The Student Mission Awards are coming in February 2018. What student mission stories have you got to share? Could the International Student Mission award be yours?
Government statistics state that the number of international students who studied at university (undergraduate and postgraduate) in the UK in 2015-16 totalled 436,585 – approximately 20 percent of all students.
This is an extraordinary number, and many of these students have little or no experience of church or the Christian faith – meaning the need for the church to engage with international students is paramount and pressing.
We want to recognise the pioneering missional initiatives aimed at the tens of thousands of non-UK students who have left their home countries to spend three years learning and living here in the UK.
The gospel isn’t for the 80% of students in the UK mostly born and raised in these isles – it is for the 100% of all students.
Mission with international students requires a willingness to press beyond cultural barriers and a keenness to meet people where they are at and recognise the need to not presume prior awareness of the good news of Jesus amongst students. We have a biblical responsibility to show kindness and love to foreigners and Jesus commissions us to make disciples of all nations of the world, a responsibility that is even more pressing when the world lives on our front doorstep.
International student mission frequently focuses on building friendship and showing hospitality to people, who are often trying to study, learn a new language and understand a strange new culture all at the same time.
Chances are your university city/town is a melting pot of cultures, ethnicities, nationalities and traditions, and you have a unique opportunity to befriend and disciple amongst the melting pot. Here are some of the ways you could engage with the international students in your location:
- Hosting people for dinner and showing them hospitality amidst a strange new culture.
- Putting on bible studies to unpack the basics of Christianity with people.
- Showing students round your city/campus.
- Giving as big a welcome for the international students as you would for the confident young freshers from Islington or Nottingham.
So now it is up to you. How are you going to reach the 20 percent?
What could you do to befriend and welcome international students in a loving and non-intimidating manner, pressing beyond culture clashes and language barriers?
We want to hear your stories of mission in reaching out to international students.
This award could be yours / 这个奖可能是你的 / Ce prix pourrait être le vôtre / Este premio podría ser tuyo...
