Paradigm Shift: Why International Students are so Strategic to Global Missions

The primary reason for writing this book to you and others in our nation’s Christian community is to present the strategic importance for international students and scholars to come under the umbrella of global missions. The author has deep convictions about the need for a paradigm shift in global missions now that we have such a tremendous resource God has brought to our very shores. That is the one million plus international students coming from practically every country on the face of the earth! Recognizing that these future world leaders God has brought to our nation’s campuses have the potential for creating an impact upon their own nations for Christ should stretch our imaginations as Christians to the unparalleled opportunity that is ours. We need to come to grips with the reality that having such rapid growth over the past decade of international students on our nation’s campuses is not just a coincidence. God works in mysterious ways and this has to be one of them. We, the Christian community of this great land, need to get with God’s program and focus on identifying, recruiting, training and equipping Christian international students for return to their homelands. They have the potential for becoming much more effective and efficient missionaries to people in their own countries than those coming from other nations whose language, culture, and world views are totally different. One of the unique features this book offers is to provide illustrations of Christian international students who have returned home to accomplish feats for God on a scale traditional foreign missionaries would never have thought possible. So the documentation is here. Further, missions by returned Christian international students can be done and has been done more economically than by present traditional methods. Reason for the reduced cost is quite obvious. In K.P. Yohanna’s book Revolution in World Missions , you will read the cost comparison of traditional versus indigenous missions. By comparison, indigenous missions which international student missions is considered a part of, costs much, much less. Churches and denominations should be tapping into their global missions budget to support ministries to international students attending local colleges and universities. After all, reaching international students from other nations should come under global missions. God has brought international students, many being Christians, to our nation’s colleges and universities. They are potential missionaries. Our part is to provide the specialized Biblical, theological, re-entry training, and follow-up encouragement needed for their return home. Fortunately, the traditional missionary’s need for expensive and time-consuming language and culture training does not appear on the international student’s list of needs in preparation for the return trip to their part of the world. For most students the matter of raising funds for the cost of returning to their respective homelands is a non-issue also. Although I have much to say about how international student ministry (ISM) should be carried out, this book does not go into any depth of the how’s of ISM. Suffice it to say we should be taking every opportunity to meet the special needs of international students whether or not they are Christians. Through the loving kindness, thoughtfulness, hospitality and sharing one’s faith, many internationals have become followers of Jesus. These students want the qualities of the “fruits of the spirit” which they see in Christians who love the Lord and want to share their faith with others. Acts of love opens doors for followers of Jesus to share their faith. Included in these acts of love is being a good listener when the student expresses what is important to him or her, including religious beliefs. In this book you will find what is being done in the ministry to international students, who is doing it, where it is being done, and many more reasons why than what you have just read. This book is a case for why we as Christians should consider ministry to international students a current best method in today’s world for carrying out the Great Commission. (I say current because there are other nations that are trying their best to attract international students to study in their countries. Yes, attracting international students to study in one’s country or one’s university has become highly competitive in the global market of higher education.) Right now, America is #1 in attracting international students to its shores for higher education. We need to take advantage of this window of opportunity while it is still open. As important as traditional global missions are, this book rests its case on missions to international students, particularly those Christians with a reasonable amount of Biblical and theological training, as being the ones who are best qualified to spread the gospel to their respective nations. That’s in every respect—most logical, most effective, most efficient, and certainly most economical. Another way of putting it is - International Student Ministry should be central to today’s global missions challenge and practice. My experience in international student ministry has come from being involved in leadership, both inside prestigious secular universities as the administrative director in charge of services to international students and experience outside the university as a volunteer leader working with Christian ministries to international students. This total adding up to 60 years has led me to share this vision through the writing of this book. Here are three of the questions this book addresses: • Why should international students and scholars become strategically important to the global ministries of denominations, churches, para-church organizations, theological seminaries, Christian universities, Bible colleges, mission agencies and missions-minded Christians to fulfill the Great Commission? • Why is there need for a paradigm shift in global missions to move international students to center stage of global missions focus? • Who are some famous former international students and who among them are Christians that have made a significant difference for Christ back home?