My driving passion

I’ve done many things in my 22-year career as a missionary. You may recall some of them. I’ve helped plant 12 churches, I’ve learned two Filipino languages, I’ve helped develop an informal church leadership development program, I’ve helped establish a Bible college, I’ve served in a school for missionaries’ children, helped develop two series of home Bible studies, and now I’m teaching in a graduate school.

But a single passion ties all these activities together, a passion that has kept me going through some tough times, a passion that has burned in me since I was a college student—church planting. I learned those languages so I could speak with Filipinos heart-to-heart, and have led home Bible studies in both languages. I’ve helped develop programs to train church leaders so that Filipinos could take over leadership of the church planting projects we were working on and I could turn my attention to planting another church. I helped nurture the school for missionaries’ children so missionary families—including my own—could more comfortably stay on-site. The home Bible study series I helped develop were for use in the initial stages of church planting. And my current role as a seminary professor is meant to help meet needs expressed by urban pastors and church planters.

It doesn’t hurt to step back now and then and put our activities in perspective. The reason I’m writing you about church planting today, though, is to let you know how excited I am to be teaching church planting this semester at Alliance Graduate School. As I meet with my students—several who are in the midst of planting churches—the 3½ hours of each class session just fly by. We’re talking about something very close to the heart of God—starting new churches! What a thrill to be included in this work of God. In the New Testament the church is called Jesus’ bride, his body, and is described as a force against which the gates of hell cannot hold up.

As I consider my joy at such times, I was reminded of those of you who whom we depend upon for all our material needs—our financial supporters. Maybe at this time of the year you find yourself counting your blessings. We’re so happy to count you as one of ours

In Christ,

Chris McKinney