“I became a member of a church that exposed me to the Great Commission,
in which Jesus commanded his followers to become his witnesses in Jerusalem
(locally), Judea/Samaria (regionally and nationally) and to the ends of the
earth (globally). I understood from this that any Bible-based church should
engage in all three zones at the same time.
This pattern became my experience because the ‘ends of the earth’ had come
to live in my Jerusalem. I became a
cross cultural witness for Christ without leaving my postcode.”
– Steve
Bell (Grace for Muslims: A journey from fear to faith)
When I read these words they resonated with something deep
in my heart. A few years after moving to Bournemouth I began attending Gateway
Church in Poole. Through the bible teaching it became evident this was a
mission-minded church, and often after the sermons I went away with my heart
stirred to share the Good News with those who had never heard. A heart for ‘the
nations’ had been developing in me from a young age as my parents worked for a
mission organisation and I studied cross-cultural evangelism in bible college.
As I settled into the community I soon realised there were many students coming
from around the world to study in Bournemouth and Poole. I remember thinking
what a great opportunity this was and that our church should be reaching
them.
As I sat sipping tea with a friend on a cold January
afternoon I shared my heart. Miss Joyce Harding was a retired missionary to
India who I came to know through the care agency I was working for. She prayed
with me and told me to look up Friends International. In the summer of 2009 I
volunteered to be on the local team for the Bournemouth International Outreach.
As I welcomed students from Spain, China, Switzerland, Saudi Arabia and Turkey,
and found myself in conversations with them about Jesus, a flame reignited in
my soul. From there I became a volunteer for the Hub café, and then the
Programme Coordinator for Friends International Dorset in 2010.
During my time with Friends International I have served on
the Hub Café leadership team and supported café leaders through the SMILE
Network (Student Meetings International Local Events). While helping to equip local churches, I still
longed for my own church to be reaching international students. Our church is not located in the town centre
where most student activity happens, but I knew there were many language
students residing with host families in our area. I spoke to the elders, who
were very supportive and encouraging of any way we could be reaching the
nations in our town. I began meeting with a friend who also had a heart for the
nations. We shared a vision to see an
English conversation café in the Parkstone area where people could come to
improve their English, meet friends and hear about Jesus. We began praying
together, believing God had planted this seed in our hearts.
Through the years I encouraged Gateway members to join the
local BIO team and host international students in their homes for meals. I
witnessed God at work as our church became more and more international.
Students from Austria, Bulgaria, China, Guyana, India and Romania began
attending.
I kept exploring ways we might be able to open an English
conversation café. We even looked at boarded-up shops on Ashley Road in
Parkstone. But, nothing seemed to open
up to us. It seemed God was saying it wasn’t time, “Be still and know that I am
God”. Then during the late summer of 2015 I learned that Gateway was looking
into purchasing the Methodist building at 502 Ashley Road in Parkstone. Could
this be the open door? A few weeks after the purchase one of our church elders
contacted me and asked me if I would like to start an English Conversation Café
at 502 and invited me to come into the church office to talk it through.
On the 10the of June, 2016 we opened the doors of
Parkstone International Community. God
provided us with an amazing team of people with various gifts and
cross-cultural experience. Some were language teachers, had hosted international
students in their home, or served abroad in Christian ministry or on the BIO
local team. In the weeks prior to the launch we had planning meetings, handed
out invitations, spread the word on social media and most importantly prayed. From
the very first night God blessed us with a good number of people from around
the world.
As time went on the numbers of those in attendance fluctuated
as language students came and then returned to their home country. We tweaked the programme as we became more
aware of the needs of the students who were coming to us. We included
worksheets to help with practising English conversation, games, activities
along with food and cultural events. We looked for creative ways to talk about
Jesus by using every day English idioms based in the Bible.
Looking now over our guest book, I notice we have students
coming to us from countries where it can be costly to explore who Jesus
is. Yet, during their time with us they
have that opportunity. And this is where
I see our part in global mission. We seek to serve our international guests in
a very practical way by helping them improve their English. But, ultimately our
aim is to become their friend and help them on their journey to knowing who
Jesus is. In just over a year and a half, friendships have deepened; some have
asked questions about the Christian faith and requested a Bible in their own
language. We are planning to offer an international Bible study after Easter.
What I have learned from this journey is that if God plants
a seed in your heart you can trust Him to grow it. As with any seed, it will
require a lot of prayer and patience. How
you communicate with your church leaders is extremely important. Like me you
may feel passionate about international student ministry, but keep the big
picture in mind. Consider the diversity of people your church is reaching and
the range of ministries your elders oversee. Learn humility. Be willing to
serve. Seek out those in your congregation who have a similar heart for the
nations and form a team with your elders’ blessing. Make use of the many resources and support available
to you through Friends International. No
matter how experienced you are, be willing to learn new ways of reaching
international students as the needs of the students and their cultures
continually change. Be flexible and keep
looking to God for direction.
