Over the past 15 years, it has been my privilege to be
involved in several short term mission projects which have included Disaster
Relief projects in New York City after 911, in New Orleans following Hurricane
Katrina, and post flood and windstorm projects in Kentucky and West
Virginia. I have also been blessed to
be involved in projects with church planters in Kentucky, Ohio, West Virginia,
and Toronto on short term mission projects. Each of these projects has been a
growing spiritual experience for those of us who have been involved.
However, the most dramatic and life changing personal
mission work I have ever been part of are the 12 short term mission trips I
have been blessed to make to the Republic of the Philippines. Several members of our church, (Darrell
Clark, Thamer Calhoun, Rick Gunnell, and Randy, Debbie, & Joey Spurgeon)
have also made one or more trips there as part of our Beacon Ministries Teams. Each of us have gained much from the
experience. Joey even gained a wife!
Many of you have partnered with us financially to help bring
the Word of God, and many material resources to faithful Filipino Baptist
Church planters, primarily in the Province of Negros Oriental in the Central
Visayan area of that Island nation.
While there, we have worked with our Filipino hosts in both urban and
very rural settings – in college towns and incredibly poor third world type
villages. We have ministered in
Colleges and Public Schools, hospitals, jails, private homes, and churches that
range from simple concrete buildings, to “tent churches” and Nippa huts with
thatched roofs and dirt floors.
Through the efforts of going and giving from our friends
here, we have been part of constructing five church buildings there, improvement
projects on those and other buildings.
Furnishing churches with several hundred chairs and other needed items,
including audio visual equipment, numerous keyboards, guitars, tape DVD and CD
players, and other musical and electronic equipment, hymnals, printed Bible
Studies and other print material. We
have been able to conduct two, 2 day Pastor and Church Leader Seminars, helping
to better equip more than 120 individuals for various types of ministry. Over the years we have purchased nearly one
and a half tons of premium rice for the churches and their feeding ministries,
and above all else we have been blessed to provide them with, and to help
distribute more than 3,000 copies of the Word of God, in both English and
Cebuano language versions.
There are many ways in which we have been a blessing to
those precious pastors, their families, and young congregations. But they have also been a tremendous
blessing to us. I have learned many
lessons from these humble servants of the Lord. Some are new lessons, others are simply reminders of what we
already know. Some of them include:
- Little is much when God is in it.
- There are Believers in this world who are willing to come together at 4:00 AM for an hour of worship, Bible Study, Prayer and Fellowship before their work and school days begin.
- Faithfulness to God is a quality that does not depend on material blessings
- We should not try to force OUR (extra-biblical) cultural traditions upon believers in other cultures.
- We should learn to do whatever necessary to reach our own culture, even if it involves thinking “outside the box”
- True worship involves, Celebration, Adoration, Contemplation, and Consecration
- The “obstacles” we face here in our ministry are not nearly as tough as those faced by Christians in many other parts of the world
- We have not yet begun to face real persecution – but it IS coming
- Devotion to our God deserves our very best
- We are often far too “comfortable” in our service to the Lord
- Full dependence upon Him, is a freeing experience
- “Marketplace Evangelism” is a Biblical model that still works
- We generally under-utilize our buildings and the other resources with which we have been blessed.
- Every Christian is a herald of Good News
- The joy of the Lord is your strength
- Church planting, is not dependent upon an outside funding agency
- Every community is a potential place of outreach, evangelism, and discipleship activity
- Even if times are hard, and resources are not plentiful, keep on keeping on.
- Lost people are all around us. Don’t overlook any.
