
Learn more about how our ministry is touching the lives of international students in profound ways!
“Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain. But do this in a gentle and respectful way. Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ,” 1 Peter 3:15-16 (NLT).
It’s no secret that we live in an oftentimes harsh world where broken hearts and spirits yearn for unconditional kindness and gentleness. Even though some of us might shy away from describing these qualities as our top attributes, I believe there is a place within each of us—a “God-shaped hole”—that craves both kindness and gentleness. Combined together, these two attributes really help reveal Christ’s presence in a person’s life. Jesus was gentle and kind in a way that spilled over into His dealings with everyone He met—especially those whom the world tends to cast aside. It’s never too late to ask Him for ways to share His gentleness and kindness with others.
Here at International Students, Inc., we are blessed to hear stories of how the kindness and gentleness of our staff and volunteers spill so beautifully into the lives of so many international students. In God’s world, gentleness happens to rank as one of the most powerful forces at work today. The strongest statement in God’s Word that supports this is found in
1 Peter 3:15-16 (NLT):
“Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain. But do this in a gentle and respectful way. Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ,” 1 Peter 3:15-16 (NLT).
Friend, this is exactly how we minister. We show our international students unconditional kindness and gentleness in the way we share our lives with them. We treat them with respect and integrity no matter where they are from or because of what they believe. We so enjoy receiving testimonies like the one below that highlight the ways in which God touches the lives of international students through our staff and volunteers:
“This Sunday morning when I was in church worshipping our God, all of a sudden my heart was moved. Images were coming through my mind. Some people are providing their houses and food to the international students who gather together, to establish friendship, and to spread God’s love; some people are devoting all their lives to the international mission for God’s work. What can I do? I could stand there and let everybody know that the love from God is touching and saving international students like me. But I want to be used by God as a container. I want to follow His will, not my own. I believe…I know and I can feel the Lord is going to work on me in my heart and in my life. The Lord is loving me, saving me, changing me and strengthening me inside.”
What an incredible illustration of how our love for Christ and for others can spill so graciously into the lives around us! We see this at work all the time in our ministry. And by God’s blessing, we are thrilled to announce that our ministry is growing and expanding. You may have heard of our Church Mobilization Initiative. Friend, this effort to fully equip and train the U.S. Church for effective outreach and long-lasting ministry is also growing! This will allow us to reach even more students with the gentleness and kindness of our Loving Savior!
As part of our newly launched Church Mobilization Campaign, we are currently mentoring 645 churches who have previously responded to our outreach efforts. By focusing on these partnerships and training and equipping them for effective international student ministry, we believe we can greatly increase the number of students we are currently reaching. In addition to providing mentorship to responding churches, our goal is to gain new church partners as well. In partnership with Outreach, Inc., we are advertising International Students, Inc. and M:28 on their websites, which have the capacity to reach 350,000 pastors nationwide!
For more information on the Church Mobilization Campaign, I encourage you to visit and share our new website www.ChurchesReachingNations.org. This site is designed to introduce pastors and churches across the nation to International Students, Inc.
If you know a pastor or church elder who may be interested in our Church Mobilization Campaign, please send this blog their way! You never know how many people may be impacted by your simple “share.” We wish you a blessed week. Thank you for all you do to help support us and our mission to reach every international student for Christ!
For More Information:
Learn more about the Churches Reaching Nations campaign.
Read more about this campaign from Dr. Shaw’s previous blog.