A word from heaven.

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Some myths about going on Church Planting Misssions

Myth 1:

Church planting is burning all bridges with the life you are having now.

Response:

We're not going to shave our head and be shaolin monks. Looking at the church planter's life, they are basically very much still connected to the world and Singapore. Technology has made the world very small. In fact my shepherd commented that he sees me on msn more when i was in Chile then i was in Singapore. Jokes aside, obviously, there will be some changes to your life right now if you decide to go, but relax, look at it as a progression to your life now instead of a total change. The local church will still very much keep in touch with you and look after your family back home to the best of our ability. It is not denying our family or your life right now to go church planting. In fact, when they buy tickets to fly there, they normally buy a one year open ticket with means that they will fly back within a year to rest for a month or so befroe they fly back.

Myth 2:

If possible, church planters are encouraged to stay in their adopted countries permanently.

Response:

On the contrary, church planters are encouraged to rise up local leaders as soon as possible and they can come home after that. Nothing beats having local leaders. So next time when God calls you to Russia, don't be too quick to throw away your swim suits cause you will be back. Normally, church planters are asked to commit a minimum of two years but most of them stay between 3 to 5 years.

Myth 3:

Its a great sacrifice to go on church planting.

Response:

I'm sure there are something you need to give up. Things like the singapore food? Things like being able to meet up with your parents everyday. But will God not be faithful and provide as you decide to take the step of faith and go on this adventure with God. In fact, God being God, you can ask any church planter, they'll tell you that you come back a richer person and that as they have given to God, He has never short change them. Nothing can replace the global expereince, nothing can replace what you expereince with God on the missions field. It had been a great blessing and privilege to go on church planting for many of them.

Myth 4:

Church planting is definately professional suicide.

Response:

Companies nowadays are looking more towards people with a global experience. I'm not going to say that when we go on church planting, we'll improve our lifes financially but i'll say that going on church planting may not do so much harm to your career as at first thought. Depending on your profession, it varies with how God will work in your career, but trust Him, he will move.

Myth 5:
Church planting is all work and no fun.

Response:
Relax, trust me, the church planters do know how to pamper themsevles on the missions field once in a while. God did not call us onto the missions field to be slaves and keep working everyday. There are retreats, there are fun times, there is joy on the missions field. However, i also don't want to paint such a rosy picture without balancing it out. Obviously you can expect to work hard, to be out of your comfort zones at times, to be always challenged to do new things. Its not too different from minstry in Singapore isn't it?

Myth 6:
Church planting is going full time

Response:
Its not yeah. We believe in sending church planters as tent makers not as full time missionaries. Tent makers basically means that they will go into their adopted country and look for secular jobs and assimilate into the local culture, to get to know the people, friends and through that spread the gospel.

Myth 7:

Church planting is only for leaders.

Reponse:

The skills the are most common used on the field are skills you learn when you are a coreteam or a careleader. You don't need to know how to preach to 50 or 500 people to be a church planter. At pioneering churches especially, you focus alot on evangelising, on sowing, on caregroup skills. Having said that, church planting is also not for anyone without a spiritual statue. The thing that needs to hold firm is that our relationship with God needs to be strong. It irks me when people use their "L" to define their relationship with God or how much they serve God. We must not confuse between the capacity in which the Holy spirit uses us with how much we allow the Holy Spirit to use us and partner with us. There is a huge difference here.

Myth 8:

Church planting only concerns church planters

Response:

This is so not true! Church planting is a team work which involves a network which includes the missions department, the missions support team, the local church when we give to the missions fund to assist our church planters financially, the prayer support from friends and family. We can be involved in church planting as well. Shepherds, Leaders, keep talking to your people about church planting. Keep the missions awareness up. You may not go, but you may be producing many church planters after you.

Hope church has a global vision. If we want our ministry to be biblical, our vision must match God's vision. Since God's vision is for the whole world to be saved, we need to bring it in line. Let's win the world people.

Regards,

Jie Hui

Labels: Missions

The kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it.

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Monday, July 23, 2007