From Friday 21 to Sunday 29 March our students were engaged in mission exposure; an annual training opportunity where students get to experience what it’s like to serve in a variety of ministry settings within the church and the community. This year our teams went to Papua New Guinea, Longreach, Tamworth and across Brisbane. Take a look at some of the highlights.
Daniel Morris, Senior Associate Minister, St John’s Tamworth
“I was really impressed with the whole team, particularly by their humility, willingness to learn, and their openness to give things a go. One of our ministry activities included the train station outreach, offering free morning tea and Christian reading material to anyone waiting for the daily train to Sydney. Even though it’s a ministry to strangers, which can stretch some beyond their comfort zone, the students embraced the opportunity to walk up to someone new and start a conversation. The team also showed initiative in kicking a ball around in the local park, using their free time each afternoon to make new connections with locals.
Another highlight was the High School Scripture ministry. The two BST students involved were great with the school kids. After the first of the morning sessions, I gave the BST students some feedback on things they could improve, and they took that on board and flourished in the following session, despite it being a tough new crowd. It was so encouraging to watch the BST students handle themselves really well, speaking honestly and clearly about the Bible, and interacting with the kids in a way that won their respect and attention.
Two years ago we had a team of BST students come to Tamworth, and I was impressed with their quality back then, both theologically and personally. When I experienced this again with the recent team, and reflected on their humility and openness to try new ministry activities, I recognised that the theological training and values BST is investing in their students is shining through in the way those students present themselves in ministry.
I am very excited to see how God will use these students in the future.”
Jonno Lee, 27, Graduate Diploma of Divinity student
“This is my first mission exposure with BST. I was part of the group that focused on multicultural ministry in Brisbane. We visited Moorooka, Inala, checked out a monastery in Ellen Grove and chatted with international students at University of Queensland. One of the highlights for me was when a fellow student and I met two Muslim ladies. We had a really respectful conversation where they shared about their beliefs and struggles, and we also had the opportunity to share our faith.”
Karen Li, Bachelor of Ministry student (Chinese program)
“I went on a short-term trip to Papua New Guinea with other students from the BST Chinese program. I really enjoyed the experience and learned a lot from this trip. We visited the Chinese church in Port Moresby and participated in evangelistic meetings, music ministry and outreach. I learned that living in PNG is not always easy. It can be unsafe to go out at night time and sometimes even during the day, especially for expats.”
Sam Anderson, 25, Bachelor of Ministry student
“I went on a mission trip to Tamworth with BST. It was an awesome experience. The main highlight for me was the fellowship and getting to know the other students better, and also seeing God at work within the church and the community. Something I walked away with and learned from that experience is to rely on God. It’s in his strength and his power that he gets us through. We did a lot of evangelism, and getting out in the streets and talking to people. There were amazing opportunities that came out from that. Those opportunities came about purely by God and not by us.”
Alan Stanley, BST lecturer
“I loved getting to know the students and seeing them practically involved in ministry. Though some of the activities were new experiences that pushed our students outside of their comfort zones, it was rewarding to see their satisfaction and joy once they knew they could do it. The other rewarding thing was to be so warmly received by the people there and to have such positive feedback with regard to the team.”
Wally Wang, BST lecturer (Chinese program)
“The Papua New Guinea mission was an excellent opportunity for students to learn how to live together and complement each other in serving God in a totally unfamiliar environment. The students have learnt that flexibility is a virtue within the mission field; for example learning that the traditional evangelistic meeting approach may not be an effective means in proclaiming the gospel to foreign construction workers in PNG. Our students also had a sense of the living conditions in PNG and appreciated that the message of God’s peace is important to those who are living under constant threat.”
We offer our students practical ministry training. If you’d like to find out more about the courses on offer come along to our open night on Wednesday, 6 May or make an appointment by contacting (07) 3870 8355.
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