find out about Christ. Three interested master’s students from China have now graduated but remain in touch with the group. 

On campus, a new academic year has just begun. Out of the 35-40 people who’ve come to the first meals and studies, about a quarter are not yet Christians. Clearly, this offer of hospitality and friendship has revolutionized the CU’s outreach. One of the leaders explains its success: 

“Students are often a bit afraid of ‘doing evangelism’ on campus, but we encourage them to see that helping people meet Jesus isn’t scary, especially when we can do it together and just be ourselves.” 

Pray 

  • Praise God for the way this approach has energised Christian students in their witness and introduced non-Christians to Christ. Pray that CUs across TSCF New Zealand will be innovative and courageous in their outreach. 
  • This year, the Canterbury CU has been given a meeting space that’s less central on campus. Pray that this will not deter newcomers and that the group will continue to grow. 
  • This semester’s meals will be followed by a series called Encountering Jesus, covering topics like ‘What’s our greatest need?’, ‘Does Jesus love everyone?’, and ‘What does Jesus want from us?’. Pray that the 8-10 interested students will indeed encounter Jesus and “taste and see that the Lord is good”. 

Less is more? 

Do less?

It might have seemed like strange advice to a team of only three staff. Especially when their movement, the Solomon Islands Universities’ Christian Fellowship (SIUCF), started just eight years ago, and faced a full shut down during the 2020 pandemic. But “less” is what David Walter, IFES Regional Secretary for the South Pacific, was suggesting. 

More Mentoring 

Well, not less overall. He was advocating for less of a hands-on approach to ministry. David explains: 

“I’d been encouraging them not just to minister to the students but also with and through the students. I explained that this involves moving beyond teaching to training up – that it’s about entrusting the students with ministry, guiding and mentoring, rather than taking the lead themselves.”  

As Edward (SIUCF General Secretary) and recently-appointed staff workers, Rose and Amelia, adopted this approach, they soon noticed its impact: the ministry expanded. Now, SIUCF has a presence at the University of the South Pacific (Honiara campus) and on each of the National University’s three campuses, with some having Bible study groups in several dorms.  

Training Trainers 

But less of one ministry skill required more of another. The team recognised that its new focus called for greater understanding of leadership. So, at the start of the year, they reached out to David. 

Over several weeks, David led in-depth training via Zoom:

“I wanted this to be more than just ‘how-to’ leadership tips. So, we dug into leadership themes in the Bible and explored practical, culturally appropriate ways to apply them.” 

Together, they discovered how servant leadership involves a godly confidence, faithful flexibility, and teamwork that equips and entrusts. 

Good Growth 

“This training helped us understand why and how we should lead,” Rose shares. “I’ve been influenced and challenged – especially by the idea that confidence in ministry comes from imitating the servant heart of Jesus and not from hearing the affirmation and acclaim of others.”    

Five years ago, we shared in Prayerline how Amelia got involved in SIUCF as a student. At the time, we asked “that God will raise new young leaders to serve God through SIUCF”. How encouraging that Amelia is an answer to that prayer and that she’s grown through this training. In her words:  

“The dynamics of student ministry are very different from how I’m used to serving within our church youth fellowship. These sessions have equipped us with tools and insights that will grow SIUCF ministry by training other students to be leaders and disciple-makers.” 

  

“This training helped us understand why and how we should lead,…I’ve been influenced and challenged – especially by the idea that confidence in ministry comes from imitating the servant heart of Jesus and not from hearing the affirmation and acclaim of others.” 

Pray  

So, as Amelia, Rose, and Edward grow in leadership, learning to do “less”, let’s pray that God, working through students, will do “immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine” (Ephesians 3:20). 

  • Give thanks for Edward, Rose, and Amelia, and the growth of SIUCF over recent years. Pray for the staff as they grow in biblical leadership. 
  • As the staff team equips, enables, and entrusts students to lead ministry, ask that SIUCF will continue to flourish and see more young leaders emerge. 
  • Give thanks for the mid-year conference, called “Jesus Centred”, that took place last month. Pray for the 30+ students who attended – that their whole lives will be truly centred on Jesus. 

Stories in the sand

The student crowd watched closely as Uncle Edgar drew his finger through the sand. The skillfully etched patterns and shapes represented characters in the story he was telling: two people, in a precious relationship that had been broken, now joyfully reconciled. With an accompanying tune played on his bamboo flute, Uncle Edgar used the ancient storytelling art of sandroing to bring home four central stories from the Gospel of Mark to students at Vanuatu’s regional university campus.

The national IFES movement, Gud Nius Yunivesiti Felosip (GNYF), asked Uncle Edgar to create this novel presentation of the gospel as part of their ?Huia Jisas? outreach (“Who is Jesus?” in Bislama). It was one way of addressing two pressing issues: How do you help students in a culture of churchgoing to personally encounter Jesus? How do you enable students in an oral culture to engage with the Scriptures?

Vanuatu, a cluster of islands in the South Pacific, is populated by small, subsistence-farming communities, where most profess Christianity (90%+) and where the few who are involved in tertiary education (<1%) prefer to learn by hearing and talking rather than extensive study of texts. Joel Atwood, GNYF National Director, notes: “Many students come to university having grown up in churches their whole lives, but they haven’t looked closely at the Bible and are still unsure of who Jesus is, what he has done, and what that means for us”.

This is why GNYF strives to be intentional about sharing the gospel with friends and classmates in ways that fit their relational culture. In 2021, their ?Huia Jisas? outreach was a Melanesian form of Uncover (a Gospel distribution project used in many IFES movements). It not only equipped students to share stories from Mark’s Gospel with other students but also went a step further: by connecting with Uncle Edgar – a local expert in sandroing – they devised patterns to help communicate key themes of sin, forgiveness, reconciliation, and rule.

Now, in 2024, the movement is organising another ?Huia Jisas? outreach, this time using John’s Gospel. Sency, a student leader at a relatively new campus group, is looking forward to it: “We want our classmates and friends to dig deeper into discovering who Jesus is. What exceeding joy to know that the God of the universe loved us so much that he sent his only Son to die for us so that anyone who believes should not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16). I pray that more and more young people here in Vanuatu schools, colleges, and universities will encounter Jesus and develop a personal relationship with him in daily life. What an awesome adventure it will be!”

Since many student leaders are new, the first semester (February-June) will focus on training and planning; a cross-campus team will choose stories, develop the booklets, and plan events. “With John’s big metaphors for who Jesus is, we could have some real fun using traditional art forms like sandroing, weaving, and dancing,” says Joel.

Let’s pray for students in GNYF Vanuatu:

  • Give thanks for the creatively contextual way the gospel was presented in 2021 and pray for the student leaders as they plan ?Huia Jisas? 2024 over coming weeks – that the Holy Spirit will give them inspiration, wisdom, and anticipation.
  • Pray for GNYF students who are anxious about inviting friends or classmates to read the Gospel or attend talks and events. Ask the Lord to use the “support events” to equip them and give them courage.
  • Pray for the Gospel distribution and public events in late July and August – that students will engage with Scripture, encounter Jesus, and enjoy an ever-deepening relationship with him.

Persevering on the Sunshine Coast

This World Student Day, on Friday 20 October, we’re praying for students around the world to persevere as witnesses for Jesus. It’s an exciting opportunity to join with thousands in prayer. But knowing exactly what to pray for can sometimes be tricky. That’s why the World Student Day prayer cards are a brilliant resource to help you – they present real requests from students, staff, and movements from across our eleven global regions. 

Here’s one example from the South Pacific: 

Behind every request is a current situation with a specific backstory. For this Prayerline, we’ve asked Lucy to tell us more about Moreton Bay. 

“UniSC’s Moreton Bay campus opened in 2019 as an offshoot of the main UniSC campus in Sippy Downs on the Sunshine Coast. The AFES group has fluctuated in size and student engagement since then – during one semester we had up to fourteen students coming along to the main Bible study and social events, but it has recently dropped to just a few.  

In fact, at the start of this semester no students came to the Bible study for the first few weeks. It was quite discouraging. But by God’s grace, he brought along Bevan, a non-Christian student who’d seen our advertising around campus. He wanted to find out more about Jesus. Ever since, he’s been meeting weekly with a staff worker to read Mark’s gospel.  

And Bevan’s also connected with one of our Moreton Bay students, Noah, who, along with a Sippy Downs student, has been reading through the Old Testament with him. A few weeks ago, Bevan decided to give his life to Jesus at one of these Bible studies!  

Noah says, “One thing that’s been encouraging about Christian Students at Moreton is simply that the group is surviving despite it being small. I’m thankful to God that we’ve got this far.”  

The hope we have is that the small group will grow and – with a firm base of Christian students – have an impact on the Moreton Bay campus as it expands.”  

You’ll find dozens more requests like this here. As you explore them, please pray with us for students in Moreton Bay – and all around the world: 

  • Give thanks for the encouragements in Moreton Bay and pray for the students and staff as they persevere – that they will establish a Christian witness that will impact the campus. 
  • Give thanks for our global family of IFES movements and supporters that are praying for students on 20 October. Pray for a move of God as individuals and groups use the prayer cards – that those requests will be answered and that those who sent them will find strength to persevere. 
  • Pray for all Christian students who are struggling with their faith, mental health, or circumstances. Pray that this week they would feel uplifted and discover that God’s power is made perfect in their weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9).  

Catching the vision for pioneering ministry

“God has placed a huge burden for Micronesians on me,” shares Mark, a recent graduate from the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). While studying abroad in Guam, Mark developed a passion for sharing the gospel with students. As he thinks about returning home, Mark is wondering and praying whether student ministry might be part of his future. 

“My vision for student ministry simply came from day-to-day conversations with my Micronesian dorm mates and listening to their beliefs about who God is,” he explains. “Seeing how the religious and cultural practices of our nation have led us away from who God truly is stirred up my desire to start a Bible study and show them who the God of the Bible is, the true and living God.”  

The FSM is composed of more than 600 islands in the Western Pacific. Approximately 95 percent of the population identifies as Christian. Going to church is the norm. But Mark says that for many, their faith is based on tradition and culture rather than on the bible.  

“It has always been an encouragement for me to hear from students that some of the Bible studies we have had are actually the first time they’ve heard such stories about Jesus, even though they’ve been in church most of their lives,” he said.  

After he moved to Guam to study public administration, Mark became involved with the student ministry work pioneered by Sam, an InterVarsity Link staff worker, whose story was covered in this Prayerline article.  

“I am truly grateful to Sam for coming out to Guam and conducting Bible studies for college students,” Mark said. “It was encouraging to be able to fellowship with peers who are also faithful.” 

Mark began leading Bible studies in the University of Guam Residence Halls where there are more than 150 students from other Micronesian islands such as the FSM, Palau, and the Marshall Islands. After graduating with a master’s last year, Mark decided to stay in Guam to work and continue volunteering in student ministry. As he looks for opportunities to return home, Mark considers how God might use this passion and experience in future ministry on Pohnpei, the largest and most populous island in the FSM.  

“I hope that God will provide laborers in the Federated States of Micronesia that are young and passionate about sharing the gospel to students. If the Lord wills, it would be great if he were to open doors for me to do student ministry there.” 

Knowing his home country like he does, Mark understands that it won’t be easy.  

“It can be difficult to challenge traditional ‘religious’ beliefs with Scripture because it can come across as if we are disrespecting our elders, our traditions, and our culture. Young born-again believers can face backlash when they are bold for biblical truths. It’s something I’ve experienced myself.” 

The FSM is one of approximately seven countries or territories in the South Pacific currently without an affiliated IFES movement. Developing student ministry in these remote island nations is complicated by the fact that many student groups and college campuses are geographically isolated from each other.  

In addition, some of these Pacific Island nations do not have a traditional four-year university. The FSM, for example, does not have a major university but it does have a community college where students can study for two years before completing their studies at another institution abroad or online. Nevertheless, IFES believes that institutions of higher learning are strategic locations for mission. In some nations that means a focus on universities, while in others it may mean working in secondary schools or community colleges.  

“These factors – and others – make the prospect of planting a new student movement in the FSM a significant challenge,” says David Walter, IFES Regional Secretary for the South Pacific. “But God is good.” 

Please pray for Mark and students in – and from – the Federated States of Micronesia: 

  • Pray for guidance and opportunities as Mark explores future ministry opportunities on his home island of Pohnpei. 
  • Pray for wisdom and boldness for young followers of Jesus in the FSM. 
  • Pray that the Lord would provide “workers for the harvest” so that Micronesian students may hear the good news of Jesus – either in their own country or while studying abroad. 

Mourning into Dancing: finding healing in Jesus at Summit 

Just looking at someone, it’s impossible to know what experiences they carry with them. But the Bible speaks strongly into issues of suffering and trauma, as David Walter, Regional Secretary for the South Pacific points out. Recently, TSCF, the national movement in Papua New Guinea, held their Mid-Year Bible Summit student conference, with the theme ‘Wounds of the Heart and the Hope of the Psalms.’ They looked at Psalm 30:11: 

‘You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy.’  

‘We have just had such a week’, write Keith and Marion, volunteer staff with TCSF. ‘Sometimes when our Lord turns on the tap, it really is astonishing. It’s been far more than we asked or thought.’ 

One student called the Summit a time of ‘deep healing’. ‘I never really understood my feelings’, she says. ‘But through the laments of the psalms and our discussions about hidden emotions, I was able to really pinpoint the feelings under the surface and come before God in humility to let him heal me, as I receive his forgiveness. 

‘My father, who is a musician, was never home when I was growing up. He never seemed to have time for me. I developed this idea that he does not love me, which led me to despise him. However, deep down I needed his attention. Understanding that no human relationship can fulfil us the way God can, through Psalm 42, has given a freedom I have never felt in my life. Because now I want God’s Word more than anything else in this world.’ 

This student also survived an attempted sexual assault as a teenager, a trauma that left her with deep emotional wounds. ‘I never really healed from that traumatic event’, she explains. ‘I have triggers that set me off, and I experience depressive episodes that last for weeks and months.’ But as she testifies, some level of change began at the Summit through reading the Scripture. ‘I experienced healing from that emotional wound this week’, she writes, ‘as we went through the Psalms of Lament. The over-thinking has stopped and the shame and fear I’ve been carrying all these years have been lifted. I experienced that “weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning” (Psalm 30:5). I felt washed in the Word, renewed and free from the pain I have been carrying for nine years.’ 

Pray with us for TSCF Papua New Guinea: 

  • Thank God for these revelations and pray that these students would continue to trust in Jesus and find deep joy in him. 
  • Pray for the strengthening and flourishing of TSCF, that they might be able to share the gospel with more students. 
  • Pray that TSCF students will be salt and light in their families, universities, and throughout their lives.