April 27, 2025
While going to the beach and relaxing in the sun seems like the perfect Spring Break vacation for most college students, students from the University of North Georgia choose to spend their Spring Break on mission in Lima, Peru. UNG’s Baptist Collegiate Ministries sent over 30 students to serve all around Lima.
Lima has a population of over ten million people, and of those ten million people, only 14% claim to be Protestant believers. The intention behind this trip was to focus heavily on evangelism and serve in the smaller communities surrounding Lima. UNG students partnered alongside the International Mission Board to complete over 460 worldview surveys and got to see what a day in the life of a full-time missionary looks like.
Keith Wade, the campus minister at UNG BCM, worked behind the scenes to get this trip organized. Wade says, “Our journey to Peru was years in the making. Georgia Baptist began a partnership with Peru several years ago, and we had a team ready to go in 2020, but like so many things, the pandemic halted our plans. The next year, political unrest in Peru led us to pivot and look for new opportunities. In 2021, we shifted our focus, but by 2025, we were back on track with renewed excitement, working alongside Keith Ivey (Georgia Baptist Missions Consultant) to plan a trip for a team of 30. Our mission was to engage with local churches that Georgia Baptist churches have established partnerships with and serve the Peruvian community.” Wade continues, “My main goal in taking students to Peru was to expose them to missions in an international context, focusing on evangelism and the vital work of supporting local churches in their effort to reach and serve their communities. We organized multiple teams, each working with different churches throughout Peru, and engaged in various ministries like street evangelism, VBS, home visits, hospital care, market evangelism, and even conducting spiritual surveys to assess the spiritual climate of the country.”
Matt Nixon, a junior psychology major at UNG, was a part of Wade’s team as they traveled to Peru. Nixon has dedicated his whole life to full-time ministry. He currently serves as UNG BCM’s president and is involved in a Ministry Develop Program at Concord Baptist Church. Nixon says, “I wanted to go to Peru because I wanted to serve the local church and see what ministry looks like in another country.” Nixon encourages all students to go on mission at least once, saying, “If you have the opportunity to go on a mission trip, do it. There is no reason why you should sit around and wait for a sign or calling when God has already called you multiple times in the Bible.”
Erynn Byrom, a sophomore psychology major at UNG, has always had a passion for missions. While Byrom was preparing to stay at home for spring break, a spot opened up last minute for her to join. Byrom says, “I am so thankful I had the opportunity to go and be a light in a country that needs Christ’s love in a way that is practical and relational.” Byrom continues, “The Lord taught me the necessity and beauty of relying on Him. We were told the overall goal, but the details were very limited, and we just had to listen for His guidance and direction.”
Ryan Roopnarine, a sophomore accounting major at UNG, served on the same team as Byrom. As their team went out into the rural parts of Lima, Roopnarine says, “Something I’ve never experienced before is being a minority in another country. This gave me such a new perspective on how people here feel when others may laugh at them because they are different.” Roopnarine was challenged with different perspectives throughout this trip and is using those perspectives to better understand the people he interacts with daily in North Georgia.
After seeing over 20 professions of faith throughout the trip, UNG students left Lima on fire for the gospel. Though most college students would rather use their spring break to relax, these UNG BCM students would give up any break to go back to Lima on mission.
