"Let us join hands, brother, and establish a fishing company. This is the only way to get rich in Lake Victoria."

"We must preserve the freedom that Africa has bought so dearly. We must decide what we are going to do with the new-colonists."

"The only worth-while religion for Africa today is Islam. In the name of Allah, I have dedicated my life to propagate it to all corners of my beloved country."

"The only hope for democracy in Africa is the growth now of a group of young men and women who can sing together, "We will die before democracy leaves Africa."

"Christianity can be maintained in Africa only if we fully dedicate our lives to remolding it such that it can appeal to the fast-growing intellect of Africa."

These are only a few extracts from the letters of my old high school friends from Kenya. Just two years ago we were so close to one another that we could swear to almost anything in the same words. But now we are scattered all over the world. Each one of us is preparing, deciding, hoping, dedicating for life ahead. We find ourselves in widely differing situations, but each situation calls for immediate and permanent decisions. Each of us is convinced that the decision he reaches is the correct one. We pronounce this to the others with boldness and resolution, and we invite the others to join with us boldly and resolutely.

Within only these two years tremendous changes have taken place in my friends. But why? Maybe a few more quotes from their letters will help to answer this question.

One writes: "Man, I am overcome; these people who surround me mean and know what they are doing. They believe they have a divine order from Allah to propagate the religion to the ends of the earth, and from what they do and say, I also have come to realize I have the same order."

Another writer: "We attend lectures addressed by some of the people who have taken part in the frontline struggles of national liberation and reconstruction. And seeing these men, one cannot help but feel completely overwhelmed by their dedicated lives. I want to commit my life to what I have seen to be so practical and glorious."

The one who did not want to feel too submerged declared: "I feel it is high time for all of us to open up our minds and begin thinking. I entirely submit to the line of thought held by (these people)."

In every case one detects strong elements of external influence. We as evangelical students fail at times to recognize the other aggressive and organized missions that also call for absolute and total commitment from students. All systems, secular or religious, bad or good, have disciples who not only preach the doctrines but live up to them. These men are constantly and decisively reaching out for students who can not only support and share their doctrines, but live in and with these doctrines; for all men abhor lonesomeness, and how lonesome indeed are these worldly ways.

Apparently, and logically, foreign students in any country more easily find themselves prey to this struggle among committed groups than the local students. My question is: as an evangelical student in North America, have you stopped to consider you part in this struggle? The situation of the international student is a unique and ripe one for the work of God. These young men and women have strayed far away from their parents and friends and suddenly find themselves faced with the very unmistakable call to make immediate, and yet lasting, decisions and commitments.

Today thousands of such people are going to colleges and universities in North America. I doubt that there is an Inter Varsity member who does not have an international student within his comfortable reach. Most of these students come from the emerging nations (the foreign mission fields, in western Christian terms). They are, then, some of the few young people blessed with the opportunity of university education, and among the very few students training in foreign countries. When they return to their countries, they will be called upon to assume positions of influence and responsibility in their nations. So they are naturally very keen at getting on to something tangible and reassuring as soon as possible and specializing in it as much as possible. In this sense nothing is more tangible than an idea, a dream, a hope for the future, particularly if it were manifested in some exciting demonstration, superficial or real.

Missionaries of an order different from ours know this very well. They are usually at our man in his new university before we are. And so there goes a man of influential and responsible future. Happy must be the king he shall serve!

Let us turn around now to our King, for we do not go ahead and do things without Him. He is a loving and all-knowing God. We read in Exodus of the Israelites moving across the desert to the Promised Land. And as Moses leaves them at a camp to consult with God at the Holy Mountain, these stiff necked people urge Aaron to make a golden calf to stand for God. Then the all-powerful One, seeing this, refuses Moses His Presence with them as they travel, lest He turn against them and consume them on the way. But Moses insists that God must be with them before they move further. He knew how useless the project would be without the eternal God.

How often do we at times simply collect some rough, unrelated ideas of how to win friends and influence people, and then simply go ahead to accomplish the divine command? Psychology is at times a more beautiful god than Aaron's calf. We must take such steps that will insure us that the anger of Eternity will not consume us.

Yet we must move on. WE are camping on a desert, and some misdirected windstorm may swallow up our camp. The sands may overcome and bury us. WE must move on fast when the day is still clear, but if God is not with us, let's not go up hence.

On the other hand, we should praise God that He has not deserted us. I testify to this truth because I was called to join His holy family through members of IVCF. I remember with great thankfulness not only His mercy and love, but also the privilege that He places on those who believe in Him. He wants to use them for His purposes.

As is true of most international students, I was also in the horns of a dilemma. These were terrible days. An only son in a large family in Africa, suddenly finding myself in this "lonely crowd" in a western university, I thought I was as close to hell as I could be. I found out that Americans were particularly fond of looking down upon other countries, and profoundly loving my country I felt deeply hurt at times.

On the other hand I cannot deny that many people showed me great kindness and helped me in advice and material things. One Christian group used to invite me to Bible study sessions, but I really hated that, so they soon lost interest in me. I met many good people, who literally went all the way in doing anything that could have made me physically comfortable. I met other men of good thought. They talked about international peace and understanding, democracy of all kinds, scientific cooperation, freedom from colonialism, unity of religions, and all such things that represent the highest point of our human mental and ethical development. And, of course, I met some admittedly bad people, too.

But there was another group of Christian students that attracted me very much. It appeared to me that in their reactions and thought they went far beyond mere sympathy with certain people. They showed sincere and profound love. This is the only weapon we can use against the aggressive forces of the world: a loving, indwelling Christ. This group demonstrated to me an inner richness, joy and cheerfulness, which was very attractive.

Once in a while there would be mistakes, but always it was clear that they were not intended. I felt comfortable with these people because they were sincere and simple in their talk. Their vocabulary was free from flattery, devoid of lies and exaggeration, seeking peace, understanding and forgiveness. A contrast began to build up in my mind between these young people (they were the Inter-Varsity group on campus) and the other people I knew.

I soon found myself once again in a Bible study group, but this time I could accept it. I met more members of this evangelical group from other universities, and in the course of time I realized that the Lord was calling me. There was a growing desire to learn more and know more of Christ. At this time I had real trouble finding someone who could spend as much time with me as I needed to get my questions answered. But a friend gave me lots of books, which helped tremendously.

A real danger usually arises when groups of evangelical students try to reach out for international students and there is no apparent response. I believe that the maximum that can ever be done is to trust the work to Christ. We are only His instruments, and He knows when His results will come up. We cannot be discouraged by what we see; we should always be encouraged that the Lord has led us to do our parts. We are commanded to do our parts.

The Lord will be glorified within our midst, when those who meet and talk with us Christian students can find cause for saying, "God is with them."

At the beginning of this article I quoted from letters that old high school friends had written me. We must pray that because of God?s work through us, they will write the kind of letters of commitment that say, "Jesus Christ is Lord of my life."

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

As Kenya moved into political independence, its Christian citizens gained far greater responsibility. One man, WILSON OKITE (oh-kee-ta), cousin of Tom Mboya, was not a Christian when he left Kenya to study languages at Inter-Varsity University in San German, Puerto Rico. But through the witness of Inter-Varsity students he came to know God.

Copyright Information:
Reprinted from an article in an early issue of HIS magazine.