Members of California Baptist University’s International Justice Mission club are back on campus after attending IJM conferences in Washington, DC, April 12-16.
With hundreds of people from across the country gathered in DC to pray for an end to injustice, field officers from around the globe were given a chance to share with fellow IJM supporters how God is working in their specific area and submit new prayer requests for the upcoming year.
The trip kicked off with the “Student Freedom Summit,” where students were able to connect with fellow IJM supporters and attend various workshops, equipping them with the tools they need to successfully fight the path of injustice.
“I was reassured that I am not alone in the fight for justice. I have a whole network of people around the US and the rest of the world who are more than willing to encourage me in the fight,” Marie Hannula, junior, said.
The main event of the week came in the form of a “Global Prayer Gathering,” where the Vice President of Field Operations, Sean Litton, opened the night with announcing the theme of this year’s meeting: God’s faithfulness.
“The theme for the GPG this year was what I needed to hear. As someone who is graduating, I am not completely sure how the next step will play out. It is encouraging to know that God really is faithful,” Jonathan Slater, senior, said. “Being with Christians from across the globe was my favorite part. I loved being able to pray and encourage the people who worked for IJM.”
It was posed that the main prayer request of the year be for the transformation of Kenya’s corrupt justice system, as people are thrown into jail daily for crimes they have not committed.
Attesting to this, students were given the opportunity to hear from a Kenyan man who by IJM’s intervention had been rescued from this injustice.
“It brought tears to my eyes when he stood bravely on the stage in front of a thousand people with a bright smile on his face,” Hannula said.
After some training on how to approach government representatives about anti-trafficking bills, students were given the opportunity to take action as they went to Capitol Hill, asking the government to take a stand against this injustice.
“It is overwhelming how much I learned from this trip … God is always faithful. He is doing marvelous work through IJM and He has not forgotten the cries of the oppressed,” Hannula said.
On-campus, IJM club meets weekly with three main goals in mind: to raise awareness about the issue of human trafficking, mobilize people to pray and to ultimately take action against various injustices around the world, including human trafficking.
For individuals looking to learn more about IJM or get involved in IJM on-campus visit the Facebook page “CBU IJM Campus Chapter.”
