There was momentum in the room; I could feel it. It was exhilarating.
A few months ago, Multiply Regional Mobilizers Joanna Chapa and Stephen Humber had invited our MB churches in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas to come together and journey through something called a Partnership Workshop. We talked about different ways in which we partner with others on mission, and how to partner in healthier and more honorable ways.
Our group of eleven people from La Joya MB Church felt encouraged. We had been wanting to dive deeper into what it means to reach our community with the Good News, and this workshop inspired us to take some immediate steps.
We began to gather for one hour before our weekly Wednesday prayer nights. It brought a new sense of life and purpose! I could see that life being was being birthed, and we were growing in understanding: evangelism is not just a special event or program, but something we are meant to do all the time, along the way. We came up with a play on words in Spanish to express this: Evangelizando Ando—evangelizing “as we go”.
After eight weeks of meeting like this, we decided to have a more evangelistic focus. We started rotating the meeting at each other’s homes or businesses, inviting family, neighbors and friends to join us and hear the Good News. At one gathering we got to witness eight people committing their lives to Jesus as their Lord and! Those moments are priceless.
The day after this event, we met with Joanna over a meal of street-style tacos and shared about our experience, how it has spurred us on in our desire to see the Good News spread not just in our local communities, but also around the world. Joanna shared how the world has a very real need to hear news that is truly good. Not just good for some, but good for every people group, everywhere. This good news, this best news, she told us, has a name: Jesus!
There are eight billion people in the world, and over three billion have not yet had the chance to meet Jesus. Our hearts have to beat to the rhythm of God’s heart, Joanna told us. This is what partnership means, being in sync with God’s heart and with each other to bring the best of news to the world, together.
