“It was a good sharing on the ministries that are on-going at this little village of Lugala in Tanania. But still, this is just another one of those stories of missions. What’s the big deal? There are tons of needs around the world and this is just another one. Anything else, let the pastor, the church board or the missions committee worry about it. Missions and Africa is just not the cup of my tea. I have much to care about in my life already.”
Then it seems that this presentation is more than a sharing on a missions project. God is actually challenging us with the following question: what am I currently doing as a Christ follower in terms of making disciples of Jesus Christ?
On the surface, this seems to be just another missions project. When you reflect deeper into the birth of this project, it is not simply a missions project. It is a project of a disciple of Jesus making disciples of Jesus. Do this sentence sound unpolished, rough but familiar? Oh, yeah. It is the motto of Mosaic Baptist Church. “disciples of Jesus Christ who are moved to help others becoming disciples”
Bob Meinschenk, who came out with this project as the chair of his church’s outreach, has shown us what it is like when one truly lives out this motto. He is neither the pastor in charge nor higher ups in the hierarchy. He initiated a project to the higher ups and the birth of Partnership Tanzania took shape. He did not wait for directives from someone else in the church to initiate a project. Yes, I know. He is the chair of outreach and that should be his job. Then I also know that many chair on many church committees will not do anything unless directed by the pastor.
With a 5 year commitment to this project, a village is literally being built. With this, there comes the realities of making disciples of Jesus Christ. For those people who are involved in Bob’s project, they have slowly evolved into disciples of Jesus Christ as well. In 2007, a hostel for visitors and teachers is being built, 200 mosquito nets were distributed to protect lives, maize were distributed to families with HIV/AIDS victims, 10 heifers have been purchased to build a quality herd, 55 young people attend school ofr the first time, and a micro credit fund has been approved. Disciples of Christ take the gospel into action. Bob is making disciples of Jesus Christ through this project.
What is also amazing of this project is that only 3 cents per dollar is used to cover the cost of transferring funds and minimum costs in Tanzania. All contributions go directly to support the fore mentioned projects. What a story!
I hope that one day your story will be told in the style of Bob Meinschenk. It is because he holds true to our motto. If I am a part of Mosaic Baptist Church, what am I currently doing as a Christ follower in terms of making disciples of Jesus Christ? Am I living out the motto of our community?
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