30-Days of Prayer for Myrtle Beach Exchange Visitors

Some students make plans with friends to spend the summer working and living in Myrtle Beach together, but most do not.  They arrange their housing beforehand, and may or may not have any communication with their roommates before they arrive!  Pray for safe housing situations for students, as well as good connections with their new housemates.  There has been a housing shortage in Myrtle Beach for the last several years, which has led to an uptick in exploitation and sketchy living situations for some.  Pray for students who find themselves in these situations to find quick resolution and a safe place to go.  

The Myrtle Beach Chamber of Commerce partners with the MBPD  to run weekly orientations during the first 6 weeks beginning mid-May.  Students can learn important safety tips, get help filling out forms, and connect with various services available.  It is an important opportunity for students to see and hear from people who are in a position to help them if they have any issues come up during the summer. Pray for trust to be built between students, the police and other safe volunteers so they know who to turn to if they have issues throughout the summer.

Our first point of contact with students when they arrive often happens at the Myrtle Beach Airport!  A team of airport greeters has been trained to recognize students when the arrive in baggage claim, to connect and welcome them, and to help if they have any issues!  They are an important connecting point for students who arrive without housing arranged, or who find themselves in sticky situations because of mis-communication with landlords or employers.  Pray for stamina for the small greeters team, and that more volunteers would join them.

Pray for the J1 student exchange visitors as they prepare to come to the US.  They are college students and are finishing up semesters, taking exams, all while waiting for visa interviews and making travel plans.  For some, travel is normal, but for others, this will be their first time out of their countries or traveling on their own.  It is an exciting and scary time!  

Welcome to the 2026 30-Days of Prayer for Exchange Visitors in Myrtle Beach!  We are grateful that you are joining us in prayer for this upcoming season and anticipate the Lord will meet us in our prayers.  For the next 30 days, we will share simple prompts to guide your prayers, and give you a picture of what the ministry to Exchange Visitors looks like in Myrtle Beach.  We pray this simple guide will be a tool that connects your heart to the heart of God for these students and this ministry.  Prayer Prompts will begin tomorrow! Blessings to you as you join us on this prayer journey!

A summer abroad can be a life-changing experience. Students will bring home changed perspectives and a new way to see the world around them! Our heart is to see many students bring the Light of Christ back to their families, universities and countries!! Pray for those who have encountered Jesus to find local believers that can help them grow.

We made it to Day 30! Thank you for walking this road of prayer with us for the last 30 days. As the summer begins, please continue to pray for J1 students and the volunteers who are connecting with them. We believe God has great plans for this summer and are excited to see him work. May the Nations be reached with the Light of Christ!

Our heart in working with J1 students is to join in the work God is already doing in their lives, helping to further their journey toward belief in Jesus.  For some, that means learning about who he is, for others, it is gaining an understanding of the Bible stories they heard as children.  For some, it means encountering the Love of Jesus for the first time and committing their lives to Him!  Pray that of the things they experience while they are here will further their understanding of who Jesus is and how much he loves them.  Pray that our volunteers will be bold in sharing, and sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit as they share.  Pray for students to encounter Christ and be led to a crisis of belief.  

A large part of the All Nations Cafe ministry is bike rentals!  There is a bike rental team, led by Jimmy and Mary Barton, that not only rents bikes, but fixes them, both at the Cafe nights and as a mobile repair team.  The Bartons and their team are generous with their time and resources, and as a result have many opportunities to share the love of Christ as they are helping students. Pray for more skilled team members to join them and that God would be present in the midst of all of their encounters with students throughout the summer.  

We have previously prayed about corrupt landlords and helping students who have medical emergencies.  These two things in particular often lead to students needing emergency housing.  Chris and Lisette Ball are J1 Emergency Housing coordinators.  They help coordinate temporary housing for students who have had their housing fall through once they arrive, or they need to shift because of some sort of serious issue.  They will often house students in their own home or in the home of another volunteer for 3-5 days before finding them a new permanent placement.  These emergency situations often lead to opportunities to share the love of Christ with the students as volunteers demonstrate love and care during stressful times. 

Ministry to J1 students is a huge opportunity, that is really only possible through the many volunteers who take time out of their summer schedules to be present to students.  The ministry varies from greeting new arrivals at the airport to driving students to work in the rain, to helping students navigate social security applications!  Pray for blessings on these volunteers- that God would multiply their time and give them rest in the midst of  the busy season!  That they would have opportunities to share the love of Christ in significant ways, and they would be fulfilled in the work!