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About

International Friendship Ministries is a Christian ministry with a vision of “reaching the world through international students.” It seeks to educate, encourage, train, help, and involve local churches in ministering to and discipling internationals. Our goal is to bring the gospel to international students, scholars and their families. As some of them come to faith in Christ, IFM brings them into the fellowship of local churches, helping them mature in their relationship with Christ.

IFM seeks to train and equip them to be effective disciple-makers when they return home or wherever they go.

IFM has ministry locations in Columbia, SC, Orlando, FL, and Bloomington, IN.

IFM's Ministry in Action

Imagine arriving in a land where you don’t know anyone and customs are unfamiliar. Homesickness eats away at you, and you desperately seek for even one friend to help you understand the cultural maze. This is the plight of many internationals who arrive in the US every year to study, work, or live. IFM starts introducing internationals to Christians who have a heart to reach out in Christian love to our foreign visitors as soon as they arrive.

Friendship Partner Program

Friendship Partner Program

Through the Friendship Partner program, An American family or a single person adopts an international student/family as friends. American Friendship Partners try to include internationals in some of their (or their family) activities, helping them adjust to life in America, and giving them practical help such as taking them shopping for food (when possible). Most importantly, you will be a special friend to them while they are far away from their home country and relatives. Activities may involve doing something with them at least once a month and calling each other once a week.

Social Activities

Social Activities

Many international students, especially those coming from countries that have fewer students here, do not have may opportunities for social activities. We organize regular social activities like cookout, hiking, picnics, games, movie nights, attending, professional sporting events, etc to connect with international students, scholars, and their families.

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English Conversation Classes

English Conversation Classes

Internationals desire to practice spoken English. Although most have good basic English skills, many struggle with their accents or their understanding of idioms and slang. We conduct weekly English Conversation classes to expose students to idioms/slang/cultural meaning of words and to help international students improve their conversational English by providing a non-threatening environment to use their English.

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Helping Activities

Helping Activities

International students and scholars need help in many areas where we can easily serve them:
Airport pick up
Temporary housing
Grocery shopping – Walmart, ethnic markets
Furniture Giveaways & delivery
Rides for grocery shopping, doctors visit or church
Making connections with others
Moving

Bible Studies

Bible Studies

For those international students and scholars who are interested in learning more about the Bible and the Christian faith, we conduct regular Bible studies on campus, at homes and at local churches. We also conduct discipleship Bible studies for Christian international students and scholars to help them continue to grow in their Christian faith and disciple them to be disciple-makers.

Trips

Trips

Internationals want to see America and the many interesting sites especially those that are internationally known. E.g. New York City, Niagara Falls, Grand Canyon, Empire State Building, US Capitol, Disney World, etc

They also are interested to see local points of interest: State capitol, scenic look outs, caverns, a historic church, some unique American cultural location, etc.

1075496

Total International Students

136563

Total Visiting Scholars

3

Current Ministry Locations

2000

Students Engaged Yearly

What We Believe

We believe that:

  • The Bible is the inspired Word of God, the written record of His supernatural revelation of Himself to man, absolute in its authority, complete in its revelation, final in its content, and without any errors in its teachings.
  • All men in their natural state are lost, alienated from God, spiritually dead (Romans 3:23).
  • Salvation is only by grace, a gift of God, through faith in the Lord Jesus, who died for our sins according to the Scriptures (1 Cor. 15:3).  Those who thus receive Christ by faith have their sins forgiven (Eph. 1:7), their hearts cleansed (Acts 15:9), are born of the Spirit, become children of God (John 1:12), are made new creatures in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17).
  • God is One, Who reveals Himself in three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  Jesus Christ, as the Scriptures affirm, is the Son of God and Son of Man, was born of a virgin, and is Himself God.  The Scriptures also declare the deity and personality of the Holy Spirit.
  • Our Lord Jesus Christ rose from the dead in the same body that was laid to rest in the tomb (John 20:25-27).  The bodies of all believers who die will be raised from the dead, and they will receive an incorruptible body like unto His glorious body (1 Cor. 15:53; Phil. 3:21).  All other men shall be raised unto "the resurrection of judgment" (John 5:28,29).
  • Christians, born of the Spirit, are to live the new life in the present power of the Spirit: "If we live by the Spirit, by the Spirit let us also walk" (Gal. 5:16-25; Col. 2:6).  The Christian's responsibility and his normal attitude of life are to yield himself to God (Rom. 6:13), trusting God to keep him.
  • Christian living includes Christian service, the winning of souls around us, and the preaching of the Gospel to the uttermost parts of the earth.  In carrying on this work we need the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit granted to every believer as he yields and trusts (Acts 1:8; 1 Cor. 12:7; Eph. 3:20; Acts 5:32).  And in all of this service, prayer is to have the central place (Jn. 14:12-14; Eph. 6:18,19).
  • Jesus Christ will come again to earth a second time (Heb. 9:28): personally (Acts 1:11; 1 Thess. 4:16), bodily (Acts 1:11; Col. 2:9), and visibly (Matt. 26:64; Rev. 1:7).  His coming will precede the age of universal peace and righteousness foretold in the Scriptures (Matt. 24:29,30,42; 2 Thess. 2:7,8; Rev. 20:1-6).