Discovering the Bible | August Newsletter

Discovering the Bible

We have been attending a church small group in our neighborhood focused on outreach and encouraging each other in evangelism. I (Naomi) really love face-to-face ministry and I’m so thankful that the bulk of the neighbors that our group has been developing relationships with are internationals! It’s so fun! We have built enough trust with these couples that we are starting a six-week Discovery Bible Study this month.

We’ll use the same materials that Bridges staff use on campus with students who have never studied the Bible before. So far, one couple, Peter and Jenny from Taiwan, have said yes. Please pray for three more couples to join us. Pictured below: Naomi has her arm around Jenny.

Welcome Parties

Bridges events are in full swing on campuses all across the country right now, as staff are busy welcoming new international students, befriending them, helping them to get settled into life in America, hosting welcome parties, and gauging spiritual interest. On the Houston campus ministry team, they are currently following up with new students they met on the City Tour and Welcome Party. Pray for the staff, student leaders, and volunteers, that they would find students who are spiritually interested. Pray for the team as they start Discovery Bible study groups on campus. Pray for the hearts of students to be open.

Lost in Space

I (Zack) have been writing a faith-based science-fiction novel. It’s a near-future story about three siblings who travel to deep space, and together go on a spiritual journey.

Why write this? If you’ve been following the news lately about space exploration, you know that we’re living in a new golden age of discovery. There are serious plans to build permanent human settlements on Mars. NASA has discovered over 3,000 planets around other stars. Within a few years, we will be able to detect whether or not there are signs of life out there. Are we, as Christians, ready to confront the theological issues inherent in these advancements?

Sci-fi is a “thought simulator” about the future, and the genre is largely devoid of a Christian voice. I believe there is a huge opportunity to engage students in spiritual discussions with a story about these topics.

My goal is to finish the first draft in the next six months and have revisions done by the end of 2019. Go to zackaryrussell.com for more info and updates. I am thankful Cru gave me its blessing to pursue this, although it’s a nights and weekends project (not my main role).

Sleepless in Austin

Our children (particularly Paxton and Cassia) have not been sleeping well lately. They wake up sporadically throughout the night and scream or cry. We are often exhausted, so need prayer that, as a family, we could all sleep through the night.

Upcoming

Have you ever met an international and thought, “I would love to reach out to them, but I don’t know where to begin or what to say?” Zack has been working hard on editing the training videos for Every International. It is our hope and prayer that this training curriculum will give Americans confidence in reaching internationals. We plan to launch in October. We hope that it will be a tool for you to use as well.

Praise Reports

  • New international friends in our neighborhood and lives.

Prayer Requests

  • Spiritual protection over the neighborhood Bible Study, and for 3 more couples to join.
  • Peter and Jenny would accept Christ as their Savior soon.
  • Bridges Discovery Bible Study groups that are being started on many campuses.

Trans-cultural Ministry Training | June Newsletter

Aloha!

Last month we spent some time in Naomi’s hometown in Hawaii, to connect with our ministry partners, family and friends. We shared the vision of Bridges at churches, Bible studies and personal appointments. God provided several new people for our partnership team, and many others were encouraged and challenged by the stories of how God is moving in the lives of international students.

And of course, we had a few trips to the beach. It was the first time for Cassia and Paxton to be there. We had not been back to the islands for 6 years previous.

It was a delight to see those of you we had a chance to visit with, but we know there are many we sadly missed! Be sure to check out the Videos page to see some new stories we have been sharing.

Every International

Can you imagine a day when every international in North America knows someone who truly follows Jesus? Can you imagine the day when every student, refugee and immigrant has the chance to hear the gospel in a clear, loving, and culturally relevant way?

This is the vision of “Every International” — a long-term initiative we are joining with several other international student ministries (or ISM’s). We want to see every international in North America know one follower of Jesus, and we want every Christian to know and befriend one international.

We just wrapped up three video recording sessions of twenty different speakers. We will use these training videos to help mobilize the Body of Christ all across the U.S. in effective “trans-cultural” ministry. Topics include:

  • God’s Heart for the Nations
  • Meeting & Befriending Internationals
  • Overcoming Common Barriers
  • Understanding and Reaching Chinese / Indian / Middle Eastern Students

We had so many talented and well-spoken teachers and experts, it’s going to be an incredible training curriculum. Our hope and prayer is to equip thousands of believers across the country with this material.

Upcoming

The next two months will be largely devoted to the post-production of the Every International training videos. Zack will be working with a team of creatives and ministry leaders to get this curriculum ready for the Fall semester.

Praise Reports

  • A productive and enjoyable trip to Naomi’s hometown.
  • Many new people are excited about the vision of reaching international students.
  • Filming all 20 ISM experts went incredibly well.

Prayer Requests

  • For all the video editing and other post-production to be done with excellence and ease.
  • For the development of the Every International website and mobile app.
  • For our work to glorify God and effectively train many in trans-cultural ministry.

Pawku’s Story – The Shell

When a civil war broke out in Burma, Pawku and her family had to flee. Eventually they made their way to the United States, but the life Pawku found was the opposite of what she expected. Then, as a college student in Denver, Pawku went through a season of depression. This is the story of how God worked throughout the storms in her life.

It was an amazing privilege to capture and edit this story. Pawku’s strong faith despite all she’s gone through is such beautiful portrayal of Psalm 23:3-4 and Psalm 1:1-3.

This Conference Changed My Life | January Newsletter

“This is Real!”

As 2017 came to a close, 1,286 students, Bridges staff, and volunteers from 83 nations gathered for a 5-day spiritual journey in Washington DC — the Vision Conference!

One of those students was Iris (pictured below), for whom this was her third time at Vision. Many things have changed in her life since she first got involved with Bridges, and she boldly spoke in front of the whole conference about what God has done.

“I came from a Buddhist family,” said Iris. “Twice a year, we would do a big service. I’m always asking Buddha for everything. But I didn’t feel a connection because it didn’t make me become a better person.”

Then two years ago, Iris came here to Austin, as Vision was held at a hotel downtown that year. Naomi  was her discussion group leader. Naomi could tell that her heart was very open and asked for prayer for Iris in her daily Vision emails. Iris shared about what happened then:

“I didn’t really know anything about Jesus, anything about the Bible. I met an amazing group of people that helped mentor me, coach me, and help me understand who Jesus is.

“I remember very clearly that I prayed on December 31st at two o’clock in the morning. I became a Christian because of the Vision Conference. This is real! This conference changed my life!”

There was a loud a cheer when Iris said this.   I (Zack) wished in that moment that Naomi had been there in DC. But as you know, my job is to capture these stories on video.

Watch the rest of Iris’s story below. And be encouraged: Iris came into the kingdom and is growing in her faith as an answer to your prayers!

(Due to the audio quality, please click the CC button for subtitles)

Wendy’s Story – Hurricane Harvey Relief

“I’m not the best person in terms of manual labor, but I try my best,” said Wendy, a Rice University student from China. It had been a long day of Hurricane Harvey relief work. “My hometown is a really dry place; we don’t get a lot of storm like this,” she told us. “It’s heartbreaking to see people’s homes like this. They used to be a home, but now they’re trash.” She had to wipe away many tears. Watch her story:

Wendy was part of a Cru student team from Rice who helped Houston residents gut their homes. She also noticed something beautiful happening. “Harvey has given the community an opportunity to break down barriers between different classes, and different races,” she said. For Wendy, the whole experience was a mixture of heartache and hope, as she saw firsthand the incredible unity on display throughout Houston.

But even deeper than that is the hope Wendy found in Christ. She came to the U.S. “really skeptical about the existence of God.” Out of curiosity, she attended a talk called, “Do Science and God Mix?” Then, God used the faithful witness of Cru students to make Wendy into a new creation. And because of her faith, she is out there serving others.

Our vision is for international students to become Christ-centered laborers like Wendy. Please join us in prayer for many more “Wendys” in 2018!

Year-End Giving

As 2017 comes to a close, would you consider a special gift to our ministry?

Our ministry with international students is possible through the generous gifts of people like yourself. We are currently in need of additional funding to continue effective ministry to these students. Your partnership makes an eternal difference in helping to bring the message of Jesus Christ to people all over the world. All gifts are income tax-deductible. Thank you for considering.

Prefer to give by check?

Students From Everywhere are Everywhere | November Newsletter

Annalei’s Outreach

Annalei (11) came home from school one day and told me (Naomi) that she decided to spend her recess sharing the gospel with kids in her class! She used “The Four Fantastic Facts” (a gospel tract/kids version of “The 4 Spiritual Laws”) and read it through with three of her classmates. Two of them: Colby and Mary Jane prayed to receive Christ!! And she left the booklet with Gabby, who said she would think about it. Annalei has been faithfully praying for Gabby to make the decision to follow Christ as well. As a missionary mom, nothing could make me prouder than to see my kids sharing the gospel and having a heart for the lost! Please pray Annalei (and all my kids!) would be active in sharing their faith their entire lives.

Neighborhood Outreach

I am very thankful for two ladies in my neighborhood: Sheryl (in the purple) and Marie (in the stripes). Both of them love Jesus and are eager to share Him with others. I’m really thankful that the women that God is brining into our path are mostly internationals! It’s so kind of God to give me international friends, even though I can’t be with international students on campus in this season of life.

This pic was taken at a baby shower for Marie and our friend from China, “Eileen”. Also in the pic is “Jenny” from China and Mariana from Mexico. Marie, Sheryl and I all were able to share about different aspects of the gospel and our walks with Christ by sharing about why we named our kids what we did. It was a really good and Spirit filled time. Please pray for the salvation of these three as well as some other international moms that I want to share the gospel with: Ana (from Yugoslavia), Ana Maria (from Costa Rica), Sonu (from India), Suzy (from Mexico) and a new neighbor Fadima (from Africa). I’m super excited about God bringing the nations to my neighborhood!!

Getting the Other 90%

“Students from everywhere are everywhere, but we’re only reaching 10%, so we’ve got 90% to go.” That was the rallying cry our national director, Trae Vacek, gave to our new Bridges staff and interns. We had gathered together in New York City for several days of training in reaching internationals (pic below).

I (Zack) was there to film the training to leverage for wider use. It’s the first step in our “Every International” campaign. Our vision is provide training videos to American students and laypeople, who will work alongside us in reaching the other 90% of the 1.3 million international students in the U.S.

One fun part was about “Peach vs. Coconut Cultures.” Can you guess what it means? Which fruit represents the West? The East?

PRAISE REPORTS

  • Annalei is sharing her faith and led two of her classmates to Christ!
  • Naomi is joining with Marie and Sheryl in neighborhood outreach to other moms.
  • More than 20 new laborers with Bridges!

PRAYER REQUESTS

  • Annalei’s friend, Gabby, to come to know the Lord.
  • All four of our kids would become life-long laborers for Christ.
  • Eileen, Jenny, and Mariana would desire a relationship with Jesus and think deeply about what we shared at the baby shower.
  • Opportunities for Naomi to share the gospel with her international mom friends.
  • Wisdom as we develop the Every International training curriculum for churches and Christian students.