English
Korean
Spanish
Student’s passion to share Jesus is changing eternities among foreign-born classmates on college campus
Darius Kim was hopeless and headed for an eternity separated from God growing up in a Buddhist household before Jesus saved him as a teenager and gave him a mission—as Paul writes in Acts 20:24, “to testify of God’s grace.”
“I am passionate about sharing my faith because Jesus saved my life,” Kim said. “He called me according to His will to declare the good news of God’s grace to those who are living in darkness. … There is nothing I would rather do with my life than serve and obey Him.”
Kim, 22, is carrying out his mission on a college campus in one of the nation’s largest cities inside the boundaries of one of its most diverse states. Texas is home to 420 people groups that speak more than 300 languages.
That diversity is reflected at the state’s institutions of higher education. According to figures cited by the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention’s People Groups ministry, nearly 10% of the more than 1 million international students in the U.S. are in the Lone Star State.
It’s a reality that creates an exciting opportunity for Christian students like Kim who come into direct contact with foreign-born classmates with backgrounds including Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, and Sikhism.
“The most rewarding part of the task is seeing the multiplication of the kingdom. When people come to Christ, I get to see them reach their own networks through sharing the gospel and discipling them.”
Last year, Kim attended an SBTC People Groups training at Houston’s First Baptist Church. People Groups trainings, which are funded through cooperative giving efforts such as the Reach Texas State Missions Offering, equip believers with tools and training to connect, share the gospel with, and disciple foreign-born people.
Kim, a member of New Life Fellowship in Houston, uses those tools to help those he reaches grow in their faith. In one instance, he led a student from Iran to Christ and discipled him. The man, in turn, led a fellow Iranian to faith, and both are now reaching other Iranians.
“The most rewarding part of the task is seeing the multiplication of the kingdom,” Kim said. “When people come to Christ, I get to see them reach their own networks through sharing the gospel and discipling them. As they continue to do so, I get to hear stories of people I’ve never met coming to Christ and discipling others. It is amazing to see how the simplicity of biblical ministry multiplies for kingdom growth.”
