Porfilia finds Christ
On my recent trip to Candelaria I visited Porfilia and she received Christ. Candelaria is a 7 1/2 hour trip. Two hours by highway, two hours rural and dirt roads and 3 1/2 hours tracking up a mountain. We are building a church in this Tojolabal Indian village the only church around the area.
After meeting with the new church Saturday I was ask by a precious Indian brother if I wanted to visit with an elderly lady up the hill who was interested in hearing the gospel. The next day Octavio and I hiked up the hill to a small shack where we visited Porfilia. She greeted us with a smile and ask us to sit. I don’t speak Tojolabal so Octavio interpreted for me. I shared to gospel and how Christ loved us so much. Porfilia said she wanted to go to the meeting but because of her leg she couldn’t walk down the hill. I explained that it wasn’t about a meeting to go to, but about meeting Christ here and now in her house. She said she wanted to and we prayed together. Her face and Octavio assured me that she understood. I was thrilled she received our Lord. I looked around her shack, all she possessed was worth in the worlds eyes nothing but to God she was worth more than all the gold and silver and God sending His Son Christ Jesus to save her soul. That day we spent over an hour in her home and I promised her on my next trip up to visit her. I spoke later to the new church of the need to visit Porfilia. The oldest Christian in this village is at this writing 6 months old and the pastor in training is 5 months. Raul is being discipled and must mature quickly pray for this baby church.
You can see more pictures of our trip by clicking on the pictures on the sidepost. My daughter went with me and did a great job ministering to the children.
What is church planting?
Establishing a group of believers in a particular local who will meet regularly to worship God, study the Holy Bible, fellowship together, pray for one another and others, share the gospel by witnessing with their lives and words.
- Using Paul’s example he traveled seeking out people to share the gospel with, then brought those that believed together to teach them about the Kingdom of God. Sometimes staying a few weeks or months and sometimes years. He stayed two years in Ephesus. Most places he went he had a team of men and women that worked alongside of him. He always looked for opportunities to share the gospel. An important part of his ministry was follow up, through; revisits when possible and letters to the believers to encourage and exhort. He spent many days and many hours preaching, teaching and praying with tears for the new believers, the new churches. Also a very important part of church planting was the establishment of leaders in the local churches.
- Another way of church planting is through local churches and pastors. By motivating local leaders to establish new churches. These new churches can be planted through contacts in areas where a new church needs to be planted. Missionaries can encourage and begin evangelistic outreach through campaigns, medical missions, helping in whatever need that community might have. This is how we have seen new churches planted. The leadership is found in the mother church that is planting this new church with the help of a church planting missionary. As time passes leadership in the new church will rise. Discipleship is important in growing new leadership so the new local church doesn’t depend on leadership from the missionary or mother church, but fellowship and networking must be permanent, not control but friendship and consulting. This can become a coaching relationship.
Indigenous according to Websters means having originated in and being produced, growing, living, or occurring naturally in a particular region or environment
Adding the words church planting almost seems contrary to the whole idea of being indigenous in that we from the outside go into a different culture to plant a new church. The church didn’t originate from that culture, as it didn’t originate from us either Jesus, Peter, Paul, etc. were a Jewish.
The idea is to plant a church in a different culture but then they become owners and pastors, lead and follow Jesus and His teachings, they are lead of the Holy Spirit to reproduce again and again in their culture and into other cultures the gospel of Jesus Christ. Go into all nations making disciples.
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