Reaching the World for Christ in Charlottesville

Share God's Love and God's Word with Internationals
Interested in becoming a part of what God is doing among internationals students/scholars right here in Charlottesville? We need people to serve as: (1) Friendship Partners for new international students, and (2) Exploratory Bible Study Facilitators for internationals who sign up to learn about the Bible. Email David McWhorter or Marty Johnson for more information.

The Trinity International Student and Scholar Ministry is committed to welcoming, seeking, and equipping international students and scholars in the name of Christ. Our primary ministry objectives are:

• To welcome and help meet practical needs through generous hospitality
• To sensitively engage with internationals about Christ
• To encourage and build up Christians through discipleship
• To help equip Christians as they return to their home culture
• To connect internationals to Trinity
• To help serve the Trinity community as a catalyst toward a missional mindset

Did You Know?
There are some 3,000 international students, scholars, and spouses from more than 130 different countries at UVa. About 1,200 of the more than 15,000 undergraduate students are internationals. Over 20% of the 6,000-plus graduate students are from outside the United States. Almost 700 students and scholars are from China, Korea, and India.

Two-thirds of international students who come to the United States to study never set foot inside an American home.

Many international students return home to become top political, academic, and business leaders in their home countries.

You have the opportunity to reach out to the world right here in Charlottesville.

  1. Become a friendship partner to an international (click on link for information).
  2. Lead or co-lead an exploratory Bible study with one or more internationals interested in learning about the Bible. For many students who sign up, this will be their first encounter with the Bible. Volunteers do NOT need to be seasoned Bible teachers or experienced Bible study leaders to be involved as an ISI M28 Bible study facilitator, because M28 is different from the traditional Bible study approach where the leader teaches and students listen. In M28, students in each group discover Bible truths for themselves, while being coached by the volunteer facilitator and led by the power of the Holy Spirit.
  3. Become an English conversation partner and help an international scholar or spouse improve their language skills. Meet once a week, typically during the day at a mutually agreed time/place, and talk about a preassigned topic. Curriculum provided.
  4. Volunteer to bring food for International Friendship Night dinners and provide rides to events.
  5. Help with the annual Trinity International Thanksgiving Dinner in November.
  6. Attend monthly International Friendship Night events and befriend internationals.
  7. Assist with practical helps throughout the year, like help with moving, giving rides to the airport, and temporary storage of furniture and personal belongings.
  8. Invite internationals to join your household for Thanksgiving or Christmas, or host a small group dinner during the school year.
  9. Serve on the international ministry team to plan and mobilize our congregation to reach out effectively to internationals in our Charlottesville community. We meet on the fourth Wednesday of each month from 6.30–8.15pm in room 250.
  10. Participate in monthly prayer meetings to pray for internationals in our community (fourth Wednesday of each month from 7.30–8.15pm at Trinity in room 250).

Contact Us
To participate in any of these opportunities, to join our email list to receive announcements on upcoming events and activities, or simply to learn more, contact Marty Johnson.