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Here
are 5 key issues or challenges facing us: The fact that the gospel has been preached in most places in Honduras for more than 100 years means that original evangelical works will be scarce. New works will probably be a mix of believers arriving from various previous church experiences, and curious seekers, as well, hopefully, as new converts. Some view Honduras as a completed field and advise against the sending more missionaries for the opening of new works. Others ignore the existing church for various reasons and whole-heartedly promote foreign missionary presence*. As a field we cannot afford to be indifferent to the spiritual conditions we find. We must know and consider them and plan accordingly. We believe that we as missionaries are called to evangelism, discipleship and leadership development. The issue then becomes one of stewardship of resources. Is the starting of new works by the direct contact of foreign personnel always the best solution to the problem? We are convinced that it is not always the best use of God's resources to do so. In this document we hope to present the principles that will guide our selecting of target areas for new works. 2. Personal experience takes precedence over theological formulas The
dominance of personal experience based theology rather than biblical theology.
makes our involvement with churches and individuals complicated. Churches often
do not have established written doctrinal statements and see little or no need
to create them. The Bible is respected, but often is not studied nor is it taught.
This makes it difficult to say that certain individuals or churches have deviated
from Biblical doctrine and behavior because they simply have never been exposed
to it. It is often not resistance to good doctrine that is encountered as we have
contact with such persons, but rather the void has created openness to receiving
our instruction. While realizing these movements are deficient we find ourselves
with opportunities to minister the truth and fill the void. We believe that these
opportunities to correct such individuals or groups are God-given**.
3. The churches exist in poverty. The factors contributing to or that have led to this reality are numerous: slow economic development of the country, poor stewardship, corruption etc. This can make solving problems more complicated. How does a church support its own pastor, build its own building, and fund its own projects? The problem requires all involved to think creatively. 4. Certain philosophies of missionaries, government agencies, foreign aid and some aspects of Honduran culture have encouraged dependence on foreign assistance and fostered wrong attitudes among national believers. This philosophical environment has suggested and taught the national believer that ministry works well when missionaries are present and languishes without them. This is due to the funds we provide as well as potentially better administration. There is often an underlying "we can't do it without foreign monies mentality". The ways in which foreign based missionaries multiply ministries are in some ways out of reach for many pastors for a variety of causes. Simple things such as adequate transportation to the place of ministry, or the ability to facilitate medical brigades are advantages that few seem to have. We can find ourselves in awkward situations when we evade financially backing the projects that we inspired hoping that the national church will assume responsibility. The past practices of others teach the Honduran that the money is available from foreign sources. Yet the Honduran church must carry the responsibility and look to its own people if the fruit is to multiply beyond our personal influence.
Their lack of education often contributes to a concept of Christianity that is overly simplistic. The preaching and teaching is associated with the Bible but often it is not the message of the Bible. Dedication to Christ becomes synonymous with attending services in a building called a church. There is a one-dimensional kind of application where everything is either right or wrong thus becoming a breeding ground for legalism. Scholarship and critical thinking are not highly esteemed. When the question is asked, why is there such poor teaching in the churches, or why does the national church lack vision? There is a tendency to over simplify the problem. Obviously the people teaching poorly do so because they cannot or will not do otherwise. Their unique background has emphasized different values. Some of those values are not Biblically developed. This is not to suggest that North American values are the standard and not in need of adjustment as well. Since God gave us a book, then we can assume that reading is important. The critical thinking needed to do good Bible study is needed. Pastors cannot accurately, clearly, and creatively express what they have not grasped. Church leaders cannot cast a vision to the congregation when they have no clear direction. We seek to reach people at the spiritual level at which we find them and move them towards spiritual maturity. In Honduras this can mean that some leaders in some churches do not know how to read. Moving people, such as these, toward maturity requires patience as well as a variety of teaching methods. The question then becomes, how can we address these issues in a way that is both in harmony with Scripture, the BMW handbook, and our conscience? *The
Southern Baptist Church and CAM International are examples of missions in Honduras
who have shifted away from the planting of new churches through direct contact
of foreign personnel. MTW serves as an example of a mission who is currently planning
to send more personnel to Honduras. Strategy: 1. Develop nationally lead church-planting movements in areas designated by field leadership that will reproduce themselves without dependency on foreign aid or personnel.
2. Develop national leadership in Honduran churches who capture a vision for fulfilling their part in developing and sending missionaries to other missionary fields both locally and worldwide.
Goals: Each BMW missionary is to write his own annual goals within the framework of the field vision and strategy. Core Values: Other than the core values listed by Biblical Ministries Worldwide (Biblical truth, local churches, servant leadership, leadership development, teams and family), we as a field would like to express some core values important to the Honduran field:
VISION
STATEMENT: This helps us to promote three major areas in our ministry: 1. The same Holy Spirit that calls us to missionary service also calls nationals, therefore:
2. The missionary is only a temporary presence to make disciples, therefore he must:
3. The national ministry does not need to meet expectations of foreign cultural expressions of Christianity, but rather what is culturally appropriate for his people.
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Those
who have experience preaching know that there is a significant difference in being
able to craft an attractive outline and delivering an effective message. Many
a good message has arrived from a less than brilliant outline. It has been our
experience that it is easier to follow and deliver a message when it has a structure
that works towards its purpose rather than against it. We, as a BMW field, are
not unlike the preacher arising from his desk after completing his Sunday morning
outline. He has a plan that will guide his thoughts and aid in the communication
of God's truth. We, like the preacher, sense the need to present a structure that
will organize the communication of God's resources here in Honduras. In preaching
it is important to have a grasp not only upon the text, but also upon the recipients.
A good sermon will be crafted with both in mind. It is our desire not only to
present our plan, but also attempt to explain our context of ministry. It is our
belief that once the context of our ministry is understood our specific solutions
can be more readily understood. Therefore what follows is an introduction to our
field as well as the principles that guide our present and future ministry. By
the grace of God we hope to carry these purposes to their successful conclusion.
For it is through doing so that we believe that we can accomplish our part of
God's greater purpose in the world.
APOSTOLIC
CHURCH PLANTING (ACP) METHOD: Although books have been written on the subject,
which go into great detail and many groups espousing this method, we seek to define
it as the following:
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