One of the most pressing conversations occurring within Christian communities has persisted for centuries. How do we, being called to discipleship by God, make disciples of all nations? I regularly struggle with simply having religious conversations with non-believers that I work with every day! Much more, reaching out, seeking the lost proves to be an clearly greater commitment than casually waiting for the least of these to knock on my door.

There are all sorts of reasons Christians use as a a crutch to avoid exiting their area of comfort. Many say they “don’t feel like God is calling me to (insert form of evangelistic ministry)”. Frequently, God is used as a scapegoat as to why His followers remain stagnant and ineffective. However, to be a Christian means that we have been called by God to “make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19). Jesus’ call to arms creates a dichotomy between the worldview many Christians hold, and the way God requires His people to live. Whenever I read Matthew 28 I will feel incredibly convicted because I’m not fulfilling that great commission.

It’s easy to get discouraged about the state many Christians find themselves in. What’s far more important, however; is being encouraged by success of others who are working to further the Kingdom of God daily.

An organization that does a phenomenal job providing a comparably effective method of evangelism to long term missions is called Wheaton Academy. The Wheaton Academy has been one of the most prestigious, competitive private schools, educating based on a Christian worldview. WA created a Global Network non-profit organization which focuses on developing community with students and educators all over the world. The Wheaton Academy Global Network connects international students with helpful resources to assist with application and placement into various competitive private schools.

The true value the WA Global Network provides for it’s customers lies within it’s communication of Christian values to their partners all across the globe. They offer an annual preparatory camp of sorts for international middle and high school students seeking private education in America. Every Summer, hundreds of students come from all over the world to a small college campus in southern California, California Baptist University. While attending this roughly 3 week prep-school, Students are given a small sample of what the American education system feels like prior to beginning classes in the Fall.

What’s unique about this program is the focus on relationship and community development. Frequently, high-caliber international students come from an relatively rigorous environment where the primary focus was worldly achievement and success. The Wheaton Academy Global Network utilizes the Summer English Institute (SEI) to teach international students how to live well from a Christian perspective. This unique experience allows the SEI to share the truth and love of Christ with teens who may have never been exposed to the Gospel before.

The organization, historically, hosts many students from China, a nation in desperate need for the love of Christ. SEI uses their position as one of the most highly-regarded preparatory organizations for international students seeking education in America to connect with thousands of students in their personal development stage. Their contextualization of the Gospel focuses on planting the seed of Christ’s love for us and our need for grace because of sin.

Wheaton Academy has found an incredible method of relaying the Gospel to the next generation. Their position gives them a unique opportunity to change the lives of hundreds of young people every summer in hopes that they will return to their homes all over the world and tell their family about all they learned. The impact that just 10 students committing their lives to follow Christ in a community is impossible to measure. Even if, of the thousands of people SEI has connected with, only 100 of those return to their communities around the world and share what they learned at SEI, the love of Christ has the potential to spread like a wildfire.