Colombian Christian Mission

Growing the Church

Each year the Colombian Church plants a new church somewhere in Colombia. Last year a deaf church was started, this year a poor 
suburb of Bogota was the location for the new church plant.

This past Sunday was typical in many ways. I was up early and got ready then headed out to church. Normally I attend and preach at two or three churches nearly every Sunday. So this past Sunday I headed out to the Normandia church where I was scheduled to preach. As always, church services here are great and I really enjoy my time at the services. Sunday is a day I look forward too all week long.

While there, I took a bit of time to visit the new deaf church that we planted that functions parallel with the Normandia church. Things are going well with them and we are now ready to begin our major push for evangelism and outreach. There were ten deaf individuals present and a couple of bilingual persons there as well. They meet with the hearing church through the communion service then split off and the rest of the time is a purely deaf church and the entire service is conducted in sign language. This church was started in conjunction with Dewayne Liebrandt and Deaf Missions International. We are grateful to brother Dewayne, as without him this would have been impossible.

Here in Colombia, we start churches with small groups and get them organized. Once the organizational step has passed, we then begin a major push for outreach and evangelism. We do it this way as there are normally some “teething pains” in that initial set up period and those difficulties are much easier to deal with when the church is small. In keeping with that plan, two months ago, we launched a new church plant on the southwestern edge of Bogotá. We began with some families from that area of Bogotá and a few of our musicians from other churches that have been helping with the music. That area of town is called Soacha, and is actually a small town that has been absorbed by Bogotá as the city has grown.

So after the morning service in Normandia and a meeting with the deaf ministry people, I loaded up the car and headed down to Soacha (pronounced Sow-Acha) for the church service there. I was scheduled to preach for the first time at that new church. We recently finished the organizational stage and were now in the early part of our outreach and evangelism efforts there. This is an extremely poor section of town and the streets are mostly mud and ruts. It is an area that requires a four wheel drive vehicle to get into. I arrived about an half hour before the service was to begin in order to chat with the leaders and greet all of the new Christians as they arrive.

The church meets in an empty lot, as there is no money for a building and the church is too small and poor and cannot yet consider putting up a building, but then buildings are not needed for a church plant. We pray for good weather but there is a very small lean-to that we can crowd into in case it does rain. The biggest problem is that there is no restroom available and with three hour services and more than fifty people, including people of all ages, the lack of a restroom is a problem. Installing one is a high priority, as soon as we are able to afford it.

This past Sunday, there were forty two people present when the service began. Several more wandered in during the service, filling up the fifty chairs we set up and leaving many people standing. It was a beautiful service in the open air and under the afternoon sky. We had our song service and then communion. After that, I preached out of the book of Romans. I was interrupted several times by applause as new Christians are exuberant about their faith and excited by hearing the Gospel preached. New churches are always exciting and I am thrilled by the chance to be a part of so many new church plants.

After the service was over, as it common here in Colombia, the people stayed around to chat and enjoy the fellowship. After perhaps an hour or so, the people slowly began to leave and head back to their homes. It was more than two hours until the final departures and we were able to head back to our houses and apartments. I took a load back to the central part of town, dropping different people off at bus stops or at their homes. I got back to our apartment here about 8:30 that evening. It had been a long day and I was tired. But I was also thrilled by seeing what God is doing here in Colombia.
As a member of one of our supporting churches, you are also involved directly in these church plants. You can be personally involved with these new church plants by joining us in prayer for these new works and by helping with special needs. For example, at Soacha we need a basic sound system, many more chairs, and of course, to install a bathroom as quickly as possible.

The costs vary, but some rough estimates are as follows: the sound system, with a mixer board, a couple of microphones and speakers would cost about $800; chairs cost about $10 a piece; a bathroom would cost about $1,000 to build and install. We also need more literature so the kids can have Sunday school material. In poor sections of town, if we do not provide it, the church will not be able to. You can support this by donating to the Christian literature fund. If your Church, Sunday School Class, youth group, or VBS would like a summer or fall project let us know. We can send you some material to help raised money for one of these projects.

We are also in need of designated monthly support for these church planting endeavors. This will allow us to make the most of every opportunity that arises and provide for a few needs in planting efforts. We would also be able to help provide some transportation for some of the people that are giving of their time to help. If you would like to donate a specific amount each month to help with our church planting efforts, let us know: SusyMorris@supportCCM.com

A building is also very important, though we do not wait for that to begin a new church. That would cost somewhere in the area of $100,000. We are also looking at this site as the location for the endeavors of our next work crew. Consider being a part of that next work crew as we help this new church take off. So join with us in planting the Soacha Church and then in rejoicing as we see our Lord at work to build His church here in Colombia.

Join us in spreading the Gospel to all parts and all people of Colombia.

Sponsor a Teacher

We have great teachers at Colegio Peniel. This year through our Sponsor a Teacher program we are trying to raise support to be able to give each of our teachers a bonus at the end of the year. We are trying to raise $500 for each teacher or $9,000 total. They give up a lot of benefits and economic gain to work at Colegio Peniel. Help up thank them and show them that we appreciate all that they do in providing a quality Christian education for the poor children of Colombia and teaching them about Jesus.

Colombian Christian Mission
Post Office Box 95
Rittman, OH 44270-0095