Aspired to be in Campus Link? Each edition of Campus Link is designed based on theme. The themes of next editions of Campus Link will be announced and viewers are encouraged to submit articles, testimonies, anecdotes, poems and cartoons for Campus Link.

The theme for next Campus link is out now.

May- June’23 – Passion for Mission  –  (Deadline to receive articles 20^th Apr 2023)

‘Mission’ is the heartbeat of God! Right from the creation we see God’s mission mandate to humans, and it continues. The great commission in Mt.28:19, 20 is for every believer, and in obedience to this command, we take Mission seriously. As students and graduates in the context of the University Mission, our task is to share the good news through words and deeds. It is essential therefore to understand the Biblical perspectives on Mission and how to involve in God’s mission intentionally, passionately, and vocationally. Students play a vital role in missions as they are the ambassadors on the campus and the decision-makers in the future.

The concept of an integral and holistic mission focuses on a multifaceted approach to evangelism that comprises the spiritual and social well-being of a person. Such understanding of mission helps us to be aware of human needs as a whole and not just one aspect of missions, and also to the whole world. Mission in a pluralistic society is essential as we live in a context surrounded by different people of other faith; we need to understand them or be able to come together on common ground to help them realize the Kingdom values. In India as well as in many nations of the world people are starving and in poor health. There are people being marginalized in society because of social structure; they are being oppressed socially, economically, and spiritually; they are being discriminated based on gender, caste, creed, and colour. Therefore, God calls us to liberate the oppressed and help them to live as full humans with dignity in Jesus Christ.

The following Topics are to be focused on:

1. 1. 1. Biblical Perspectives on Mission
      2. Students and Mission
      3. Integral Mission and Holistic mission
      4. Mission in Pluralistic society
      5. Mission to the Marginalized section of Society
      6. Mission as Tent Maker

July- August’23 – Coping with Fear and Anxiety  – (Deadline to receive articles 1^st Jun 2023)

On the bus, I close my eyes and lean against the window. As the sweet lull of sleep reaches me, a sudden unfamiliar feeling intrudes. My heart beats faster, and I feel breathless, like a tightening noose around my neck. My mind screams – “wake up or else the bus will crash!!”  It’s irrational and I know it, but often times that’s what anxiety and fear can look like. Fear of the unknown and non-existent things often causes anxiety.

Clinically, anxiety is an umbrella term for emotional experiences individuals go through in different situations. Social anxiety is fear of being negatively evaluated by others, Phobias are magnified fear of a stimulus and generalized anxiety is anxiety about multiple areas of life. One thing common across it all is that it is an intense fear of something we are unable to control.

With students under constant pressure to perform and excel, anxiety, and fear is no stranger to them. With it comes questions like ‘am I good enough?’, ‘what if I have no purpose’, ‘what will become of my life’ and ‘why am I not as intelligent, smart, popular, and confident… as my classmates and peers’ and so on. As graduates, stability of jobs, excellence/performance in career, work pressure, professional jealousy, standing for the truth, settling down, balancing family, job & other engagements, etc. cause anxiety.

Fear and anxiety can become distressing and dysfunctional if not taken care of at the right time.

As believers, it is important to open dialogues on coping with:

1. 1. 1. self-worth & identity
      2. Academic Pressure
      3. Peer pressure
      4. Fear of Failure
      5. Fear of Future
      6. Delay in Finding the Right Partners in Life
      7. Dealing with Singleness

September-October’23 – Secularism and Spirituality – (Deadline to receive articles 1^st Aug 2022)

The word ‘secular’ is derived from the Latin word saecularis which means relating to worldly things or to things that are not regarded as religious, spiritual, or temporal whereas ‘sacred’ describes something holy, religious, eternal, or connected to God.

When God created the earth everything was good and sacred, he put humans to take care of it and do their best in sustaining what was entrusted to them. Everything they were expected to do was sacred. But with the entry of sin, there came a divide between good and evil, worldly and spiritual. Over the years, the secular-sacred divide has increased, and only what is connected directly to God like worship, prayer, Bible studies, Mission work etc. are considered spiritual and all other things are ‘secular’ in nature.

Because of this divide, there is a tendency to give less weight/importance to ‘secular’ work. But God has called us to be faithful in everything we do and to work it for the Lord. Everything we do, from work to relationships, to hobbies, to eating and drinking, is to be done for the glory of God (1 Cor. 10:31). All creation is God’s, and one day all creation will be restored (Rom. 8:22). Compartmentalizing secular and sacred leads to Sunday as sacred and the rest of the week as secular. Bridging this dichotomy is the need of the hour. We are the representatives of God in every spectrum of life, and we need to redeem the corrupted world back to God with a holistic approach.

A believer needs to involve as hands and feet of God. Hence the areas to focus:

1. 1. 1. A Christian in Workplace
      2. In Business
      3. In studies
      4. In Governance
      5. In Politics
      6. In the Health sector
      7. In Finance Management

November-December’23 – Unity in Diversity – (Deadline to receive articles 1^st Oct 2023)

UESI is a university mission called to impact the nation as disciples of Jesus Christ. Since it is interdenominational in nature, we have people with different views and theological differences coming together for fellowship. While UESI has been able to have a manual for functioning – which has the aims, vision, core values, and doctrines, there has been no specific way to address some of the biblical teachings that have the potential to cause divisions – alienating some or preventing some from serving together.

UESI is Bible centred and we believe that Scripture is the final authority for our life and conduct. While we believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God, and God is not a God of confusion, a proper study of scripture must help us to deal with these differences and work together. The focus on reaching out to students and discipling them to follow the Master can be done without being entangled in the web of becoming more exclusive even though we may develop specific leanings.

As different members across the constituency embrace different leanings, even influenced by their denominational affiliations, it has had the impact of alienating those who may not agree with the positions taken by those who dominate. Some move out of the ministry based on their biblical views and are not able to work together because of their differences. While we may be wrestling with differences, it should enable us to work together with unity to achieve the simple and focused vision of UESI. That reminds us of our efforts to equip and edify one another, not just in the local church but in the universal church i.e., the body of Christ.

While we all strive to have one common understanding, we should also understand that we may not come to a common understanding in everything in this lifetime. So, we need to strive for “Unity in Essentials, Liberty in Non-Essentials, and In All things Charity”. Essentials here are those things that are fundamental, and necessary for Salvation such as salvation through the atoning death of Christ alone.

Some of the topics that can be explored under this theme are:

1. 1. 1. How to Identify and overcome poor study and interpretations of the Scripture which leads to a lot of confusion causing divisions.
      2. Understanding the essentials and ensuring the focus on meeting the objective (our vision) with unity
      3. Not being exclusive but being inclusive even as we wrestle with differences in our theological leanings.
      4. How to handle grey areas/topics for which we do not have clarity.
      5. Knowing that believers across the world will not be uniform but can be united in their pursuits to serve.

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