IFES-Reaching Students Worldwide
As student vision for evangelism broadened in the late 1920s, British students responded to a "Macedonian call" from Canada by organizing a "bring and buy" sale of their belongings. They sold everything from textbooks to hockey sticks to raise money for the mission. In late 1928, with a one-way ticket to Canada - and the £14 from the fund-raiser in his pocket - Howard Guinness, the vice-chairman of England's Inter-Varsity Fellowship, set out to win over Canadian students for Christ. The news about God's work among students in Canada quickly spread to the United States and Latin America, complementing outreach efforts taking place in other corners of the globe.
While students held periodic international conferences in Oslo beginning in 1934, it wasn't until nine national student movements met at Oxford in 1946 that they explored the possibility of a more formal unified outreach plan. A year later, these nine movements were joined by the China Inter-Varsity Fellowship at a gathering in Boston, and formed the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students.
Since then, the work has grown through the prayer, vision and commitment of countless students and staff workers worldwide. Along with alumni and church leaders, these young men and women have devoted a part of their lives to winning the world's future leaders for Jesus Christ.
Evangelist Billy Graham has said of IFES:
"I warmly commend the work of the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students. It would be bard to imagine a group that is more strategic. Almost everywhere I travel in the world I meet Christian leaders whose lives have been touched by IFES’ emphasis on biblical evangelism and discipleship."
IFES' ministry of establishing student work on the campuses of the world is a basic strategy for world evangelism, according to Ada Lum, author and staffworker with IFES since 1962.
IFES has taken advantage of a worldwide explosion of tertiary education to expand to 96 independent national movements, with work going on in 126 countries.
"As I look back over the last 40 years, and I look at pastors, and denominational leaders that are making their lives and ministry count, so many, many of them have come out of student work," Lum said.
"IFES movements have been on the cutting edge of missions," said David Zac. Niringiye, Regional Secretary for English- and Portuguese-speaking Africa for IFES. He gave the message "God So Loves Students Around the World" at Urbana 93, highlighting IFES’ work. IFES movements play a key role in raising lay leadership for the church. "Today's leaders in the church and society were yesterday's college and university students," Niringiye said. "I'm excited to be a part of that."
Over the years, the basic work of IFES remains the same: Students joining together to reach other students with the gospel of Christ; student movements helping each other to pioneer and establish Christ-centered, Bible-based student groups on every campus, in every country; students and graduates building up local churches and witnessing to Christ in the marketplace and across cultures.
Unless otherwise noted, all materials on the urbana.org web site are Copyright InterVarsity Christian Fellowship / USA. All rights reserved.
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