Students gain new perspective on Baptist heritage during Oxford Study Tour

This summer, students went beyond the classroom to study Christian and Baptist heritage in the places where some of the most significant events occurred in Christian history. The annual Oxford Study Tour afforded students the opportunity to visit these sites while taking courses from seminary faculty and meeting with faithful Christian workers who currently serve in the United Kingdom.

During a stop at the church where Charles Spurgeon was converted, Master of Theology student Courtney McLean met Mary, the 94-year-old mother-in-law of the church’s pastor.  When McLean stopped to thank Mary for the scones she made for the entire group, they began to exchange life stories. Mary recounted her time working on a farm during World War II, how she started following Christ as an adult, and the years raising her children, one of whom had recently passed away.

But as Mary told her story of loss and heartache, McLean noted that she was not bitter or angry, but proclaimed God’s faithfulness. Moved by Mary’s love for the Lord, McLean says she left their conversation changed by this woman’s testimony.

“I learned from Mary to acknowledge pain, but to cast that care onto the Lord and to be grateful for His goodness,” McLean says. “Within the same walls God called Spurgeon to look upon Him in saving faith through a lay preacher, He called me to look upon Him in faith through a faithful 94-year-old saint.”

Throughout the 17-day trip, McLean and other students had numerous other opportunities to visit other historical sites with a fresh perspective, not only learning about Christian history, but also meeting people like Mary and the church’s pastor who are steadfast in their faith and call to ministry.

Master of Divinity student Daniel Kim, who was in the U.K. for the first time, says he was surprised to learn from pastors how great a need there is for more missionaries and church planters. Although surrounded by evidence of hundreds of years of Christian history, relatively few people are professing Christians, and even fewer identify as evangelical.

During one outing, Kim and a few other students met a woman working at a local shop. They were only able to engage in a brief conversation but decided to return the next day with Gospel tracts.

However, when they returned the next day, the woman rejected their materials. Kim was discouraged and frustrated. He was certain of their need to return to the shop that day but wondered why they had bothered to come all that way.

But before they left, another store employee, Craig, overheard them. He said, “I want those materials you’re giving out.”

They were surprised but excited at the new opportunity to share the Gospel. “The Lord just kind of placed him there,” Kim says.

Craig requested to meet with the Southwestern students the following day at a nearby café to talk more. Craig was a university student searching for answers to questions about God and his purpose in life. His questions were wide-ranging, but Kim says they were careful to answer each question with a “Gospel-centered focus,” ultimately leading to a complete Gospel presentation.

They finally asked Craig for a decision and said, “Craig, this forgiveness we talked about in Jesus is something you can have now if you believe in it. Is that something you would like to do?”

Craig expressed his readiness to set aside his doubts and follow Christ. The team led Craig in a prayer of salvation and later introduced Craig to the pastor of the church they happened to visit next on their schedule.

Reflecting on interactions with people like Mary and Craig, students expressed what a rich experience the Oxford Study Tour was. Whether through their study of Christian events from 500 years ago, learning the stories of longtime faithful Christians, or leading a new person to Christ, both McLean and Kim noted God’s work in it all.

“The story of the church is all of our stories,” McLean says. “No matter what your passion is, there is much to be learned from the lives of those who have come before as well as the lives present today. Spending time in a different culture opens up your perspective on faith and life and facilitates meditation on your own calling.”