One of UCCF's six values is 'Generous in world mission: endeavouring to give and send so as to reach the students of the world.'
Here, JP Sivertsen-Wright, Central Team Leader, shares why this is one of our core values.
From the very first.
Since the very beginning, Christian Union students have heard the call to look beyond their own context and find their part in God’s great mission to all nations.
Norman Grubb’s fruitful evangelistic witness amongst his own friends at Cambridge University almost 100 years ago sparked the modern CU movement to life. His heart for mission led to a vision of a united student witness in every university—but not just every university in the country: his vision was for a united student witness in every nation of the world.
Grubb’s heart for world mission simply echoed the same generosity of those who came before him. A generation earlier, C.T. Studd and a group of six others shocked their fellow students when they left their academic and sporting successes to serve on the mission field overseas in China. They became known at the Cambridge Seven.
A decade after Grubb, Howard Guinness, a son of the famous Irish brewing family, was sent to pioneer Christian Unions overseas, first in Canada and then beyond. Guinness’ own sending was founded on an act of generosity as his fellow students sold their hockey sticks to pay for his ticket.
From those early days and continuing to today, generosity in world mission has accompanied the work of Christian Unions, with many frontline missionaries first feeling the call to the mission field during their time as students.
And this should be no surprise, because:
The gospel is global.
In Isaiah’s prophecy of Christ, God says, ‘it is too small a thing for you to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob…I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.’ (Isaiah 49:6)
To be generous in world mission is to follow the Father’s heart for His Son’s work—that salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.
The Book of Revelation paints a similar picture when the Apostle John writes: ‘After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb.’ (Revelation 7:9)
This is the hope of the gospel fulfilled—a diverse and global community gathered in worship of God. There is something about the gospel of Christ that is only seen when the great multitude in all its diversity is gathered around the throne. So, world mission is integral to God’s purposes as He glorifies His name through Christ.
In 2023, almost 420,000 students came to the UK from India, China, Nigeria and Pakistan combined (HESA data). CU can be generous in world mission, even as they reach out to those on their own campuses. Through International Welcome Weeks and Globe Cafes, CUs are reaching the world as the world comes to their doorstep.
But some may still wonder whether CUs should be involved in world mission beyond their campus. Isn’t there enough for student missional communities to get on with on their own campuses without worrying about world mission, especially in today’s secular age?
Generous today.
Perhaps seeking to be ‘generous’ is the best way to describe it. Amidst all the pressing needs we see immediately before us, Christ calls us to generously pray, give and even go. And as CU students grow as disciples of Jesus, how can they help but care for the things which Jesus himself cares for?
So, right up to today, students in CUs are generous in world mission. In my work I see this generosity wonderfully expressed:
- World Mission Roadshows. This year alone, thousands of CU students across the country have hosted mission agencies for evenings exploring God’s heart for the nations. Students have been challenged to consider their own part in this, and some have taken the first steps toward exploring that calling. ‘Heart for the Nations’ groups in some CUs give students a space to pray for the work of God across the world, even as they find their part in it.
- Overseas Teams. Each year, CUs send small teams to partner with IFES student movement overseas. They may help lead English language camps, support university outreach weeks, or take part in other mission projects. I pray toward every CU student participating in a cross-cultural mission team during at least one of their lengthy university summer vacations. Whether that’s going to far afield to a Muslim majority country, staying closer at home by partnering with an IFES movement in Europe, or even volunteering with a summer international outreach in their own city.
- Going to the nations. Wonderfully, year on year students hear the call to go overseas and follow in the footsteps of those early CU leaders who went before them. In my own time with UCCF I’ve seen students head to Muslim majority countries to join local missionaries, Relay Workers head out to IFES movements to serve with them beyond their time in Great Britain, and former Staff colleagues training to go overseas as the Lord calls them.
From the very first, right up to today, CU students live out this value to be generous in world mission, just as the Lord Himself calls the nations to trust in Him.