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Campus is a happening place! It is full of life, energy, vibrancy, activities of buddies. The activities in which students are involved display their potential. They have

the power to change the game to rewrite the history. They are tomorrow’s leaders, being groomed in the campuses. That’s the reason the Lord has raised UESI with a transformational cause so as to carry the biblical message into the campuses.

In our conversation with Vishal Mangalwadi, he said that leaders in political realm should look at EU students for solutions for issues and directions for the country. It was something startling, yet it resounds the purpose of UESI. Small groups are not just small, rather great in terms of potential impact it can create like Daniel & friends did. It is time to go beyond weekly Bible studies in the campus. Most of our time and efforts are spent on ‘what we want to present’ to the students. But a paradigm shift to ‘how relevantly we present to impact every sphere of life is impertaive now.

Gospel, the all-encompassing message, is heavenly, yet with an absolute earthly relevance. A palatable presentation of the same will thwart the false view as something which makes sense only to a minority fragment of the society, Christians. The inherent transforming power of the Gospel and biblical values must permeate academics in formal and informal settings. Deep-rooted biblical worldview and scriptural values will groom young leaders, making a better nation. We need to let the Gospel out of our tiny box of spirituality & mission.

The mission of influencing the systems and streams of academics will come true when our students think and act with the support of seniors. Articles inside take us through the journey of ways, envisioning a BIG impact! Are we ready?

P. John Jebaraj James (john.jebaraj@uesi.in) Hon.Editor

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Set the Gospel Free

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inside

Engaging the UniversityRaaj Mondol

Students… Engage your Campuses as Stewards

Reji Koshy Daniel

ReThink UESISathish Joseph Simon

Engaging the Campuses:

Role of Students and Graduates Dr Joseph John

Scripture Engagement in the

CampusesDr Prince Joseph

I have found - a real relationship -

Kiran

A Dramatic SolutionGifty Joel

Theatre TeamJeremy Christian

Trail of Obedience to God

Pandita RamabaiDr Prince Joseph

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12

16

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28

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Cover, Editing, & Lay-out : P. John Jebaraj James

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Campus LinkVol. 15 No. 4

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UESI’s ministry is primarily with the college and University students which

are reflected in its vision, viz: “Transformed students impacting the campuses and nation as disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ.” To impact the university campuses it is imperative on our part to engage with the university. In our ministry generally the above-mentioned vision gets translated in terms of the following activities which are also shaped by the 4 aims.

1. Reaching out to students with the Gospel of Christ includes personal evangelism, lifestyle or friendship evangelism, organizing evangelistic events in the campus in forms of evangelistic Bible studies, programmes, etc.

2. Discipling the students towards maturity in faith through fellowship, believers’ Bible Studies, equipping them in leadership skills, and mentoring, etc.

3. Raising testimony in the campus by doing some social service actions, raising awareness on pertinent issues like dowry, corruption, and integrity, etc.

4. Imparting a missionary vision among students through special trainings, conferences and literature, etc. to motivate and mobilize them towards Mission.

If we take some time to ponder upon the ways of our engagement it would become clear that all the above activities are mainly geared to the students, that too, to a small miniscule of the total student

Engaging the UNIVERSITY

Raaj Mondol

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Raaj Mondolcommunity. It is true that students constitute the most significant part of the university, but they are only a part. The whole consists of many other significant parts namely the faculty, the academic disciplines, research studies, and laboratories, books and papers published, library, extra-curricular activities like annual festivals, cultural events - dance, drama, music, sports, student bodies elections, the ideologies which are taught in the lecture rooms and practised in various forms in the life of the campus, etc. All of the above make the university a university. Does our engagement with the university encompass those spheres or groups? It will not be an exaggeration to say that large portions of university life remain untouched by our ministry. We can notice a big disconnect.

The reasons for this disconnect can be many but I would like to highlight just two:-

a) A narrow understanding of the Gospel seen only in terms of personal salvation

The Gospel of the Kingdom that Jesus preached was of a comprehensive nature which has consequences for the whole of Creation. Paul emphasizes this truth in writing to the Colossians in 1:15-20 by repeating the term “all things” several times. Dr Vinoth

Ramachandra writing about its implications for the University context says, “The Good News of the in-breaking reign of God in Jesus to heal, renew and recreate His broken world is far, far bigger than a message of individual salvation. It has been my pastoral experience that if students are exposed to a Gospel presented in purely individualistic terms (‘being born again’, ‘Christ died for my sins’, ‘justification by faith’, ‘going to heaven’, etc.) it is quite difficult to move them to a point where they see how their academic studies, social involvements, political attitudes or economic behaviour have anything at all to do with the Gospel.”

The second reason for the disconnect is on account of

b) A divided understanding of life in terms of ‘sacred’ and ‘secular’

Mark Greene, who served as Head of London Institute of Contemporary Christianity and author of the book “Thank God it is Monday” defines it as SSD -“ SSD is the sacred-secular divide: the pervasive belief that some parts of our life are not really important to God - work, school, leisure - but anything to do with prayer, church services, church-based activities is.” Because of such belief our engagement

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in the University also neatly divides our activities into those two realms. Bible studies, Prayer cells, Evangelistic, Discipleship and Leadership training camps, outreach programs etc. fall within “Sacred” whereas our studies and assignments, research and term papers, political debates and discussions and all other forms of extra-curricular activities fall within the domain of “secular” which we perform none the less

but do not see them as part of our student ministry in the campus.

What’s the way out then?

We need to catch a vision of the Kingdom of God that Christ preached and came to establish on this earth. (Luke 4:43)

Such an integral understanding of life and universe will bring about a paradigm shift in our ministry. It will bring a radical change in the activities that we do in the campus. We will work towards impacting all things in the university with the truths of God and work towards bringing them closer to God’s intentions. This would mean:

i) Engaging with the Study Disciplines: We would apply the principle of "viewing all of life from God's perspective" into our disciplines of study. In practical terms it would mean that a student of sociology is equipped with the vision and tools to study social theories, social institutions and social change from the perspective of truths revealed in the Bible. A student would thus not see his subject in separation from his faith but try to apply the knowledge of God's truth in understanding his discipline in order to contribute positively to needed changes in society through his discipline of study. This would help the students in developing an integral perspective towards life, academic

We need to grasp the nature of “all things”

that Christ reconciled through His death on the cross. We need to claim the sovereign

reign of Christ over all affairs- the academia, the worldviews and ideologies which are propagated through

the system and structures of the

university, the political and cultural discourses

and the various activities

in the campus.

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studies and vocation.

ii) A Dialogical Model

Terrence C. Halliday in his paper titled –“A 21st Century Vision of IFES Ministries to the Great Universities of the Nations and the World” proposes an approach of “Engaging the whole university” through a dialogical model of engagement. I would like to quote some relevant excerpts from his paper on what such dialogic engagement or conversation with the University would mean-

There are six principal features of a Dialogic Model:

1. It is proactive. It brings Christ to the great issues of major universities and the great issues to Christ.

2. It nurtures Christian students and engages Christian faculty.

3. It respects the intellectual gifts of the students and faculty who inhabit the leading universities of every nation.

4. It is relevant; insofar as it takes on the big conversations of the day at the very moment they are being formulated and debated at scholarship’s frontiers.

5. It listens as well as speaks, insofar as it seeks to carry on respectful conversations with Christians and non-Christians alike.

6. It celebrates intellectual community - the common cause of faculty and students - that is characteristic of great research universities. This might bring Christians into cooperation with non-religious or other religious communities on campus.”

Vinoth Ramachandra also includes Dialogue as the key component of an authentic mission. He says, “To be dialogical is to be in two way conversation: allowing the academic disciplines of the university to speak into our faith and, at the same time, articulating our faith intelligently, humbly, relevantly and boldly into, those academic disciplines. We should seek to promote, wherever we can, the dialogue between Christian faith and science, faith and economics, faith and political philosophy, and so on.

The disconnect between our faith and academics must disappear and the false dichotomy of the sacred and secular must be overcome to live all of life as a whole. Then through our ministry we will be able to share the whole Gospel to the whole university.

Raaj Mondol works with Salt Initiatives, based in Delhi. He has been associated with UESI as student and graduate for 30 years.

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UESI’s former General Secretary, Rev. P.T. Chandapilla in one of his

classic messages, suggested three identities for applied Christian living - “Pilgrims, Strangers and Stewards.” He expounded that “believers should be Pilgrims (and not settlers), Strangers (and not citizens) and Stewards (and not owners) and while the first two identities would call for a detachment from this world, the third would call for an essential and creative engagement in this world”.

God’s people should creatively engage the very field of their training / involvement as stewards, and it’s good to have the start of such an engagement right at the campus during their studies. For instance, if you are a physics student, train up yourselves for a creative engagement in Physics as

a steward of God’s concerns in the field of Physics. By the way, only few even in the field of Physics know that Sir Isaac Newton, hailed as the Father of Modern Physics, was a follower of Christ. He firmly believed in God and worshipped Him while deeply engaging in Physics, discovering and formulating the laws of motion, gravity and so on. In fact he wrote many studies on the books of the Bible (including prophetic books like Daniel and Revelation) in addition to his theses in Physics. It was not secular and sacred sides of Newton’s life, but an integrated life wherein he drew his inspiration to engage in Physics from his quest to know more about God’s creation and the physical laws that He set in. And he worshipped God with his findings and discoveries in the world of science.

It’s interesting to read the

Reji Koshy Daniel

Students… ENGAGE YOUR CAMPUSES

as Stewards

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Reji Koshy Daniel

epitaph on Newton’s tomb at the Westminster Abbey. “Here is buried Isaac Newton, Knight, who by a strength of mind almost divine, and mathematical principles peculiarly his own, explored the course and figures of the planets, the paths of comets, the tides of the sea, the dissimilarities in rays of light, and, what no other scholar has previously imagined, the properties of the colors thus produced. Diligent, sagacious and faithful, in his expositions of nature, antiquity and the holy Scriptures, he vindicated by his philosophy the majesty of God mighty and good, and expressed the simplicity of the Gospel in his manners. Mortals rejoice that there has existed such and so great an ornament of the human race! He was born on 25 December 1642, and died on 20 March 1726

Lord Kelvin, who formulated the Laws of Thermodynamics and paved way for a flood of discoveries and inventions, had been a follower of Christ. In fact he was an elder in his church along with his practice as a physicist. In

response to the growing atheism of his times (after the Darwin’s theory etc.), he said, “I believe that the more thoroughly science is studied, the farther does it take us from anything comparable to atheism. Do not be afraid to be free thinkers. If you think strongly enough, you will be forced by science to the belief in God”

Louis Pasteur, hailed as The Father of Microbiology, who developed "pasteurization" said "The more I study nature, the more I stand amazed at the work of the Creator." "Science brings men nearer to God."

Joseph John Thompson, who discovered the “electrons” said “In the distance tower still higher [scientific] peaks which will yield to those who ascend them still wider prospects and deepen the feeling whose truth is emphasized by every advance in science, that great are the works of the Lord." (Statement in Nature)

James Joule, the physicist who worked on Kinetic Theory of Gases and discovered "Joule-Thomson" effect - paving way for further inventions in refrigeration and air conditioning said, “It is evident that an acquaintance with natural laws means no less than an acquaintance with the mind of God therein expressed." "Order is manifestly maintained in the universe...governed by the sovereign will of God" "After the knowledge of, and obedience to, the will of God, the next aim must be

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to know something of His attributes of wisdom, power, and goodness as evidenced by His handiwork." By the way “Joule” is a unit of energy in science today.

There is a host of people of God, who are known for their creative engagement in their fields and glorified God with their findings, discoveries, new know-hows and contributions in their fields. While C.S. Lewis can be termed as a missionary in literature and philosophy (think of Chronicles of Narnia, etc.), William Wilberforce can be termed as missionary in Politics and governance. The list is

endless.

It’s true that without an effective life that validates our identities as pilgrims and strangers, we can’t be good stewards bringing glory to God. Transformed students called to impact the campuses should consider. . .

1. God of the Bible is the owner of the fields of their studies. May it be Pure Sciences, Applied Sciences, Economics & Commerce, Art, Literature & Culture, History & Politics, and so on, the owner of these domains is fully God, our Creator. He created those with His great plans and purposes as described in the Scripture right from Genesis. For by Him all things where created – things in heaven and on earth – visible and invisible. . . All things were created by Him and for Him. . . In Him all things hold together. (Col: 3: 16-17).

2. Man with his sinful nature has corrupted many of these fields by his fallen priorities without any accountability to God. So many things in the fields of our studies may not be in accordance with God’s purposes now and His plans for the future. However, God in His mercy accounted for its redemption in the mission of Christ “For God was pleased to have His fullness dwell in Him (Christ) and through Him reconcile to Himself ALL things- whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through His blood,

GOD of the Bible is the OWNER of the all fields

of studies.

MAN with his sinful nature has corrupted many of these fields

by his FALLEN PRIORITIES without any accountability to God.

WE are called to be His STEWARDS in the fields of our studies- engaging with deep accountability to God and concern for its redemption back to

GOD’S PURPOSES.

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shed on the cross. (Col: 3: 19-20)

3. We are called to be His stewards in the fields of our studies- engaging with deep accountability to God and concern for its redemption back to God’s purposes. The need for redemption of many fields of our studies is more than obvious than ever. We should remind ourselves, in the light of Genesis 1 & 2, that God created us for a creative engagement (and enjoyment too) in these fields that we study, and called to engage in His mission to redeem these fields back to His purposes.

Campuses are happening places . . .

The knowledge base in every field is getting upgraded at a fast pace there. Even before we get used to some new thing, something newer appears. As God’s people in the campuses, we should study, praying and seeking God’s mind in these things. And as we pray and engage in our fields as stewards, God will reveal His further plans on these things that we study. Surely better and Godly things will emerge as a result, for which we can claim His promises for His glory. For instance, while studying economic policies, praying to God, seeking wisdom to tackle the current world issues like poverty, unemployment, price rise, inflation, etc., will not God reveal better ideas- in line with His eternal purposes? (Amos 3:7)

The Scripture, throughout its

wide landscape of human history, reveals to us how God dealt with people on a variety of issues in their daily walks and challenges of their times, studied in its context with prayers, we can get insights for answers for our problems in our contexts and in our fields of studies and engagements too. . .

So in effect, through the study of God’s Word and constant communion with Him, we should engage our fields of studies with His insights (what He want to do further in those fields for His glory). Our students should engage the campuses with such Godly thoughts / ideas/ wisdom / technologies / policies in the fields of their studies. Beyond innovations, innovisions will emerge when followers of Christ serve as “Stewards of Theology” in Economics, Physics, Chemistry, Political Science, and Engineering and so on. May the Lord help us to be His Stewards engaging the campuses, living out His concerns for the fields of our studies.

Reji lives in Pune with his wife Betsy and their children Monica and Roshan. A mechanical engineer by training, he works as the General Manager in an

automotive ancillary company in Pune. Reji’s project on truck cabin AC (aircon for common man), in his previous assignment that brought him awards in the company is an example of stewardship of technology.

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As an IFES movement raised by God in India, UESI has made significant

contributions both to the Church and the society. The vision of the pioneers has been kept ablaze by students, graduates, and staff alike and it is commendable. And, yet, it would only be healthy to examine our modus operandi to see if we have been caught unaware of the changes around us.

In this regard, I would like to set down three changing paradigms against which we need to evaluate ourselves. UESI and all IFES movements do not see themselves to be just a campus or even more so - youth ministries (sic). UESI is a University Movement and our call is to ‘Engage the University’! Secondly, UESI has been looked upon as a sending agency for missions, but the very concept of Mission has never been understood in its integral and holistic dimension. Are we aware of this and change appropriately? Finally (limiting the scope of this article), UESI needs to evaluate how relevant she has been to a

world that has become “post-modern,” where there are no absolutes.

UESI: A University Movement

The moment we label ourselves as a University Movement, we have the universities in view. They no more give us a picture of youth but intellectuals and hence we strive to move beyond the “basic devotionals to a substantial intellectual fare.” Our Christian discipleship would no more be limited to Quiet Time or Personal Bible Studies; rather we rethink on Christian discipleship in the field of Arts, Sociology, Commerce, Economics, Law, Natural Science, Medicine, and so on.

If so, what would Engaging the University constitute? Vinoth Ramachandra, suggests that 'engaging the university' involves, at least, 3 dimensions:

(1) Understanding the “culture” and dominant worldviews of the modern university, and how these shape the characters, values, priorities and lifestyles of students and faculty (Christians included).

Sathish Joseph Simon

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Sathish Joseph Simon(2) Forming learning and witnessing Christian communities, comprising students, researchers, faculty and administrators, who engage holistically, prophetically and dialogically with the diverse conversations, academic and non-academic, that constitute university life. This will naturally include what is traditionally called “evangelism” and “apologetics.” But it goes beyond them to being willing to learn from others and to make Christian contributions to study, research, administration and teaching.

(3) Seeking to influence universities so that they become more humane & just institutions, instruments of the Kingdom of God rather than of Mammon. This implies that we care about the moral, intellectual, & spiritual flourishing of individuals and also of groups & systems.

In UESI-Delhi, we are learning the need to change. The North Delhi ICEU & EGF have set the road map for Delhi in their efforts to engage; be it the world of Technology, Economy, Polity, Music, Arts, Sciences, etc., with the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. A six week Intensive Summer Study during this Summer brought in more than 40 students and graduates to study issues ranging from Theology, Hermeneutics, Decolonization and the Leaders Who Made Asia, Basic concepts in Globalization and Postcolonial Theory for the

Asian Christian Christianity, Climate Change and Sustainable Living, Developing Christian Character, A Fresh Look at the Problem of Evil, Bioethics, Brief History of Western and Eastern Atheism, Economy and Culture/Religion, Envisioning 21st Century Post-modern Church Human Rights & Human Dignity, Islam & Hinduism, Understanding Poverty & Deprivation, Science & Religion, Secularism, Multiculturalism & Clash of Religions, Technology & Religion. Study was interspersed by video lectures by Scot McKnight, Leonard Sweet, N.T. Wright, Alister McGrath, Sundar Krishnan, Ramachandra Guha, P. Sainath, Os Guiness & Rev. John Yates and others. Participants also viewed a movie on Martin Luther.

For such an engagement, we need to prepare staff and graduates who would be ‘genuine intellectual experts as speakers! Staff of the movement would no longer be just theological graduates but also experts in the relevant fields they would be willing to engage. The impact of such efforts is ‘not only to think christianly in the chosen academic discipline; but also to think through how God wants us to apply what we learn to the real world. Vinoth Ramachandra, makes this point as he talks about a conversation with a Christian engineering student from India. 'He told us that he wants to work with the US military because they were doing "cutting-edge"

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research. I asked him if he had ever thought of using his knowledge to re-direct technology towards global justice issues and the needs of the poor in India or elsewhere. He looked at me with incomprehension. The thought had never entered his mind.'

I best close this section allaying fears that would creep for such a paradigm shift. Let me quote John G. Stackhouse, “It is proper, of course, to fear a conceited and endlessly diverting intellectualism; a syncretistic and thus heretical liberalism; and an all-too accommodating, and thus non-evangelistic, relativism—which, I agree with many others, first perverted and then killed the Student Christian Movement, and a number of chaplaincies and other ministries of mainline Protestant denominations. But it is also proper to fear their counterparts: an anti-intellectual amalgam of mysticism, moralism, and oversimplification; a narrow and fiercely insular fundamentalism; and a self-righteous and brittle dogmatism. Scholarship can indeed interfere with communicating the faith to students, but communicating a faith without scholarship, particularly on campus, is to hand on something badly attenuated.

UESI: Mission as Integral

We have sadly limited mission to ‘full-time’ workers. What about the rest? Do we see our education as mission, our work as mission and even “engaging holistically, prophetically and dialogically

with the diverse conversations, academic and non-academic, that constitute university life” as mission? The very realization that a graduate’s work, which involves building infrastructure, healing the sick, running the railways, teaching mathematics passionately, pleading for a case dispassionately, etc., does constitute Mission will determine how we prepare our students for mission.

Missio Dei (Mission of God) is His Kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven. SO OUR PASSIONATE INVOLVEMENT ON EARTH IS HIS MISSION! Rene Padilla states that “mission is ‘to participate in the mission of God by giving an integral witness to the Gospel, by living an inclusive Christian spirituality, by carrying out a stewardship of creation which would put material reality at the service of the spiritual and use power for the well-being of others and for the glory of God, and by promoting reconciliation among races, social classes, sexes, generations, and the environment’

As, UESI Delhi, we could not be oblivious to the ‘mass killing / missing of the girl child’ (gendercide / femicide) right in Delhi and other parts of the country. Hence in partnership with Salt Initiative, we have taken into the campuses the awareness of this evil. Let Her Live, as this campaign is called, has widened the Mission dimension among our students. It helps them

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to meaningfully engage with the rest of the student community for a common cause! It helps them break all barriers and initiate conversations. We believe “UESI’s active engagement on this issue would raise generation of students who would bring healing into our nation in this area of brokenness and would help creating a transformed society that ensures the dignity and equality of women and girl children.” Students are already in mission!

UESI: in a Post-modern World

Postmodernism is defined by four features: the loss of meta-narratives, the collapse of absolute truth (or scepticism about absolute truth claims), scepticism about history and the general loss of meaning.

Have we ever realized that our Bible studies could seem for the participants a ‘description of long back’ with no relevance to their personal lives? We are trying to make believe people into a narrative (doctrine/truth) that is no way connected to them. In a video interview on What is the Gospel?, N.T. Wright states that every generation has to chew the Gospel afresh and none of us can live on what has been done before. . . because culture, language, and pressure points for people are always changing!

A post-modern world needs no theory or an idea, yet, ‘postmodernism reintroduces

the value of both stories and experience in life, allowing for a measure of worth and fulfilment in daily life.’

During the recent GSTP session in Delhi, participants heard Leornard Sweet engage them the fact that we may be missing the moment!. In the Sovereignty of God, he has chosen us for this moment, to serve this present age; we are called to learn the language of this culture. Participants were also called to lead worship each day by reflecting both the Scripture and newspaper. It was an eye-opener that our spirituality was so much disconnect to a real world!

UESI, we need to Rethink!Sathish Simon, Staff with UESI based in Delhi. Married to Mini (Teaching at Faith Academy) and blessed by two daughters Stuthi & Diya.

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So, when we present the whole story (in the language

and culture of the day) of Jesus in which our story is also connected, such narratives makes sense.

The whole life of Jesus (not just the cross, though it is a culmination of all his person

and work) brings history real than any absolute

claims. He then becomes the Way, Truth and Life; the

meaning to life.

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UESI will celebrate 60 years of God’s faithfulness in ministering to the

students in 2014. We are thankful for the very many students and graduates whom God has raised as His witnesses in Indian campuses and society over the last 60 years through the UESI ministry. However, we have a long way to go in terms of impacting the campuses across the length and breadth of India. Let us take stock of our ministry and rededicate ourselves to this great task of impacting campuses.

Students, Graduates and Staff are our major resources. Each of us needs to rethink and evaluate as to whether we are fulfilling our God given responsibility in this great task.

1. Role of Students

Student Initiative: Right from the beginning student initiative has

been one of the major core-values of UESI. The responsibility for ministering and impacting the campuses lie primarily with the students. This is one of the major areas other Christian organiza-tions ministering to students and youth differ from us. Unless our EU students develop a vision for their campuses and own the re-sponsibility for the ministry in their colleges we would not go very far. Very often it appears that the ministry in campuses is driven by staff and graduates - students are just errand boys, doing what they are asked to do. This situa-tion must change. It is likely that most of the students are intimi-dated by the challenges and feel incapable or unworthy. Students should always realize that . . it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD’s . . .” 1 Sam 17:47b. It is very important to realize the above truth and de-

Engaging the Campuses: Role of Students and

Graduates

Dr Joseph John

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pend on God for all the challenges. In the recently concluded Nation-al AGM in Ahmedabad there was a sharing from one of the EUs where they did not have the help of any graduate or staff for a long time in organizing, finance or running the ministry on a regular basis. However the very few students depended on God and prayed and witnessed and conducted retreats and camps on their own. God hon-oured their faith as He did in the case of David, and as a result many friends came to Christ. Students should learn this vital lesson that they are co-workers with God. It is God who is taking the initiative

and the job of convicting people of sin. Our job is to be faithful wit-nesses of Him.

2. Role of Graduates and Staff – Coach, Mentor, Trainer: UESI places a lot of importance on graduates and staff. They are essentially coaches, mentors and trainers to the students who are the key players. Coaches are always people who were once players themselves. They understand and appreciate the challenges and demands of the game and accordingly coach the players. Staff have specialized skills which are very valuable to students and graduates in equipping them for the tasks. Paul was an excellent mentor to Timothy. 1st and 2nd Timothy illustrate Paul’s passion and concern for the ministry and how he wanted Timothy to take charge. Timothy was a timid person and needed encouragement. In a similar way graduates should be primarily equippers and encouragers. There are times when they need to play the role of fathers to correct and put students on the right track. At other times they need to be mothers providing a shoulder to the students to pour out, cry, and unburden themselves of the struggles and problems. Read 1 Thess. 2:6b - 12 to learn from Apostle Paul how he played the role of both a father and a mother

STUDENTS should learn this vital lesson that they

are co-workers with God. Their job is to be

faithful witnesses of Him.

As STAFF and GRADUATES, let us live up to the call of

preparing God’s people until they become

mature. Let us never give up but do our part

in building the body of Christ.

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to the Thessalonian Church. The calling we as staff and graduates have is stated clearly by Apostle Paul in Eph. 3:12, 13 “. . . to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the Body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity and faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” What a calling! As Staff and Graduates let us live up to the call of preparing God’s people until they become mature. Let us never give up but do our part in building the body of Christ.

3. Understanding the times: If we do not understand the times (the trends, thinking patterns, behaviour and expectations of present day students) we might soon become irrelevant. It takes a lot of hard work to study and appreciate the times and accordingly cater to the new challenges. Our message is the same, but we may need to change our communication strategies to make our ministry more effective to the new generation.

4. Fervent Prayer: The theme of UESI for 2013-2014 is Prayer. Let us bring all the campuses in our country to the throne of grace and pray fervently.

5. Getting involved in Campus: We as students and graduates

must get involved in the issues facing the campuses and society. It is easy to limit our involvement to Bible studies and turn a blind eye to the needs in the campuses. Today many colleges and Universities in the country are open to hear our views on a variety of issues – education, coping with stress, dealing with corruption, addictions, etc. It takes a lot of effort to equip ourselves to address many such crying issues around us, but doing so would enable us to be faithful to our role as light and salt of the world.

6. Living examples: More than ever our campuses are looking for living examples. Remember Daniel’s life – how the pagan kings under whom he worked were convinced that Daniel’s God is the true God. Eventhough Daniel served King Darius, the king preferred to address him as ‘servant of the living God’ (Dan 6:20). Let us examine ourselves and aspire to be like Daniel and Nehemiah to be living examples, attracting many to our God.

Dr Joseph John is a Professor in the Dept of Electrical Engineering at IIT Bombay. He has been a teaching faculty for nearly 20 years. He is an active member of the

Bombay EGF and at present serving as the President of UESI.

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Scripture engagement means enjoying the Scripture with our mind, feelings

and actions. It has to influence our whole being. Bible is the only book which transforms people. It is the maker’s manual of human being which will enable us to understand the purpose of our living. The uniqueness of the Bible is the author, who is God Himself. He inspired 40 different people in a period of 1500 years to write this Book. It is still relevant in our postmodern era.

When I was studying in the university, one of my friends asked me if I was going to become a Bible translator how much time do I spend reading and studying the Bible. I started reflecting on it and with the help of a questionnaire. This helped me find out that I was giving less time to the Word of God. We used the same questionnaire

with the believing students and the graduates and realized that we all face the same problem. This helped us to increase the time with the Bible in different ways. We need to develop an unshakable conviction that the living Word of God will change each and everyone even today. We can engage in the Word of God by reading, hearing, memorizing, studying, and meditating.

Bible Reading

We get the overall idea of the Bible, the main points and the big picture by reading the Bible. When we read the newspaper, though we don’t know the author personally, we still believe what has been written. We need to believe as we read the Bible. We are aware that the Bible has 66 books and 1189 chapters (Old Testament - 929 chapters and New Testament - 260 chapters). Tim La Haye in his book

SCRIPTURE ENGAGEMENT IN THE

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How to Study the Bible by Yourself says if we read 3 chapters a day and 5 chapters on Sundays we will be able to complete the Bible within a year.

Matthew Week – We can complete reading Matthew in a week if we read 4 chapters a day (28 chapters in Matthew). We can also complete Acts if we spend 3 hours continuously.

Bible Marathon – Reading the whole Bible in 50 days. Some EU/EGF mebers in Gujarat have tried this as part of their Golden Jubilee celebration. When Dr Lilian Stanley accepted the Lord she started reading the whole Bible every year. If we read 15 minutes every day we will be able to finish the whole Bible in a year. There are many annual Bible reading plans which we can use (Bible Society of India). Some are available in the internet.

Bible Hearing

Bible Hearing is essential to grow in faith. Romans 10:17 says, “Faith comes from hearing and hearing through the Word of Christ.” Hearing will motivate us to spend time with the Word of God. Radio programmes like FEBA (Far East Broadcasting Associates of India), TWR (Trans World Radio) broadcast series of Bible studies. Some Agencies like Faith Comes by Hearing www.faithcomesbyhearing.com, Bible Gateway Resources www.

biblegateway.com/resources/audio/ provide audio Bibles online. Faith Comes by Hearing and World Cassette Outreach have audio Bibles in mp3 format and in mega voices in different Indian languages. Dramatic versions of the Scripture are also available. We can use these resources in our prayer cells to hear and apply the Scripture in our lives.

In a group, one can read and others can listen with the printed Bible.

Bible Memorizing

Psalm 119:11 says, I have hidden Your Word in my heart that I might not sin against you. Memorizing is quite difficult but we need to do it intentionally. We can memorize verses based on themes like Bible, Salvation, etc. We can also memorize Chapters. Memorizing verses based on issues like bribe, corruption, dignity of woman and so on… will also help us. Write a verse on a card or a piece of paper and read it again and again throughout the day. Observing the phrases and repetitions will help us memorize easily. Remembering the reference is very important because reference is like the name of a person and the verse is like the person’s face. We need to review the memorized verses on a regular basis by visualizing and muttering. When we fail to review, we will forget what we have memorized. If we memorize two verses a week we will be able to memorize more than 100 a year.

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Bible studying

We have to take time to study God’s Word like how we study our subject books in campuses. Ezra 7:7 says, For Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the Lord and to do it and to teach His statues and rules in Israel.

UESI is known for training on Inductive Bible Studies, personal and group Bible studies. If you have not attended one, take time to get trained. We must do the Bible Studies on a regular basis and conduct group Bible studies.

There are other ways of studying the Bible. One way is by acting out. A Bible portion is given and the group has to be divided into two or three. The groups have to study and act the portion out, followed by discussions and reflection.

Another way is by Character identification. The events of the Bible can be studied and we can choose a character, imagine that we are the character and share the feelings and thoughts. Peter

is walking on the water. If we are Peter what would be our feeling. (Matthew 14:25-33)

There are various other creative methods of studying the Bible. You can log on to IFES page: www.scriptureengagement.ifesworld.org.

Bible meditating

In Joshua 1:8 God commands Joshua, This Book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it.

Meditating is thinking again and again the portions that we have read, heard, memorized and studied. It is like chewing the scripture. As I heard, if we know how to worry, we will also know how to meditate. While worrying, we think of the problem again and again. In meditating, we think of the Word of God again and again.

The time that we spend meditating on God’s Word in the morning is popularly known as Quiet Time.

Some may use the Bible like a medicine box (read only during problems and difficulties), snacks box (read whenever we feel like), magic box (read during crucial decisions like marriage, job, etc.). Sometime we enjoy reading only Proverbs and Psalms and leave the rest

of the Bible. We need to engage with the whole Word of God and spend time every day and not occasionally.

GREAT CAMPUS MOVEMENTS EMERGED AS PEOPLE SPENT TIME WITH GOD’S WORD.

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The Quiet Time is like the breakfast which sets the mood of the day. If we enjoy our Quiet Time, we will feel God’s presence the whole day. In Annamalai University, as believing students we used to first discuss what we learnt in the Quiet Time when we meet one another in a day. We need to remind ourselves in different ways like hanging a poster or a sticker which says ‘Did you take your Quiet Time today?’ Or to ask ourselves before we eat our breakfast. We can observe the Quiet Time in the best time of our day. It may or may not be mornings.

Other creative ways of engaging in the Scripture

We can be creative in spending time with God’s Word. Just to kindle our thoughts, some other methods are:

1. Composing scripture songs: Studying a portion/event from the Bible and narrating the event through a song.

2. Acting out a drama - Studying a portion / event from the Bible and writing a drama. The students can practise and act it out in evangelistic/believers meetings.

3. Story telling - Studying a portion/event from the Bible and each one in the group can narrate the story and reflect on the portion.

4. Bible writing - Choosing a book and copying the portions without mistakes. This will help us understand the scripture and the feeling of the person who wrote or translated it in our language.

5. Bible movies – Watching the books of the Bible as movies, e.g. the Gospel of John. The whole Gospel is narrated and acted out in the movie. These movies can be downloaded from the internet.

Application

Application is the key component as we engage in the Scripture in different ways. Application helps to bridge the Word of God to the real life situations today. Engaging in the scripture has to lead us

• To understand God and worship Him. For example, worshipping based on our study.

• Individually we can write a chorus based on the learning.

• To commit ourselves to a specific decision that will reflect in our life’s situations.

• To write an sms, based on our learning and share it to a friend.

• To create an atmosphere where the group is accountable to each other.

As a student movement, we are called to live life that will reflect the character of God in the campuses that will attract others to know the living God. This will become a reality as we engage in the Word of God.

Dr Prince Joseph with his wife Jennitha are serving as Bible translators in Gujarat.

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I was taught to pray in temples as I was born in a Hindu Rajput family from Himachal Pradesh.

I was told that all religions and all gods are the same. My father was a truck driver who died in a road accident when I was 2 years old. My mother worked hard to give me good education. My grandfather was with us. He loved both of us so much. We can’t even imagine our life without his care, support and encouragement.

Slowly my mother and grandpa recovered from the trauma as I grew up. I moved to a town for my studies. During that time I lost my grandpa. He was the only hope and strength for us. My mother was so much in shock, that she was hospitalized for 2 months. I thought that nothing good is going to happen any longer.

I came to NDRI, Karnal for my research work during my PG. It is my dream come true. I met with new people. I met some people whose care and support I enjoyed. We became friends. One fine day, they invited me for the NDRI fellowship. I had never been to church before. I was in dilemma, whether it is a right thing to do. Initially, though I was not able to understand much, gradually I realized God’s love. I became regular in attending the

fellowship. He has chosen me as His child. God has changed me and has been guiding me marvelously in my studies, my research and my family. I began attending church worship, meetings, camps and outreach. During this period God has taken me to many places shared the Gospel. As I look back, I find myself much confident, satisfied, joyful, responsible, and patient than before.

I was so much enlightened when I read in the Bible, that “He defends the cause of fatherless and widow, and loves the alien, giving him food and clothing. And A father to fatherless, a defender of widows is God in his holy dwelling.” God touched my life so many times when I was weak or I was in any trouble. By the motivation of my fellow believers, I started having my Quiet Time daily. I began to understand God’s Word as how He wants me to respond to things around me.

Now I know that God has brought me here with a purpose and a responsibility to share the Gospel starting from my family.

Kiran Thakur Ph. D Scholar, Karnal

I HAVE FOUND - a real relationship -

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Prince was a young believing chap. Everyday, he would go to college with a burden of

sharing God’s love with his peers. Like many of us, he had been taught ‘personal evangelism’, yet somehow, it never worked well for him! He was either shunned or mocked at. Somehow, people did not accept his message when he spoke. He could not pass tracts or books around, because they said they don’t care enough to read so much! Eventually, Prince realized that people do not want to read, neither do they want someone to ‘preach’ to them! He kept wondering how he could reach out to others on campus.

There were other committed students on campus, like Prince- who were making an attempt to reach out to their friends in their own small way. They bumped into each other often in their personal

endeavors of talking about God with their peers. So they decided to get together and plan a strategy that would help them be more successful. After much prayer and thought, they hit upon the idea of drama and music on campus.

It was quite an effort for some group members to get together regularly for prayer and practice; others required pep talk and motivation! Initially, they were apprehensive about the success of their idea. But as they spent time praying and practising, God showed them various ways to better themselves. They understood God as the Master Story Teller and the Director of Directors! From creation in Genesis to The Revelation at the end! Jesus had used stories and parables in abundance to get His message across to the common man.

Prince and his friends started with pre-planned loud dramatic

A DRAMATIC SOLUTION

Gifty Joel

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Gifty Joeltalk in prominent places in their college. They would sit around in campus, strumming their guitars and singing casually. People some-times flocked around them to listen. This gave them the courage to proceed to small skits and street plays. They often spoke on sensitive issues and social evils; they made use of ‘Friendship Day’, ‘Independence Day’, ‘Father’s Day’ and so many other such days that are observed, to stage small skits. His group slowly explored various ways to reach out to others.

As they kept working on this, they were encouraged to see that many people who never listened to the Message when it was told, now stopped to watch their performance. People crowded around them to hear what they had to say! They then started printing fliers for their plays to let people know what they were doing and where they were performing. They eventually had a steady group of youngsters come to watch them perform.

Prince, who once struggled alone to share Christ, is no longer alone. He had found a way out of his predicament through the usage of drama in ministry. Even Jesus knew that a story or drama will hold somebody’s attention; it helps drive a point home without directly preaching about it! Prince

and His friends followed the Lord’s example.

P.S. Are you willing to try using drama in ministry? Either in college, church or in any other place? The UESI Communication Dept provides training to those who are interested in using drama and music in ministering to others. Please contact John anna for further details (john.jebaraj@uesi.in).

Gifty Joel enjoys reading and writing articles. During her graduation she was a part of the college cultural team. Currently she is teaching at Mount Carmel College, Bangalore. She has

been a trainer in UESI Communication Workshop.

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During a brainstorming session on Research & Innovation in the student

ministry in 2009-2010, part of Vision 2020 planning for Gujarat, an innovative idea popped up. This was the inception of Theatre Team.

Ahmedabad was selected to develop the Theatre Team model by 2012 in Ahmedabad Gandhinagar Metro Region. This team has been functioning in since the 2010 – 11.

The Purpose: A Team ready to perform Skit, Choreography, Songs, etc. in camps and evangelistic activities

Activities: Theatre Team has prepared & performed skits, choreographies, mimes, black light performance, gathered inspirational videos, choir etc. at local, regional as well as state evangelistic and other programmes.

Benefits: With the increased

involvement of EU students in the Theatre Team, we have been able to create separate groups to cover all of these evangelistic activities. Earlier, the students who were part of a choir were the same students who would participate in skits, choreography, etc. however, with this initiative we have been able to have separate teams for choir and skits, choreographies, etc. This has helped improve the effectiveness of a programme.

Through this, gifts & talents of EU students have been identified and channelized them in proper ways.

Apart from EUs, different churches and organizations have also benefited through Theatre Team. This has helped in building a good relationship with them.

God answered our prayers and provided sound system and a projector through sacrificial giving of the graduates and students.

Theatre Team

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Submit your articles, testimonies, anecdotes, poems, & cartoons for Campus Link

Campus Link

Box 1030, Chennai 600 010, campuslink@uesi.in

Jeremy Christian

- Sometimes, non-Christian students do not attention to the talk; however, they keenly watch skit or choreographies. God works amongst students through skits, choreos, videos, songs, etc.

o During our evangelistic camp, many students shared that they were able to relate their lives with the characters in the skit. The Lord led them to commitment.

- It is difficult to openly preach in some areas; however, through this initiative we were able to share our message.

- Some of the students’ lives were revived by taking part in the Theatre Team. They have become regular in the UESI ministry.

- Student interaction has increased with this initiative

Future Plans: To prepare video songs, prepare a DVD covering all the skits and other useful material for evangelistic activities which can be useful for other centers too. Three of our students attended the Communication Workshop 2013. We are planning to pass on their learning to the other students in Ahmedabad, by replicating some of the sessions of the Communication Workshop.

Jeremy Christian and has been involved in UESI since his student days. He works in a BPO as a Manager. He is married to Eva and their daughter is Joanna.

Nov-Dec

on

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Ramabai was born on 23 April 1858 at Gangamul, Karnataka. Her mother was

Laxmi Dongre. Her father, Anant Padmanabha Dongre was a wealthy orthodox Brahmin.

In those days the girl child was denied education and child marriages (girls given in marriage before they became adults) were prevalent. Women were treated like slaves and used only to bear children. Laxmi was 9 years old when she got married to Anant Dongre who was forty years old. But Anant Dongre took care of his wife Laxmi and taught her Puranas (Hindu scriptures) and Sanskrit. She did her duties at home like cooking, washing, taking care of children & guest and spent hours at night to study the sacred literatures. Later she contributed a lot towards the education of her daughter Ramabai in the sacred scriptures and Sanskrit.

At the age of 12, Ramabai memorized 18,000 verses from the puranas. Her father did not give her away in marriage when she was a child. Her father’s reformed thinking towards educating women and shudras (lower caste people),

abandoned them from their house and society. Anant Dongre, his wife and three children wandered from village to village reading the puranas to the temple priest, in the fairs, in the holy places and to the wealthy Hindus who couldn’t read. They earned their livelihood this way as the Hindus gave money and gifts to those who read the scriptures to them. They believed that they received merit by listening to the sacred words. They travelled across the country, walking thousands of miles as far as Kashmir in the north, Chennai in the south and Calcutta (Kolkata) in the east. Ramabai was able to see the cruel state of child widows in the homes of the high caste Hindus, as she wandered to different places.

When she was 13, there was a huge famine in the country and people had nothing to give. Many days they went without food. Her parents and elder sister died of starvation. Ramabai and her brother Srinivas

TRAIL OF OBEDIENCE TO GOD

PANDITA RAMABAI

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continued to wander. She began to lose her faith in the religion where she suffered so much. They decided to give up the wanderings and reach Calcutta. There, the Hindu priests were amazed to see Ramabai reading puranas in Sanskrit and her knowledge of the Sanskrit grammar. They gave her the highest known title ‘Pandita’ (Scholar).

Her brother Srinivas became ill and died. She married Bipin Behari Das an educated Bengali man who was a shudra. They settled in Silchar, Assam. She found the Gospel of Luke in her husband’s library which he got in the mission school. She read the Gospel with great interest. As she wanted to know more about it, her husband introduced her to a Baptist missionary Mr Allen. As Mr Allen shared the Gospel she wanted to become a Christian but her husband never agreed to it. Within 2 years of their marriage, her husband passed away of Cholera. She was left alone with her baby girl, Manorama. She had no place in her husband’s home as a Hindu widow. So she took her daughter and went to Poona (Pune).

She established Arya Mahila Samaj in 1882 for the cause of Women’s education and to eradicate child marriage. In Poona, an English missionary Ms Hurford explained the New Testament to her. She also began to learn English. In 1883, Ramabai published a book, Stree Dharma Neethi (Morals for Women).

Ramabai earned some money by selling her book which helped her and Manorama pay their travel to England.

Ms Hurford introduced her to the Sisters at Wantage. She was given a home and was appointed as a professor of Sanskrit for two years in a women’s college in Cheltenham. She was touched by seeing women rescued and changed by Christ’s love. She enquired the reason for helping the fallen women. She understood that Jesus came to save and not despise the sinners. She was able to differentiate Christianity from Hinduism where the fallen women were cruelly punished. She embraced the Christian religion and was baptized in the Church of England. Later she experienced a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

In 1886 Ramabai was invited to America from England by Bodley, the dean of the Women’s Medical College, Pennsylvania to attend the graduation of her distant cousin Anandibai Joshee. In America, she wrote a book called ‘United States chi Lokasthiti ani Pravasvrutta. It was translated as Pandita Ramabai’s American encounter. It contains her observation about the people and the culture of America and also a comparison of the status of women in US and India. In her book she also criticized the racial problems in America. The book gained her a wide range of audience in America. She wrote

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another book on ‘High caste Hindu Woman’ and gave lectures on the conditions of women which led some Americans to establish Ramabai Association in Boston. The Association came forward to extend financial support for 10 years to start a school in India for the child widows.

In 1889 Ramabai returned to India and started the Sharda Sadan (House of Knowledge) in Bombay (Mumbai) for the widows. Many widows came there for training and Ramabai gave them an open access to religion. She gave them Bibles if they chose to read. Seeing her godly life, girls started showing interest in Christianity. The Hindu Brahmin supporters opposed this and the committee members resigned and declined to support her mission. She moved the Sharda Sadan to Poona. She travelled around the country to bring girls and widows who were suffering.

In 1896 a great famine broke out in central India. 600 women and children were rescued. On 24 Sept. 1898 Mukti Mission was established in Kedgaon, about 30 miles from Poona. In 1900, a great famine broke out in Gujarat and Kathiawar. She sent 20 sisters on a rescue mission and they brought hundreds of women and children from the famine stricken areas. She started Kindergarten for 400 children. She also started a teacher training school and an industrial school with garden, fields, oil

press, dairy, laundry and ovens. They also taught sewing, weaving and embroidery.

She was awarded Kaiser-I-Hind medal in 1919 for her community service by the British Raj.

Ramabai started a prayer meeting where nearly 70 people gathered each morning to pray. They prayed for a revival and true conversion among Christians. There was an outpouring of the Holy Spirit and revival swept through Mukti Mission. In December 1901, 1200 people were baptized. Later about 700 Mukti girls and women joined this prayer, studied God’s Word and went out to share the Gospel. In 1905, there was a spiritual revival and Ramabai said, “I am not aware that anything like the present Holy Ghost revival, has ever visited India before the year 1905.”

In 1904, she started translating the Bible in her native language, Marathi from the original Hebrew and Greek. When she finished translating a chapter of a book, she would get it printed with the help of the girls in the school and give to anyone who wanted to read it. In 1913 the first edition of Pandita Ramabai’s New Testament was published. In 1921, her beautiful daughter Manorama suddenly died of sickness. In 1922, when Ramabai was nearing her death, she prayed for 10 days to finish the proof reading and God granted her exactly 10 days. She finished

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translating the entire Bible before she died. She died at the age of 64 on 5 April 1922. In 1924 the Marathi Bible was published and over 10,000 copies were printed. She is the first woman Bible Translator.

It has been more than a century since Ramabai established Mukti Mission. Till today, Pandita Ramabai Mukti Mission is giving hope to many women and young girls. Ramabai said, A life committed to Christ has nothing to fear, nothing to lose, nothing to regret.

Will you commit your life today to Jesus and walk the trail of obedience to God?Dr Prince Joseph with his wife Jennitha are

serving as Bible translators in Gujarat.

References: Pandita Ramabai, undated My story Pandita Ramabai, Nasik: Genesis Books

Santhosh Kumar, 2011 ‘Pandita Rama-bai’ in Tamil, Chennai: Word of Christ ministries

FMPB, 2008, Great Men and Women who Changed the World, Chennai: FMPB

http://www.jeevanmarg.com/testi-monies/pandita-ramabai-founder-of-mukti-mission/ acessed on 30th July 2013 11.54 pm

http://www.manase.org/en/maha-rashtra.php?mid=68&smid=23&pmid=5&id=822 acessed on 30th July 2013 11.19 pm

I enjoyed reading the Campus Link Issue on, Cheerful Giving. Every article was so enlightening; especially the article on Gleaning law was a real opener. Real life instances mentioned and the student letter reminded me of my student days and the struggles I had to practice the discipline of giving. The articles were wonderfully interlinked and also covered the entire spectrum of giving, making the reading feel like a reading ‘one book.’ This issue helped me renew and enrich my attitude towards giving. I pray that many will read Campus Link and be motivated.Anitha Wesley, (Graduate)

Hope you have enjyed reading all the articlesin this issue on the theme

Engaging the Campuses. We would like to hear YOUR RESPONSES to these thought-provoking articles. Your responses can be about 100 words. Select responses will be published in the next issue.

Send in your comments to campuslink@uesi.in

Hon. Editor, CL

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God has enabled me to com-plete 40 years as a medical missionary involved in To-

tal Development in the jungles of Malkangiri, Odisha, still EU is my heart beat. You know why? It is be-cause in the EU meetings as a stu-dent in Chennai in 1964 that I got to know, how to dig into the Word of God and let God speak to me. Be-ing a widow for now 27 years – it is only this strong foundation that has kept me going in all my ups and downs in life. ‘Was life smooth sailing?’ No. ‘Were there trage-dies?’ Yes. ‘Were there Tears?’ Yes, bucket full. The Word of God says that He has collected my tears in a bucket. He knows, He cares and He the Eternal God, The Creator of the Galaxies is holding my hands tight and leading me step by step so that I may not slip and fall down on the way side. Wow!! Our God is our Guide, Leader and Protector.

Rich memories come flashing to my mind, as I think of my EU days, first as a student, then as a student leader. I could have a long time as-sociation with EU as a student at WCC Chennai doing my B.C course with Zoology as my main subject. At this time I am the Only girl to go flying past vehicles on my Hero

Cycle. Then my M.B.B.S. Course, first at Madurai Medical and then completing from Kilpauk Medical College, Chennai. At this time I was the only one to go on a motor bike! I also got permission from parents to take the girl students on my motor bike to meetings and camps. For EU Camps, I carried the cooking vessels tied and hanging on the handles of my motor bike. I was very fat and boy students made fun of my walk and called me ‘Baby Elephant.’ I laughed to myself as I sped fast them – as I did not like ‘boys.’ My hobbies were gardening and counseling and even now I relax as I see God’s beautiful creation. I keep very confidential what I hear and since I have gone through much difficult times I can relate to those who suf-fer physically and emotionally.

God has Blessed me with the qual-ity to forget 95% of the times when I get hurt, and so I become normal within a short time to the person who hurts me. I really love my God and ‘Hats Off’ to EU which trained me.

Dr Iris is a medical missionary involved in Total Development in the district of Malkangiri, Odisha, for the last 40 years.

EU is My HeartbeatDr Iris. G. R. Paul

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