In 1999
in Mozambique a group of sixty-five pastors and a handful of missionaries got together for several days to discuss how to overcome unhealthy dependency. During one of the presentations, they began to discuss when the Gospel was first preached in that region of their country. After some discussion the church leaders decided that
the Gospel first came there about 1915. The next question was natural:
“How many of your own missionaries have you sent out since that time?” The answer was,
“None”.
I responded by saying,
“So apparently this gospel is for receiving, but not for sharing. Is that right?”
The question I asked
startled my translator to such an extent that he asked if he could speak with his fellow pastors. I agreed and stepped aside. The translator then
suggested that they all needed to confess the sin of being receivers, rather than givers in relation to the Gospel. Before the conference ended,
the sixty-five pastors appointed a committee to send out their first missionaries. They sent several workers to a ripe mission field in
Northern Mozambique. Later, they sent one couple to
Brazil and another to
Portugal where they could use the Portuguese language they already knew.
It was
local initiative that took hold because of an idea that was planted in the hearts of the pastors.
(for more, see Glen Schwartz, Ideas Can Be More Powerful Than Money, Mission Frontiers, November-December 2011)
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