Lucas da Silva '15

Calvin alumnus Lucas da Silva wrote to us to share his story about how God is using his diverse interests at TWR in Cyprus.

“When I began at Calvin College in 2011, I would never have guessed that I would work for TWR in Cyprus as Director of Southern European Ministry. It’s one of those journeys of serendipity that God loves to create.

I double-majored in History and Film & Media, and double-minored in Business and French. These four seemingly unrelated subjects were a product of my difficulty in figuring out ‘what I want to be when I grow up.’

Beyond providing an excellent education, Calvin helped me to work through my various interests to discover who I am, what careers I would enjoy, and perhaps more importantly, how I think. However, God was going one step further. He was preparing me for my first job out of college—working with TWR.

Although I was aware of TWR, I never thought my skills and passions would fit in here. It’s a global Christian radio organization, and I didn’t see myself working in anything Christian or radio. Nevertheless, God proved me wrong.

Toward the end of my time at Calvin, I began looking for summer internships. On a whim, I took a look at TWR’s website. Only a few months later, my flight departed from Grand Rapids to Vienna, Austria. My internship role was to research the refugee situation in Europe in order to determine how TWR could develop a viable media ministry for refugees.

Not long after my internship, I returned to TWR’s office in Vienna, this time as a Refugee Ministry Coordinator. I was tasked with implementing my previous research and establishing a ministry for refugees via a smartphone app. TWR now works through the “Love Europe” app, which provides helpful geographic, social, cultural, and spiritual information and media to refugees in Europe.

New opportunities come quickly at TWR. I am based in our Cyprus office and am Director of Southern European Ministry, overseeing our media partners and operations in Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, Greece, and Cyprus.

TWR reaches people throughout the world with media programs that offer practical and spiritual help. Not only am I inspired by this mission, but I also feel fulfilled in my role within it. While I was exploring various areas of study at Calvin, God was preparing me for my current role.

The research and socio-political skills that I learned from my history major allows me to analyze and understand TWR’s audiences in Europe. I can easily apply my film & media knowledge to other platforms, such as radio and smartphone apps. My knowledge of French facilitates relations with our French media partner. Finally, my business classes prepared me for working with our finances and marketing.

You may feel as if TWR’s work and your background don’t suit each other, but you would be surprised how God can use you at this organization. Whether you studied Psychology, Computer Science, or even a lovely smorgasbord of unrelated disciplines (like me!), perhaps God was preparing you for a rewarding role at TWR.”