When I was a kid, I always dreamed of going to India. My heart broke for the people who experienced urgent physical and spiritual needs––and I wanted to do something about it.
I’m 25 years old now, and I’ve still never been to India. But, a year ago, I learned that hundreds of international students from India already live in my city––and I didn’t know any of them.
If you want to make your life count by making the gospel known among the nations, start where you are and love your neighbors well.
Over the past year, my wife and I have built genuine friendships with international students and learned that many of them come from other countries like Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and parts of India where there are few churches. All over the world, students from unreached places are moving to global cities to pursue higher education.
If you want to make your life count by making the gospel known among the nations, start where you are and love your neighbors well. It’s easy to romanticize getting on an airplane and flying to a faraway country for missions––and we certainly need more missionaries to do this. But, the Lord is bringing the nations––even the unreached–-to our neighborhoods.
Meet Practical Needs
One of the best ways to serve immigrants, refugees, and international students is to start by meeting their physical needs. Help them find friends in your city, drive them to the grocery store, buy them dinner, and invite them into your home.
As Christians, we ought to find ways to invite non-Christians who have come from unreached places into our lives. This is often slow and difficult work as you learn to navigate cross-cultural friendships, but enter into this work with the posture of a servant. Find ways to help them adapt to life in your city and meet their practical needs.
Make the Gospel Known
Aim to make the gospel known through your words and deeds. As you develop friendships with international students and friends from unreached places, don’t be afraid to share the gospel with them. Start by asking if you can pray for them, and take time to listen to their stories. As your friendship develops, consider introducing them to other Christian friends or bringing them to church. Perhaps, as they show interest, you can invite one of them to study the Gospels with you.
Aim to build genuine friendships with them, and avoid making them feel like you only want to evangelize them. At the same time, don’t be afraid to talk about your faith. As Christians, we recognize that salvation is a transformative experience. Don’t hide this from your international friends or downplay the significance of your faith.
Serve the Nations in Your Neighborhood
Remember to trust the Lord’s timing. In any evangelistic effort, we must recognize that God is at work, even if immediate results are not visible. A friend of mine met regularly with a woman from an unreached people group who was in our city studying at a local university. It didn’t happen after just one conversation, but through their friendship, the woman now has a Bible in Arabic and has heard the gospel several times.
God is bringing the nations into our neighborhoods, and he has given us an opportunity to make his name known among many nations without leaving our hometown––even among the unreached. Consider how you can leverage your life to make the gospel known among those from unreached places in your city. Talk to a pastor in your church about opportunities in your surrounding area and consider what role you can play in the Great Commission.
In our city, retired couples open their homes to international students with questions about the Christian faith, young adults plan hangouts with Christian friends and bring Hindus and Muslims along, families are sacrificing time to eat dinner with international students, and others are diligently praying for the ministry that others are doing among internationals. Every one of us has a role to play.
Cole Shiflet and his wife Courtney are members of Redeemer Community Church, where Cole serves as Director of Global Missions. He is also an M.Div. student at Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham, Alabama.
