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JESUS
VIDEO IS IMPACTING INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS ALL OVER THE UNITED STATES
International
Students, Inc., say that record numbers are turning to Christ after
viewing it
By Dan Wooding
LUTON, ENGLAND (August 21, 2000) - International students on campuses all over the United States are giving their lives to Jesus Christ in record numbers after seeing the Jesus video, which is taken straight from the Gospel of Luke. International Students, Inc. of Colorado Springs, Colorado, is making thousands of copies of the video available to these students free of charge.
"Our latest figures from cards returned to us by international students who have watched the video are: nearly 70 percent of them are coming to Christ," announced Roger Simmons, Vice President of Ministry with International Students, Inc., in an interview from Luton, England. "So many of them want us to send them a Bible in their own language or in English. They also want someone to follow up with them. It's just a terrific way to make contact with the students and we praise God for this response!"
Mr. Simmons went on to say, "There are 600,000 international students in the U.S. and for the last two years we have been distributing the Jesus video. We give them away free to our staff, our volunteers, and to our partnering organizations. Included with it is a tract called Knowing God Personally and also the Jesus video Bible study guide. We provide a response card that the students could fill out, which is then entered in a drawing. Computers, mountain bikes and other prizes were awarded as incentives to return the cards. Last year we distributed 36,000 Jesus videos to all of our volunteers. This year we are sending out 56,000 videos."
"We make them available to all our ministry partners like the international student departments of InterVarsity, Campus Crusade, The Navigators, and Chi Alpha from the Assemblies of God, as well as smaller organizations that work on the campuses with the international students. The videos are made available to them at no cost."
Mr. Simmons revealed that last year ISI's staff and volunteer team in Ann Arbor, Michigan, based at the University of Michigan, decided to give away the video to all of the international students on campus. "They drafted in churches, volunteers, and other organizations, and they delivered 2,800 Jesus videos-one to every international student on the campus," he said. "The team tied that together with some other items, like food coupons and bus tokens, and delivered the packages to the students as a welcome present at the beginning of the year."
IN TWENTY DIFFERENT LANGUAGES
He said that this year, the Jesus video is being provided in 22 different languages. "Many of the students will be getting the video in their own language while others will be obtaining it in English, which all of them are trying to learn."
"We've had stories of students getting the video and then sharing it with others. From all the videos we passed out last year, the best records that we have are that each student shared it with three more people. So the effects of the video were multiplied many times over."
When asked why this video is having such an impact, Mr. Simmons replied, "It is putting the life of Jesus right in front of them in a medium to which they are accustomed, which they enjoy seeing and using. The video story is very well done and tells the life of a man-God-about whom they might have heard, but really know very little. They can sit down for 90 minutes, watch this video, and really come in contact with Christ who can change their lives for eternity."
THE JESUS VIDEO IS ONE OF THE MOST EFFECTIVE TOOLS FOR REACHING THE WORLD FOR CHRIST
The Jesus Video Project (JVP) based in San Bernardino, California, whose mission is to distribute a Jesus video to every household in America, recently announced the distribution of the 10 millionth Jesus video in Evansville, Indiana. He said that besides the Bible, the Jesus video (and film) has become one of the most effective evangelistic tools that Christians can use to share the message of Christ with the world.
"This video is really a way of putting the words of God and the story of God and His Son into their hands," he said. "It often is a lot easier to put a video into their hands than a Bible. The students gather in their rooms, the lounges or the dorms, pop in the video and watch it together. Many of our staff have had showings of the video for numbers of students, so they watch it together and they can ask questions afterwards. There are plenty of volunteers to help them with their questions."
WHY REACH INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS?
When asked why it was important to reach international students studying in the United States with the Gospel, Mr. Simmons replied, "God has brought the students here to our own back yard. This may be the only, or one of the few, chances they have to hear the Gospel. This is the opportunity God has given us to carry out the Great Commission; we must take advantage of it. When international students come to the U.S., they are like a lot of people who are moving from one country to another; they don't know anyone, and they are lonely. They want to find out more about our culture.
The Jesus video is just a way of bridging that gap with them. It's a friendly way of reaching out to them and saying, 'Here's a gift we have for you.' It then gives them an excellent opportunity to be able to tie in with Christian volunteers and staff in their locations. As a matter of fact, on the response card we ask them to send back to us, we ask, 'Would you like an American friend?' Our staff network with the students for feedback when they hand out the video; they also do it again after the international students have seen the video and they can fill out that card."
"You can be just standing at a table on a college campus and have a sign which says, 'Free to international students' and hand out these videos. It will be a student with whom our volunteers and staff may never normally have a chance to have contact."
International Students, Inc. (ISI) is a 47 year old organization of Christian volunteers who want to have friendships with international students at U.S. colleges and universities. ISI volunteers and staff help students with such things as learning about American culture, problems needing a native speaker, finding an American Christian mentor in their academic discipline, and (if interested) in learning about our Creator God and the Bible. ISI has field staff in more than 218 cities across the U.S., serving more than 404 campuses. In addition, more than 12,000 volunteers assist to serve international students throughout the U.S.
For further information on the ministry of International Students, Inc., you may call (800) 474-4014 (in the USA) or write to them at PO Box C, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80901.
The website address is < http://www.isionline.org>.
____________________________________________________** You are free to use this story with proper attribution.
P.E.
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last
updated 30 August 2000
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