Marie Rodriguez joined InterVarsity staff because she prayed with a Chinese woman and an Indian man at the first InterVarsity meeting that she ever attended.
Marie grew up in a small, Spanish-speaking Pentecostal church and thought that only Puerto Ricans were going to heaven. It wasn’t until her encounter with InterVarsity’s multiethnic community on the campus of Baruch College (The City University of New York) that she understood that the kingdom of God was larger than the church she had grown up in.
A Glimpse of God’s Kingdom
“Through InterVarsity, I caught a glimpse of God’s kingdom that was bigger than I had ever known. I had no idea that a Chinese Methodist woman could know Jesus!” said Marie. “After my first InterVarsity meeting, I walked on campus and the streets of New York City imagining so many more different people being affected by the gospel.”
Marie decided to join staff to be a part of a growing multiethnic community and to invite students to grow as disciples of Jesus.
“My efforts on campus take place as students are learning about themselves, their own walk with God, and their desires for the future. They graduate with a lot of these questions undiscovered,” she shared. “But joy floods my heart when I see students who become alumni practicing the leadership skills they learned as student leaders and moving forward in faith with their co-workers, family, and church members.”
Celebrating God’s Faithfulness
Recently, Marie reconnected with a couple InterVarsity alumni from the New York City metro area and they celebrated God’s faithfulness in their lives and their times with InterVarsity. They remembered the times of simple brown bag lunches and deep invitations to see the Kingdom of God, times of inductive Bible studies, and multiethnic chapters.
Another part of Marie’s ministry that she really enjoys is seeing other InterVarsity staff workers grow in their leadership. “I get pumped when I see staff grow in their experiences and overcome obstacles,” Marie said. “This work is hard to master—mainly because of who our Master is. Seeing staff take risks and their willingness to keep learning at every turn fuels me to serve them better. I am thankful to partner with God and witness His amazing work in the lives of students, faculty and staff.”
Today Marie serves as a Regional Fund Development Coach for InterVarsity, to help place more staff on more campuses, so that more students are reached with the Gospel. Marie and other InterVarsity staff are dedicated to building witnessing multiethnic communities across the nation. These multiethnic communities may be diverse but they are dedicated to the same goal—to see lives transformed, the campus renewed, and world changers developed.
