by Jon Konnerup
With the Great Commission as our mandate, the churches of our Fellowship have forged ahead 60 years to reach our world with the gospel. Only the Lord knows just how many have been saved through our efforts. Hundreds of thousands have been baptized. Thousands have been taught to observe all things that God has commanded and, in turn, are now reaching out to their own people with the truth of Jesus Christ and are planting churches.
In the last decade, we have seen the mission efforts of the Baptist Bible Fellowship come full circle. Fellowships have been started in other parts of the world by those who have understood their responsibility to do the same in going beyond their borders, crossing cultures, and sharing the precious name of Jesus. We have seen this unfold in the Philippines, South Korea, Japan, and in other countries.
In November 2010, another chapter of our efforts opened. I had the opportunity to connect with a large group of pastors and church leaders from Mexico, Costa Rica, Colombia, Peru, Panama, El Salvador, Spain, and Guatemala in Cuernavaca, Mexico, at the Rawlings Foundation Highlands Camp. It was there they gathered to join forces committing to reach the unreached of our world.
At this first-ever Hispanic Baptist Bible Fellowship meeting, 797 people gathered to take up the challenge from the Word of God realizing that now is their time to take the gospel around the world. The theme of the meeting came from Romans 13:11a:
And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake…
Emphasis was placed on NOW being the time for Latin Americans to step up and play a larger role in fulfilling the Great Commission.
National pastors and BBFI missionaries all spoke of the tremendous need in the world and the responsibility of all churches, even those in Latin America, to reach out beyond themselves. They were challenged to go to places which those from North America cannot access. They can adapt extremely well to other cultures and enter areas that are more restricted to U.S. missionaries.
A mission leader for many years, Jack Baskin, presented how God has worked in Korea and the Philippines to propel them to take up their part, and he asked why it could not be the same in Latin America. Each service generated great excitement. It was wonderful to see the joy on the faces of those who attended as they considered the fact that they too could be part of something bigger, something worldwide, and all with the power of God behind them. At the end of the meeting, 38 Hispanics went forward indicating God had called them during the week to leave their country and to serve as missionaries in another part of the world. Pastors accepted the challenge to have their churches pray for more laborers, give to help those who have surrendered to go, and also to be sending churches.
Missionary Ed Hoagland was burdened to see something like this happen. God has blessed him and given him the desires of his heart. What was started more than a half century ago by the DeVilbiss family and Georgia Webb continues today — it is ever expanding. Plans are already being made for the second Hispanic Baptist Bible Fellowship meeting in the fall of 2012 at the Highlands Camp in Colombia. We anticipate something great from God at that meeting.
I was so thankful to be a part of this joyful, wonderful, God-glorifying meeting and to unite with many of our partners in the Great Commission from Latin America!
Jack Baskin — I felt that the meeting in Mexico was a tremendous success. Jon Konnerup’s message on Monday evening was very timely and set the direction for the meeting. Ed Hoagland, along with the other American missionaries that attended the meetings, cast a vision for the nationals to follow. I know it is thrilling to them to see the national leaders taking their place and leading their people to really get involved in world missions. Under the leadership of Jon Konnerup and our missionaries, we are truly becoming Baptist Bible Fellowship International.
Ed Hoagland, Mexico — The main goal for our first-ever Latin American BBF meeting was for God to literally shake the lives of all those who attended in order that we would be more focused in reaching the still unreached in our world with the gospel message of Jesus Christ. God did visit us, lives were broken for the lost, and 38 surrendered to go to the regions beyond. And it’s our desire that this will be only the beginning of a major missionary movement from Latin America during our lifetime.
Craig Lingo, Colombia — Way back in my mind are the memories of BBF fellowship meetings where pastors would carpool in order to meet expenses and where many of the up-and-coming pastors would sleep on a cot in the dorms, or perhaps even in a church building. Suits and shirts would be a little wrinkled and shoes might be a little worn, but there was excitement in the air! Men were excited because they would connect with people they hadn’t seen for a while, because they would feed their souls on some of the finest preaching in the world, and they would be encouraged to go back home and keep plugging away at a very hard and lonely job. I was a little boy back then, now I’m a very senior missionary … and last month I got a little taste of yonder years in Cuernavaca, Mexico. By the way, that band of BBF pastors set their world on fire! Could it be that the next fire is starting to burn in Latin America?