Can I Get a Witness?

Last fall, the InterVarsity chapter at Illinois Wesleyan came up with a simple plan to help their friends and classmates understand the gospel message of Jesus. They chose several students to tell their stories about how they came to know Christ personally. At the end of our meeting, I tied their testimonies together, clarified the gospel message and invited a response. We saw six students come to Christ as a result! For our small school of 2,000 students, it was a very effective outreach.

Our publicity had pictures of the students who would be giving their testimonies with bold print that said, “Jesus can change your life forever.” This type of outreach was uncomplicated and easy to plan, so students could focus on inviting their friends. Because they knew the speakers, it eliminated the fear of inviting friends to hear an unknown evangelist. They could point to a poster in an elevator and say to a captive audience, “Are you doing anything Thursday night? Come hear what Tony has to say.” Most people would probably know Tony, or one of the other student speakers.

Each student speaker had a different conversion story to tell. For example, Melissa was raised in a religious family and was a valedictorian, homecoming queen, athlete and all-around good person. But she didn’t know much about the personal God of the Bible until a friend invited her to an InterVarsity Bible study. Since then she’s learned that she doesn’t need to be perfect or fear failure, but that Jesus loves her for who she is, not what she does. She has been set free in Jesus.

Tony went to Sunday School as a child and grew up believing there was a God, but he didn’t think God was particularly kind, so he avoided him except for occasionally asking for stuff. He believed that Jesus was the Son of God, but having him die on the cross to pay for humanity’s sin seemed like the dumbest idea ever. No one really seemed to care.

He started a rock band and found himself trapped by behavior that resulted in people getting hurt. Eventually God rescued him and he surrendered to Jesus, becoming truly alive for the first time. Now, God is with him in his struggles and is using him in the lives of others.

Abby was raised in a Christian home, but grew most in her faith through tough times with a sports injury and her father’s heart surgery. Her relationship with her boyfriend drew her away from the Lord for a while, but she knew she couldn’t be on both sides of the fence. When she repented and returned to the Lord, he restored her relationship with her parents and set her life on a new course. She is staying faithful to Jesus as she continues in college.

As a result of our outreach, Christian students at IWU are developing a passion for Jesus and the gifts to share him boldly and effectively with their classmates. This fall, the chapter at a nearby campus (Illinois State University) is planning a similar outreach for one of their large-group meetings. With 20,000 students, that school is ten times the size of Illinois Wesleyan, but students at ISU are excited about telling their stories about the transforming power of Jesus in their lives. It’s a great story to tell.

—Melissa Young Lee is on staff at Illinois State U. and Illinois Wesleyan U. She and her husband, Kent, are celebrating one year of marriage.