English Lessons and Learning the Gospel

“Where are you going?”

“We’re going to a Bible study—do you want to come?”

Isaac Hiriart was walking across the campus of LCC International University, a Resonate Global Mission partner in Lithuania. He was spending three weeks as a volunteer teaching English with the university’s annual Summer Language Institute.

Hiriart had spent his afternoon teaching English lessons to high school students and young adults from diverse countries and cultures—and next he was headed to a Bible study with a few friends. The campus was bustling with students as they dispersed to various clubs, and when Hiriart and his friends ran into a group of girls and invited them to the Bible study, they said they’d like to come along.

Even though they weren’t all Christians.

Luka (name changed to maintain privacy) was a part of that group, and Hiriart shared that she seemed “closed off to the gospel.” She came from a culturally Roman Catholic background that left her feeling disconnected from God. But that changed in just a single Bible-study gathering.

The teacher who led the Bible study started by asking if anyone had any questions. Someone asked a question that launched into a discussion about faith, church, and God. While Luka had grown up hearing about Jesus, that night, she said, she saw the love and hope of the gospel through new eyes.

When it was time for the Bible study to end, Hiriart noticed that the discussion was long from over. The Holy Spirit was at work, he noted, and he invited anyone who wanted to stick around to stay for more discussion and prayer.

Luka asked for prayer—saying she wanted to follow Christ! Hiriart and the teacher who led the study prayed with Luka, and over the next few weeks of the Summer Language Institute, Hiriart saw Luka fully embrace her new faith. When it was time for Luka to go home, a staff member helped her to connect with a local church in her home area.

“It was a great experience to be able to walk alongside someone as they gave their life to Christ,” shared Hiriart. “It also helped me grow as a Christian to be able to lead people in their relationship with God.”

That summer, two students decided to give their lives to Christ. Another student decided that she wanted to be baptized after she returned home.

“We also had two students who had never had contact with Christianity hear about the gospel for the first time,” said Hiriart. 

A member of a church plant in Texas, Hiriart decided to volunteer through Resonate because he wanted an opportunity to serve God in a different context. He was especially interested in Lithuanian culture and connecting with people from Eastern Europe. Hiriart said he has plans to volunteer with the Summer Language Institute again this year.

If you want to join with the Summer Language Institute this summer, Resonate is looking for volunteers to teach English lessons and more. Contact Ruth Lemmen for more information: [email protected].