Cornerstone Students to Bring the Gospel to Iraq

From July 3 to Aug. 2, a Cornerstone University alum and current student plan to teach conversational English in Iraq.*

The two will join an organization that has short and long-term English teaching teams in various parts of Asia and the Middle East. Teams seek to use education as a tool of hope and relationship building that eventually lends itself to the sharing of the gospel.

Before traveling, team volunteers are trained on the basics of education and evangelism. Lesson planning, classroom management, cultural awareness and techniques for how to best present the gospel in the given context are all part of preparation.

The two will spend one week in Turkey with their team before entering Iraq. They will be learning about education as well as Iraqi culture. Special emphasis will also be given to being spiritually prepared for the environment that they will be entering and the message of hope and freedom that they will be bringing.

For the remaining three weeks, the team will spend mornings teaching conversational English to elementary and middle school-aged children and will spend afternoons and evenings playing games and building relationships with their students.

While visiting the Middle East or Asia may sound intimidating, trip organizers feel confident that “many people have a heart to go but simply do not know how.” Teams work hard to bridge the gap between the desire to influence the world for Christ and the reality of making it possible.

This organization has sent dozens of teams to seemingly unreachable parts of the world and has witnessed the name of the Lord and His gospel changing countless lives. Their volunteers come from a variety of walks of life and are only academically required to be seeking or possess bachelor’s degree in any field in order to participate in most trips.

*Please Note: Names have been omitted in this article for the safety of team members. If you’d like more information about trips like these, long-term or short-term, contact Dr. Gerald Longjohn for more information.