Glad Tidings: BGCT offers multiple missions opportunities

Posted: 12/01/06

Glad Tidings:
BGCT offers multiple missions opportunities

By Barbara Bedrick

Texas Baptist Communications

DALLAS—As sparkling lights and Nativity scenes take center stage this season, a group of college students at First Baptist Church in Canyon hopes to bring light to nonbelievers a world away in Southeast Asia.

A youth musical mission team plans to travel to Japan where members will bear witness to their faith through caroling. Meanwhile, another group of college students will ring in the new year sharing the gospel in Russia.

“First Baptist Canyon is one of many Christmas mission teams we helped coordinate this year,” said Brenda Sanders, Director of Go Now Missions, a collegiate missions sending arm of the Baptist General Convention of Texas.

Go Now Missions exists to help both campus and church groups mobilize today’s college students for service. Many of these college groups plan spring break or summer missions trips.

“We work one-on-one with churches to set up a mission trip that fits their specific interest or mission area,” Sanders said.

Congregations participating this past year include First Baptist churches in Arlington, Lubbock, Belton and Canyon. More than 400 student missionaries were sent out to evangelize nationwide and around the world in 2006.

For more information, visit www.gonowmissions.com, e-mail gonowmissions@bgct.org or contact Brenda Sanders at (817) 277-4077 or (888) 288-1853.

Collegiate projects are only one of many ways Texas Baptist churches can participate in missions through the Baptist General Convention of Texas.

“No matter where God is leading you, we are here to resource and help you in any way, any shape,” said Steve Seaberry, director of Texas Partnerships.

Key international partner locations are Nigeria, Ukraine and two South American countries. Within the United States, Texas Baptists have a partnership with Baptists in New England. Other locations include China, Spain, Portugal, Germany, South Africa, Australia, Hong Kong, Estonia, Republic of Georgia, Brazil, Eastern Cuba and Jordan.

Partnership resources include orientation manuals, team orientation sessions that include training and spiritual preparation, interactive cross-cultural workshops to help church members adapt to a new culture and supplemental travel insurance.

The Partnerships staff will work with a church through every step of mission trip planning, including promotional materials, workshops and partnership speakers. Churches searching for a mission project outside of Texas can review a listing of potential projects by geographical region (PDF) or by project type (PDF) at www.bgct.org. Select “Missions & Ministry” and “missions opportunities” from the menu. For more information, e-mail partnerships@bgct.org or call (214) 828-5180.

Christians who travel internationally—for business or pleasure—can find out more about how to combine their travels with missions service as Texas Envoys. For details, e-mail partnerships@bgct.org or call (214) 828-5182.

The current Border/Mexico Missions emphasis is the BGCT partnership with the Mexico Baptist National Convention, which is opening doors for Baptist churches to adopt an unreached indigenous people group in the Mexico interior.

Ten mission fields have been identified where national missionaries are trying to reach 14 indigenous Indian groups. There are at least 56 different indigenous Indian groups in the Mexico interior that still speak their native dialects. Once a church decides which group or field it wants to adopt, the Border/Mexico (River Ministry) Missions office can provide cultural materials and spiritual guides for that specific people group including:

–training and orientation for mission groups, leadership equipping conferences for border leaders and churches

–speakers for churches to promote border / Mexico missions

Group leaders also can attend training conferences in January and February and schedule a personal consultation with border missionaries to get a project assignment. For more information, contact Dexton Shores at (210) 293-0485 or (888) 333-2363.

Woman’s Missionary Union of Texas offers missions opportunities including Baptist Nursing Fellowship, international initiatives, Missionary Parents Fellowship, missions camping, Project HELP: Poverty, Pure Water/Pure Love, restorative justice ministries, student missions and WorldCrafts. For more information, visit www.wmutx.org or call (214) 828-5150 or (888) 968-6389.

Texas Baptist Men offers a variety of mission opportunities including disaster relief and agricultural and building projects for men and women. Visit www.baptistmen.org or call (214) 828-5350 for details.

Other missions opportunities include:

–Key Church Missions Mobilization. For information, e-mail missional@bgct.org or call (214) 828-5384.

–LifeCall Missions. For details, e-mail cecildeadman@bgct.org or call (214) 828-5293.

–International Learning Adventures. For information, e-mail missional@bgct.org or call (214) 828-5370.