Message Magazine Online - Vol. 54, No. 02, Summer 2006

In This Issue

• See All The People
  By Angela Shuff
• A Little Taste of Heaven
  By Michael G. Loftis
• Canadian Editorial
  By David W. Smith
• The Canadian Mosaic
  By David W. Smith
• A Bend in the Road
  By Bill Commons
• Redirected for a Purpose
  By Phil and Barb Klumpp
• From His Eyes
  Ton Alcantara
• Trading Places
  By Chuck Frerichs with Angela Shuff
• Emergency in the Amazon
  By Ruth Scheltema
• Building Relationships with International Students
  By Mallory Parmerlee
• In Their Own Words
• A Little Church Meets a Big Need
  By Ron D. Lindholm
• Support for Prefielders - Introducing Brad Winkler
• Partnering to Provide a Creative Way of Giving
  By Spencer Jackson
• The Missionary Family: Re-entry Realities for Third Culture Kids
  By Russ E. Ebersole, Jr.
• Pray For The Home Office
• ABWE 2005 Annual Report
  (PDF Document)
  

A Little Church Meets a Big Need

By Ron D. Lindholm, Pastor, Fellowship Baptist Church

The campus of Fellowship Baptist Church in Springfield, Virginia, is not an impressive sight for those who evaluate the ministry of a church by the size of its facilities. But for people from more than twenty-eight nations, it is a place to go each week to be loved and known and to learn English as a second language. 

The Lord has been pleased to give the church a strategic position through its central location in population-rich Fairfax County, where 144 languages are spoken in the public schools. He has also, and more importantly, given the church the heart and vision to reach the nations in its community with the gospel of Jesus Christ and add them to His church.

When Fellowship launched its English as a Second Language (ESL) ministry three years ago, the Lord brought two students the first week. By the end of the year, there were 105 students registered for three levels of instruction on Thursday nights during the school year. With the exception of one or two, all of the students came by either word of mouth or seeing the lawn banner announcing free English classes.

In order to help its students to understand who God is, the problem of sin, and the need to trust Jesus as Savior, Fellowship wrote a series of Bible lessons that are used each week along with a secular curriculum that emphasizes conversational English and grammar. At the end of the first year, a Sunday morning Bible class was added, which reached another constituency that was also eager to learn English, study the Bible, and absorb the church’s care. Now, in its third year, Fellowship’s ESL ministry is still thriving, and the Lord has given the church more than ninety registered students and a very capable ESL ministry director and staff.

Visit Fellowship on a Sunday and you will find people from as many as ten nations in its morning service. Not all will know the Savior, but as His Word goes forth, the Good Shepherd gathers His sheep—those He has purchased with His own blood for God “out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation” (Revelation 5:9).