Editorial: Join the joy of international student ministry

Baptist University of the Américas started more than 75 years ago as the Mexican Baptist Bible Institute. The name changed to Hispanic Baptist Theological Seminary and then Hispanic Baptist Theological School, before changing again in 2003 to its current name.

Given the names, where do you think students come from to attend BUA? I suppose that’s a rhetorical question. Don’t they all come from Spanish-speaking countries or regions?

Would you be surprised to know BUA students also hail from Central, East and South Asia?

Mary Ranjel, director of the international student services office at BUA, sent me the following list of countries represented at BUA: Brazil, Chile, China, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Honduras, India, Mexico, Pakistan, Peru, the Republic of South Korea, and the United Kingdom by way of Nigeria.

And I got to be with them this week during BUA’s International Student Fair.

International students enrich us in so many ways. Ministry to and with them is energizing and has the potential to revive us. We should look for opportunities to join those already engaged in international student ministry.

What international student ministry looks like

You might wonder what international student ministry looks like. What I participated in at BUA this week looks almost identical to the international student ministry my wife and I were part of as missionaries serving the Baptist Student Union at the University of New Mexico during the 2000s. In short, food and music.

Now, food and music aren’t the totality of international student ministry, but they are a significant part of it.

International students love to share the foods that are a piece of home for them. I get that. Being from New Mexico, I try to introduce as many people as possible to the joy of Hatch green chile and plain sopapillas with honey.

During the BUA International Student Fair and the International Culture Nights at the UNM BSU, we enjoyed food from around the world, enjoyed traditional music and other cultural expressions, and celebrated the rich diversity of God’s world. Some students wore traditional attire. At UNM, we learned traditional dances from international students.

Welcoming this kind of diversity affirms international students’ culture and uniqueness, telling them “who they are and where they come from is important to us,” said Gabriel Cortés, BUA chief of staff.

In fact, what we communicate to international students is the most important part of international student ministry.

What international student ministry communicates

For Yamileth Guzman, a BUA student from El Salvador, the International Student Fair communicates the university is interested in her, not only as a student, but as a person—with all that her personhood entails.

She is proud to represent her country through food and a display of things for which El Salvador is known. Additionally, the fair is a learning experience for her, as well as her schoolmates, opening them to new interests or career paths, she said.

During the 2000s, UNM had about 1,000 international students from 89 countries. Only one of those students was from Taiwan. For each international student involved in our ministry, we hung their national flag in our building. When Joe walked in one day and saw the Taiwanese flag, he stopped and cried because he couldn’t believe we would do that for him. We told him, of course, we would do that for him—which told him he is valued.

There are only one or two students from some of the countries represented at BUA, but that doesn’t make them any less important than the many students from Mexico—the largest international contingent, naturally. Each one was and is celebrated.

Celebrating these students as they are communicates what we believe, that God is a creative Creator who loves the whole world and wants people from every nation, tribe, people and language to know salvation. It also opens the door to communicating the good news of Jesus Christ to those who aren’t already Christians.

Read back over that last phrase—“those who aren’t already Christians.” We make a mistake to assume international students aren’t Christians, but I hear the assumption spoken all too often. Many are Christians and are looking for a ministry to be part of while in college.

Christian or not, most international students long for friendship and connection—just like most of us.

You can do international student ministry

International student ministry is within your reach. If you are within driving distance of a college or university, you are within driving distance of international student ministry, and likely a Baptist Student Ministry that would love your help.

It’s a good idea to check with a BSM to find out what help is needed before just showing up. You may also need to study up on cultures involved in a given BSM and how to interact effectively with them. To find a BSM near you, click here. For help navigating cultures, Mark Heavener with Texas Baptists’ Intercultural Ministries is a great resource.

You may not be close enough to a BSM to make regular trips, but you might still be able to participate in something like a furniture giveaway. International students generally arrive in the United States with only what will fit in one or two suitcases. They need furnishings for every room in an apartment—kitchen, living room, bedroom and bathroom. You, your friends and your church probably have items you could donate. Again, contact a BSM to find out what is needed.

For God so loved the world

Jesus called us to love others as we love ourselves. International student ministry gives us the opportunity to practice and grow in doing just that—loving people the way Jesus demonstrated his love for people.

International student ministry is about caring for people as they are, not expecting them to move toward us, but moving toward them just as God moved toward us in Jesus. Join in the joy of international student ministry. It will be life-giving for you and for the students.

Eric Black is the executive director, publisher and editor of the Baptist Standard. He can be reached at eric.black@baptiststandard.com. The views expressed are those solely of the author.