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)
  

Trading Places

By Chuck Frerichs, USA
with Angela Shuff

The United States is not only a sending country—to some, it is a foreign mission field. Over the past few years several missionaries have been sent from Peru and Mexico to help reap the harvest in Washington State.

While in Peru in 2001, Jean and I received a letter from Dr. Don Jennings of Northwest Baptist Home Mission requesting someone to help with a ministry to the Hispanic people of Washington State. We had seen the need of the Hispanics in Washington while on furlough in 2000, but I responded to the request by saying I knew a man in Peru, Juan Carlos Magallanes, that might be interested in helping. Don insisted that because Juan Carlos didn’t speak English, we should come first and explore the opportunity.

At almost sixty-three years of age, I was not thinking of retiring from the foreign field, but when we made another visit to Washington, and drove through Matawa, Connell, Warden, and Othello, God once again laid a burden on our hearts to reach the Hispanics of this area.

In 2002, God gave us peace to leave a land that we had both grown to love, and we accepted the challenge and packed our bags for Washington. Juan Carlos and I had been praying about our futures for about a year, so when Jean and I made the decision to leave Peru, Juan was excited for us and also foresaw a ministry opportunity for himself and his family.

What a change from Lima, Peru! In Washington, we experienced culture shock again after being gone for almost thirty-four years. Even the Spanish spoken by most people we came in contact with was quite different. We had a lot of fun with our new experiences—ironically here in our “home” country.

After arriving in August 2002, Juan Carlos came from Peru to visit us in September. Our outreach started slow, but we were able to make contacts by doing visitation with Pastor Steve McLain of First Baptist Church in Quincy, where over 50 percent of the population is Hispanic. It wasn’t long until the church decided to bring Juan Carlos on staff. His appropriate paperwork and a good salary were provided for him and his family, which was a real blessing as there were no funds for the Hispanic ministry at that time. Juan Carlos has now been working in Quincy for three years. The Hispanic ministry is growing as he works to unite people across racial boundaries.

With the Quincy ministry in good hands, Jean and I turned our attention to Connell, Washington. First Baptist of Connell was open to starting a Hispanic ministry, and through their contacts from Awana, we were able to visit the homes of the children. Some parents came to know Christ and through door to door visitation, we met a few Hispanic believers. From these contacts, a small Bible study was birthed.

We spent a little over a year working in Connell until Pablo Silva and his family arrived from Peru in April 2004. They are supported by Northwest Baptist Home Mission, First Baptist Connell, and offerings from other area churches. It has taken them time to adjust to their new life in the US, but they now have a great opportunity to move ahead with their ministry in Connell.

After once again turning over our ministry to a Peruvian missionary, the Lord moved us to Grandview, Washington in August 2003, where the community is becoming more Hispanic each year. We were asked to help in First Baptist Grandview and until January 2005, we concentrated on the Hispanic ministry there. God then brought Gabriel Ramos and his family, originally from Mexico and sent by Northwest Baptist Home Mission, to join us during the summer of 2004. We worked together until our pastor, Dave Thompson, resigned. I was then named the senior pastor, and Gabriel became the Hispanic pastor. We have emphasized the Hispanic ministry through visitation in Hispanic homes, and God is bringing people to Himself. To continue to grow this ministry, another bilingual person is desperately needed.

Every nation is commanded to take the gospel to foreign lands. For these Hispanic missionaries, the US is their foreign mission field. Praise the Lord for how He is calling servants from other countries to lead Hispanic ministries in Washington. God is uniquely using them to reach these populations with the life-changing message of the gospel.