Silver Spring, Maryland, United States …. [Mark A. Kellner/ANN]
They’ll work in remote villages accessible only by a small river. They’ll be in the middle of some of the world’s largest cities. In some locations, they’ll have to operate in utter secrecy, vetting newcomers before allowing them in.
“They” are Global Mission pioneers, raising up congregations and building churches and fellowship centers in places where they can be known, as well as where they must remain secret. The Seventh-day Adventist Church’s Global Missions Operations Committee voted April 22 to approve nearly US$1 million in funding for these projects.
“We are relentlessly remaining faithful to the Gospel commission,” said Michael L. Ryan, a general vice president of the church and head of the Global Mission effort. “Ninety-nine percent of this will bring hope in Christ to the ’10/40 Window,’ and the committee’s vote further extended the ministry of the church and Global Mission by approving these several hundred projects.”
Many of the nations where Global Mission is working cannot be publicly identified for fear of antagonizing either authorities or dominant faith communities that would see Christians as a threat. In one of these nations, however, operating committee members were told the situation was “ripe with opportunity right now” for the Gospel message.
“The actions we took in voting funds are perhaps the easiest part in the whole process,” said Lowell C. Cooper, a general vice president of the world church. “For we recognize that there will be countless individuals in these countries who will face the challenge of living, demonstrating and applying the Gospel in their relationships with other people. We know that funding enables action, but funds don’t accomplish the winning or witnessing.”
Global Mission is a special initiative of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, voted in 1990, to establish new Adventist churches where there are none in order to reach the unreached with the hope found in the Gospel. Thousands of Global Mission pioneers have established over 11,000 new Adventist congregations since that time. Additional information about the program can be found online at www.global-mission.org.
Copyright © 2004 by Adventist News Network.
