It was a sunny day in June and a small congregation of Seventh-day Adventists in Aeropuerto, Peru, waited anxiously for a long-awaited answer to prayer. For the past five years, these believers prayed and fasted for a church. Now, representatives from Maranatha Volunteers International stood on the land the group had worked hard to acquire and assessed the potential to construct a new church building.
During the process, one woman in the congregation fought back tears. She told Maranatha that when she heard of the organization’s mission to build churches, she felt a sense of assurance that one day her group would no longer have to meet in a wooden shack for worship.
Within minutes, Maranatha announced that Aeropuerto would be among the 100 churches to be constructed in Peru as part of Maranatha’s “1,000 Churches in 1,000 Days” program.
The woman began to cry as she announced the news to the rest of the congregation. “Brothers and sisters, it’s all been approved!” Church members applauded and embraced each other in joy.
The scene was an illustration of how a church is much more than a building. For hundreds around the world, it is hope.
In January 2004, Maranatha Volunteers International launched an initiative to build 1,000 urgently needed houses of worship in 1,000 business days, concentrating in places where the Adventist Church is growing rapidly. Currently, the Adventist Church is expanding by 1 million new members each year, many with no place to worship.
Peru is one of the first countries to be part of this initiative; India will receive 750 new churches under the umbrella of this program. Maranatha is also working with Adventist church leaders in Latin America and the 10/40 window, an imaginary rectangular box on the globe that includes some 70 percent of the world’s population, for additional countries in need of assistance.
Yet while the title of the program emphasizes numbers, personal contact with the groups in need reveals that the total impact of a church building is immeasurable by figures. Not only does the program construct physical structures, it builds hope, confidence and spirit in the congregations. These intangible results are what ultimately help grow the Adventist Church.
In 2003, Maranatha visited a 63-member group of Adventists living on the floating islands of Los Uros in Peru. When Maranatha announced that they would construct a new church to replace their humble, corrugated metal structure, the people broke out in cheer and emotion.
“We have in a way, felt abandoned,” said a teary-eyed Noe Coila, when Maranatha announced their plans to build a church for his congregation. Coila is a church leader. His congregation’s remote location on Lake Titicaca, the world’s highest navigable lake at 12,500 feet above sea level, has prevented regular contact with other Adventists. The decision to include their church in Maranatha’s efforts in Peru and around the world gave the Los Uros congregation the affirmation they needed to feel a part of the Adventist community.
The promise of a new church structure also gave the Los Uros group a renewed confidence for sharing God’s message.
“Now, thank God, by building a new church, we can bring back our brothers and sisters,” said Coila. He went on to say that “when we have a place where we can praise Christ, we will win more souls…”
Churches are also helping to strengthen Christian communities in India. In March 2004, Maranatha committed to constructing a new church in the village of Golla Gudem. Locals say Christianity has had a presence in this 1,500-person community for the past 50 to 60 years. About 40 families profess to be Christians. However, there is no permanent Christian church. The missionaries who first introduced the village to the Gospel left new believers without a home. For the past 10 years, Christians have built a small church out of straw and twigs. It is a structure that must be rebuilt each year.
Compared to the Hindu temple in the village, the tiny straw hut is a pittance of a temple. For the Golla Gudem Christians, the lack of a proper house of worship is a hindrance for sharing the Gospel. Other villagers are reluctant to worship with the Christians because of the poor structure. A new church would help bring new believers to Christ.
In India a temple is validation of a religion and its authority. Out of a population exceeding 1 billion, 80 percent are Hindu; only 2.4 percent are Christians. They are already minorities in their own villages; the churches give the people confidence in their faith–a faith that may be ridiculed by others as false.
“In both India and Peru, the church structure helps give credence or reputation to their belief system in the eyes of their neighbors. The members are able to say, ‘We have a church. We are legitimate,'” said Kyle Fiess, vice president of marketing for Maranatha Volunteers International.
In Golla Gudem, this validation has an even broader reach. The group in this village is not Adventist. But denomination is secondary. For this congregation, more important is the discovery of fellow Christians and the support indicated by the church structure.
“Christians started mission work in India more than 500 years ago,” said Ron Watts, president of the church in Southern Asia, in an interview with Maranatha. Watts says the missionaries, however, seldom left chapels or temples for the new believers.
“There are Christian families living in the rural areas of India that have been Christians for 150 years … down the road they don’t have a church, no pastor … no Bible teachers … they’ve been neglected,” said Watts.
In India, Maranatha partners with Gospel Outreach or Global Mission pioneers, local Bible workers who reside in a village and teach the gospel message. When the pioneers have established a stable group of believers, the church in Southern Asia requests a church from Maranatha. A permanent Bible worker remains in the villages to nurture the growth of the church. According to Watts, in these situations, the Christian families welcome Adventists with open arms.
“Suddenly here’s a congregation like them, and they are worshipping every week. They want that in their village too,” said Watts.
Not far from Golla Gudem, another congregation meets faithfully each week in the village of Suraram. Out of 325 families, 30 families are Christian and seven are Adventist. There is no Christian church in the village.
The small group of Adventists, led by a pioneer, meets as often as possible. To avoid the intense heat, they gather in the evenings in the dusty yards of peoples’ homes.
When Maranatha came to Suraram, church members told personal stories about how they came to find Christ. One young man named Arjun said he used to believe there was no way to change his destructive habits until he found hope to start a new life and rebirth through Christ. Another man named Chandrayya said Christ has healed his health, family and heart. Both said they want to share their faith with others. They feel a church will help to galvanize Christians in this village by giving them a place to come together and worship.
During the same visit, Maranatha also committed to constructing a new church in Suraram as part of the 1,000 Churches in 1,000 Days program. The project will take place later this year.
Until then, the group will continue to make do with what they have. To prove their tenacity, the congregation gathered for worship with Maranatha. The adults sat along the perimeter of a house, catching whatever shade was offered by the narrow eaves. The children sat in rows on a worn-out mat.
Then, the congregation’s pioneer stepped forward. And although it was nothing but a dusty yard with cows lounging just yards away, the Bible worker reverently took off his shoes and set them aside. He stepped onto the mat, and the congregation began to sing.
Copyright © 2004 by Adventist News Network