Missions at 1st Pres from my perspective

It is coming up on one year since I took the post of “Pastor For Missions” at 1st Presbyterian Church here in Chattanooga.  Joan and I were serving in London for the summer of 2022 when I was offered the job/task/position of mission’s pastor.  The year has gone by pretty fast, and I have been on a steep learning curve since I arrived.

   It is appropriate for me to give thanks at this point.  We thank God for this calling and opportunity.  We are thankful to Pastor Gabe, the World Missions Executive Committee, and the Session for including us in your ministry.   At times I feel very inadequate.  When we were asked to come, we were told it was not just about Foreign Missions but that Home Missions would also be part of my responsibility; and some pastoral duties from time to time.  I am happy to do all of that.

    I was thrilled to meet Elinor Espinosa when I came and to realize that she, compared to me, knew what she was doing.  I am so grateful to have her experience and expertise to keep the ministry going.  1st PC has a great Executive Missions Committee and I am thankful for their direction, prayers, and support.

    Here are some of the things I have tried to do, and have learned, and look forward to doing in my job…

1- Learning and working with the members and policies of the WMEC.
2- Becoming part of the pastoral team and working with our pastoral staff in planning, worship, preaching, praying, and leading.
3- Working with the Pastoral staff though a process of establishing a new vision statement and strategic plan.
4- Learning the officers of the church and the Elders, though I confess I still have trouble remembering names.
5- Planning, recruiting, and executing a mission trip to Kenya.
6- Participating in my first mission’s conference in 2022.
7- Helping to finalize the budget for 2023, and seeing God provide wonderfully at the end of 2022.
8- Learning the policies and leadership of the Outreach Ministry Team (Home Missions).
9- Working with Shad Guinn in outreach planning and strategy.
10- Helping the Outreach Ministry Team secure an expanded budget for more outreach, with a greater emphasis on church planting.
11- We sent two young ladies to the IVCF Missionary Convention.
12- Going with Shad to the Community Development Community Association conference in Charlotte, and the Expositional Conference (on church planting and evangelism) in Orlando.
13- Visiting with Allan Barth at Spanish River PC hosting church planting network leaders.
14- Planning and executing the Spring Ministries Expo in the Fellowship Hall.
15- Planning and executing a Spring World Missons Committee retreat at Camp Vesper Point.
16- Challenging the congregation for a matching grant for earthquake response.
17- Seeing the WMEC move Native American ministries from Home Missions to Foreign missions for better support. 
18- Visiting the Sysco’s in Vancouver and the Clevenger’s in Yakama, WS.
19- Recruiting and including Native Americans in our mission trip to Kenya.
20- Adding an Internship Program to missions and helping other summer ministries with their “manpower.”
21- Providing a weekly discipleship meeting for our interns.
22- Planned and executed an Evangelism training seminar.
23- Joining and participating in the weekly Missions Prayer Meeting.
24- Planning and recruiting for our next World Missions Conference.
25- Communicating with our established missionaries and mission works through Zoom calls, emails, and phone calls.
26- Hosting visiting missionaries with “lunch bunches” or private meetings.
27- Taking appointments for prospective new missionaries, interviewing them.
28- Creation of an expanded Missionary Candidate Committee, meeting twice a year to decide on those applicants we will support.
29- Working on ways to grow both mission’s budgets and to increase various kinds of ministries and missions.
30- Attending the Tennessee Valley Presbytery Church Planting seminar.
31- Working with staff to create videos and communications regarding the missions ministry of FPC.
32- Going with Shad Guinn to visit various Chattanooga ministries and opportunities.
33- Encouraging the Deacons (through Shad) in responding to emergency needs.
34- Expanding the missionary closet ministry by inviting all PCA churches in Chattanooga to have any of their supported missionaries use it. 

    I am challenged by the need and the opportunities we face, both here in Chattanooga and around the world.  Part of meeting that challenge will be to make some of our policies for supporting missions more flexible.  We can give grants and smaller support for “projects”, especially to initiate new work.  We can use our resources to encourage the mission involvement of ethnic minorities, thus expanding the missionary force.

    We see the challenge of increasing diversity in our congregation through evangelism, discipleship, internships, and mission involvement.  There is a great harvest to be reaped, may the Lord help us to reap.

END.