Crossing Cultures
The 5 Circle Steps of Cross-Cultural Servanthood – A concise very helpful overview of the book by Duane Elmer, Cross Cultural Servanthood.
Crossing Cultures Well – An InterVarsity article with tips on building relationships with people who are different than us.
EveryInternational – Training videos for ISM. A collaboration of many of the International Student Ministries (ISM) in North America.
World Culture Encyclopedia – Learning about our friends’ culture can be helpful.
PRAYERCAST – Pray for the peoples of the world.
Hospitality
The Serviette – Find helpful articles on hospitality and hosting students from other cultures in your home.
Tips for Hosting – Some tips that our staff have come up with over the years for hosting internationals in your home.
Engaging Tools
The Bible Project – Visually engaging and educational videos on the Bible with historical and cultural context.
The Story Film – A 5 minute video sharing God’s story of redemption (in multiple languages).
Soularium – A collection of pictures that help guide a conversation on spiritual things. It can be downloaded as an App on your phone.
M28 Bible Discovery – A discipleship model that is simple and reproducible.
Islam
Crescent Project – An organization that hosts conferences and has training materials.
Answering Islam – Entering into dialogue with Muslims can be challenging. This site has great resources.
Answering Muslims – A Christian apologetics website dedicated to responding to the questions, objections, and arguments of Muslims. The site is run by Christian debaters, lecturers, and writers who have a special interest in Islam
Student Site
iStudentsDuke.org – Check out our site for students. Events and resources for the students you meet can be found here
Recommended Books
- Foreign to Familiar by Sarah Lanier – A YWAM staff’s brief overview of “hot- and cold-climate cultures”
- Three Cups of Tea – Though the author’s account has come under criticism for some fabrication and lack of accountability, this book can still serve as a helpful window into crossing cultures.
- Crossing Cultures with Jesus by Katie Rawson. A veteran in international student ministry has assembled best practices grounded in thinking Biblically.
- The Good Earth – by Pearl Buck. Of course, it is nearly a century old, but still a classic glimpse of life in a different part of the world.
- I Dared to Call Him Father by Bilquis Sheikh. Personal account of a woman’s journey to faith in Jesus.
- Why are Americans Like That? By Stan Nussbaum. What better way to begin appreciating others than to start with one’s self! Though this is written for non-North Americans, discover how much really does fit us!
- Let the Nations Be Glad! By John Piper
Faith dialogue:
International students’ first experiences in the USA
Internationals’ impressions of us
Second Thoughts on cultural adjustment