God has opened a remarkable door for us to minister to international students. We have been praying and waiting for some time now for that opportunity-and every time, it seemed as if doors were simply closed. This past week we sponsored a party for international students. We had no idea what to expect in terms of numbers.
Two showed up: Guki (from China), and Yosef (from Morocco). Some might say it was a failure-only two students-but it was a huge blessing and a great success! Both students were so amazed and excited that there was someone on campus who cared about international students. They both are in required English classes with hundreds of internationals. They let us know that they would tell "all of their friends" about BSM and they wanted to know when the next party would be so they could invite all their friends!
Both young men were delightful, full of energy and joy-and again, so appreciative at our small gesture. God has opened a door for us through them.
On a lighter side we enjoyed our conversations with them because they are also still in the learning process. Our language is not easy to master-but both are doing very well when it comes to speaking....still....
Both told us they were "very popular" with all of the international students. The word "popular" was used quite often. I believe they meant that they knew a lot of international students.
The next day, both showed up at our free lunch. After the first lunch, with a room packed full of students, Yosef asked me to introduce me to everyone. He said, "I want to know their names. I want to be popular." This brought a smile to my face. As I introduced him to as many students as possible, he proudly said, "I'm Yosef...it is nice to meet you. I like to be popular." I could only smile.
Perhaps my favorite moment came from a student named Carlos. Carlos is from somewhere in South America. I am still learning more about him. After my brief talk at lunch, Carlos pulled me over and said, "Thank you for these words. I will really take them for granted. I promise you that I will take them for granted." I tried (and God gave me grace to not do so) not to laugh because that was my first reaction-he was so sincere, so serious and obviously meant to be complimentary. I managed to smile and tell him I appreciated the kind words. He stated how eager he was to "join this group."
Again-God showing us favor. In ministering to internationals, relationships are so key. We will have a long way to go with all of our international friends. It will take time. But this much we know: God brought them to us for a reason-and these young men are all eager to connect us not only with their fellow internationals, but also their English teacher so we can coordinate more gatherings for the students.
Pray that God would continue to give us favor, that we would be found faithful, and that through those relationships, these precious students would come to faith in Christ.
No comments:
Post a Comment