Surprises on the field

Preparing to go onto the mission field in Brownwood, I prepared myself for a number of spiritual battles. There are the battles of temptation, the battles of getting up the courage to regularly evangelize, witness and share my faith with complete strangers, the financial struggles, the adjusting to a new environment, discouragement, etc. I expected to move to Brownwood and for no one to care that I was there, or for everyone to disdain my presence because "Why would we need another Baptist church?" (Actually, the only people to ask that question were the station manager at the Christian station and a local Baptist pastor's wife).

Things I was not prepared for were:

• Isolation- If you've never gone to church faithfully, you never miss church. However, if you have ever been a faithful church member, then were suddenly placed in a situation where you had no church family, you feel isolated and alone. I never realized how much strength I drew from being in the presence of other Missionary Baptists. Even at Denson Springs when things were going badly, members of the congregation still prayed for me, and a couple even took time to lift me up. I had one church member, that, even though we were at odds at times, he would still let me know he loved me and was praying for me and wanted the best for me. Things are getting better as we begin to see the beginning of the core group emerge in Brownwood, but the absence of regular Sunday worship drains a person.
• Newfound "friendships"- I have been approached by other groups wanting me to join their movement. It's not a problem, I am properly handling the requests, it just surprised me.
• The Enormity of the Mission- It is not easy to start a church with nothing. At Mission: Brownwood, we did not have the luxury of moving onto the field with a "launch team." (I'm not knocking missionaries who did, it's a great thing, when it's available). We did not have displaced Missionary Baptists on the field looking for an ABA church. We don't even have a meeting place, outside of my living room (which we are close to outgrowing). Nope. No buildings, signs, advertisements, history in the community, community ties, heritage or launch team members to rely on. We have to build the core group from scratch. Now, before I get a barrage of messages saying "God builds the church, not you, dummy!", let me say that the progress that has been made has been by God's grace. I think it was God who provided for us living in the neighborhood that we are in... which is next door to our best core group prospects. It was God who prodded the teenager who was on the brink of salvation to come to VBS so we could share the Gospel with her. Still, something from nothing is a tall order. With God's help, we'll fill the order. Let me just say that anyone who says "It's easier to start a new church than to put up with the traditions of an old one" is an idiot if they truly believe it, or, they've never planted a church. It may be easier to split a church and form a new congregation, but it is not easier to start a new one from scratch as opposed to pastoring. It's even harder to plant a church with a launch team and a meeting facility than it is to pastor one that has heritage and a history in the community. As much as I have been through in the pastoral ministry, that was easier than this. I just thought I'd throw that in there.

Things are going well at Mission: Brownwood. Y'all continue to pray for us. We saw God do a lot of good things in August at the apartment complex (VBS every Saturday), with two professions of faith and friendships being built with residents along the way. We just hope to be able to continue that momentum and ride it into a self-supporting church in the near future.

God bless you, thank you for your prayers and support.

Leland