It is exciting that God has given us the opportunities to reach out to international students who come to UK to study from countries where they have a very few opportunities to meet Christians. When we meet an international student on the campus, how can we befriend them & share the gospel with them?
1. Ask questions - asking questions shows that we are interested in someone. Listening to the answers (and communicating to them that we’re listening) shows that we care! If their English level is low – give them more time to answer your questions.
2.Talk about yourself It allows the other person to relax with you and makes them feel less like you’re interrogating them! It also gives them permission to talk about themselves. If their language level is low, be patient and talk slower and use simple words.
3. Accept that cultural differences are real They usually can’t adapt completely to our culture so we need to be willing to meet them somewhere in the middle. Understanding how difficult it is for them to adapt can help us to accept them as they are. Take a genuine interest in their culture, but don’t assume you know things about their culture. What is acceptable in your culture might not be acceptable in theirs. Wherever possible keep to same sex relationships especially with Muslim or Asian people.
4. We (and they) will not always get it right
Making friends cross-culturally is a learned skill and we won’t always get it right. We all know that even within our own culture there are some people who we just don’t naturally get on with. This will be the case with people from other cultures too. But we are called to love even those who we don’t click with. Anyone who tries to make friends with someone from another culture will make plenty of cultural mistakes but don’t be overly concerned about this. If our love is genuine it will show through our mistakes and overcome any barriers they might cause.
5. Keep in touch with them after they leave UK
We need to stay in contact and maintain the friendship. How can we continue meaningful relationships with people when they move away? - Email, write, send things (photos), phone, visit, invite them to stay.
Written by Baiba Strause-Kalmere; Baiba is a Student worker at Canterbury Baptist Church & missionary to International students in Canterbury working with Friends International Ministries. Want to find out more about Friends International ministries and free online resources available for churches and students in the UK? Check out: http://friendsinternational.uk/
Baiba was speaking to Sam.
