About ESMA

ESMA is all about students who gather from different Theological Schools all over Europe, trying to set the focus of their fellow students on the necessity of world mission. ESMA was founded 1956 by Joop Schotanus, a Dutch student at the European Bible Institute Lamorlaye (France). Today about 15 Theological Schools all over Europe are members of ESMA.

The ESMA-Slogan:

PRAYING – As WE pray, we press toward the Heart of God, so He can change our thinking.
GIVING – By raising finances, we can help to fulfil the Great Commission.
GOING – We are called to fulfil the Great Commission – Mt 28

How does ESMA work?

One of the most important features of ESMA is the forming of self-organized Prayer-Cell-Groups. These are lead by students. The personal contact to missionaries on their mission field is important, so the students have the possibility to get to know the missionaries’ work – hereby prayer requests become more real.
The Prayer-Cell-Groups can be creatively arranged in different ways. For instance: Missions-breakfasts; Missions-services or even spending a night of prayer, to which we invite missionaries to share their vision with us.
Within the Prayer-Cell-Groups giving becomes more practical. Students raise funds for certain Mission-Projects. As a fundraising project, some schools have a so called ESMA-Store, where the students sell sweets or stamps during lunch- time. The revenue goes directly to the ESMA-Project.
Through ESMA, we get in contact with missionaries on a more personal level and we get first hand information about the worldwide mission field. After all, information about the mission field has warmed up the heart of many students to become missionaries. It’s good to see, that in the past years many students have developed a view for mission. During that time, many students even received a personal call to go to the nations.

Structure

Yet, not every Theological Seminary has ESMA-Prayer-Cell-Groups. But it’s so easy to become a part of it!
ESMA could start at your Seminary when students come together for a Prayer-Cell-Group and want to join ESMA.
You just have to get permission from the seminary’s director before you contact the International-ESMA-Team. This team of students coordinates the Europe- wide ESMA and facilitates the contact between the students and the different ESMA-Schools.
Every third year an ESMA-Conference is taking place, where students from different schools, denominations and countries gather together for one great goal: MISSION.

ESMA has the following aims

1. As students and pupils in places of christian training it is of great concern to us that God’s Kingdom be built in this world. We wish to do what we can to see that the concern for global mission in particular is not neglected at all places of christian training.
2. We wish to pray for world-wide mission and support it with our own gifts.
3. We wish to inform ourselves about the world-wide spread and effects of the christian Gospel.
4. We wish to mutually encourage each other to discern the calling and task which each of us involved in world-wide mission ought to have.
5. Our greatest concern is that God be glorified by our work. Since we know ourselves to be loved of God we desire, that all the people of this world be reached with the message of the love and reconciliation of God.
6. In mutual and loving acceptance theological differences in doctrine are not to be propagated.